Watched this neat video last night
The Vz-58 rifle is such an odd duck. At first glance it can quickly be mistaken for an AK-47. It also fires the same 7.62×39 round from the ubiquitous 30-round banana-shaped magazine.
Still besides looks, the gun is very different. Its striker-fired. It uses a locking breech block similar to an SKS or an FAL, rather than the rotating bolt of the AK, while the mags look similar they are alloy and unique to the ’58, also the Vz-58 has a bolt-hold-open like most modern military rifles do.
What I find so interesting was how many changes they made from the AK pattern and still how wrong the rifle came out. The safety is better…but still ergonomically lame, and just watch Hickok futz with those magazines. Yeah it doesn’t us an AK mag, but you still need to wiggle them around to rock them into place.
Still I think they’re kinda cool.
I’ve got one and rather like it.
The design does make clearing jams and visual inspection very easy. It uses a top eject and a disconnected short stroke piston. When you hold the action back and drop the magazine you can see straight through the rifle top to bottom.
Not that they jam, I’ve had one that was magazine caused and that’s about it.
I don’t have issues getting the mags in on mine either.
And I rather like the safety. It’s really convenient for a left handed person reminds me of a 90 rotated AR safety (flipped for lefties). But you’re a lefty too.
To each his own. For an AKish rifle you could do alot worse than the 58
Eh, the big reason why I sold my WASR was I HATE how AK mags rock into place. FAL mags rock too, but not so dramatically which I find much more natural.
Hey, and just because I’m a gun blogger does NOT mean I’m one of them lefty heathens! 😉
Ahhhh, it’s the rocking not the wriggle that gets yah.
I can see that.
Heh, there are a lot of left handed gunbloggers.
If I write left handed but shoot right handed, am I a heathen? Or like some sort of barbarian convert?
yes! 8)
Start telling everyone you’re a Hybrid.
Ha!
“What I find so interesting was how many changes they made from the AK pattern…”
Huh? The two have nothing to do with each other, other than being gas-operated rifles that use the same round.
Maybe I’m over-simplifying, but just like Mikael Kalashnikov looked good and hard at the Gerry Stg 43 and used that concept to make the AK-47….I must imagine the Czechs were attempting to build a better mouse trap when they built the Vz-58. When you pick one up you can’t help but think AK….and the same goes for the Stg 43. Sure they’re all mechanically different….but its not like when you pick up an FAL, or SA-80, or FAMAS, or M16….all those rifles are DRASTICALLY different.
Could just be they were all steeped in the same Eastern-European waters and that’s all there is for the passing similarities but when I see a Vz 58 I see a sequel l to the AK.