opinion on cz shotguns?

[greyling22]

Most of the CZ handgun and rifle lines are pretty great. are the cz shotguns supposed to be any good? not beretta/benelli etc good, but 2nd tier good? I think they're turkish huglu guns, not stuff actually made by CZ. I have some interest in the 712 semi auto and in their over/unders. specifically the southpaw sterling (what can I say, I'm a lefty).

back to the 712, how would it compare to things like the tristar viper g2, weatherby sa08, or stoeger m3000?

I shoot about 8 rounds of skeet or sporting clays a year, and another 200 shells at hand thrown skeet off the pond dam. I am not a hard use shotgun guy.

 

[armoredman]

I have a 712, and it is quite good, no issues. I am NOT a shotgun guru, but I can say I had two friends try my 712, and both of them now own one themselves.

 

[oneounceload]

For what you are talking about doing, if it fits you reasonably well, it should do OK for your needs

 

[WestKentucky]

I haven't fired one but u got very excited when I saw one on a shelf locally. I asked to see it and immediately my excitement vanished. The wood was poorly finished, the steel was poorly finished, cycling the action I could feel lots of grit and a general clunking that had me certain that it was of lower quality than the Charles Daly auto I had at the time. They were 399 then which was at least 100 more than that particular gun was worth. In discussions over the next few days my buddies had found 2 other 712s at other shops and had the same opinion. Perhaps it was that production run because I hear good things now, but be careful if you get into the used msrket.

 

[urbaneruralite]

I've been looking hard at the CZ Bobwhite. They seem to be fine if you get a good one. My concern is I have not had a straight answer on them making it right if I got one that did not shoot to point of aim. Add the cost of having the stock cast corrected and it's pushing me in another direction.

That Southpaw looks good, but you can buy a used B gun and have the stock corrected for close to that.

 

[gpb]

I have a CZ Bobwhite shotgun. It's a 12 gauge with 28 inch barrels. It was bought new in 2011 and carries a 2010 serial number.

I'm a casual skeet shooter and this gun is one of three that I use for skeet. Currently I have a little over 5000 rounds through the gun.

The only real problem I've had with the gun was a heavy trigger pull when it was new. The trigger pulls measured close to 12 pounds. I had them reduced to a little over six pounds.

The gun was somewhat stiff to open when new. Not terrible, but noticeable. It smoothed up nicely after 1000 rounds.

Heavy triggers and stiff opening when new seem to be common with CZ double barrel shotguns. The triggers can be adjusted by a gunsmith that knows what he's doing. A word of warning, not all gunsmiths should be trusted with double barrel triggers. If done improperly, the gun may double. For CZ trigger work I recommend CZ or DeHaan.

The wood, metal, fit and finish are fair. They don't match my Browning 725. However, the gun cost 25% what the Browning cost, so I wouldn't expect them to be as good. For what the gun cost, they are pretty good.

The barrels on this gun shoot together and shoot where the gun is pointed. It works well for me for skeet.

I don't know how long the gun will last, as I only have 5000+ rounds through it. There are no obvious signs of abnormal wear. Will it last 100,000 rounds? I don't know. Will it last 50,000 rounds? Probably. The gun will outlast me.

Is this a fine high quality side by side double barrel shotgun? The quick answer is no. It's a fair quality, utilitarian double barrel shotgun. I wanted a low cost side by side to shoot an occasional round of skeet with. It has served that purpose well. I would buy it again.

 

[oneounceload]

Stiff opening is good - better than something that flops open - means it is well-fitted together

 

[greyling22]

ok, so maybe not a cz. But keeping with turkish autoloaders, how about the tristar viper and the weatherby sa-08? I got to handle an sa-08, and while there was not enough drop at the heel, it came with spacers and seemed well put together, and I hear good things about the tristar. Heck, randy wakeman says nice things about the girsan mc 312.

of course for that kind of money I could also track down a used beretta a300.

 

[Hunterdad]

I have two 712's. One is a field model with a wood stock. Bought it sight unseen from a guy in Connecticut for $150. He said it wouldn't cycle, so he cut me a deal on it. With some ammo and $.24 later for an o-ring it has been running great.

My other one is a Utility model that is set up for 3-gun. Hasn't let me down yet.

Great guns for the money.