Contessa Picatinny Rail for CZ 452, 455 (10 MOA)

Introduction

Picatinny rail consists of slots with 5.23 mm spaces between one another, which means that it can be used across its entire length. It is simple to mount and interchangeable – if something is made for a Picatinny rail, it will fit regardless of the manufacturer or manufacturing date. It is affordable, resilient and reliable – this is why it so commonly used by professionals and military. Because of all its great qualities, Picatinny rail has been dominating the rail market in the recent years.

Picatinny is a big step forward from the Weaver standard. Weaver has a few predesignated slots while Picatinny has slots all over its surface, allowing the device to be mounted wherever the user finds it fitting. Weaver's slot is 3.8 mm wide, which is why ring mounts made for a Weaver rail will also fit on a Picatinny rail while ring mounts made specifically for a Picatinny rail will not fit on a Weaver rail. This is one of the main reasons why Picatinny is a far better mounting solution.

Contessa is an Italian company, famous for producing aesthetically appealing mounts with a nice finish. The tolerances of the produced pieces are very tight – there are no deviations, the mounts are very carefully machined. Contessa's Picatinny rails are made from steel and come with their unique screws which fit nicely into the rail. The screws have a huge contact surface and a bigger head than screws of other mount manufacturers, while the thread is the same. Contessa's Picatinny rails, made in Italy, are available in both 0 MOA and 20 MOA versions. Throughout the middle of the rail, there is a canal so that the rail can be used together with rifle's sights.

10 MOA Inclination

10 MOA inclination is only needed when the scope runs out of elevation. For example, when shooting at the range of 100 m, shooter gains 29.1 cm / 100 m of additional elevation range with a 10 MOA mount. This is approximately 2.9 Mrad of elevation. To make things even clearer – if the target was placed at 100 m, the scope with 10 MOA inclined rail would aim to the center of the target while the rifle’s barrel would aim 29 cm higher than the scope. This gives the shooter extra elevation needed for long range shooting. If you plan to shoot on distances longer than 600 meters, use of rail with 10 MOA is greatly recommended. There is no negative effect of the inclined Picatinny rail in the mounting setup if you only shoot on shorter distances. The same goes also the other way around, since if you don’t shoot on extreme distances then Picatinny rail with inclination is not needed.

About the rifle

CZ stands for Ceská Zbrojovka. The company headquarters are based in Uhersky Brod, a small town in the Czech Republic. The present-day CZ was set-up in 1936 as a subsidiary of CZ Strakonice, which was, in turn, a subsidiary of Zbrojovka Brno – the armaments industry grew rapidly in the new Czechoslovakia at the time, and Uhersky Brod seemed like a great location since it was secluded and lay beyond the range of German bombers. In 1939, German forces occupied Czechoslovakia and the company was renamed to Böhmische Waffenwerke. Until 1945, they made machine guns LK-30 and MG-17 for the German army. After World War II, Russians gained control of the entire region and the company was nationalized by the communist government. Along with firearms, the company produced parts for the CZ 125 motorcycle and parts for sewing machines. In 1957, they started producing Model 58 assault rifle, a Czech version of AK-47. In 1961, the renowned Skorpion machine pistol entered production. The famous CZ 75 pistol was launched in 1975. Ceská Zbrojovka became an independent company in May 1992 when the “iron curtain” fell. Today, they are one of the biggest manufacturers light firearms. CZ 75, the famous pistol, is used as a basis by many other firearm manufacturers.

CZ 452 is a bolt-action rimfire rifle, available in several versions: American, Varmint, Lux, Scout, Silhouette, Style, and FS. CZ chambers these rifles for .22 LR., .22 WMR, .17 HMR and .17 HM2. The rifle was first introduced in 1954 as Model 2 (ZKM 452) – an upgraded version of CZ model 1 (ZKM 451). For mounting purposes, there is an 11mm dovetail on the receiver (there are no mounting holes). The action is controlled feed.

CZ 455 series replaced CZ 452 models in 2011. These are also bolt-action rimfire rifles, chambered for .22 LR, .22 WMR, .17 HMR and .17 HM2. For mounting purposes, there is an 11mm dovetail on the receiver (there are no mounting holes). The action is controlled-feed. Instead of the barrel being threaded into the receiver, CZ 455 rifles have the barrel fixed in the frame with twin set-screws as part of interchangeable barrel system. Also, CZ 455 rifles allow the action to be swapped into any 455 stock without modifications.

Rifles CZ 452 and CZ 455 have actions of the same dimensions, which is why they share the same mounts. They are both equipped with an 11mm dovetail for mounting purposes.

A: / (no holes)
B: / (no holes)
C: / (no holes)
BHU: 0 mm
Fi: /
R1: Prisma 11
R2: Prisma 11

Mounting instructions

Remove all the stains (grease, oil etc.) from the rifle's receiver with a cleaning fluid (acetone). Once the surface is clean and dry, check whether the screws match the rail and the holes on the receiver. Make sure that the Picatinny rail is compatible with the rifle by inspecting the mounting holes on both. Before mounting the rail permanently, apply a minimal amount of thread-locking fluid 278 or 648 on screws and contact surfaces. Be careful not to get the fluid in or near the mounting holes. Carefully clean the remaining excess fluid around the rail with a cleaning fluid. Using a torque driver, screw the screws appropriately (up to 2.2 Nm) – do not overtighten.

Warranty

The product has a warranty period of 30 years.