Has anyone on here had an dealings with RD Custom Products recently?

I intended to buy one of his trigger guards to replace the ugly-sister device on my CZ452, but haven't heard anything for nearly a year.

Anyone else make a CZ452 trigger guard replacement??

RD is out of business. Some British maker is offering CZ TGs I was told but I never found out who.

If you find a source, please do tell (PM if you like)

Thanks,

MtnHtr

Ya snooze you lose - Glad I didn't make the order and deposit. Will do some snooping around over on rimfirecentral.

Thanks for the info - DARBY

I found out also that RD isn't in business any longer, and I'm looking for one too. I checked with BRNOMAN over on Rimfirecentral and he doesn't make them, so I'm still looking..

I suppose it is time to dust off the ol' Bridgeport and start chewing away. I wish.

It seems to me there has to be a good market for these things. The ones RD made were nice, and added a lot to the looks of the 452.

I have a pal who has a machine shop, and he makes all sorts of clean, stylish billet parts for Harleys - will see what he what he can come with.

Head over to rimfirecentral and post under the CZ forum. As mentioned there's someone across the pond who's making them and sells a few on UK feebay.

There's also someone who recently posted that he's working on doing his own.

Hi All,

I believe this is the English producer mentioned above:

dce Holne R & D Ltd.

Contact: Gary Alden

Tel: 00 44 1548 856742

e-mail: [email protected]

www.dce-holne-rd.com

They have recently been featured in the New Products section of one of our magazines.

Good luck,

Tim

Thanks for the replies.

This begs the question as to why CZ didn't make something a bit more aesthetically pleasing to begin with - these are not exactly inexpensive rifles. Then there's the trigger that needs attention. Oh well - this thing should last me forever....

The ones from RD were nice, I have a couple. I thought about the
ones from GB but the first ones were aluminum. I'm looking at
seeing what the cost would be to make a few.

Someone needs to start making em, seems to me they sold like hotcakes but must cost a bunch to produce.

HotRod9mm, please let us know if you start to produce them, Im in for sure.

PP

I have a couple at the shop they started on. The fixturing and extra tooling cost makes getting started the hard part. But hopefully they will turn out nice. If all goes well then I will have them in a hot bluing and some parkerized to match both receiver finishes.

Nice piece -- I would be interested in one of those too.

Plan to take my 452 by my buddy's place today to see what he thinks he can come up with using his machinery. Will copy and take these photos along.

HotRod9mm, Any chance of producing a conversion kit to reverse the operation of the safety on a CZ452? I love the rifles, except for that ridiculous bass ackwards safety! Someone used to make a conversion kit for these, but my CRS is kicking in right now, and I can't remember who!

Joe (Darby)...

I had my gunsmith give my CZ453's trigger guard a high polish, both inside and outside the trigger guard, then re-blue it in a glossy blue... it worked out beautifully... and cost me a mere $15.

I also had the action bedded and the action screws pillar-bedded & insured the barrel was still "floating" at the same time... and it shoots pretty good.

As you'll probably remember, I bought the "varmint" model of the CZ453 with the heavy barrel and the single-set trigger.

Now it shoots Wolf Match/Target ammo into a � inch or less sometimes (5-shot groups @ 50 yds.) and the cheapest CCI Blazer solid point, H.V. .22 rimfire, long rifle ammo into less than a � inch all the time and into about 1/3rd of an inch sometimes.

I am also separating the rounds according to weight (in 1/10th of a grain increments) and rim thickness (within 1/1000ths of an inch) to further enhance the ammo's accuracy.

I've got that single set trigger down to mere "ounces" now...


Strength & Honor...

Ron T.

In my somewhat less-than-humble opinion, trying to pretty-up the stock 452 trigger guard is a classic example of putting lipstick on a pig.

To each/tastes vary and all that, but the one on mine is headed for the trash can when I can find something to replace it. Hope you like yours.

Hahahahahaha... "...lipstick on a pig"... CUTE !!!

Actually, Joe... it looks pretty good-a whole lot better than it did. And it didn't cost $100+ to make it look that way.

Reread my above post - a cheap-looking trigger guard will forever be that and nothing more, shiny or otherwise. If it makes you happy and you think it looks okay, then you have gotten off on the cheap. I prefer something nicer and am willing/can afford to pay for it IF there is something better to be had. CZ could have done better with the bargain-basement guard and the throwaway trigger system on these less-than-inexpensive rifles.

Yours is easily the most accurate I have ever read about, but then we know how well some rifles shoot on the net do we not.

I have to say I really liked the RD trigger guards. I'd buy a similar item from another vendor.

Rub it in, will ya - --- those things sure improve the looks of a 452.

Even more than the trigger guard, can one flush up the magazine with the stock surface? I wouldn't be caught dead with a unit displaying that profile.

Mine seems to shoot fine with the factory trigger guard, so I guess I will keep it.

Mine shoots fine too - my thought is that it could be visually more pleasing. Yes, it looked this way when I bought it.

The trigger itself is pretty much a non-issue by now too. My 452 is not scoped - it's a Lux and would be difficult to mount a scope on without resorting to overly-high mounts to clear the rear sight base. The good news is that the iron sights are quite good and I do not notice how sloppy the stock trigger is when not looking through a scope. Yes, I know there are many fixes for the trigger, but for now it is doing fine as an iron-sighted truck rifle.

I am very much aware that these rifles have a very loyal following and from most accounts I read just about everyone is delighted with theirs. Maybe I expected too much -- ??? --

Received the following response from the English producer:

"We are not at present able to ship to the states due to export licensing.
We are trying to resolve the problem and will keep your email details to inform you of the payment details.
Best Regards
Ian"



MtnHtr

Anyone that owns a drill press, a good drill vise and a hand full of files can fix the problem and make a new trigger guard.

It ain't rocket science, after all.

I'm not geared up (equipment- or talent-wise) to make an acceptable triggerguard, buy hey, if you can do it, PM me for my address and I'll graciously evaluate your sample (gift)...

Thanks in advance - -

DARBY: Alaska and Arizona? Come on now, we are rugged individualist. How do you know you can't if you haven't tried? Get a hunk of steel larger than the unit, 1010 or 1020 SAE. Lay out fluid, awl to trace the outline. Drill outside of the lines. Their is you template. Remove all the metal that's in the way. Sand to your desire finish and rust blue.

You will be more proud of what you are capable of doing than anything you can buy.

Sad to say I don't have any metalworking equipment at all these days, but I did drive by a Holiday Inn Express yesterday...

I do have a friend with a machine shop and am trying to get him interested in making something along the lines of the RD piece.

They are not the nicest looking trigger guard on the block that's for sure, but not so ugly as to justify the cost to me.
I do know of a guy that does bluing, maybe this winter if he can drop in mine with a job that grinder file idea is a good one.

I am going to do something with the trigger for sure. I thought it was ok till the last couple of weeks. We have shot well in excess of 1000 rounds, maybe two, eliminating several hundred whistle pigs. It is to hard of a pull, making my trigger finger feel tired a little for a couple of days. Maybe I am getting old, or not, but a lighter trigger is a must have for my 452 American. The guard is a maybe.

I got one of those all steel blued trigger guards from R&D Custom before they went out of business. The service was really slow and poor customer service, found out that the owner was having health issue fighting cancer. Ashame that R&D went out of business but wish the owner a full healthy recovery.

What is a reasonable price for an all steel guard? I have a mill sitting unused and i might try to make a few.

Tod, can you remember what you paid for your trigger guard from R&D? If my memory serves me right, think mine was $125? I thought that was a little steep. I was thinking more along the lines of $75-$85.


Leo

About $125 would seem fair to me if it didn't need too much polishing and was made of good steel and not aluminum.

I'm in the market for 2.

Terry

You guys know there is a real simple solution to this. Someone with one of the trigger guards you all want, needs to step forward with the trigger guard for a prototype and get a group buy together, money would have to be up front. Get a hold of Butch Lambert and have him do a cnc project with one of the shops he uses. Have as many as you want that way. As long as there is enough money you can get them made. It is not hard to do as a group. Unless of course one of you has deep pockets and thinks he can make some money. I would trust that personnel and would only move forward with cash in hand. That way you weed out the also rans. Lots of small CNC shops looking to do small runs, as long as the money is there.

Just get this organized. Call for a group buy.

If and when you folks figure out who the real players are, contact BUTCH

I talked a gunsmith yesterday with a CNC machine. He say's he can do it but the price would depend on how many units he makes.

If I provided this product how many would buy at say somewhere between $100 and $125 for one of these in the white?

Right now I'm thinking probably just the .22LR and .17HM2 but if there was enough of a market for the magnums we could do those too.

I'm not asking for a deposit or anything Just trying gauge serious interest.

Terry

BTW, this is what the guy is capable pf. He made this bottom metal from scratch and say's the CZ trigger guard looks like a fun project.

TC1
If we can get them finished en masse, I would think it would be less expensive. Either way though, I'd be in for at least one or two.

I certainly would like one - will be interested to see how this endeavor turns out. For a real test of the waters, put this proposal on Rimfirecentral --

There is a guy over there talking about doing some but right now he's convinced they need to made out of aluminum. Hell, I would pay a nickel for that.

Terry

If you are going to pay to have them done then insist they be made out of 1018. This will give the best for most finishes.

I'm in for one for the .22 LR

Hi Guys any more news on those cz 452 trigger guards.I have a brno model 2 452 that i would like to change the guard on. The original one is a bit cheap.

Terry,

Count me in for one.
I have a 452 American in 22 RF. It's the Prestige Model with very good Walnut, and I would love upgrading the trigger guard and floor plate.
Thanks for undertaking this venture. Also, let us know if and when any are avaialble. The price you quote is fine with me.

Don

Scribble me in on the list as well.

Are these being produced or are you just testing the water as a middle man?

g

GeoW, I have talked to the guy about making a batch. At this point we were talking about me fronting the money for the project and I would re-selling them. I don't think he wants a bunch of phone calls for such a small part. At this point I'm a little hesitant to ask for any more than 20 because the interest seems a little lower than I had thought. We haven't discussed a price for such a small run.

Terry

Terry:

Add me to the list if you can get it done.

Carlos

Registered just to say I am very interested in at least two if the price isn't too high and especially if the quality is as good as previous units on the market. Would heavily prefer steel, though...

I would be up for one in .22rf if less than $125, maybe a bit more.

John

I'm in if they are less than $110 shipped.

MtnHtr

In for a 452 American, 22 Mag. Price depending, as well.

Terry - any new good news on the guards - ???

I tried making one on my mill, and I am no machinist. Too embarrassed to post a pic of the result. Please, someone who's knows what they're doing make some of these.

Well, yes there is some news. I talked to my man last week and we've worked a tenative deal on 30 units!

Right now it's looking like these will be made of steel (I haven't been told which type yet.) They will be polished and blued and they will sell somewhere between $130-$135 plus shipping. At this point in time I'm only going to order the LR version but may do a magnum in the future if the if there is a demand for it.

I know some here had put a definite price on what they would pay for one. I did my best to emphasize that a low price was of the utmost importance and I think he did as good of a deal as possible. One of the stipulations was I front the cash for this project and handle all the sales. I hope some will give it some consideration once I have these in hand. I did my best.

Now I can't give a time frame for this, nor would I even consider asking for a deposit. When the time gets close I'll make an announcement. I'm not making anything on this deal, but I'll need to check with Rick Bin to make sure I'm not stepping on any toes here.

Terry

$135 before shipping is a bit high, considering others not too long ago have gone for less than $100 shipped. At more than a third the cost of my rifles, they had better be damned fine looking. When / if you ask for a deposit, I couldn't make it unless I saw some high resolution photos - it's just too high of a price for an item I might not like.

Again, I'd be looking for two or three of these guys - depends on final price and if I want to replace my matte Silhouette with a shiny.

Lets get one thing COMPLETELY clear and upfront here. I never did nor will I ask for a deposit from you or anyone else. I'm funding this out of my own pocket. When they're ready you can buy one if you like them. If not it's no skin off my back.

Second, show me where you can get a polished and blued milled steel trigger guard for a CZ452 for less than $100 shipped and I'll call the guy up, cancel the order and buy one that you link here! I bet you can't and further more it's unrealistic to expect a man to design a CNC program to run 30 units, buy the steel, wear out several mill bits, run his CNC mill machine, polish them up and send them to a bluer and then sell them for less than $100 apiece shipped!

Third, if you don't like the product or the price don't buy one. It's really that simple. If you can have them built cheaper then do it. I bet you can't. The idea of this project is to build something nice not cheap. If you want cheap, that's already on your rifle.

BTW, they will be pretty damned fine looking when finished. They won't look like anything else that's ever been offered so far.

Terry

I talked to him again tonight and and found out these will be made of 1018 steel. this steel will hold a tank blue and rust blue very well. He said he thought it could be case color hardened too but would need to check on it as the it's pretty thin in a few spots.

I'm shipping my rifle to him this week for him to use as a test mule to do a "one off" on. As soon as I get pictures I will forward them on for every one to look at.

I really need some comments on bow shape. What would you guy's like to see in this? We can either have a conventional style guard like on a Winchester M70 or we can have an egg shaped one. I personally would like something in-between. A nice oval shape, but I'm completely open to suggestions and will go with the majority.

Terry

A carbon copy of the RD product would be fine with me. Shiny hot blued...

TC1, I don't know why you took offense to my post. You sound angry.

Yes, there were units for less than $100 shipped not long ago but there weren't only 30 units made. I do wish they were still around. They were pretty damn fine looking.

Re: shape, rounded or slightly oval as you said would probably look the best, IMO.

Yep, that or the M70 look-alike

True, those were sold fresh off the mill at that price. They still needed finish sanding, polishing and blueing. They haven't been avalible for over two years. I tried to get one.

Many said they wanted a finished product so that's what I spec'ed and yes that adds to the price. If everybody wanted one in the "white" I could come a little closer to the price you want to pay. The problem that is it adds too much confusion to the project. I want all of them just alike and if the buyer wants something different he can do that after he receives it. Yes, I did take offence to what you said. I've done the leg work and I'll be investing a large chunk of cash (about $3300.00) in this. I've also consumed a lot of the builders time. It's kind of easy to snipe from an arm chair and I didn't appreciate it. You made stipulations about a deposit that I never asked for. You seem to want to justify the price of the triggerguard by what you paid for the rifle and what an unfinshed one cost several years ago. Why should the guy building these lower his hourly rate because you didn't spend much on your rifle? I promise you he won't.

I can understand that some don't want to buy a nice triggerguard for a cheap rifle. But please understand that many of us see it as we own a nice rifle with a cheap triggerguard and would like to upgrade one of the only cheap parts on the rifle.

The time for complaining about the price is over with. I did the best I could and this is what I came up with. I was the only one who has tried to take this from an unobtainable part to a reality. All I ask is that you don't crap on this thread because you don't like the price. I've done the best I can. If I ordered a 100 units I'm sure the price would have come down significantly, but consider this, it would have taken at least a $10,000.00 investment on my part. My pockets just aren't that deep and I'm not sure I could sell that many. Could you?

No hard feelings, I hope you can see my point of view on this. Thanks for your input on the shape.

Terry

either will be fine but here is my thinking on this. The swept back egg shape one is very appealing but probably wouldn't look right on the varmint model. The M70 style (semi square) would look great on the Varmint but not as slick on the CZ American. If we did a oval shape we could sort of stay on middle ground and the style would be acceptable on more models. Something like the picture below but with a slightly thinner front strap and no bow release.



What do you guy's think?

Sorry for the crappy picture.

Terry

Mine will be going on a full stock model so I think any of them will look fine.

I agree 100%!That's an excellent deal.If I can get one for that price,you can put me down for one please sir.Thanks.P.S.,As to the shape ,the "In Between" would be fine for me as well.Thanks.

Terry:

I'm in for two! Don't forget, send me a PM whenever you want the clams.

Carlos

I need one for 22LR, I sent you a pm TC1

Almost anything wold be better than the horrid guard that CZ puts on the 452. It works, but it really detracts from the guns otherwise great looks. I got my 2 RDs. Seems like there's a demand.

Please put me down for one of the trigger guards if it fits a CZ 452 Lux .22LR.

Brent

TC1, I think you misinterpreted about half of what I said (the deposit thing, others) and had fun attacking the other half.

My intent was not to crap on this thread, but it appears to be crapped on already.

When you get high resolution finish photos, I'll consider buying one or two for my FS and / or Ultra Lux .22LR.

You stated $135 was too high et cetera - not much way of misinterpreting that.

Me, I am in line and hoping they turn out nice --

I know you're talking all .22LR, still do we know how different the .22WMR bottom metal is? In other words is it just a matter of mag slot in the metal? I have a file and a milling machine I can use...

Plamemech, the guy building these ask the same question. But I didn't have an answer for him. It may not be a big deal all but I didn't have a WMR/HMR to send. Neither one of us liked the idea of building a part and not being able to test fit it.

Terry

Here is some more of this guy's skills on display. this is Dakota M98 3-position safety being recontoured and fitted to Remington 799 Mini Mauser. The center picture shows the before and after pics. He did the bases and bolt handle too. We are in good hands here

No kidding. BTW, what size Panatela is that?

Pan what?

Ha! Don't get me to lyin.

Terry

Any further word yet? I just got a CZ 453 Varmint, and love everything about it except for the trigger guard. The dealer and I were both blown away by the quality of the wood when it was taken out of the box.



I can fix the rough action (Nanolube to the rescue), but that cheap trigger guard has got to go.

Terry...anybody that "crawfish's" on you, let me know, I take another one in a heartbeat....
Some people still think "cheap and talent" go together....

Will do but I'll need to go trough the alternates first. I might have him talked into another run of these later.

Did you ever find the screw you were looking for? I ordered some HD springs from J&P Enterprises the other day and they had replacement screws. I don't know if they are what you're after.

Terry

No screws yet,but I'll get to it.
I looked at the 'new' Anshutz the other day and was NOT impressed with their bottom metal at all.It looks like 'plastic'
I think with this addition to the CZ,it puts the gun in a higher level....Thanks again for all your efforts!

Is this group buy dead? I would sure like one for my 452 American

Go back a page and find the other thread on this. and get in line with the rest of us wanting another run of these guards

hi
iam a new customer
i live in france
i search to buy 2 beatifuls custom trigger guard in remplacement of hugly CZ 452 origin
please would you inform me where its possible buy this
thanks by anticipation
regards
jc

I'm digging the pinewood derby car.