Cz-52

[ar50]

Please talk me out of buying one.

[PJA]

I can't. Mine shoots super with my reloads in 7.62x25, and well with 9mm factory loads when I install the 9mm barrel. Total cost (including the 9mm barrel) $225.
Pete

[AJAX22]

I can't either, I have two, paid 175 apice out the door. they're just great lil firebreathers

[maxicon]

They're cheap, and they make for a fun 5th or 6th gun, but I wouldn't recommend one as a primary gun. The 9mm barrels are getting pretty hard to find, and the milsurp ammo is a good bit more expensive than it used to be. If you can find one cheap (that is, under $150 these days), you can always get your money back if you hate it, but I haven't seen one in person in the Bay Area for under $200 in quite some time.


Here's my standard CZ52 post:

The CZ52 is fun, but not very practical. It's heavy, not very ergonomic, the grips are big and awkward, the sights are terrible, the trigger is poor unless you do mods that disable safety features, the ammo selection is limited, the firing pin breaks easily with dry-firing, and the firing pin block doesn't work when it's a little bit out of battery. Magazines are relatively expensive for such an inexpensive gun. Mine has a nasty trigger slap that makes my finger go numb, but not all of them do.

On the plus side, they're cheap, easy to disassemble and clean, you can improve the grips with a Handall slip-on. They're loud, with nice muzzle flash (depending on the ammo), milsurp ammo is cheap (but corrosive). Much of the milsurp ammo has hard primers, requires an occasional double-strike, and is prone to split necks and cases, but they're good for clearing exercises!

There's also quite a bit of doubt about the tribal knowledge of how strong the actions are, as there are semi-regular reports of one blowing up. There's a fellow on the 'net who likes to test guns to destruction, and he found the CZ52 chamber failed before the brass did, which is unusual.

Mine's pretty much a safe queen these days, and an ugly one at that. There's a reason they're so cheap. Heck, I bet my 9mm barrel is getting to be worth what the gun is, now that you can't get them any more!

[M. Sage]

I like mine a lot.

The sights aren't great, but ok.

The trigger in standard form pretty well sucks, but I don't feel the improvment kit from Makarov.com makes it actually unsafe. It just substitues a firing pin return spring for the return plunger. Just don't go air-dropping it with a live round in the chamber. BTW, that kit kills two birds with one stone. It makes the trigger actually NICE and adds the benefit of a firing pin that shouldn't break.

The surplus ammo's cheap. Yes, it's corrosive, but the pistol is so easy to strip, I don't care... Cleaning up after corrosive isn't hard anyway.

The grip is odd, but once you get used to it, it's not so bad.

No slide catch release. Not a real big deal.

The mag release is in the heel of the grip, and you have to actually pull the mag free. With the right technique, a reload can go rather quick, though.

Extra mags cost about $20 each.

The grips feel really wierd. They're narrow, but deep.

Those are the negatives, such as they are. The positives are these are really flat-shooting pistols, mine's been reliable for me so far, rather powerful despite what the crazy Tokarev cartridge looks like, and they're cheap as it gets. I'm glad I got mine. It's fun to shoot. Oh, and despite the fact that the pistol itself is heavy, the ammo is VERY light.

A bonus is watching people's faces when they see the brass come to a stop 10-15 feet away from where I'm shooting.

I actually pulled a bullet, and tried pouring the powder into a 9mm case. There's too much in the Romanian surplus I have to fit in a 9x19mm case, and it looks to be about right for a .45 ACP, maybe a tad light.

BTW, he's not kidding about these being loud. Mine is noticeably louder than any .45 I've shot next to.

[Sydwaiz]

Can't help you. I bought 2 back in July from J&G and haven't even shot them yet. How sad is that?

[grammaton76]

Get one, and install the wood grips. As for the CZ's blowing up, I'm not sure if this was the case in all instances but if you fire Tokarev ammo that's made for SMGs out of your CZ-52, you'll end up with a nasty kaboom. The SMG loads are hotter than the pistol loads. Mine has never experienced corrosive ammo in my care; Winchester White Box ammo is readily available and not too expensive.

[EBWhite]

only the bulgarian ammo with a certain headstamp is unsafe to shoot. the romanian stuff and polish is very nice stuff. id stay away from most bulgarian for that reason.

[M. Sage]

Another vote for the Romanian. I forgot to mention, the only hard primers I've experienced yet were from batches of ammo marked "distributed by Miwall." The Romanian surplus, I've sent probably 300+ rounds downrange, no problems with it at all.

[kenc9]

Aim has these for 139.00, I am at near 500 rounds and ZERO problems with good ammo, and don't dry fire and get a backup firing pin.

These are great little guns for the money and fun to shoot.

-ken

[Chrism1438]

I have owned my CZ-52 for several years and really enjoy it. For its military design it is great. I recommend everyone to get one. Cheap gun, cheap ammo, reliable, not fancy easy to operate. I also recommend a spare firing pin. The blast is also nice when at a range, great conversation starter. Get one and enjoy it.

[chiefcrash]

they're pretty fun. just watch how you hold it: if you hold it too high (which it's easy to do) the slide will tear your hand up pretty good...

[M. Sage]

One of my little gripes with the CZ52 is that you can't hold it high enough. IMO, and in my experience, it's pretty well impossible to get a hold on this pistol high enough to get bit by the slide. I didn't even bother telling my wife it was possible to get her hand caught in the slide when I taught her to shoot this, despite the fact she'd put maybe 30 rounds total through 3 different pistols before shooting my CZ52.

@ Chrism: the blast, the noise (sounds almost like a rifle to me, especially compared to other pistols,) and how far it chucks the brass. I've had more than a couple grinning people ask "WTF is that!?"

[chiefcrash]

One of my little gripes with the CZ52 is that you can't hold it high enough. IMO, and in my experience, it's pretty well impossible to get a hold on this pistol high enough to get bit by the slide. I didn't even bother telling my wife it was possible to get her hand caught in the slide when I taught her to shoot this, despite the fact she'd put maybe 30 rounds total through 3 different pistols before shooting my CZ52.

well, i do have huge beefy hands...

[mike100]

I can't. Mine shoots super with my reloads in 7.62x25, and well with 9mm factory loads when I install the 9mm barrel. Total cost (including the 9mm barrel) $225.
Pete

Oh damn... you can drop in a 9mm barrel? I wish I wouldn't have opened this thread.