I recently picked up a CZ 452 Varmint 22lr at lgs used but mint condition with purdy wood. It shoots terrible! The trigger is good, and barrel floated I tried a few different kinds of quality ammo and it just hasn’t impressed me yet! I shoot matches every weekend so usually shoot Lapua, eley, or SK and this thing is always off on cold bore, may group 2-3, then slings another one! It’s bad enough I know it’s not me or the ammo or the scope as I’ve swapped all that. Is it possible the gun wasn’t shot when I got it and it needs “broken in”??? I’ve played with torque settings on actin screw and the barrel dovetail nut screw in the stock going from 10” pounds to 25” pounds and not improving. Only thing I’ve yet to try is removing the dovetail barrel nut stock screw completely and shooting it like that.

Sounds like you have a bad barrel, which is not very common with the CZ's. Most I've seen are tack drivers and not picky on what it digests..

I've not seen any break-in period to speak of on the 3 CZ I've had and all delivered what I expected out of the box. As BSA says, might be that rare defective barrel from them. Is the crown OK?

My CZ 512 shoots tight groups,not sure what's up with your's.

Doesn't sound right. My 452 shoots great all the time. No break in at all.

As I understand it, they hone the barrel blanks before they go in the hammer-forge contraption, which should produce a barrel that’s smoother right out of the gate. I'm on my fourth CZ rimfire, and none of them acted like that. Check the crown, as suggested, then ask them for help.

That is unusual, Most 452's are excellent in accuracy. Never have heard of breaking in a 22LR barrel, one must season a barrel to the ammo you are shooting perhaps (lube is different between makers). I would check the crown as well. My 452 Silhouette will do 1/2" for 10 at 50 with ammo it likes.

You may want to remove the barreled action and take a look at the inletting to be sure that there is not a bedding issue that is not letting the action and barrel settle in properly.

If the bedding looks ok then try tightening the action screw tight - around 25 - 35 inch lbs, and the barrel mounted dovetail screw just slightly snug. I had a heavy barrel 452 and that was its preference for shooting the best groups. I have never had as good accuracy out of the heavy barrel as the sporters and I think that it is because the tension on the barrel can be so sensitive.

drover

I had a CZ .17 HMR American Sporter bought new that was a lemon....shot 2" groups with any ammo at 100 yds, even after bedding. I had traded in a Varmint weight version of the same gun that was extremely accurate. Man was I disappointed to have it turn out bad. CZ wouldn't do anything for me either. Only poor CZ I know of. Got a Cooper Classic Sporter .17 HMR to replace and am happy ever since.

Did pick up a switch barrel CZ 455 a few years ago just because of the great wood. The .22 barrel slightly out shoots the .17 HMR barrel, but both are accurate...sub minute of angle.

Have you given the chamber a real good cleaning?

I KNOW the stainless 455s need some "shooting in" to do their best, I have two of them, and both exhibited the "slow to shoot really well" syndrome, it's taken a BUNCH of HS ammo to get them "shooting right". I knew that going in, though. I also have four other 455s that have been Johnny-on-the-spot for shooting pretty well. The WMRs are also a bit slow off the line, but come around after a couple hundred rounds. That's part of the fun of it, though, and .22s are flat-out fun to shoot.

Every 22LR I've owned and when cleaned needs about 18 to 20 rounds down the barrel before it will settle down. It's for sure a waste of time to twist dials before things get slicked back up.

Ditto

Thanks fellas I’m in the dark also it definitely doesn’t shoot like my other CZ’s!!!!

The crown: to the eye looks fine and if you stick a patch in the bore and bring it out it has the starburst on it.

The chamber: I have not cleaned the chamber or the barrel as most of the rimfires I shoot in matches shoot way better dirty than clean and every time I have cleaned one it went to crap for about 20 rounds.

As far as removing from the stock I have done that nothing seems whack and sanded the barrel channel out.

Next step is what drover said I’m going to try tightening the action screws and run the barrel lug less and maybe even try shooting it with the barrel lug nut removed. I have several CZ sporter 452’s and they all do their part that’s why I’m so upset with the varmint I really like the weight and the barrel diameter at the muzzle is small enough it passes for me to shoot in sporter class!

Clean the hell out of it. Use a bronze brush.Clean the chamber area with some IOSSO paste on a snug fitting patch. If that barrel is leaded-up and/or if there is a lead/carbon ring in the chamber's leade that could very well be your problem. Also, if you can get access to a borescope, you can check the bore or chamber for any damage. If the barrel was crowned at a loose spot, it'll never shoot well until/unless that barrel is slugged and cut at a tight spot in the bore and then re-crowned. If the chamber was badly cut/reamed, it'll never shoot well.

While I don't own a CZ, I own or have owned, over the years, rimfires, everything from my inexpensive store-branded Mossberg 346, Springfield 87A, 10/22, Rem 541, old model Browning T-Bolt, Cooper 57M and 3 custom benchrest rifles. Not one shot better real dirty. The most shots it has taken any of them to shoot well is 5-7 shots to coat/season the bore with the bullet's lube. IF a rifle does need to be real dirty to shoot well or needs more than a few shots to season a clean bore, that tells me that that bore is likely very rough.

Sounds like the crown may have a ding in it.

Maybe it the rare lemon and that's why it was used but looked new?

Sounds like one someone "sent down the road".

g

Unfortunately probably the case..

Which scope,base and rings?

HINT...............

A gun barrel normally doesn’t need a break in it’s usually the action of the gun!

I would agree. I have 2 452's. You can get the odd lemon even in proven brands. And you can get the odd gem. My Henry H101 is one of them.