Ceska · Rifle
Vz. 52
Gas-operated · 7.62x45mm vz. 52 · introduced 1952
Also known as CZ 502, Sa vz. 52, M52
About the Vz. 52
The Vz. 52 is a Czechoslovak gas-operated, tilting-bolt self-loading rifle adopted in 1952 as the standard service rifle of the Czechoslovak People's Army. Chambered for the unique 7.62x45mm Czech intermediate cartridge, it feeds from a 10-round detachable box magazine and is distinguished by a permanently attached folding knife bayonet that stows into a recess on the right side of the wooden stock. Designed by Jan and Jaroslav Kratochvil, it was powered by an annular short-stroke gas piston encircling the barrel.
The Vz. 52 grew from a postwar CZ Strakonice prototype by brothers Jan and Jaroslav Kratochvil, paired with a new intermediate cartridge inspired by the German 7.92x33mm Kurz. Its short independent service life ended when the Soviet Union pressured Czechoslovakia to adopt the standard 7.62x39mm cartridge, forcing the rifle's conversion and rapid replacement.
Vz. 52 specifications
General
- Type
- Rifle
- Action
- Gas-operated
- Firing mechanism
- Hammer-fired
- Trigger
- Single action
- Calibres
- 7.62x45mm vz. 52, 7.62x39mm
- Magazine capacity
- 10 rounds
- Magazine
- Detachable box magazine
Dimensions
- Barrel length
- 520 mm (20.5 in)
- Overall length
- 1005 mm (39.6 in)
- Weight (empty)
- 4.14 kg (9.13 lb)
Barrel
- Rifling twist
- 1:11 in (280 mm)
- Rifling
- Right hand
- Grooves
- 4
Materials
- Barrel
- Steel
- Receiver / frame
- Steel
- Stock
- Wood
- Finish
- blued
Performance
- Muzzle velocity (typical)
- 744 m/s (2441 fps)
- Muzzle energy (typical)
- 2455 J (1811 ft·lb)
- Effective range
- 400 m
History
- Introduced
- 1952
- Discontinued
- 1959
- Production status
- Discontinued
- Country of origin
- CZ
- Designer
- Jan and Jaroslav Kratochvil
Available calibres
Features
- Integral folding bayonet
- Tilting bolt lock
- Annular short stroke gas piston
- Wooden stock
- Fixed open sights
Safety
- Manual safety
Under Warsaw Pact standardization pressure from the Soviet Union, the rifle was later rechambered for the Soviet 7.62x39mm M43 cartridge and redesignated the Vz. 52/57. It was quickly superseded in Czechoslovak service by the Vz. 58 selective-fire rifle adopted in 1959.
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