CZ97B range report

[bu-bye]

Well guys its true. The CZ97B is the most accurate semiauto center fire pistol I have ever fired.

The 97b points very well and the recoil is low even with +p ammo. It felt more like a 9mm then a 45ACP. The sights are great and very easy to use though the glow in the dark paint IMO is useless unless you keep your pistol in direct sunlight during the day so they would be charge for night time.

Before I get into group size let me say that my health was a factor. I'm sick and have not had anythingto eat in almost 24 hours. When I don't eat my hands shake while firing. At least 1 hour before shooting I have to eat a good meal or heavy snack to keep me steady.

Today my hands were shaking like a leaf and I can tell you my shots landed exactly where my the gun was pointing even if it was not where I wanted it to go. Did most of my shooting from 10 yards and no group was larger then then 1.5 inches free hand. This may sound good but I know this gun will put every bullet in one hole. I shot from the bench with a sandbag and put 5 bullets in to one hole with SWC. I'm not talking a 1 inch ragged hole but one 45cal hole. I was shocked and gitty all at the same time.

I had NO, ZERO problems shooting all 250 rounds of Fed 230gr FMJ, handload 230gr LRN, handload 200gr LSWC, and Winchester 230gr JHP. I credit the work I did on the gun for not having any problems with the LSWC's and the JHP's. See this link for the work that I did on the gun: http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/s...ad.php?t=33901 . Last night I caved and did a trigger job. I polished all internal moving parts for a smoother DA pull and took a little off the sear giving a crisper brake for SA shots.

So here are a couple targets I ended up keeping. Sadly I did not keep the target with one hole. I was not thinking and began doing double taps on the same target. Oh well, maybe next time.

25 yards, 5 shots with LRN freehand


10 yards, 20 shots with Winchester JHP freehand.

[asintado]

Glad to see the positive results!

[Turbinator]

That looks great. I never put much thought into the CZ97B, but now I'll give it a 2nd look. Thanks for posting your results and reviews!

Turby

[czp01]

Niiiiice. Now I have to find a store/range that has one.

[elsolo]

Last night I caved and did a trigger job. I polished all internal moving parts for a smoother DA pull and took a little off the sear giving a crisper brake for SA shots.

You did what to the sear?

Lowering hammer hooks I can understand, but I am really curious what you did to the sear, how you did it, and why.

[bu-bye]

You did what to the sear?

Lowering hammer hooks I can understand, but I am really curious what you did to the sear, how you did it, and why.

Yeah, I basically cut half the shelf/hooks down on the hammer and removed the reverse angle on the sear and polished it. You have to be VERY VERY careful when doing this because it can fire more then 1 round if you take to much off. There is a lot of stoning and testing in this process but the end result is well worth it. Kids at home, please don't try this. Its a very fast way to FUBAR your gun and make it very dangerous. It can make your gun go off if it does not have a firing pin block.

[elsolo]

I have done triggerjobs to several CZ's and I will NOT change the angle on the sear nose. The problem it the angle on the hammer hooks, that is what causes hammer camming. Without touching the sear nose I can get a <2# SA trigger.
I did experiment with "correcting" the sear nose, but that triggerjob didn't last very long and it didn't yield very much in benefits. The sear tends to peen itself into a reverse image of the hammer hooks after not too long anyway on these guns, so if the hammer hooks are FULLY engaging the sear(~.030" tall) it is not so bad. If the hammer hooks are lower in height than the thickness of the sear (such as with the hammer Angus sells), the sear will likely peen itself into an angle where hammer follow will happen if you removes the original angle on the nose.*

I wouldn't even think of touching the sear nose without a proper hammer and sear jig/fixture and at least 30X worth of magnification to see what was happening. You also ought to have significant experience in gunsmithing and modifying the hammer/sear relationship, IMHO.

*bad illustration below. imagine gun is facing to the right:

original sear angle: /
"corrected" sear angle: |
worn sear angle: \

[bu-bye]

Good point about the hammer angle, I didn't think of that. I'll have to take another look at that tonight.

While I got you here, do you know what the stock main/hammer spring weight is? Its a little heavy and I was thinking about going a little lighter. What are your thoughts on this?

thanks

[elsolo]

Good point about the hammer angle, I didn't think of that. I'll have to take another look at that tonight.

While I got you here, do you know what the stock main/hammer spring weight is? Its a little heavy and I was thinking about going a little lighter. What are your thoughts on this?

thanks

Factory mainspring on the 75 series is 20#, I imagine it is the same for the 97.
I prefer a 15 or 16# mainspring, especially if you ever shoot the first shot DA.
I do keep a factory spring for the times I use the Kadet top end, it requires a heavier mainspring.

Here's what I would do to a new 97:
1.) Get the CZ factory competition sights, I have these on all my CZ's
2.) Replace the hammer with the Angus hammer, it has a better sear shelf height and the correct hammer hook angles to eliminate hammer camming. Please replace your modified sear ($17.50 from CZ-usa) when doing such, and you'll need to fit the sear to the safety if you want to be able to engage the safety(remove material fom the sear arm that rides over the safety, go slowly!).
3.) slick up the triggerbar, hammer strut, underside of the sear cage, de-tension the trigger return spring just a tad, and clean up the firing pin blocker plunger/hole so it doesn't snag.
4.) I also prefer the shape of the SA-only steel trigger, plus it has over and undertravel adjustment screws. To really get the trigger takeup distance as short as possible, you'll have to work on the firing pin blocker lever parts.

[bu-bye]

Factory mainspring on the 75 series is 20#, I imagine it is the same for the 97.
I prefer a 15 or 16# mainspring, especially if you ever shoot the first shot DA.
I do keep a factory spring for the times I use the Kadet top end, it requires a heavier mainspring.

Here's what I would do to a new 97:
1.) Get the CZ factory competition sights, I have these on all my CZ's
2.) Replace the hammer with the Angus hammer, it has a better sear shelf height and the correct hammer hook angles to eliminate hammer camming. Please replace your modified sear ($17.50 from CZ-usa) when doing such, and you'll need to fit the sear to the safety if you want to be able to engage the safety(remove material fom the sear arm that rides over the safety, go slowly!).
3.) slick up the triggerbar, hammer strut, underside of the sear cage, de-tension the trigger return spring just a tad, and clean up the firing pin blocker plunger/hole so it doesn't snag.
4.) I also prefer the shape of the SA-only steel trigger, plus it has over and undertravel adjustment screws. To really get the trigger takeup distance as short as possible, you'll have to work on the firing pin blocker lever parts.

Great. Thanks for the info

[CowtownBallin]

Glad you like your 97B, I've been dry-firing my 75BD for two days now, can't wait to try it out tomorrow