CZ!
Lots going on, more than I have time to cover right now. I’ll be “over the hump” by tomorrow afternoon, hopefully.
I have a shiny new CZ 85 Combat on the way. I opted for the 85 Combat over the standard CZ 75 B for a couple of reasons:
- Ambi controls are nice if you’re a deviously dextrous mixed-hander like me, and
- The Combat model is built without the firing pin safety found on all the “B” model CZs.
I’m not a big fan of CZ’s firing pin safety. It fouls up the trigger pull slightly and may make the firing pin more prone to breakage from dry-firing; there’s controversy on that point. It indisputably does make firing pin removal a pain in the ass, because the firing pin is retained by a pair of nested roll pins through the slide. So now a routine cleaning step requires a vice, hammer, and roll pin punches. And there’s a few more tiny little parts that can bounce off of your workbench and into an alternate universe. No thanks.
Combat model on left, “B” model on right
The Combat, fortunately, uses a regular 1911-style firing pin stop. MUCH better.
Oh, and those Phillips-head grip screws will have to go. Hogue makes some nice slotted replacements.
Mags and holster are en route, details to follow.
Hey! Me too!
I really didn’t want adjustable sights, but I also didn’t want:
• Polycoat finish
• Firing pin safety - with accompanying 2″ reset
• Mag brake
• Non Ambi safety
I thought about the new 75 Stainless since it has an ambi safey, but it’s still got the FPS. Same with the 75SA; reportedly it has the same problems with the FPS causing a long reset and scritchy take up, plus it’s only available in the polycoat. From what I’ve seen, the polycoat is very hard wearing. Until it isn’t. Once it gives up, it chips and flakes and looks like hell. The blueing just shows nice and shiny on the high spots.
I figured I’d do the least amount of hacking by getting a Combat and swapping out the adjustable sights for some fixed night sights.
Can’t wait to get it.
Joe
Comment by Joe Allen — January 30, 2008 @ 12:06 am
You know what they say about great minds.
I’m going to do the same with the sights on mine; fixed Trijicons.
We’ll see how the polycoat holds up on this gun. If/when it starts crapping out I’ll replace it with hard chrome.
Comment by TD — January 30, 2008 @ 6:14 pm
Why did you buy one of those commie pieces of junk?
(jk)
The polycoat on my 75 compact is over ten years old now, still looks new.
Comment by drstrangegun — January 31, 2008 @ 8:51 am
I got an 85 from CDNN that had been kicked around some Israeli armorer’s cabinet. It served as the perfect empirical evidence for the superiority of one finish over the other: while all the serial numbers matched, the slide was blued and the frame was polycoated.
The slide looks like new with just a bit of silver on a couple of high spots, and the frame has numerous chips and flakes missing.
This was an older gun though, and from the looks of my SP-01, their polycoat finish has vastly improved. I still like the looks of blued steel better though. I have more than a dozen handguns and not a one of them are good old fashioned blue steel. They’re painted, polycoated, parkerized, anodized and plated, but not a blued one yet. I’m really looking forward to it!
Ideal CZ for me? Stainless, ambi controls(safety and slide release), fixed night sights, no FPS and no mag brake.
Call it the CZ-85 Carry.
Joe
Comment by Joe Allen — February 2, 2008 @ 9:30 pm
And, as an addendum to my dream CZ: Esmeralda needs to start making CZ grips:
http://www.esmeralda.cc
Joe
Comment by Joe Allen — February 2, 2008 @ 9:32 pm