Zbroia Kozak 330-180

Pre-charged pneumatics (PCPs) have allowed manufacturers a surprising level of freedom where airgun design is concerned. Free from the constraints of traditional spring guns, where heavy, cumbersome internal power plants are needed, manufacturers can scale things down a little, and PCPs now come in all shapes and sizes. The Bullpup layout is of course another beneficiary of this new-found flexibility, and on test here must be one of the most compact designs yet!

Zbroia hails from the Ukraine, and their intriguing range of airguns are now available to the UK via importers, Sure Shot Airguns. Under review here is the super compact Kozak 330-180, and one look at that distinctive profile reveals what is probably best described as a ‘semi-bullpup’ design.

At just over 27-inches, the Kozak really is super compact, and that is affected by positioning the action further back in the woodwork; six-inches shy of the butt. Specification wise, the 330-180 in the name relates to the barrel in mm, and the main compression cylinder in cc respectively, and this is the shorter version, with a larger 450-220 spec also available.

So, what are we getting? Well firstly, the action is regulated, so a sizeable usable shot count is on the cards. The barrel, unusually these days, is made by Zbroia themselves, there’s a barrel shroud, 2-stage adjustable trigger, side lever action, two rotary magazines, two filler probes, a fitted manometer, hardwood thumb hole stock, and an adjustable cheek-piece within it. Quite a spec sheet to get through then, so let’s get started.

Wood or black?

The hardwood thumbhole stocks are available in either traditional wood look or with a black finish, as per my test rifle. Plenty of figuring is on show through the lacquer, and close inspection also reveals Zbroia’s production process, whereby several pieces of wood are joined and bonded together, before the stock is cut out. The grip configuration looks a bit curious, with a few lumps and bumps, and less than seamless visuals. That said, I’m purely talking visuals. Shoulder the Kozak, and that pronounced off-set palm swell on the grip, and smooth, pleasantly rounded forend, all fall into place nicely.

Look to the butt, and we get that adjustable cheekpiece section. Just slacken off the screw head, move the panel to the desired height, and re-tighten. It’s a nice feature, to help with achieving perfect eye/scope alignment, and of course, given the semi- Bullpup specification here, the cheekpiece is not having to quite bridge the height of the action, as with a full-blown Bullpup layout. That said, I reckon an adjustable butt for length, would add further refinement, with simple pull-out rods, and if I’m nit-picking, a socket head as opposed to a slot-head would be preferable for the adjuster. As it stands, we are talking super compact, and on that basis, it’s all very usable.

Metalwork

All the metalwork gets what looks like a black anodised finish, and whilst this may not be as lustrous as some rivals, everything looks well engineered, and evenly finished to a good standard. The barrel runs through a central bracket, which in turn supports the front end of the Picatinny scope rail, and a short shroud contains the barrel forward of this bracket. There’s a small expansion chamber inside too, and the end result is a muted ‘pop’, rather than any crack at the muzzle. Not whisper quiet, but very civilised.

The chunky main cylinder utilised on this model has the regulator fitted where that brass ring shows at the rear, and is designed to be removable. I think that makes sense with a PCP, effectively taking into account future pressure testing of the air vessel at some juncture. All importantly though, the cylinder remains in situ for the charging procedure, with no unnecessary interruption of major components, which is as it should be.

Ready, steady…

Time to prepare for action, and that means first, getting air into this rifle, from an external air supply- be that a dedicated airgun pump, or diver’s air bottle. To that end, the Kozak comes supplied with two filling adaptors of the probe variety. I’m pleased to say there seems a trend of late, for adaptors to be the quick fit snap-in type, and one of the adaptors supplied here should just snap into a Foster style female coupler; job done! Handy if you own several different makes of gun. If you don’t have a Foster coupler to hand, then the other adapter supplied has a conventional thread, to screw on to an airline.

The Kozak’s action, as previously mentioned, is regulated, and the reg is set to around 90-bar. Regulators mean that we can be more flexible in the charge pressure we use, as the action effectively finely meters its air intake for each shot. Maximum fill pressure with the Kozak is specified as 300-bar, but the recommended pressure is 250-bar, which will mean less stress on internal components.

Wood or black?

The hardwood thumbhole stocks are available in either traditional wood look or with a black finish, as per my test rifle. Plenty of figuring is on show through the lacquer, and close inspection also reveals Zbroia’s production process, whereby several pieces of wood are joined and bonded together, before the stock is cut out. The grip configuration looks a bit curious, with a few lumps and bumps, and less than seamless visuals. That said, I’m purely talking visuals. Shoulder the Kozak, and that pronounced off-set palm swell on the grip, and smooth, pleasantly rounded forend, all fall into place nicely.

Look to the butt, and we get that adjustable cheekpiece section. Just slacken off the screw head, move the panel to the desired height, and re-tighten. It’s a nice feature, to help with achieving perfect eye/scope alignment, and of course, given the semi- Bullpup specification here, the cheekpiece is not having to quite bridge the height of the action, as with a full-blown Bullpup layout. That said, I reckon an adjustable butt for length, would add further refinement, with simple pull-out rods, and if I’m nit-picking, a socket head as opposed to a slot-head would be preferable for the adjuster. As it stands, we are talking super compact, and on that basis, it’s all very usable.

Metalwork

All the metalwork gets what looks like a black anodised finish, and whilst this may not be as lustrous as some rivals, everything looks well engineered, and evenly finished to a good standard. The barrel runs through a central bracket, which in turn supports the front end of the Picatinny scope rail, and a short shroud contains the barrel forward of this bracket. There’s a small expansion chamber inside too, and the end result is a muted ‘pop’, rather than any crack at the muzzle. Not whisper quiet, but very civilised.

The chunky main cylinder utilised on this model has the regulator fitted where that brass ring shows at the rear, and is designed to be removable. I think that makes sense with a PCP, effectively taking into account future pressure testing of the air vessel at some juncture. All importantly though, the cylinder remains in situ for the charging procedure, with no unnecessary interruption of major components, which is as it should be.

Ready, steady…

Time to prepare for action, and that means first, getting air into this rifle, from an external air supply- be that a dedicated airgun pump, or diver’s air bottle. To that end, the Kozak comes supplied with two filling adaptors of the probe variety. I’m pleased to say there seems a trend of late, for adaptors to be the quick fit snap-in type, and one of the adaptors supplied here should just snap into a Foster style female coupler; job done!

Handy if you own several different makes of gun. If you don’t have a Foster coupler to hand, then the other adapter supplied has a conventional thread, to screw on to an airline.

The Kozak’s action, as previously mentioned, is regulated, and the reg is set to around 90-bar. Regulators mean that we can be more flexible in the charge pressure we use, as the action effectively finely meters its air intake for each shot. Maximum fill pressure with the Kozak is specified as 300-bar, but the recommended pressure is 250-bar, which will mean less stress on internal components.

You’ll still be amazed at the shot count though. As mentioned, there is an on-board pressure gauge, but it follows the trend for being stuck at the front of the cylinder! I for one do not like looking down the muzzle when I want to check the fill state, regardless of if the gun is open and empty, it breeds bad habits!

Charge!

To charge the action, twist open the air valve at the front of the cylinder, insert the probe from the airline, and begin charging. For safety, I would always recommend checking that the probe is still fully inserted, after a short interval into charging however.

Two rotary magazines are supplied with this model, either 12-shot in .177 (on test), or 10-shot versions in .22-calibre. Filling the magazine couldn’t be simpler – just push home a pellet into each chamber in turn, making sure they are flush. Now, we just need to fit some glassware before we can begin, and here, we need Picatinny style mounts, with a cross bar design. Personally, I can’t help thinking this sort of fitment are overkill on a totally recoilless pneumatic airgun, but the trend does seem to be moving the other way.

With the Kozak in the shoulder, it was time to get familiar. Pulling back the neatly shaped side lever takes little effort, and with it fully retracted, the fully loaded magazine can be slipped into the breech block housing from the right-hand side. Pushing the lever all the way forwards and flat, indexes the first shot and we’re ready. Subsequent cycling of the lever backwards and forwards indexes each shot in turn, and the firing cycle is as quick as you can undertake that small operation.

At this stage, two points are worth making. Firstly, the semi-Bullpup configuration does mean that the breech opening is at least moved a little away from the face; unlike many full-on Bullpups. Secondly, that neat side-lever can be easily worked, even when the gun is shouldered, which all adds to the fast-fire appeal.

Performance

The 2-stage trigger is quite well shaped, and is certainly an asset, given the relatively light settings on offer. Over the chronograph, I clocked 132-shots with a total spread of 30fps from a 250-bar fill. Okay, not stunning consistency, but very respectable. Accuracy wise, Zbroia cover themselves by stating in their literature that the Kozak will shoot 20mm groups at 30-metres, but my tests revealed far more favourable figures, in the region of 9mm over 35-yards, and single enlarged ragged holes at 25-yards, using JSB 8.44-grain Exacts supplied, not much wrong with their barrels then! Consider that I found the Kozak quite light, and could have done with more weight at the muzzle, (now there’s a surprise!) and these results are even more remarkable.

Conclusion

Yes, the finish and contouring of the stock are a little unrefined certainly around the grip, but the sheer ergonomics of the thing are hard to fault! We are talking the best part of £600 here of course, and in this price sector, there is plenty of strong competition out there. Yet this diminutive Zbroia Kozak 330-180 remains one of the most compact little PCPs currently available, with a unique feel, and some serious down range performance too. Hunting in a confined space, from a car for example, or from a hide, then the Kozak comes into its own and we’ve not even mentioned the two-year manufacturers guarantee!