CZ katalog 1 by Kuhada

SCOTLAND’S MACNAB: GROUSE, RED STAG AND SALMON SPECIAL COLLECTOR’S EDITION 2012 SPECIAL COLLECTOR’S EDITION 2012

2012’s

BEST NEW

DAN WESSON ECO p. 10

TESTED: CZ CUSTOM’S 75 LONGSLIDE SUPPRESSOR-READY P-07 DUTY DAN WESSON .45 SPECIALIST

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS EXHIBITION SHOOTER

TOM KNAPP NHL LEGEND BOBBY HOLIK

CZ 75 P-07 DUTY OD p.2

PRINTED IN U.S.A.

USA/CANADA $8.99 Display until 05/07/2012

From the Publishers of GUNS & AMMO

550 912 WINGSHOOTER

AWESOME HUNTS ON THREE CONTINENTS

AFRICA ARGENTINA SCOTLAND

Load up with one of Hodgdon’s 27 smokeless powders. Match your gun, your game, the weather – you’ve got it bagged.

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Justified

By J. GUTHRIE The CZ 75 P-07 Duty has successfully passed its performance review.

Quick Shot

By JOEL J. HUTCHCROFT Bringing everyone’s favorite rimfire calibers together in one fine package.

Dan Wesson ECO

By PATRICK SWEENEY Meet the best 1911 ever built for lightweight carry.

macnab quest

By Mike Schoby A CZ Ringneck and CZ 550 get put to the ultimate test in the highlands of Scotland.

The Retro

By James Tarr THE CZ 83 redefines the classic approach to practical carry.

Style, meet function

By Mike Schoby A new CZ stack gets a double-size workout in Argentina.

Nyati

By Kevin E. Steele Africa’s ‘Black Death’ demands a rifle you can depend upon.

The Specialist

By Patrick Sweeney In the home or on the street, this .45 is poised to protect and serve. SCAN THESE TAGS with your smart phone for more information on your favorite firearms from CZ and Dan Wesson! Get the free mobile app at

http://gettag.mobi

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Anti-Vermin

By Patrick Sweeney This CZ 527 is a tackdriver and a stellar rodentreducer.

Editorial

Medal of Valor

By Bart Skelton Dan Wesson braves the crowded 1911 market with an excellent entry.

Busted

By Eric r. poole The easiest and most affordable way to start shooting trap.

Refined

By STAN TRZONIEC Dan Wesson perfects the concealed carry Officer’s Model.

EDITOR IN CHIEF Eric R. Poole MANAGING EDITOR Gloria Shytles COPY CHIEF Kimberly Jo Dolbee ART DIRECTOR Erik Siembab SENIOR DESIGNER Luu Mai DESIGNER Luke Bouris CATALOG DESIGNER John Podolanko GROUP ART DIRECTOR David Kleckner PRODUCTION MANAGER Terry Boyer PHOTOGRAPHERS Michael Anschuetz Sean Utley

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Jeff Paro CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Andy Goldstein SENIOR VP, GROUP PUBLISHER, HUNTING AND SHOOTING Mike Carney VP, GROUP EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Jim Bequette VP, GROUP PUBLISHER, FISHING Steve Hoffman

VP, STRATEGIC SALES AND MARKETING

Ted Gramkow

VP, CONSUMER MARKETING Peter Watt

A FAMILY AFFAIR

By PAYTON MILLER A “one size fits all” solution to the family shotgun.

PUBLISHER Chris Agnes

VP, MANUFACTURING Deb Daniels VP, CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER

Howard Stevens

FINANCE DIRECTOR Derek Sevcik DIRECTOR OF MARKETING & SALES DEVELOPMENT John White SENIOR DIRECTOR, PRODUCTION

Connie Mendoza

Brawn

By WAYNE VAN ZWOLL The bank-vault bolt-action of the CZ 550 is the standard.

PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. CZ-USA 2012 is published by InterMedia Outdoors Inc., 512 Seventh Avenue, 11th Floor, New York, New York: (212) 852-6649; FAX (212) 302-4472. Copyright 2012 by InterMedia Outdoors Inc. All rights reserved under international and Pan American Copyright Conventions. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission of the publisher is strictly prohibited. CZ-USA 2012 is published by InterMedia Outdoors Inc. under license from CZ-USA.

ENDURANCE RUN

Cover Photography by Sean Utley

By MIKE SCHOBY The CZ 912 autoloader is put to the ultimate field test: 2,000 rounds on Argentina doves.

African Dreams

By Mike Carney A .30-’06 delivers another memorable quest to the dark continent.

Interviews with Tom Knapp and Bobby Holik

Longslide

By JAMES TARR Boring reliability and excellent accuracy in any package from the CZ custom shop.

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Justified the CZ 75 P-07 DUTY has SUCCESSFULLY passed its performance review.

CZ 75 P-07 DUTY

hen this new polymer-framed pistol hit the shelves in 2009 you could have tipped me over with a feather. Most shooters would never think twice about polymer since almost every new design incorporates substantial amounts of plastic, but this pistol was stamped “CZ-USA,” a company that over the years ferociously clung to its walnut-and-steel roots. There have been one or two polymer-frame models in the catalog over the years, but not many. I own a couple of CZ rifles, and they don’t have so much as a molecule of plastic anywhere, not even the magazine follower, and here is a CZ-branded pistol with a polymer frame. Was this blasphemy a good move on the part of this legendary company?

By J. GUTHRIE I Photos by SEAN UTLEY

The P-07 Duty was originally designed to compete for European police and military contracts. And it won. As soon as the specs were released by Ceska Zbrojovka (CZ) in the Czech Republic, the firm’s American subsidiary CZ-USA started clamoring for pistols. It was easy to see that the P-07 had a lot going for it and would appeal to the American public. Although the name implies a full-size

handgun at home on a cop’s duty belt, you wouldn't be wrong for thinking of a compact carry gun instead. The hammerforged barrel is 3.8 inches long, and the pistol weighs just 1.7 pounds. The P-07 had a new glass-reinforced polymer frame but retained a lot of features that made its predecessor, the CZ 75, popular the world over. The CZ 75 has a fol-

lowing in most other countries the way the 1911 is loved in this country, and with good reason. It is extremely reliable, robust and arguably has the best ergonomics of any double-stack pistol on the planet. The guts of the P-07 were a close copy of the CZ 75, and it utilizes the good, old Browning tilt-barrel operating system, but the slide sits inside the frame, giving it a very low center of gravity.

New for 2012 is the suppressor-ready P-07 Duty. The ½x28 threaded muzzle accepts most supressors made for the U.S. market. The sights on this variation are higher than normal. They will clear oneinch diameter supressors.

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The system provides a second-strike capability, something that most striker-fired pistols do not have.

CZ 75 p-07 DUTY TYPE: Double-action, exposedhammer autoloader Caliber: 9mm (tested), .40 S&W Capacity: 16 (9mm) Barrel: 3.8 in.; rifling six grooves, 1:9.7 twist Overall Length: 7.3 in. Weight: 27.2 oz. (1.7 lb.), empty GRIPS: Molded stippling on grip panels, serrations on frontand backstrap Finish: Matte black or OD green Trigger: 11 lb., 5 oz. double-action pull, 4 lb., 1 oz. single-action pull Sights: Fixed; white-dot front and white-outline rear

The pistol ships with an ambidextrous decocker that can be swapped by the user for a manual, two-position safety in just five minutes. One of the major upgrades to the P-07 was the double-action trigger pull, albeit one already found in the CZ 75B. Dubbed the Omega trigger system, it is essentially a simplified version of the original trigger on the CZ 75 but has a slightly lighter and much smoother pull. My Duty averages 11 pounds, five ounces on a double action draw. It is not as light as a strikerfired single action, but for a DA auto, it's a big improvement over the original.

After fieldstripping the pistol, simply cock the hammer, pivot the extractor down and use a flat edge to pry the leftside decocking lever out of the frame. It is attached to the right-side lever by way of

a transfer bar. A small coil spring is captured by the decocking leverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s transfer bar, and it is removed with the lever. The right-side decocking lever can now be rotated up and pulled off the frame.

The system also provides secondstrike capability, something most striker-fired pistols do not have. Once the pistol is fired, the slide cocks the hammer, providing a short, light, singleaction trigger pull of slightly more than four pounds thereafter. Should you want to stop mid-magazine and put the pistol on Safe to assess your target, there is an ambidextrous decocking lever or a manual, two-position safety, depending on how you choose to configure your Duty. That is the coolest feature of the P-07. The pistol ships with ambidextrous decocking levers, but the end user can swap those for a traditional two-position safety lever in about five minutes. The parts are included. The manual safety allows for cocked-and-locked carry, a great option if you are not a fan of the heavy, double-action trigger pulls.

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All P-07 Duty pistols feature an integral accessory rail under the dustcover, a trend that is all but expected on current service autos.

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The angled slide contour not only provides the P-07 Duty with a modern appearance, but guides the eye to the front sight. To install the new safety, slide the right-side lever into place after pressing down the trigger transfer bar. Leave it sticking straight up. Press down on the ejector and slide in the left-side safety lever so the transfer bar locks into the right-side safety lever. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s it. Since it is a manual safety, you do not need the little spring that came out with the decocker. The magazine release can also be swapped from side to side in just a few seconds. CZ-USA is kind enough to provide a handy animation on its Web site that illustrates these procedures better than I could ever hope to write them. The molded frame is very up-to-date and wears the "must-have" tactical rail for lights and lasers. I tried a few different units, and they all attach. The triggerguard is plenty big enough for gloved fingers. The grip panels are reminiscent of grip tape, so there is no worry of losing the pistol, even in moist conditions or while wearing padded gloves. Two small pads of this texture are also molded into the frame just ahead of the trigger to give the shooter a tactile index point for the trigger finger when idly standing by. A lanyard loop sits on the grip frame and could be easily ground off should

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The standard low-profile sight is dovetailed and is located at the most rearward position for the greatest sight radius.

well enough, but night sights are a you want to minimize the profile for must for a carry or duty pistol. CZconcealed carry. USA does have night sights available Having shot my fair share of CZ 75 and is currently working on several pistols, I was very interested to see different heights. how the P-07 handled. I figured the The sights sit on the absolute ends reduced weight might affect balance. of the slide to provide the maximum The grip is very well designed and amount of sight radius, but the hamshares similar angles and dimensions merspur is covered to a degree by a that made the 75 so popular with rear sight that slants backward. Getshooters initially. Under recoil, the low ting to the hammer for a single-action center of gravity makes it very controlfirst shot is a little awkward, though it lable, not that a 9mm or .40 S&W are isn't a huge issue since the first shot real recoil generators. My controlled out of the holster will very likely be pairs were just that, controlled and on double action. In terms of holsters, CZ target. The pistol points naturally and offers a few options and most holsters handles great. made for the XD will work as well. I had no malfunctions due to the Like so many other CZ-USA firearms, proven operating system and a huge the P-07 is a simple, reliable and clean external extractor. Really, the only pistol that is very affordable. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not all rubs against the P-07 were some steel, but the P-07 Duty is all CZ. rough edges on the slide serrations (I slingshot the slide forward on reloads) Accuracy Results and fire controls. The Bullet Avg Group manual safety is a bit on Type (gr.) (in.) the thin side and tough to operate quickly. The Black Hills EXP JHP 115 3.12 Remington +P Golden Saber 124 2.86 polymer sights are Hornady TAP CQ JHP 147 3.16 dovetailed and have a Remington Golden Saber 147 3.03 white, U-shaped outline at the rear notch. The front dot pattern works

Winchester PDX1 JHP

147

3.86

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Quick Shot

CZ 455

Bringing everyone's favorite rimfire calibers together in one fine package.

ot everybody wants a switch-barrel rimfire, but I happen to like the idea. It seems like I’ve always been intrigued with switch-barrel guns, and the CZ 455 holds a lot of appeal for me.

By JOEL J. HUTCHCROFT I Photos by SEAN UTLEY

Living in Illinois, I can’t hunt with high-powered centerfire rifles (well, except for coyotes). On the other hand, I do a lot of hunting with rimfires. A lot of guys I know own separate rifles for shooting .22 LR, .17 HMR and .22 WMR. I actually know a guy who owns 20 to 30 different .22s. I’ve owned quite a few rimfires over the years including a really nice, accurate .22 Magnum. Unfortunately, I sold it years ago, regrettably. I do enjoy hunting with the .22 Magnum, and while I have never owned a .17 HMR, I think it has an application in the small-game and varmint hunting fields as well.

Imagine my interest when I received a CZ 455 American in .22 LR along with an extra barrel in .17 HMR this year. The 455 is nicely endowed. The particulars are shown in the accompanying specifications list, so I won’t go into detail here. Suffice it to say, the 455 feels like a “real” rifle, not like a budget rimfire. Fit and finish is excellent, as is the trigger pull. The trigger on my sample measured 3.8 pounds according to an RCBS trigger-pull gauge. While there was a bit of takeup, it breaks crisply and consistently. As you can see from the accompanying accuracy results, this 201/2-inch-barreled bolt gun is no slouch in the accuracy department.

The bolt mounted safety on the CZ 455 blocks the movement of the firing pin and disconnects the sear from the striker when engaged.

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The biggest advantage is that you can shoot different cartridges in the same action with the same trigger system. Undoubtedly, the nice trigger helps to contribute to its fine accuracy. The advantages of a switch-barrel rimfire are essentially the same as for a switch-barrel centerfire rifle. The biggest one, in my book, is that you can shoot different cartridges—in this case, three—in the

same action with the same trigger system. Doing so allows you to become extremely familiar with that one trigger, and that translates into better shooting. Switching barrels on the 455 is very simple and straightforward. All you have to do is remove the magazine, the bolt and the two stock screws, and pull off the triggerguard, triggerguard plate and

Rings are currently available from various aftermarket manufacturers to grab the proprietary CZ integral dovetail bases. The rubber pad keeps the stock from sliding in the shoulder. The trigger is adjustable for weight.

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CNC laser checkering offers a tactile gripping surface. It's perfectly executed every time.

CZ 455 American Type: Bolt-action Caliber: .17 HMR, .22 LR, .22 WMR (interchangeable barrels) Capacity: 5 Barrel: 20.5 in., 1:16-in. twist (.22 LR, .22 WMR), 1:9-in. twist (.17 HMR) Overall Length: 38.2 in. Weight: 6.1 lb. Stock: Checkered walnut with sling swivel studs Finish: Blued steel, oil wood Trigger: Adjustable; 3.8-lb. pull (as tested) Sights: None; dovetail base for scope mounts; Lux .22 LR barrel includes an adjustable rear and hooded front sight

GalleryofGuns.com See photos and specifications of the gun mentioned in this article, and order from an inventory of 1,000s—all online through Gun Locator. It’s easy and convenient. Shooting enthusiasts can enjoy the Shooting Times Research Center, featuring everything from consumer promotions, news and featured articles to gun reviews, shooter’s ed and the Shooter’s Gateway. Make GalleryofGuns.com one of your favorites!

the stock. Then, loosen the magameantime, I contacted CZ-USA was very therapeutic. The fact that zine housing screw at the rear (one and ordered a .22 WMR barrel to this little rifle produces such tight or two turns is all that's needed) complete my set. With the rifle groups certainly helps to make the and the two barrel-retaining screws. and three extra barrels, I took it to project a fun one. If you haven’t Finally, pull the barrel off the front the range and proceeded to run it fired your favorite rimfire in a while, of the receiver. Insert the new through a rather lengthy shooting you really should get out and shoot barrel, tighten the barrel screws, session. I have to say that doing all it. Better yet, pick up a CZ 455 tighten the magazine housing that rimfire shooting (five, five-shot American with an extra barrel or screw, replace the triggerguard and groups with 12 different loads) two, and join the fun. plate (minus the spacer if you are accuracy results switching to either Standard Extreme 50-Yard Velocity of the magnum (fps) Deviation (fps) Spread (fps) Accuracy (in.) Ammunition chamberings), .17 HMR place the barreled action into the Federal 17-gr. V-Max 2,612 39 87 0.72 stock, and tighten Hornady 17-gr. V-Max 2,547 26 91 0.56 down the stock Winchester 17-gr. V-Max 2,554 24 80 0.69 screws. That’s it. CCI 20-gr. FMJ 2,370 10 20 0.69 It takes less than .22 Long Rifle 10 minutes. (Don't worry, detailed CCI 32-gr. Stinger 1,635 14 27 0.64 instructions ship CCI 40-gr. Select 1,212 9 18 0.95 with each rifle.) Federal 40-gr. Gold Medal Target 1,230 6 14 0.55 I first received Winchester 40-gr. Power-Point 1,282 23 54 0.88 the 455 set up .22 WMR for .22 LR and .17 Federal 30-gr. JHP 2,108 32 63 1.00 HMR. A few days Federal 30-gr. Sierra JHP 1,906 34 74 0.91 later I received the CCI 40-gr. Maxi Mag 1,880 41 73 0.73 Lux .22 LR spare Winchester 40-gr. FMJ 1,812 15 29 2.00 barrel, which has an adjustable rear Accuracy is the average of five five-shot groups fired from a sandbag benchrest. Velocity is the average sight and a hooded of 15 rounds measured 12 feet from the muzzle. front sight. In the www.cz-usa.com

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Dan Wesson

ECO

DW ECO

MEET THE BEST 1911 EVER BUILT FOR LIGHTWEIGHT CARRY.

ome 25 years ago, I found myself with some back pains. It took a while to figure out the exact source, but the basic reason was simple: I worked in a gun shop. Said gun shop was adjacent to a big, dangerous city. We all carried, and my chosen piece was a fullsize, all-steel 1911. As if that wasn’t a contributor, my daily routine involved wearing extra magazines, backup guns, and even the occasional knife. I needed to ease up on the mission load I was packing.

By PATRICK SWEENEY I Photos by SEAN UTLEY

When the venerable Lightweight Commander came along, I snatched it up, and life was good. Well, semi-good. In order for it to be good enough, that 1911 required a certain amount of overhauling. In fact, it required a lot of it. I still have that pistol, but not because it’s my primary carry gun. I have many more choices these days, and the choices from Dan Wesson don’t need any work to be ready. The latest offering fills the niche that my old Commander did. Different though, the Dan Wesson ECO needs no extras. Out of the box, it’s ready for the job—fully loaded with what would have been unobtainable extras back in those days. The ECO is the size of an Officer’s Model 1911. It has a slightly shorter frame (Enough to take one round away from the 1911’s usual magazine capacity). However, this absence also makes the ECO easier and more comfortable to carry. The shorter frame is less likely to hang up on clothing or print against the drape of a shirt or jacket worn over a holstered handgun. And, as a credit to Dan Wesson pistolsmiths, the ECO fea10 cz-usa.com

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tures the problematic corner on its 1911 frame rounded and smooth. When you carry a handgun in an Inside the Waist Band (IWB) holster, your belt acts as a pivot point. The muzzle of your carry gun contacts your hip, the hip contact pushes the muzzle outboard, and the pivot on your belt pushes the back end of the slide into you. In extreme cases, the contact between the grip safety and your body can feel as if the gun is being surgically introduced to your kidney. But, if you loosen your belt, the handgun can flop around. This is perhaps the only instance where being bigger around the middle is a good thing, as the less wasp-waist you have, the less pivot your pistol has. Rather than packing on pounds, you can simply choose to carry a handgun like the ECO that features a shorter barrel and shorter overall length. The Officer’s Model size 1911’s typically have a three or threeand-a-half inch barrel, to preclude the pivot. Hence, the Dan Wesson ECO is a carry gun. (Or for those still packing the full-size 1911, a backup gun.) On top, the ECO wears a set of tritium-driven night sights, one cz-usa.com 11

So, I took the new ECO and I abused it. No, I didn’t throw it in the dirt, dunk it under water, or anything of that nature.

Dan wesson ECO TYPE: Single action, recoil operated semiauto Caliber: 9mm, .45 ACP (tested) Capacity: 7+1 Barrel: 3.5 in. (tested) or 4.25 in., DW Match Overall Length: 7.25 in. (tested) or 8 in. Weight: 1.6 lbs. GRIPS: G10 Finish: Duty black Trigger: Aluminum, 4 lb. Sights: 3-Dot, ledge-style, tritium-filled

The no-glare, 25 lpi slide serrations lead up to the night sight near the muzzle. They’re perfectly blended with the shape of the slide.

insert in each of the front and rear. Line them up as a figure eight, and your sights are easily aligned. The sight design is inspired by the Heinie Straight Eight dot concept, but the rear sight is shaped with a ledge, a front face that is square to the bore. Championed by many respected tactical shooters, these ledge-style sights offer the user an emergency cocking surface. Use your belt, holster, doorframe, whatever is handy, if you’re suddenly restricted to one-handed use and have to manipulate the slide. In-between the sights, in their dovetails, is a serrated rib. The rib is machined out of the top of the

The frontstrap of the ECO wears 25 lpi checkering—the Dan Wesson standard.

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slide, and the serrations on its top are ultra-fine—fifteen lines on top of the slide that’s not much wider than a quarter-inch. When you first see the MSRP of the DW ECO, consider that such a rib and the sights would set you back on the order of $500 and six month’s wait from a custom gunsmith. (More money and longer if the ‘smith is really good and has a backlog to prove it.) The slide perfectly matches the three-inch barrel, with the slide

The ledge-style rear sight is a growing trend in the tactical community since it offers one-handed slide manipulation.

lightening cuts done as abbreviated ball-end cuts. The ball-end cuts were a feature of the earliest 1911s, a feature changed by Colt during World War I to speed up production. It’s just a cosmetic feature, but I like it. Additionally, the slide and frame are dehorned in such a way as to ensure that neither cuts or rips. The frame and mainspring housing have very clean, regular and precise checkering. Twenty-five lpi is the Dan Wesson standard. The frontstrap has been lifted, and combined with the high-ride beavertail grip safety and a slender thumb safety that’s also serrated with a shelf. The ECO is compact, an easyto-pack pistol. On the bottom of the frame there is no bolt-on or added magazine well funnel. This is a compact carry pistol, and that would compromise too much in terms of carrying concealed. However, the magazine well is gently tapered to make reloads easier, without adding bulk. In the old days, for a custom gunsmith to announce that he had arrived, he’d take a standard 1911 and chop it down to www.cz-usa.com

something of this size. The problem was not in the chopping, but reliability department once it had been reduced in size. Many a would-be “master” gunsmith found that he had taken a working 1911 and turned it into a very expensive paperweight. The typical result from a new pistolsmith looking to move up was malfunctions galore. And the easiest way to make those malfunctions appear was to shoot the suspect pistol weak-handed or limp-wristed. So, I took the new ECO and I abused it. No, I didn’t throw it in the dirt, dunk it under water, or anything of that nature. I simply shot it weak-handed only. For all the ammo I had with me, some three hundred rounds straight. Shooting with one’s off hand, or support hand, is typically work. Heavy triggers make it very easy to work into a flinch, or other problem.

On the other hand, the ECO had a nice trigger—one that’s good enough to perform as a competitive Bullseye gun. The end result from this function test was an hour of shooting, and fifteen minutes spent picking up brass. Ten pound’s worth of lead and copper downrange. The ECO refused to co-operate with my plans of finding its weakness. The recoil spring system, and the lack of a barrel bushing, has a lot to do with the reliability of such an abbreviated 1911, but I think it has as much to do with the fact that the pistolsmiths at Dan Wesson know how to make a pistol. Even a compact pistol. Not every pistol is perfect. My ECO features a right-handed safety. Were I to be packing this (particularly as a backup)

The trigger is flawlessly executed.

I’d order an ambidextrous safety to be installed. The grips are nice and durable, but for all that and the very useful gripping ability, the slabs measure a bit thick for my tastes. I’d have to shave them down to thin them, but why when the enormous 1911 aftermarket caters to such things? The sights are useful in two areas: both for being night sights with tritium inserts, and for the rear sight being shaped such that you can use it as a cocking lever. If you have the triple-whammy of a locked slide, only one hand available for work, and an existing threat to deal with, you can use the rear sight to quickly rack the slide and get things going your way again. I like the ECO—a lot. For a guy who has a safe full of 1911s, many of those expensive custom 1911s, I’m really tempted by this one. As the one I obtained for testing was only the second production sample from Dan Wesson, they’re going to want this one back. How unfortunate. Given the amazingly reasonable price this one lists for (I mean, for a lightweight Officer’s Model, dripping with custom features) it won’t take long to save up for another. Get yours, or get in line behind me.

Accuracy and reliability are finally acheived in an Officer’s Model 1911. The combination has been accomplished with a carefully fitted bushingless match barrel and slide fit along with a full length guide rod.

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Quest Macnab

CZ RINGNECK CZ 550

A CZ Ringneck and CZ 550 get put to the ultimate test in the highlands of Scotland.

he tale of the Macnab stems from the 1925 novel John Macnab written by John Buchan. In summary, the book centers around three high rolling Scots who have become bored with their daily lives so they concoct a plan to add a little bit of zest to stave off the mundane.

By Mike Schoby

The three sporting gentlemen put pen to paper and send three estates a letter. In the letter they notified the estate’s owner of their intent to poach either a stag or a salmon from their property in the next 48 hours and deliver the said salmon or stag to the door of the main house. If the estate owner accepted the challenge and if they get away undetected the estate owner needs to make a 50 pound donation to charity. If they are caught, the offenders will have to make a 100 pound donation to charity. To protect their real identity they collectively signed the letter with the Nom de plume, John Macnab. From this original tale the Macnab challenge grew into an organized sporting adventure. Today, it is generally recognized as shooting a stag, a brace of grouse and catching an Atlantic salmon all in one day…I can only guess as to why they shortened time frame and increased the bag limit, but that’s just how it is. I read about the Macnab off and on in sporting titles over the years and then last season while sitting in an elk camp with Alice Poluchova 14 cz-usa.com

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of CZ-USA, I suggested we try for a Colorado Macnab—elk, grouse and trout. She rebutted, “Why don’t we just do the real thing?” Having a shortage of red deer, red grouse and Atlantic salmon in my neck of the woods, I decided to start looking for an outfitter who could accommodate. We found the ideal kilt-wearing candidate at the SCI show in Reno cz-usa.com 15

My first shot was not far behind him, and after a quick lead recalculation, the second charge brought him down to earth.

Nevada—Michael McCrave, (Michael McCrave Hunting Limited, huntingvacationsscotland.com) “I can organize it,” he said, “but I’ll have to find the perfect setting, one with a good population of both grouse and stags and a quality river in close proximity. Let me check into it and I’ll get back to you.”A couple of weeks passed before Michael called,

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“I found it! The estate borders Balmoral castle (for those unfamiliar with Balmoral, it is the Queen of England’s summer residence in Scotland...not a bad zip code) and the fabled River Dee flows through it.”It sounded ideal so we booked a week for later that fall. We quickly found out that booking a hunt in the United Kingdom is the

easy part, handling the details of actually hunting there is something entirely else. Luckily, Michael made it possible (without his help, bringing a firearm into Scotland would be akin to climbing Mount Everest in bare feet). After flying into London then onto Edinburgh, Scotland, we were met at the airport and whisked away to the hunting estate near the

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town of Ballater. After briefly meeting with the gamekeeper Ab (gamekeepers, as the name implies, are the guide in charge of the hunt for a particular estate), we unpacked, sighted in and readied ourselves for the following morning. Dawn broke clear and still, the sun barely poking above the mountain as we finished the last of our tradi-

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tional Scottish breakfast. Contrary to popular belief it was not whisky, but bangers and eggs. It had been decided that I would get all of day

one to try for my Macnab and Alice would have all of the second day. Climbing into Land Rover Defender 110s, we headed up the mountain and quickly exchanged the heavily forested bottomland for the open heather-covered moors. We had barely reached the top when we spotted a covey of red grouse working their way through a thick patch of heather. I jumped out and uncased a 28-gauge CZ Ringneck. Plunking two shells in the twin chambers, I headed after them. The covey ducked down to hide then as I neared, they burst from the thick cover as if shot from a cannon. Even though I expected it, I was still startled and before I knew it the birds were quickly rocketing out of range. My first barrel caught a bird square and dropped him, the second just pulled feathers and the bird set his wings and sailed across a valley

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I pushed the trigger forward to set it, and then slowly started applying light pressure as the crosshairs settled on the shoulder.

with the rest of the covey. One for two, not excellent, but not a bad way to start off the morning. Putting the bird in the back of the Rover, I cased the gun and we headed off again in search of stag, but hadn’t gone 100 yards before a single grouse scurried from the light heather to the heavy stuff and sat tight. Scarcely believing my good luck, I exited the vehicle and with a quick, high-legged step through the cover headed to where I last saw it. When I reached within 30 yards, the grouse exploded upward, instantly catching the wind. My first shot was not far behind him, and after a quick lead recalculation, the second charge brought him down to earth. It was barely 9:30 and I had one leg of my Macnab eliminated. We crested the top of a highland moor, shut off the truck and started glassing. As luck would have it, stags were everywhere. It was all fair chase—no high fences on this 18 cz-usa.com

property—so seeing this many stags is not always the norm. A group of 300 animals fed quietly on the far mountain a mile away, while a group of 50 or so fed directly above us. What caught our attention was a bachelor group of six stags. In the group were two shooters and they were in a position for a relatively easy stalk. Checking the wind, we decided the best route would be to circle around the herd and work in from the downwind side. After walking for a mile or so we crept up over a small ridge that was keeping us out of sight from the group of stags. They were still there, now bedded 250 yards away. Crawling on hands and knees we closed the distance to 200 yards. I crawled up next to Ab and cycled the bolt to chamber a round. The stag was slightly quartering away as I laid the CZ 550 in .30-’06 over my pack placed on a small heather mound. I pushed the trigger forward to set

it, and then slowly started applying light pressure as the crosshairs settled on the shoulder. At the shot, the stag dropped instantly. The Federal cartridge propelling the 180-grain Trophy Bonded Tip bullet worked perfectly. It was barely past noon and I had two of the three species for the Macnab. We loaded up the Land Rovers and headed off the hill in search of the elusive Atlantic salmon. Within a half an hour we were out of our hunting boots and into a pair of waders that I had exchanged Ab the Game Keeper for Ian the Ghillie (yes, everyone has a title and role in the sporting life of Scotland). Ian is part guide, part biologist, and part management professional. He has a 14-mile stretch (or “beat” as it is called locally) of the Dee and controls the number of people who fish it—for our little endurance test he reserved several of his best pools for our exclusive use. www.cz-usa.com

Walking down to the first pool I caught a glimpse of a large salmon break the surface. Then another, and another. This river was loaded with fish! Considering most people do not achieve the Macnab because of the difficulty in catching an Atlantic salmon, I felt lucky. I truly hit the right time and the right place. I unspooled some line off the reel and Spey cast across the river. As the fly drifted to a stop below, I took one step downstream and recast, swinging the fly across the pool again. I repeated this process until I had worked through the entire pool from top to bottom covering every possible lie a salmon might inhabit. No fish, but no worries. It was probably just a matter of trying a different fly. Reselecting a new pattern, I worked the pool again. Then I did it again with a different rod rigged with a sinking line. I was starting to get worried when the line came to a sudden stop. As instructed, I paused for a second before lifting the rod tip to set the hook. The fish was there, strong and heavy—fresh from the sea and ready to fight. I could feel his power as he shook his large hooked-nose head back and

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forth in the current. Then as quickly as he was on, he was off. Heartbroken, I fished for the next several hours, not taking a break to eat or drink. I only threw in the towel when it became too dark to see the water. The River Dee only gives so many chances and that one was mine. So as the clock ticked down to midnight I resigned myself to the fact that the Macnab had eluded me, but in the end it was a worthwhile adventure that I’m glad I tried. Along the way, a unique slice of the sporting tradition Scotland offers was revealed. Over the next couple of days Alice took a nice stag and a brace of grouse as well, but like me, no Atlantic salmon filled her net. We both plan to return, and I am confident we’ll get the job done. We’ll have a secret weapon next time. Alice let it slip that CZ-USA could possibly offer a limited edition, harpoon rifle— fittingly called the model Dee.

IF YOU GO Traveling to the UK with firearms is no easy task. In fact, it is a monumental bureaucratic pain that any civilized country with a head on its shoulders should be embarrassed to subject hunters to. Be that as it may, if you want to bring a firearm, you can do it but you have to jump many ridiculous hoops. The first step involves using a reputable outfitter and getting all of your paperwork turned into that outfitter months ahead of your trip. After packing a rifle and shotgun through England and Scotland, I don’t care do it again and recommend borrowing one of Michael McCrave’s rifles and shotguns while you’re there. Mike McCrave Hunting Limited huntingvacationscotland.com Ian Murry, Dee Fishing Ghillie ianmurry.riverdee@btinternet.com cz-usa.com 19

Retro

The

CZ 83

THE CZ 83 redefines the classic approach to practical carry. By JAMES TARR I Photos by SEAN UTLEY

ith a massive surge in the number of states allowing for concealed carry, the number of people who are getting firsthand knowledge of what it’s like to carry a firearm regularly has gone up dramatically. For years, many of those people could only “talk the talk.” Now that they can “walk the walk” they are discovering that carrying a full-size pistol isn’t always an option.

Due in large part to America’s emerging CCW nation, the number of compact and subcompact pistols— most with polymer frames—has exploded. New owners, however, soon learn that ease of carry does not necessarily translate into an enjoyable experience at the range. Small, light pistols are easy to carry, but are hard to aim and shoot accurately at any speed. And try shooting a lot of rounds during practice. Nobody takes a pocket gun out to the range for a day of plinking. After bouncing from one end of the spectrum to the other, many of us who carry are choosing a midsize pistol to be more practical. It’s the middle ground between shootability and ease of carry. This is exactly where the CZ 83 is at home. The CZ 83 is an all-steel 12+1 .380 automatic with a 3.8-inch barrel and a weight of 26 ½ ounces. It’s also available in a blued finish, or this satin nickel version seen here. Besides the growing trend to chamber carry guns in .380, this one can also be had in a .32 ACP variety. In .32, the CZ 83 comes with a 15round magazine. Although CZ refers 20 cz-usa.com

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to this as a compact gun, it’s not a pocket pistol. Rather, it’s a midsize steel gun built durable enough to withstand even the rigors of police or military duty. The CZ 83 is nearly identical to its predecessor, the 12shot 9x18 Makarov-chambered CZ 82. The CZ 82 could be found in the holsters of European law enforcement up until just a few years ago. Not surprisingly, the CZ 83 has a very European appearance (less the Euro magazine release behind the floorplate of the magazine). The slide is reminiscent of a PPK, but the similarity ends there. To be honest, the first time I saw a CZ 83 my expectations were low, but the more I shot it the more I liked it. One of the reasons for my growing favor toward it is that the slide has such an unusual profile and because it has a fixed barrel. Fixed barrels are good for two reasons: They make the gun more accurate, and they put the bore very low in the hand. This reduces felt recoil and muzzle rise. As opposed to most American-designed pistols where the serial number is marked on the frame, the CZ 83 wears its matching serial numbers on the cz-usa.com 21

While it’s roughly the same size as many popular nines, the CZ 83 is much more concealable.

Once apart, should not be difficult for anyone who the pistol reveals has ever done the same with a 1911— a polished feed as the procedure is identical. Push in TYPE: DA/SA, semiauto ramp that peron the firing pin with a punch until it Caliber: .32 ACP, .380 ACP fectly blends with clears the firing-pin stop, then slide (tested) CAPACITY: 12 (.380), 15 (.32) the barrel. As the the stop downward while covering the BARREL: 3.8 in. barrel is fixed to end of the slide with a finger so the OVERALL LENGTH: 6.77 in. the frame, that firing-pin assembly doesn’t fly across WEIGHT: 26.5 oz feeding angle will the room. CZ-USA has the instruction GRIPS: Black plastic stay the same manual posted on its Web site, as well FINISH: Satin nickel no matter what. as a video showing how to field strip TRIGGER: 12 lb. DA/5 lb. SA This gets part the pistol if you have any trouble. SIGHTS: Three dot, green credit for the 100 In this age of defensive auto pistols luminescent, fixed (front), percent reliability the size of cigarette lighters chamdrift adj. notch (rear) I’ve experienced bered for .380 and 9mm, the thought with the CZ 83. of purchasing (much less carrying an the sights briefly with a flashlight, The recoil spring fits around the all-steel .380) might seem unnecesthey glowed as brightly as the finest barrel and is a simple single-coil sary to people. While there is no tritium insert sights available. After 10 design. After removing the grips by arguing that 9mm, .40 S&W and minutes, they still glowed, but more way of the slot-head screws, you .45 ACP are all more powerful and faintly. Whether or not they’ve been can see that the mainspring fits effective cartridges than the .380 exposed to light and glow, these dots around the hammer strut. Further ACP, the fact is that if private citizens provide a very good sight picture. disassembly for cleaning or mainteever need to use their legally carried The hammer is a spur type and nance is not recommended. firearms, the lion’s share of those comes down far enough there might If extensive firing has been done, encounters will occur at conversabe hammer-bite issues for people CZ recommends taking apart the tional distances with no intervening with very large hands using a high magazine and firing-pin mechanism. barriers apart from clothing. While grip, but I didn’t experience such Removing the firing-pin assembly it’s roughly the same size as many issues. The safety body actually forms a part of the beavertail on the frame just under the hammer and pivots on a pin. This design seems robust, but results in an unexpected gap between safety and frame at the rear of the pistol when the safety is in the Off position. There are only a few ways to disassemble a pistol with a barrel permanently attached to the frame. To disassemble the CZ 83, first remove the magazine and make certain that the pistol is unloaded. Lower the safety off. Pull down on the trigger guard until it clicks and stays open. Retract the slide all the way back, then lift up on the rear of the slide. It will pivot upward, and once it is high enough to clear the Finished in blue, the controls and grip contrast well on a satin nickel-finish rear of the barrel, pull the slide asCZ 83. Controls are oriented in the same ergonomic locations as most classic semiauto pistols. sembly off the front of the pistol.

CZ 83

The trigger guard wears checkering for those shooters who prefer to place the support hand’s index finger in front of the guard during firing.

barrel hood and slide. As the barrel is gun personally, but I’ve also rusted recoil. The front of the triggerguard attached to the frame, technically the blued guns with sweat. That won’t is checkered as well, since there are barrel is the receiver. happen with nickel. The doublesome that like to place the support Like its big brother—the CZ 75— action trigger pull on my CZ 83 is hand’s index finger on it. the 83 is a DA/SA automatic that stiff and noticeably heavier than The flattop slide is serrated, and can be carried cocked-and-locked what I’ve experienced with used 82s the CZ is equipped with black plastic in Condition One. The ambidexand 83s. That’s very common, and grips, the bulging palm sections trous safety is not a decocker. The the great thing about all-steel trigger of which are checkered. The grips safety cannot be engaged when the systems is that the more times the feature a prominent ridge below hammer is down, but the pistol does trigger is pulled, the smoother and a finger groove, which made for a have an internal hammer rebound lighter that pull gets. CZs are built comfortable grip but made it almost safety. After decades of shooting for a lifetime of hard use. impossible to access the magazine 1911s, I use a thumb-high hold with The frame of the pistol is big release without turning the pistol in everything, and the safety of the CZ enough for me to get my whole my hand. The magazine baseplates 83 lends itself well to this. It clicks on hand around it, which is a definite are removable for cleaning, and the and off in a very positive manner. The plus when it comes to managing magazines have three unmarked thumb safety is ambidextrous, index holes at the rear to witas is the magazine release. ness the fourth, eighth and 12th I wouldn’t want to carry the rounds levels in the magazine. pistol Condition One until I had The followers were constructed practiced getting the safety off of black polymer. during the drawstroke a number The sights on the CZ 83 are of times. The serrated safety good for a gun this size. The isn’t small, but my spoiled rear is a dovetailed notch, and thumb is used to the oversize the front is a post slid in from combat ledges now found on the front and secured with a roll 1911 thumb safeties. pin. On used CZ 82s and 83s, For this evaluation I tested a I’ve seen plain black rear sights satin nickel CZ 83. The frame combined with a vertical whiteand slide have a matte nickel line insert in the front sight that finish, but all the controls and works quite well. The sights on small parts are matte blued this new gun wore three, bright (including the triggerguard). I green dots. This turned out to Like the CZ 75 and DW 1911, the CZ 83 features a thumb safety that locks the hammer to the rear. prefer the looks of an all-blued be luminous paint. When I hit 22 cz-usa.com

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I know someone who recently bought a CZ 83 for a female new to shootING, and the choice makes perfect sense to me.

popular polymer nines, the ideal self-defense pistol the CZ 83 is much more is not only one you have concealable. That extra with you, but one that you weight is certainly an don’t mind practicing with advantage over the lightand that hits hard enough weights when it comes time to get the job done. The to pull the trigger. older I get, the more I realAmmunition manufacturize that bullet placement ers didn’t sit idly by while is more important than gun companies introduced caliber. If the pistol you’re more variations of carry pisshooting has so much tols using .380, so premium muzzle blast and recoil hollow points in this caliber With its ejection port profile, slide serrations and exposed that you hate to practice extractor, the CZ 83 exhibits a relationship to the CZ75. are easy to find. Modern with it or can’t find your defensive ammunition is sights after the first shot, far superior to what you could find on it’s not serving you well. Personally, as fast as we could pull the trigger. the shelves just 20 years ago, and the I’d carry a .380 before I’d carry a At 15 yards the front sight would .380 ACP JHPs of today are designed .357 Magnum. Even with premium rise up to the top of the silhouette to expand even when fired out of the JHPs, the CZ 83 is tame. And while target under recoil, then go straight ultra-short barrels of subcompacts. a 90-grain JHP at 1,000 fps is no back down to nestle in the rear sight. Taking the CZ 83 out to the range magnum thunder hammer, thousands Because the CZ is so flat-shooting, was fun. Not only does the fixed of violent threats have been fended I was able to track the front sight barrel provide great accuracy, recoil off by less powerful cartridges. The during the entire recoil impulse. I know someone who recently isn’t a four-letter word. Range volCZ 83 has good ergonomics, is very bought a CZ 83 for a female new unteers couldn’t outrun the gun, and controllable at any speed, holds 12 to shooting, and the choice makes we could keep all shots inside the +1 rounds, and has an MSRP of only perfect sense to me. Remember, A-zone of an IPSC target at 10 yards $444. What’s not to like?

While the all-steel CZ 83 is not a pocket gun, it is a concealable, light-recoiling pistol that points naturally and can be had in a choice of a blued finish or satin nickel.

accuracy results Make

Bullet Weight (gr.)

Avg. Velocity (fps)

Standard Deviation

Group (in.)

Black Hills FMJ

922

2.2

Cor-Bon Pow’R Ball

1,077

3.2

Hornady XTP JHP

981

1.8

Accuracy results are the averages of four five-shot groups at 25 yards from a sandbag rest. Velocities are the averages of 10 shots measured with a Shooting Chrony F-1 Alpha chronograph 12 feet from the muzzle.

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„If future generations ask us what we are fighting for [in World War Two], we shall tell them the story of Lidice.“ William Franklin Knox, United States Secretary of the Navy (1940 – 1944)

T h e L I d I c e M ov I e c o M e S T o M ov I e T h e aT r e S a L S o I N T h e U S a ! ThIS IS The STory oF The czech vILLage oF LIdIce, The STory oF ordINary peopLe, Who ThroUgh aN abSUrd coINcIdeNce caMe INTo The Way oF hISTory. The ScreeNpLay by zdeNeK MahLer, oFFerS a vIeW oN The TragIc FaTe oF LIdIce IN The 2Nd WorLd War FroM aN UNUSUaL perSpecTIve. IT coMeS cLoSer To The MISForTUNe oF peopLe IN LIdIce ThroUgh INTerperSoNaL reLaTIoNS, eSpecIaLLy Love, WhIch STaNdS aT The begINNINg oF The WhoLe STory. ThIS IS The epIc FILM FULL oF eMoTIoNS, WhIch poINTS oUT hoW SeeMINgLy a SMaLL ThINg aS a Love LeTTer caN chaNge The coUrSe oF hISTory aNd caUSe a Tragedy.

NoMINee IN The eUropeaN cINeMa prIzeS coNTeST

ČESKÁ ZBROJOVKA SINCE 1936

More INFo aT

SpoNSor oF The LIdIce MovIe

WWW.czUb.cz

Style,

Meet Function A new CZ stack gets a double-size workout in Argentina. By MIKE SCHOBY

hether your game is sporting clays, trap, skeet or the upland fields, there is no shortage of sexy stack-barreled offerings, so why enter another beauty into the pageant?

“Filling a niche is what we were after,” says Dave Miller of CZ-USA. “There are lots and lots of good over/unders out there today, a fact we fill well with our Redhead, Sporting and Upland models, but we saw a need to have something with some stylish good looks, Old World class but at a price that still allowed guys to use it in the field.” Noting the amazing scrollwork and hand-engraved sideplates, I broke open the gun and inserted a brace of filthy-burning Argentine The Wingshooter is a full-size gun without being unduly heavy or cumbersome. It straddles the line between being light enough to carry but not kicking like a mule.

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loads that substituted for real cartridges into the chrome-lined bores. I spied a lone dove screaming across the milo field, headed in our direction. Nodding as if I were still paying attention to Dave, I shouldered the gun and pulled feathers with the bottom barrel. The dove went into a tailspin, rapidly fluttering to stay aloft when the top barrel caught him and brought him down for keeps. “Well, it shoots as good as it looks,” I responded. I snapped open the gun; the hulls ejected over my shoulder, leaving twin contrails and that oh-so-good smell of freshly burnt powder that not even Chanel No. 9 can compete with. I grabbed two more cartouches and closed the breech. The boxlock action was smooth but tight and promised to wear in very well.

The Wingshooter balanced remarkably light and easy between the hands, and the 28-inch barrels provided enough muzzle weight to aid follow-through. But those were just the mechanical specifications; the real delight was in the finer details. For a production-grade gun, the Turkish walnut stocks and Schnabel fore-end were remarkable, and well-executed 18-lines-per-inch checkering provided purchase as well as a classic look. While not needed for doves, the three-inch chambers and interchangeable chokes make it a gun for all seasons, all game. Tipping the scales at just over six pounds, the Wingshooter is a full-size gun without being unduly heavy or cumbersome. It straddles the line between being light enough to carry but not kicking like a mule. The doves were starting to fly now, and I brought down bird after bird with surprising regularity. As anyone who has stood next to me on a sporting clays course will attest, I am no fine specimen with a scattergun. My brain has been too-long intoned with sight alignment, breath control and trigger squeeze to be any more than just passable with a shotgun, but on that sunny day in Cordoba, Argentina, I felt like Tom Knapp…at least until Tom Knapp, CZ-USA pro shooter, strolled down the field edge to see what all the noise was about. Handing his CZ 912 autoloader to a field technician (they used to be called bird boys in a less www.cz-usa.com

CZ WINGSHOOTER PC era), Tom turned to me and said in his characteristic booming voice, “Mind if I give that a try?” Even though I knew he was going to make my feeble attempts at wing shooting look like I was an amateur, I begrudgingly handed over the gun. The first dove dropped without a twitch; the second unlucky pair dropped out of the sky in unison. After that, the puffs of feathers blended into each other, with Tom and Dave (who is Master-class and a good trick shot in his own right) taking turns with the Wingshooter, making the sky rain feathers. When

straight shooting cz wingshooter wasn’t a challenge anymore, the duo TYPE: Over/under turned to off the GAUGE: 12, 3 in. shoulder, then one Capacity: 2 Barrel: 28 in. handed, then over Overall Length: 45.5 in. the head and finally Weight: 7.3 lb. from the hip. Their Stock: Turkish walnut miss percentage Finish: Blued didn’t leave the single Trigger: Selectable digits. I made a reso Sights: Brass bead lution then and there to either get better with a shotgun or start shooting with because even if I can’t ever shoot worse shots. No matter what I do, I’ll like a master, at least I can look likely bring the Wingshooter along good missing.

Triple River have offered their services as custom gun makers and professional gunsmiths for 30 years. Located in the heart of the Ozarks in Warsaw, MO, Triple River’s gunsmiths bring over 80 years of collective experience to your gunsmithing project. Whether you are looking to repair your grandfather’s gun or if you want to have a custom gun built from scratch, we are here to satisfy your needs and desires. We take pride in every firearm that we have the privilege to work on.

Triple River offers general gun repair, rebluing, restocking, refinishing as well as sales for firearms of all makes and models. We specialize in rebarreling, restocking and customizing CZ and Brno rifles, general gun repair, rebluing, restocking, and refinishing firearms of all makes and models. Triple River is the only CZ-USA authorized warranty center for Safari Classics rifles. Triple River is a federally licensed firearms manufacturer and dealer. Rifles and shotguns can be shipped directly to our location for services, and when complete, can be shipped directly back to you with no additional paperwork required. Our shop is open 6 days a week, Monday - Friday from 8am - 4pm Saturday from 8am - noon.

Triple River Gunsmithing are custom gun makers and professional gunsmiths for over 20 years located in the heart of Ozarks in Warsaw, MO 619 Commercial St. Warsaw, MO 65355 • phone: 660. 438. 2004 • website: www.tripleriver.net • email: info@tripleriver.net

Nyati

CZ 550 safari magnum

Africa’s ‘Black Death’ demands a rifle you can depend upon.

f all the animals I have hunted around the world, none fires my blood as does the Cape buffalo. Were I able, I would ceaselessly hunt nyati until I grew sick of the pursuit. Then I would concern myself with other matters and interests, all the while realizing that eventually the buffalo madness would return and my lust for the chase would send me back into the bush, following their spoor.

By Kevin E. Steele

Over the last 10 years I have come to rely upon the CZ 550 Safari Magnum rifles as my choice for Cape buffalo and other dangerous game. In that time I have taken four buffalo and a slew of plains game with these rifles, and my life has often depended upon them. Rugged, reliable and deadly accurate, the CZ 550 Safari Magnum is the choice of most African professional hunters, and I have learned through hands-on experience why this is the case.

WHAT MAKES A BUFFALO RIFLE? First and foremost and without exception, a buffalo rifle has to fire every time you pull the trigger. Selecting a rifle for dangerous game is the same as selecting a handgun for self-defense. Reliability must be your primary concern, and your final selection must be rendered dispassionately and without compromise. Second, a proper buffalo rifle must feed, extract and eject without a hint of sticking or jamming. Third, the rifle needs to be rugged enough to stand up to the rough use it will receive. Make no mistake—properly hunting buffalo is a very physical activity. At first light you’ll be riding 28 cz-usa.com

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along the two-tracks, cutting the blocks in search of fresh sign. When it is found, the foot chase begins, and you’ll be dragging your rifle for hours as you follow the trackers through dense thorn thickets and jesse. You’ll belly-crawl across sand-filled dongas, clamber up and over termite mounds and in some cases wade through waist-deep estuaries and marshes. Count on the fact that your rifle will take a beating, to say nothing of yourself. Finally, which may surprise some, the rifle needs to be accurate, and by that I mean capable of putting one bullet atop the other at a distance of 50 yards.

THE SAFARI MAGNUM The CZ 550 Safari Magnum is often referred to as a Mauser 98 clone. It’s true to some extent, but the real story is that the CZ 550 action is an improvement over the century-old Mauser design. Such new features include a heavier firing pin with a unique locking nut that retains the powerful coil mainspring on the firing pin. Also, the weight of the firing pin combined with the coil spring delivers both fast lock time and reliable ignition of even the hardest primers. cz-usa.com 29

Rugged, reliable and deadly accurate, the CZ 550 Safari Magnums are the choice of most African professional hunters.

Once fresh spoor is found, the hunters dismount, make a plan and begin the follow-up.

Additionally, the CZ 550 has a more robust bolt stop and fixed ejector. Notable as well is the ejector groove, which is cut through the bottom of the undercut bolt head rather than through the locking lug as on the original Mauser. The 550 undercut bolt face helps prevent doubleloading, as can happen with a fully recessed bolt face on a Mauser. Finally, the CZ uses a fore-end screw that mates to a dovetail block inset into the underside of the barrel. This creates a third point of contact with the stock in addition to the normal fore and aft guard screws. All combine in a rifle that‘s brutally tough. I have found as well that the CZ hammer-forged barrels are consistently accurate—whether it’s a rimfire or a magnum. The single-set trigger is reliable and easily adjustable. In the “un-set” mode, they break cleanly at around three to four pounds of pressure, which is perfect for a dangerous-game rifle. Setting the trigger at the range helps the shooter determine the utmost accuracy potential that the rifle is capable of. No other manufacturer of production rifles offers such great range of calibers for dangerous game as 30 cz-usa.com

Trackers carry a hindquarter of buffalo after a successful hunt, as the PH leads the queue and the hunters follow.

CZ. The Safari Magnums can be had in .375 H&H, .404 Jeffery, .416 Remington, .416 Rigby, .450 Rigby, .458 Winchester, .458 Lott, .500 Jeffery and .505 Gibbs.

HUNTING NYATI Having settled the issue of which rifle to take on a buffalo hunt, let’s take a look at actually hunting Cape buffalo. First and foremost, remember that the key to killing buffalo is this: Never shoot until you are absolutely certain of where your bullet is going to hit, and as Robert Ruark correctly stated, use enough gun.

This may come as a shock, but based on my personal experience the .375 H&H cartridge does not make an ideal buffalo or elephant rifle. I have taken buffalo with the .375 and witnessed other hunters take a half dozen more in my presence. All the buffalo died, but none dropped to the first shot. When I take the shot, I want the buffalo down and unable to get back up. Finishers are cheap insurance, but a follow-up on a wounded bull never gives you better than 50/50 odds that things may end in tragedy. A much better choice for buff and elephant begins with the .404 Jeffery and one of either the .416 Remington or Rigby. My personal choice has become the .458 Lott, a round that has proven itself to amateur and professional hunters in the decade following its commercial introduction. In fact, I was the first to take a buffalo with the commercially loaded Lott in 2001, and it has not let me down since. The first step in putting down a buff with one shot is to get close— and then get closer. Fifty yards is ideal, and 25 is even better. Following years of conversation with other www.cz-usa.com

hooves of the oncoming buffalo filled our ears and rose to a mighty crescendo as they rapidly covered the 300 yards between us. A rising cloud of dust appeared to our front, and trees. The PH then sent a tracker we suddenly realized that instead of out to the flank and told him to run passing to our flank, the herd was upwind of the herd. It was his hope headed in our direction. Catching sight of the leading that the scent of the tracker coming element in the herd, our PH shouted back to them on the breeze would for my wife and the trackers to get send the herd back our way in their behind some trees to our rear, while retreat. Ideally, we would be able he and I faced down the stampedto watch them as they passed and ing buffalo. hopefully pick out a good bull on the The PH then began shouting at the edge of the herd. oncoming buffalo while he jumped Things don’t always go the way up and down, waving his hat above you plan. The tracker did his job, and his head. I immediately followed as his scent wafted to the buffalo, his example, all the while doubting they abruptly turned and stampeded his sanity, not to mention my own. back along their trail. The rumbling Incredibly, the leading buffalo stopped not 20 yards in front of us, as we jumped around like lunatics. The buffalo to the rear of the front element rammed into those ahead, nudging them closer toward us. As the buffalo stopped in a lurch, we snapped our rifles to our shoulders and covered those animals closest to us, the muzzles of our guns swaying back and forth across the snorting phalanx as we searched their eyes, hoping see a clue as to their next intentions. That’s what we watched— their eyes. The standoff lasted only seconds, but it seemed far longer. Abruptly, the herd turned to our left and bolted off, a mass of surging black bodies amid swirling dust as they gave us a berth of mere yards. As the herd This bull fell to the author’s 550 Safari magnum in .458 thundered by, we never did Lott. The rifle is topped with an Aimpoint dot sight. see a good bull.

hunters and experienced PHs, it appears to me that most buffalo horror stories begin with the hunter either botching his first shot or not having a thorough understanding of the Cape buffalo’s anatomy from all angles. Rest assured that a heart/lung shot will indeed kill a buffalo, but it takes time to happen. Within that time, you have given that buff the opportunity to charge, should he desire to die in that manner. When the time comes to pull the trigger on a buffalo, I always advise to forego the classic heart-lung shot and aim for the high shoulder, the result of which is broken shoulders or a shattered spine, both of which will anchor that buff to the ground. With all that said and digested, though, remember clearly that despite all your experience, knowledge, skill and best intentions, things can still go frighteningly wrong. Not all dangerous encounters result from a charge of a wounded buffalo. Here are a few tales from the dark side.

TALES TO BE TOLD Our group had picked up the trail of a good-size herd that was moving quickly toward an area of heavy cover. They were looking for an afternoon nap. After awhile, our PH realized that the buff would get to the thick stuff before we were able to catch up to them. Knowing that sorting a bull out of the herd once they reached sanctuary would be impossible, he came up with an alternative plan. We halted in a spot with a fair degree of open grassland spotted about with www.cz-usa.com

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My blood was up as we were doing what I love — getting right into the herd, as close as possible.

More than a dozen buffalo hunts have taught the author that express sights or an optical dot are preferable to a variable scope when hunting nyati in the thick stuff.

Another dangerous situation that one can encounter when in pursuit of buffalo is to run into an animal that has been previously wounded either by a poacher’s bullet or snare. While I have not personally run afoul of an injured buffalo, I did once face down a young elephant bull in a sandy donga whose trunk had been almost completely severed by a snare. Luckily, despite the fact that he appeared within 40 yards of us and could dimly see us, the wind was in our favor, allowing us the chance to move quickly up a slope and out of his path. I am pretty certain that if the wind had identified our party as human to the elephant, he would have charged those he believed to be responsible for his serious injury. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for a couple of friends of mine on their first buffalo hunt with me. They were following the track of a group of dagga boys when at last they caught sight of the bulls. The PH raised his binos for a better look and noticed that the largest bull had a bloody, suppurating wound on his shoulder. He was unaware that a wounded bull was in the area, and as the bull was also a good trophy, he instructed one of my friends to take him. 32 cz-usa.com

Loading a bull buffalo into the Cruiser is no small task; loading two is a Herculean effort!

The first shot was not a good one, and upon impact, rather than retreating, the enraged bull immediately charged the three hunters. All three commenced firing at the buffalo, and thankfully, six rounds later, it collapsed at their feet. Then there are the tales of the “buffalo that won’t die.” This happened to my friend Hermann, who was on his second buffalo safari with me. He and his PH had been tracking a small herd that contained a fine old bull. They closed within 50 yards of the animal, and Hermann fired his .416 Remington, placing the bullet squarely in the heart and lung kill zone. As the area in which they had found the buffalo was fairly open, Hermann was able to put two more rounds into the bull, the last breaking his shoulders and knocking him down. Despite the bull absorbing 1,200 grains of lead, resulting in broken shoulders along with other internal injuries, he attempted to stand. Hermann had quickly reloaded, and as the bull tried to rise, he rapidly fired three more rounds into the struggling animal. The buff attempted yet again to regain its feet, and two additional rounds from the PH’s .416 Rigby finally settled the issue.

Add it up. That bull had absorbed a total of 3,200 grains of medicine, nearly a half pound, before dying. Still and all, the absolute thrill of buffalo hunting comes from the ever-present possibility that things can go wrong. The closer you are to the buffalo, the greater the danger, and therein lies the adrenaline rush so much sought after by purists in the pursuit of nyati. I know many men who have killed their buff at what I consider to be long range—more than 50 yards. To my mind, these folks have totally missed the point of buffalo hunting, which is to get as close as possible so that you can hear their bellies rumble and inhale the musky cattle scent through your nostrils. The thrill is incredible. If the wind is right and you are very quiet and unmoving, you will be astounded at how close you can get to a buffalo—or how close a buffalo might get to you. Case in point: The Zambezi Valley had suffered a drought, and the country was dry and brittle. We had been following buffalo spoor since first light, and on toward noontime we found ourselves headed up the slope of a small rise. The ground was parched www.cz-usa.com

and gravelly, with sparse tufts of what to expect. The unknown is a brown grass shooting up here and compelling reason to continue the there amid shattered mopani trees chase. Anything can happen when whose tops had been lopped off by hunting; simple mistakes, poor feeding elephant. Hot and thirsty, marksmanship, a shift in the wind or my mind had begun to wander, and just bad luck will put you in harm’s I found myself dreamily gazing up like you do when closely avoiding way. Indeed, it is the danger that at the stunningly blue sky and its a wreck. I suppose that’s a good makes buffalo hunting so addictive. merciless sun. I was suddenly torn analogy because if she had seen or My best trophy to date resulted in from my reverie by my PH, who had heard us, or caught our scent, we the hunt of a large floodplain along dropped to his knees and was pullwould have been in a wreck for sure. the banks of the Zambezi. Papyrus ing me down toward him. That said, however, I would never reeds towered tall, their fluffy tops “Quiet! Don’t move!” he hissed. trade that experience for anything, gently swaying in the early-morning Less than 25 yards in front of us, a and it’s a perfect example of why I breeze. Between them lay grassy small herd of buffalo were shuffling would rather hunt buffalo than any plots struggling to survive in the down the slope, themselves seemother game. deep, sandy soil. Jungle-like growths ingly burdened by the oppressive I suppose that one reason bufof trees resided along still, stagnant heat of the late-morning sun. They falo hunting remains so intoxicating ponds and inlets of water, the afterwere spread over a 50-yard front, for me is that when hunting these math of a heavy rainy season. but I realized with a start that a cow animals, you never have an idea of We spotted a good-size herd of and her calf were walking buffalo foraging amid the directly toward us. reeds and took up their She continued straight track. Testing the wind with on. I could easily make out his ash bag, my PH got us the snot running from her positioned atop an anthill so broad nose and her wide we could watch the herd as horns, the tips of which were it fed just beyond us. Unable as sharp as the talons of an to pick out a good bull, we eagle. I shuddered involundescended and very slowly tarily as I realized that one and carefully moved closer swipe of her headgear could to the herd. flay me from belly to brisket. Buffalo bellows, grunts With nothing to conceal us and the bleating of calves but the thin veil of branches filled our ears as we crept extending from the thorn into position for a better bush behind which we hid, view. My blood was up as my hands tightened around we were doing what I love— my CZ 550 as we could only getting right into the herd, hold our breath and pray she as close as possible. The didn’t register our presence. buffalo were milling about I can still vividly recall her in front of us, crossing from head swaying from side to left to right and back again side as she ambled past in a never-ending stream. not 12 feet from our hiding The earthy odor of cattle place, followed placidly by dung and the strong amher calf. monia smell of urine filled We waited for them to our nostrils. move on a good distance Doubled over, we crept The author’s biggest bull to date measured nearly before we stood. I readily even closer. Suddenly, a 44-inches. A single 500-grain solid from the Lott put him down for the count. admit I was shaking a bit, group of cows and young www.cz-usa.com

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It’s a shame, but adding the Big Five to your trophy room today will cost almost as much as the house itself.

The mighty Zambezi flows toward the Indian Ocean just east of the Mopata Gorge.

bulls picked up their heads and looked straight into our eyes. We were busted. The buffalo retreated and we followed. They crossed through a wooded area with Daryl and me on their heels. The earth ended at a bank below, which stretched a broad and deep estuary filled with papyrus. As we reached the edge, we watched in amazement as the entire herd swam away from us and into the reeds, their bodies plowing through the black water like bovine juggernauts. One of the last animals to reach a dry hummock amid the reeds was an old bull. He stopped and turned to look at us over his shoulder. His action seemed a dare. “Catch us if you can.” Truth be told, we could not, as there was no manner of conveyance to see us across the water and into the reeds. Wading or swimming was out of the question, as monstorous crocodiles called this morass home. Lunch struck us as a better alternative. As we rested beneath the thatched roof of the outdoor dining room at Masau Camp, we received a radio 34 cz-usa.com

A small herd of buffalo, including a very good bull, retreats across a lily-covered estuary of the Zambezi.

call from PH Buzz Charlton, who was chaperoning a group of Spanish hunters. He reported seeing a group of three dagga boys not far from camp. Two of the three appeared to be quite good. My PH sent two of his trackers out to the location to “put them to bed,” and we intended to pick them up later in the afternoon. As I rested in my bed I could hear the water of the Zambezi as it gently lapped the shore outside my chalet. The tranquil sound lulled me to sleep, but not for long—there was a knock at my door. I looked at my watch and saw it was 3 o’clock. Gathering up my gear, I walked the short distance to where the Land Cruiser was parked, and climbing up into the high seat, we took off. The sun was still high as the truck ground its way along the sandy tracks to an area of tall grass and stunted trees. We met the trackers who had been sent out earlier to locate the buffalo, and they reported that the animals were about a half mile away bedded beneath some trees. My PH and I chambered rounds into our rifles and quickly followed the trackers’ lead.

Not long after leaving the road, we came across an old lion kill. Four hooves detached from their legs were the last vestiges of what was once a buffalo calf. Continuing on, we reached our destination about a hundred yards from the bedded buffalo. The PH called a short conference. “Kevin, you come with me, and we’ll get as close as we can without spooking them. We’ll try to sort out the best bull, and when they get up from their nap, you can take him,” he said. “Roger that,” I replied, as we began our stalk toward the sleeping beasts. We advanced one foot at a time. I carefully made certain to step exactly where the PH had footed, avoiding the cloying thorns and carefully sidestepping dry twigs and branches. The wind was perfect, blowing in our faces away from the slumbering buffalo, and we finally stopped behind a small bush no more than 25 yards from where the buffalo lay. Peering intently through our binoculars, we could only confirm that there were three buffalo under the tree, but www.cz-usa.com

try as we might, we could not make “Well, looks like everything worked out any of their headgear. Nearly an out just fine,” I said. hour ticked by as we waited for the “That was a great shot. He never buffalo to rise. At last, they did. moved,” the PH replied. I was on the sticks, but I still could Night was falling rapidly as it is not make out the horns beneath the wont to do in Africa as we moved shadowed tangle of tree branches the trigger just as I heard the PH say, forward to inspect my buffalo. This obscuring my view. The wind shifted, “Take the one on the left.” bull had it all: long, deeply curved bringing our scent to their nostrils, When the bullet reached the bull, horns and a heavy boss. The tape and in a rush, they made off. he dropped dead in his tracks. later put him at 43 ½ inches, making The sun got lower and lower in the “I was a bit ahead of you there,” I him my biggest bull to date. The sky, and the shadows lengthened said to the PH as I cranked another shot had hit at point of aim, cleanly as we followed behind the buffalo. round into the chamber. The other breaking his neck. The CZ 550 Making our way from cover to cover, two bulls quickly moved off, and as Safari Magnum in .458 Lott had we tracked them to a place where they did the PH said, “Yeah, that first chalked up another one-shot stop. several big trees gave them cover. one was good, but when the other I’ve come to believe that any buffaThey knew we were on their backone came out from behind the tree, I lo, of either sex, hunted at close range trail, and we hoped that as the light thought, Wow, he’s even better.” and taken fairly, is an experience you waned the buffalo would will never forget. Trophy qualgrow less careful, as they ity is indeed secondary to the are known to do, and wished experience for the dedicated for an opportunity for a shot buffalo hunter. I have found before last light. that my hunts for the smallest Moving closer to the trees and biggest were equally behind which the buffalo had thrilling and rewarding, as taken sanctuary, we were is accompanying another rewarded when one bull hunter on his stalks and kills. stepped clear of the protecWith buffalo, the hunt itself tion of the foliage and turned is where you will find your to look right at us just 50 greatest satisfaction. The kill yards away. means your magical time in The bull’s horns were long the bush is over. and sweeping, then turnMany of us lucky enough ing up to pointed tips. His to go on African safari will be boss was full and craggy. I unable to afford taking the slapped the fore-end of my classic Big Five of elephant, CZ .458 Lott into the fork buffalo, rhino, lion and leopof the shooting sticks I had ard. It’s a shame, but adding been carrying and squinted the Big Five to a trophy room through the express sights, today will cost as much as settling the big ivory bead on the house itself. But bufthe bull’s shoulder. falo are plentiful enough and I was just about to drop economical enough for the the hammer when from great majority of hunters to the left came another of pursue, and they will remain the three bulls. This one so for quite some time. It is seemed to dwarf the first. for this reason, that the Cape I shifted my sights to this buffalo is the most hunted bull, and holding just below and coveted dangerous This old cow, taken for camp meat with a .375 H&H CZ550, sported horns with a forty-inch spread. his sweep of horn I pressed game in Africa. www.cz-usa.com

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The Specialist

DW Specialist

IN THE HOME OR ON THE STREET, THIS .45 IS POISED TO protect and serve.

he Dan Wesson line of 1911s, built under the ownership of CZ-USA, have always been exceptional. As a ready-to-go, out of the box 1911, they have always surprised the market as a great value delivering custom features, the highest accuracy, and the best reliability. You could buy something with a longer spec sheet or higher price, however, you couldn’t possibly get as much in return. The Dan Wesson lineup has now been changed, and the results are impressive.

By Patrick Sweeney I Photos by SEAN UTLEY

The Specialist is your basic full-sized 1911 with a Picatinny rail for a dustcover— except little is basic about it. First, the slide, frame and barrel have a level of fitting that’s only seen pistols hand fitted by wise ‘smiths long in their years. Dan Wesson gunsmiths are more than skilled craftsmen, they’re obviously shooters. During my inspection, I can see the hours spent filing little-by-little before lapping and checking fit. These 1911s pass the most critical scrutiny. Having spent many years working as a gunsmith (and a lot of that time spent on 1911s), when someone hands me a pistol, the second thing I do (after checking to make sure that it isn’t loaded) is to check the fit. Yes, the feel of the slide on the frame, and the fit of the barrel as it locks up, sure. But there’s more to it than just that. What does the slide sound like, moving on the frame? Can you hear the toolmarks chattering over each other? Or is it a smooth, almost sinuous hiss as polished steel slides over polished steel? When the slide collects the barrel, links up and closes, does it sound like a collection of parts brought together? Or is there a click-click-click like purpose to each

Dan Wesson Specialist TYPE: Single action, recoil operated semiauto Caliber: .45 ACP Capacity: 8+1 Barrel: 5 in. Overall Length: 8.5 in. Weight: 2.31 in. GRIPS: G10 Finish: Matte black Duty Trigger: Aluminum, 4 lb. Sights: 3-Dot, ledge-style, tritium-filled

movement? Solidly- fitted parts ring when they are closed with more than a gentle nudge. Many snick, some even sing. While the near-musical note of the closing differs from gun to gun, the similarity between well-fitted 1911s is this: they almost all ring like a bell when you let them close. Not so close to full slide-lock, that’s just abuse. But to let the slide close from halfway, you can tell a lot about a fitting by the sound of the “snick” as it shuts. The Dan Wesson Specialist I’ve just evaluated has such a positive, assertive closing sound that I actually stood there

Between the set of tactical ledge night sights runs a Clark-style serrated rib across the top of the slide designed to eliminate glare.

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A lightweight Commander hammer is protected by the beavertail grip safety. The Specialist also comes with an ambidextrous thumb safety.

During my inspection, I can see the hours spent filing littleby-little before lapping and checking fit.

for a few seconds and just opened and closed it to soak in the sound. It was that interesting—and promising. Once I was over that, I scanned the features. The top of the slide has sights in transverse dovetails, with the rear sight utilizing a tactical ledge to allow “belt-” or “boot-racking.” This is a technique developed (as best I can determine) by the Los Angeles Police Department. If you need to one-handed rack your slide, hook the sight on your belt, holster, or sole of the boot and shove it out and away from yourself. The usual ramped rear sight does not allow this. Dan Wesson took a large combat sight and carved the face to produce this stop-ridge. A belt or holster will catch the rear sight, and you can rack the slide that way. Plus, the sights have night-sight tritium inserts, one dot over the other, in Heinie’s Straight

Eight pattern. Line the dots up, figure “8”, and your sights are aligned in the dark. It’s very intuitive. The top of the slide is also serrated, with lateral grooves down the rib. I took one look at that, and estimated it would take a fistful of hundred-dollar bills to duplicate it in the hands of a custom 1911 pistolsmith. Consider the savings a gift from Dan Wesson. On the frame, there is an integral accessory rail machined into the dustcover. The slide stop pin is recessed, and its hole in the frame beveled. Some take the beveling of that hole too far, cutting an edge that is too angled and deep. The Specialist has the bevel cut at a shallow angle, and just deep enough to make it so that it’s easy to disassemble, but not so much it removes a large part of the barrel lug and frame integrity. The

From the trigger to the hammer, every control wears serrations. A scallop cut made to the left G10 grip panel provides easier access to the magazine release.

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The Specialist features a Dan Wesson match barrel chambered in .45 ACP. Just like other Dan Wesson 1911s, this one has a close-tolerance fit with its barrel bushing.

flush-trimmed slide stop pin is now out of the way of your trigger finger when your finger is outside of the trigger guard. You do not risk pushing the slide stop out of the frame, and yet it can still be disassembled. The safety is ambidextrous. It clicks up and down with the correct amount of authority, and stays where set it. The grip safety appears to be from Ed Brown, and probably is. It’s easier to simply purchase forged grip safeties from Ed Brown than to try and machine them oneself. In any case, it’s the highest grip safety you can get on a 1911, and it puts your hand as high behind the gun as is possible. Inside the frame is a scalloped commander hammer, and combined with the fitted, match aluminum trigger, the drawstroke of the trigger is clean, crisp and purposeful. The frame features a flat mainspring housing. Long ago, I gave up trying to figure out which type shoots better for me—flat or arched. I suppose were I vying with the top dogs for the Single Stack Championship of the universe, it would matter, but I’m not. I can pass any qual course, and beat most anyone I compete against. So, flat it is. www.cz-usa.com

The mainspring housing is checkered, and at 25 lines to the inch, matches the checkering on the frontstrap. The checkering is straight and even, and the individual diamonds are square and sharp. The (very) tactile grips are G10, a synthetic selected for its imperviosity—to everything. It’s immune to things that would discourage or even kill you; solvents, lubricants, radiation and high-voltage electrical current. These grips will never chip, fade, discolor or break. The surface is machined with an interesting pattern. Rather than a traditional checkered pattern, the surface of the grips are machined (that’s the only way you can form G10, without incurring hideous expense).

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The front of each grip panel is machined with overlapping circular depressions to lock your fingertips in place until you relieve pressure. The rear half is machined with grooves that slant down, front to back, and resist the torquing forces of rotation in recoil. Short of slathering glue onto your hand or pistol, I’m not sure there’s a way to ensure a more secure hold. Finally, there’s the magazine well. It has a funnel around it, which bolts to the mainspring housing by means of an industrial-type Allen-head screw, and recessed into the funnel at the rear. The funnel is shaped to match the contour of the grip panels, and the funnel’s magwell bevels line up

with the frame as if they were cut from the same piece of barstock. I have always been leery of the bolt-on funnels, and those of my 1911s that have them, the bolt is locked in place with a generous amount of Loctite. Details are fun, and a well-fitted pistol is always appreciated. However, shooting is what matters.

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We’re talking about a one-hole gun. It groups very well.

The rough texture G10 slabs, 25 lpi frontstrap and flat checkered mainspring housing blend together for a sure grip. The serrated Ledge sights carry a vile of tritium in forming the Straight 8, low-light sighting system.

I didn’t get to spend as much time evaluating the Specialist as much as I would have liked. Short time? Absolutely, you see, the Specialist I had is the first, and until a few days after I had to return it, it was the only finished specimen of the Dan Wesson model extant. The trigger is clean and crisp, and encourages accurate shooting. The grip safety puts the frame deep in my hand, and recoil was eaten up by the added weight in the dustcover rail. That small, extra weight below the boreline and forward of the hands aids recoil control, while the aggressive grips keep the Specialist locked into my hands. The precisely-fitted barrel delivers the goods accurately downrange. It has been a long time since anyone realistically tested a brandnew 1911, looking to discover just how reliable or unreliable it might be. A modern 1911 is reliable. Customers expect it and Dan Wesson delivers. I did not anticipate, nor did I experience, 40 cz-usa.com

any malfunctions while shooting the Specialist. It fed everything, and shot slightly to the right of point-ofaim. If I were permitted to perform a long term test, I’d have to slightly adjust the sights to hit point of aim for me. Groups? We’re talking about a one-hole gun. It groups very well. As a daily carry gun, you are in for work with the Specialist. There is a reason Dan Wesson also offers Commander and Officer’ssized models. They are still more popular for carry.

As a duty gun for a law enforcement officer allowed to carry a personal purchase, all you need is to couple the Specialist with a compact light, put it inside one of the many duty holsters available for this type of 1911, and you’re set for anything you’d ever expect to cover during your shift— and a few things you wouldn’t.

The Specialist features a deep funnel for the magazine well, helping make reloads quick and intuitive. The Specialist frame offers an integral Picatinny rail with three notches to accept most current pistol accessories.

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Interview with

Tom Knapp

Behind the tricks of a World class exhibition shooter. By Mike Schoby

ecently, I caught up with Tom Knapp, CZ-USA exhibition shooter, along the edge of a grain field outside of Cordoba, Argentina. We were there to work…if you can call testing the new CZ 912 autoloader and Wingshooter over/under shotguns “work.” Between flurries of birds, bandaging fingers, chugging water and reloading shotguns, I interviewed Knapp about shooting, guns, professional life and what he does for fun when not shooting. Mike Schoby: What got you interested in shooting? Tom Knapp: Like so many other kids, I was brought into it through my family, both in the form of hunting and recreational shooting. MS: What are your favorite firearms? TK: That is a tough one to answer. I mean, regardless if it is a rifle, pistol or shotgun, if it goes bang, I like it. I am enjoying shooting the CZ 712 and 912 autoloaders, but since I grew up shooting Winchester Model 12s I still have a soft spot for them today. MS: How much do you shoot in a given year? TK: I shoot around 40,000 12-gauge shotshells a year and countless rimfire cartridges.

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MS: How can someone get started as an exhibition shooter? TK: Making difficult shots is a small part of exhibition shooting. If anyone is going to succeed, he must have public relations and communications skills first and foremost. Knowing how to market and promote goes a long way, and there is always the need for some showmanship. I caution young shooters to be careful what they wish for. If they succeed to go the full gamut, they will need to forfeit their personal desire for family and friends. Most family lifestyles will not support the exhibition style of life. MS: How much practice does it take to become good?

Tom Knapp

TK: The amount of practice involved with exhibition shooting is based on muscle memory. If you can’t do everything within your show script in your sleep, you have not had enough practice. If your live-show schedule contains 100 live shows for that year, that would be enough practice in its own. My practice contains more gun handling and loading techniques, keeping emphasis on safety and muzzle direction than shooting. MS: What is your favorite trick shot? TK: My favorite shot is based on consistency and the difficulty level. This would be my balloon routine, where I have four balloons on the ground and launch two clays in the air. I shoot one of the clays, then come down and shoot each balloon with an individual shot, then find the falling clay and shoot that before it hits the ground. MS: Lots of shooters and hunters idolize you. Do you have any shooting idols? TK: I saw Herb Parsons on a TV show in 1959. I was nine years old. This special display of marksmanship stuck in my mind from then on. I never got the chance to meet or watch Herb live, but the idea of making a living with a gun (the correct way) stayed in the back of my mind until it became reality. That same film has been preserved on DVD, which you can purchase at showmanshooter. com. MS: Final question: When you eat, sleep and breathe shooting, what do you do for fun? TK: Fish. I’m from Minnesota. Besides shooting and hunting, the next most important thing to a Minnesotan is spending time with family and friends out on a lake, winter or summer.

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Anti-Vermin

CZ 527 Varmint

ThIS CZ 527 is A tackdriver and a stellar rodent-reducer.

By PATRICK SWEENEY I Photos by SEAN UTLEY

o hose a ‘dog town, you need the right gear. The chief tool remains an accurate, reliable rifle, one that will keep working no matter how many rounds you send through the barrel.

CZ-USA has been importing the 527 for some time now. It’s a scaled-down Mauser action that’s fed by a magazine of five rounds. In the case of the 527 Varmint, those rounds should be of a suitable varmint load in either .17 Remington, .22 Hornet, .222 Remington, .221 Fireball, .204 Ruger or .223 Remington. (Not interchangeably, of course.) Once you’ve selected the chambering, you have a rifle that’s a lightweight. Depending on options, it will check in between six and seven and a half pounds. It’s an ultra-reliable varmint rifle, and one you can easily mount a scope on. Until now, you had to pick from a few attractive—but not exactly varmint shooting—functional stock designs. The originals are the European-style stocks, such as are on the Lux and FS. European hunting is usually either driven game, offhand at moving critters, or from stands. The idea of lying down on the ground, and consuming a carton of ammunition in a day’s time while shooting rats would puzzle the average European hunter. And so, the stocks are meant for offhand shooting. No more. At a recent industry gathering, Jason Morton of CZ-USA revealed a new 527 Varmint set in a varmint stock. My first thought was that it was a prone stock— not a stock intended for varmint shooting.

ENTER THE 527 The 527 Varmint features a stock with a pistol grip turned sharply downward. 42 cz-usa.com

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This gets the right hand in the proper position for shooting prone. The comb is higher, straighter and the front end of it comes much more forward than one on an offhand stock. The high comb gets your head correctly located behind the scope, and its extended profile allows the shooter to establish optimal eye relief. I crawl up on a stock like no-one else, so a long shelf at the front of the comb is extremely important. The forearm has two raised panels; one on each side with a flat bottom. The raised portions provide a secure hold if you are the type of shooter who prefers a hand-held support position. For those who shoot off a front rest, resting the weight of the rifle on the flat fore-end helps to keep the rifle upright and stable. If you prefer to shoot from a bipod, the 527 Varmint has a pair of sling swivel studs up front, one for a carry sling, and another that can be used with a bipod adapter to give the rifle a set of legs to lean into. The magazine is an all-steel, single-feed box magazine. The scope ring and mount system is proprietary to CZ. Generally, I’m not given to clamp-on ring-and-base systems. Most are fragile, and fabricated just to meet a price point. They just don’t provide the assuredness that I usually get with a robustly-engineered set. Not so with rings from CZ-USA. The rings are machined from steel, and the clamping surface is engineered directly in the receiver rings of cz-usa.com 43

This Little rifle not only wants to shoot, it demands to shoot. AS A VARMINT-SHOOTING MACHINE, IT RANKS HIGH.

Magazines will work in any 527 model with the same chamber.

The “mini” Mauser forged bolt features a long-claw extractor and controlled round feed.

The relief cut in the comb allow for easy removal of the bolt. The bolt release lever is located on the left side of the receiver. The magazine release is positioned to the side just forward of the trigger guard. The bolt throw is 90 degrees, which is required for the two opposing bolt lugs to engage the mating surfaces in the receiver. The grip of the target style stock is sharply turned down and comfortably provides a resting place for the firing hand. The safety lever is located just behind the bolt handle and is a two-position type.

the rifle. Not bolted-on aluminum, but for varmint vaporizing, it isn’t such proved up to the task. Black Hills machined steel. The scope will expire a big deal. The 1:9-inch twist rate Ammunition was chosen to send long before the rings give way. allows the option of using heavy bul- 60-grain Hornady V-Max bullets Underneath, the 527 Varmint uses lets. During testing I learned that the downrange. I started out checkthe CZ single set trigger, an adjusting zero and getting a feel for 1:9 twist is right on the edge for the able mechanism. With a normal pull of heavyweight 75 and 77 grain bullets. the trigger. It didn’t take long to the trigger, it operates with a standard Some rifles shoot these weights just determine that someone close to amount of pressure. However, if you me in shooting style had zeroed fine, while others do not. push the trigger forward first (until you the rifle, for it was pretty close. It With bullet weights of 40 grains feel it click) it will set, requiring less only took a few groups to get on up to the mid-60s, you should have pressure and a crisp, light trigger pull at 100 yards where I then settled a plethora of choices in terms of to fire the rifle—giving the shooter down to shoot small groups. accuracy. For varminting, pick a the feel of a match rifle’s trigger. Both Somehow I managed to shoot four fragile, accurate bullet and push it pulling or setting the trigger is an sequential groups of bragging fast for less drop at longer range. adjustable experience, and CZ-USA quality, and my heart pounded so MY EVAL includes complete instructions on hard that I could see the reticle In testing the 527 Varmint, I used how to adjust these settings. For the move against the target. This little rifle not only wants to standard pull, weight, creep and over- a Bushnell Elite 6500. It certainly shoot, it demands to shoot. travel can be adjusted. For As a varmint-shooting the set trigger operation, only CZ 527 VARMINT machine, it ranks high. At weight can be adjusted. an MSRP of $885, there The safety on the 527 is TYPE: Bolt action isn’t a better deal in a bolt a large lever positioned to Caliber: .17 Rem., .204 Ruger, action rifle chambered in the right side of the cocking .221 Fireball, .223. It would be difficult to piece. When you press it up, .22 Hornet, .222 Rem., .223 Rem. just lay hands on a heavyto “Safe” it blocks the firing CAPACITY: 5 barreled .223 at that price, pin and locks the bolt in BARREL: 24 in., 1:9-in. twist let alone one with a proper place. Bring it down to fire. OVERALL LENGTH: 40.4 in. prone-shooting stock. Then The barrel measures 24 WEIGHT: 6 lb., 4 oz. add the extra sling swivel, inches long, and has a heavy STOCK: Kevlar adjustable trigger, and profile. Inside, the chamber FINISH: Matte black the demonstrated level of is a .223 (not a 5.56 NATO) TRIGGER: Single or set accuracy, and it becomes a dimension. Since 5.56 NATO SIGHTS: None hard deal to pass up. ammunition is not designed 44 cz-usa.com

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Medal of Valor

DW VALOR

Dan Wesson braves the crowded 1911 market with an excellent ENTRY.

ariations of the 1911 automatic pistol are as numerous as the stars in the heavens, so it seems. After 100 years of experimenting and improving upon John Browning’s famous creation, the law of averages might dictate that there’s just no way to improve on it any more. The Dan Wesson Valor is evidence that’s not the case.

By BART SKELTON

As a fan of the 1911, I’m always interested in shooting good ones, and I’ve recently had the chance to handle a dandy. Dan Wesson began making .45s a few years back, and it seemed a little odd to me. Over the years, I always thought of Dan Wesson as strictly a revolver company. When I was a kid, my dad had several Dan Wesson revolvers around. They were cased and had quickchange barrels in various lengths. The concept was a popular one, and the revolvers were of fine quality. Daniel B. Wesson, the greatgrandson of D.B. Wesson, who

co-founded Smith & Wesson, started Wesson Firearms Company in 1968. It was Wesson’s intention to manufacture the world’s finest revolver, and he accomplished that to some extent in the ones he produced. The company manufactured several models in various calibers through 2000, when it was bought out. The year 2000 was also when Wesson started developing a 1911style automatic pistol. In developing its 1911, it was the company’s intention to stay with the same idea it had in making revolvers: make the best, most accurate out-of-the-box pistol it could.

The author prefers the Heinie Ledge Straight Eight setup, which presents a stacked-dot sight picture, to the common three-dot arrangement.

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Upon examining the Valor thoroughly, I was really pleased with the overall fit and finish.

The pistol features an Ed Brown Custom beavertail grip safety and thumb safety. Each are fitted perfectly into the pistol’s frame and work smoothly—particularly the thumb safety, which has a nice, crisp feel when activated to either On or Off positions. Coming from Ed Brown, you know they’re high quality, too. The Valor features a white outline tritium-insert front sight made by Trijicon, which makes finding the dot in low light much easier. One of the first things that generally catches my eye when looking In 2005, Dan Wesson Firearms The pistol is fitted with a highover a new pistol are the sights. The was sold again—this time to CZ. CZ quality aluminum trigger made Valor is set up with Heinie Ledge is one of the world’s largest proby Greider Precision. The trigger Straight Eight night sights, one ducers of firearms. With the solid is solid and provides a smooth, of the most effective pistol sight backing of CZ-USA, Dan Wesson is drag-free draw. Upon dry-firing systems currently available. now climbing its way to the top in the Valor, I was pleased right away I’ve never been a real fan of the the custom 1911 pistol market. with the crisp, and relatively light three-dot sight system, which I first fired a Dan Wesson 1911 trigger pull. I measured the trigger involves two dots on the rear and several years back at a media pull with an RCBS pull scale at 3½ one on the front. The Straight Eight event, and I was quite impressed pounds. Along with the nice trigger, system features a large dot on the with the several models of pistols the Valor features a match-grade front sight and one small dot on the I shot. I recently received a new hammer and sear. rear directly underneath the notch. The checkering on the grips is stainless steel Valor .45 automatic This configuration is one of the best aggressive enough, and, combined and allows the shooter quicker acfrom Dan Wesson, and my posiwith the excellent 25-lpi checkertive impressions are continuing to quisition in low-light situations than ing on the front- and backstrap, escalate. The Valor is one of those the conventional three-dot setup. Dan Wesson fashions the Valor’s the Valor is easy to get a good pistols that feels almost perfect frame and slide from forged stainhand-hold. immediately upon handling it. It’s less steel, and the barrel a full-size, all-stainless and bushing are Dan defensive pistol with Dan Wesson Valor Wesson-manufactured a clean look and great match-grade parts. The handling attributes. TYPE: Single action, recoilThat clean look I slide’s ejection port is operated semiauto mention comes from the flared, and the frame’s Caliber: .45 ACP CAPACITY: 8+1 stainless steel finish, magazine well is bev barrel: 5 in., DW Match lack of forward cocking eled for quick magazine overall length: 8.8 in. serrations on the slide, insertion. weight: 2.4 lb. Check-Mate provides checkered stocks that are grips: VZ Slim Line G10 the magazines for Dan nice and thin (just the way Finish: Matte, stainless steel Wesson, and the Valor I like them), fine checker TRIGGER: Greider solid aluminum; comes with a pair of ing up front and at the 3.5 lb. pull sights: Heine Ledge Straight Eight eight-rounders. I like the back, and overall many Check-Mates quite well, tasteful appointments. 48 cz-usa.com

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The Valor incorporates high-end parts such as Ed Brown’s beavertail safety and thumb safety—all fitted perfectly.

as they’re durable, well-made and have proven themselves to work like a charm. Check-Mate magazines have a patented follower that eliminates forward movement. Upon examining the Valor thoroughly, I was pleased with the overall fit and finish. The pistol is very tight, and it’s clear that Dan Wesson’s craftsmen have done a

The trigger is of the highest quality and fit. It’s manufactured by Greider Precision and measured 3 ½ pounds.

good deal of hand-fitting and -filing, which I wasn’t expecting to this degree. The slide-to-frame fit is outstanding, and there’s no side-toside play or rattle whatsoever. The lines are very clean, and the entire gun is well polished with no sign of machine or tool marks. The “Valor” logo is tastefully placed on the left side of the slide just over the

The 25-lpi checkering on the front- and backstrap makes a firm, secure grip easy to get.

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slide stop, leaving the rest of the side slab of the slide clean. Considering how nicely the Valor feels right out of the box, I was anxious to get it out to a range. I carried it and several brands of ammunition out to my desert hideaway and burned some powder. I started out with Black Hills 230-grain hollowpoints, loading a few magazines and plinking at various targets between 10 and 20 yards. The Valor handled very well and felt great in my hands. The aggressive checkering ensured positive control, which provided a rock-solid sight picture shot after shot. The weight and balance of the five-inch gun made for quick recovery and target acquisition, and the recoil was pleasant. After getting the feel of the Valor, I set up a 30-yard sandbag rest and started shooting groups. Results are shown in the accompanying table. Overall, the Valor performed very well, providing good accuracy. I’d be interested in conducting cz-usa.com 49

The Valor handled very well and felt great in my hands, thanks to the thin VZ grips.

Accuracy Results .45 ACP

Bullet Weight (gr.)

Muzzle Velocity (fps)

Standard Deviation

Avg. Group (in.)

Black Hills JHP Hornady TAP FPD Cor-Bon +P JHP

230 230 165

852 776 1,156

13.4 9.0 3.7

2.00 2.25 2.75

Cor-Bon Power Ball

165

1,138

8.2

3.75

Accuracy results are averages of two five-shot groups at 30 yards off a sandbag rest. Velocities are averages of five shots measured on a PACT chronograph set 10 feet from the muzzle. Abbreviations: JHP, jacketed hollowpoint.

further experiments with the pistol using handloads, as those average groups can likely be improved. In all fairness, New Mexico winds took a toll on my accuracy testing and certainly played a role in the reported groups from that day. Regardless, any out-of-the-box

handgun that prints a two-inch group from my rest is outstanding in my book, particularly at the 30yard mark. Out of several hundred rounds I fired through the Valor, I experienced only one malfunction, and that was the very last shot using

Cor-Bon Powerball ammunition. The case failed to eject, which I attributed at the time to the position I was holding the pistol on the sandbag. I experienced no other malfunctions with the pistol whatsoever. Dan Wesson advertises that the Valor offers everything you need in a 1911 pistol and nothing you don’t. I agree with that statement entirely. The Valor is a straightforward, finely built, accurate and reliable pistol that anyone would be proud to own. While the price tag might seem high to some shooters, you’re really getting your money’s worth in this gun. In the case of the Dan Wesson Valor, it truly lives up to its name.

With its sharp checkering, excellent sights and tight fit, the Valor is an excellent choice. Best of all, it’s 100 percent American made.

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Interview with

BOBBY HOLIK On shooting, hockey and life.

which was common for athletes to do back then, but then, as luck would have it, the [Berlin] Wall came down, Communism evaporated and I was free to legally emigrate to the United States. MS: So what guns do you enjoy shooting the most? BH: I have always enjoyed handguns and shoot a CZ 75 and VZ 58 regularly, but this sporting clays game is something entirely

By Mike Schoby e is the reason stereotypes exist.” I told myself as my fingers were crushed from four individual digits into an unrecognizable pulpy mash. When the beast in front of me released my hand from his handshake, I noticed, in a detached way common to car crash victims, that my hand now sort of resembled a foot.

new for me and I can see the beauty in it. It is really challenging. I like walking around the course and seeing that every shot is different. A supportive father and dedicated husband.

Yeah, I think a CZ sporting shotgun will be in

Not to mention a hell of a shot. After getting

my safe soon.

trounced by him on the clays course for a

MS: What do you enjoy most about shooting?

couple of days, I sat down to pick his brain on

BH: The skill it takes, for sure. I mean, it is a

shooting, hockey and life.

total hand/eye coordination thing and there is

Mike Schoby: Did you grow up with firearms

a mental component as well. Then, of course,

and shooting?

there is the competitive side. Obviously, I

Bobby Holik: No, I grew up in the Czech

am a very competitive person and through

Republic, behind the Iron Curtain. It wasn’t

shooting I can compete against friends or just

exactly easy owning firearms. However, I

myself. I can always improve upon what I did

did get to shoot while in the military, and my

the time before.

grandfather was a hunter.

MS: How did you get involved with CZ-USA?

MS: What made you want to shoot?

BH: It was pure coincidence mixed with

BH: Probably that we couldn’t do it.

heritage. I was in a gun store in the States

People claim that they don’t have ‘em and are

It was a forbidden fruit. That, and I loved

and I picked up a CZ handgun. Of course,

super sensitive about them in our all too PC

all things American from an early age.

I was familiar with CZ from my time in the

world. But when I was told I would be spend-

Next to cheeseburgers, few things are more

Czech Republic, but I didn’t know they were

ing a weekend busting clays with Czech-born

American than firearms. That combined with

imported here. Being proud of my heritage, I

NHL legend Bobby Holik to raise money for

the early memories of my grandfather and

contacted the USA division of CZ and asked

Colorado Youth Outdoors, I couldn’t help

the fact that I really respect and admire the

if I could help them with its marketing efforts.

myself. I instantly formed a mental picture—a

Second Amendment.

Alice [Poluchova] agreed, and now I oc-

stereotype if you will.

MS: So how did you get to the USA?

casionally get to attend charity shoots such

While stereotypes are often inaccurate, in

BH: Well, I was playing hockey for the

as this Colorado Youth Outdoors event.

this case my mental image was spot on. And

Czech national team and I planned to

MS: So where do you shoot?

it is not just me. I doubt anyone is surprised

defect here and claim political asylum,

BH: Well, believe it or not, even though I

Ah, stereotypes. Everyone hates them.

played for East coast teams, I love the West.

to learn after meeting Bobby that he played in 1,314 games in the NHL, scored 747 points

Bobby Holik

So the wife and I bought a ranch in Wyoming.

and won two Stanley Cups. He just looks like

Out there, I can pretty much shoot whenever

a seasoned hockey player—large in stature

I want. In the winter, we have another ranch

and well-muscled. The ultra large hands,

in Florida so my daughter can ride her horses

with fingers that seem to have too many

year around—so I get in some shooting down

knuckles, or knuckles in the wrong places

there as well.

are crisscrossed with scars. Yes, he looks

MS: Ok, I have to ask…how many bones did

like a stereotypical hockey player, but where

you break playing 18 years in the NHL?

stereotypes fail is they are often only one

BH: Mine or other peoples?

dimensional and based on looks alone.

MS: That’s a wrap.

What I didn’t expect, was to learn that Bobby, as a person, was anything but stereotypical. After I spent some time with him, what I discovered was a thoughtful, well-spoken and kind person.

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Busted

CZ 712 Target

the easiest and most affordable way to START shooting trap.

here you go,” said Payton Miller, Guns & Ammo “Texecutive editor. “You’re on a roll now.”

By ERIC R. POOLE I Photos by SEAN UTLEY

I had just broke five for five on a trap range right off the start with my new CZ 712 Target model shotgun. After a quick testfire, we fired the stations on Range 6 at the Peoria Skeet and Trap Club in Illinois. This was Payton’s range, one he visits for a few rounds each Thursday, so beating him wasn’t in my agenda— and shooting a new and unfamiliar shotgun, I certainly didn’t expect much in terms of score.

THE SHOTGUN The new 712 Target is an entry-level shotgun manufactured by Huglu in Turkey and designed for trap. It offers good quality and reliability without requiring a big investment. Unlike the field models, the stock on this 712 Target features a pronounced, target-style down-turned grip. The grip is cut into the slab of your average walnut. Though plain by wealthy standards, the deep color and grain are actually quite nice and understated. The finished product is a feature that CZ-USA feels saves the consumer some extra money while offering real function. The 712 Target is a specially configured design for trap shooting, and when handling it on a range, it immediately becomes apparent that isn’t your typical shotgun you’d bring to the field. The 30-inch barrel and long stock balances very well with each other. Part credit goes to the gas and action return spring assembly’s location within the forend. It’s a unique feature to the CZ 712 that helps set it apart from all other semiauto shotguns. Most semiautos place the action return spring assembly inside the buttstock, which shifts more of the shotgun’s weight to the rear. Besides the Trap-length 30-inch barrel, the 712 provides features that are unique to Trap shooting. This 712 utilizes a 14¾-inch length of pull—¼-inch longer than a standard model. “Target guns are typically a little longer,” says Dave Miller, project manager at CZ-USA, “so we made the 712 Target with a stock that’s a ¼-inch longer than a field gun.” Additionally, the 712 Target uses a barrel that’s chrome lined and polished. “Trap guns have either a 30, 32, or 34-inch barrels,” Miller adds. “We didn’t want to design the 712 Target with a 32- or 34-inch barrel because the 712 receiver already measures 8¾ inches. You’d need to find a gun 52 cz-usa.com

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…you can begin to see why Trap is a sport that’s easy to get into, and affordable to get good at.

CZ 712 TARGET TYPE: Gas operated, semiauto GAUGE: 12, 3 in. CAPACITY: 2+1 BARREL: 30 in. OVERALL LENGTH: 52.5 in. LENGTH OF PULL: 14.75 in. WEIGHT: 7 lbs., 8.5 oz. FURNITURE: Turkish walnut, hand checkered FINISH: Matte black TRIGGER: 8 lbs. (tested) SIGHTS: Fiber optic, green (front), brass bead (center) From the crossbolt safety behind the trigger, to the bolt release, controls on CZ autoloaders are finished in chrome. Furniture is made from simple walnut, though checkering is still done by hand.

case longer than the standard 52 inches to carry it to and from the range.” The engineers at CZ-USA considered everything. The 712 Target comes with five caps on each type of choke—full, Improved modified, modified, Improved cylinder, and cylinder. You won’t find back-boring tricks in the 712 Target barrel because back boring changes the patterning when shooting with aftermarket choke tubes that were not matched to the bore. Touch the bottom of the target with the bead and watch the bird shatter. I found that the 712 Target shoots with an 80/20 bias, something Dave Miller indicates that a modern Trap gun with stepped rib should carry. This fraction indicates

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The lines of the CZ 712 shotguns are clean and understated. Serrations extend from the receiver and along the rib to reduce glare.

that 80 percent of the pellets will strike above the centerline of an aiming point. “If you were to take the gun, lay it on a benchrest and look down the rib, you’ll see a flat line,” says Miller. “If you put the bead on the center point and fire a shell against a patterning board, the angle should deliver 80 percent of the shot high of center on the target’s aiming point. Field guns and sporting guns are designed to shoot 50/50.” Some trap shotguns achieve the results of an 80/20 bias by raising the comb to make it shoot high, but the shooter can see the rib climbing up. “Have you ever heard of the phrase, ‘stacking beads,’” Miller asked. “That was the old trick to hit trap style

targets. The reason for the figure eight and such modifications to trap guns in the last 30 years was to get away from recoil. If you have a higher comb and less drop, less felt recoil is perceived. But we’ve evolved. Higher stepped ribs are what’s ‘in’ with the modern trap shooting world. Just look down the rib.” The receiver presents chromed controls. The charging handle isn’t oversized and protrudes ¾ of an inch to the right of the receiver. The bolt release button is standard as it would be on a field gun also, but chromed for subliminal location. Underneath is a chrome-plated loading gate (or elevator as it’s commonly called— depending on which job it’s doing). To the rear of the elevator is a bolt

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lock back button that does as its name describes. With it, a shooter can ghost load a shell, which will allow one shell to sit on top of the elevator while waiting for the action to cycle. Since even the great exhibition shooter Tom Knapp can’t outrun the speed of the action cycle in a 712 with each pull of the trigger, I’m not sure that ghost loading helps in terms of how fast the action operates (though it does remove a step in the process since the shell doesn’t have to be sprung from the three-shot magazine tube). And when the action is made ready and the crossbolt safety is set to the Fire position, the single-stage trigger draws cleanly with almost a ¼-inch of travel. Like all 712 and 912 shotguns, sighting is accomplished with a short, fiber-optic green front sight

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and a little brass bead in the center of the rib. You could shoot a figure eight technique if that’s what you prefer, but the glowing green sight near the muzzle is the only thing you need to contrast with a bright orange target. I found that all I needed to do in order to dust birds streaking away from me was to place them on top of the green and keep the shotgun moving. No. 8 does the rest.

LAST SHOT Tonight I’m cleaning a shotgun that costs $625. When you consider that I spent just $6 to shoot 25 birds in a given round, you can begin to see why Trap is a sport that’s easy to get into, and affordable to get good at. I finished my first two stations with a clean sweep on seven birds before

I missed a couple of unexpected fast flyers to the right. I missed a couple more, then corrected my mount before picking up a hit streak again. I quickly got used to the 712 Target and never had a malfunction. It performed as reliably and delivered shot as well as others it patiently stood poised in the shotgun rack next to. Before the final round was complete, improper technique and my slow time to break the shot caused me to fire a miss as the bird safely fell below the horizon. Until then, I was feeling pretty confident in my odds of beating Payton at his own game and winning the round. With a one-sided grin, Payton leaned over my shoulder and whispered, “In this game, when you fix one leak another always appears.”

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Refined

DW CCO

Dan Wesson perfects the concealed carry officer’s Model. By STAN TRZONIEC I Photos by SEAN UTLEY

hen I’m carrying concealed, my first choice is an Officer’s Model. Naturally, I became interested when I learned that Dan Wesson unveiled the Dan Wesson Concealed Carry Officer, or CCO. The CCO is a 1911 with a Commander-length barrel on an Officer’s Model frame. For those who like the balance, control and sight radius of a long barrel but prefer the concealability of a small frame, then this is the piece for you. 56 cz-usa.com

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While it may seem odd to traditionalists to have a 1911 with a long barrel and short frame, handling reveals its position in the scheme of things rather quickly. The shooter benefits from a longer sight radius and less overall weight. To a lesser degree of importance, noise and muzzle blast occurs farther away. Thanks to the weight and shorter grip, the CCO is an easier gun to carry concealed. I particularly like this configuration because when I’m carrying, the shorter grip and the beveled mainspring housing doesn’t rub so abrasively against my body or hinder my movement. To reduce weight, both the frame and mainspring housing are made from anodized aluminum. To aid the shooter with grip control while under recoil, both the front and rear of the grip frame feature a new chain link pattern. Additionally, the frame is undercut beneath the trigger guard, which helps to compensate for what a shorter grip does in terms of reducing real estate to grip. Dan Wesson uses the proprietary black ceramic Duty coat from its parent company, CZ-USA. This coating has the benefits of a matte patina without the debris-catching bead-blast finish so common today on custom 1911s. The CCO is evenly polished, especially around the trigger guard and www.cz-usa.com

The cocobolo Shadow grips have a distinctive laser-etched pattern and the frontstrap features a chain-link pattern for enhanced control.

the top of the slide. Slide serrations were cut sharply without any burrs, and all the sides on the gun were pancake flat without any dishing from the final finishing station. The front sight blade features a white target ring surrounding a tritium vial, and the rear sight has two white tritium dots for fast target acquisition in low light. The rear sight is low profile, melted somewhat into the slide and is drift-adjustable for windage. The rear notch is welldefined and when lined up with the front sight, allows just enough light

The CCO uses a medium length trigger that’s hand-fitted to the alloy frame. An undercut behind the trigger guard offers more grip.

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Thanks to the weight and shorter grip, it is easier to carry this gun concealed.

The CCO sports a lightweight hammer and tritiumfilled ramped night sights. The dehorned grasping grooves on the slide are perfectly executed.

on each side of the blade for perfect sight alignment. Operator controls—slide release, safety and magazine release—are standard 1911. To keep the gun as slim in profile as possible, there is no safety lever on the right side of the gun. I found this safety lever has a very distinctive detent from safe to fire, assuring positive feedback on the condition of the gun. The mainspring housing is flat with, as the name implies, a very slightly beveled frame, and there’s a memory groove on the beavertail safety for added comfort and improved grip. The CCO features a medium-length aluminum trigger shoe that makes up the difference between the shorter mainspring housing and the space to the trigger itself. Trigger pull on this gun averages 3½ pounds of pull with just a hint of slack. The hammer is of the competition breed—lightweight and Commander styled. The Dan Wesson match barrel is 4¼ inches long and fitted perfectly by hand to the slide and barrel bushing for accuracy. The polished feed ramp is mirror smooth, and the ejection port has been relieved for 100 percent reliability. The CCO comes with a pair of handsome Shadow grips, which are 58 cz-usa.com

The match-grade barrel is mated to a stainless, wellpolished and beveled bushing. The slide is finished in a black-ceramic Duty coating used on CZ handguns.

cocobolo and laser-etched in a very accomplishments in the revolver distinctive, stippled pattern. Two field, and I don’t believe he ever magazines are supplied, and the CCO imagined his name would grace a carries a limited five-year warranty. 1911. If he were alive to witness the At the range, the gun was a joy progression of Dan Wesson pistols, to use. Even with the shorter grip, he would have been as pleased with there was more than enough gun how they came out as I have been to hold on with larger hands. The with this one. pistol recoiled pleasantly, and DAN WESSON CCO with lighter bullets such as Winchester TYPE: Recoil operated, semiauto 185-grain FMJ, the Caliber: .45 ACP gun behaved much Capacity: 7+1 like a 9mm. Barrel: 4.25 in. Overall Length: 8 in. In 1968, Dan Weight: 1.62 lb. Wesson started GRIPS: Laser engraved cocobolo his company in an Finish: Matte black, ceramic Duty old schoolhouse Trigger: Aluminum, nonadjustable, in Monson, Mas3.5 lb. (tested) sachusetts. He Sights: Three dot, tritium was proud of his Accuracy Results Type

Bullet (gr.)

Velocity (fps)

Standard Deviation

Avg Group (in.)

Remington MC Winchester FMJ

230 185

817 839

6 9

2.00 3.25

Winchester JHP

230

853

1.75

Notes: Accuracy results are averages of three five-shot groups at 25 yards off a braced rest. Velocities are averages of 15 shots measured on an Oehler Model 35P chronograph set 10 feet from the muzzle. Temperature was 65 degrees. Abbreviations: FMJ, full metal jacket; JHP, jacketed hollowpoint; MC, metal case

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A FAMILY AFFAIR

A “ONE SIZE FITS ALL” SOLUTIoN TO THE FAMILY SHOTGUN. By PAYTON MILLER

t’s been over a decade since CZ-USA

heavy clothes (think waterfowl or late-season

began importing Turkish-made

pheasant) or are obliged to shoot from

shotguns from the Anatolian concern of

unorthodox “field-expedient” positions.

Huglu. They pretty much run the gamut of

Since the action return spring is located

action type—side-by-side, over/under and

up front with the gas system rather than in

would provide a good indication of the

even the gas-operated autoloader.

the stock, the ATI Akita stock simply bolts

adjustable stock merits of this 712. We shot

on as if the 712 were a pump. Actually, the

two rounds apiece of Skeet in exceedingly

A NEW MODEL

term “simply” kind of clouds the issue. It

blustery fall conditions.

The CZ 712 Adjustable is a solid, no-frills,

was necessary for ATI to design an 6061 T6

three-inch chambered 12-gauge field gun

aluminum adapter that helps to marry the

flawlessly. Recoil was negligible, and reports

with a 28-inch chrome-line barrel and a

stock and the receiver.

from the field indicate that, even with three-

The 712 Adjustable ran through its paces

“lighter-than it feels” 7.6-pound curb weight,

The 712 Adjustable was conceived as a

inch magnums, the recoil is, if not pleasant,

a byproduct, no doubt, of its anodized alloy

straight-ahead sporting gun. Fine by me. I like

at least tolerable—which speaks well of the

receiver and the fact that the action return

busting clays as much as the next guy, but

ATI recoil pad. Simply depressing an oval

spring assembly is in the fore-end rather than

when I do—whether I’m shooting skeet, trap

button on the stock’s underside unlocks it,

the stock.

or sporting clays—I like to use something that

allowing the user to set the desired length.

What sets the 712 Adjustable apart from

is—first and foremost—a hunting gun.

Despite the fact that the clays were at the mercy of strong intermittent gusts, we had

the standard walnut-stocked 712 is an adjustable, recoil-reducing synthetic stock

RANGE DAY

a blast. Since Eric had been cleaning my

system from ATI. The ATI Akita stock not

Everybody wants to run the table on a

clock on the pistol range, I kind of figured it

only permits four positions between 12 and

round of skeet, but I’ve always viewed it

was time to get even. He’s essentially a rifle

14 inches of length of pull, but the cheek

as a tune-up for birds. I’m happy to drop a

and handgun guy, so I figured he’d go into

rest also affords the shooter a choice of

few clays shooting from a low-gun position

vapor lock with a shotgun. Unfortunately,

comb height. This stock is manufactured

with a real-world smoothbore if it’ll lessen

he’d just taken a wingshooting course which

specifically for the CZ 712 by ATI. Because

the chances of me embarrassing myself on

stresses a low gun position, a fast (almost

no action parts are located in the stock,

the dove opener, or during a cornfield push

delayed) mount and a compressed swing.

the 712 is the only semiauto shotgun on

for pheasant.

Not to mention a total, almost Zen-like focus

the market to accept such an aftermarket

So a couple of the staff decided to join me

on the target.

stock. When drawing a bead on the target,

in shooting the Model 712 Adjustable at our

After Eric smoked the first five or six

up against the shoulder pocket is the

local Skeet range. The ammo? Federal Gold

birds, I knew it wasn’t going to be a walk-

removable ATI Scorpion buttpad. This pad

Medal 12 gauge featuring one ounce of No. 8

through. But I’d shot this range before and

is engineered with unique recoil-absorbing

shots backed by 3¼ drams.

finally managed to catch up with him on the

material from PolyOne.

straight overhead No. 8 station. No. 8 is a

This range day struck me as a fairly democratic arrangement. Eric Poole, editor

place where, if you have to think about what

indicates, “Originally the idea was to employ

of InterMedia Outdoors’ special interest

you’re doing, you’ve already missed—which

a user-friendly tactical shotgun stock on a

magazines, is taller and longer-armed than

is exactly what he did. I didn’t.

sporting gun. I saw that as a pretty good idea

I am. Gloria Shytles, managing editor, is

for women and kids. It has a tremendous

smaller, shorter-armed and new at the skeet

ted themselves well. And so did the 712

amount of drop and toe, and the high comb

game. I’m in the middle, which, I figured,

Adjustable.

Dave Miller, project manager for CZ-USA

Overall, everyone concerned acquit-

is ideal for women who often have difficulty getting their head down on the stock.” Actually, women and kids aren’t the only ones who can benefit from an adjustable stock. Larger, adult male shooters often need a shorter than normal stock if they’re wearing

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Brawn

CZ 550

The BANK-VAULT BOLT-ACTION of the CZ 550 IS THE STANDARD.

e loaded up as if the rifle were a .30-’06, thumbing the cigar-size .505 Gibbs rounds onto the follower as if he’d done it every day. In fact, he had never fired a rifle this powerful. I suggested he stand, rather than bench it.

By WAYNE VAN ZWOLL

He nodded, leveled the .505, and pulled the trigger (this would have made good film). In concert with the concussive blast, the muzzle went vertical. The man staggered and lost his footing, landing hard. Like a baton, the 11-pound rifle soared through the air, end-over-end. I retrieved the rifle while the fellow picked himself up. “Golly,” he grinned sheepishly. No harm to anything but his pride, I decided. Certainly none to the CZ 550.

on current rifles has been upgraded to round. For hunting in a remote place, where durability and reliability matter, it remains a go-to rifle. Later I carried a 550 in .30-’06 with Federal ammo to hunt deer on the prairie. It endeared itself to me, a solid rifle with the checkered walnut and long extractor I covet and the heft to make slinged-up prone as steady as sandbags on a concrete bench.

IN THE FIELD

The CZ 550 is essentially a modified Mauser, so its action has a muscular double-square-bridge profile. It looks, and is, as rugged as an armored personnel carrier. You fasten a scope with mounts that clamp on to integral 19mm dovetails front and rear. The big, flat footprint of the receiver makes for plenty of bedding area and epoxy bedding ensures full contact at recoil lug faces on the most powerful 550s. Magnums have a second, barrel-mounted lug that bears against a steel stock insert to distribute thrust. The fore-end screw and double crossbolts on these rifles are absent on CZ 550s chambered to less potent rounds. The traditional two-lug bolt on the 550 features a full-length Mauser extractor and controlled-round feed. A fixed ejector emerges from a slot below the left locking lug

My first hunt with a 550 dates years ago. The rifle, a 9.3x62, downed a mountain goat and a moose in British Columbia with Norma ammo loaded with 250-grain Swift AFrames. Equipped with a 4X Cabela’s Alaskan Guide scope, it shot the Swifts flatter than traditional 286-grain softpoints. The goat was scrambling away at 220 yards when the first bullet struck. The second landed as the billy halted at 250. The moose appeared, as moose often do, between the chalk arcs of its antlers far away. We sneaked through a maze of alder, willow and spruce. The bull rose when we got inside 40 steps, then dropped dead to my shot through its shoulders. Still with me, this CZ 550 has one crossbolt behind the magazine, a fore-end with reverse-angle tip that 60 cz-usa.com

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THE ACTION

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The brawny profile and construction of the 550 complement accurate barrels. Even the bigbores, I’ve found, print small groups. as the bolt reaches the end of its throw. A Winchester Model 70-style bolt stop arrests the left lug. The two-position thumb safety locks striker and bolt. The adjustable

trigger is CZ’s own, a single-set mechanism you can ignore or push forward to set the trigger for a lighter pull. All-steel bottom metal includes a one-piece guard

CZ’s 550 American Safari Magnum (top) costs considerably less than the Safari Magnum Express (above).

bow and magazine housing, and a hinged floorplate secured by a button in front of the guard. Most CZ 550s are stocked in plain American walnut, either in SVELTE SMALLBORE

CZ’s Ultimate Hunting Rifle, a 550 in .300 Win. Mag., drilled this group at 500 yards.

Push the trigger forward to set it for a 14-ounce pull. The safety is off when thumbed back.

hile best known for its big iron, CZ-USA offers a lovely lightweight bolt action for small cartridges. The 527 I purchased a few years back is chambered in .221 Fireball, one of my favorite cartridges. The newest of 527s, the M1 American, features the straight-combed stock shooters in the U.S. prefer, a 22-inch barrel and a detachable three-shot box magazine. Choose a walnut stock, black synthetic or, on the Ultralight Predator, camofinished synthetic. Weight is just under six pounds. I snared a 527 M1 for testing a few weeks ago. It wears attractive straightgrained walnut, nicely checkered. The comb height is just right for a Weaver K6 mounted low. Alas, CZ-sup-

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The 527 M1 American handled bullets as heavy as the Remington 62-grain match—and put them into a ⁄ -inch group.

For riflemen who practice their skill on coyotes, the 527 M1 excels. It’s nimble and deadly accurate.

as if I’d been born cradling it. The trigger broke with such crisp consistency that I didn’t bother to set it. The perfect match of action size to cartridge dimensions impressed me. No extra steel here, but neither did the rifle seem awkwardly spare. It had the appeal of those early .22 rimfires no one born after Dwight Eisenhower’s presidency can quite remember. It was, in a word, enchanting. And that was before I fired it. Two of my first groups measured 3⁄ 8 inch. And the 1:12 twist delivered half-MOA accuracy with bullets as heavy as Remington’s 62-grain match.

plied rings hike my 4.5-14X Weaver Grand Slam well above the barrel and pull my cheek from the stock. You can also get rings for CZ rifles from Talley, where Gary Turner offers quick-detachable versions so that you can easily remove a scope for travel or iron-sight use. And you can replace it with no loss of zero. I snugged the screws and scrounged ammo. A February storm left the range frozen under drifted snow, so after checking trigger pull (2¾ pounds, crisp, with a set weight of 12 ounces), I impatiently waited for a thaw. CZ 527 M1 AMERICAN Prepared to run a few magazines TYPE: Bolt action through this rifle Caliber: .223 Remington Capacity: 3+1 (detachable box) and write with Barrel: 22 in. manufactured Overall Length: 40.5 in. enthusiasm about Weight: 5 lb., 14 oz. another .223 in Stock: Walnut a world awash Finish: Blued in .223s, I was Trigger: Single set, adjustable instead truly smit Sights: None (drilled and tapped for ten. The 527 M1 scope mounts) American handled

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the Czech Republic with imported wood or stateside after the barreled action arrives at the Kansas City headquarters of CZ-USA. Laminated wood is an option; so is Kevlar-reinforced fiberglass (with aluminum bedding block).

SAFARI-STYLE The brawny profile and construction of the 550 complement accurate barrels. Even the bigbores, I’ve found, print small groups. The Safari Classic is as fancy as the 550 gets and is chambered for traditional Africa-inspired rounds—the .404 Jeffery, .450 Rigby, .500 Jeffery and .505 Gibbs—as well as for the .300 H&H and .338 Winchester, .338 Lapua, .375 H&H and .416 Remington. A mercury recoil reducer in the buttstock is standard on rifles in .500 Jeffery, .505 Gibbs and .338 Lapua. Safari Classics, which start at around $3,000, feature trued and lapped actions glass-bedded into figured walnut. Iron sights and barrelband front are standard. You can add options including a muzzlebrake, rust blue, ebony fore-end tip and special chamberings. The CZ Safari Magnums chambered in .375 H&H, .458 Winchester, .458 Lott and .416 Rigby list for half as much as the Safari Classics. Besides a more limited choice of chamberings, Safari Magwww.cz-usa.com

Even with ancient handloads, this CZ .375 prints one-MOA groups. Thank the hammer-forged barrel.

nums feature fore-end-mounted swivel studs and plain walnut. (Laminated and Kevlar-fiberglass stocks are available, too.) You can buy a .375 Field Grade for just $1,180. I’ve used Federal’s Trophy Bonded .375s on animals as big as buffalo. A professional hunter who culled elephants with a .375 told me he preferred it to a .458 because “hurling 500-grain solids makes my head hurt. Also, I get as much penetration with the .375—sometimes more.” A CZ 550 in .375 holds a capacity advantage over most of its competitors: The magazine takes five belted magnums. I also like the 25-inch barrel. It enhances the cosmetics and balance, and puts muzzle blast a comfortable distance from your face. Barrel contours on bigbore CZ rifles are just right, though the stocks are a tad generous. These rifles point quickly, but hang well on target. They’re stout, but not ponderous. On most CZ Safari rifles, a barrelband front sight complements a

trio of rear leaves, two folding. Their shallow V notches feature white center lines for fast aim. And the company offers 15 heights and sizes of front sights, so you can tailor the irons for any load you want. At 9½ pounds, the CZ 550 in .375 is no mountain rifle. But that heft makes it more civil at the bench and helps with offhand aim when you’re out of breath shadowing a Zambian tracker who’d qualify for the Boston Marathon running backward. Weight also contributes to accuracy. My handloads—300-grain Herter softpoints launched at 2,420 fps by 81 grains of H4831—printed inside 1¼ inches. My friends Sam Shaw and Rich McClure got similar results. In fact, the CZ shot the smallest groups of four .375s on the line that afternoon. Thank the hammer-forged barrel and, of course, that single-set trigger, which broke at 2¾ pounds as-is and one pound when set. I’ve cradled and shot just about every CZ rifle, from the 452 rimfire to the UHR (Ultimate Hunting Rifle). The UHR is an eight-pound 550 with a 24-inch barrel in .300 Winchester Magnum. Designed for accuracy at extreme range, it comes with a one-MOA guarantee at 600 yards. I hung a bullseye at 500, hiked back to the line and snugged up the sling. Despite a cold wind, my fiveshot volley centered in the black with a respectable group. The .375 Safari Magnum had years earlier instilled dreams of long grass and crinkled footprints the size of manhole covers. Still, I had yet to get cozy with a bigbore Safari Classic. Jason Morton of CZ-USA took care of that with a beautifully stocked rifle in .404 Jeffery. But that’s another story… cz-usa.com 63

Endurance Run

CZ 912

THE CZ 912 autoloader is put to the ultimate field test: 2,000 Rounds on Argentina doves. By MIKE SCHOBY I Photos by SEAN UTLEY

he mark of a good shotgun comes in many forms: fit, feel, style, grace, weight, and balance are just a few of the more important ones. But when it comes to semiauto shotguns, reliability trumps them all. To put it another way, no matter how good a gun points, balances or looks, if it fails to go bang, or only goes bang once before jamming up, it isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t worth much. With an extended reliability field test in mind, I headed down to Cordoba, Argentina to test out the newest autoloading offering from CZ-USAâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the 912.

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When we broke for lunch I had put another 750 roundS through the 912, making for a complete field test of 2,000 shells.

More doves were shot at than actually hit, but the CZ 912 assuredly fired every shell true.

At first glance, the 912 fits all of my requirements for style and function. The high gloss walnut furniture is finished nicely and has a better-than-average figure. The receiver is crafted from alloy, which reduces overall weight as well as shifting the point of balance slightly forward to improve swing and follow through. At 7.4 pounds, the gun is no featherweight, but no obese bruiser either. In fact, it’s nearly ideal for a day of hunting or sporting clays. On the first morning, the doves flew well. It had been a couple of years since my last trip to Argentina, so I was not only trigger happy,

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but rusty—a poor combination for the trial of a gun. But over the course of several hours, I managed to run 750 shells through the 912 doing my best to look like I knew how to bring down wildfowl. I won’t bore you (or embarrass myself) with the hit percentage, but let’s just say the gun functioned fine—misses (of which there were many) should be blamed on the shooter (me) and not the gun. In the three cases of shells, I only had a handful of failures to feed, none of which could be attributed to the gun. In all cases the failure could easily be blamed on the horrible shells acquired in Argentina. Bulged plastic hulls,

TYPE: Gas operated, semiauto GAUGE: 12, 3 in. Capacity: 4+1 Barrel: 28 in., five screw-in chokes Overall Length: 50 in. Weight: 7.3 lb. FURNITURE: Turkish walnut Finish: Matte black, hard chrome Trigger: Single, 8 lb. (tested) Sights: Green fiber optic (front)

the first, except I shot better. I was getting accustomed to this shotgun and the angles of incoming targets. When we broke for lunch I had put another 750 rounds through the 912, making for a complete field test of 2,000 shells. The gun passed with flying colors. It shot well and cycled fine. Of course, during the last 200 shells I observed the operation begin to slow in its return to battery. The gas system was beginning to succumb to relentless fouling from the filthy ammunition and lack of oil. In these last few boxes, there was an occasional failure to feed, but much of this has to be blamed on the shells. Even the ones that weren’t physically damaged were dirty, leaving more gunk per shell in the gun than an entire box of faithful Federals or Winchesters. Two-thousand shells fired in a day and a half. Any gun loaded with this ammo is going to choke, so I was impressed. All-in-all, the CZ 912 is a hell of an autoloader. It has stylish modern looks and is joined with high-tech features such as an effective recoilabsorbing pad. Best of all, the 912 meets a real world price of less than $500 and has the one feature I cherish the most: It goes “bang” every time.

and severed brass cases should not be included in the failure to feed category as they wouldn’t have fed in a break open single shot, let alone an autoloader. That afternoon, I got my eye in and got used to the swing (made a tad heavy, but smooth with an “Argentina-style” extended magazine) and fired another 500 rounds, for a total of 1,250 shells expended. Normally, I clean guns every night as a matter of preventive maintenance, but for this evaluation, I decided to forgo the effort in cleaning to see how the 912 would perform under such conditions. The following morning was just like

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African Dreams

CZ 550

A .30-’06 Delivers another memorable quest to the dark continent.

s the mass of gemsbok thundered out into the open through a cloud of dust, Lafras, my PH, barked sharp instructions: “Mike! Third in from the right. Shoot!” I asked, “Third in from the right? “Which group?” “The far right,” he hissed. “Shoot now!” I was more than a little hesitant. All I could see of the animal third from the right was hind. To be more specific, only part of the hind, in what looked like a sea of gemsbok—and they all looked like shooters.

By MIKE CARNEY I Photos by JOHN HAFNER

FREE OF WORK This was my first trip to Africa, but the fourth ticket I had bought in as many years. Work obligations had snatched the dream from me for three consecutive summers. This year, I was not to be denied. When my feet hit ground of the Dark Continent, I was on the soil of South Africa, ready to head eight hours northwest to the Kalahari, as the guests of Harry Claassens’ Mata Mata hunting lodge. Mata Mata literally translates “If you give, you will receive.” Four years of planning and three disappointing cancellations later, it was surreal to actually be in-country. Just four weeks earlier, I had chosen the CZ 550 chambered in .30-’06 for this trip of a lifetime. Kevin Steele, publisher of Petersen’s Hunting, assured me with his personal experience that it was the perfect rifle for my plains game adventure. I liked the idea of using a rifle ruggedly proven on every conceivable animal roaming the land. The 550 was adorned with a classic 4X Weaver steel tube. I don’t consider myself a rifleman—not by any stretch of the imagination. I’m much more 68 cz-usa.com

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comfortable with a recurve bow and sharp sticks. And while I had brought my pet Hoyt and Dalaa recurve bows along for the trip, I didn’t want to be cooped up in blind for a week overlooking a waterhole on my first trip to Africa. I wanted my boots in the sand of the Kalahari. I wanted to see, hear, and smell as much of this experience as I could take in.

RANGE CHECK Sighting in and using Hornady 180-grain SST, my first group off the bench was astonishing. I have the privilege of working with some of the finest rifle shots in our industry: Scott Rupp, editor of Rifle Shooter magazine; Joseph VonBenedikt, editor of Shooting Times; Mike Schoby and Craig Boddington of Petersen’s Hunting; Eric Poole editor of InterMedia Special Interest Publications; David Fortier of Shotgun News, and many others. All accomplished rifleman in every sense of the description and all eager to lend advice, instruction and encouragement as I prepared for the trip. Peering through the spotting scope at the target some 100 yards cz-usa.com 69

“ There he is Mike. Shoot him again,” Lafras instructed. Standing broadside, the gemsbok was alone 100 yards from my position. distant, their unselfish investment in my shooting instruction was starting to appear. My first group measured just over an honest inch, something heretofore I was incapable of producing with any rifle. Was it an aberration? Groups two, three, four and five demonstrated otherwise, consistently hovering an inch. The 550 was definitely proving itself to be a shooter. Furthermore, it delivered these results without the use of this model’s set trigger. The CZ single set trigger is designed to reduce trigger pull to ounces. And the break is as crisp as glass breaking. Continuing with a variety of Hornady and Federal .30-’06 loads in 165- and 180-grain weights, I was producing groups at the bench that would make my instructors proud. It was hard to come up with a load that the 550 favored over others, but at the end I selected the heavier 180grain Hornady SST to take on my hit list: kudu, gemsbok and eland.

BREAKING THE SHOT As I felt Lafras’ growing frustration with my unwillingness to let lead fly back on the savannah, I remembered what Steele had told me weeks earlier: “Be prepared to shoot at only parts of an animal. Opportunities at specific trophies in the bush are fast and fleeting, and you will have an accomplished tracker on hand if you need a follow up shot.” Still, for a boy from the Midwest who grew up on the double-lung mantra, ass shooting an animal just doesn’t come natural. When in Rome… Even through the sound of the moving herd, I knew I hit the gemsbok exactly where I aimed. Lafras and the tracker were gleeful, “Nice shot Mike, get in the truck.” It was as if they were waiting all day to show off their collective recovery skills. Ten minutes later, laughing to 70 cz-usa.com

African trophy. I thought I would wake from a dream and discover I was not actually here. In camp that evening, Harry and his wife Jolane, a former stewardess for South African Airlines, greeted us with smiles and stories as we looked at all the day’s trophies already hangmyself as they methodically shuffled through a veritable ocean of tracks in the sand with no discernable clues, the tracker pointed West. “There he is Mike. Shoot him again,” Lafras instructed. Standing broadside, the gemsbok was alone 100 yards from my position. I couldn’t see the right ham where I previously aimed the 550 and placed a Hornady SST. “Are you sure that’s him?” I questioned. Evidently, that’s not the thing to say to a PH and his tracker who just solved the Rubix Cube of tracks to earn you a follow up shot. I don’t speak Afrikaans, but I was pretty certain that their response was an enthusiastic “yes” peppered with colorful adjectives and colloquialisms reserved for just such client occasions. The next shoulder shot laid the gemsbok prone, and Lafras and his tracker approached the animal very seriously. They applied a well rehearsed foot maneuver to trap his long, pointy horns to the ground.

Apparently the gemsbok has a deserved reputation for exacting final vengeance on his foes. The “Desert Warrior” is not one to be trifled with during recovery. Lafras offered me hearty congratulations while his tracker wagged his finger to simulate pulling a trigger while whistling some not-so-sweet nothings. My first www.cz-usa.com

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ing by the cleaning station. It was a great end to the first day on safari.

OTHER TROPHIES During our five-day trip, Brian Lisankie from Aimpoint took a beautiful zebra, blesbok, impala and gemsbok; Michael Kinn of Federal took the same quartet; Jason Hornady bagged a magnificent gemsbok; Tom “One-Shot” Taylor of Mossberg checked in a gorgeous red hartebeest, a gemsbok, blue wildebeest and a kudu; And Rick Bednar took a magnificent eland, warthog and a kudu at 35 yards with a 10-Point crossbow. Later in the safari, my 550 downed a massive kudu, an impala and finally I grassed a fat warthog with my recurve bow. Jason Morton, CZ-USA marketing director, was on point during safari with Kevin Steele filming an episode of “Petersen’s Hunting Adventures TV.” The pair managed to collect a great show featuring eland, red hartebeest and kudu trophies. The accommodations and professionalism of the Mata Mata staff, from the skilled PH’s and trackers to the game butchers and cleaners, is first class. I look forward to the next African safari as well as the day I can bring my wife and daughter. Without question, it’ll be at Claassens’ Mata Mata and when that time comes, we’ll be joined by my faithful CZ 550. cz-usa.com 71

Longslide

CZ 75 CTS LS-P

BORING RELIABILITY AND EXCELLENT ACCURACY in Any PACKAGE FROM THE CZ CUSTOM SHOP.

here are not many custom shops, large or small, that can say they’re run by an active world-class pistol competitor. That is the case, however, with Angus Hobdell and CZ Custom. The result is a seemingly endless supply of interesting variations on legendary CZ products.

By JAMES TARR I Photos by SEAN UTLEY

Angus Hobdell has been shooting IPSC and USPSA for decades. He’s won more U.S. and international titles than anyone can easily recall. In addition to the fact that he’s still actively competing as a sponsored CZ shooter, he operates CZ Custom (czcustom.com) in Phoenix, Arizona. CZ Custom does all of the custom pistolwork for CZ-USA and any CZ owner who wants specific work done. In addition to custom gunsmithing, Angus and his crew work very closely with CZ-UB of the Czech Republic and CZ-USA in Kansas City, Missouri. Each year the custom shop produces a number of one-off or limited-run guns, and sometimes those models make it into the CZ-USA catalog of new offerings. This year, one of the new models from the custom shop is the CZ 75 Longslide (LS). The LS was created by combining the CZ 75 frame wearing a short dustcover to the long CZ Tactical Sports (CTS) slide. There are two models: the “B,” which is singleaction only, and the CZ 75 LS-P, which is a DA/SA pistol. While they are being produced in-house at CZ Custom, they will be available soon through any CZ dealer. I acquired an LS-P for testing and was reminded again why this all-steel gun is still so successful in competition. 72 cz-usa.com

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The CZ 75 LS-P is chambered in 9mm and starts with a standard steel CZ 75 frame. If you’ve never picked up a CZ 75, you don’t know what you’re missing. The late Guns & Ammo contributor Col. Jeff Cooper loved the 75. With its distinctive humpback grip, he liked the feel of this CZ in his hand so much so that he styled the legendary Bren Ten 10mm auto after it. This frame is slightly undercut under the triggerguard and utilizes a high-rise beavertail, but there’s no 1911-style grip safety. The CZ 75 has been in existence since 1975—long enough that there are numerous aftermarket grips available to fit every style and hand size. The preproduction LS-P I received wears traditional checkered and contoured black plastic grips, but Angus informed me that the standard grips would be black rubber. The custom shop also offers a number of aluminum grips of varying thickness that also look and feel great in the hand. The front of the triggerguard is serrated, but the front and back of the frame are smooth. In a small or stiff-recoiling gun, a smooth frame might be an issue, but the weight of the LS-P matched with its low bore dimensions provides a soft shooting cz-usa.com 73

It wouldn’t be a CZ Custom shop product if the pistol didn’t have a trigger job.

Controls are very low profile and beveled to reduce snags. The safety protrudes more than the magazine release.

The grips on production models are molded rubber with tactile checkering.

combination. It didn’t feel like the gun The LS-P I received had a smooth locked. Personally, I don’t find the could ever work loose in my hand. 7.7-pound double-action and a 3.8thumb safety to be as user-friendly This is not a small gun, and it has a pound single-action pull. Advertised for that purpose as the ones found long reach for the first double action trigger pulls are seven to 7.5 pounds on modern 1911s so you should pracshot, so if you do have small hands for DA and 3.1 to 3.4 pounds for SA. tice with this pistol before making I’d recommend trying one first. This great trigger can be partially a complete transition. CZ Custom Designed for competition and credited to the fact that all internals has replaced the standard recoil and target shooting, the LS-P has an have been polished smooth. hammer springs with reduced-power extended magazine release and exThe LS-P can be carried like a springs, which greatly soften the trigtended, ambidextrous thumb safety. 1911—Condition One, cocked and ger pull and cut down on muzzle dip The thumb safety is not too during rapid fire, but combine large, but it does protrude. with the extended firing pin CZ 75 CTS LS-P It sticks out far enough that installed in the pistol, it does dropping the pistol on its side not affect reliability. The TYPE: DA/SA semiauto won’t pop out the magazine, pistol sports an attractive Caliber: 9mm Luger as it’s larger than the magaskeletonized hammer that Capacity: 19 zine release button. I’ve seen is a bit small for easy cock Barrel: 5.4 in. this happen more times than ing by hand. As there is no Overall length: 8.7 in. Weight: 41 oz. I can count in competition, decocker, the only way the Grips: Rubber especially when the pistol in hammer can be lowered on a Finish: Blued question has a light magalive round for a DA first shot Trigger: Double action: 7 lb., 12 zine-release spring. On the is by hand, and this small oz.; single action: 3 lb., Longslide, the mag-release hammer spur makes that a 13 oz. (tested) spring is full power. delicate proposition. Sights: Red fiber optic (front), It wouldn’t be a CZ Custom The trigger is smooth Kensight adjustable Shop product if the pistol and wide. There was a lot (rear) didn’t have a trigger job. of takeup in my gun on the 74 cz-usa.com

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Like a 1911, the CZ 75 CTS LS-P can be carried “cocked and locked” and operated with either hand.

single-action pull, but the reset was short and audible. There was almost no overtravel. I could see that both the hammer and the underside of the slide had been ground and polished to provide a smooth working gun. Several CZ 75 models have firing-pin safeties, but those extra parts always affect the weight and quality of the trigger pull. As the LS-P is designed for competition, it does not feature an internal firingpin safety, but the hammer does have a half-cock notch. The standard CZ 75 has a 4.7-inch barrel, while the longslide sports a 5.4-inch barrel. As a result, the long slides come into the U.S. oversize and have to be precision machined and then hand-fit to the frame. The CZ 75, with its inside-the-frame slide design, is designed to be completely interchangeable, but the CTS was designed for a different gun, so these are the only CZ pistols that you’ll find with a hand-fitted slide. While not as www.cz-usa.com

The spring-powered extractor follows the contour of the familiar ejection port relief cut on this CZ 75.

tight as a custom-built Dan Wesson 1911, the slide-to-frame fit on the LS is excellent. There’s almost zero play. The preproduction example I received had a stainless steel recoilspring guide rod, but production models will have a polymer guide rod “to reduce cost on a gun that’s already expensive due to hand-fitting,” Hobdell explained. The undercut post front sight has a red fiber optic insert, and the rear sight is the CZ version of the justifiably renowned Bo-Mar adjustable Champion. I would have preferred a larger notch, as there was not a lot of daylight around the front sight, but that’s just my personal preference. Longslide guns are all the rage in modern action-pistol competition, as the increased sight radius helps competitors hit those difficult targets more quickly. The top of the slide has been flattened and serrated. This is ostensibly done to reduce glare, but if you’ve got a proper sight picture, you can’t see the top of the

slide. Some competitors go for any advantage they can get, perceived or real. Not too long ago, I had an opportunity to spend a couple of days visiting the CZ Custom Shop in Phoenix. Angus Hobdell is a transplanted Brit who relocated after his native government outlawed all the “dangerous” guns he made a living shooting and working on. He loved the Phoenix area and set up shop. Hobdell employs five people, including a machinist from South Africa. He and Hobdell began good-naturedly insulting each other in Afrikaans while I was standing by. Everyone who works in the shop shoots, including Rob, who’s a USPSA GrandMaster. Between the Afrikaans, Hobdell’s attempt to teach me Cockney rhyming slang and Rob’s Jersey accent, I felt like I needed a Universal Translator. “The problem is I’m speaking in English, but you’re listening in American,” Hobdell explains. cz-usa.com 75

My sample came with a target illustrating a five-shot, 1.2-inch group fired at 25 yards. As opposed to how many shooters most of the automatasked me, “Hey, ics Americans are what’s that?” familiar with, the The fiber optic frame of the CZ 75 front sight works well rides inside the frame indoors and glows as rails as opposed brightly as a batteryto the outside like powered red dot sight other semiautos. in direct sunlight. This makes for a As CZ Custom is very narrow slide. a true custom shop, Combined with the the shop can build low bore, this design you a model chamreduces the amount bered in .40 S&W or of slide available to one that’s tricked out grip, so I was pleased The CZ 75 CTS LS-P features a light-gathering fiber optic front sight. for fastest practical The top of the slide is serrated to reduce glare. to see that the slide shooting event. They on the CTS LS-P can add aluminum was serrated both front and back for guide the stored rounds. The pistols grips, a magwell—almost anything positive manipulation. are function-fired at the CZ Custom you can desire. The LS-P arrives with two extended Shop and are supplied with a test Hobdell’s plans are to get the CZ 19-round magazines—a definite plus. target. My sample came with a target 75 CTS LS-P approved for use in the Standard CZ 75 magazines hold 17 illustrating a five-shot, 1.2-inch group IPSC Production Division, which is rounds of 9mm and fit flush with the fired at 25 yards. ironically dominated by the CZ 75 frame. Like other CZ 75 magazines, At the range there were no surSP-01. Whether you compete or not, these drop free from the gun and have prises—boring reliability and excellent this is a longslide that looks great and black plastic followers to consistently accuracy. It was interesting to note shoots even better.

CZ-USA is making efforts to get the CZ 75 CTS LS-P approved for use in the IPSC Production Division.

accuracy results Make

Bullet Weight (gr.)

Avg. Velocity (fps)

Standard Deviation

Group (in.) 1.8

Hornady 147 XTP

147

944

Black Hills FMJ

115

1,103

2.1

Hornady TAP/FPD

124

1,089

1.9

Accuracy results are the averages of four five-shot groups at 25 yards from a sandbag rest. Velocities are averages of 10 shots measured with an F-1 Alpha chronograph 12 feet from the muzzle.

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