The vz. 52 (7,62mm lehký kulomet vzor 52) is a Czechoslovak light machine gun developed after the Second World War for the Czechoslovak Armed Forces.
The vz. 52 was originally called the ZB 501, and was designed by Václav Holek. It is gas-operated and uses a tilting bolt that locks into the roof of the receiver. Its overall action is based on the Czech ZB-26 light machine gun. It has an integral bipod and interchangeable barrels, and its feed system is designed to take metallic belts or box magazines interchangeably and without any modifications. Its compact and light lever-type feeding system was based on the ZB-53 and was later copied in UK vz. 59, PK and Negev.
The vz. 52 initially used the Czech 7.62ÃÂ45mm vz. 52 cartridge, but in the mid-1950s it was converted to the standard 7.62ÃÂ39mm Warsaw Pact round by Jaroslav MyslÃÂk, and named the vz. 52/57. Both models were replaced in Czech service in 1963âÂÂ64 by the Universal Machine Gun Model 1959, also known as the Uk vz. 59.