Thinking of purchasing a New CZ 550 375 HH thoughts ??

I am in the market for a new rifle in 375H&H. How does the CZ compare to other brands? Have shot the CZ 550 before and liked it...Would use for Lion, possibly Buf etc... Any thoughts? Recommendations? I am new to AH, Awesome sight ! Any feedback would be great.

thanks

Check this thread and you'll get about as much info as is possible from the different rifle
supporters. Makes for interesting reading. All my rifles are CZ's, so I am definitely biased..!

Which .375 rifle?

Welcome to the forum.

CZ makes strong rifles maybe a bit rough if you compare with pricier brands.

I bought a CZ 550 safari last year for an upcomming safari. I absoulutly love it, I am glad I for it early as the action was pretty stiff but it only took a couple boxes to get it worked it. I all depends on what you are willing to spend, we would all like a Blaser 98 or custom SxS but not all of us have pockets that deep. I just had my gun guy pick out the one with the nicesest wood and am very pleased with it's fit and finish.

I love mine, would not change it for a more pricy bolt action. The 5+1 shot capacity gives a bit of extra peace of mind, and I like the way it feels, looks and, of course, shoots.

Welcom to the forum, CZ 550 and 375 will be a good rifle and caliber combo for you. Like DOCMAN said check out the other threads.

Great rifle, great caliber! In its price range it cannot be beat.

Haven't had mine long, but I love it. Planning a buffalo hunt in Australia in a couple of years and 5 rounds gives me a better feeling than three. Action is stiff, but not jerky or rough and the recoil is no worse than a lightweight rifle in 30-06. Plus CZ has a great reputation for reliability. I don't think you can go wrong.

Originally Posted by hntrpro

I am in the market for a new rifle in 375H&H. How does the CZ compare to other brands? Have shot the CZ 550 before and liked it...Would use for Lion, possibly Buf etc... Any thoughts? Recommendations? I am new to AH, Awesome sight ! Any feedback would be great.

thanks

I have a CZ in .416 Rigby I got in December. I like the rifle and it has shown already to be accurate. It will at a minimum have some trigger work done. I don't know if it was worked over by previous owners with respect to the bolt, but mine feeds like putting your hand into a worn glove.

I think you owe it to yourself to check out one of the new Winchester M70 Safari Express. I also own one of those in .375H&H. I found with mine I have to crimp the rounds for them to feed properly 100% of the time. But most people I speak to don't have this problem. For that large a caliber I think you should crimp anyway so it's really not a complaint, just an observation. Outside of that, it doesn't require anything. It's a shooter right out of the box. I picked up a load suggestion here on AH that worked out very well. It is easily the most accurate rifle I've ever owned.

But you may still prefer the CZ. I like the balance of the CZ better. But I will NEVER sell that M70. So give both a try and go with the one you prefer.

Good choice, a little bit of smoothing the action and you will not be sorry for the choice you made.

Originally Posted by PHOENIX PHIL

I picked up a load suggestion here on AH that worked out very well.

..share, Phil, share the load..!

Thanks guys for the info
I looked at the winchester model 70, 375hh...made in the U.S. , NRA GUN OF THE YEAR, a plus, only thing I didnt like- NO WRITTEN WARRANTY
Cz - 5 year warranty

keep the info coming !!

I have a CZ 550 safari magnum feeds like hot butter on a glass plate would recomend it right out of the box. The people saying it needs an action job are full of it. I am a prfessional gunsmith and have taken Zebra Blue wiledabeast and kudu with mine. Its a great bargin this is one of those times when you really get what you pay for.

Originally Posted by BARTFRNCS

I have a CZ 550 safari magnum feeds like hot butter on a glass plate would recomend it right out of the box. The people saying it needs an action job are full of it. I am a prfessional gunsmith and have taken Zebra Blue wiledabeast and kudu with mine. Its a great bargin this is one of those times when you really get what you pay for.

What model did you get, the Safari Magnum, or the American Safari Magnum ? Some are telling me get the Safari classic, shorter 20" barrel, cross bolts, etc

I got the Safari classic 375H&H BUT i ordered the composit stock and fitted it to the action. This stock can be ordered from the factory for around 450.00USD . The stock has an aluminium bedding block and is Kevlar fiber laid up glass composite IE very stable. I shoot tsxs 270gr @2719fps into .750 moa pretty good for a cart developed in 1912.

Originally Posted by DOCMAN

..share, Phil, share the load..!

78gr of IMR4350 with a 300gr A-Frame. That's 1.5gr above max listed in the Swift loading manual, so please follow the wisdom of starting low and working up. Having said that, I get no signs of pressure with that load.

I believe it was Double D a member here who gave me that load, so credit goes to him.

I have used 80 grs with no issues.

I post this response in the interests of information requested by the OP, and in partial response to some of the replies above.

I'm not going to be so dogmatic to suggest that ALL CZ 550's require an action job before they funstion, because that's simply not true.

I also do not intend, nor wish to, start a Cz bashing thread. Those we have already seen and most would be well aware of issues raised in the past.

I currently have a Cz 550 being worked on by a gun-smith in order to resolve the firearm's inability to feed reliably.

The gun-smith I took this rifle to acknowledged he had worked on "numbers" of Cz's with the very same issue.

The gun-shop I recently purchased components for other firearms from has a young fella working behind the counter I regularily deal with who also acknowledged he is almost at the end of his teather in trying to get his CZ 550 in 458 Win mag to feed reliably.

A good freind of mine, who also operates buffalo hunts in Australia, has been through two different CZ 550's, one in 416 the other a Custom Shop 404 which he waited 2 years to be delivered then as he was picking it up he insisted on cycling live rounds through the action before picking it up and paying for it (was taken to an acceptable area by gunshop staff to facilitate this process) and the BRAND NEW CUSTOM SHOP RIFLE DID NOT GET THROUGH THE FIRST CYCLE. NOR THE SECOND, NOR THE THIRD ETC ETC. Needless to say my buddy did not pick this rifle up.
I followed up through a complaint on his behalf to the importer of Cz's into Aus who acknowledged these issues were far from rare.
My buddies second Cz, a 416, cracked the pistol grip woodstock before it's 200th round.

My neighbour, who operates hunts to the North of me has at least a couple of Cz safe queens that no longer get used as they will not feed reliably and he does not have the lack of consciounce to sell them to anyone.

I personally have another Cz 550 in 375 that feeds and functions perfectly, as do several others that I know about.

I'm not for one minute saying that all Cz's are crap, they're not.

But they are a mass produced firearm put together with parts manufactured in a country with unknown quality control procedures, built to meet a low price point.

You get what you pay for, mostly good, sometimes shockingly poor.
Obviously "lemons" are apt in every brand, that I also ackowledge.

Being aware of these issues may at least help you select the right individual firearm.
Insist on being able to cycle live rounds through the action of the individual rifle you may have selected, and do it (in a place that is safe to do so) and as quickly as you possilby can.

No hate mail thanks, these views are my own personal experiences and opinions, none of which may agree with or reflect your own.

Good hunting to all.

I have a CZ550 .375 and have had zero issues feeding. It shoots extremely well and I am very happy with it. In the end that's all that counts. I would recommend it to my friends.

In my opinion should people not buy a CZ 550 to save money.
You can be very lucky when you buy one, but in most cases you need to spend money at the gun smith to at least fix the trigger and also often the feeding.
Sometimes you need to fix the feeding of other factory rifles as well, but not as often as you need with the CZ 550 rifles made today.

When buying a CZ 550, you should do it because it is the gun you like the most and be prepared that it most likely is going to cost you as much as any other new factory made rifle in 375 H&H.

Personally if I should buy a 375 H&H, I would buy the Winchester Model 70 Alaskan Stainless Laminate, because I care only about the function and toughness of the gun and don't care so much about nice wood in the stock or traditions for African guns
I own a Ruger Alaskan in 375 Ruger now.