VZ 58 PHOTO GALLERY AT BOTTOM OF POST
So Freeze and I have been talking about getting some “truck guns”. What is a truck-gun you ask? Well…that’s a complicated question depending on what your needs are. Let me be brutally honest: For me a truck-gun is something that must be expendable. Now before everyone starts howling, let me explain that statement:
A truck-gun by definition is something that is not in your home or domicile. It is not in your safe. It is not in your man-room. And it is not behind your front door. It’s out in your truck. And by definition, a vehicle is less secure than your home. Some will argue that point but I will continue….
Dollor for dollar, your vehicle insurance is more expensive than your home insurance — generally. This is because a vehicle is statistically more likely to encounter the following scenarios: Totaled in a crash, broken into, stolen, vandalized, left on a dark street, keys given to a valet, idled in a strange place for days or weeks while you are traveling, broken down on the side of the road, towed for illegal parking, etc, etc, etc. And while we are on the subject: Vehicles are expendable. No vehicle lasts forever and nothing in one should be considered priceless.
So…that begs the question: why leave a weapon in your vehicle? Frankly, my answer to that is I don’t. Ever. And if ever violated, the clock is ticking to resolve that problem. In short, it bugs the hell out of me.
Until now. Truck Vaults have changed that. While I still have some reservations about the “truck gun” concept, I have seen enough weapon drawers in Command Vehicles to move past it. And again, being brutally honest, I’m not using a pricy rifle like a SCAR as a truck-gun. At least not yet. But with the Truck Vault and the Lo-Jack, I’m feeling more confident on the whole subject.
Now as to why a VZ 58? For one, Freeze is fairly familiar with them. Being an old MILSURP collector from back in the day, he even has a VZ parts kit the pre-dates the time when the VZ 58 was even available in the US. So…we are flush with spare parts. Two, for this project I prefer a folding stock setup, which I will explain in a future post as to why. Three, I haven’t owned an AK-ish type rifle in well over 15 years. Four, Frankly the more educated I became on the VZ 58, the better I appreciated what it has over the AK. Five, the whole point of a Truck-Gun for my use is to always have at least enough fire-power and punch (assuming I can get to my truck) to take care of me and mine in a worst-case scenario.
And that is what we really are talking about aren’t we? A worst case scenario. A biblical earthquake, a plague of locusts, a Mumbai or Nairobi, or a selfish-narcissistic man-child that blames the world because he’s too much of a pussy to talk to chicks. Yeah. I said it. It’s 100% true. F. That guy. And F. That drama.
Between the Columbine-Wanna-Be-Loser-Dorks and aspiring jihadi types, I’m adding firepower to my self-rescue vehicle gear: tire iron, truck jack, air pump, spot light, DC/AC Converter, blanket, First Aid Kit, and VZ 58. So with that thought in mind, I can’t practically imagine a situation when a VZ topped with a quality red-dot and 5 mags leaves me wishing, “F@#k! I’m stuck! I wish I had more gun!”.
Being able to push bad-guys back from 50 feet out to 200 yards solves A LOT of my problems. And a lot of most everyone else’s too. So don’t kid yourself. That’s all this is. Nothing more.
Known and Unknown Issues: The VZ is NOTHING like an AK. None of the parts interchange. The mags don’t interchange. Also, it seems some of the VZ 58’s might have striker-cocking issues that can be remedied with a slight modification to the bolt and trigger-springs. Being old 1911 guys, a little firearm self-rescue (noticing a theme here?) doesn’t scare us one iota. The fore ends run hot. But there are plenty of aftermarket furniture options should one look hard enough. We’ll figure it out.
How we got it. We called an old buddy from AIM Surplus and inquired if they had any VZ’s sitting around as their website said out of stock. As it just so happens, they dug up 5 of them! Major solid. Great guys. Here is what we put together:
VZ 58 2008 Century Arms
11 non-issued 30 round VZ mags.
1 Un-Issued VZ Mag Pouch.
1 Un-Issued VZ Original sling that will work just fine. Even for CQB work.
1 Un-issued Bayonet and Scabbard.
1 Possibly issued cleaning kit.
1 Empty Chamber Flag. Might come in handy on a truck gun if you think about it.
1000 round case of 7.62 Wolf Ammo.
And 6 AIM T-shirts. Note: There is ONE significant flaw with their t-shirts: We didn’t make them. I kid.
We’ll have more updates as we shake-down the rifle and reveal some other neat truck–gun tricks of the trade.
–Marky
www.tacticaltshirts.com
“Shooting Guns & Having Fun”
Areas of focus: Defense and National Security, Modern Light Weapons, Small Arms, Weapons Training.
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