CZ 58 Reliability, accuracy, and mounting optics

Win 38-55

Win 38-55

CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Rating - 100%
42   0   0
First off, I know a lot about shooting 100 year-old Winchesters, but I know pretty much squat about Black Rifles, although I've started working on getting education.

I started out wanting to acquire a SCAR in 308. Found out that is not likely to happen due to some rule. I handled an ACR Bushmaster and it was nice, but expensive. Other modern ones in 308 caliber look pretty expensive as well (i.e., well over $2,000). As a result, I've been thinking about the CZ 58 chambered in 7.62 x 39, primarily because it is so dadgummed cheap compared to most of the other stuff. With that in mind, I've got four questions:


  1. Reliability: For those who shoot them in 7.62 x 39, how many rounds have you put through before something broke in the action?
  2. Mounting a scope: can you rigidly mount some sort of optic on these things for longer, 200 yard shots?
  3. Cast bullets: I make my own cast bullets for my 30-30 and they work fine at 2,200 fps. Has anyone tried feeding these things with cast bullets?
  4. Accuracy: What kind of actual groups do you get with one of these at 200 yards with a scope and resting the rifle on something?

I am assuming there is a pile of after market options for these things such as slings and folding or collapsable stocks. Like I said, I know sweet tweet about these types of rifles and need some input.
 
1. Excellent rifles that I doubt you'll ever have issues of any sort with.
2. There are a number of options on the market for scout mounts and a couple options for side and dustcover mounts.
3. Not sure about that one.
4. I think you can expect 2.5-3 MOA with Czech surplus.
 
I think Zahal has a receiver scope mount that should work. It's a 3MOA gun iirc, highly reliable in 7.62x39. I don't see any issue with cast bullets as it's in the 2200-2400fps range as long as you deal with the lead fouling. In any case it's cheaper to make MMA or at least just reuse the bullets and the powder from the milsurp stuff. At the current pricing of milsurp ammo, I'd only use cast bullets to deal with the 2nd wave of marauders after I ran out of my Romanian goodies ;)
 
Wow! 3 MOA is pretty bad. I get better than that with my 116 year-old 38-55 Winchester shooting cast bullets and iron peeps. Thanks for that input.
 
Win 38-55 said:
Wow! 3 MOA is pretty bad. I get better than that with my 116 year-old 38-55 Winchester shooting cast bullets and iron peeps. Thanks for that input.
Click to expand...

Well 7.62x39 doesn't have stellar ballistics, and the thin barrel profile on the VZ doesn't help either. Surplus ammo is also not renowned for its accuracy. 3moa is more than enough for the rifles original intended purpose. If you want a really accurate black rifle, the HK SL8 or Swiss Arms are hard to beat.
 
Hey win 38-55. I have a Winchester 1894 38-55 not sure of age but it's a four digit serial number. was my fathers he used it for shooting moose but mainly his prized possession :)
As far as the vz58 they are a great rifle. Ultra reliable. Honestly if a SHTF ever actually happened without a doubt I'd grab my vz58. Stripping is done in less than 30 seconds. They aren't precision accurate that's for sure. Railed dust cover or probably best option a side mount for a magnified optic. Front railed hanguard or scout mount for red dot. They are really fun to shoot!!
 
Lobster Pot: a four digit serial number is pretty old, probably 1895. You are fortunate to have one like that. It sounds like a good thing to keep in the family. Mine was made in 1897.

Regarding the vz58, I guess I can live with 3 MOA. That is 6.2" at 200 yards. I also suspect that if I play around with the load a bit, I might be able to find a sweet spot to tighten that group up a bit. It does sound so far that this is a very reliable little rifle.
 
20130315_173404.jpg
 
Ive owned a CZ for years ,me n my range buddies shot have the living shi out of it with mostly corrosive ammo! never a hickup! accuracy,good for what it is!
 
Win 38-55 said:
Wow! 3 MOA is pretty bad. I get better than that with my 116 year-old 38-55 Winchester shooting cast bullets and iron peeps. Thanks for that input.
Click to expand...


A VZ 58 is designed as a weapon of war, but it is not designed as a sniper rifle. Having said that I can hit a 12 " gong at 400 yds one shot in three using a red dot with no magnification and surplus ammo. I'm sure I could do much better if I were to bother working up a target load but there really is no point. These rifles are meant for shooting a lot of lead fast, and they do the job very well.



Side mounts are good, as are scout mounts, but I find the scout mounts to be the most practical.

I sincerely believe that a VZ 58 would make a 38-55 Winchester look useless in any practical demonstration.
 
Last edited:
Ambroise said:
A VZ 58 is designed as a weapon of war, but it is not designed as a sniper rifle. Having said that I can hit a 12 " gong at 400 yds one shot in three using a red dot with no magnification and surplus ammo. I'm sure I could do much better if I were to bother working up a target load but there really is no point. These rifles are meant for shooting a lot of lead fast, and they do the job very well.



Side mounts are good, as are scout mounts, but I find the scout mounts to be the most practical.

I sincerely believe that a VZ 58 would make a 38-55 Winchester look useless in any practical demonstration.
Click to expand...

Very nice collection!
 
The options for optics is the weak point of these rifles. The scope mount that attaches to the left side of the receiver puts the scope way too high and too far back. All you can really do with it is but a red dot type sight on it and even then it is awkwardly high. You can get a scope mount that replaces the rear sight but it really only works for a red dot because if you put a mid eye relief scope on it the ejecting shells would be hitting the eyepiece bell. A forend mounted rail with a mid eye relief scope is the only reasonably good option if you want magnification but I can't attest to how rigid they are.

I should add, if you put a complete new stock on with the straight line telescoping butt you can use a conventional scope with the side mount if you can use the stock fully extended. This stock positions your cheek a lot higher and the longer butt positions your eye a few inches further back.
 
I have the railed dust cover (got it from Corwin Arms) and it provides a pretty decent attachment point for a scope. The one caveat is that it either needs a short scope (got one, will be testing it this weekend) or a shell deflector to keep the casings from a) really taking chunks out of the scope tube, and b) falling back down into the action and needing to be removed.

I had a Bushnell 3-9 on there for a couple of weeks and if I ignore the dings and rebounds, it was really not bad to shoot. Hoping the short 3-9 will work well (it's an NC Star, but "feels" OK, just have to wait and see.). If it doesn't, I'll just get a deflector.
 
We have this Russian Short scopes in stock they are compact enough not to extend into ejection port. They fit perfectly the lenght of the dust cover scope mount. They are very strong can take obuse, quality of the lenses is exellent
DSC_0945_zpsf97b2579.jpg
Reticle
German Number 1 Post Recticle



Tech specific:

Magnification, ratio

3,5

Angle of view, degree

4°30'

Exit pupil diameter, mm

6

Eye relief distance, mm

65

Dioptric range of eyepiece, dpt

±4

Fitting diameter, mm

25,4

Objective lens diameter, mm

20

Objective tube diameter, mm

24

Eyepiece tube diameter, mm

36

Light transmission, %, not less

70

Length in action position, mm

180

Weight, g

250



156.75 CAD
 
Reliability wise the only issues I've encountered were a stuck casing due to lacquer buildup in the chamber. I got lazy and stopped scrubbing the chamber for several hundred (300+) rds. Easily popped out and cleaned up. Second issue was a broken firing pin after over 1000 rds. $5 from wolverine and a couple mins to swap. Accuracy is 3-4 moa with surplus, I've seen hand load groups hovering under 2 moa. Never a jam other than the stuck casing. Very reliable from -30°-+35° no matter how its lubed. They short, light, handy and reliable.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom