Petrol & Powder
Well-Known Member
There is nothing spectacular about this model 457 Lux. It is about as plain vanilla as a bolt action 22 gets. Iron sights, tapered barrel, 5 round magazine, matte finish; nothing to write home about. However, the details, in my opinion, add up to a sum greater than all its parts.
The finish on the walnut stock isn’t spectacular, but it is very nice for a gun in this class. They got all the dimensions perfect. A thin fore end and sleek contours throughout. The inletting of the stock was well executed with the barrel fully free floated in the barrel channel. There is a small steel block that keys the stock and receiver together at the rear of the receiver. I suppose this is a recoil lug? I’m not sure why that’s needed on a .22 rimfire but does show some attention to detail. There is checkering at the wrist and on the sides of the fore end. I’m sure the checkering is not hand cut but it is well made. The butt is covered by a rubber pad that appears to be glued on. I don’t know why a .22 rimfire needs a recoil pad and that feature may prove to be a flaw with the passage of time. I wish they had used a metal butt plate attached with screws, but it is small complaint.
The trigger is fully adjustable for weight, over-travel, and engagement but it came out of the box nearly perfect with no adjustment needed. The trigger assembly incorporates the safety with a simple forward for fire /back for safe, lever on the right side of the receiver. The bolt can be operated with the safety engaged or disengaged. The trigger guard is metal. The action is held in the stock with two Torx head screws. There is some plastic in the gun (like the magazine well and magazine) but most of the parts are metal. This amount of high-quality materials is unusual for a .22 rifle in this class.
The barrel is attached to the receiver with a pair of set screws. I wouldn’t say the barrel is meant to be easily removable, but I would say that it could be removed if needed. Speaking of the receiver, it is steel, nicely machined and includes an integral 11 mm rail for scope rings. There is a gas port drilled in the right side of the receiver that intersects with the cut out for the right extractor. I can’t imagine that a ruptured case on a 22 LR cartridge would require such a safety feature, but it’s there. The interior finish of the receiver is outstanding. The bolt is equally as well made and only requires 60 degrees of rotation to unlock. The bolt is equipped with a cocking indicator and dual extractors. The serial number is applied to the receiver, barrel and bolt. Locking is via the root of the bolt handle, simple and effective.
There is a dedicated, spring loaded, bolt release on the left side of the receiver. This is a nice, high-quality feature. Because the sear is not used to retain the bolt, the sear is not subjected to excessive wear.
The supplied 5 round magazine is plastic, but the older metal magazines are compatible and interchangeable. I hate to say it, but a plastic magazine body may be a plus. It doesn’t require lubrication and therefore there’s no oil to attract and hold dirt. And the magazine body cannot rust. The 5 round magazine protrudes slightly from the bottom of the stock with just enough of the base plate exposed to allow for easy removal without being in the way. (a feature some other rifle makers could stand to learn). The magazine release is a simple pivoting catch. It is unobtrusive and secure. The bottom metal (which cleverly tabs into the trigger guard) and magazine well, are modular components. It appears these parts can be swapped out at the factory to accommodate different chamberings on the same platform.
The barrel on the Lux model is tapered from the receiver to the muzzle and is approximately 24.5” long. The barrel is roughly ½” diameter at the muzzle and the muzzle is counter-bored to protect the rifling. This finish is not polished but rather a subdued matte, very dark grey, almost black.
The Lux model is equipped with iron sights. The front sight is set on a ramp and has a hood. The hood is removable. The front blade has fine adjustments for elevation via two, 1.5 mm Allen head set screws. The rear sight is mounted on the barrel, just forward of the receiver and has a square notch blade, with a windage adjustment screw. The rear sight is optimistically graduated out to 200 meters (yards?) The rear sight base is attached to the barrel via two screws. The upper portion of the rear sight is removable without tools. With young eyes I’m certain the supplied sights would be more than adequate, but I installed a scope on this rifle. An aperture sight could be installed on the rail and that would be my choice if I didn’t go with a scope.
CZ offers the 457 in the “American” model that has a higher comb stock and no iron sights. I almost went with that model but wanted the ability to have iron sights as a back-up.
The little bit of shooting I’ve done appeared very promising. In my opinion, CZ has produced another solid winner.
The finish on the walnut stock isn’t spectacular, but it is very nice for a gun in this class. They got all the dimensions perfect. A thin fore end and sleek contours throughout. The inletting of the stock was well executed with the barrel fully free floated in the barrel channel. There is a small steel block that keys the stock and receiver together at the rear of the receiver. I suppose this is a recoil lug? I’m not sure why that’s needed on a .22 rimfire but does show some attention to detail. There is checkering at the wrist and on the sides of the fore end. I’m sure the checkering is not hand cut but it is well made. The butt is covered by a rubber pad that appears to be glued on. I don’t know why a .22 rimfire needs a recoil pad and that feature may prove to be a flaw with the passage of time. I wish they had used a metal butt plate attached with screws, but it is small complaint.
The trigger is fully adjustable for weight, over-travel, and engagement but it came out of the box nearly perfect with no adjustment needed. The trigger assembly incorporates the safety with a simple forward for fire /back for safe, lever on the right side of the receiver. The bolt can be operated with the safety engaged or disengaged. The trigger guard is metal. The action is held in the stock with two Torx head screws. There is some plastic in the gun (like the magazine well and magazine) but most of the parts are metal. This amount of high-quality materials is unusual for a .22 rifle in this class.
The barrel is attached to the receiver with a pair of set screws. I wouldn’t say the barrel is meant to be easily removable, but I would say that it could be removed if needed. Speaking of the receiver, it is steel, nicely machined and includes an integral 11 mm rail for scope rings. There is a gas port drilled in the right side of the receiver that intersects with the cut out for the right extractor. I can’t imagine that a ruptured case on a 22 LR cartridge would require such a safety feature, but it’s there. The interior finish of the receiver is outstanding. The bolt is equally as well made and only requires 60 degrees of rotation to unlock. The bolt is equipped with a cocking indicator and dual extractors. The serial number is applied to the receiver, barrel and bolt. Locking is via the root of the bolt handle, simple and effective.
There is a dedicated, spring loaded, bolt release on the left side of the receiver. This is a nice, high-quality feature. Because the sear is not used to retain the bolt, the sear is not subjected to excessive wear.
The supplied 5 round magazine is plastic, but the older metal magazines are compatible and interchangeable. I hate to say it, but a plastic magazine body may be a plus. It doesn’t require lubrication and therefore there’s no oil to attract and hold dirt. And the magazine body cannot rust. The 5 round magazine protrudes slightly from the bottom of the stock with just enough of the base plate exposed to allow for easy removal without being in the way. (a feature some other rifle makers could stand to learn). The magazine release is a simple pivoting catch. It is unobtrusive and secure. The bottom metal (which cleverly tabs into the trigger guard) and magazine well, are modular components. It appears these parts can be swapped out at the factory to accommodate different chamberings on the same platform.
The barrel on the Lux model is tapered from the receiver to the muzzle and is approximately 24.5” long. The barrel is roughly ½” diameter at the muzzle and the muzzle is counter-bored to protect the rifling. This finish is not polished but rather a subdued matte, very dark grey, almost black.
The Lux model is equipped with iron sights. The front sight is set on a ramp and has a hood. The hood is removable. The front blade has fine adjustments for elevation via two, 1.5 mm Allen head set screws. The rear sight is mounted on the barrel, just forward of the receiver and has a square notch blade, with a windage adjustment screw. The rear sight is optimistically graduated out to 200 meters (yards?) The rear sight base is attached to the barrel via two screws. The upper portion of the rear sight is removable without tools. With young eyes I’m certain the supplied sights would be more than adequate, but I installed a scope on this rifle. An aperture sight could be installed on the rail and that would be my choice if I didn’t go with a scope.
CZ offers the 457 in the “American” model that has a higher comb stock and no iron sights. I almost went with that model but wanted the ability to have iron sights as a back-up.
The little bit of shooting I’ve done appeared very promising. In my opinion, CZ has produced another solid winner.
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