Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Custom Rifles & Wildcats BRNO Questions

Bob, I've owned both and like both but without a doubt the 21H does it me for over the ZG-47. The 21H is just so slim and petite. It feels like nothing else. I like it so much I even used a 21H pattern on a Husky build

There are a few things about the 21H I'm not real fond of though. If your plans are to leave the rifle 100% stock you'll need to use high scope mounts and guess what....nobody makes them anymore. You'll need the high mounts for two reasons. 1st. the bolt handle is shaped funny and needs a lot of clearance to miss the scope. 2nd. The factory safety works by sliding your thumb across the top of the bolt shroud to dissengage the safety. If the scope isn't mounted high there just isn't enough room to get your thumb under it.

I have a 100% original, pristene 21H in 7X57 and refuse to cut on this one. I just got a new set of mounts for it yesterday. I had to commision a custom set of rings for this thing because nobody makes them the right height anymore. They still need to be blued but they look neato. They do to me anyway


They are still in the white. I'll send them off for bluing soon.



Of coarse if you're planning on customizing it all of the above is meaningless.

Terry

Jeez, that is a gorgeous rifle!

I have one exactly like that, rather fancy wood and I found some old Weaver adaptors for these, put my Leupy "high" rings for the Brnos on these and a Leupy 2x7 and it works perfectly.

I have a ZG "carbine" in 7x57, just got it last Christmastime and it is stone mint, very nice wood and has the old Brno i-piece mounts with a Lyman 3x. This, is quite a rare variation and I will probably not shoot it, just keep it in a small group of "classic" rifles in one of my safes that I have just to enjoy.

The long barreled 21 I just bought with a ZG last Friday has a few issues, but, is actually very nice. The DST are hooped and I detest these things,anyway, always have and I had some pleasant e-mails from Alaska Arms and will be installing one of their triggers, or, an older Dayton-Traister and 2-pos. Mod. 70 style safety from one of my other 21s, now undergoing further customization.

These longer barrled ones are my favourites and when I find good "shooter grade" specimens, I prefer to open them to .280 Rem. do the trigger and safety and install a good synthetic. This, IMHO, gives you the finest "mountain rifle" possible and the whole shebang will run about 3Gs, not a lot of cash for a good rifle im today's world.

The CZ-550 can be re-worked to come very close to the 21 and about equal to the ZG, AHR does a fine job and this is an excellent alternative for anyone who cannot find a 21 or ZG.

I am planning a pair of "ultimate using-working rifles" on the actions I have stashed and will post the details perhaps tomorrow as I am tired from monkeywrenching this newest 21 today. Small screw slots, old eyes and like that, eh.

Terry, WHERE oh WHERE did you get those rings, I need some more rings for my collection of 21s and ZGs.Thanks, got your other info. greatly appreciated.

Kerry Stottlemyer built those from two blocks of steel!

kstottlemyer@cox.net

They're pretty sweet.

Terry

Terry that's a very nice rifle,and the rings are slick. I see what you mean about the safety,and bolt clearance.

My oh my Mausers are such a conundrum..... but they are beautiful things! Even back when I had little notion what I was looking at,a really nice custom Mauser just jumped out and grabbed me.Few rifles are nicer looking than a high end customized mauser.

Good, I have to call Kerry as my buddy and I sent him some specs. on our Dakota 76 rifles for him to build that folding peep-rear base that was discussed on AR before last Christmas. I have not heard from him since January, but, I enjoy talking on the phone to him and I want that rear peep badly.

Damn, I hit 66 at the end of this coming June and I just never seem to be able to stop acquiring these rifles! I would go to a "shrink", but, the only one I knew was a shooting buddy and he was worse than I am, had pieces by Geo. Caswell, Maurice Ottmar and so forth do that one whole basement wall of his luxurious home was packed-full gunsafes.....I guess there is no hope for us, eh!

I bet the guns are cheaper than the doctors and a hell of a lot more fun.

Terry

TC1,

I found that by using a "vintage" scope with a smaller ocular, I could use Talley medium rings and still clear the bolt handle. I have never understood the advantage of a large ocular. The size of the exit pupil is determined by the size of the objective lens, not the ocular, and that should be the main consideration for rapid target acquisition I would think.

Anyway, here's my 22F 6.5X57 with a Lyman All American Perma Center 4X scope with post and crosshair reticle in Talley rings.

Those are Warne extra high CZ550 rings, not Talley's and they aren't made anymore. The Talley's don't have a "peak" like those you pictured nor are they anywhere near that height.

Hang on to them, you can't get them anymore!

Terry

Terry,
We need to quit using Kerry's name. We may not be able to afford him soon.

HAR!

I have had three ZG47's. Two were reworked by Thos M Burgess. One thing to consider, they did not have the receiver threads found in the 98's. Rather there were metric and required a lathe to cut suvh threads for the barrel shank. One was a 375 H&H which is pretty close to my safe. The small receiver diameter actions are nice but I prefer a reworked G33/40 as did Herman Waldron and number of custom rifle guys. Echols would grind off the dbl bridges to fit his rings. I first thought this a bad idea but after checking the alingment of the BRNO bridges I now agree.

Most if not all Mausers and clones have "alignment issues" and the vaunted P-64 Mod. 70s are often even worse. One can argue the merits-weaknesses of any action(s) all week long and still it comes down to the subjective judgement of the guy who is paying for the rifle(s) concerned.

My point here and I want to stress this is that these two Brno actions are the finest PRODUCTION actions ever offered and the customizing question is a separate issue.

I had some work done at Martini's and could have bought a "full house" G-33/40 action he had at the time. I chose to go with the Brno 21s and so have a number of very experienced rifle nuts-hunters I know, including the owner of that G-33/40 action.

The metric thread situation is a non-issue for me as most of the gunsmiths I use are Euro. in origin and have the appropriate tooling to cut the threads correctly. I actually prefer this, but, again, it is not a biggie, for me.

I don't care for .375H&H chambered in Mauser 98s and I am familiar with all the issues concerned, I prefer a 9.3x64B. for that level of power in the ZG action......that said, any rifle built by the immortal Thos. B. would be welcome in one of my gunsafes!!!!

Here is my 6.5X57...

Here is my "Hog" Killer Brno ZG47 in 7x64 with a 8X Swaro for night shootin..I sit on a hillside,waiting on them to come out at dark...

Nice!


Aside: Had no idea the ZG47 was long enough to swallow a 375H&H....what was the biggest cartridge for which they were chambered?

It might take a H&H,biggest I've seen is a 9.3x62

They are for all practical purposes a commercial large ring 98 pattern action, so it would take the same moves to fit a 375 H&H as it would on any 98

Supposedly they were made in 10.75x68 though I imagine they aren't falling off trees.

FM: I see....thanks for the info..