The CZ 75, as one might guess from its name, was introduced in 1975 after being developed at the state-owned arms factory Ceska Zbrojovka in Uhersky Brod, Czechoslovakia (now known as the Czech Republic). At the time, this was behind the “iron-curtain”. The design includes many of the better design elements from other pistols. You can tell the Koucky brothers were heavily influenced by the Browning Hi-Power. It is a locked breech, short recoil operated pistol using a Browning-style locking system. The barrel has two locking lugs just ahead of the ejection port. To unlock the barrel from the slide, the CZ uses a cam instead of a barrel link. While the Hi-Power is a single-action only design with a 13 round magazine, the CZ 75 is a DA/SA, all steel double-stack pistol holding 15 rounds in the magazine. The newer CZ 75B magazines hold 16 rounds.

CZ claims that the CZ 75 “is used by more governments, militaries, police and security agencies than any other pistol in the world“. I’m not sure how true that is but the pistol has a very healthy number of clones. Examples are the Baby Desert Eagle, EAA Witness/Tanfoglio and Armalite AR-24. CZ itself has a family of guns based on the CZ 75 design. Competition versions, compact versions, decocker versions, double-action only, single-action only, ambidextrous, all steel, stainless steel, alloy framed, and polymer framed.

The CZ 75 is a DA/SA pistol with a manual frame mounted thumb safety. This allows you to carry the pistol in condition one (round chambered, hammer cocked and safety on). To fire the pistol, flip the safety off and you are ready for a single-action first shot. Otherwise, you can simply carry the pistol in condition two (round chambered, hammer down). To fire the pistol, you simply squeeze the trigger for a double-action first shot. Subsequent shots will be single-action. Surprisingly, on the CZ 75, you will not be able to engage the safety when the hammer is down.

The CZ 75B was introduced in 1993 with the main differences being a squared trigger guard, rounded hammer, serrations on the top of the slide to reduce glare and the addition of a automatic firing pin safety (which is what the B designation represents).

Ergonomics

The gun is 8.1 inches long, 5.4 inches high and 1.4 inches wide. Barrel length is 4.7 inches. It is roughly the size of a Browning Hi-Power, with the length of the grip being a little longer. The CZ 75 has a very comfortable grip and is well balanced. The front of the trigger guard is serrated. Grip panels are black checkered plastic. Trigger reach in double-action mode is good.

The sights are well regulated and provide a decent three-dot sight picture. The front sight is pinned. The rear sight is dovetailed into the slide and can be drifted for windage. Controls are easy to reach and right where you would expect them. The thumb safety, mounted on the left side of the frame is at the rear. The slide release is just forward of the thumb safety and the magazine release button is on the left side at the rear of the trigger guard.

The trigger was not the smoothest. In single-action, the trigger broke at just over 6 pounds. There was considerable take-up, and some noticeable creep with a little over-travel. Just before the trigger breaks, there is noticeable caming between the sear and the hammer. The double-action pull was around 11 pounds with noticeable drag.

Field Stripping the CZ 75

The CZ 75 is easy to break down for cleaning but it may take a few times before it feels natural. Make sure the gun is unloaded. Lock the slide back on an empty magazine (or push the slide stop up while pulling the slide back until it locks). Remove the magazine. To remove the slide, line up the “marks” on the left rear side by pushing the slide back about 1/2 inch (the marks are vertical lines, one on the frame and one on the slide). Hold the slide in this position and press the slide stop pin inward until flush with the frame on the right side of the pistol. On the left side, you’ll now see the slide stop protruding up from the frame. Grasp the slide stop, then pull it up and out of the gun. While keeping some pressure on the the slide with one hand (so it won’t fly off the frame), let the slide slowly go forward. The slide can now be taken off the frame. The slide assembly consist of the slide, recoil spring guide, recoil spring and the barrel. Remove the recoil spring guide and recoil spring. Remove the barrel. The pistol is now field stripped and ready for cleaning.

Shooting the CZ 75B

Shooting was done at The Indoor Shooting Company in Tampa, Florida. Five round strings were fired at 7 yards unsupported on a 1 inch circle target. Group size averaged 1.75 inches with Winchester, 115gr FMJ ammunition. Point shooting (meat on metal) produced lethal hits. There were no malfunctions of any kind.

Critical Items

The CZ 75 comes from the factory with a magazine brake (a piece of bent spring steel inside the magazine well). This prevents the magazine from falling free after the magazine release is pressed. The magazine only drops about a quarter of an inch and must be pulled out. You may not like this feature. It is easy enough to fix, however. You can remove the magazine brake, carefully bend it until it is flat and reinstall. Or, you can fashion a flat version from sheet metal. Either way, magazines will be able to drop free. Now you can do those speed reloads.

Because the slide rides on the inside of the frame, much like the Swiss SIG P210, you’ll notice that the slide serrations for racking the slide are somewhat smaller in height compared to other guns. The slide being inside the frame vs. outside the frame is supposed to make the gun more accurate by creating tighter tolerances. Because the slide is of a lower height, compared to something like a 1911, it is a little more difficult to grasp when cycling by hand. It is not terrible but there is a difference.

Conclusion

The CZ 75B in 9mm is a very solid, all steel pistol that performs well with above average shootability. For a double stack pistol, the grip feels amazing.  Shooting this gun always puts a smile on my face. For concealed carry, you’ll need to carry this gun in a quality holster on a quality gun belt.