thinking about buying another CZ. 452 or 455?

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thechineseguy

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so im thinking about adding another CZ to my collection. this time a .22LR.
what are the differences between the 452 varmint and 455 varmint besides the interchangeable barrel?
is there any difference in accuracy?

a local store has the 452 varmint in stock if i chose to go that route.
 
I'm more of a FAN of the 452 than an authority on the differences between the 452 and 455. I believe the 452's barrel is threaded into the receiver on the 452 and to most, that's the most solid connection for reliable accuracy in a bolt gun. The 455's aren't threaded. Beyond that, I've never felt barrel interchangeability was ANY temptation as most of my rifles wear scopes...and I ain't re-zeroing a rifle every time I fancy a caliber change! :)

I currently own a 452 Varmint in .22LR, but used to own a 452 Varmint in 17HMR and made the mistake of selling it. I also recently bought an older BRNO 2E (452 predecessor) and considering how rock-solid/accurate these rifles are...I can't see a 455 in my future. Not a negative comment ON the 455, rather, high-praise for the 452s based on my personal experience with them.

Even with the CZ & BRNO I own..my eyes light-up every time I see a 452 anything in the EE. I have to talk myself out of adding another. Having no $ in the gun-fund helps. :)
 
To the best of my knowledge, the barrel is the major difference. The stock is inlet differently to allow for different mag well and magazines. I'm assuming the 455 Varmint uses the same action screw setup as the 455 American, both screws on the action itself as opposed to the 452 which has one on the barrel dovetail and one on the action.
I have a 452 Varmint, it shoots very well indeed.
I'd recommend buying a 452 while you still can, I doubt you'll ever have any trouble selling it if you want to. I believe the 455 will be available for the foreseeable future.
 
I'm no expert on CZ rimfires but I do own a 452 Lux and a 452 Varmint. When I was looking at the Varmint models I learned the barrel of the 452 is tapered towards the muzzles and the 455 barrle has a straighter profile.

I prefered the look of the 452 and was able to find a nice one in .22 on the EE. Sometime in the future I'll get either one in .17hmr.
 
.22LRGUY said:
I'm more of a FAN of the 452 than an authority on the differences between the 452 and 455. I believe the 452's barrel is threaded into the receiver on the 452 and to most, that's the most solid connection for reliable accuracy in a bolt gun. The 455's aren't threaded. Beyond that, I've never felt barrel interchangeability was ANY temptation as most of my rifles wear scopes...and I ain't re-zeroing a rifle every time I fancy a caliber change! :)

I currently own a 452 Varmint in .22LR, but used to own a 452 Varmint in 17HMR and made the mistake of selling it. I also recently bought an older BRNO 2E (452 predecessor) and considering how rock-solid/accurate these rifles are...I can't see a 455 in my future. Not a negative comment ON the 455, rather, high-praise for the 452s based on my personal experience with them.

Even with the CZ & BRNO I own..my eyes light-up every time I see a 452 anything in the EE. I have to talk myself out of adding another. Having no $ in the gun-fund helps. :)
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Haha.........no kidding.
Had I few I sold I wish I didn't and one that got away that I wished even today I bought.
 
TrxR said:
I just bought a 452 varmint in 22lr on sunday and hope its as good as you guys are saying.
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^chances are, it will be. :) I put a cheap YoDave kit in mine to help the trigger a little, but it had a very decent trigger without it. My 452 Varmint shoots a variety of ammo well, and, I hit 6 gophers at over 175 yards with mine in Alberta last spring! Ranged, repeated, witnessed. Not the gun for that distance, nor did it happen right away. Took about 20 shots to get windage (primarily) sorted out, but after that...1-2 shots per gopher x 6.

A ringing endorsement for the 452 OR my marksmanship? Not really. :) However, it's just 1 experience (of many) where the 452 exceeded my expectations.
 
thechineseguy said:
so im thinking about adding another CZ to my collection. this time a .22LR.
what are the differences between the 452 varmint and 455 varmint besides the interchangeable barrel?
is there any difference in accuracy?

a local store has the 452 varmint in stock if i chose to go that route.
Click to expand...

Look at the targets that are available when one decides to purchase a CZ.
The proof is right there in that they will both be very close .
While these targets prove that they fire they also show the inherit accuracy CZ builds in every firearm.

As for the 425 or the 455 the switch barrel is a novelty in that it offers the ability to remove a screw drop this twist that remove the widget and assemble in reverse order and viola you now have a CZ 455 in ( insert caliber of choice ).

When it would be as easy as going to the gun locker and taking the two to the range .
One in .22 and the other in .17hmr or .22 Mag or .17MchII .

Yes, it is two fully rigged rifles with scopes and magazines and cleaning rods and jags, but the amount of pissing around swapping barrels and re sighting in and blah blah blah...

Oh Crap, buy a Sako Quad and be done with it, but your wallet will be empty and it wont be a CZ.
Tight Groups,
Rob

IMGP0003_zpsqirmbq3h.jpg

factory target in 17hmr 455 American.
.50 piece for reference.
 
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My 452 Varmint consistently shoots more accurately than my 455 American, though it's comparing apples to oranges really. Very different rifles built for different purposes. Really the only reason I still have the 455 is because it has a gorgeous tiger striped walnut stock. If I found a 452 American with the same kind of beauty, the 455 would go for sale. The fact that we can still buy new 452 Varmints north of the border is surprising to me, when our American neighbours can't.
I don't swap barrels either.
 
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Here's a good comparison of the mechanical differences between the two. http://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=344852

Anecdotally there seems to be more frequent issues with the 455. One can only speculate as to why that might be. My suspicion is that a business decision was made to produce more units on the barrel tooling before replacing the tooling as it wears out. The result being more barrels made that perform on the high limit of acceptable accuracy (around the 1" at 50 yard mark). They don't have to warranty these barrels as they meet the standard but it is not pleasant to be the recipient of such a barrel. Even if you prove 70-80% of the groups shot "fail" the 1" test, if the warranty center gets a couple "passing" groups (very likely they will with 20-30% "pass" rate) then they say there is no problem sorry about your luck. For the relatively few barrels that genuinely will never shoot a group under 1", they've made a profitable business decision at the expense of quality delivered to the customer. This is, in my opinion and my opinion only, what is going on with the 455 these days.

I have no personal experience with the 452 (just a few 455's) but from what I've read the 452 is your best bet for something that will make you happy out of the box. The difference between the two models accuracy wise has nothing to do with the action design or the barrel attachment method, it is all to do with variance in the quality of the barrel fitted to it. A gunsmith who specializes in customizing these rifles will tell you that either action fitted with a match grade barrel will perform very well with no difference between the two.
 
awesome. you guys helped me fully decide on the 452. im gonna try to head to the store on friday to pick it up.

now, are there any aftermarket chassis available for the 452 and available in canada? i only see ones for the 455.
 
thechineseguy said:
awesome. you guys helped me fully decide on the 452. im gonna try to head to the store on friday to pick it up.

now, are there any aftermarket chassis available for the 452 and available in canada? i only see ones for the 455.
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Better call now and put a deposit, this thread may have driven-up the demand a little! :) Not too common to see a 452 in the rack anymore at gun stores.
 
thechineseguy said:
awesome. you guys helped me fully decide on the 452. im gonna try to head to the store on friday to pick it up.

now, are there any aftermarket chassis available for the 452 and available in canada? i only see ones for the 455.
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Talk to the people at Tenda, they will be able to help you out.
 
All this CZ452 talk reminds me that I've always wanted a 452 American to compliment my Style, Varmint and Scout. It is the only other 452 flavor I need to complete my "ideal" CZ 452 family. The other variants, well, they are just not my style.

The 455 is just a marketing ploy, IMO, to sell more, new rifles to those who already own 452s. But those with 452s already know they don't need a 455.

CZ purists won't buy into interchangeable barrel gimmicks. Need another caliber? Good, then buy another rifle. That's what 14-rifle safes are built for.
 
I wish I hadn't sold my cz 452 scout. Was gonna keep it for my son once he's old enough to join me. Poop.. Maybe I'll find a Lux model yet
 
easyrider604 said:
The 455 is just a marketing ploy, IMO, to sell more, new rifles to those who already own 452s. But those with 452s already know they don't need a 455.
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That's one way of looking at it. Another view is that the 455 action is a good, affordable option to use in a custom build where it will be cheaper and easier to fit a blank to it and be every bit as accurate in the end compared to doing the same with a 452.
 
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