CZ Varmint: 452 vs 457

slinkylegs

slinkylegs

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I've been considering a CZ 457 Varmint because I've been so impressed with my 457 Synthetic, and was just about ready to purchase one when a local gentleman let me know he's selling a 452 Varmint. I know very little about the 452's, so i thought I'd ask the experts here lol.

I know the accuracy is dependent on many different factors, so I'm not really asking about that. What are some of the key differences between the two? Is any one of the them inherently better? I have no intentions of shooting competitively, and it'll mainly be used for some varmint control and personal range shooting.
 
Jahnj0584 said:
Nothing that hasn't been asked before. Biggest thing is the bolt throw angle.
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Ya, the bolt throw on the 452 is high and can interfere with some scope set ups. Also, the 457 has way more options for upgrading in the future.

That being said, my favorite rifle is my 452 Lux!
 
Go for the V-MTR so you'll get the most for your money. I've read the 452s are very accurate, but I'd go MTR just for the chamber. Barrels may vary in all models, I just eliminate as many variables as possible.
If you can find a Used VMTR ( I did that ) you can save $500 or more. And be way under the cost of a 'really better' rifle like Bergera or Custom.
 
A CZ 452 with Leupold rings and a Leupold Rim-fire Scope will be a deadly combination on them pesky gophers out to 100 yrds .
We used Federal or American Eagle Hollow Points and they proved to be minute of gopher .
The CZ is a very under rated .22 except for those in the know ;)
If you are wanting to dress it up or thinking of a barrel swap them maybe the 452 isnt for you.
If the Varmint 452 is in the $600.00 range jump on it...you will not be disappointed.
Tight Groups,
Rob
 
If there is an opportunity to shoot the 452 before you decide, maybe try that? I can tell you 452 varmints are excellent gopher-slayers, but they're definitely heavy rifles. I think if I were picking a rifle for long days of gopher shooting in the sun (today) it wouldn't be a heavy barrel. My thinking at the time was that the extra weight would steady the rifle, and it does help. Not sure it does that well enough to warrant the extra weight all day long thought, taking it in/out of the truck all day.

Everything said about bolt throw/scoping=true, but people have been scoping them as long as they've been made, so it does work. Just remember if you're wanting to mount a big/bulky 30mm scope on a 452 it'll have to sit a mile high. If you use a normal, 1"-tubed scope and consider the clearance concern, it's not a problem. My 452 Varmint wears a Sightron S1 4-12AO.
 
While 452s are excellent, don't complicate your life and go with 457 to retain barrel-action-stock compatibility with your 457 synthetic.
 
There are important differences between the CZ 452 Varmint and the CZ 457 Varmint.

Among them are that the older model barrel is press fit which is not user changeable and the newer model has a barrel that is clamped and it's barrel is user changeable.

The bolt throw is higher on the 452, but despite what's been said by some above doesn't mean that a scope has to be mounted extra high. Unless the rear scope bell is on the larger size and/or the scope is mounted too far forward, it's not a problem.

The CZ 452 Varmint has a single rear action screw and a front screw attaching to a barrel lug. Some shooters say that varying the front screw torque allows them to "tune" the rifle, but it's not clear if that actually much different than results with the recommended torque. The CZ 457, like the CZ 455, have two action screws, one in the rear and the other ahead of the magazine well.

Neither has an exceptional trigger, but both can be easily modified for lighter trigger pulls, if that's a concern.

As for weight, despite a claim made above to the contrary, the CZ 452 Varmint is not a heavier rifle. It weighs about 6.8 lbs. According to CZ, the CZ 457 Varmint weighs 3.3 kg or 7.27 lbs.

If you can get a CZ 452 Varmint in good shape for a good price, it's something worth seriously considering as they are not made any longer. Nevertheless, vp611 makes a very good point above when he says "While 452s are excellent, don't complicate your life and go with 457 to retain barrel-action-stock compatibility with your 457 synthetic."
 
Are the Match chambers that much more accurate? If they are only marginally, I likely would never notice! The MTR's don't look like they'd be a gun I'd be wanting to lug around gopher fields or hunting areas haha
 
FLHTCUI said:
A CZ 452 with Leupold rings and a Leupold Rim-fire Scope will be a deadly combination on them pesky gophers out to 100 yrds .
We used Federal or American Eagle Hollow Points and they proved to be minute of gopher .
The CZ is a very under rated .22 except for those in the know ;)
If you are wanting to dress it up or thinking of a barrel swap them maybe the 452 isnt for you.
If the Varmint 452 is in the $600.00 range jump on it...you will not be disappointed.
Tight Groups,
Rob
Click to expand...

The 452 in question is $750 with rings, $950 with a Bushnell scope.

.22LRGUY said:
If there is an opportunity to shoot the 452 before you decide, maybe try that? I can tell you 452 varmints are excellent gopher-slayers, but they're definitely heavy rifles. I think if I were picking a rifle for long days of gopher shooting in the sun (today) it wouldn't be a heavy barrel. My thinking at the time was that the extra weight would steady the rifle, and it does help. Not sure it does that well enough to warrant the extra weight all day long thought, taking it in/out of the truck all day.
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That's a good point to consider. My thoughts weren't even so much that the weight would steady the gun, but rather that the heavier barrel would shoot a wider range of ammunition well than the pencil barrels (as per the CZ website). Since I'd be using cheaper bulk ammo in the field and a better quality one at the range, I thought that might be the best way to go about things, but perhaps I am overthinking things
 
grauhanen said:
As for weight, despite a claim made above to the contrary, the CZ 452 Varmint is not a heavier rifle. It weighs about 6.8 lbs. According to CZ, the CZ 457 Varmint weighs 3.3 kg or 7.27 lbs.

If you can get a CZ 452 Varmint in good shape for a good price, it's something worth seriously considering as they are not made any longer. Nevertheless, vp611 makes a very good point above when he says "While 452s are excellent, don't complicate your life and go with 457 to retain barrel-action-stock compatibility with your 457 synthetic."
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I'm assuming that the added weight in the 457's is due to the bull barrel?

Also, what would you consider a good price for a 452? Like I said before, I am clueless when it comes to that model, and haven't kept up with the market
 
slinkylegs, I'd suggest a V-MTR to get the more accurate chamber, then you could put it into a 'less bulky' stock like a synth. The VMTR weighs 7.5# plus a scope (1-2#) mine is ca 10.5 with an Athlon 8-34x56 FFP + rings and rail. Once I get used to it it's not bad, and I'm 74 at 160# and 'old legs' :rolleyes: And it shoots ca 0.5xx" at 50.
 
I have both a 452 and a 453 and I don't see any need to swap barrels. They do what they were intended to do at that price point, and that is to be great hunting rifles.
 
Buck1950 said:
slinkylegs, I'd suggest a V-MTR to get the more accurate chamber, then you could put it into a 'less bulky' stock like a synth. The VMTR weighs 7.5# plus a scope (1-2#) mine is ca 10.5 with an Athlon 8-34x56 FFP + rings and rail. Once I get used to it it's not bad, and I'm 74 at 160# and 'old legs' :rolleyes: And it shoots ca 0.5xx" at 50.
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Have you had any trouble chambering the cheaper bulk stuff? Or have you tried them in it? I was lead to believe that the bulk stuff sometimes doesn't feed very nicely because of the tighter chamber on the Match Grade stuff
 
I've fired Federal SV 40g RNL, Fed Gold Medal 40g RNL, and CCI-SV 40g RNL with no probs. I bought my VMTR Used with ca 1K rounds and have fired ca 1500 more, about 150 or so of the above. The ret have been SK+ and SK-RM. The CCI-SV goes for about $17/100 at Cabelas, but I bought some Bulk around Christmas for about $125/1K. Gotta buy $300 to get Free shipping but I shoot 1-200 per range trip out of my several rifles. Right now the SK is going for about the same price, but is rare and Tenda is OUT. They have SK Magazine for $120/500 and it's almost as good as the other SKs and it's Available. If you get 3x cans you'll be good for a year or two and free shipping. AND if you look at their Bulk ammo under 22LR you'll see other deals. "Good ammo" will run around $10/box/50 OR More.
 
PS - I have a Sav-64 to shoot the 'cheaper stuff ' but it doesn't get 0.5" groups. It only cost $150 instead of $1500 :rolleyes:
 
I have the older regular 452 not the varmint. It’s a real gopher slayer, very accurate. I wouldn’t pass up a nice 452 if you can get it for a good price.
 
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