Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Express Rifles and Big Bores Only Thoughts on this -- CZ 550 AMERICAN SAFARI MAGNUM --

I�m about 60 days away from a CZ 550 AMERICAN SAFARI MAGNUM in 458 Lott.
The bolt is a tad stiff but the price is right� brand new at Gander Mt for about $1000.00�
What is the current thinking on this gun� should I save my money and get a Ruger� which will be much longer than 60 days,

nope...
cz's are excellent...
the smoothest, no...
polish that action, bed her and if desired the few other things most do...and enjoy!

i, personally did not realize they made a lott now...

be sure to bed before going to the range...

Which Ruger do you have in mind? If you're talking the Ruger RSM, it may be the only rifle I've handled that's actually heavier than a CZ 550 Safari Magnum. I have a Ruger .375 African, and like it better than my CZ. But I like my CZ better than the RSM's.

My CZ Safari Custom .404 Jeffery weighs in at about 11 lbs, with Talley QR rings and a 3X Leupold. The good news is -- it doesn't kick much at that weight. Big shove, but not much of a kick. The bad news is -- it's long and heavy, with its 25" barrel.

I took mine to Africa bone-stock -- it had been bedded by CZ, and I shot it a bunch, but didn't modify it at all. If I were to rework it, I would cut three or so inches off the barrel, and rasp about two pounds of wood off the stock. Some folks are enamoured with converting it to a three-position safety, but I can't see the point. Slicking up the feed ramp is a good idea, though, and generally fine-tuning it could be good. But mine fed, fired and extracted flawlessly from day one, and those are the significant points.

So I guess if you feel compelled to have a .458 Lott, I would say the CZ is a good way to get into one very economically -- and have a very functional rifle from the get-go.

Dennis

I think the Ruger Safari model is one of the finest African rifles to come down the pike in many years..It has an integral quarter rib and that alone costs $1000 to $2000 on a custom rifle...It has the barrel band front sights and swivel, The stock design is excellent and normally they have real nice European walnut...A lot of gun for the money...The CZ on the other hand has used every short cut they can think of to produce a rifle, they are bulky and heavy, and roughly finished...I built a nice .404 on one, used it on one hunt in Africa and sold it..I just never liked the feel of the gun, but thats a personal thing, and some folks require less of a rifle than I, and thats ok, I'm require less in a car than some folks.

Hi Ray, while I have only had my medium bore CZ 550 375 H&H for a short while, I've shot Model 70s, Rem 700s, and Ruger M77s for over 30 years in typical Western calibers. My favorite rifle was a pre-64 Model 70 in 30-06 which like a dummy I sold. My Rem 700 BDLs have always fit me and come up to point right where I want them. I've probably put 5000 rounds through my Rem 700 270. It's on its 3rd barrel and I've shot everything from grizzly and elk to marmots with it over 30 years. I do agree with you that my CZ feels a little muzzle heavy and blocky, but I'm working on it. The action was a bit rough but I sent it back and CZ fixed it free of charge, it's lovely now. It does come up and point fairly well now. When it's balanced right, it should be absolutely fine. The extra weight and the stock design does soak up recoil though.

Even though I think Ruger makes some awesome guns, I absolutely hate the Ruger M77s. They feel just wrong to me, I'm sure it's just a fit thing. I've had two and both took a lot of work to shoot half as well as my Rem 700s did out of the box. I sold them both in under a year, and I almost never sell my guns. Both my Rem 700 BDLs in .243 and .270 would shoot nickel sized groups at 100 yards with the only tuning being adjusting the trigger to 3 lbs.

Now those Heym and Empire rifles do look lovely but they are out of my price range right now.

Best regards,

Chuck

My experiences with out of the box CZs is they need a lot of work to get them up to "safe" standards if you are going to hunt DG. The action is just plain rough. The bigger calibers are almost a sure guarantee they'll break the stock unless bedded and for the life of me I don't know why they persist on that worthless 25" barrel. But once you get them cleaned up, and chopped down, they are pretty good rifles. jorge

Jorge, my action was rough even after I paid CZ to do an action job, I sent it back and it's slick. I then sent it to Ed Plummer and Wayne at AHR and they replaced the safety with their 3 position M70 type, put in a new single stage trigger, straightened out the bolt, reglass bedded the action and put in an extra recoil lug. Ed and Wayne checked out the action and made sure it fed flawlessly which it does. So I guess I'm making your and Ray's point lol. I have about as much in as a Ruger RSM would cost new.



Regards,
Chuck

Nice looking rifle Chuck. The Rugers aren't the end-be-all either. Mine had a nasty habit of the bolt sticking during the last 1/4" of travel during fast reloading. I sent it to Mark Penrod who slicked up the action and also bedded the weird steel plate Ruger uses. Also, mine is one of the earlier ones, in fact it's about #10 of the original production. The 24" barrel is too long, making the rifle front heavy and at 11lb, way too heavy for a 416. It sure is accurate though, 1/2 MOA all day long and it came through for me on by buffalo hunt. Is your barrel still 25"? How about the sights? jorge

I'm assuming you mean the Ruger Magnum in 458 Lott. I like mine, but for the money, I think the CZ in the better deal. My 550 is in 416 Rigby, but it functions well. Like everyone else said, the action isn't quite as smooth, but obviously that can be addressed.

Jorge, this is my first medium/big bore so it's kind of a project rifle for me. Ed Plumer at AHR replaced the rear sight with an NECG masterpiece (CZ had put a high vis front sight in for me), and I like them a lot. I still have the 25" barrel because I'm planning to rebarrel to either 470 Capstick or .495 A-Square or 500 Jeffery next winter. I'm planning to go with a 22" barrel regardless of which caliber I rebarrel to.

Thanks,

Chuck

All,

Thanks for the input... I have put in a call to AHR about their #1 Package... I Guess I will add bedding to the package + a peep sight.

T

Cant speak for the over 40 calibers, but I have shot many .375's
The CZ has got to be the best deal out there. Yes it is a little heavy and the barrel a little long, but all this makes it a pussycat to shoot. The trigger on mine was flawless out of the box, the sights are robust and very functional, it feeds great, accuracy is outstanding. I like the way they anchor into the stock, all in all, I think I will leave mine alone. .02