CZ-452 Military Trainer?

M

Model12Win

Moderator
Well howdy yall!

I have been wanting to get a .22 rifle for some time now. Right now, my only .22 is an NAA mini revolver. Needless to say, it isn't very good for target shooting or squirrel hunting!! :eek: :D

All of the rifles I own have iron sights on them. I'm an "iron sights" kind of guy. With that said, I began a search to find a quality .22 rifle with good iron sights, specifically a bolt action or single shot variety. I am also into "military" style guns, so anything with the word "military" in it perks up my ears.

So I found out CZ makes a gun called the CZ-452 "military trainer" which is a .22 bolt action with iron sights on it:

cz_452_special_military_training_rifle.png


Very sharp looking gun. I have read great reports on CZ guns. I have two questions about these rifles though:

1. Are these actually used as military trainers in any country?

2. Are these any good for someone who wants an iron-sights .22 range/plinking/target rifle?

And input would be tremendously appreciated guys. Thanks so much!! :)
 
CZ

I only have five CZs....a CZ452FS.22.....CZ 452 Varmint..22.....Cz 455 Lux..22....CZ 527FS...223....CZ 527 Carbine..223.....so I may be a bit biased....but many will be along shortly to praise the CZ line of firearms....I will not part with mine...

the trainer...is a superb 22 rifle....the trigger is adjustable..the tangent sight works....but many including myself...will add a receiver peep sight....and CZ are not as picky about which brand of 22 you use. Mine will shoot one hole groups if I do my part..
 
Hurry and purchase one.

1. Are these actually used as military trainers in any country?
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I wondered that myself,,,
I asked around on several other forums,,,
No one knew of any military who uses them for training.

I believe the military trainer designation comes from the style of rear sight,,,
More of an homage to rifles like the WZ-48, DSM-34, and the like.

2. Are these any good for someone who wants an iron-sights .22 range/plinking/target rifle?
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Mine is the easiest of all 12 of my .22 rifles to hit with,,,
Perhaps it's the great sights on the long barrel,,,
Perhaps it's simply good quality of build,,,
More likely it's a combination of both.

In my not-so-humble opinion,,,
There's no finer iron sighted "range/plinking/target rifle" out there.

If you haven't purchased one as yet,,,
Do not hesitate as they are getting scarce.

Aarond

.
 
Aarond tells it like it is....the 452s are being phased out ...for the CZ 455....which will have exchangeable barrels.....17...22...22mag
 
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I have one of those Military type CZ. There isn't a better deal out there for a more accurate rifle for the $$$. I don't do well with the mid barrel sights so I scoped mine and it is scary accurate.
As to the adjustable trigger....I'm not entirely impressed with it but it will do the job.
My other .22 is a US military Springfield model 1922 and those have the Lyman 48 peep sight. Another fine .22 but expensive!!!! and haven't been made since the 30's.
 
The 452 Trainer was my first bolt action .22 and it is a dandy. I did not realize just how good it was until I started running some good ammo thru it. I then had mine bedded and a trigger job done on it. I put a picatinney rail on it and some good glass and it will shoot with my Annie MPR64 at 50 yards with just about any standard velocity ammo you run thru it. It really IS that good. The stock sights are very good. The scope I am using at the present time is a Nikon P22.
 
I don't know about the sights other than they are the best looking sans a peep that I have seen.

My eyes will only handle a Model of 1917 peep sighted rifle, anything else is vague and fuzzy.

I put a spare Leup0oold rimfire scope on mine first thing.

As noted by Supercub99 the trigger leaves something to be desired (like better) not awful, just not great and the rifle should have a great trigger as its more than accurate enough to benefit from it. It would be sweet if someone offered and after market trigger for it (a good one of course)

It pretty well shoots all ammo decently, some ammo really well.

I always wanted a good 22 and this more than satisfies that desire and at least at the time the price was reasonable. I would call it the best bang for the 22 buck. You can get better ones but only at a much higher price.

They are out of production not only officially but in fact. You can pick them up new, but the price has gone up a fair amount.

For a while they were out of production but still readily availble new, not so now.
 
I have a 452 Military Trainer and it is a tack driver-one of the best buys in the rmfire market, if you can find one anymore. As said already, lovely irn sights.
 
I have a few CZ452s, but not the military trainer. If I were limited to one rimfire rifle, my choice would, in fact, be the military trainer. Add a scope with QR rings, and a good 1907 sling, and you've got the near-perfect all-arounder. As mentioned, the trigger can often use a little work, but it's easily tuned. And as a bonus, BRNO makes front & rear aperture sights for it (and the Lux models) as well.
 
to distinguish it from the CZ 452 Lux...only difference is the wood used in the stock
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I think there is another difference. The stock on the trainer version has a noticeable hump to raise the shooters eyes to iron-sight level. I don't see that in the Lux.
 
The "military trainer" appellation is due to the fact that there was a run of these rifles produced (several hundred, as I understand) on contract for the South African Army, some years ago. These were intended as primary training rifles, to train recruits with no firearms experience, to shoot a rifle. South Africa subsequently backed out of the contract, before the rifles were delivered. So, CZ sold them (or most of them) in the US market. The model currently sold as a "military trainer" is labeled as such because of that origin, not because it is currently in use by any particular military.

I have a shooting buddy (a big CZ enthusiast) who has one of the original military contract 452's. It's a great rifle, but not really any better than the Ultra Lux model. Doyle is correct that the stock is slightly different, with a pronounced check rest designed specifically for iron sight use.
 
1. Don't know.

2. Yes, it is a superb rifle for that. I have one and it's my favorite gun (.22 shortage not withstanding).

There are a few new ones still out there but as I understand it the 452 is no longer being made. The 455 has replaced it and while that rifle gets good reviews, the ”improvements" CZ made were primarily for ease of manufacture and cutting costs. The 452 is a rifle your grandkids will enjoy, provided you don't wear the barrel out yourself.
 
The rifle is a micro-mauser action and the rifle does have the same form as a military mauser (other than the removable magazine) but I don't know if any countries actively use them for training.

I got mine on my 18th birthday (first gun I filled the forms out for myself) and I've been very happy with it. I shot it with iron sights for a long time but my eyes are not great (double astigmatism). I have a Nikon 2-7X scope on there now with high-rise rings that allow me to still see through the iron sights on the 50 and 100m settings. Also put a Boyd's blue sporter stock on there but still have the original.

My personal best group with common ammo (believe it may have been Mini-mags) was between 1/2" and 5/8" at 50 yards. Many out there are doing better. I never claimed to be a great marksman, only competent :D. I took it out to the range the other day with a friend and, using the scope, we were hanging clay targets at 100 yards from clothespins and shooting the clothespins off without breaking the clays.

A classmate of mine was on a rimfire shooting team in his home state and tells me the team rifles were comprised of CZ and Anschutz
 
Some people at RFC posted claims CZ may keep the 452 trainer in production for a while. I wouldn't bet on that though. It just doesn't make much sense to me. Best to get one now.
 
@dakota.potts
Senior Member

Join Date: February 25, 2013
Location: Greenwood, South Carolina
Posts: 2,098

The rifle is a micro-mauser action and the rifle does have the same form as a military mauser (other than the removable magazine) but I don't know if any countries actively use them for training.
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I think you're confusing the 527 for the 452. The Micro Mauser is a CRF design (per the original). The 452 is nothing like it. It has two extractors for a start and locks only at the back on the handle, like an Enfield.
-SS-
 
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