Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles cz 550 american

been wanting one for years and never bought one. ran into a hell of a deal on a new one today. can't afford it but the guy wants my browning gold 20 gauge in trade and he will give me $200 in credit on top of that. what do you guys think of these rifles? someone told me zastava makes actions for them. i say BS.

-Matt

so do i, Ceska Zbrojovka make their own.
the safety and bolt shroud are different and the cz action just feels better.

if i ever buy a 9.3x62 it will be a cz550, too bad they don't make a 7lb 22" barreled 6.5x55

That BS, CZ is the largest small arm mfg in the world. I owned a 550 in 30-06 and that thing was accurate and good looking.

Browning golds are awful nice and you might hate parting with it. Only you can say if it is worth it. I have a 550 in 270 and like it very much. Some don't like the set trigger and for the life of me I am stymied by that. They are fantastic at the range. I do think that new 550's are priced a little high and may find it hard competing with new Featherweights. Not saying one is better- just many might rifle purchasers may prefer something American for the price. The CZ's are very well made and old school stout, and include good rings and often really nice wood - though under some very tough finish that can hide it. If I had a complaint it would be that I wish the bolts were smoother -but that is the price for a mauser action I guess. The CZ is available in 6.5x55 -but with a 23.5" barrel. Talked Dad into one. It is a pussy cat to shoot. All come with decellerator recoil pads.

ha ha . I got bleeped for that. Funny.

i may not have to cough up the gold after all...


he is asking $495 for a new cz 550 american in .243...

cant pass that up!

-Matt

are these free floated? i couldn't tell on the one i was looking at. kinda had a heavier barrel.

i am thinking of re-doing the stock with oil, because the finish is very plain and dry looking.

i have been wanting one of these in exactly this configuration...glad i could put $100 on it and hold it.

this gunshop is way out of the way and no one knows its there, other than the Amish. the guy is amish...its funny to go to a gunshop that doesn't have lights old school...

at that price -no brainer get it. I think the short actions (243, 308) come with a detachable mag - at least that is how they were listed so at least some of them do. The barrel is free floated - but by all means look for contact. I did a little sanding on mine - then just used Minwax to seal it. Think long and hard about refinishing the stock - it will take a lot of effort and some time - though will probably be worth it as you can end up with a real beauty. Just want you to know before you decide to start. The factory finish has been described as gorilla snot, meaning it is just thick and difficult to remove. Karnis (on this sight) offered to do mine and I felt sorry for him later. The checkering will require a good bit for care to cleanly remove. So if you don't fear the work -go for it but be prepared to do more work than might normally be required. BTW -you will not find a softer shooting 243 anywhere. Keep us posted.

i have a deposit on it. just have to decide if i am going to buy or trade.

i have loads worked up already from another .243 i owned. going to try the sierras first, the 60 grain hollowpoint and the 85 grain boattail hollowpoint. both have been sub-MOA in several .243's i have owned over the years. varget powder has also been good to me.

They're porky, and balance just wasn't there for me when shouldering a CZ.

My 9.3x62 'Merican shot 4 rnd practice groups under an inch in Speer 270's from the first time I went to the range with it 2 years ago. If I could get better control of my Operator errors I've shot many 3 rnd touching groups with a flyer sommers in the middle of the string.
Dug it out to start with some now discontinued 250gr NBT's - Nozzler swapped the BT's for AB's & upped the price bigtime! - the other day and got the same result. I never believed I could 2 or 3 in the same ragged hole before in this size caliber until this un came home with me. Just wish't I'da uh bought more of them before the Dollar was devalued against the Euro or whatever and jacked the price.
Only knock IMO on the short 308 length ammo is the lack of a short length receiver to match...
OBTW I NEED the Xtra weight of the old style 'Merican stock in big mouthed Mauser as the x62 shoves me around more than my factory tupperware stocked M70 300 Winnie in max loaded 180's that also has a Decelerator on it.
In a 243 or Swede a CZ 550 ought to be a pussycat for recoil. I saw a new style American last week and am looking for a 550 FS or American Swede to do a deal on right now in the Dallas/North Texas area.
Ron
Ron

I have a CZ550 in .243 and it is an absolute joy to shoot....Not so much to carry as it's heavier than today's run of the mill .243s. It is an accurate rig and it all steel. Too bad they are as expensive as they are these days. I paid $490 for mine just a few short years ago.

One of the best value's in hunting rifles out there, period. I have been packing one around in 416 Rigby for a long time and wrote about it and the mod's I did to it in African Hunter Magazine. I have reccomended this rifle, in this caliber, to hunting buddies and safari clients and all have been very happy with thier rifles. Accurate, terrific double set trigger, true and honest to gosh Mauser style controlled round feed fixed blade ejector, real blued steel, good walnut with good point style checkering, integral scope bases..... what's not to like? To me they feel good in the hands and just right for weight and balance.

the new msrp is like $795 or something ridiculous like that.

the damn dog knocked over my new tv. $700 up in smoke. so even though i need a tv i am going to try to still buy the rifle. maybe shoot the dog with it?

I had a 550 american in .243.
Shot real well. But I sold it as I did not want to lug around an 8 lb .243.
I would love one in 9.3X62 or a 7mm Rem mag.
I would like to see them build one in .375 and 416 ruger.
I did,nt mind the set trigger on the .243 But I would change it out on a 9.3X62 or If I bought a dangerious game rifle.
Simplicity is what i want in a hunting rifle. Fewer working parts means less chance of one breaking.
Timney makes a trigger for the CZ 550...tj3006

One other observation I'd like to to make about the CZ 550 is that the stock's LOP feels very long to me. I am 5'11" and fairly lanky and it feels longer than my Remingtons.

Now if they would just make them in a left-hand version, preferably in 6.5x55, I would go for it!

We now have 3 CZ rifles at the house and two of them are mine, one the wifes. I have a CZ-527 model in .222 Rem and my wife has a .223 caliber. They both shoot under 1/2 groups from the bench with factory Hornady ammo. I also have a CZ-550 that is as accurate as any hunting rifle I have in the safe or vault. One thing is for sure, you can't beat the set trigger for predator/varmint huntnig!!!

That is one of the modifications I made to mine, along with a model 70 style safety (La Pour) and a few other upgrades. Agreed that a simple trigger is better than a complicated one on a DGR, and I want no part of a hot loaded 416 Rigby with a 4oz trigger! I built mine before Timney came out with their trigger so I had Ed LaPour retrofit a NECG trigger designed for a model 98 Mauser to it. Time consuming and expensive but at the time worth it to me. Several long and arduous dangerous game hunts and kills later I would do it again.

If one wanted one of these in 375 Ruger, buying one in 300WM or 338WM and then having the original barrel re-bored and re-chambered would be a good route but no flies on a Ruger African other than the safety lever.