Cz 452

[toivo]

The muzzle cap on full stocks is cheesy plastic. CZ knows it's not desireable, because they make a metal one to replace it.

AFAIK, the metal muzzle cap you can buy from CZ-USA is the one for the 527 centerfire full-stock model.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I bought a metal one for my 452. You are correct, that it fits more than one model.

 

[I6turbo]

Re: the forend caps, they've made at least three different ones that will fit their FS guns. Not sure if you can see them clearly in the photo below, the the 452 has a plastic one, the 527 and .308 550 have matte-finish aluminum, and the .243 550 has a blued steel one which is nicer than either the plastic or the aluminum. I think they switched from steel to aluminum for the centerfires sometime between 2005 and 2010, but not sure exactly when.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I bought a metal one 2 years ago. It's the matte aluminum. I wish it were blue steel.

 

[bamajoey]

I6turbo,

That 308 you have there is gorgeous. I have a bunch of CZ's but they all look like they were painted with mud-colored paint......but they sure do shoot

 

[I6turbo]

I6turbo,

That 308 you have there is gorgeous. I have a bunch of CZ's but they all look like they were painted with mud-colored paint......but they sure do shoot

The CZ American finish is usually very nice, but the rest of their guns including the FS seem to have a mud finish from the factory, as you say. That "mud" finish photographs well in daylight, but unless you have them in the right light they often don't show as much grain in person as they do for the camera. The group photo is a few months old and the only one of them that still wears the factory finish is the 527. I've refinished the other three over the past 4 months or so. I need to drag them out and take another group photo.

The new finish is as hard to photograph as the factory is easy -- my simple camera just makes it look waaay more reflective than it is in person, so I have to shoot them indoors. The .308 had an amazing piece of wood hiding under the factory finish and looks much better, but I haven't put it back together yet and haven't made a photo.

Here's a partial shot of the .243 550.

 

[S&W620]

I have a 455 Lux, which is pretty much the same as a 452.

It's probably my favorite gun.

I can sit at a bench with only my iPod ear buds in, listen to some tunes and shoot the hair off a gnat's rear end for pennies.

I honestly believe a CZ bolt action in 22LR is a MUST for every shooter. It'll outlast my grandkid's grandkids.

 

[I6turbo]

I honestly believe a CZ bolt action in 22LR is a MUST for every shooter. It'll outlast my grandkid's grandkids.

I agree! I've been shooting for more than 50 years, have owned and fired a good number of guns, and settled on about 30 or so that I really like. I have my preferences like everyone else, but a CZ in .22 LR is hands down the gun that I would feel most comfortable blindly recommending to other shooters. The main risk is not that people won't like them, but that they'll catch "CZitis" like many of us have and end up with 5, 10, or 15 of them within the next 12 - 18 months.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

You can use Scratch X on one of the muddy matte finishes to make it shine like the gloss finish some CZs have. I polished my FS within 10 minutes of walking in the door with it. It now shines like my American.I got lucky with my FS. It has nice striped grain.

 

[I6turbo]

Rubbing them down will increase the gloss, but there's still a dramatic difference between the finishes on the Americans and other CZs. The Americans don't seem to have the same type of muddy stain on them, and don't have the somewhat open pores often present in the finish of the other guns. Here are some shots to illustrate:

American out of the box:


FS out of the box -- the same one that's shown in Post #56 above:

 

[ColtPythonElite]

Lots of newer 455 Americans have the muddy finish. Mine is an early one. It has a nice glossy finish.

 

[I6turbo]

Hmmmm..... That's unfortunate if they are getting away from the nice American finish on the 455s.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I have a few friends with satin and muddy 455 Americans that were purchased within the past 2 years. Of course with CZ the finishes sometimes change without notice. They may be glossy now.

 

[CB900F]

Fella's;

I have a steel muzzle cap that didn't get used on my LH fullstock project, it's the one available in the Brownell's catalog. I have no idea if it'll fit a CZ as is or mods would be needed, but it's now surplus to me. If you think you could use it, PM me.

900F

 

[I6turbo]

I have a few friends with satin and muddy 455 Americans that were purchased within the past 2 years. Of course with CZ the finishes sometimes change without notice. They may be glossy now.

Things do definitely change at CZ without notice. I have a 2013 LH Lux that seems to have a finish in between the nice American finish and the so-called mud finish on most others.

It should be pointed out for the benefit of those who aren't familiar with CZ finishes that the "mud" description is not really fair because the guns usually look very nice despite the fact that the finish doesn't make the most of the underlying grain. And this is the case with many manufacturers, including Anschutz and other quality guns.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

X2 on our description of mud not being meant to indicate a poor quality. It is still nice, just different. The CZ that I have seen with the worst wood was still very nice.

 

[I6turbo]

Here's the dark one put back together.

 

[CB900F]

I6turbo;

That's a gorgeous stock on the dark one. Never let me hear you say you didn't win the wood lottery.

900F

 

[ColtPythonElite]

Yep, that dark one is nice.

 

[I6turbo]

There's some lottery wood hiding under a lot of factory finishes. Here's a "before" photo of the dark one taken indoors.



And the same stock after: