CZ Bobwhite and Sharptails

[Sinola Kid]

Anyone have any thoughts or experience they can share about these shotguns?

[Captain Clark]

A Sharptail from Longhunter is an excellent choice for our game IMO. I’m selecting it over my SKB the majority of the time. It seems to be holding up well for over a year of multiple monthly matches and a few multi days now. 

[David Cardin]

I have the Sharptail coach as well.  I wish I would have bought mine from Longhunter so it would have been slicked up from the beginning.  I have had some work done but will probably send it to him to really get it where I would like it.   The build quality seems pretty high and it points really well.  Out of the box without work  it is very tight.

 

[Dream Chaser, SASS #79316]

Love the two I bought from Long Hunter but did have another gunsmith thin the extractor a bit more in addition to fixing up a third Sharptail..  Know for a fact that out of the box they are horrible but slicked up and used for 600 rounds or more they are great.  Like my three Sharptail better than my three SKBs which all acquired splits in the stock.  If someone does not like them I suspect their issue is from not getting them slicked up well.

[Imis Twohofon,SASS # 46646]

I have had a CZ Sharptail from Longhunter for about a year and a half. I am very pleased with this quality, beautiful SG

 

Imis

[Mountain Wolf]

I am glad to see some opinions on the CZ. I am running a Stoeger right now but was looking at the Sharptail from Longhunter for my next shotgun. 

[Chantry]

I have the 12 gauge Bobwhite G2.  If you want to go fast it is not a race ready shotgun out of the box. If you don't care about your time it really needs very little work, maybe polishing the chambers so plastic shells fall out cleanly.  I know some non SASS shooters that have bought other CZ shotguns and have been very happy.  I bought mine as a back up gun for both skeet and SASS.

 

The pluses:  Build quality is quite good for the price range.  Gun is tight out when new, which is a good thing.  It does break in after about 500 rounds or so.  The black chrome finish on the Bobwhite G2 is very durable.  The wood was surprisingly good for what is an entry level gun.  While I've not had a problem (or heard of any major problems), CZ's customer service has a very good reputation when it comes to fixing the guns and doing it quickly.  The double triggers are mechanical so the gun will handle light loads without a problem.  The gun comes with 5 internal choke tubes, useful for clubs with hard to knock down shotgun targets.  I've see them as low as $599.99 + sales tax at a LGS.

 

Negatives:  Mine does not like shotgun shells with soft primers.  It definitely doesn't like Federal shells and while Herter's are a bit better, I won't use either brand in a match.   I have had no problems with Winchester 209 primers or CCI/Winchester small pistol primers when using brass hulls.  While the trigger pull is a bit heavier than some like (best guess 6-8 lbs) it isn't a major issue for me.  If you a black powder shooter, the fore end might not provide you with enough protection from the hot barrels when there are more than 4 shotgun targets.

 

 

 

 

[Tequila Shooter]

3 minutes ago, Chantry said:

I have the 12 gauge Bobwhite G2.  If you want to go fast it is not a race ready shotgun out of the box. If you don't care about your time it really needs very little work, maybe polishing the chambers so plastic shells fall out cleanly.  I know some non SASS shooters that have bought other CZ shotguns and have been very happy.  I bought mine as a back up gun for both skeet and SASS.

 

The pluses:  Build quality is quite good for the price range.  Gun is tight out when new, which is a good thing.  It does break in after about 500 rounds or so.  The black chrome finish on the Bobwhite G2 is very durable.  The wood was surprisingly good for what is an entry level gun.  While I've not had a problem (or heard of any major problems), CZ's customer service has a very good reputation when it comes to fixing the guns and doing it quickly.  The double triggers are mechanical so the gun will handle light loads without a problem.  The gun comes with 5 internal choke tubes, useful for clubs with hard to knock down shotgun targets.  I've see them as low as $599.99 + sales tax at a LGS.

 

Negatives:  Mine does not like shotgun shells with soft primers.  It definitely doesn't like Federal shells and while Herter's are a bit better, I won't use either brand in a match.   I have had no problems with Winchester 209 primers or CCI/Winchester small pistol primers when using brass hulls.  While the trigger pull is a bit heavier than some like (best guess 6-8 lbs) it isn't a major issue for me.  If you a black powder shooter, the fore end might not provide you with enough protection when there are more than 4 shotgun targets.

 

 

 

 

 

Protection from what?  Smoke?

[Chantry]

1 minute ago, Tequila Shooter said:

 

Protection from what?  Smoke?

Very hot barrels

[Tequila Shooter]

2 hours ago, Chantry said:

Very hot barrels

 

Thanks for the info, that’s just part of the challenge with BP , kind of like using a 1860 Henry   I load brass SG shells and I’ve had brass pickers not realize how hot it is until they try to pick up the shell with their fingers. 

 

[Chantry]

1 hour ago, Tequila Shooter said:

 

Thanks for the info, that’s just part of the challenge with BP , kind of like using a 1860 Henry   I load brass SG shells and I’ve had brass pickers not realize how hot it is until they try to pick up the shell with their fingers. 

 

 

I shoot a lot of BP too, but there is a big difference between the beaver tail fore end on American and some imported (Stoeger & some Spanish) shotguns and the the splinter fore end on many of the British & other European shotguns.

 

It might be because I shoot heavy BP loads in the CZ 12 g (100 grains) and my Spanish 10 g (120 grains).  The first 4 shotgun shells aren't bad, but 6 or more makes me appreciate the wider beaver tail fore end.

[Tequila Shooter]

1 hour ago, Chantry said:

 

I shoot a lot of BP too, but there is a big difference between the beaver tail fore end on American and some imported (Stoeger & some Spanish) shotguns and the the splinter fore end on many of the British & other European shotguns.

 

It might be because I shoot heavy BP loads in the CZ 12 g (100 grains) and my Spanish 10 g (120 grains).  The first 4 shotgun shells aren't bad, but 6 or more makes me appreciate the wider beaver tail fore end.

 

I knew there was something about you that I liked   I’m shooting heavy loads too.  And shooting a 10ga well that just makes me jealous.  I had a Spanish 10ga once but had to sell it, it wouldn’t open all the way on it’s own (I had to push it the last little bit) so it would really slow me down. I could never find a smith that could fix it they said it was the way the gun was designed.  I’m always looking hoping to find another 10ga that’ll work the way a 12ga does. 

[Nostrum Damus SASS #110702]

Agree with all comments regarding the 12 ga Sharp-Tail Coach Gun -- I bought mine new and did not have Longhunter slick it up because I could do much of the work I wanted done myself.  Before the work, I had to break it open over my thigh with two hands -- utterly useless for SASS.  What I did to it was: (1) tuning the cocking rods by VERY CAREFULLY shortening them just a few thousandths of an inch and making them identical in length -- the idea (as best as I could figure it out) was to slightly delay when the force/resistance of the hammer springs is first encountered so that the downwardly rotating barrels have some momentum to help with the cocking action; and (2) using a Dremel tool with multiple buffing pads of successively increasing fine-ness to polish every single metal surface that contacts any other metal surface, including the full length of each cocking rod and the full length of the extractor rod (and also using thin rods wrapped with very fine abrasive paper, the insides of the channels in which all three rods run, one in the barrel assembly and two in the receiver), but I did not polish the hammer faces; and (3) slightly opening up the chamfer of each chamber; and (4) polishing the chambers.  None of this was terribly difficult but it is absolutely critical in step (1) above to not shorten the cocking rods too much or else they will not be long enough to actually cock the hammers far enough rearward to engage the sears.  Don't ask me how I know this.  After doing all of the four steps the gun was running almost where I wanted it, and then putting several hundred shells through it got it right there.  Oh, I also did a step (5), but it is totally optional: I swapped in a lighter spring for the original top lever spring.  

 

I don't know how much more Longhunter does, but he's a pro and I imagine he does more, and also that he does all of it better than I did, but it worked out well enough for my needs.   I'm very happy with my Sharp-Tail Coach Gun.