CZ Trail 600 - in 7.62x39 or .223?

thegazelle

thegazelle

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I am having another one of my "buy my last gun before I get married in 80 days" moments...

Actually, that's not entirely accurate...I was just going through my ammo stash, and I have a plethora of 7.62x39 and .223 ammo. I have no idea what will happen to the SKS, but if the LPC puts that into the sin bin, I'll have nothing else to shoot my ammo.

I do have some bolt action .223s and a goofy Taipan X I recently picked up in .223.

I see a local store has a sale on the Cz Trail 600... I have a couple of other CZ guns and I love the quality...and since CZ (more parent company Colt in Canada) backed out of participating in the collection/confiscation theme, my conscience is more clear to consider CZ stuff...

So I am wondering if you were in my shoes, which would you pick up (if I am picking up anything at all).

600 Trail in 7.62x39
600 Trail in .223

The advantage of the former is obvious - I'll have something to shoot my 7.62x39 ammo aside from my SKS. I suspect if I wait and the SKS is indeed banned (I know the Polys are heavily gunning for it), the Trail will no doubt sell out or the price gets jacked up. Disadvantage is that it takes mags I don't have.

Or pick it up in .223. Huge advantage is that it takes AR mags, for which I have a plenty. But the associated downside is that it takes AR mags. If those go the way of the do-do (not saying they will), then I don't know what I will be able to use to shoot that.

I am only looking at this because there is currently a sale on the 600 in both calibers at my LGS.

Now...I would be also interested in your feedback on the Trail. I gotta say that retractable stock thing looks a tad on the unstable side, just my sense...maybe it's rock solid but methinks that if it wobbles it may have a negative impact on the shot.

Would love to hear any feedback/experience if you have one of these, as well as which caliber would you favour if you were in my shoes.
 
Extendable stocks have been used on carbines for decades so the concept has merit, its whether CZ came through with quality or not
Waiting to hear what you think after visiting your lgs
 
i dont knwo about hte trail, but i have a racnh in 762x39 that is nice. i like it over hte 223 as a brush gun as it sill sends 30 call bullets which is nice for hunting
 
You should buy the 7.62X39 before I do...... :)

The stocks are known for their wobbly nature but most people learn to shoot through it, while others might replace the stock using aftermarket adapters.

If you want a rock solid stock out of the box.... you will want something else.
 
I've been pondering the same question - Trail in 223, or Trail in 7.62.

The main thing holding me back from going with the 7.62 is the magazine situation - Bren 2 magazines are very difficult to track down, and as far as I can tell they are all pinned to 5.

If I'm wrong about that ^ in any way that would be fantastic news.
 
Stay away from cz 600 all together. Terrible design of the bolt handle. Not sure if all models of the 600 have the same bolt design( trail, alpha, mdt ) I bought one and on the first shot fired the bolt unlocked but I could not extract the fired case. I had to put the stock on the bench and whack the bolt handle with the heel of my hand, on the second blow the tiny ass screw that holds on the bolt handle from inside the firing pin channel sheared off. That was 3 months ago and still no idea of when warranty parts will arrive in Canada.
 
somanycats said:
I've been pondering the same question - Trail in 223, or Trail in 7.62.

The main thing holding me back from going with the 7.62 is the magazine situation - Bren 2 magazines are very difficult to track down, and as far as I can tell they are all pinned to 5.

If I'm wrong about that ^ in any way that would be fantastic news.
Click to expand...
They are pinned to 5, but several site sponsors here like G4C have them for sale.
 
Ronjon73 said:
Stay away from cz 600 all together. Terrible design of the bolt handle. Not sure if all models of the 600 have the same bolt design( trail, alpha, mdt ) I bought one and on the first shot fired the bolt unlocked but I could not extract the fired case. I had to put the stock on the bench and whack the bolt handle with the heel of my hand, on the second blow the tiny ass screw that holds on the bolt handle from inside the firing pin channel sheared off. That was 3 months ago and still no idea of when warranty parts will arrive in Canada.
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Thanks for the feedback...this is interesting...I had significant case extraction issues with my recent Taipan (with the 62gr GTs), so don't need more PTSD from extraction issues. If others have reported similar things, I may do some more research before jumping in, particularly depending on who does the warranty (I just had a Mossberg sent for warranty last Spring just fixed and released - not sure I want another long drawn out warranty call if I can help it).
 
I’d avoid the trail.

I owned one and was not impressed.

1) the stock wobble was not great - i was surprised cz put out such a shoddy product. I figured internet reports were overstating it, but no. Mine had like a solid 2” or more wobble.

1.a) the stock only had locking detents one way and would constantly extend out to the full length.

2) bolt handle sucks - it needs a slight curve backwards rather than just sticking out.

3) POI shift with accessories on the foreend. Some of this is attributed to mlok screws touching the barrel, but i noticed i had vertical stringing off the bench while trying to a) lock in with the stock wobble, b) keep the pressure even on the foreend.

4) voiding warranty by removing the barrel. If cz had found a way to follow through on the interchangeable barrels, it might have redeemed itself.

There are some positives to the rifle - the trigger was really nice, the overall size was nice too, I would happily pay $500 for it. But at full retail pop - it wasn’t worth it, imho.

I’d rather get, and I can’t believe i am saying this, a ruger american and an aftermarket stock.

Not to deter you OP, but this was my experiences over a couple months.
 
thegazelle said:
Now...I would be also interested in your feedback on the Trail. I gotta say that retractable stock thing looks a tad on the unstable side, just my sense...maybe it's rock solid but methinks that if it wobbles it may have a negative impact on the shot.

Would love to hear any feedback/experience if you have one of these, as well as which caliber would you favour if you were in my shoes.
Click to expand...
I can consistently get 1-2inch groups with my Trail. The adjustable stock is a non-issue. Tuck it into your shoulder like any rifle and pull the trigger. ZRUS Outdoors Channel did a video on this 3 years ago:
(From 3mins 10 second mark)
 
Joel said:
Always wondered what these are like to shoot. The cheek rest is so far back from where I usually have my face on the stock, and you cant move it. Cool to hear its at least not an issue for you Patrix

Been really debating this vs a Renegade
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I am 6'2" and have fairly long arms, so with the stock completely extended out the cheek piece is in exactly the right place for me. I really enjoy shooting mine, but the Trail may not be for everyone.
 
na1lb0hm said:
I’d avoid the trail.

I owned one and was not impressed.

1) the stock wobble was not great - i was surprised cz put out such a shoddy product. I figured internet reports were overstating it, but no. Mine had like a solid 2” or more wobble.

1.a) the stock only had locking detents one way and would constantly extend out to the full length.

2) bolt handle sucks - it needs a slight curve backwards rather than just sticking out.

3) POI shift with accessories on the foreend. Some of this is attributed to mlok screws touching the barrel, but i noticed i had vertical stringing off the bench while trying to a) lock in with the stock wobble, b) keep the pressure even on the foreend.

4) voiding warranty by removing the barrel. If cz had found a way to follow through on the interchangeable barrels, it might have redeemed itself.

There are some positives to the rifle - the trigger was really nice, the overall size was nice too, I would happily pay $500 for it. But at full retail pop - it wasn’t worth it, imho.

I’d rather get, and I can’t believe i am saying this, a ruger american and an aftermarket stock.

Not to deter you OP, but this was my experiences over a couple months.
Click to expand...
I appreciate the feedback, and by no means am I the type who has decided to buy something and just needs to find the evidence why. I am considering it but looking at feedback, reviews, etc. If it was a lot cheaper, my tolerance for quirky quality control may not be as prominent. But yes, for that price and a CZ product...I am expecting decent quality. I knew there was a recall in 2022 and they have since fixed that issue.

That is telling that you'd rather get a Ruger American.

Too bad Tikka doesn't have anything in 7.62x39...or maybe they do and I haven't look around enough.
 
I've had the 600 trail in .223 for a couple years now. I enjoy it, but I do find myself wanting more out of what it can give. I keep mine pretty minimalist, I don't add much to the MLOK besides some textured covers, and just have it set up with magpul flip up sights. (I did have a 3.5 prism sight on it but it needs an aggressive cantilever mount to account for eye relief)

The gun is great if you're out and about and don't want to worry about lugging around a full length rifle case to store your firearm. I keep mine in a paintball marker soft case for transport if it's the only thing I'm taking out to the range or out at the farm. That said, I don't really reach out terribly far with it. It's great for something within a hundred yards, but the poor stock design makes it tricky to keep the gun consistently grouping. I find I need to torque it in a way while shouldering to get repeatable results, and even then it's a bit lacking.
I was considering getting one of those AR stock adaptors from the UK, but since Ruger announced their American Scout, I'm likely to send this thing off to a new home to fund one of those.

Theres also another issue I had with mine where the relief cut in the bolt was denting cartridges in the magazine. Might be something to consider as well.
 
I was initially very excited over the CZ 600 Trail when they first came out wanting a .223 chambered rifle to cope with the loss of the ARs...
Until a held one and cycled the action a few times. The stock (which you are paying a premium for) is hot garbage.

I went home with a 600 Alpha in 7.62x39 instead and haven't regretted that purchase one bit.
- Good ergonomic stock for the price point (that is arguably way better than the Ruger gen one and two ranch stock and the Howa stock).
- excellent (and relatively cheap) 5 round mags - can be locked in as a blind mag or easily changed.
- Integral two piece picitinny rail.
- Threaded for a muzzle device (although M15x1.0 thread - there are still some decent brakes out there).
- cold hammer forged 18" long barrel.
- match quality trigger with 4 pre-set settings.
- floating bolt head
- ambi safety with loaded chamber indicator.


I know a lot of guys were lamenting that CZ did an about face on the quick change caliber feature on the 600s, but in honesty for the price point of them, just go get another rifle.

I have another in .223, that I dig almost as much as the x39 model, but it has a too-long 22" barrel.
 
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