cz 550 fs

[billy]

Anyone have a cz 550 fs ,if you do what are pro and con,s on it?

[Buckfever]

Very accurate, well balanced firearm.  Easy to carry and comes up to the shoulder fast.  Put a 400lb. bear down, DRT, bang flop.   Only negative I find is bolt handle will not clear a scope with low mounts and a bigger than 33mm diameter for the rear bell.  ( Not much of a problem).  Think a 2-7 is best fit.  One of my favorite firearms.   Buckfever

[dbriannelson]

I like my 9.3x62 so much I just put money down on a 6.5x55 FS.

Quick-handling, balanced to carry in one hand, pretty.

-Don

[DakotaElkSlayer]

Own the 6.5x55mm and am simply amazed at how well she shoots.  Best barrel I have ever owned...point of impact doesn't change from a clean barrel to after 12 shots.  Only rifle I have ever hunted with w/o a fouling shot.  Have a gorgeous 9.3x62, lots of fiddleback throughout the stock.  Sorry to say, since I use a bow for elk, I have yet to shoot a single handload in it.  I have all the faith in the world that is will shoot as well as his little brother.
  Oh ya, someone mentioned the high bolt throw...  On the 6.5x55 with the 3-10 Weaver Grand Slam gives me "paper-thickness" clearance between the bold and eye box.  On the 9.3x62mm with the same scope, but Warn QD rings, I actually took my dremel to the bolt so I had clearance.  Actually, after taking a blueing pen to it, you won't notice it unless I point it out.
  These rifles look so sexy, and shoot so darn good, all future caliber purchases will be based on what CZ has in its FS line.

Jim

[dbriannelson]

Picked up the 6.5x55 yesterday, mounted a Sightron SII 4-16x42 on it and went to the range with a bunch of different loads.

Hottest IMR 4350 load with 140gr SMKs ran 2609fps average, with velocities scattered all over.  Down 1.5 grains the velocity spread was tighter but the groups weren't.  Somewhere between I found something of a sweet spot and have loaded up some 0.2 grain interval loads across it.  Tomorrow I'll go back to the range and do some grouping and chronographing to see if I can find the ultimate balance of accurate and fast.

Best groups yesterday were about an inch.  I shot from a cold barrel to very hot, so tomorrow I'll do some cooling down between shots.

I've pulled the stock off a couple of times now.  The set trigger (when set) doesn't always trip the sear.  I figured out why, but haven't got a solution yet.  The set trigger needs a bit of overtravel to trip it and if it's pulled gently enough it doesn't have the overtravel.  Not sure if this is the same in all CZs, as I haven't taken a look at the others yet.  Just knowing about it will probably mean it won't happen again.

Also, there is contact with the metal end cap and the barrel and in the channel as well - it might actually cause pressure when it gets hot or humidity changes, but none of the groups yesterday strung out.  I'll keep an eye on that tomorrow.

The scope mounts are the "high" Warnes.  I think I can probably use the medium ones, but it will get tight with the bolt handle.  Anyway, with the scope that high, there's no "spot weld" between the stock and cheek - more like a butterfly kiss.  Fine on the bench, but no good off-hand.  I may end up with a 1.25-6x scope with medium mounts after I get the loads worked up. 

This rifle has some nice figure in the wood.  Not to the point of being "select" or anything, but much better than a sawn plank. 

Now that I've got the chronograph I'll run some 9.3x62 loads through it soon and let everyone know how that goes as well.

-Don

[dbriannelson]

Some range chrono results with the CZ 550 LS in 6.5x55 Swede:

Bullet - 140 gr SMK

44.2 gr IMR4350 - Avg. 2550 fps.  Extremes = 2532/2582.
44.4 gr IMR4350 - Avg. 2593 fps.  Extremes = 2553/2650.
44.6 gr IMR4350 - Avg. 2601 fps.  Extremes = 2592/2622.
44.8 gr IMR4350 - Avg. 2602 fps.  Extremes = 2572/2624.

(The above are ten round averages with one or two unbelievables removed as probable chronograph errors.)


I won't show you the bad groups of course, but this was with the 44.8 grain load at 100 yards, indoor range.  Five rounds.  Hard to find the edges of the holes - might be as big as 0.661..

I'm pretty sure now that I'll have to relieve the muzzle cap and barrel channel a little.  One group strung distinctly horizontal as the barrel went from cold to hot.  It might be the barrel, but it might be the wood.  I can fix the wood.

And this next time I'm neck-sizing the brass only, hoping to get consistent velocities.  I may run some up from 44.6 to 45.2 in the same increments to see where it goes.  No pressure problems showing at all today.

-Don

[Buckfever]

I used low mounts, Warne, and a 1.5-4.5 Nikon Monarch.  It has been tested with a large amount of factory shots with a 375 and 12 guage with slugs.  Very clear and wide field of view.  I can cycle the bolt with no problems, however if I put the scope covers with elastic band on that came with the scope it is to tight to cycle.  Wanted a 200 yd - 25yard set up for large plainsgame, big bears, and other big nasties.  Works great.  I have taken a 400lb. black bear with it and it was bang flop.  Pretty effective these slower pumpkin bullets.

Buckfever

[DakotaElkSlayer]

Nice shootin', Don!  When you get a chance, you should try some Nosler 100gr. BT over a charge of Varget.

Jim

[dbriannelson]

Jim, I would, but I don't see that bullet listed at Midway.  I do see a 107-gr SMK that could be interesting.  A BR-shooting friend of mine swears by Varget, but I've never used it.  I'll pick some up today and put the 107s in my wish list.

Another general note on the 550s:  Both the 6.5 and 9.3 have now had failures of the SS trigger to release the sear.  If anyone else has had and solved this problem, please tell me about it. 

-Don

[hbfred]

Don

I've been thinking about getting one like yours (6.5x55) and am wondering if you have talked to the dealer or CZ about the trigger problems?

Thanks
FG

[dbriannelson]

FG,

I have not.  Because it's on both of the 550s, I figure it's a design issue and probably solvable by adjustment, but I just haven't figured out how.  (I haven't been able to spend any time on it lately as I've been in Spain on business travel on and off for the last three weeks.)  The regular trigger pull on both of the rifles is perfectly acceptable as well, unlike the 527 where the SS is almost necessary for accuracy.  It might be that I need to choose between bad primary pull with good SS pull, or simply adjust the primary to be good and ignore the SS.  Frankly, I'd prefer a good primary trigger pull over the SS anyway - less stuff to think about.

It has only happened a few times on each rifle and then I just pull through to the primary trigger and life goes on.  If I can't resolve it to my own satisfaction or don't want at Rifle Basix fix, then I may contact CZ-USA.

-Don

[One Eye]

Only negative I find is bolt handle will not clear a scope with low mounts and a bigger than 33mm diameter for the rear bell.  ( Not much of a problem). 

Is this an issue on all of the CZ 550s, or just the FS models?  Thanks.
Dan

[one eye joe]

Haven't had this problem on my 550 American.  The trigger is the same on all of them though, so don't know why the full stock would be the only one affected.

[Blowtorch53]

Guys,

My CZ 550 FS is a keeper!  It's in 9.3 x 62 and it shoots in the same place year after year.  I have killed deer and sheep with it here in Texas and even an Oryx, which was about 400#, and haven't had to do any serious tracking.  I use the cheap (relatively) Privi 285 gr. ammo.  I have a lot of rifles and it is one of the few that does not need adjustment when I take it to the range before hunting.  It wears a Burris 3 x 9 scope and factory rings.  They look a little high but are a very comfortable fit for me with the stock configuration.

I loaned it to a bean counter and he took it to Canada and dragged it through the mud and water for a week moose and caribou  hunting and brought it back caked in grime and light surface rust.  They didn't even have WD 40 in this expensive safari hunting camp.  I thought the stock would be warped so bad I would have to use it for a boat paddle.  It cleaned up nicely (unlike me!)  and still shot in exactly the same spot the first time out.  I only have one other rifle that I trust as much, a Remington 600 Mohawk in 6mm. 

I never use the single set trigger function, even at the range.  The unset position provides a light crisp pull, and I can shoot it very accurately as it is. 

When I go deer hunting and explain the history of the cartridge, everyone calls it an "elephant rifle." The recoil is not any worse than a .30-06.  I would highly recommend this rifle to anyone. I need a 6.5 too!

Blowtorch

[Lee Robinson]

I have a CZ 550FS in 30-06 and it is an excellent shooter. Very accurate. Reliable. I don't have any clearance issues with a 3-9x40 scope. I don't have any issues with the trigger set either. Both triggers work great, but I normally use the traditional trigger when hunting. The gun has always provided 1 shot kills for me too....but I have considered selling it/trading it for a gun in the lighter 243 caliber (one that me, my wife, and my kids could all shoot). My 30-06 has too much recoil for my wife...who has a very light frame.