Italian Trials Czech ZK-391 Semiauto Rifle

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The ZK-391 is one in a series of Czech developmental semiautomatic rifles designed by Josef Koucký. It was developed initially in 1939 (hence the "39" in the designation), and was tested by the Italian military in 1943. It was ultimately not put into production, but nonetheless is an interesting detail of rifle development - a Czech design made under German occupation (note the Waffenwerke Brunn marking) for Italian trials (note the Italian safety markings).
Mechanically, the rifle shared many elements with the M1 Garand, including the two-lug rotating bolt, the long stroke gas piston, and the removable gas tube. It has several unique elements as well, like the trigger guard doubling as a lever to recock the hammer and the out of battery safety mechanism incorporating the receiver top cover.
Thanks to the Institute of Military Technology for allowing me to have access to this rifle so I can bring it to you! Check out the IMT at:
www.instmiltech.com
If you enjoy Forgotten Weapons, check out its sister channel, InRangeTV! / inrangetvshow

[@damiangrouse4564]

WOW! The fit and finish on that rifle is WOW!!!

[@TheRogueWolf]

You can hear the little "pop" at 9:26 when Ian pulls the pin out. Now that's some tight tolerances!

[@damiangrouse4564]

The Rogue Wolf 👍

[@sailingmaster]

As much as my generation was taught that Eastern Europe was some kind of hellhole wasteland that was stuck in the '40s in terms of industrial capability, the Czechs were some damned fine engineers.

[@sethlance8009]

@@sailingmaster the Czechs were the best of the East European nation as far as firearm inovation

[@OslikusPrime]

@@sethlance8009 Please, dont call Czech republic Eastern Europe. Due to obvious reasons, we are very sensitive about it and many people here takes it almost as an insult. And it is a nonse geographically aswell. Do you can Austria for example Eastern Europe ? I dont think so. Yet, our borders runs side by side and if you look at the map, and find our capital cities, you will find out, that Vienna is about 150 km more to the east, then Prague. Yes, we were part of eastern bloc, but not by choice. It is Central Europe, not eastern. And it is more tha behind how we identify ourselves, then just feelings . Even culturally, Central Europe has it's own historical specifics and strong cultural bonds. It's us, parts of Germany (Bayern, Sachsen), Austria, Slovakia, southern Poland and Hungary.

[@LooneyJuice]

What a beautiful rifle! I actually exclaimed "wow!" during one of the panning shots. I swear, almost everyone keeps referencing the usual suspects in arms development in my usual circles; US, Germans, Russians, Swiss etc. But I have a special place in my heart for the Czechs. Without fail almost every single video pertaining to a Czech firearm has captivated me even more than usual. The ZB-26 being a gorgeous recent example. Thanks for the amazing work Ian!

[@randymagnum143]

That is a handsome rifle. Never seen an aesthetically pleasing Russian firearm though! The cz75 is so much a better pistol than the Beretta.

[@LooneyJuice]

I remember the deal with the CZ-75. If only... I won't lie, I'm fairly new to the Czech game, mainly due to overexposure to everything else, but the last decade or so I've been exposed to the Czechs, I feel like I'm watching lead-launching clockwork.

[@LooneyJuice]

I'm sure there's a bit of irony in that story. What with an Italian pistol stealing a Czech pistol's limelight, and using an Italian knockoff of the aforementioned Czech pistol for competition! Cool little insight, thanks for that.

[@ivanmonahhov2314]

This rifle will take forever to manufacture

[@allancastellon4432]

Randy Magnum personally the SKS and RPD look really good Although i love Soviet aesthetics so I might be biased

[@kllrt]

I'm a simple man, I see Czech forgotten weapon, I like the video.

[@para-medic4990]

Kllrt i like video*

[@M0torsagmannen]

the Czechs make some really beautiful guns

[@vaclav_fejt]

Just remember, "ou" in Czech is pronounced like "oh".

[@allewis4008]

The audio is perfect in this video too.

[@TheBlinkMIDF]

Aaayyyyy Kllrt

[@MN12Guns]

"you can re-cock the hammer by pulling on the trigger guard" Did not expect that one.

[@ThaOneDon]

gorgeous czechnology!

[@Dieselkraftwerk]

S3r1ous lol

[@wild_willie2671]

This weapon looks gorgeous...

[@Ratzfourtyfour]

Also when you look at Czech cars from that time, Czech engineering was pretty much at level with the German's, if not superior in some regards. I say this as a German.

[@mortisCZ]

Thank You in the name of my ancestors. It's a nice thing to read.:-)

[@Krusell1994]

Dare to say that Czech engineering was the best in the world in the time between the two great wars... Too bad soviets had to ruin everything...

[@mfree80286]

No, the ruination was the Soviet model of central planning meant any sort of self-driven advancement in design or manufacturing was horribly, horribly constrained, if not outright squashed. No longer "I have an idea, let's try it out and see who wants to buy it", it's submitting a request to the manufacturing bureau and waiting to see if someone in an office in town decides that your idea's worthwhile... which is hard with complex items and bureaucrats with no vision. Looking at the capability of design here, looking at the output from Tatra, Skoda, Praga, CKD, Avia, etc. pre-WWII... if the Nazi's hadn't invaded and the Soviets exerted control, could the Czechs have driven a world that actually looked like what was envisioned in science fiction of the day? At least stylistically...

[@mfree80286]

Czech please!

[@fuzzydunlop7928]

So, it's Capitalism's fault?

[@g.55centaurosimp18]

I've never owned a gun, but damn this gun is really well made and funished, almost an artifact.

[@vrisbrianm4720]

Seems like Forgotten Weapons has finally covered all the Czech 20s and 30s semi-auto rifles. Nice Job!

[@oldesertguy9616]

All the ones we know about for now, anyway.

[@danielwang3774]

Thank you Forgotten Weapons this is an excellent video to end the year.

[@axelord4ever]

It's damn gorgeous. I want one.

[@Robert--cm2nf]

Thank you for another year of nice films and this was also a very nice one with the parts comparing to the Garand , a unique piece this rifle

[@daisyruin]

Thanks Ian, very interesting internals on this rifle.

[@guiden15]

What a great looking rifle! some quality work done on this.

[@ducomaritiem7160]

Amazing piece of technique!

[@adamkilby2273]

This is is from the 1930's and is in great condition and the howa 1500 I bought last year already looks like shit.

[@forestalfrank1074]

My friend buy a Steyr rifle, you will get some fine Austrian craftsmanship.

[@brucerobert227]

I didn't know that Howa's never looked like sheeee-yit

[@legionitalia309]

Much like your pecker, a rifle requires proper cleaning after it gets wet. Hence the difference between one you’d own and one in a reference collection.

[@bilibiliism]

It's a low budget gun, you get what you paid for

[@OlOleander]

Legionitalia So who's volunteering to get theirs removed for said reference collection? Whose gets kept for posterity, and who keeps their for posterior?

[@longbellycaster]

Beautiful machining!

[@stacybrown3714]

Even on my phone I can see the quality of machine work. Simply elegant. Today producing it would be of astronomical cost. Thank you for such a awesome video.

[@0115Heather]

Clever engineering and excellent machining, I love the fit and finish on this rifle.

[@markgordon4368]

Keep up the good work and wishing you a very happy new year too.

[@joelm.8558]

Amazing craftsmanship

[@davebarrowcliffe8539]

You can SEE the quality of the build of this rifle. Even on video.

[@acidtreat101]

That is an absolutely beautiful rifle. The amazing condition helps, but the machining and finish and styling just really make it look amazing. I wish I could see it in person!

[@matejmatej3554]

Ian you are the best greetings from Slovenia keep up the great work

[@PzKwT1]

That is just a gorgeous rifle, I only hope that it shot as good as it looks , WOW

[@iNDREI_Ro]

What a beautiful piece of complicated machining.

[@moemaster1966]

I’m so amazed at how different countries had different machining styles , once you look at a firearm you can say that’s definitely Czech in design

[@warmongerhero]

I never thought much about Czech guns but seeing all theses guns through the ages definitely has gotten me interested.

[@jacobpaulsen9540]

really beautifully engineered and machined rifle

[@MAgrippa76]

This is the earliest I have ever been on a FW vid!

[@Ratty98]

The Czechs never fail to impress me with the old and modern guns they have made

[@SuperSecretSquirell]

That is gorgeously machined and finished.

[@crushedcranium]

functional art, and it's absolutely beautiful!

[@Roy_Godiksen]

The Machining of the weapon look as if it was made in the early 2000's. Smooth and presise! Incredible.

[@firestorm165]

I've seen machining done yesterday that wasn't as smooth

[@gunner678]

It looks like the German Gew 41! Great video as usual. Happy New Year! The Czechs make some good weapons.

[@unknownagent2597]

Magnificent riffle, such build quality

[@nathanboulton2066]

Wow, never this early!! Thanks for another awesome video.

[@matthewkrueger4786]

Oh the sphincter clenching task of pulling the trigger to drop the bolt. The finish on that rifle is fantastic.

[@Bl4ckD0g]

I should really be asleep right now... But it's another gun I haven't heard of.

[@josephhooton7781]

I think you might be watching the wrong channel if you need sleep.

[@propyne6188]

Very cool thing to czech out, indeed

[@d4ngru5h83]

propyne haha, beat me to it ;)

[@devintariel3769]

The fire rate is a bit slovak

[@upan3259]

Wow, the finish on this gun is beautiful.

[@MrDposter]

That rifle has a very visually appealing design...clean lines

[@JohnLeePedimore]

Cool gun. It looks like a M1 Garand built by Weatherby.I assume that hinged buttplate houses a cleaning kit. I was watching Antiques Roadshow once and a lady had a pair of binoculars that her family had lent to the military during WWII and after the war they returned them.I guess this was a common practice during WWII for certain items.Back then optics were expensive and mostly made Europe.

[@gunner678]

JohnLeePedimore interesting. I have a pair of Lieberman und Gortz binoculars that also did service in the same way. Particularly WW1 optics were very difficult to produce. There was an infamous deal (through swiss intermediaries) that eventualy didnt happen because it was thought too immoral...British Empire rubber supplied to Germany (who had no source due to blockade/ loss of colonial supply) for german/austrian produced sniper scopes. The British parliament deemed it morally wrong!

[@ParabolicBox]

That is very beautifully machined.

[@XeleriumDa]

What a beautiful made and preserved gun! The owners took good care of it!

[@MelodicMurder]

The metal work is outstanding.

[@ultradank4355]

Nice looking gun. The sound the gas release flap made was funny lol.

[@herkwrencher107]

What's it chambered in?

[@ForgottenWeapons]

8mm Mauser

[@herkwrencher107]

Thank you.

[@antonelloprodomo1473]

I think is in 6.5x52.

[@jamesranger6283]

My God the fit and finish on this rifle is astounding. You can see how shockingly well made this is. WOW.

[@clayrogers4532]

Beautiful rifle

[@pie4ti]

beautiful gun

[@MrSteelballer]

this is a beautiful rifle

[@alexnorris7291]

I think there's more to the story of the gas block retaining pin than just baking in compatibility with rifle grenades. If this is a prototype rifle to offer around the world, that pin looks like the perfect way to make the gas system suit different cartridges without changing the technical package much at all. Calibre conversions then become a matter of changing the bolt face, the barrel, the magazine assembly, and one pin. Those parts (except the pin) can be lifted from established designs and are mostly self-contained so your tailoring costs are minimised. I'd also be willing to bet the designer made a bunch of different pins to take to trials in case their ammo was slightly different to what he tested with. 3 years late, but that's my little contribution.

[@hobbitilius]

God, I love Czech firearms. They're so beautifully complicated.

[@ravixof159]

The Czechs sure make some fine looking rifles.

[@SPFDRum]

Czech quality in this rifle from the video rivals that of even Germany at the time. Impressive.

[@richhart7267]

BEAUTIFUL

[@Beanpapac15]

"finest ever Tapco muzzle brake"

[@gewamser]

Outstanding!

[@justcarcrazy]

This is some fine manufacturing.

[@8080256256]

The proper pronunciation of his name is "Coat-ski" - wheres you pronounce it rather like Cut-ski. The "ou" sound is almost identical to how you'd simply spell the letter "O" to someone. Great work on the video, as always.

[@drmaudio]

I am always impressed by 80 year old rifles in such fantastic condition.

[@pistonar]

That rifle is in such superb and just-been-manufactured condition, that when you were taking it apart, I kept wincing and thinking "Dude, be careful. You're going to scratch it". Wow. That's beautiful.

[@EricKPoorManPrepper]

Man that is really nicely done,.. but I would like to have seen them keep the magazine design from the ZH29 or ZB26

[@jonathansmith6050]

Didn't see it, but someone may have already mentioned that running the gas through the cross pin also means if you've forgotten to secure the gas tube (left out that pin) the gas just vents out the giant cross hole instead of launching the unsecured gas tube forward. Plus it's immediately obvious that something went wrong. So possible a bit more soldier-proof than using a normal push pin that isn't in the gas path.

[@ecrogue4496]

Wow, that is really cool.

[@tomalexander4327]

This looks like it's been fired twice, if at all.

[@Cragified]

I suspect it has been touched up. The white on the lettering makes me the most suspect because those white paints back then cracked and yellowed simply over time.

[@mikeblair2594]

not to mention the wood finish looks brand new.

[@carter1940]

That's a fine looking rifle.

[@griffn14]

That is definitely the best hammer spring on the channel.

[@calebbrown6735]

Such good condition

[@RyTrapp0]

The more I watch these vids, the more I want to dedicate my life to collecting Czech firearms! The combination of machine work/fit & finish, clever design, and beautiful engineering is seemingly unmatched by any single nation(especially one that ISN'T some 'giant superpower'). This is possibly just my preferences, but Czech firearms may just be the most seducing of them all

[@kuttinkuddy3905]

a beautiful work of machining! so we'll made. if firearms today were built like that I would actually buy them just to take them apart.

[@jfrorn]

Man that's a good looking rifle!

[@ryanvargas4889]

Incredibly rich history in just one rifle.

[@MA-mg4cd]

A reassembly video of this rifle would be highly pornographic... and greatly appreciated.

[@nbenicewicz]

You never said what cartridge it was chambered in.

[@Gray13475]

Most are in 7.92x57mm. 6.5×52mm Mannlicher-Carcano for the Pepperonis probably.

[@UXB1000]

nbenicewicz He replied to a comment below; it's chambered for the 8mm Mauser.

[@JobboFett]

This looks like a really interesting rifle. Shame there aren't more examples available out in the wild!

[@bryan11757]

Amazing

[@ender25ish]

probably one of the best looking rifles you have ever had on here as far as physical condition goes.

[@Tenkai917]

Wow...nice rifle!

[@EchoesofExclusion]

Great video as always. Makes my day! Thank you Gun Jesus

[@super_shag8685]

the Czech really love their Domestic Arsenal

[@PaulBury1]

Ian, if you ever get an opportunity to see ZB-47, review it asap. It's lost even to us/me, I saw it only in one Czech museum. All info I have about it was only in it's manual, but the gun is worth czeching into, so weird, yet so beautiful.

[@newdefsys]

Good Lord, thats a beautiful rifle, thru-&-thru !

[@Olivier-C]

The gas port / pin at 15:00, maybe they had plans for different pins with different hole sizes, in order to finely tune the pressure ? Or for use with different ammos ?

[@andrewhackney6286]

Olivier C my first thought when I saw that was that that little pin would essentially be welded in place by hot carbon if you had to is that rifle at a sustained high volume of fire. Just like you can almost weld a gas regulator on a 240.

[@mfree80286]

Could be why it's attached with a "handle" capable of twisting it... and completely through the gas block in such a way you could set the rifle on a special punch block and knock the crap out of it without worrying about damaging anything else.

[@andrewhackney6286]

That is a fair point. That being said, I'd be afraid to take a punch anywhere near that beautiful rifle.

[@michailpanchev7292]

The hammer spring is quite similar in its design to that on the PTRS 14,5 mm anti-tank rifle. Has its undeniable assets. First of them all - it's compact. The whole assembly of the hammer and its spring take very little space.

[@mfree80286]

"Czech weapon"...."Lots of nifty features" I don't think you can separate those two phrases. EDIT: Also of note, two marks of brilliance. 1 - the little neat features like the hammer recocking mechanism are designed in such a way they are easily omissible, and 2 - there's a great deal of evidence of forward thought in the design, as Ian pointed out with the gas block pin and bolt hold open system that could be adapted as an auto sear. Oh, and the mag floorplate catch that is in a reasonable place to be used as a removable magazine's catch. And that the removable muzzle brake also allows for a stronger bayonet to be mounted *and* either a simpler slip-on launchable grenade OR a similar style clip-on grenade launcher attachment. Add a single pin and ramp cut to the bolt for the firing pin, and that top track for the OOB safety function becomes the FP advancement mechanism if fired from the bolt hold-open as an open bolt automatic. TLDR, these guys were *good* at this.

[@Lidoott]

I enjoy every single one of your videos Ian, but especially the Czech ones. Might have something to do with my nationality. And with your attempts to pronounce Czech words correctly... Just FYI, Germans did not occupy us in 1938 (even though you are technically right and I am sure you know the difference between annexation in 1938 and invasion in 1939). Nevertheless, excellent video, keep them coming.

[@AlbertShell]

Great video! You've just made one little mistake - in 1938, the Germans only occupied the Sudetenland (border areas inhabited by ethnic Germans) following the Munich Agreement. The occupation of the rest of Czechoslovakia, including Brno/Brünn, would come on 15 March 1939.

[@anadin0612]

That's one good looking firearm.

[@RalphReagan]

Super!

[@petrolak]

Koutský its not pronounced "kuht-ski", it's more like "coat-skee" not mean to nitpick, love the videos

[@tangero3462]

In terms of complicated Czech tech, this is actually pretty tame. I like it

[@tangero3462]

Also, the story behind this example is outstanding

[@warmachine_1396]

It was love at first sight!

[@koenvangeleuken2853]

makes one wonder if the designer actually had a Garand there to study.

[@PetrVasilijevic]

ČZ Vz. 24 (9mm Browning) would be nice . Btw i am from Czech Rep. I love your videos

[@angst_]

That gas pin could have been designed to easily swap out the gas port size. Different ammunition might call for a large or smaller port.

[@baconator1200]

I'm watching this at work at 4am

[@_Nyx_]

Alexander G. At work but 5am for me lol

[@oldesertguy9616]

I used to do that but they banned electronic devices at our workstations in October. I have to catch up at home. Ian's vide3os are usually short, but it takes me awhile to get through the C&Rsenal ones.

[@ajussiwannabe]

Absolutely beautifully designed and machined rifle! BUT I wonder if its too complicated for battlefield?

[@robertberghane1919]

I wish these had made production. I would have bought one!!! I love CZ products. I have a CZ 75 and a CZ 82, both are awesome guns. I used to own a CZ 52 but sold it when 7.62x25 got scarce.