Tips for New VZ58 owners

[Laneman]

Now that I've had my 58 long enough to become familiar with it, I thought I would share my experiences in hopes of helping any new owners enjoy these fine rifles. I hope that some other members will also chime in and add to this post. I've been shooting for most of my life and tried many different types of guns. My philosophy when choosing one to buy is to do a lot of consumer research and buy only those guns that are extremely reliable, and have very high satisfaction ratings from their owners. As ex-military I enjoy military rifles, but did not have good experiences with the M-16. I was always impressed with the reliability of AK's, but many owners complain of poor accuracy. When I discovered that VZ58 owners describe their rifles as being ultra reliable and accurate I knew this was the one for me.

Here's what I would recommend to my friends who are interested in buying this rifle:
1) Buy the version that most owners give high marks on. Based on reading many owner reviews here and elsewhere, my recommendation is to get a D-Technik. I'm sure there are great 58's built by others, including home builds, and I'm not knocking any of them. Based purely on owner reviews I chose the D-Technik for me. I ordered my 58 from a little known online dealer. After placing my order I learned that there were many customer complaints with my particular dealer. The gun finally arrived with missing parts after two weeks of waiting. If I had it to do again I would order from Czechpoint. Again, not knocking other reputable dealers, just relating my personal experiences.
2) Clean the rifle thoroughly before use. Most have metal shavings in them. Mine did, but I cleaned it well before using.
3) If you have trouble with hollow point ammo try another brand. I started with TulAmmo and it jammed like crazy. Turns out the diameter of the hollow tip was too big and caught on the feed ramp. When I use smaller diameter hollow tips such as Wolf, it feeds HP's smoothly.I still plan to use FMJ for plinking because that's what it was designed for.
4) Always pull the bolt fully to the rear, then let it go so it will snap forward on its own at full speed. This applies to all semi-auto's, but is a must for the VZ58.
5) Make sure the bullets are not crooked in the magazine. I like to rap the rear of the mag on my leg every 5 rounds so they all seat well.
6) I was initially concerned that I could feel some kind of mechanical hang-up when moving the bolt forward by hand. I recently learned that this is normal on VZ58's.
7) I chose the Tactical Sporter model because I am tall and this model has the longest stock. I also hear that this model has less recoil due to some springiness in the stock.  
If I had known about steps 3-6 I could have saved a myself lot of headache. If you're thinking of buying one, read step one, then do a lot of research. Whatever version you decide on you will at least be well informed. I love my D-Technik VZ58 and plan to keep it forever. Please post your tips so we can help out some new owners.

[rocinante]

1) OK. I am happy with both my other made vzs.

2) absolutely. not only do you end up with a clean rifle you actually learn how it works.

3) So far I have had zero problems with hollow points in either of my rifles.

4,5) good advise

6) I think there are a few threads where folks have had a problem with that drag. Something about occasionally not resetting the trigger? I don't have it but am of the general  philosophy if it aint a problem it aint a problem.

7) Yep the military fixed and folder are short. I have folders and it drove me nuts that as a lefty my nose was right on the hinge. I added a soviet style grenade recoil pad to give me some extra length. Recoil is not a problem with these rifles or AKs. I definitely like pads on my 12 gauges, 8mm and 30.06 boom sticks.

Totally agree these rifles are keepers. I have more than once looked at my converted saiga and thought it just doesn't shine next to the czechs.

[Laneman]

Two more things I just remembered:

1) You must pull the trigger to release spring pressure before removing the rear cover.
2) My FFL took the floor plate off my magazine for me and wiped off all the excess cosmoline from the spring with a dry paper towel. It was dripping and would have probably gotten all over the ammo and into the action of the gun.

[Czech Pivo]

In the for what it's worth department I bought a VZ2008, dare I say it, a Century Arms gun and...  It is perfect in almost every way!!  I admit I am saving my ashtray change for a true Vz58 from Czech Point, but wow, this CAI gun is wonderful.  I do not look at Century as a good quality arms manufacture, but as many have stated they hit the nail on the head with this one.  I have put about 1200 rounds through it with only ONE problem.  Shell failed to eject all the way only once.  Have used Silver Bear hollow point most of the time and recently have been using Herter's which is Cabela's house brand.  I have heard that it is manufactured by Bear Ammo, but have not been able to prove that.  At any rate this gun just eats any ammo fed to it, and is surprisingly accurate, something I was not expecting. I do a lot of moving target shooting (onions thrown into our creek and floating w/the current). Cleaning this gun is a breeze and rather fun.  Only down sides I see are this gun gets HOT and I need a butt pad for the folding stock.  Other than that it is one of the best gun purchases I have made.  Like I said I am saving for a true Czech Point version, and after that I might just buy another CAI VZ2008 just for the cheap price, so I can let friends use it when we are out shooting. Just my two cents.  Either way and no matter the manufacture this is a GREAT gun and one EVERY CZ fan should have.   

[Bennybone]

I can understand that you are trying to provide information for new and/or prospective owners, and I hope it helps those folks.

BUT

with regard to your opinion to "never use hollow point ammo" I strongly urge users to base their application of the rifle on making an ammo decision.

I hunt with my rifle and I would never use full metal jacket on any medium to large animal.  The ammo pencils through the body resulting in the animal running for long distances before dying and ultimately lost quarry.  Hollow point and soft point ammunition is designed to expand and rupture the body and nearby organs thus incapactiating the game upon impact or shortly thereafter.

If I am plinking or target shooting then I use full metal jacket as it is usually cheaper and more readily available.

My reason for speaking up is that I don't want a stigma to exist for this fine weapons platform that isn't valid.  I.e. that the gun can't cycle HP or that it FTF or FTE based on this ammo.

Thx and welcome to the forum,

BB

[armoredman]

My vz-58 will gladly cycle Wolf HP ammo, but the imported Hp is not designed to expand any more than the full metal jacket imported stuff. If you wish to use your rifle for hunting, use soft point ammo or reloads. All of my reloads for use other than target shooting uses the Hornady 123 grain soft point bullet. that's just my reccomendation, primarily because the original rifle was not designed to feed anything but ball ammo. Czechpoint will help you get a Czechpoint gun to run with HP, but if you use SP you should be happy.

   And these guns are just so much fun to shoot!

[Bennybone]

@ Armored Man

The Hollows I use for hunting are exclusively the 124gr from the Ulyansok (Saspan 8m3) plant.  They are designed to expand more than an FMJ.

Any and all other hollow points are inferior to this round.

Agreed that soft points and ballastic tips are preferred if the 124gr isn't available.

Followed by another gun, NOT FMJ 

[josey88]

I have the Czechpoint D-Technik VZ-58 and I am happy to say that I never had any kind of problems whatsoever  with HPs or not . I have been using mostly HPs from Silver Bear with no issues.  I also have upgraded mine with an israeli folder stock and installed the Troy forearm which solved the heating problem completely . This thing is a tack driver ... I mounted an PK-23 red dot and it works great . This is a very reliable , light weight , accurate firearm and a dream to shoot.  I am very happy with it and glad I bought it. Here are some pics of it :

[marko16]

I dremeled the feed ramp a little to allow easier loading.  My surplus barrel had a deeper lip, so I copied that.

[Laneman]

Another tip I read elsewhere is for first time use of a new semi-auto rifle. After cleaning, do a functional check. With weapon cleared of ammo and pointed safely, cycle the action. Take safety off, then, pull and hold the trigger. While still holding trigger, pull bolt to rear again, then close the bolt. Now release the trigger. There should be an audible click as the trigger mechanism resets. This will verify that the action has been properly assembled after cleaning. When shooting for first time, load only one bullet then fire. Clean the rifle again, as some shavings will get knocked loose. Then load two rounds and fire. In the unlikely case that it goes full auto there will only be two rounds loaded. Once these tests are done just enjoy the rifle. My 58 took about 40 rounds to settle in and keeps getting better as I use it. 

[SoCalCZ]

My two cents for anyone using the polymer handguards: Most israeli parts DONT come with instructions.
1. to remove old set, the bottom is pretty self explanatory, drift pin out and replace with new, the top is a pain in the nether regions.
First remove from gun, scratch head..and grip the front(between the two guides that slide onto the gas block) with channel locks, grab handguard and twist hard. it will release and rotate 180 degrees and come out. then reverse the procedure to put the new one on. there is a clip(found on the polymer sporter, not sure about the wood furniture version) that does NOT need to be put back in. Before you install the upper, decide wether to use the two side rails. I did WANT to and had to take back apart as you can only screw them in from the inside. If you are mounting an optic, tap a shallow screw through the upper handguard and into the piston cover(SHALLOW NOW). This is to ensure that the rail does not twist on the piston cover. When i first ran my rifle with an optic i was down and right and no amount of adjustment would cure it. then i started looking at the lines of the rail and noticed they were actually not str8 but almost a wave from front to back on the piston cover, a little truing up and some SHALLOW screws front and back solved the prob. remember the handgaurd is Plastic and has "give" in it. I LOVE MY RIFLE, You will too.