32's
- Thread starter ligonierbill
- Start date
ligonierbill
New member
Some great pieces here. Any experience, opinions on the CZ-70?
This thread got me thinking (again) about some that has bothered me a bit. I see all these pictures of a variety of old but nice guns and I think
"How the bleep did Colt mess up so badly financially?"
I'm actually a bit serious. Has anybody written a history of the company that charts their highs and lows?
(And I know it's not just Colt. I wouldn't mind a corporate history of S&W and an explanation of how High Standard went bust during the same time Ruger was selling .22 Mark whatevers like hot cakes.
"How the bleep did Colt mess up so badly financially?"
I'm actually a bit serious. Has anybody written a history of the company that charts their highs and lows?
(And I know it's not just Colt. I wouldn't mind a corporate history of S&W and an explanation of how High Standard went bust during the same time Ruger was selling .22 Mark whatevers like hot cakes.
Mike Irwin
Staff
"Any experience, opinions on the CZ-70?"
Yep, that's my .32 Auto.
VERY heavy trigger pull. Rough and creaky and sharp edges everywhere.
But, reliable as all get out.
Yep, that's my .32 Auto.
VERY heavy trigger pull. Rough and creaky and sharp edges everywhere.
But, reliable as all get out.
ligonierbill
New member
Ran into a couple of Ortgies today. Never heard of 'em, but the net says they are not that uncommon. There was a discussion on this forum several years ago. Should I consider one of these? "Interesting shooters" is what I'm after, not necessarily collectors and certainly not defensive weapons. These are interesting: striker fired, grip safety, last made in 1924.
Cosmodragoon
New member
My first pistol was a CZ-70. Beyond nostalgia, and the fact that it's essentially the Eastern Block knock-off of what James Bond used in the classic movies, it is a great little gun.
The CZ-70 is very reliable in my experience. Mine was apparently refurbished from foreign police carry and has managed to function flawlessly for all the years I've owned it. I've never loaded hollow points in it but as far as I know, they are not recommended for use in the CZ-70.
I actually like the safety and utility of the system. The DA/SA action lets you keep one in the pipe for either a nice safe first shot in double action or a respectable thumb-cock. I don't care for thumb safeties in this set-up but I do use the "decocking safety" as a decocker when I want to drop the hammer. Another poster complained about the edges and since mine was parkerized or something in the refurbishing, I can't comment on that. What I can say is that the original serrated trigger provides a nice purchase that most of my guns don't have.
The CZ-70 is accurate and of course, the solid steel design makes it surprisingly weighty versus modern polymer compacts. That balances out what is already pretty light recoil. While I've got several firearms that I know I can't share with everyone, this one is in the friendly case.
It is no slouch though. I know James Bond is fiction but this platform and .32acp in general have long been trusted by government service and civilians alike. Plenty have met their end at the crack of this diminutive caliber. It is only considered so puny today because so many other more powerful options have joined the market. Just because you can carry a Ruger Alaskan doesn't mean that the CZ-70 is weak sauce. It is just a more mild sauce... still a heck of a lot tangier than the .22s so many people carry.
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Mike Irwin
Staff
The .327 family of cartridges goes:
.32 S&W → .32 S&W Long → .32 H&R Magnum → .327 Ruger Magnum
A cartridge on the left can be chambered and fired in any gun chambered for the cartridge to the right.
That is the .32 S&W can chamber and fire in the .32 H&R Magnum, but not the reverse.
.32 S&W → .32 S&W Long → .32 H&R Magnum → .327 Ruger Magnum
A cartridge on the left can be chambered and fired in any gun chambered for the cartridge to the right.
That is the .32 S&W can chamber and fire in the .32 H&R Magnum, but not the reverse.
Bill DeShivs
New member
Just wait for the upcoming "Bill DeShivs .32 4 inch Super Magnum!"
Yes, it's a Smith & Wesson .32 Safety Hammerless. This particular variant with the 2 inch barrel is know as the .32 Safety "Bicycle Gun".
My grandfather bought it at a hardware store in Memphis in the '30's and carried it in his front pocket for 30 years or so. After he passed my grandmother carried it in her purse for another 20+ years. Since the retirement village she moved into would not allow firearms she gave it to me a few years ago.
Though the finish is long since gone, it's still 100% functional.
