Ceská Zbrojovka
Encyclopedia
Firearms associated with the name Česká zbrojovka ("Czech Armory" in Czech
Czech language
Czech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
), often rendered simply as "CZ" have been produced by various factories that have been mutually independent in their management and ownership.
The factories include:
- Arms Moravia (Technoex) – founded 1993
- Alfa-Proj – since 1993
- Česká zbrojovka StrakoniceCeská Zbrojovka StrakoniceČeská zbrojovka is a Czech firearms manufacturer also known for making ČZ motorcycles. ČZ was established as a branch of the Škoda Works Armament in Strakonice, Czechoslovakia in September 1919.-History:...
– since 1919 - Česká zbrojovka Uherský BrodCeská Zbrojovka Uhersky BrodČeská zbrojovka a.s. Uherský Brod is a Czech firearms manufacturer.-History:CZUB was established in 1936 as a branch of the Česká zbrojovka armament firm in the small Moravian town of Uherský Brod in Czechoslovakia, now in the Czech Republic....
– since 1936 - Československá státní zbrojovka (Zbrojovka Brno) – 1919–2007
- Zbrojovka Praga – founded 1918 or later, and active
- Zbrojovka Vsetín (ZVI) – since 1937
Firearms made in many different factories in Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
and later the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
have been sold under the name CZ, Brno
Brno
Brno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District...
or Vz.
CZ (or ČZ) is an abbreviation of Česká zbrojovka. Vz (or Vz., vz, vz.) is an abbreviation of vzor ("model"). In most cases, only weapons adopted by the Czechoslovak or Czech military have sign "vz." in the name (e.g. the CZ 75
CZ 75
The CZ 75 is a semi-automatic pistol made by Česká zbrojovka Uherský Brod in the Czech Republic. First introduced in 1975, it is one of the original "wonder nines" featuring a staggered-column magazine, all-steel construction, and a hammer forged barrel...
pistol was not adopted by the military, so there is no "vz. 75" pistol), although there are some exceptions from this rule. Sa (or Sa.) is an abbreviation of samopal ("submachine gun
Submachine gun
A submachine gun is an automatic carbine, designed to fire pistol cartridges. It combines the automatic fire of a machine gun with the cartridge of a pistol. The submachine gun was invented during World War I , but the apex of its use was during World War II when millions of the weapon type were...
"). The Czech army used the term "samopal" for Sa vz. 58 though it is an assault rifle
Assault rifle
An assault rifle is a selective fire rifle that uses an intermediate cartridge and a detachable magazine. Assault rifles are the standard infantry weapons in most modern armies...
, so this may be as an analogy to Russian term automat.
Note that military weapons were after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
designed by several independent development centers (e.g. ZVS-VVÚ Brno, VTÚVM Slavičín
Slavicín
Slavičín is a town in the Zlín Region, Czech Republic....
etc.) and then assigned to a production factory.
ČZW
Czech Weapons (ČZW) is a subsidiary group of Česká Zbrojovka who develops and evaluates firearm platforms.Developments and Products
- ČZW-556ČZW-556The ČZW-556 is an assault rifle of Czech origin. It is chambered in the 5.56x45mm NATO round and uses lever delayed blowback operation, previously used on the LCZ-B20 platform and the 2B-A-40/TKB-517 assault rifles...
(Czech Republic - Assault Rifle - 5.56×45mm NATO) - ČZW-762ČZW-762The ČZW-762 is a light machine gun of Czech origin and an improved derivative of the LCZ-B20. The weapon is chambered in the 7.62x39mm M43 round and is fed from 30 round AK magazines.-Overview:...
(Czech Republic - Light Machine Gun - 7.62×39mm M43) - ČZW-438ČZW-438The ČZW-438 is a personal defence weapon of Czech origin, chambered in the .17 Libra PDW round. Another variant of the ČZW-438 is the ČZW-438 M9 chambered in the 9x19mm Parabellum round....
(Czech Republic - Personal Defence Weapon - 4.38×30mm Libra)- ČZW-438 M9 (Czech Republic - Submachine Gun - 9×19mm Parabellum)
- ČZW-9ČZW-9The ČZW-9 is a submachine gun of Czech origin. The weapon's layout is very similar to the Škorpion vz. 61 but with improved accuracy due to its lever delayed blowback operation. Another variant is the ČZW-9 M which uses straight blowback, firing from a closed bolt with a higher rate of fire....
(Czech Republic - Submachine Gun - 9×19mm Parabellum)- ČZW-9M (Czech Republic - Submachine Gun - 9×19mm Parabellum)
- ČZW-9PSČZW-9PSThe ČZW-9PS is a submachine gun of Czech origin, chambered in the 9x19mm Parabellum round. As the weapon uses delayed-blowback, it is somewhat comparable to the Heckler & Koch MP5. A carbine variant exists as the ČZW-9FC, this uses straight blowback firing from a closed bolt and has a higher rate...
(Czech Republic - Submachine Gun - 9×19mm Parabellum)- ČZW-9FC (Czech Republic - Submachine Gun - 9×19mm Parabellum)
- ČZW-127ČZW-127The ČZW-127 is an anti-materiel sniper rifle of Czech origin. Due to the patented lever-delayed blowback action, CZW claims it to possess recoil smooth enough to be usable even without a muzzle brake....
(Czech Republic - Anti Material Rifle - 12.7×99mm NATO) - ČZW-40ČZW-40The ČZW-40 is a multiple shot firing grenade launcher of Czech origin....
(Czech Republic - Grenade Launcher - 40×53mm) - RAG-30RAG-30The RAG-30 is an automatic grenade launcher of Czech origin. The weapon fires 30 mm grenades. It is fed from a 5-round detachable box magazine located at the top of the housing.The SAG-30 is a semi-automatic variant that fires from a closed bolt....
(Czech Republic - Grenade Launcher - VOG 17)- SAG-30 (Czech Republic - Grenade Launcher - VOG 17)