CZ 97 - how is it?
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GregGry
Member
I love mine, I bought it new, and put about 30 rounds through it so far. It fits the hand well, very affordable, and its really accurate. The dowsides In my opinion are the factory grip panels, the lack of aftermarket support (you can get stuff for it, its just not as common as many other pistols) and the magazine capacity is lower then you think it would be judging by the size of the firearm. If you have big hands, need an accurate firearm, and don't want to spend a ton for a .45, the CZ97 is your bet 
MrAcheson
Member
The cons are that it is huge and heavy and has a record for not liking hollowpoints. The pros are that it is accurate, inexpensive, and high quality.
CZ's are pretty easy to work on. I tweaked my CZ-97 so now it feeds anything perfectly. I have largish hands and I find that it fits better and points better than any other pistol I've ever handled. For the money it's an astoundingly good firearm. I got mine hard chromed and put in a single action trigger, competition sights and hammer, and I put on aftermarket grips. Now she looks as good as she shoots.
dairycreek
Member
I have found the 97 to be both accurate and reliable. As to its size. It is no larger than most 45 double stacks. It weighs in at 38.4 ounces while, for instance, a S&W 1911 with stainless steel frame (single stack) and slide weighs in empty at 39 ounces. The 97 has a 4.8" barrel while the S&W 1911 has a 5" barrel. So, all in all, it is neither larger nor heavier than a 1911.
The double stack grip is, admittedly, bulky but the rest of the pistol is not particularly large.
The double stack grip is, admittedly, bulky but the rest of the pistol is not particularly large.
GregGry
Member
TMM said:
Well some people love them, my hand just doesn't like the checkering. With some shooting gloves it would be a lot better.
I am on the fence on this gun. I have the 9mm 75B SA model and it is fabulous; because of that I opted to get the 97B. So far it has been a huge disappointment, and customer service has been dismal (although that may change).
I got mine in the Summer of 2005. After about 50 rounds the magazine would disconnect after nearly every shot; depending on your grip, the magazine would either just drop to the ground, or disconnect and not feed the next round. Obviously, this is a potential fatal flaw.
I got in touch with the CZ gunsmith (Mike) and he sent a replacement part. It worked for about 20 rounds, and then the mags still simply disconnect when a round is fired.
Then, it will not feed any hollowpoints. I asked about this, and Mike said in an e-mail that t he 97B is NOT DESIGNED to be used with hollowpoints and that it needed a lot of work to feed them. Hmmm...had I known that I would never have bought it. Mike suggested that I call CZ and make arrangements to send it back (on my dime apparently) to get the magazine problem fixed. I called Monday, and got a recording that said I should call back during normal hours (this was about noon). I called numerous times Monday and Tuesday and never connected. I got through to the factory on Wednesday, and they said to call back Thursday as the warranty dept is not open on Wednesday.
I e-mailed Mike and asked for a return authorization number; he e-mailed back that I had to call.
I called numerous times today, often getting nothing but a recording, but twice getting a live person that said they would transfer me, but instead cut me off.
Finally, I got through after four days of frustration and guess who gives out the Return Auth number?? Mike! Why could that not have been handled earlier?
I also asked about the feeding issue and he did say they would try to correct it.
So, I bought a new gun that won't keep a magazine from falling out, and that will not feed hollowpoints and I have to send it back on my dime.
I find this to be unsatisfactory customer service. It will be interesting to see how fast the work is done, and if it fixes the issues. Right now it is nothing but an expensive paper weight.
Nice looking though.
I got mine in the Summer of 2005. After about 50 rounds the magazine would disconnect after nearly every shot; depending on your grip, the magazine would either just drop to the ground, or disconnect and not feed the next round. Obviously, this is a potential fatal flaw.
I got in touch with the CZ gunsmith (Mike) and he sent a replacement part. It worked for about 20 rounds, and then the mags still simply disconnect when a round is fired.
Then, it will not feed any hollowpoints. I asked about this, and Mike said in an e-mail that t he 97B is NOT DESIGNED to be used with hollowpoints and that it needed a lot of work to feed them. Hmmm...had I known that I would never have bought it. Mike suggested that I call CZ and make arrangements to send it back (on my dime apparently) to get the magazine problem fixed. I called Monday, and got a recording that said I should call back during normal hours (this was about noon). I called numerous times Monday and Tuesday and never connected. I got through to the factory on Wednesday, and they said to call back Thursday as the warranty dept is not open on Wednesday.
I e-mailed Mike and asked for a return authorization number; he e-mailed back that I had to call.
I called numerous times today, often getting nothing but a recording, but twice getting a live person that said they would transfer me, but instead cut me off.
Finally, I got through after four days of frustration and guess who gives out the Return Auth number?? Mike! Why could that not have been handled earlier?
I also asked about the feeding issue and he did say they would try to correct it.
So, I bought a new gun that won't keep a magazine from falling out, and that will not feed hollowpoints and I have to send it back on my dime.
I find this to be unsatisfactory customer service. It will be interesting to see how fast the work is done, and if it fixes the issues. Right now it is nothing but an expensive paper weight.
Nice looking though.
The main reason I sold mine was because it would not feed hollow-points reliably. Initially, I thought mine was the exception because I had no problem with one brand of hollow-points. But when I tried other brands, I would get 1 or 2 misfeeds per mag. The round gets stuck on the feed ramp. Since I have many other handguns to waste too much time and effort on this one I simply decided to sell it.
KaceCoyote
Member
Can anything be done to allow the 97 to feed hollowpoints?
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