CZ75 Questions - Need Help

TT1900

CGN frequent flyer
Rating - 100%
37   0   1
I recently acquired a Sig Sauer P210 Legend Target as it had been sitting at my local store for a long time (2.5 years) and my lowball offer was accepted. I had every intention of shooting it until I saw the most recent prices on them and am now thinking of leaving it alone and eventually selling. In the meantime I want something to shoot in 9mm.

Enter the CZ75.....and the confusion. Prices from $700 for the Omega to $1900 for the Shadow Orange. I've read a bunch of threads on CGN, run the google machine, and checked out the CZ website. Questions remain as follows:

1- Are Shadowline variants mostly cosmetic upgrades, or has actual tuning been done and to what degree?Very vague on the website, perhaps intentionally.

2- Are Shadowmate variants the same as the CZ USA AccuShadow? If not, how heavily have they been tuned? Are AccuShadows sold in Canada? Price point seems similar but once again details on the Shadowmate are hard to come by and vague.

3- Are Canadian Editions and the Shadow Orange different from the two above other than cosmetically? If so, how?

Any info, advice, or opinion is appreciated.

Thanks,
 
Same problem here. I'm looking into getting a CZ75 for my first gun bigger than 22LR. I'm thinking of the SP-01.

Every maker has a dozen or more variations on the same basic gun. And none of them have the courtesy to show you a simple chart with all the variations in one place. You have to read a dozen different web-site pages, and try to spot the differences.

Remington shows no less than 24 variants of the Model 700 bolt-action rifle.

Perhaps if you've been around firearms for a while, you just know exactly what you want. But for a newbie, it's very frustrating. Overchoice.
 
1. Shadowline has factory tuned trigger, and is legal in IPSC production. Other than that, thin grips, imp. hammer and CZ Shadow fiber sights. Lower # springs factory also.

I'm not sure on the shadowmate and cdn / shadow orange editions. I know they all have factory tuned triggers, but not certain if any other cosmetic or internal changes, other than grips. Someone else with one can chime in.

The SP-01 just designates that it has a rail.
 
Last edited:
A lot of the CZ75 upgrades are available for installation later as your taste/budget grows. The core pistol design with the low bore axis, heft and grip angle will be the same across the range. Trigger, hammer and recoil spring are the common upgrades. It all depends on what you are planning to do with the pistol - recreational or competitive shooting. If its for recreational then there is really no need to buy the top of the line with all the upgrades, unless you want them. Competitive shooters will buy the model that fits the class they want to compete in. I got a great deal on a Shadow and feel no need to upgrade it. My rule is if I plan on upgrading a pistol, then its usually cheaper to buy it with all the upgrades already vs building it from scratch.
 
I have an SP01 Shadowline I bought almost 2 yrs ago. Upgraded hammer, tuned trigger, slim Al grip but only 2 mags compared to 3 for a regular Shadow. For the extra
$ 50 from a regular Shadow, I am convinced that it is worth every penny. Forward to Dec 2015, cost is now $ 250-350 more compared to a regular Shadow. Is it worth every penny? Depending on who you are asking, I think, a regular Shadow is the way to go. With just spring upgrades, you will be close to a Shadowline. Accushadow can be imported but this model is not Production Class legal.
 
Thanks for the replies. Sub40, thanks for the chart. That helped answer a few things. Rickster66, We think alike as I would rather sink more money upfront and avoid the piecemeal upgrades. I have yet to see a bad review on the Shadow and when they are on sale seem to be a steal.

A bit more info to clarify use and previous experience. My only previous pistol shooting has been with BHP's, Sig226's, and Sig225's. Of these I found the BHP to be the most comfortable, but it's not exactly a performance value in the current market. P225 was nice but is not available. P226 grip I found to be larger than ideal. This pistol will mostly be a range gun and will also be used to teach my daughter how to shoot pistols. I may get into IDPA at a later date. Budget is not a huge concern and I'm willing to pay for better performance and ergonomics, but not for cosmetics.
 
CZ sp01 Shadow . Shot almost 8000 round thru . Still shoot great & straight . Just change main spring ,thin grips . Only issue I see is with magazines opening lips , they caused feeding problem few times . I like Tanfoglio 9mm mags better.
 
I have the standard CZ 75B. Trigger is ok but a little gritty on DA. Don't know why its DA cause its impossible to fire DA unless you lower the hammer on a live round for the 1st shot.
 
some parts, like colorful grip, are for the show, while others are for performance. However, it would never be wrong to go with either shadow(safety) or tactical(decocker). The shadow is easier to tune for competition compared to tactical. however, I got the tactical as I just like decocker better. And even after a few months passed, I am still amazed by its performance. It's one of my best shooters, in part with HK P30L if not better. As a newbie, I can easily shoot 25 meters with it and land all shots on letter size paper with no issues and palm size group at times. I can't even do that with my p226 extreme. It's an AMAZING MUST-HAVE gun.


I recently acquired a Sig Sauer P210 Legend Target as it had been sitting at my local store for a long time (2.5 years) and my lowball offer was accepted. I had every intention of shooting it until I saw the most recent prices on them and am now thinking of leaving it alone and eventually selling. In the meantime I want something to shoot in 9mm.

Enter the CZ75.....and the confusion. Prices from $700 for the Omega to $1900 for the Shadow Orange. I've read a bunch of threads on CGN, run the google machine, and checked out the CZ website. Questions remain as follows:

1- Are Shadowline variants mostly cosmetic upgrades, or has actual tuning been done and to what degree?Very vague on the website, perhaps intentionally.

2- Are Shadowmate variants the same as the CZ USA AccuShadow? If not, how heavily have they been tuned? Are AccuShadows sold in Canada? Price point seems similar but once again details on the Shadowmate are hard to come by and vague.

3- Are Canadian Editions and the Shadow Orange different from the two above other than cosmetically? If so, how?

Any info, advice, or opinion is appreciated.

Thanks,
 
I used to own a regular shadow, I own a Canadian Edition , I own a Shadow Orange edition and a Tactical Sport Orange Edition, and an AccuShadow. The regular shadow has one of the best double action triggers out there, accurate, comes with rubber grips. The Shadowline is the same basic gun with Aluminum grips, The Canadian Edition has a tuned trigger and steel guide rod, plastic buffer, the trigger, hand tuned, is a step up from the regular shadow, it has matching mag bases. The orange edition has the upgraded hand tuned trigger, light ! , the steel guide rod, plastic buffer on guide rod, aluminum grips, matching mags and the burnished barrel, the latest edition of the orange though does have fibre optic on front and rear, nice ! The Tactical sport is a single action with a trigger that goes off in a stiff breeze, burnished barrel, aluminum grips, steel guide rod and hand fitted slide. The Accu shadow is only available from CZ custom and basically a shadow with a 1911 style trigger, extremely light, extended barrel and hand fitted bushing. For the average joe, the Canadian Edition is your best bet, it is definitely a step up from the regular shadow. The Orange Shadow is not a lot different or more accurate than the Canadian, not worth the extra money. If you can swing it buy the Canadian. The shadow mate from what I've seen is simply the "New" Canadian edition.
 
Last edited:
I have the standard CZ 75B. Trigger is ok but a little gritty on DA. Don't know why its DA cause its impossible to fire DA unless you lower the hammer on a live round for the 1st shot.

Yes, that's how they work. Look around You Tube for videos on how to use your off hand thumb to safely lower the hammer on the live round to get the first shot into DA mode.

For police use or if you shop around you can actually find a DA only with a decocking lever where the safety normally lives.

I know that a lot of new fancy models are out there but I think you'd be surprised at how nice a stock Shadow is out of the box. The only real tuning they need to get 90% of the improvements of the more expensive models is to replace the mainspring with the factory 13lb spring and shoot it a lot to burnish the action parts that rub together.

In my case this included a lot of DA first shot practice because I wanted to shoot in IPSC even before I got the gun. The DA uses completely different parts in the action to #### and drop the hammer than when in SA after the first shot. It took a while but with enough shots taken in DA mode those rubbing surfaces smoothed up as well.
 
I have an SP01 Shadowline I bought almost 2 yrs ago. Upgraded hammer, tuned trigger, slim Al grip but only 2 mags compared to 3 for a regular Shadow. For the extra
$ 50 from a regular Shadow, I am convinced that it is worth every penny. Forward to Dec 2015, cost is now $ 250-350 more compared to a regular Shadow. Is it worth every penny? Depending on who you are asking, I think, a regular Shadow is the way to go. With just spring upgrades, you will be close to a Shadowline. Accushadow can be imported but this model is not Production Class legal.

I bought the CZ Shadow SP-01, put the 13 lb recoil spring on it, the 13 lb hammer spring, adjustable rear sights, and the comp hammer on it...it shoots beautifully!
 
I just bought my first CZ, the SP01 CanadianEdition, and it is a beautiful gun to fire. As I'm probably not going to compete I'm not sure what to do with the extras springs and plastic buffers that came in the box but it was a nice package. It will take me some time to get accurate but so far I love it. The gun at the store said once I get this I'd throw away any other 9mm guns I owned. I can't see my self getting rid of my Browning Hi powers but I do have a Beretta 92fs for sale on the EE now.
I used to own a regular shadow, I own a Canadian Edition , I own a Shadow Orange edition and a Tactical Sport Orange Edition, and an AccuShadow. The regular shadow has one of the best double action triggers out there, accurate, comes with rubber grips. The Shadowline is the same basic gun with Aluminum grips, The Canadian Edition has a tuned trigger and steel guide rod, plastic buffer, the trigger, hand tuned, is a step up from the regular shadow, it has matching mag bases. The orange edition has the upgraded hand tuned trigger, light ! , the steel guide rod, plastic buffer on guide rod, aluminum grips, matching mags and the burnished barrel, the latest edition of the orange though does have fibre optic on front and rear, nice ! The Tactical sport is a single action with a trigger that goes off in a stiff breeze, burnished barrel, aluminum grips, steel guide rod and hand fitted slide. The Accu shadow is only available from CZ custom and basically a shadow with a 1911 style trigger, extremely light, extended barrel and hand fitted bushing. For the average joe, the Canadian Edition is your best bet, it is definitely a step up from the regular shadow. The Orange Shadow is not a lot different or more accurate than the Canadian, not worth the extra money. If you can swing it buy the Canadian. The shadow mate from what I've seen is simply the "New" Canadian edition.
 
Problem solved. I ended up making a trade and got a CZ75b in the deal. Nothing fancy but fits my hand well. Going to spend a few thousand rounds with it and see how it goes.
 
I love my shadow...and I recently acquired a pre-b cz75..yet another super sweet pistol....cz's could become an obsession of mine..
 
Back
Top Bottom