Making a choce

[Shaun]

Okay Guys I need info I am looking for a new toy again -- my will power is failing I haven't bought a gun in 2 months.

I was looking at Cole's website and found new Century CETME's with the Black Widow Furnitue and the Wood Furniture + several Mags for a price of $349. Good deal or not and what should I look for with them .

[Big Dog]

For the true CETME experience, get your wood up! No self-respecting CETME wears plastic - it becomes a cheapo HK wannabe.
Seriously, those black plastic stocks do have reliability issues - they have a tendency to crack. You'll be replacing it with the original wood, or an HK stockset - more money to spend later.
I like the feel of real wood & steel.

Check the following, if you can:
1) Fit of the muzzle brake - some tend to be off kilter - if the bullet strikes the edge, your accuracy will suffer (easy to fix though!). Look for a brass-colored smudge on the inside of the MBE.
2) Fit of the magazines in the magwell - some mags fit, some might not.
If the CETME steel mags don't fit well, try the HK alloy mags. Cheap and excellent quality!
3) The mag latch is sometimes off center (another easy fix - a little filing on the mags). More rarely, the magwell might be warped - harder to fix, but doable.
4 The rear sight is sometimes a bit off - especially on the cast steel receivers. Another easy fix.
5) Sometimes the triple-tree is off-center (that unit housing the front sight), much harder to fix, but doable. Still, send this one back to Century, and have the Drunk Monkey fix it.
6) If you get one without the famous "Muzzle Blast Enhancer", check to make sure it has a good crown. Each I've seen so far is okay.
7) More for the Anal Retentive CETME shooter - check the bolt to see if it's been ground. It can still be a good shooter - but some folks get very emotional over this issue.
8) Being an HK-style gun, a good solid scope mount is hard to find, without breaking your bank account. Avoid those silly Airsoft mounts like the plague.

And remember - a good clean CETME in proper working order has nothing to fear from commercial .308WIN ammo. Don't spread the myth.
I shoot it regularly - I know.

Choose wisely, and the CETME is a great rifle. If it does have problems (as any weapon assembled from a parts kit can, eh , AK owners?), the fix is usually fairly easy. There are some great websites out there for the CETME too.
Take the plunge - Viva El Chopo!

[Shaun]

THanks Big Dog

[Big Dog]

Whew! Made it under the wire. Just as I hit the 'submit' button, IE kicked me off! Hope it was just the danged storm.

That's not a bad price. They've been going up lately. The good ones with the wood were running around $400 - $450 at our last gunshow! The Black Widows were upwards of $375 - $400. Just last year they were under three bills.

For extra magazines, try InterOrdnance - they have a ten-pack of used (barely!) magazines for $19.50 - that's a buck ninety five per magazine! The ten I got were excellent - HK alloys with no wear on eight - had to be unissued. The two others were barely used. All fit my Chopo perfectly.
I got a nice CETME sling on Auction Arms.
Don't forget to buy a front sight adjusting tool! The front sight adjusts for both windage and elevation.

[BluesJunkie]

Hey Big Dog: I Gots CETME W/Cast Recvr With The Infamous "Ground Bolt". I Installed 2+ Rollers Yielding A Bolt Gap Of .010 To .012 Inches[Depending On The Phase Of The Moon]. I Have Some "Play" At The Charging/Bolt Carrier Contact Area. Am I Good To
Go?? What Is The Deal On The "Ground Bolt" Issue? Is Bolt Grinding A No..No??

[Big Dog]

I don't believe even Century would sell a product with a dangerous flaw (and the resulting lawsuits it would generate) - lots of guys are shooting their CETME rifles with the ground bolts, with no ill effects at all. Just keep tabs on the wear and bolt gap - check it every so often. Grinding the bolt isn't the "proper way" to adjust bolt gap after assembly, but there have been no documented cases of this in itself causing failures. The "ground bolt issue" has been blown totally out of proportion to it's importance. Your gap sounds okay - maybe just a tad high, considering future wear. You could install +4's, but it isn't really necessary yet.
For the "play" issue, best to ask the guys over on Gunboards. Several of them have much more experience with the finer technical aspects of our Spanish Ladies. They can help you locate the parts, if any are needed to be changed.