EKM... a good friend of mine has a 375 CZ550 sitting on a rack for consignment. Seems that the person was heading to Africa and wanted something a little bigger than a 375. It is in brand new condition...having read your posts I understand you have one of these but not in this caliber. How do you like the stock design?

I know I' m not who you' re asking, but I did have a CZ550 .375H&H, and have one in .416Rigby...I absolutely love them, they feel absolutely great to me, let alone shoot great, that' s why I' ve stuck with them, they feel more like a heavy deer rifle, as opposed to being built like a tank. I' ve never used anything other than butt-stock recoil pads and PAST shoulder pads, and the recoil hasn' t been a problem (<---stock provides this), where other .416rig' s of mine have been NECESSARILY fitted with recoil dampening tubes. My only complaint is that I have troubles getting the folding leaf sights to actually match the ranges they say with my handloads, although when you mount a glass, that' s not an issue (although sometimes a glass and africa aren' t the best combination!)

oldelkhunter--

Short Answer:
Looks = C (and to some, an F)
Feel = A

Long Answer:
CZ' s stock always gets them lots of attention -- not always positive. For folks that fixate on a straight back " thing of beauty" stock like you find on a M70 (a favorite of mine), they are not likely to go for the looks of a CZ with its " hogback/Lux/European Comb" style. The cheek rest is NOT a thing of beauty (though perfectly functional and cheap for CZ to make). I feel the stock itself makes the recoil easier to manage and since at these calibers we are talking DGR' s more than BGR' s function begins weighing heavy over beauty. A CZ is not a beauty queen. They are a lot like the old SAAB 900 Turbos, i.e. not too hot to look at, but watch out if you ever drive one, as you may likely end up owning one. On the other hand, it looks VERY similar to a Weatherby DGR -- which is not bad company to keep. Now, that is the general " eyes open" overview.

Now for the non-visuals. When I was at Cabelas they had 416' s in Ruger 77, Model 70, and CZ. When I did the " closed eyes" test, i.e. I threw them each up to my shoulder, snuggled in to what felt good, and then opened my eyes only the CZ had me looking right down the sights -- automatically and effortlessly. To me it felt better, aimed better and balanced and handled better than either the Ruger or the M70 and cost hundreds less. I would rather have two plain jane CZ' s (416 & 458?) than one beauty queen Ruger -- cost is about the same and I wouldn' t be crying too hard if they get scratched. I plan to hunt them hard. [>:]

My pattern is to find a cartridge I love and then find a satisfactory " launcher" (rifle) for it. When discussing hunting and folks ask " what did you shoot it with?" they are more after the cartridge/bullet than the rifle manufacturer. But that is just me.

Never Go Undergunned,
EKM

Well now I have some questions for EKM. How do you like the express sights? Do you plan on mounting a scope? Is the CZ BRNO action as " slick" as the CRF Mod 70 winchester.

EKM , that is my exact feeling on it also...I would prefer the straight stock like a MOD 70 but it is carrying a fully functional stock as is. I would say the action and everything associated with it is first rate and the price is very reasonable for a full size magnum action that is very well built. I' m going to go ahead and pick it up and get some Talley rings for it.

oldelkhunter,
I think you' ll find CZ' s are a great buy. R for Reference you can buy them NIB at Gunbroker.com with the factory 3 shot sight in target for 619 to 629 plus 20 or so shipping and 20 or so for a FFL on your end, but probably no sales tax. Deal accordingly.
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neweboarhunter,
The express sights are novel, never had them before, they go 100-200-300 yards (meters). I don' t even want iron sights for a 100 yard shot so it don' t really matter. I have a Leupold Vari III 3.5 x 10 I plan to put on it.

If you like " slick actions" I think Sako' s are great rifles. Anyway I consider the action on the CZ, in terms of smoothness, " slickness" , and strength, to be every bit the match to the M70.

EKM