Wasn't PTR making receivers for Century for these? If so, are they still?

I know the later C308s were generally considered to be pretty solid. Is that still the case?

At the right price, any reason not to buy one? (Well, other than the normal "Century" gamble)

I diagnose Cetme issues pretty regularly on the militaryfirearm.com site and generally speaking the new C308's are not the problem child that the earlier black widows and other pre-post ban models were.  That means that no one is complaining about them like they used to.

However... We had one member that liked to shoot (but wasn't much on gunsmithing) that had a C308 that was just a mess.  Every time he posted it seemed like the complaints were shifted all over the place.  He screwed around with it for a couple years then offered it up for sale so cheap that I bought it from him just to see for myself what was wrong.  I posted a 3 page thread on the issues I had to fix to get the rifle right again.  Remember, all Cetme's are made with original -sometimes very well used military parts and it's luck of the draw on whether the parts came from a rack queen or a bottom of the barrel parts kit. Assembly issues also come into play.  #4 below was caused by the barrel installer pressing the barrel in to HK specs instead of Cetme specs.

Here's an excerpt from that thread.

I'd get a PTR

So decent chance the thing will run out of the box, just be aware there could be issues? Maybe significant? Does that sound fair?

Had one. Damn fine rifles.

The attraction to the C308 is it's priced at about half what I'd pay for a new PTR, at least locally. I guess I could see what it'd cost to get one shipped in, assuming I can find one in stock.

And, honestly, if I'm going to spend over a grand on a rifle right now, it's probably going to be a Begara B14 HMR.

This is just a target of opportunity and will just be a range toy.

The situation with the rifle above is the absolute worst case I've run into in 10 years.  It was worth what I paid for it just to see it for myself.  I eventually sold the rifle for what I had into it to a friend of mine and he's enjoying it immensely.

Pro's:
The C308's are very nice looking rifles with the PTR receivers (professional looking welds) and nice paint.
The original components of a Cetme are mechanically (metalurgy, hardness and finish) identical to HK components - better than PTR parts.
Properly assembled with serviceable parts they will run along side of a real HK91 shot for shot.

Con's:
Bolt carrier groups come from used military rifles. Condition is luck of the draw with what you receive.
There are no NOS replacement parts (at least very few) such as bolt heads and locking pieces.
CAI's piss poor Cetme builds prior to 2010 gave the Cetme name a bad reputation.

PTR rifles have their problems too, their customer service/repair department works very hard to keep people happy so the problems fade from memory quickly.  They have the advantage of parts interchangeability with HK91's.  I've lost track of the number of times I've read that owners replaced the PTR internals with HK parts just to "improve" the rifle (probably just for bragging rights).

I have one HK33 clone that I built and an HK91 parts kit sitting in a box. The rest of my DRLB guns are Cetmes in different configurations and calibers. Here's an old pic of some:

Thanks for the input. I'm going to think it over and decide what I want to do.

I have several other things I want to get done and this wasn't on the list but it's been a while since I've seen one and the wood looks damn good on it. Better than I remember liking them in the past. I wonder if I'm going to regret not getting one while I have the chance.

I'm getting too old to add another regret to my pile.
These days you can sell just about any rifle for a profit. Buy it and see what you think. If it's not everything you could ask for flip it for a profit later on.  

Went out with my brother to look at it again today. Figured on buying it. They weren't open. Swore I saw New Year's Day hours, but I was wrong.

Probably buying it in the morning. I'll update if I do.

What kind of components did you get?  Is the carrier a model B or C?  Is the locking piece marked with a "50" or is it plain on both sides?  How long is the bolt head, (1.832" +\- .002" is nominal) or has it been ground down to 1.821?  What does the bolt gap measure after the bolt is slammed home and hammer dry fired?

I'll have to look that stuff up and get back to you. I'll get more pictures, too.

Been a while since I've done a bit gap measurement and have to find my calipers.

OK, minor update. The locking piece is the 50 degree LP. The carrier is a type C, I THINK. At least I don't find anything on the underside of the carrier that resembles the four feet from lightening cuts.

I'm going to borrow my brother's digital calipers and find my feeler gauges later this morning and do the rest of the measurements.

I'm remembering why I "love" reassembling HK carriers/bolt heads, BTW.

Jump to 3:25 in this video to see how easy it is to swap out parts. I put the bolt into the backwards to extend the bolt head and collapse the rollers.

That's SLICK! Never thought of that! (Obviously)

Nice looking rifle, by the way!

And.......doubletap.

OK definitely the model C carrier. Bolt is 1.834" gap is .018. Everything looks good, I think.

Sound good to you?

My brother bought one, too.

Model B carrier. Bolt is 1.83". Gap is .021 I know the gap is long, but probably not a big issue. Should he worry about the model B carrier?

It was obvious what you meant by "four feet" as soon as I took it out.

Sounds like you both got good rifles.

It always pays to check the locking pieces (especially in rifles with model B carriers) for the "50" stamp.  I have seen many model B kits arrive with unmarked locking pieces that were actually 60 degrees instead of 50 degrees.  Model B Cetme rifles originally used 60 degree LP's for the Spanish Cetme round and changed over to 50 degrees for NATO cartridges.  60 degree LP's are sought after by builders that want to build rifles in 7.62x39 or cut their barrels down to 10". It sucks to shoot a NATO round with a 60LP in place on a full length barrel.

Thanks for the help/information!

I've learned a lot in the last couple of days.

Can't wait to try it out at the range, but that will have to wait until next week.

Just a quick update. We took these out yesterday and they run fine.

Mine will need significant sight adjustment. Haven't thought of that and have a tool on the way. My brothers is close and will need minor adjustment.

I find it interesting to note that my brother remarked that thought the C308 recoiled less than his PTR91. I have to agree with him. It IS pretty smooth.

Video of my nephew shooting my brother's C308. He likes the shooting more that hitting stuff, but we're working on him.

I got mine in November of 2019. I've never had a HK style rifle and wanted to try one. Mine came with the wood furniture and I switched it out to G3 surplus. She needed a good cleaning but its ran great so far, only about 350 rounds though so time will tell. Attached File

Are any of these available at any of the normal online retailers?

Atlantic had some last time I checked

ETA: Nope out of stock

The brake that comes with the C308 is extremely efficient.  When I did the high speed video recording on the C308 I bought cheap and repaired the slow motion playback showed that the brake caused the muzzle to dip downward a little with each shot instead of rising.

And I probably didn't give the break enough credit for that.

I assumed it meant the Cetme had a better buffer than the PTR. I've been telling him to get one of the heavy buffers from Robertg for years now. Out of a FAL, 2 7.62 ARs, and now the Cetme, the PTR had the most noticeable recoil out of all of them.

The Cetme really is pleasant to shoot. The break isn't obnoxious like the one on my Hakim, either.

Nobody, it seems. The place I got mine from had another, a few days ago, anyways. That really doesn't do you all that much good, though, being in NW OH.

On a rifle with a good bolt locking lever and spring  the carrier never touches the buffer, heavy or otherwise. Only when shooting suppressed with the wrong locking piece or worn out locking lever parts will the carrier reach the extra long post in a heavy buffer.  Most shooters would be better served to upgrade their locking lever springs than waste money on heavy buffers.

Good to know. I'll point him in that direction.

OK, final update.

With all the bad weather, I didn't really want to fool with going out and trying this, after I "roughed" in the sights on a rest and looking down the barrel.

Figured I had nothing better to do today and it's a FANTASTIC day to go shoot, so I went out to see if I could get her zeroed. My first shots at 50 years were still high and just slightly left, so I raised the frond post a LOT more and went heavy on the left windage. I guessed pretty much spot on on the elevation. I did get some unexpected fliers, but the the group was pretty centered up. I moved the windage slightly back left and called it good.

I was going to go down to the 300 yard range, to try to bang some steel, but there was already a group down there, so I swung by the 500 yard range, to check visibility on the gong there. I could see it well, so I said "screw it" and setup to shoot at it. The front sight post covers the entire gong, so I was pretty satisfied with several hits. Good enough for this particular rifle.





@Holescreek once again, thanks for all the help.