CZ 512 Tactical in .22WMR

There are hundreds of cartridges, both old and new, in circulation, and realistically, there is also no limit to what could be wild-catted. Several hold a rather unique niche within the law, if not ballistically. The .22WMR is not rare, but it’s different due to it being the largest allowable semi-automatic cartridge for a section 1 rifle in the UK.

Up a notch

I reviewed the CZ 512 semi-auto in .22LR format a few years ago. I found it to be a capable rifle, although not specifically innovative or unique. Now that it is available in .22WMR, it all gets much more interesting, and I treated the gun with significantly more excitement.

The 512 uses a simple blowback action and feeds from common CZ polymer magazines, which makes it easy and cheap to feed. The slim 15.2mm diameter barrel is cold hammer forged and threaded ½”x28 for a moderator or muzzle brake, the latter of which is supplied. The barrel has a blued finish and disappears into the 293mm long aluminium forend, which is hard anodised black and cylindrical, featuring multiple cooling slots and threaded holes for accessory mounting. However, it’s not specifically M-LOK compatible. It has an underside sling stud and the upper carries a full-length Picatinny rail. This reaches 530mm in overall length, stretching back to the rear limit of the receiver.

The right-hand side of the aluminium receiver shows an 18mm long bolt handle, and it projects out 90º to cock the action. This blends almost seamlessly into the polymer supporting lower, which incorporates the trigger guard and grip anchor point. The grip is rubberised and shows a palm swell, plus it’s ambidextrous like the rest of the rifle, except the bolt handle.

There is a buffer tube supporting the telescoping butt, and the length of pull (LOP) can be adjusted from 12 3/8” to 14 5/8” in six stages, bringing the overall length to a maximum of 38 ¾”. A sprung lever on the underside of the cheekpiece is used to adjust the LOP. At the rear, there is a slim rubber buttplate that locks into your shoulder, but there is no recoil for it to transfer anyway. Lastly, the butt has QD sling stud anchor points on either side, and the cheekpiece is height adjustable.

Some manufacturers like to advertise a fully floating barrel, but when you inspect the rifle, it’s nothing of the sort. CZ makes no such claims at all, and although the barrel appears to free float within the handguard, it is actually bolted to it. This might seem worrisome, but the forend is so stiff that it increases the rigidity of the barrel, which appears quite spindly.

Fire and repeat

During the shooting process, the gun never seemed to suffer any inherent point of impact shift, and although not what you might call ‘match rifle consistent’, it was accurate and most importantly, totally reliable. It didn’t need to be handled with any delicacy, and it took the bumps around a general pest control and steel plate shooting venture in the woods with ease.

The single-column magazines present the ten rounds to the push feed bolt face to be driven forward by spring tension into the chamber. The bolt can be held back with a manually operated button in the front of the trigger guard, and when a loaded mag is fitted, just pull back on the handle and it closes automatically. It does not have an automated last-round hold-open function, and the magazine release catch is a small lever to the front of the mag.

The single-stage trigger has some creep but breaks consistently at 1200-grams. Although you can feel it move, there is no grittiness or drag to the movement, which is non-adjustable. Lastly, the safety catch is a cross-bolt unit to the rear of the trigger. Simply push it from the left to right for SAFE, or the opposite for FIRE.

The Sportsman Gun Centre supplied me with a 1-8x24 riflescope with a cantilever mount, although there is so much Picatinny rail, you aren’t short of space. The rail is bolted to the top of the action and forend, so it’s worth keeping an eye on the bolt tension.

One significant advantage of .22WMR (Winchester Magnum Rimfire) over .22LR, other than just the extra muzzle energy, is the jacketed rounds, which are a lot cleaner in use through the action. All semi-autos eventually clog up with carbon, but that’s usually a long time after the lead shavings and lubricants do their worst to foul things up, so this 512 was very reliable.

I used ammunition from Aguila and Remington, as well as some subs from Winchester. The subsonic ammo was interesting, as it deliberately replicates .22LR subsonic ballistics, with a 40-grain exposed lead hollow-point and notably quiet report. However, the action was never designed for its reduced physical recoil, and it won’t cycle subsonics. If you do want to use subs for a specific purpose (they will still be effective on quarry), you will have to manually reciprocate the bolt after every shot to extract, eject, and reload a new round. This will, of course, come with a noise penalty when compared to a regular bolt-action rifle. The other factor to consider is that velocity consistency will be reduced, due to the breach opening.

Normal .22WMR ammunition projects 32 and 40-grain jacketed bullets at 1700-1800 fps, with close to 300 ft/lbs of muzzle energy. When these are used, the action is fast, snappy, and totally reliable (with the brake on).

When I swapped to a sound moderator, the 32s were a little less consistent, but that character changed with the 40-grain Remington ammunition. This quickly became the absolute favourite, producing the smallest groups and the highest energy, all with 100% reliability. These would be my first choice, although I was surprised the moderator made the rifle less, not more consistent, as they usually retain a little more back pressure, helping the recoiling case drive the bolt open.

In use

Groups on target were accurate, with a consistent point of impact, but this is never going to be one to show off with a ‘one hole wallet ego card’, yet when people see it in use, the speed at which you can shoot is something many have never seen within our shores.

The reciprocating action is also a lot quieter than some .22WMR, AR-15 derivatives that I have used. Their buffer spring tends to be noisier when transferring vibrations into your cheekbone, as the larger, heavier, AR-sized bolt reciprocates. The action here is scaled more towards a .22LR, not a .223, so there is less reciprocating mass in the bolt. However, the 512 is a fundamentally simpler, less accurate, and far cheaper rifle that AR-types.

The magazines are scaled to the cartridge, and if you do hunt, you can fit a few in a regular pocket. Also, with a sound moderator fitted, and the supplied brake removed, you cut out a lot of noise. The trigger does have a little creep, but you get a feel for it and are rewarded with hits on target while shooting quickly from a wide variety of positions, without worrying how small the group is.

Conclusion

This rifle has been reliable and fun, plus being chambered in .22WMR means it is the closest that you can get to replicating the fast-fire dynamic of a true AR-15. Overall, it has been incredibly fun to use on some creative courses of fire for informal competition on both paper and steel. The ammunition costs are still realistic, and although not the gun for lovers of tiny groups, it’s perfectly capable of carrying out some pest control duties where a faster backup shot might be needed.