CZ SHADOW 2 Urban Grey, cal. 9x19mm

Weight

The CZ Shadow 2 represents the next generation of the now legendary CZ 75 SP-01 Shadow. The pistol was developed in cooperation with the elite IPSC shooters of the Česká zbrojovka team to make a significant contribution to speed and accuracy of shooting during a match. Using the most modern production equipment, a pistol was born that pushes the boundaries of IPSC sport shooting even further.

Speed

The modernization of all main parts of the pistol - the slide and frame - combined with a longer barrel allows individual shots to be repeated faster and more dynamically. The shape of the frame helps achieve a more comfortable, higher grip closer to the bore axis, and the new checkering ensures absolutely reliable contact with the pistol under all circumstances. The added weight at the front of the frame and slide compensates for recoil and makes it milder. The redesigned trigger mechanism has a smoother pull, lower pull weight and a shorter trigger reset. The magazine catch is easier to reach and adjustable in three positions, making reloads more secure and faster even while the shooter is moving.

Accuracy

The barrel extended to 125 mm, a longer sight radius and new elevation-adjustable sights increase the accuracy of the pistol as a whole. Highly precise and fully automated production of the other main parts on robotic machining centers, without any manual work, contributes to the quality of workmanship. The Arcor surface finish, inspired by the service models, guarantees high resistance to corrosion, weather and mechanical damage.

Customization

Every shooter is unique. That is why a wide range of sport and custom accessories is available. During testing, hundreds of thousands of rounds were fired under real match conditions. Under the same conditions, CZ Shooting Team shooters achieved time savings of several seconds on individual IPSC stages compared with the first Shadow model. It all started with the suggestions and ideas of the best IPSC shooters on the planet. At the end of a research and development process lasting more than two years stands a new, unique pistol and the rightful successor to the original model. The CZ Shadow 2 is ready to compete.

CZ Shadow 2

For some time there had been whispers behind the scenes about a new sport pistol from Uherský Brod. It was said that the product managers of Česká zbrojovka had considerable ambitions - to raise the bar even further than the dizzying heights set by the extraordinarily successful CZ 75 SP-01 Shadow. For a long time, however, it remained a closely guarded secret how they intended to achieve this in Uherský Brod. Until the new CZ Shadow 2 was introduced in spring 2016.

Beat the Shadow? Well, good luck with that, I thought when I first heard about it. The CZ 75 SP-01 Shadow was created ten years ago by carefully fine-tuning the excellent CZ 75 SP-01 pistol so that the result would best meet the needs of sport shooters. Improved ergonomics, an improved hammer and trigger mechanism with an exceptionally smooth action, no automatic firing pin block, an extended magazine catch, wide pads on the ambidextrous manual safety levers, a second hammer spring with different characteristics as standard, a fiber optic front sight, a rear sight extended to the rear, a beveled magwell...

In short, the CZ 75 SP-01 Shadow is an excellent SA/DA all-steel pistol in 9x19 (or 9x21) caliber, which was soon adopted by more and more elite shooters in the IPSC Production division, led by the CZ Shooting team, whose members dominated the top positions at the most important national and international matches with this pistol. On top of that, the Shadow is also scoring points on the service market.

How to improve on perfection

Why improve the Shadow is quite clear. For a long time this model was the best pistol in its category on the market, but the competition never sleeps. How to do it is another matter.

When I started looking into the background of the CZ Shadow 2, I learned that the development team first spent an enormous amount of time collecting and evaluating experience from the use of the CZ 75 SP-01 Shadow. An invaluable source of knowledge and recommendations was the CZ Shooting team, whose members have fired many hundreds of thousands of rounds from these pistols, represent the elite of the target customer group and approached this task with great enthusiasm. No wonder - the new CZ Shadow 2 is the pistol they will compete with (and, ideally, win with) for at least the next several years.

In cases like this, the goal is usually to find weaknesses. With the Shadow, it was more about identifying the design elements and features that could meaningfully be taken to a higher level. At the same time, care was constantly taken to ensure that, despite all the changes and improvements, the Shadow 2 would remain an affordable "people's" IPSC pistol that even a beginning shooter can afford. And that was achieved.

What matters

When developing the CZ Shadow 2, Česká zbrojovka defined four areas that are decisive for sport shooters: speed, accuracy, durability and, finally, customization, i.e. the ability to tailor the pistol individually. In each of these areas, Uherský Brod then tried to achieve a significant improvement over the CZ 75 SP-01 Shadow.

Speed means speed of shooting and everything associated with it. With the CZ Shadow 2, a major step forward was made with the newly shaped frame. It is a variation on the proven CZ 75 SP-01 Shadow design, but modified in key places so that the shooter's hand gets as close as possible to the bore axis. Mainly because of the frame, the empty weight of the pistol increased to approx. 1.3 kg. Also worth mentioning is the newly shaped, roomy trigger guard without sharp edges, with a long textured front face, and only one cross slot on the standardized accessory rail at the front of the frame. With this, the Shadow 2 clearly declares its sporting status.

Česká zbrojovka states that, compared with the original Shadow, the new frame has partially reduced recoil, or rather the shooter perceives it as easier to control, and muzzle flip after the shot has also been reduced. For now, after an initial test, I will limit myself to saying that the CZ Shadow 2 was very pleasant to shoot. I am very curious myself about the assessment of active IPSC shooters after a larger number of rounds.

At first glance, the slide is different from that of the CZ 75 SP-01 Shadow. Česká zbrojovka spent a long time fine-tuning its shape with the aim of achieving the fastest possible draw, racking and target acquisition. The final slide, with differently shaped front and rear cocking serrations, offers all of that (I saw how nimbly a top IPSC competitor can handle the CZ Shadow 2), and on top of that it looks very good. Moreover, its design matches nicely with the triangular hammer with a large lightening hole.

New for this category of CZ pistols is sport checkering in the form of small pyramids on the front and back of the grip. Česká zbrojovka has experience with a similar grip texture from its Tactical Sports line. For the Shadow 2, after careful selection, it chose a finer pattern with a coarseness at the edge of what is acceptable for prolonged shooting without gloves. Gentler hands may find it sharp, but thanks to it the grip is truly secure even when sweating. Modern flat aluminum grip panels also contribute to this; on the CZ Shadow 2 they are anodized blue and marked with the characteristic "handwritten" number 2 at the bottom - the same as on the left side of the slide behind the laser-engraved CZ SHADOW marking. Rubber grip panels are also available for shooters who prefer a wider grip and like the grip to fill more of their palm.

The standard accessories include three 19-round magazines. It is good to know, however, that the Shadow 2 also works perfectly with magazines of the SP-01 or CZ 75/85 series pistols with a somewhat lower capacity. On the side of the grip, the large, prominently protruding magazine release button catches the eye. The torx screw indicates that the button can be adjusted in various ways according to the shooter's physiognomy or preferences. This is certainly essential for fast reloads.

The CZ Shadow 2 is a variation of the proven CZ 75 trigger mechanism, but with modifications that result in a smoother pull, lower pull weight (8 to 15 N in SA mode) and a shorter trigger reset. I can confirm that all of this has a positive effect on both speed and accuracy of shooting. Incidentally, the solution used is so distinctive that Česká zbrojovka is considering patenting it.

As with the CZ 75 SP-01 Shadow, recoil and hammer springs of different strengths are available for the Shadow 2. In fact, if you have springs tuned for the original Shadow, you can use them in the CZ Shadow 2 with similar results. The manufacturer's goal, however, is to supply the pistol already tuned so that it delivers the best possible performance straight out of the box without further modifications.

Robots, Arcor and the configurator

When it comes to accuracy, Česká zbrojovka had two interconnected things in mind: the accuracy of the pistol and the precision of manufacturing. In the first case, the accuracy potential of the new Shadow was increased by a slightly longer 125 mm barrel and a 180 mm sight radius. There are also new sights with an adjustable rear sight with a slanted, serrated sighting surface and a fiber optic front sight. As for manufacturing, it can be briefly said that the CZ Shadow 2 is made using a completely different technology than the original Shadow. For this program, the Uherský Brod company uses highly modern robotic machining centers, which means a completely different level of series production without the traditional machining marks.

Needless to say, more precise manufacturing has a positive effect on the accuracy of the pistol. At the same time, it has substantially increased the service life of the main parts. This is helped by the Arcor surface finish, which Česká zbrojovka began using on its CZ P-07 and CZ P-09 polymer pistols. It is salt-bath carbonitriding followed by oxidation. The surface created in this way has excellent corrosion resistance and increases the resistance of the treated parts to mechanical damage. Thanks to its properties, Arcor also reduces friction and stress on parts and contributes to better operation and function of the entire pistol.

Customization of the CZ Shadow 2 will be made possible by the so-called configurator. It is an online application in which the customer will be able to define the dream version of their pistol from the comfort of home. They will be able to choose from different variants of safeties, grip panels, hammers, triggers and hammer or recoil springs. For the original Shadow, it was even possible to order an SA version this way. We will see what will be offered for its successor.

Competition Ready

The CZ Shadow 2 enters the market with the slogan Competition Ready. This means that every pistol is tuned at the factory so that you can head to a match and win straight out of the box. At the same time, it is an inside joke meaning that with this pistol Česká zbrojovka is once again ready to take on the competition. So far, the competition has focused on fighting the CZ 75 SP-01 Shadow, and I have a feeling that the CZ Shadow 2 will be a very unpleasant surprise for it.

This time, Uherský Brod did not limit itself to improving key details, but did not hesitate to significantly redesign the main parts, making full use of the possibilities opened up by the recent modernization of the company's production equipment. As far as I am concerned, the mission was accomplished and the phenomenal CZ 75 SP-01 Shadow has been surpassed. Quite significantly. The CZ Shadow 2 has already undergone extensive testing by top IPSC shooters, who found that on the same stage they can cut their time by up to three seconds with the new pistol compared with the original Shadow!

I will not try to persuade you. Try it and see - but I am happy to bet that you will agree with me. And if there is something you do not like, be sure to let Česká zbrojovka know. They are clearly listening closely to customers now, and it shows in the new CZ models.