CZ82 Newbie Questions

[tpelle]

Essentially there really is no such thing as a "CZ82".  The pistol so known was originally known as the "Vz82", with "Vz" being an abbreviation for "Vzor", which translates to "model".  the Vz82 was designed for the Czech military and chambered in the standard Warsaw Pact 9X17 cartridge - the 9mm Makarov.  At the same time, CZ thought that there would be a market for a "civilian" version for police and for private sales, but as civilians were not permitted to have weapons in military chambering, they chambered the civilian versions in .32ACP and .380ACP.

Eventually the Czech military discontinued use of the 9x17 cartridge, so the guns were declared surplus.  CZ continued to produce them, however, and began labeling the all as CZ82s.  At least that is what I think from what I've read.

Since the Vz82 is a former military arm, that is what makes it eligible for C&R status, I believe.

[MP2 Guy]

The CZ 82 (vz. 82) was an issued military arm (hence some Cold War historical significance) while the CZ 83 was not. So a museum curator was able to petition the the ATF to add it to the C & R eligible list.

[Pier23]

Ahhh...fascinating history, thanks.

I KNEW MY 82 was studlier than the 83 wannabees, just didnt know why...

With that history then, do the 82s command a higher price than the 83s, or doesn't it make any difference now?

[MP2 Guy]

Depends on the weapon and customer.  All things being equal the vz.82 (CZ82) is generally more expensive than a CZ 83 in 9mm kurz (.380 ACP).  But then you have the CZ 83 in 7.65 Browning (.32 ACP) which are rare and, from what it sounds like, the even rarer CZ 83 in 9mm Makarov which command higher prices.  Condition is also a very important factor some some folks.

[Pier23]

Well, <irk> it all started with the 52, now I have an 82, and all I originally wanted was a 75... Looks like CZs are gonna plague me for a while.

Odd numbering too...why go from 5x to 8x then back to 7x??

[eastman]

Well, <irk> it all started with the 52, now I have an 82, and all I originally wanted was a 75... Looks like CZs are gonna plague me for a while.

Odd numbering too...why go from 5x to 8x then back to 7x??

They didn't.

The 75 went into production in (drumroll please) ... 1975 (and therefore the 40th anniversary model CZ75 pistols released this year).

The 82 went into production in 1982

It is just that the 75s are still in active production and the 82/83 models are not.

[Pier23]

AAAHHHhhhhh... Makes perfect sense, thank you!

Pity the 8 series stopped production, but guess I am not the first person to mention this..

[il.bill]

According to the Wikipedia page:
The vz. 82 was added to the US government's "Curio and Relic" list with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (BATFE) in February 2007, after an individual wrote a letter to the ATF attaching a letter from a federal museum curator who stated that the vz. 82 had "museum interest" as a curio and relic.

Yeah, I saw fhat...didn't make sense to me how two pistols, essentially identical, and one is C&R and the other isn't...

The CZ82 was the Czech military pistol and the CZ83 was the commercial model for export sales.  The "museum interest" would come from the fact that the CZ82 (or more correctly, the Vz.82) was a cold war era military pistol from an eastern European country that no longer exists.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Czechoslovakia

[il.bill]

Essentially there really is no such thing as a "CZ82".  The pistol so known was originally known as the "Vz82", with "Vz" being an abbreviation for "Vzor", which translates to "model".  the Vz82 was designed for the Czech military and chambered in the standard Warsaw Pact 9X17 cartridge - the 9mm Makarov.  At the same time, CZ thought that there would be a market for a "civilian" version for police and for private sales, but as civilians were not permitted to have weapons in military chambering, they chambered the civilian versions in .32ACP and .380ACP.

Eventually the Czech military discontinued use of the 9x17 cartridge, so the guns were declared surplus.  CZ continued to produce them, however, and began labeling the all as CZ82s.  At least that is what I think from what I've read.

Since the Vz82 is a former military arm, that is what makes it eligible for C&R status, I believe.

Actually, the Makarov cartridge is 9x18mm - the 9x17mm is the Browning Short/Court/Kurtz, aka .380 ACP.