CZ511

As CZ 511 owning shooters we decided to embark on a quest to develop some compatible magazines.

The CZ 511 and it’s straight stocked cousin the CZ 581 have been popular .22 semi-auto rifles for many years here in the UK, featuring impressive accuracy care of a cold hammer forged CZ barrel combined with a neatly machined and easily stripped all steel action, boasting a fully detachable trigger unit. A lot nicer mechanically than say a Ruger 10/22.

The 511 design is essentially a CZ badged version of the BRNO 581 which has been in production since the late 1950s, so a tried and tested format, with rifles dating back to the start of production still shooting flawlessly thanks to the excellent build quality and barrels.

However, in 2010 CZ wound up production, with the whole line going over to produce the new steel and polymer CZ 512, unusually this also included the machines which made the magazines.

Since then, the remaining CZ 511 and CZ 581 magazine supplies have dried up, becoming a rare find second hand. So much so we regularly come across magazine-less rifles going for peanuts at auction, which is crazy considering the rifle’s reputation and collectible status, especially across the pond in the USA.

The 8 round blued steel CZ 511 magazines in question have a unusual wedge shaped horizontal profile, like a long flat bottomed tear drop rather being a regular box design, which has meant adapting other .22 magazines has been a non starter.

So, we’ve taken up the challenge of getting a compatible replacement made