Your opinions on the CZ550 Safari Magnum

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blueoval56

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Good day all,

I was perusing a gun shop in Calgary today and fondled a CZ 550 Safari magnum in 375H&H and I almost instantly fell in love with it. I have never had a rifle fit me so well right off the shelf. Felt like it was made for me!

They also had the same rifle in 458 win mag. They both had the more "Bavarian" style stock with the drop in the rear of the comb. Does anyone here shoot one of these rifles? I like the looks of the Bavarian style stock but I found out they also make an American Safari Magnum with a more traditional straight comb stock. Just not sure if it would fit me as well. Also slightly worried about the Bavarian style with heavier recoil, looks like a cheek slapper.

I would love to hear your opinions on these rifles if you have any experience with them. I currently shoot quite a few calibers, but none of which are 375H&H or 458 win mag. However, I do shoot a lot of 300Win Mag and heavy 45-70 loads, so recoil isn't really a concern for me.
I almost lean towards the 458 because I already use a lot of 458 components(I load my own), but I have always been told the 375H&H is THE caliber to have that will do everything, and do it well.

I look forward to hearin' from ya

Blue
 
If you can shoot your 300WM and 45-70 ,the 375 in this well built heavy gun will be less than most 300 WM hunting rifles. I am no giant 5'6" 180 LBS kinda small and shoot these guns with easy off the bench, much less recoil shooting off hand or kneeling position.
I also thought the Barvarian stock would hurt the cheek, but on my old BRNO ZKK 602 in 358 NM is is less than any 300 Mag for sure, I would love to try the new Classic American stock out for size, looks great, it would be the one I would buy!!
This is well built and less money than a Winchester, though the Winchester 375's are also nice, mine is a little heavier than my CZ's, and therfore sokes up a bit more recoil, though if you are going to shoot irons, the barvarian stock seems to fit alot better.
The 458 WM I have little experiance, you will have to get another opinion on this from other members here.

cheers Dale Z!
 
They are great rifles, I have a 416 Rigby and a 375 H&H. Both shoot well and recoil is not bad because of the weight
 
I've got a .375 and a .416 Rigby. The Rigby has worn both a American pattern and a Bavarian. Ironically I got the Bavarian stock from an American booking agent who thought it kicked too much and I'll swear it kicks less than my old one. Recoil is a funny thing, and its hard to say how different people respond to it. With either CZ stock you will experience more muzzle rise than you are probably used to.

I've got many thousands of rounds through the two rifles and they have been on 4 safaris with elephant and buffalo among their many credits. Having said that, if I had to pick between them and the Winchester African Express, I'd stand them both in the burning barrel and walk away with my Model 70 and never look back. I don't have get that drastic, but have noticed that they both seem to be permanently parked.
 
Moose Masher said:
What it is about the Winchester that you like better?
How do they compare for weight?
Click to expand...

I'm curious about that as well.

I appreciate all the replies!
Good to hear that you guys are happy with these rifles. They seem very solid.
I guess now I have to decide which caliber to buy because if I bought the 375 I would probably scope it, but If I bought the 458, I probably just use the express sights.
These rifles definitely seem kinda rare to see on the shelves. Does anyone know of a place that stocks a few of these rifles? Or are there just not that many imported into Canada?

I wouldn't be going on any safari's with these guns just yet(not for many years), but I simply enjoy shooting and hunting regular North American game with bigger calibers. The 45-70 got be hooked and now I've sold off almost all of my other rifles that shoot more modern bottle neck "speed" cartridges. I kept a 22-250 for coyotes and a 300WM for whatever, but even they get used less and less these days.
 
I have a CZ-550 in .458Lott. It was originally in .458WM; I had it re-chambered to the longer Lott cartridge, because it didn't feed that great, plus I really wanted the Lott cartridge.

Do these new CZ's have a barrel band installed? I had to take mine to a gunsmith to get one installed. I also had the action bedded, plus cross-bolts installed.

I love my CZ-550.

I also have the older model, ZKK-602, in .416RemMag. It was originally chambered in .375H&H and the original owner had it re-chambered and the barrel reamed to .416RM.
I had to get a barrel band installed on it, had the barrel shortened from 25" to 23-1/2", front sight re-installed, and glass bedded in a McMillan stock.

I love the ZKK-602.


Now about the Winchester, which Dogleg mentions; given a choice between the CZ-550, and a new Winchester M70 Safari Express, try to find somebody that's got one of those rifles and handle it. It is perfect, right out of the box.

I just bought one in .375H&H, and it's a superbly balanced, silky smooth rifle.

I love it; it's like Baby Bear's Porridge.


You cannot go wrong with any of those 3 rifles, just you would be 'more right' with the M70. And you might have to get a few things done to the CZ that the Winchester has already taken care of.


And for God's Sakes, if you ever get one of these fine rifles, do not DESTROY it with a HIDEOUS muzzle brake... Please...
 
Thanks for the reply Demonical, I appreciate the first hand info.

Both of the rifles I held had two cross-bolts but no barrel band, just a sling swivel installed in the fore end. Do you consider that a must?
I would definitely have it bedded and would definitely NOT put a muzzle break on it haha. I like big bores for the Big Bang :)

This might sound a bit trivial, but I just like the looks of the CZ a lot more than a model 70. I have also shot pre-64's and the newer FN made ones and they just don't fit me worth a damn either. Hence why, if I buy one, I'm pretty sold on the CZ.
 
Moose Masher said:
What it is about the Winchester that you like better?
How do they compare for weight?
Click to expand...

Just about everything. I have a strong preference for a bolt locking safety, to the point that I changed the safety on the CZ 375 after one trip. That cost over $300 and good luck getting the parts in Canada now. The Model 70 comes that way.

The recoil pad on the CZs are a joke, the Winchester comes with a Pachmare (SP). Although it has changed a bit now CZs were famous for splitting stocks under heavy use unless they were cross-bolted and bedded. Not free, but buying my own jig helped.Did I mention the M70 comes that way? I also don't know who a 14 1/4" LOP was supposed to fit.

After the novelty of a set trigger wore off, it became apparent that the triggers required constant resetting as the parts are soft.They are also needlessly complicated. Actions are rough, but honeing, polishing and countless cycles eventually smoothed it right up on the .375. It got pretty good about the time the barrel was shot out. The M70 action is slick out of the box. The old style trigger is a marvel of simplicity, the new style is a very good albeit a more complex 3 lever design.

Stock design on the CZ leads to significantly higher muzzle rise in recoil. That may not matter on a deer rifle, but on a dangerous game rifle it should be considered. Also who puts permanent swivels on a heavy rifle? That's not hard to change, but how did they envision the rifle being used? Sling all the time, hand slashing bare swivels all the time, or holes in the stock where the swivels used to be all the time? They couldn't have thought it through at all or it would have been made with swivel stud and a barrel band just like the M70.

The CZ bolt handle was designed by someone who has never used a scope before, the bolt root requires higher mounting than North Americans are used to. It can be changed, but seeing as lower mounting options are few since the rifle has integral bases there is little use.

Weight varies wildly with different stock blanks, but on average and on a scale they are remarkably close. I would have lost money betting on that since one feels heavy and clublike while the other feels like it's alive. I should say that the second stock on the .416 was incredibly heavy and the rifle ended up weighing 12 pounds loaded.

When my M70 showed up I had a buffalo cull hunt booked, and years of familarity plus thousands of rounds worth of practice and recoil invested in the CZs. Even so, I hefted the M70 did some rapid load development and left the .416 home. Years of familiarity were no match for a rifle that handled like I'd owned it my whole life.

Point in favor of the CZ; it is hard to ignore the coolness of a 7 shot .375.
 
"...none of which are..." Check the cost and local availability of brass/ammo first.
"...lean towards the 458..." Guy came in the shop, long ago. He was going to Africa and just had to have his own .458. Buys a Win 70 African and a box of ammo. Pick it all up on a Friday evening. Saturday afternoon he's back asking us to sell the rifle and the 18 loaded rounds and 2 empties. Best if you can try one first. Mind you, the .458 Win can be loaded down.
 
sunray said:
"...none of which are..." Check the cost and local availability of brass/ammo first.
"...lean towards the 458..." Guy came in the shop, long ago. He was going to Africa and just had to have his own .458. Buys a Win 70 African and a box of ammo. Pick it all up on a Friday evening. Saturday afternoon he's back asking us to sell the rifle and the 18 loaded rounds and 2 empties. Best if you can try one first. Mind you, the .458 Win can be loaded down.
Click to expand...

Very good points. There is lots of 375H&H brass locally, but I would have to order in 458 Win Mag. I wouldn't even consider the 458 if I didn't reload, but since I do, it's only slightly more expensive than 45-70(all things being equal).
I have fired a friends 416 Rigby and It definitely got my attention but I didn't think it was all that bad. Shot five rounds out of it and I wasn't black and blue. I have been told the 458's(both Win and Lott) are more of a push that a slap as far as recoil is considered. I am inclined to believe this because my full power 45-70 loads are just a great big push compared to my 300WM.
 
I guess it really depends what you want it for but if it's a rifle you plan on shooting a fair amount, I can tell you that "big push" turns into a "slap" pretty quickly. The 375 is pretty manageable in comparison but no denying there is a cool factor with the 458.
 
blueoval56 said:
Thanks for the reply Demonical, I appreciate the first hand info.

Both of the rifles I held had two cross-bolts but no barrel band, just a sling swivel installed in the fore end. Do you consider that a must?
I would definitely have it bedded and would definitely NOT put a muzzle break on it haha. I like big bores for the Big Bang :)

This might sound a bit trivial, but I just like the looks of the CZ a lot more than a model 70. I have also shot pre-64's and the newer FN made ones and they just don't fit me worth a damn either. Hence why, if I buy one, I'm pretty sold on the CZ.
Click to expand...


The CZ's are great rifles, and you said it fits you so buy it.

As to the barrel band vs a sling swivel stud in the fore-end, the first time you fire the rifle, with heavy loads, while holding your finger on that sling swivel stud, you will figure out why a barrel band is better. But it is for sure not necessary to switch it. It might depend on how big you are. For me, being the size I am, I tend to reach pretty much to the end of the stock on any rifle, which frequently puts my mitt right on the sling swivel.

I do not buy the argument about the 3-position safety, and I'll tell you why: unless you're shooting an old style M700 ADL (rifles with a blind magazine), which you're not, fcuking near any rifle has a magazine with a floor plate. So you drop that open to empty the magazine.
Why is a fcuking 3-position safety so necessary!? Truth is, it's not! The idea being you can cycle all the rounds through the action safely... why bother!? Just drop open the fcuking floor-plate, like the Lord intended, when he designed it...

The 2-position safety on the CZ-550 is perfectly functional, as is, and requires no modification. In my fcuking opinion.
 
My preference for the M70 safety has everything to do with locking the striker, and nothing to do with unloading the rifle. It could be a 2 position that locks the striker and I'd still be happy.

Besides, even if you did work all the cartridges through the action, there is no need to close the bolt or even completely chamber the cartridge on a CRF rifle.
 
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Demonical said:
I do not buy the argument about the 3-position safety, and I'll tell you why: unless you're shooting an old style M700 ADL (rifles with a blind magazine), which you're not,fcuking near any rifle has a magazine with a floor plate. So you drop that open to empty the magazine.
Why is a fcuking 3-position safety so necessary!? Truth is, it's not! The idea being you can cycle all the rounds through the action safely... why bother!? Just drop open the fcuking floor-plate, like the Lord intended, when he designed it...

The 2-position safety on the CZ-550 is perfectly functional, as is, and requires no modification. In my fcuking opinion.
Click to expand...

Hey Potty mouth, knock it off with the backwards swearing. If you think it makes you sound cool on the interweb, it doesn't.

You have had infractions for this garbage before, give it a rest...
 
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I've had the 602, cz550 and m70 se. 550 Grip was to fat and gun to heavy. Also the action is way bigger Than needed for a 458wm.either punch it to 458 Lott or get a normal size action. I liked the m70 best of the 3.
 
Dogleg said:
My preference for the M70 safety has everything to do with locking the striker, and nothing to do with unloading the rifle. It could be a 2 position that locks the striker and I'd still be happy.

Besides, even if you did work all the cartridges through the action, there is no need to close the bolt or even completely chamber the cartridge on a CRF rifle.
Click to expand...


Dogleg, I'm a bit thick, can you explain that to me. I've never understood the 3-pos safety thing... Keep it simple so maybe I can understand it.
 
Demonical said:
The CZ's are great rifles, and you said it fits you so buy it.

As to the barrel band vs a sling swivel stud in the fore-end, the first time you fire the rifle, with heavy loads, while holding your finger on that sling swivel stud, you will figure out why a barrel band is better. But it is for sure not necessary to switch it. It might depend on how big you are. For me, being the size I am, I tend to reach pretty much to the end of the stock on any rifle, which frequently puts my mitt right on the sling swivel.

I do not buy the argument about the 3-position safety, and I'll tell you why: unless you're shooting an old style M700 ADL (rifles with a blind magazine), which you're not, fcuking near any rifle has a magazine with a floor plate. So you drop that open to empty the magazine.
Why is a fcuking 3-position safety so necessary!? Truth is, it's not! The idea being you can cycle all the rounds through the action safely... why bother!? Just drop open the fcuking floor-plate, like the Lord intended, when he designed it...

The 2-position safety on the CZ-550 is perfectly functional, as is, and requires no modification. In my fcuking opinion.
Click to expand...

I have pretty much decided I am going to buy it. None the less, the info and opinions coming out on this thread has been a great read. Can't beat first hand experience.
I don't think the swivel stud is going to bother me any. I am not little by any means, 6'1" and 240. But when I shoot off hand I use more of a traditional silhouette stance with a more firm grip so my hand is no where near the swivel stud.
 
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