Name : G33/40 (t)
AKA : VZ.33 Modified, VZ.16/33, Alpine Carbine
Caliber : 7.92x57mm Mauser (sometimes called 8mm Mauser)
Capacity : 5 Rounds
Weight : 7.4lbs or 3.35kg
Length : 39in or 1000mm
Action : Bolt Action repeater of Mauser type
Origin : Czechoslovakia
As the Austro-Hungarian Empire was crumbling the independent nation of Czechoslovakia came to be and with it a new national army had to be created. Of course consideration had to be given to what to arm the troops with, the Steyr Mannlicher M1895 was starting to show its age, one only had to look across the border to Germany to see what the future would hold. A new factory was set up in BRNO to make Mauser type rifles for this new army, the result was a high quality rifle, not a specific Mauser model but a new variant known as the VZ.24. A need for a shorter handier rifle emerged and the result was the vz.16/33 more commonly known as the VZ.33. Export versions were also produced carrying the coat of arms of the purchaser. Orders were made by Guatemala, with Iran ordering from BRNO and eventually making the rifle in their own imperial arsenal.
In 1939 Nazi Germany occupied Czechoslovakia and thus the Czech's great industries were folded into the Reich. Priority number one became arming the Wehrmacht, at some point inspections were done at BRNO, and a decision was made to add the VZ.33 with a few modifications and the VZ.24 into the fray of official Wehrmacht rifles as the G33/40 (t) and G24(t) respectively. The rifle was produced at BRNO (BRUNN as it was called during occupation) all rifles made at this factory received the production code of 945 on early models then it was changed to DOT followed by the year of production. The rifles were eventually issued to the German Gebirgsjager (Mountain Troops) and to the Fallschirmjager (Paratroopers).
The G33/40 differs from the standard Mauser K98K from which it is based upon. The bolts are of the same length but are not interchangeable, the standard K98K Bayonet wont fit. The cleaning rods are different due to the difference in barrel length and further down the stock you will see there is a metal shield on the left hand side of the stock . The G33/40 also differs for the fact that it is lighter, this was the key advantage to the G33/40 for Mountain troops, this is due to certain areas of the receiver being slimmed down.
INTERESTING FACT : A prototype folding stock version of the G33/44(t) was made for paratroopers but it never ended up in full scale production
PRO's : Quality construction, Accurate, Collectable
CON's : Not compatible with other Mauser type rifles
COOL FACTOR : 6/10
Name : Steyr SSG-69
AKA : The Green Gun, Scharfschutzen gewehr
Caliber : 7.62x51mm NATO / .308 Winchester
Capacity : 5 or 10 Rounds
Weight : 10.14lbs or 4.6Kg
Length : 44.9in or 1140mm (25.6in barrel model)
Action : Rear Locking Bolt Action
Origin : Austria
Adopted as the standard sniper rifle for the Austrian army in 1969 the Steyr SSG-69 has gone on to serve with fifteen armies and many more law enforcement agencies around the world. The name SSG stands for ScharfSchutzen Gewehr or sharpshooters rifle. Unusual in a sniper rifle the SSG-69 uses rear locking lugs on its bolt instead of frontal locking made so popular by Mauser. Inspiration for this rifle may have been drawn from the Steyr Model 1903 that was produced for the Greek army, that rifle had six rear locking lugs and a rotary magazine.
The spiral shaped barrel of this rifle screws into the receiver a considerable distance of 2.24in or 57mm making for a very sturdy action. The teflon coating on the bolt and the quality construction of the rotary magazine makes for a very smooth cycling of the action. A smooth action is quite often attributed to rear locking rifles, a similar complement is quite bestowed upon the Lee-Enfield series of rifles, those rifles in particular were able to achieve significantly higher rates of fire because of this feature. Rear Locking bolts were considered unsafe because the locking was not taking place at the 'business end' of the action but in spite of this no major catastrophe has been reported on the Lee-Enfield series or the SSG-69, this can probably be attributed to the strength of the materials used in both of these rifles, as it as often said : There's no substitute for quality.
Accuracy, the make or break for any would be sniper rifle, this is were the SSG-69 stands out. Minute of Arc, or Minute of Angle, a unit of measurement for the accuracy of a rifle, for ease of understanding one minute of arc is equivalent of a group of three to five rounds landing within an one inch spread at 100 yards. It is reported that a competent shooter with match grade ammunition in good conditions should be able to land five rounds in a 0.6 spread group or slightly better at 100 yards with this rifle, an excellent feat for any sniper rifle. To aid accuracy modern sniper rifles have free-floated barrels meaning that the barrel does not touch the stock in any way and the SSG-69 is no exception.
Different versions of the SSG-69 are available :
PI, .308 Win, 508mm barrel,
PII, .22-250, .243 Rem, .308 Win, 650mm barrel,
PIV, .308 Win, 409mm barrel
Also Steyr has the option for double set triggers and 10 round magazines.
INTERESTING FACT : The magazine on the SSG-69 has a transparent section at the back so you can verify how many rounds you have loaded into the magazine.
PRO's : SUB MOA Accuracy, Smooth Action, Many Variants, 10 mags available
CON's : Swapping out the barrel is just about a factory only job
COOL FACTOR : 8/10
Name : Zastava CZ99 Precision .17HMR
Caliber : .17 Hornady Magnum Rimfire
Capacity : 5 Rounds
Weight : 6.2lbs or 2.8kg
Length : 41in or 1040mm
Action : Bolt Action Repeater
Origin : Serbia
Zastava Arms has been in business for 1853, first producing cannon barrels, then latter moving into the production of rifles predominantly for the military. During the Second World War the Zastava factory was used for making ammunition and a small number of rifles and rifle parts until 1942 when the German occupiers shut the factory down and its production equipment were moved to equip other factories. Upon the end of World War Two Zastava was rebuilt and started producing a version of the Mauser K98k known as the M1948. Up to today Zastava has been producing their own versions of the AKM series of rifles and their own pistols based on popular designs. Though through this time they have produced relatively small numbers of hunting arms, which is were the CZ99 Precision comes in.
The name CZ99 Precision, is a little confusing for some as another popular manufacturer predominately uses the prefix CZ in their firearm's name, however this is not Zastava trying to capitalize on others success necessarily, since 1946 the name of the Zastava factory is Crvena Zastava, thus CZ has been roll marked on several of their rifles since.
Using a version of the Mauser action, the CZ99 Precision is a solid and utterly reliable little rifle. Designed with the varmit and sports shooter in mind this rifle is available in .22LR, .22 WMR and .17 Hornady Magnum Rimfire, the latter caliber is what we will look at here. The barrel making process that Zastava uses when making the CZ99 is called Cold Forging a popular process of hammering lengths of cold steel around a rifling insert. Furnished with a beautiful walnut stock and blued metal components the CZ99 is a nicely finished rifle on par with many other quality firearms of the type for a considerable discount. The pricing on the Zastava is by no means "dirt cheap" but it does take a prospective purchaser who up until now has been looking at budget rifles to consider spending a little more and getting a rifle that is of superior quality over the 'entry level'. In a simple sentence 'value for money'.
The CZ99 Precision is available in .17 Hornady Magnum Rimfire cartridge a round that is steadily gaining popularity. This round was created in 2002 and is effectively a .22 Winchester Magnum necked down to .17 (4.5mm) caliber with a 17 or 20 grain projectile. The round boasts several advantages over its parent round such as higher muzzle velocity, flatter trajectory, longer range, with the potential for greater accuracy. Though it is more more expensive and doesn't have as much kinetic energy due to the lighter projectile.
The Zastava rifle has a smooth operating bolt and has an adjustable trigger for different weights. Overall it's tight tolerances make its bolt a pleasure to use.
INTERESTING FACT : Just to make things more confusing Zastava also produces a pistol with the name : CZ99.
PRO's : Quality, Reliability, Accuracy, handy size
CON's : .17HMR is more pricey, ejectors hold to tightly on some ammo
COOL FACTOR : 6/10
