Shooting The CZ 457 MTR .22

[SGW Gunsmith]

The other day I was at my bench out back testing a fairly new received CZ .22 rimfire and some of the CCI Mini-Mag Target and Varmint ammunition received direct from CCI:






I've read about how some owners feel that closing the bolt handle down on a chambered round seems a bit hard to do with the CZ 457 MTR. No doubt this is the reason:

The lead bullet is being forced into the leade a bit, and that seems to be a good thing.

 

[rayatphonix]

Shot at what distance? Or did I miss it?

 

[Dave DeLaurant]

Beautiful rifle -- I saw a new one for sale at a LGS a couple months ago, but my .22 LR cup runneth over. But had it been in .22 WMR, I might have succumbed to temptation.

 

[troy fairweather]

Match chamber, that's why some will say may not eject it not fired. I'd say it likes the SK ammo.

 

[12Bravo20]

I would say that the Savage MkII and the CZ 457 MTR both shoot very well and the LUX didn't do bad either. I would be happy with all three. I have to ask, is the Savage the sporter barrel or heavy varmint barrel?

 

[jmorris]

Nice, how far away?

If I have time this weekend, I am going to give the 5 shot challenge another go.

 

[SGW Gunsmith]

Shot at what distance? Or did I miss it?

No, you didn't miss the distance............I did. I start out shooting at 35 meters, if all looks really good, then I go out further to 50 and then 75 yards.

 

[d2wing]

Like Troy said, match chamber likes match bullets better. Thanks for the report. My buddy just got one and hasn't shot it yet.

 

[wiscoaster]

I suppose this is going to make me sound like an Eley fan-boy along with what I posted in the other CCI thread, but my CZ 457 Lux asbsolutely loves that stuff. Dennis, have you tried it in yours?

 

[12Bravo20]

I suppose this is going to make me sound like an Eley fan-boy along with what I posted in the other CCI thread, but my CZ 457 Lux asbsolutely loves that stuff. Dennis, have you tried it in yours?

We all know that each barrel is different and will do better with certain brands of ammo versus other brands.I have some rifles that do great with Eley and Aquila ammo while other rifles do better with CCI ammo. And my old Romanian M69 trainer does best with Federal Champion. Find what your barrel likes the best and stick with it. I also have some rifles that shoot high velocity better than standard/subsonic and visa versa. You never know until you try.

 

[SGW Gunsmith]

I would say that the Savage MkII and the CZ 457 MTR both shoot very well and the LUX didn't do bad either. I would be happy with all three. I have to ask, is the Savage the sporter barrel or heavy varmint barrel?

It's the heavier varmint barrel. All of these rifles were tested as they arrived, no tampering with anything on my part. The only thing I did with these rifles was to wipe out the bore and then treat the bore with EEZOX.

I suppose this is going to make me sound like an Eley fan-boy along with what I posted in the other CCI thread, but my CZ 457 Lux asbsolutely loves that stuff. Dennis, have you tried it in yours?

No, not as yet, but I do have quite a few boxes of the various iterations it's available in. This one I plan to try:



Along with a few other extras I have left over from previous "MAD" experiments:

 

[SGW Gunsmith]

That's one thing that I do, whenever I find another type of .22 Long Rifle round, is test those in my 7 bolt action .22 rifles. It's the main reason why I have the stash that I do concerning .22 rimfire:

 

[SGW Gunsmith]

I was so attracted to the appearance of the new CZ457 American that I had to have one, even though the 457 Varmint MTR was the model that I found most intriguing. No problem finding an American, but it took a couple of months before I was able to catch a MTR in stock at one of the wholesale distributors I have an account with. Both are 22LR versions. I've had no issue getting the triggers adjusted down into the 1lb range, with crisp, clean breaks, and no safety issues. Put BScar 25 MOA scope rails on both, with an old Nikon Buckmaster 6-18x44 on the American, and an Athlon Cronus 4.5-29x56 on the MTR. Though the grain figure in the MTR's stock doesn't hold a candle to some of the very nice ones I've seen posted online, it's far from disappointing when viewed in the right light. The American has been disappointing when it comes to groups fired on paper, even after I cut a new 11* crown to replace the rather uneven one from the factory. I need to bed it to see if that helps, but will probably wind up replacing the OEM bbl with a Shilen or Mullerworks custom. The MTR on the other hand, has been impressive from the start, and has printed some nice, small, round 10-shot groups on steel at 210yds. I'm not terribly anxious to do anything except to keep shooting it, but a good bedding job is probably going to get done sooner or later.

I will shoot some more various types of .22 Long Rifle, and then see what a bedding and floating job will do along with some finer trigger pull adjusting. Also, I'm sorta curious as to what, if anything, cryogenic treatment will do for one of these barrels and see whether it's wrong and more like putting ketchup on a hotdog.

 

[RainDodger]

I have a 457 American also and out of all the brands of ammo I've tried, the traditional CCI Mini-Mags are the best.... and surprisingly enough (to me), it also really likes Aguilla cartridges. I had never tried them before and they recently popped up at a local store. I have not done any modifications to my rifle whatsoever. It shoots extremely well, with many groups similar to yours, albeit not all of them... mine is not exactly a target rifle. It's a very nice-handling rifle however. Enjoy your new rifle - it's a beauty! I've become quite sold on CZ rifles. I have one in .223 also and it is truly spectacular right out of the box (after a trigger adjust). It out-shoots my Winchester Model 70 heavy barrel, which is much more picky about loads.

 

[SGW Gunsmith]

One thing that I did not adhere to, was to fully clean all the lube from one variety and then "season" the barrel with the lube as used on another brand. That seems to be the curriculum of the bench rest crowd as their claim is, a non-like lubricant can affect accuracy if not removed.
I applaud what those fellas do in the eternal quest for that one-hole group, but the rifles I own and shoot as often as I can are NOT what I'd consider "high dollar" benchrest quality. To me, they're more like good rifles that are fun to shoot, test ammunition with, and take-out squirrels for those scrumptious "loins" they carry under their fur. And then, it's just way too cool to get a 0.300 of an inch group when I hold the tip of my tongue just so in the right corner of my mouth. It's the only "vice" I have, other than a nip or three of Ol Tom Horan's Irish Whiskey.

 

[Dave DeLaurant]

It's the main reason why I have the stash that I do concerning .22 rimfire.

Whoa -- and I thought the 14K rounds of .22 LR in my lager was a excessive! Your stockpile has more of the good stuff too, Eley, CCI and the like. Nice!

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

Nice!

 

[Milkmaster]

The other day I was at my bench out back testing a fairly new received CZ .22 rimfire and some of the CCI Mini-Mag Target and Varmint ammunition received direct from CCI:
View attachment 1008170
View attachment 1008171
View attachment 1008172
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View attachment 1008174

I've read about how some owners feel that closing the bolt handle down on a chambered round seems a bit hard to do with the CZ 457 MTR. No doubt this is the reason:
View attachment 1008175
The lead bullet is being forced into the leade a bit, and that seems to be a good thing.

Could you share with what scope is on your CZ rifle please.

 

[Orion8472]

That's one thing that I do, whenever I find another type of .22 Long Rifle round, is test those in my 7 bolt action .22 rifles. It's the main reason why I have the stash that I do concerning .22 rimfire:

View attachment 1008689

Why did you post a picture of your local gunstore's 22lr shelf in your post......................................oh....is that all yours?

Yes, that was just a "fun way" of saying,... "you have a lot of ammo!"