Hi my oldest gets out of the Army (he's been in the Rangers for the past three years), recently got reassigned to Fort Carson to be closer to his family for his last 8 months of enlistment. I promised him a 375 H&H when he gets out. He's left handed which is the hard part, but he wants a CZ 550 with a synthetic stock which makes it easier. He also wants a mercury recoil reducer in it and a Pachmeyer Declerator pad on it which is easy since I'll have Jason and Harlan at the CZ Custom Shop put it together for me. So I have osome questions.

Do you crossbolt a 375 H&H in a synthetic stock?

He wants it CeraKoted so I'll either have it done by Jason and Harlan or by Kevin Weaver back home. Anyone have any opinions on that?

Finally he plans to put one of the Red Dot sights that he's used to on it. I have no idea which ones are recoil resistant and how to mount one.

Thanks!

Chuck

Awesome gift. The CZ550 is a rather hefty rifle to begin with. The mercury recoil reducer might be overkill.

The Aimpoint (brand he would know) Micro has been put to good use on quite a few big bores. The Aimpoint 9000L and H30/H34 are options that might work better with the CZ intergral mounts. Aimpoints seem to be recoil proof. The CZ Custom Shop should be able to direct you to the most appropriate QD mounts.

Cerakote-It only goes on the outside. Does a great job protecting the exterior but a neglected bore is still susceptable to corrosion.

Look forward to seeing the finished rifle.

Thanks Hizzie

Great gift for a son! I am sure he will enjoy it. I thought the mercury reciol reducer will a liability as it will change the balance & handling characteristics of the rifle. A 375 scoped at 9.5 lbs is not bad to shoot. It would be very similar to my 9 lbs 9.3X62. The balance of the rifle makes it easier to shoot than my 9.5X57 MS, (which is a low pressure cartridge pushing a smaller bullet at 200 fps less!)

Good luck.

Hi Nakihunter, I had a CZ in 375 H&H and found the balance point to be too far foward, so did my two sons. I had it rebarreled to 500 Jeffery and had another reducer put in (cause I'm a wuss) and the balance is just right for me now. I think they use the same barrel contour for the 375 H&H that they use for the 458 Lott which makes the 375 barrel a lot heavier. I had Harlan put in a mercury recoil reducer in and it really helped with the balance point. I don't know how much lighter the Kevlar stock is than the wooden one either.

AHR is a CZ dealer. Why don't you get one through Wayne. He can do it up exactly as your son wants all in house and you'll know its done right.

Wayne worked on my CZ in 500 Jeffery and did a great job. That's definitely an idea.

I own a lefty CZ 375 and it is my favorite .375 bore to date. Previous lefty rifles include a Rem 375 H&H, Win 375 H&H, and a 375 Ruger. Still own the Ruger and it gets carried in bad weather as it is SS and syn.

IMO no cross bolts are needed with the syn stock. The Rem I owned only weighed 7 pounds and it was in a syn stock and easily fired 1,500 rounds or so with no ill effects. Never owned a cerakote so can't comment on that.

My favorite "red dot" sight has become the Ultradot. Life time warranty and never had to return one yet.

If I were having a rifle built by the CZ custom shop I would have the barrel shortened to 22 inches and just go with a one leaf rear sight

Thanks Snowwolfe, my son concurs, 22" barrel it is.

Chuck375 thanks to your son for his service.
As previously mentioned no cross bolt needed for the ..375H&H. M.P.I. stocks in Oregon will install them if needed they also have a gunsmithing shop inhouse that will custom fit for you the entire barreled action. I love shooting guns but hate cleaning them even though I regularly do it I don't thrive on it if I can use anything that will make maintenance easier and shorter I do it and that what cerakote provides. The coating is indestuctible for what is availabe today it's highly weather and wear resistant and will not scratch off easily as teflon. You can have it in many colors. I have used the following two companies for cerakoting and highly recommend them. Fit for duty ph.913-764-7707 president of the company is Doug Burche and Falcon gun finishing ph.406-892-2507 contact Jeff Sternad in Columbia Falls Mt. I have used Jeff to cerakote my barreled action and send it two miles away to Lonewolf stocks to have one of their kevlar stocks installed, I also highly recommend them. Since AHR is in Mt. they all can be done in the same state, it may save you some time and money on shipping.
Best Regards
Charles

Thanks Charles! Appreciate it!

The EOTech, which are in wide use with spec ops, will mount easily to a weaver adapter and will have no issues with recoil. I've used mine mostly on my 500S&W revolver, including for Cape Buffalo.

Recently I mounted a Burris FireFly on my RSM .458Lott. It is smaller/lighter than the EOTech and worked on my recent Ele without any issues. There are now similar sights available with a better battery replacement design.

Thanks Mike!

Well, I spent too much money on my kids as usual. The LH CZ 550 is only available as a complete rifle ($1800). Then when you figure in the cost to get an MPI synthetic stock fitted and my son really wanted a stainless barrel, it didn't make sense. So I splurged and bought a barely used Left Handed Stainless Model 70 Classic, don't even ask how much ...

I could've bought Rodney's for $1200 if he was right handed lol ... Oh well, he's got the GI bill so in the long run that's a huge savings, I definitely will not be telling the wife how much this cost ...

We'll definitely look at the EoTechs and definitely will get the rifle CeraKoted as well.

Thanks all for your help, if only I had sent him to Catholic School the nuns would've cured him of being left handed like they did me ...



Chuck

Congratulations your options for stocking a Winchester classic is a lot easier. D'arcy Echols has McMillan making stocks to his specifications called the legend I'd try one of those stocks before anything else. I only cerakote my chrome moly barreled actions, the stainless steel I leave alone save the money and go hunting with him.
Charles

Thanks Charles, it already has a synthetic stock so I'm going to get it CeraKoted for him. He may be spending a few years in Alaska down the road, he's expressed an interest. Here's a picture ...

Definitly a beautifull rifle they are hard to come by, with a proven design and built for function. Congratulations again.
Charles

Thanks Charles, and thank you RIP for the advice PM'd to me.

Chuck, I have that exact same rifle but in Right Hand version. I've never done any work on it; it's still right out of the box. It feeds smooth as butter and has never given the slightest hiccup. It has taken Brown Bear to Cape Buffalo to the little antelope's in Africa and lots of stuff in between.

I like CZ as well but I think you made a very wise decision to go with the M-70. Your son will enjoy that rifle long into the future.

Please tell your son I said thanks for the service!

Thanks Todd I will! I think he'll love the rifle.