14.5 mm BRNO Dovetail

General description

Dovetail is a uniquely designed mounting platform on a rifle's receiver, which enables the installation of various scope mounts for different rifles. Regardless of the rifle type and dovetail width, this unique design can be grooved onto the rifle's receiver, barrel or slide. The most common and recognizable is the 11 mm dovetail design.

The 14.5 mm dovetail can be mostly found on Czech drop barrel rifles. For example Brno 500, 611, ZH, Super, Browning Erice and of course many others. The dovetail design on these rifles is grooved on the rear top end of the barrel, with a length of approximately 4 cm but can also be longer.

Physical properties and dimensions

The 14.5 mm determines the measurement of the upper mounting surface. Generally, a dovetail design offers the possibility of mount installation without screws going into the receiver. Scope mounts simply clamp on the dovetail, with sufficient force so there is no movement during recoil.

Additionally, all 14.5 mm dovetails are designed with a recoil cutout, which offers even better resistance against recoil. The recoil stop groove is canted on the left side of the dovetail. Dovetail slopes are at an angle of 60 degrees. For a clearer understanding, please see the attached image below.

14.5 mm Dovetail

An example of a 14.5 mm dovetail as used on Brno ZH 305

Figure 1: An example of a 14.5 mm dovetail as used on Brno ZH 305 (Source: https://intersurplus.com/collections/combination-guns/products/brno-zh305-12-22-hp-2)

14.5 mm Dovetail

Here are some rifles with a 14.5 mm dovetail:

Best Scope Mounts for 14.5 mm Dovetail

Scope mounts for the 14.5 mm dovetail will come with a recoil notch at the rear left end to match the cutout on the rifle’s mounting surface. There are various manufacturers available who offer different kinds of mounts suitable for 14.5 mm dovetail. Due to the short length of the surface, one-piece scope mounts should preferably be used on rifles featuring a 14.5 mm dovetail.

Fixed Scope Mounts for 14.5 mm Dovetail

Fixed one-piece scope mounts require tools for attaching and detaching from the rifle's mounting surface. One-piece, two-part mounts use a base onto which the two rings are attached whereas the monoblocs or one-piece one-part mounts are usually milled from a single piece of material, with the lower end of the rings merged with the base. Fixed mounts can also come in the form of two-piece scope rings that are installed separately, however, due to the relatively short length of the mounting surface on a 14.5 mm dovetail, one-piece scope mounts will prevail in this category.

If you are looking for a one-piece solution for your 14.5 mm dovetail you might consider this slip-on mount which is manufactured by the Czech company Kozap.

Detachable Repeatable Scope Mounts for 14.5 mm Dovetail

Scope mounts that offer repeatability can be found in this category. Because the mounts always apply the same force to the dovetail base when clamping onto it, the scope will maintain its zero even when it is removed and reinstalled. The terms quick release (QR) and quick detach (QD) are frequently used to refer to different types of detachable mounting.

Due to the specific design of a recoil notch, there are not that many detachable repeatable scope mounts suitable for 14.5 mm. However, if you are looking for a detachable mounting solution to fit on your rifle, you cannot go wrong with this Rusan roll-off mount. It is made of high-quality steel and comes with a ten-year warranty.

Picatinny Rails for 14.5 mm Dovetail

Since its creation in 1995, the Picatinny rail has become recognized as the industry standard for attaching optics. The Picatinny rail, which was based on the Weaver pattern, has the advantage of being used along its full length, as opposed to Weaver, which has predesignated mounting slots, restricting its usability and versatility. Its advantages include interchangeability and simplicity of use. Slots in Picatinny are evenly spaced, measuring precisely 5.23 mm apart and 3 mm deep. As a result, all weapons that employ the Picatinny standard have the same mounting.

If you wish to install a Picatinny rail on top of your 14.5 mm dovetail, this is the best affordable choice by the German manufacturer MAK. It is made of high-quality aluminum and comes with a thirty-year warranty.

Help Us Build Our Riflescope Mounts Database

If you happen to own this or any other rifle, we would appreciate it if you could help us expand our database by sending us some photos of the rifle receiver (the bare mounting surface of the rifle without the scope mounts installed). For your help, our company offers a fair return in terms of practical rewards.

Please send us an email for more information. You can contact us here: info@optics-trade.eu

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Rusan Picatinny Rail for Brno ZH, Super Brno (14.5mm Rail) - Extended

$69.00

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Rusan Weaver Rail for CZ 584 / Tatra (13.5 cm rail) - Extended

$69.00

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Rusan Roll-off mount, Q-R CZ 584 / Tatra, Picatinny rail

$209.00

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Rusan Picatinny Rail for Fair Combi, Sabatti, Bettinsoli - Extended

$69.00

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Rusan Roll-off mount, Q-R ZH, Super Brno, Picatinny rail

$209.00

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Rusan Roll-off mount, Q-R CZ 584 / Tatra, Base Only

$209.00

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VIDEO

Introduction

In recent years we can observe that a trend of Picatinny rail has become widespread and global. It is driven by the NATO standardized rails, more commonly known as the Picatinny rail standard. Picatinny rail being the New Jersey Arsenal that developed it in 1995.

These mounting options are revolutionary. The biggest and best advantage being that the Picatinny rail can be used its entire length and not bordered to a few pre-designed slots like for example the Weaver rail standard was before.

The other main advantage is the ease of use and interchangeability. If a product is meant for a Picatinny rail design it will fit all Picatinny-rails, no matter the manufacturer or date of production.

Picatinny/Weaver Rail

Picatinny Rail and Weaver rail profile

Design

The Picatinny rail is almost exclusively crafted from a single piece of metal (in some cases aluminum). In this manner, the axis of the Picatinny rail is perfectly straight and aligned with the axis of the firearm. Therefore the rifle scope which is mounted onto this kind of configuration is certainly aligned with the rifle / gun and the trajectory of the ammunition.

Weaver rail design on the other hand is usually manufactured in two separate pieces, greatly increasing the possibilities for the axis to be crooked, overlapping, and out of line.

It is always harder to align two separate pieces to a third line than it is to align one piece to another. In this way, the lapping of two mounting rings on a single-piece Picatinny rail is no longer required.

The single-piece rail will assure that both rings are perfectly aligned to each other and that no unwished stress is transferred to the riflescope.

Picatinny compare to Weaver Rail

The Picatinny rail itself is an evolutionary step forward from the older Weaver rail. The main difference between Picatinny rail and Weaver rail is the spacing of the slots. Picatinny rail design has them evenly placed exactly 5.23 mm from one slot to the other, 3 mm deep. For this reason, the mounting options are repeatable and the same as other firearms using the Picatinny rail standard.

Interchangeability was a major driving force in the development of the new standard as different NATO armies need to be compatible with each other.

Weaver rail has 3.8mm wide slots and these slots can be placed anywhere on the Weaver rail and in any number that the producer wished.

Advantages of Picatinny design

A big advantage for using the Picatinny rail design is the ever-present recoil stop. Furthermore, the manufacturing of the rail is not very technically demanding and can be done without the use of state-of-the-art machines which greatly reduces the cost of the finished product, making it very affordable.

The Picatinny rail is easy to mount and usually, this type of configuration does not transfer negative stresses and forces from the fired weapon to the rifle scope.

In addition, the Picatinny rail with its very long useable surface works well for mounting longer rifle scopes or to achieve optimum eye relief.

The durability and toughness are other big pluses for this solution.

Manufacturers of Popular Models

A majority of the Picatinny rings are fixed, but a number of best rated European manufacturers (EAW, MAK,..) have, in recent years, put a lot of effort into the development of detachable ring with100% repeatability, with which it becomes easy to remove the scope from the weapon without the use of tools.

No re-zeroing is needed with such mount options, but these models tend to be expensive.

Weaver and Picatinny Rings

Picatinny rail and weaver rail share one more thing. It is possible to use the Weaver ring and the Picatinny ring on the Picatinny-rails, but it is usually impossible to use the Picatinny ring on the Weaver base. The reason being the above-mentioned positioning and spacing of the slots.

Picatinny mounts have a 5mm recoil stop that goes into the rail slot and since
Weaver rail only has 3.8mm wide slots such rings do not fit on Weaver rails.

Due to this reason, the Picatinny-rails are popular and prevailing on the market in recent years and eventually, these options will completely oust the Weaver rail from the market.

14.5 mm BRNO Dovetail

General description

Physical properties and dimensions