# Anyone own a CZ-52? Or know anything about them?



## simi-steading (Sep 27, 2012)

I've recently been looking at this gun, and seem to really have this thing for them, as far as looks go. they also seem to be a really interesting design to me... 

Does anyone own one of these? What can you tell me about them if you do that you like or dislike about them?

How hard are they to find, and what kind of price should you expect to pay for a numbers matching in decent condition?

I see there are a couple on Gunbroker at around $200 right now, but wondering how much higher they will sell for.. 

How hard is it to get ammo for them? Well.. would it normally be if it wasn't for the current ammo stupidity...


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## simi-steading (Sep 27, 2012)

For reference, here's a picture of one... This one has the stock original plastic grips... You can find them with some really nice looking wood ones too..


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

they lacked some of the modern firing pin block , but so do most all guns from early cold war days.

Radiofish , used to talk about liking his 

they are a hot , light weight cartridge , and the biggest problem i see with them is ammo availability in anything besides fmj , or at any local store 

they are a perpetrator by hand gun standards , at 1600fps that 7.62mm bullet is a lot like being hit by a 30carbine at 100 yards 

the cartridge was used in sub machine guns also 

as a military round where they are limited to fmj ammo , it allows carrying a lot of ammo at just 85gr each 

but as a man stopper , not sure , i would expect it to go thru like and electric drill making over penetration an issue

if you could get a 85gr soft point i think it might change that , but it is big and heavy for it's size being all steel


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## simi-steading (Sep 27, 2012)

I was looking at this more as a collectible and plinking toy.. not for a carry gun... It just seems to have a lot of eye appeal to me, plus that round really got my attention... Like you said, a really hot round to be coming out of a semi-auto.. 

I got to talking to a guy at work after I posted this, and come to find out he's got two of them and he says he really likes his.. .Said they are a little more accurate than you'd expect out of an old war relic... He also said you can pick up a case of ammo for a couple hundred, but that was also when you could find ,22's

He said what people don't like is the blow back system and the way it unlocks to eject the empty and strip the next round, but said he's never had an issue with it, and doesn't notice it when shooting... Said it's a lot of fun to shoot... 

I think I'm going to keep my eye open for one.. The guy I work with said $300 is a fair decent price on them... I don't think that's bad at all for a decent range gun... Being as I really do prefer a 1911, I would like to have another full sized heavy steel gun... I'm not a fan of any of the new plastic blocky looking guns.. This thing has style with sweet curves and cool lines.. kinda like a sports car...


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## simi-steading (Sep 27, 2012)

For anyone reading this that doesn't know what these are, here's a picture.. This one has been spruced up though, and wood grips have replaced the original plastic grips.. 










Here's one stock, and what it shoots..


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## T-Bone 369 (Jan 18, 2007)

They are heck for stout shooters. It's not a blowback system but has a roller block lock-up like the G-3 has. I reload for it but have not for while and can not remember the loadout I like. Sierra makes an 85 grain lead round nose pills that are made just for the 7.62-25 and Starline makes brass. You have to reload it like any bottle neck case which is a bit of a pain but worth the effort. There are also drop in 9mm barrels made for them but it's like going from a Corvette to a Yugo (pun intended). IIRC the firing pin is a bit sensitive to dry firing but replacements are available. The only thing I do not care for is the bottom release for the magazine but that's not a real big gripe. I do not know what current prices are like - I thing I gave $90 years ago when they first started to be imported - how times have changed.


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## simi-steading (Sep 27, 2012)

I do have to agree, the mag release can't get any more basic and simple.. The one thing I noticed that seemed really cheap... well, that and the spring clip to hold on the grips too


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

a 38 super or 9x23 win would be an interesting round for it if they would make that drop in barrel for that

as for the mag release , that's a Euro thing , they just think differently than we do or did think differently it works , it is simple , and i don't think they think about pistols the same way we do

or maybe their need is different , how many years did they issue police in Eu counties with 380 equivalents , while we were going 38spl , 357, 9mm , 45, 40 always looking for a faster stop , maybe their criminals stop easier 

the original glock 17 didn't have a drop free mag , Austria issued the gun with 2 magazines , and the officer needed to hold on to those 

drop free mags and tactical reloads seems to be an American thing , I am guessing they don't run into an empty gun very often or you would think they would have made it drop free


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## TripleD (Feb 12, 2011)

I bought one last year for $500 but it came with 2000 rds of ammo. It shoots well. I knew I would never shoot all that ammo thru it so I bought a pps-43c. It came with 4 35 round mags. Now thats fun shooting !!


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## simi-steading (Sep 27, 2012)

hhhhmm.. that pps seems kind of interesting, but crude... If I was going to go with a pistol like that, I think I'd much rather go with a Draco since I've already got lots of 7.62x39, and since parts would be a lot more common.

I've already let me wife know I'm going to start looking around for one of these 52's... She said it was a nice looking gun...


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## diamondtim (Jun 10, 2005)

Semi-steading,

The CZ-52 was a Czech military pistol with design features taken from a Walther and chambered for the 7.62x25 round from the Soviet Tokarev TT-33 (their first semi-automatic pistol).

I almost bought one for $99, but a friend picked it up first and bought it. The opportunity and money have not met since (actually, other pistols came between us).

Good luck, they are neat handguns.


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## simi-steading (Sep 27, 2012)

Well.. I still haven't found me a CZ-52, but I did stumble on a CZ-82 today and picked it up... It is what they replaced the 52 with. Man do I like this thing... DA/SA is pretty cool, and being left handed I love the ambidextrous safety and mag release, along with my thumb fitting correctly on the grip.. 

The pull is kinda long though, but the break on it is one of the finest I've ever felt on a MILSUP gun.. I'm also amazed at how smooth it is with DA..

The finish on it is a little chipped up, so I'll probably consider refinishing it, and I'd like to get some nice wood grips for it... The wear on the actual parts is minimal and the barrel looks nice and shiny... 

A wild barrel though. At first I thought it was shot out, but it's a polygonal barrel so no wonder why I couldn't see the lands and grooves at first.. LOL.. 

I had to read up before I figured it out... I was about to not buy it because of that. Once I found that out, and found out the barrel is chromed, then I knew what to look for and realized it's in sweet shape... It wasn't making sense to me though because all the rest of the parts didn't have enough wear to point to a worn out barrel.. 

This will make me a really nice CCW... I can't wait to get out and shoot it this next weekend..
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