CZ 550 - 300 Win Mag to 404 Jeffery?

[Fastrig]

I’ve got a 1998 CZ 550 Magnum currently chambered in 300 win mag. Can this rifle be converted to a 404 Jeffery or would it be better to sell it and just buy a new rifle such as a Montana Rifle Company African? The CZ is in excellent shape and has a nice Monarch scope and rings. Thoughts, costs, etc.? Never converted a rifle before so don’t know the ins and outs of doing so. Thanks for the advice and input!!

 

[Wyatt Smith]

I also am curious about this as I have a new ZKK 602 and was entertaining the idea of a 404 conversion.

 

[Tokoloshe Safaris]

American Hunting Rifles will have no problem on converting your .300 Win Mag to .404J. Same thing for the Zkk602

 

[One Day...]

Yes, you can do it. Actually, it is done routinely. But it may depend on what you actually have. The .300 Win mag has been chambered in both CZ 550 "American" (standard length action) and "Safari" (magnum length action). The .404 is short enough that it will technically work in either, but there is a lot more room for overall cartridge length variations and magazine capacity with the magnum action...

A rebarrel job with an identical CZ barrel profile including integral rear sight boss and under-barrel recoil lug + barrel band front swivel + barrel band front sight + opening the bolt face + tuning up the extractor shape and tension on the new cartridge + tuning up the feeding rails for the new cartridge should run you anywhere around $1,000 to $1,200. Dwayne at American Hunting Rifle (AHR) or Meagan at Triple River Gunsmithing can do this for you easily.

While you are at it I would suggest you ask either Dwayne or Meagan to install a bolt-mounted, firing pin-blocking safety (a.k.a. "Winchester 70-type 3 positions safety") + replace the set trigger with a direct AHR or Timney trigger + fill and straighten the bolt handle. This will cost another $900.

I would also suggest that you drop the barreled action in a Bell & Carlson kevlar stock with full length aluminum bedding block and bedding pillars. This is another $300, but that stock will never crack or warp on you.

The net outcome will be a near perfect DG rifle.

The other way to think about this Fastrig, could be to keep your CZ 550 .300 as the penultimate PG rifle, buy a used-as-new $950 CZ 550 magnum on Gunbroker.com in whatever caliber (typically .375 or .458) and have it rebarreled. You would then have a near perfect PG / DG African battery.

 

[Fastrig]

Yes, you can do it. Actually, it is done routinely. But it may depend on what you actually have. The .300 Win mag has been chambered in both CZ 550 "American" (standard length action) and "Safari" (magnum length action). The .404 is short enough that it will technically work in either, but there is a lot more room for overall cartridge length variations and magazine capacity with the magnum action...

A rebarrel job with an identical CZ barrel profile including integral rear sight boss and under-barrel recoil lug + barrel band front swivel + barrel band front sight + opening the bolt face + tuning up the extractor shape and tension on the new cartridge + tuning up the feeding rails for the new cartridge should run you anywhere around $1,000 to $1,200. Dwayne at American Hunting Rifle (AHR) or Meagan at Triple River Gunsmithing can do this for you easily.

While you are at it I would suggest you ask either Dwayne or Meagan to install a bolt-mounted, firing pin-blocking safety (a.k.a. "Winchester 70-type 3 positions safety") + replace the set trigger with a direct AHR or Timney trigger + fill and straighten the bolt handle. This will cost another $900.

I would also suggest that you drop the barreled action in a Bell & Carlson kevlar stock with full length aluminum bedding block and bedding pillars. This is another $300, but that stock will never crack or warp on you.

The net outcome will be a near perfect DG rifle.

The other way to think about this Fastrig, could be to keep your CZ 550 .300 as the penultimate PG rifle, buy a used-as-new $950 CZ 550 magnum on Gunbroker.com in whatever caliber (typically .375 or .458) and have it rebarreled. You would then have a near perfect PG / DG African battery.

Thanks mucho for the input. I’ll check in with both Dwayne and Meagan to get a firm price. After adding this all up, it looks like it will run about the same, or more maybe, as buying a new MRC rifle in 404J. Have a new Merkel in 300 win mag that will be my PG rifle which is why I was considering the conversion of the CZ. I am interested in the stock change as the CZ currently weighs too much and needs to shed 2 - 3 lbs. Thanks again for the advise!!