How to install scope base [picatinny rail] on CZ 457

When you purchase new CZ 457, chances are high that it goes without the scope base [picatinny rail] from factory. Most of the CZ rimfires come from production only with the dovetail, leaving the deccision how to mount scope to the rifle up to the final customer. Which is a good thing. 

However, to install scope to your CZ 457, you can run into few issues - such as getting wrong scope rings (for example rings designed to fit to dovetail base instead of rings that fit picatinny base], or not being able to get the correct scope base [picatinny rail] itself.

In this article we will go through the scope base installation, because that is an issue that most of you will be solving if you want to use your CZ 457 with scope. Once the base is installed, you can use wide range of scope rings that have the picatinny surface.

How to install scope base on CZ 457

1. Make sure you have an empty chamber
2. Loosen the grub screws on the scope base [picatinny rail] - the hex key size is 2mm, or imperial 5/64 inch
3. Slide the scope base / rail on your rifle. In case you got the aluminium scope base that is from CZ production, it will most probably go very easy and without any force. That is due to larger tolerances. In case you got the steel scope base from JK-N, you will need to lubricate the surfaces, and possibly even then use little bit of force - few light hits with rubber hammer shall make it work. The only reason for that is that the steel bases do have tighter tolerances.
4. Once the base is in its place, use torque screw with apprepriate torque - you can find the values in the product description of purchase base / rail.

Installation video guide

We also made a quick installation video for the CZ Parts youtube channel.

After scope base is installed, what next?

Once you have a scope base on your rifle, you can choose from extremely wide range of scope rings.

The scope base functions as universal mounting surface for vast majority of scope rings. 

We have quite a wide range of scope rings from production of renowned Czech manufacturers in this category: scope rings for picatinny base. Once you have a scope base installed, any of the rings in this category will fit.

Can I install scope also without the base / picatinny rail?

Yes you indeed can install scope to your CZ 457 even without scope base. The list of options is however much thinner if you decide to use scope rings that attach directly to the CZ 457 dovetail. All scope rings that you can install directly to the CZ 457 dovetail are listed here. 

Left handers can use scope base too

Recently we also listed new scope bases for left handed models: you can find here 0 MOA left hand scope base as well as 25 MOA left hand scope base.

If you have LH version of CZ 457, yo ucan also use just the dovetail scope rings - since there it does not matter where the ejection window is. If you decide to go for picatinny scope rings though, you have to get the scope base that is for left hand.