CZ Yearbook 2019 /eng

30 | | 31 The CZ 75 OPERACE ANTHRO- POID pistols were basically made to order, and in spite of their relatively high price, the whole series sold out very fast. The project ran until spring 2018, which incidentally means that dating of the compulsory proof mark, commonly used for CZ weapons for manufac- ture dating, fell behind in some cases after the particular mod- el was f inished and shipped. Each “assassination” pistol was shipped in a luxury leather case with a certificate confirming its authenticity. CZ 75 REPUBLIKA The latest newcomer in the CZ limited editions is the CZ 75 RE- PUBLIKA, which was unveiled to the general public on the 28 th October 2018, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the foundation of Czechoslovakia. As we will shortly see, this pro- ject has broken several records. The idea to commemorate such a special anniversary of the Czechoslovak Republic came once again from René Ondra, CZ’s engraver, who recom- mended the commemorative editionbebasedonthe timeless CZ 75 B. This pistol continues to be somewhat of an icon of the Uher- ský Brod company and if one looks care- fully, they will see a connec- tion with the interwar period – the golden era of Czechoslo- vak arms industry, a time when the pistol’s designer, František Koucký, rose to fame. This edition took a while to decide on the final design and what should be in- cluded in the acces- sories, an important part of such pro- jects. René On- dra ref ined his vision with the h e l p o f p r o d u c t managers Jan Gibek and Lubor Pokorný, and also took into account his own fam- ily. His great-grandfather was a WorldWar 1 legionnaire who for the rest of his life held the first Czechoslovak president, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, in high es- teem. “With this project I want- ed to pay tribute to him as well as to all those who one hun- dred years ago fought for the creation of our republic,” René Ondra explains. The CZ 75 RE- PUBLIKA is based on an all-steel CZ 75 B SA/DA model in 9 mm Luger calibre. The frame and slide are blued andpolished to a high gloss, with the barrel in high gloss as well. The outline of the f rame and slide is inlaid with 24-carat gold. Within this area, the surface is engravedwith the motif of a linden tree branch which constitutes an impor- tant element of the interwar Czechoslovak Republic nation- al symbols. The engraving can be also found on the front and back of the grip, where it has replaced the usual vertical checkering for a more relia- ble grip. The gold- en outline and the linden tree motif engraving con- tinue on the b o t t o m o f t he mag- azine base- plate. More- o v e r , t w e n - ty-four carat gold was also used to plate the controls – the trigger, hammer, slide stop, magazine release and manu- al safety, including their axes protruding from the right side of the f rame, as well as the extractor and screws secur- ing the anatomical grip panels made of briar root. The beauti- ful grain of this brown wood is accentuated by varnishing. There is also a special decora- tive feature in the forma small coat of arms of the Czechoslo- vak Republic used between 1920 and 1938. It is made of gold (certified by a hallmark), embedded into the right side of the f rame, between the safety axes and the slide stop. On the left side of the f rame there is an inscription in elegant retro style font PRAVDA VÍTĚZÍ (truth prevails – a motto used on the presidential standard andon the greater coat of arms) and CZ 75 REPUBLIKA. The pistol also bears the traditional CZ trade- mark and the calibre designa- tion. On the left of the f rame, there is a two-line text (in Czech) Made in the Czech Republic in the edition of 100 models. On the right side of the frame, slide and around the ejec- tion port, in addition to the prescribed proof marks, each model is also designated with a unique serial number, CSR-1918 to CSR-2018. In the front of the right side of the slide, there is an inscription expressing the anni- versary of this edition: 1918–2018. Each CZ 75 REPUBLIKA pistol is supplied in a specially designed wooden case f itted with little legs. Regarding the materials, René Ondra says: “The case is made fromthree types of wood – Turkishwalnut, ashandburrwal- nut veneer on the sides. The burr was difficult to find in the Czech Republic, in the end I managed to source it fromAustria.” A linden tree branch is carved on the lid, encircling the Czech- oslovak greater coat of arms from the First Republic. Inside, the case is lined with dark red microplush velvet. A portrait of the first Czechoslovak presi- dent, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk and the Czechoslovak Republic greater coat of arms on hand- made paper is mounted into the lid of the case. The lid is held open by two tricolour ribbons. The cases are supplied in black protective laminated cardboard bearing the CZ logo. “In my opinion, this model is the most priceless CZ 75 pistol in history,” René Ondra adds. “And not just because there are only 100 models. In addi- tion to the superb decorations and unique accessories, it is also unusual in that it has in- scriptions in Czech and unique numbering. A customer thus has the option, for example, to choose a model with their year of birth. I might not live to see it myself, but I believe that one day, one of these models will become a museum exhib- it. After all, a model with the number CSR-1928 has already been reserved for the Prague Military History Institute.” The uniqueness of the CZ RE- PUBLIKA edition is reflected in the price which would have pleased the legendary interwar entrepreneur Tomáš Baťa: CZK 199,900. The price is also one of the records we mentioned at the beginning, as pistols f rom this editionareundoubtedly themost expensive CZ pistols ever to enter the regular market. Neverthe- less, the customer response has also been record-breaking, the whole series was basically sold out (pre-ordered) immediately after it was officially presented. Without doubt, this great suc- cess just about guarantees that we can look forward to seeing additional interesting limited editions of CZ guns in the future too. CZ’s engraver, René Ondra, working on the CZ 75 REPUBLIKA