CZ 1012 Field Review

The CZ 1012 in Mossyoak Bottomland finish.

Overview

I had a trip planned to Kodiak, Alaska, that had been dreamed of for several years. Our trip was to involve a Blacktail deer hunt, and if we found success there, a few days spent chasing the exotic waterfowl that call Alaska home. Two weeks before our departure, the forend on my trusty semi-auto split on a routine day of South Dakota pheasant hunting. To make matters worse, the replacement forend I needed was out of stock, and there was nothing the manufacturer could do for me in the short window of time I had. In need of a replacement shotgun for my Alaskan adventure, I found myself at our local Cabela’s.  It was there that I first stumbled upon the CZ  1012.

Manufacturer Description

I was familiar with CZ, but my experience had largely been with the reasonably priced over-unders and side-by-sides they produce for upland hunters. I knew little about their entries into the world of semi-automatics. CZ describes their model 1012 as their “latest evolution in their semi-automatic shotgun line” operating on an inertia operating system (most widely associated with Benelli). Inertia operated shotguns harness the energy from the produced recoil to cycle the shell, rather than redirecting the gas from the spent shell like their gas-operated counterparts. As CZ goes on to explain, the cleaner cycling of an inertia driven gun provides a major advantage in the necessary maintenance required for consistent functionality. During their testing of the 1012, CZ “pushed 1012’s to 5,000 rounds without a drop of oil or cleaning of any sort, while experiencing zero parts breakage or malfunction”. To further add to the model 1012’s street credit, a team of shooters broke the Guinness World Record for most sporting clays shot in a 12-hour period while exclusively using the 1012. Shooters were able to break over 14,000 sporting clays, shattering the previous record. As CZ dubs it, the 1012 is a “minimal maintenance workhorse!”. Starting out at just $679.00 on the CZ website, the 1012 is also at an incredibly competitive price point.

Finish

The CZ comes in a wide variety of options, depending on your preference or field application, including:

·        CZ 1012 Standard: Turkish Walnut stock with a matte black chrome barrel finish

·        CZ 1012 All-Terrain: Turkish Walnut stock with a green cerakote barrel finish

·        CZ 1012 Synthetic Bottomland: Synthetic stock and complete bottomland camo finish

·        CZ 1012 Synthetic Shadow Grass: Synthetic stock with complete shadow grass camo finish

To sweeten the pot, the CZ 1012 comes with five extended chokes (F, IM, M, IC, C) and a hard sided case, an offering usually reserved for shotguns in higher price points. From the skeet range to the goose blind, the 1012 has you covered!

Fit and Feel

Fit and feel was the first thing that stood out to me when comparing the 1012 to other options on the gun rack. The 1012 feels solid in hand, and the addition of textured grip on the forend is a nice touch, especially when encountering wet conditions in the field. To ensure an even more custom fit, the 1012 comes with a full pack of stock shims, giving you the option to adjust the cast and drop to your preference. A simplistic white barrel bead makes for easy target acquisition, and the 1012 comes to my shoulder and swings exceptionally well. Equipped with an oversized bolt handle for easy maneuverability, the action is more than adequate. You shouldn’t expect the buttery smooth actions of shotguns at twice the price, but you should expect full functionality. The 1012 is available in a 26’’ or 28’’ barrel length offering, with a 3’’ chambering.

A potential draw back of the 1012 might be the recoil. There is noticeably more recoil than the gas-operated shotguns I have more extensive experience with. This might be of particular importance when you also consider that the CZ 1012 is currently only offered in 12 gauge. Additionally, the trigger left something to be desired. Although it isn’t overly stiff, when closely inspected, there seems to be some sponginess in the break. I didn’t find this to be of major significance in my own use, and would guess that outside of a specific competition application, this sponginess might be negligible for most users.

Functionality

In my experience, the 1012’s functionality has stood up to its workhorse reputation. I have cycled everything from light trap loads to magnum goose loads, and have yet to have any failures or jams over the last year. Alaska provided me the opportunity to test the 1012 in the elements, and it handled exceptionally well. From wet boat rides on the Sitkalidak Straight to the countless other elements encountered on a November hunt in Alaska, the 1012 remained consistent. We took Alaskan ducks and geese, and one hunting companion was lucky enough to even take a drake harlequin. I look forward to using and abusing the 1012 in rough waterfowl conditions for years to come. In summary, I have been very impressed with the CZ 1012. It provides a plethora of features usually only found in shotguns at twice the price, and has world record functionality behind its name. Backed by CZ’s limited five-year warranty, the CZ 1012 makes a great addition to any gun safe