Zastava M70 commercial Mauser opinions.

[littlehughey]

I worked on my trigger a bit - cant take the creep out without making the sear unsafe from a bump test. The rifle appears to be decently accurate. I had it out today in high winds and was approaching 1 inch groups on Federal Blue Box. My bolt will bind if pulled back lazily when shooting from the bench, but thats user error. Have yet to load my own ammo for it.

 

[mimile]

I had one back in 2015-2016. Production year was 2013. Had a smooth action and shot MOA out of the box, no bedding done to it. Used it that season and filled in my tags.

Currently own a few in 8x57 and 7x64. All of them are good shooters, those ones are bedded and have smooth actions. I have found that the ones that came with a monte carlo stock had better finishes compared to the current euro hog stock.

I do exactly the same as you when it comes to load, bullet and powder and I have the same accuracy and speed.

 

[Hitzy]

I worked on my trigger a bit - cant take the creep out without making the sear unsafe from a bump test. The rifle appears to be decently accurate. I had it out today in high winds and was approaching 1 inch groups on Federal Blue Box. My bolt will bind if pulled back lazily when shooting from the bench, but thats user error. Have yet to load my own ammo for it.

It won't go super light, but certainly acceptable. I adjust for a heavier pull if going for minimum sear engagement, it's heavier but you won't notice the creep that way.
Adjustments below for anyone interested.

There are two adjustment screws at the front of the trigger and two more at the back.

(1) Front of trigger, lower: Safety adj. screw....Used to compensate for wear in safety bolt ie. trigger slop with safety engaged. Adj. by turning screw CW until trigger movement is eliminated with safety on.

(2) Front of trigger, top: Adjusts weight of pull. Turn CCW to decrease trigger pull. Will adjust down to approx. 2lb pull.

(3) Rear of trigger, lower. Stop or overtravel adjustment. To adjust for minimum over travel. With bolt closed, striker in fired position. Turn CW all the way in, then back off 1/8th turn.

(4) Rear of trigger, top. Sear engagement adjustment screw. To adjust for minimum sear engagement: Bolt closed, action cocked. Safety off, empty chamber (or dummy round). Turn adj. CW ubtil sear releases, then back off 1/4 turn.

After doing any trigger adjustments, slam the bolt home a few times to check for striker fall and add more sear miss-engagement. You might want to bounce the butt on the ground a few times also.

 

[caramel]

The trigger on my 458 Zastava is factory at 3.4 pounds with little creep. I would consider this a good+ trigger out of the box.

 

[Falconflyer]

I purchased a full length stocked M70 on sale a few months back, it's chambered 6.5x57. The stock is fairly plain but it's good wood with straight grain through the pistol grip. The checkering is not fancy though acceptable but the thing I find strange about it is the 14.25 inch length of pull which is 3/4 to 1 inch longer than any other rifle I have. It would be great for a 6 foot 4 inch tall guy with a long neck!
The metal finish is acceptable on a rifle of this price, that is to say that the metal would have been sufficiently polished before bluing and the bluing itself is even and consistent. It's certainly not a mirror finish that you can see your reflection in but that sort of bluing puts you into another price range. The front sight has machining marks left on the sides of it but... it is what it is I guess.
I worked on the trigger a bit and it breaks at 3 lbs even with some creep. It's acceptable for a hunting rifle and has safely passed the bump test and slam the bolt home test.
I've only had it to the range a couple of times and have yet to find the load that it likes. The accuracy was pretty deplorable with the hand loads I tried so I decided to glass bed the action to see if that helps but I haven't been back to the range yet with it, I'm sure it won't hurt.

 

[fuzzy39]

Looking for opinions on the Zastava m70. I ordered one already as it was in my price range and the calibre I wanted (9.3x62). They have a reasonably decent reputation on the net , a little rough in fit and finish is the most common complaint.
Just wondering if anyone has one , in any calibre , and could shed some light on their out-of-the-box functionality & accuracy or any other opinions observations or experiences.

I have handled a few and all have had beautiful blue jobs. The bolt can be a little rough but with cycling it smooths out nicely. I recently picked up a 6.5 Swede FS from another CGN. It shot factory PRVI ammo into 1.5 inch 3 shot groups and today my handloads ran under and inch with the right loads. Once again, the bluing is super and this one fit and finish was outstanding. I do not like the varnish that they come with but other than that not much I’d change.

Classic Mauser action... what could be better?!

Here is my handiwork from today...

 

[quaticman]

I have a Zastava M70 chambered in .458 Winchester magnum. It is a fully functional/reliable rendition of a Mauser 98 big game rifle. The walnut stock is rather plain Jane. I had the rifle glass bedded and the hard factory recoil pad replaced with a Kick Eez magnum pad which makes a huge difference in felt recoil. The Zastava's are very good value for the $.