CZ Bobwhite 20 Gauge Double Barrel Shotgun

 

by Jeff Quinn

photography by Jeff Quinn & Boge Quinn

November 20th, 2008

 

 

 

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I often hear it said that what we need is a good, affordable, American-made side by side double shotgun. I agree. However, we don’t have one. It appeared for awhile that the Ruger Gold Label would be our baby, but production never did reach even a small fraction of the demand, and it seems to have now stopped completely. Also, the last few built did not really fit my definition of “affordable”, as the price increased significantly. It was a fine shotgun. Maybe it will return. Many years ago, all of the major gun companies made good side by side shotguns, like the old Winchesters, Fox, Stevens, etc. The American double was reliable and within the budget of most any adult hunter.

Today, the popularity of the side by side has enjoyed a resurgence, but the supply in the US is filled by production from other countries. Years ago, the elite and wealthy bought the imported guns, but today, the US demand for affordable shotguns is met by manufacturers across the ocean, with some of the best coming from Turkey. Back in 2002, I reviewed the double from Huglu USA, and it was a dandy little bird gun. Now, DeHaan, Smith &Wesson, and others are importing shotguns from Turkey, and they are all pretty good guns, but even some of those are on the high end of “affordable”. I suppose that affordable means different things to different people, but to me, affordable means that the average working man with a mortgage and a family can buy one without selling a kidney. The CZ Bobwhite from CZ-USA fits that description nicely. The Bobwhite is imported from Turkey, and offers a lot of quality for the money, being perhaps the best deal out there on a good double bird gun at a reasonable price. The buttstock has a straight “English” grip, and the forearm is a slender piece with a Schnabel tip. The checkering on the walnut is cut, and has a double border design. There is machine engraving on the casehardened receiver and other small parts, giving the Bobwhite a bit of elegance, without being gaudy at all. Weighing in at six and one-half pounds with the twenty-eight inch barrels, the Bobwhite comes to the shoulder naturally, and swings well. The Bobwhite is also offered with twenty-six inch barrels, but I like the balance of the longer tubes myself. The wood to metal fit is very good, but just a little proud on the test gun, with an overall look of quality, especially for a side by side in the Bobwhite’s price range. Unlike the Huglu’s matte finish from the review six years ago, this Bobwhite has nicely polished, deep bluing on the tubes. The buttplate is of black synthetic rubber, with a hard plastic insert at the top to prevent the plate from snagging on the shooter’s clothing. The Bobwhite has a three inch chamber, so that it can shoot any twenty gauge shotgun shells from light target loads through three inch magnums. The double triggers offer the fastest choice of barrel to fire, and is my preferred style on a side by side bird gun. The action is extractor-only, which I also like. I do not like my empty shells thrown to the ground, preferring to pluck them from the tubes to place in my pocket. The lockup of the barrels to the action is tight, as it should be, and the design allows for the gun to stay tight as it wears in from use. The Bobwhite comes with five screw-in choke tubes, with the constriction indicated by notches in the end of the tube, as is common on European guns, with five notches being the least constrictive, and one notch being the tightest. The top tang safety pushes forward to fire, and is not automatically activated when the action is opened.

That is pretty much the technical description of the CZ Bobwhite. Now for the part that is hard to quantify, the feel of the shotgun. While the Bobwhite has a bit of cast-off to the stock to fit a right-handed shooter, it fits me perfectly, and I shoot from the left shoulder. When that little double glides up to my shoulder, I am looking straight down the rib. The balance and feel of the Bobwhite is perfect for me. Knowing that shotgun fit and feel is a subjective thing, I also let other shooters try the svelte little bird gun, and all who tried it really liked it. I did not carry the Bobwhite to a high-browed gun club and put it in the hands of Perazzi and Kreighoff shooters, but in the hands of bird hunters and local clay-busters. The Bobwhite seemed to fit a lot of shooters well, as should a gun of this type. No one found the Bobwhite to be clumsy or bulky in any way. Quite the opposite; the Bobwhite is proportioned well, and handles as a twenty-gauge should. The CZ Bobwhite comes sized to fit the gauge, with the 12,16,20,28,and .410 all sized proportionally to the respective gauge.

The CZ Bobwhite is a dandy little bird gun. It handles well, mounts quickly and swings well. It is well crafted, affordable, and backed in the USA by CZ’s five year warranty. I am no expert shotgunner, being much more inclined to the rifle and handgun, but I know what I like, and I like the CZ Bobwhite. It carries well, points well, and helps me to hit the target.

Check out the Bobwhite and other CZ products online at www.cz-usa.com.

To find a CZ dealer near you, click on the DEALER FINDER at www.lipseys.com.

To order the Bobwhite online, go to www.galleryofguns.com.

Jeff Quinn

 

For a list of dealers where you can buy this gun, go to: To buy this gun online, go to:

 

 

 

 

 

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- Boge Quinn

 

 

Click pictures for a larger version.

 

CZ Bobwhite 20 gauge double barrel shotgun.

 

 

The Bobwhite comes with five interchangeable choke tubes.

 

 

 

 

Top tang safety.

 

 

Forearm latch.

 

 

Single bead sight on raised solid rib.