CZ75 or 5906?

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bernie

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In the next couple of weeks I should be getting a profit sharing bonus. Every year I tell myself I am going to get a new firearm, and then every year I change my mind and decide to be more fiscally responsible. However, this year I have decided to be irresponsible and get a new sidearm. I do not have a 9mm at this time and have decided that I need one. A local shop has some law enforcement trade in 5906's that have the adjustable sights for a good price. I have had 5906's in the past, and I really do like them. They are crazy stout, shoot well, and are very reliable. But I have heard so much good stuff about the CZ75/85B that I am considering one of those instead of the 5906. The main problem with this is I do not want an Omega, and I am having a hard time finding a CZ75/85 anywhere that does not have the rail. I just want the simple, original, dust cover. Which would you choose and why?
 
Having owned both; CZ 75B.

BOTH are IMO terrific pistols. Thousands of rounds through each and I've never seen either fail to go bang every time. The Gen 3 Smith Wonder Nines are some of the most aesthetically pleasing I've ever seen. They can be had for a pittance. Hell, they're even made in the USA!
That said; I still own the CZ-75. It's ergonomically better in my hand, more pleasurable to shoot (for me), and again, for me, more practically accurate. Additionally, in my experience, aftermarket "stuff" has been noticeably more available for the 75.
 
congrats on your impending purchase!
i've always wanted one of those smiths but i've not shot one or seen one in person. have shot a few czs and i own a 75b high polish, just a beautiful shooting gun, looks great, more accurate than me. i will say mags are expensive and usually not found local
be about my only complaint, some people don't like the low profile of the slide, i got used to it quickly though
good luck either way
gene
 
If you can rent or at least handle a CZ similar to the one you're looking at first, do so. But I would suggest the 5906. Reason being they aren't being made anymore and are only going up in price, heck if you buy one now and change your mind about it, you could probably flip it for a profit relatively quickly and get the CZ.
 
i own both and shoot both. the cz. 5906 parts are getting harder to find you can find them but its not so easy on parts like the grip for low costs anymore. this may not be true ,but s&w, i heard, isnt supporting them anymore. also heard they stopped making mags but mec gar still makes them as far as i know right now. i love the 5906 but parts support and long term is more important, to me. plus the cz isnt a terrible gun by any means...my only beef is the limited real estate on the slide that makes getting a good solid quick grip harder than most pistols.
 
CZ because the safety is easy to flip down

Trying to disengage a safety by flipping it up is unnatural for me and would take a lot of traning
 
I'm not familiar with the 5906, so I can't compare it to the CZ. I own and can compare the 75B, 75 D PCR, 75 P-01, 85 Combat, and 97B. Nothing against the 75B but I recommend you get the 85 Combat. Then order and install a Cajun Gun Works Ultra-Lite kit in it (do this pretty much regardless of which CZ you buy). Do it! The result will be an incredibly sweet gun that you'll love, and your shooting buddies will try to take away from you after you let them fire it. :)
 
If you are honest about how much you are actually going to shoot it: If you are going to shoot it a lot, I would get the CZ due to current production and parts availability. If you are NOT going to shoot it a lot, the 5906 will never be cheaper than it is right now.

Assuming all else is equal.
 
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I'd go with the CZ in a heartbeat. Better trigger, better ergonomics, frame mounted safety being issues that jump out at me. Then if you throw in a CGW trigger kit into the CZ, you have a gun you can go compete with if you want to. My 5906 is relegated to truck gun duty now. Go to GunWatcher.com and order the CZ you want, have it delivered to your local FFL and go pick it up. It's easy.

-Mike
 
I'd go with the CZ75B in a heartbeat.

But then I dislike conventional double-action autos, and other than a genuine pocket pistol like an LCP or a PPK, I won't own any double-action pistol that can't be carried cocked and locked. Glocks, XDs, etc., are different matter of course.

The CZs are very nice guns. I should have bought one when they were cheap. The only thing that stopped me was the sharp edge on the trigger, which I disliked. That could have been fixed with a Dremel.

I may buy one yet, in .40 S&W, in lieu of a .40 S&W BHP, which I missed out on when they were also cheap. It will be converted to SAO (or purchased that way from the start).
 
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The CZ 75 family are my favorite pistols. As far as the traditional dust cover goes, here are some of your options:

CZ 75 B - full size, steel frame, safety
CZ 75 C - compact, steel frame, safety
CZ 75 BD - full size, steel frame, decocker
CZ 75 D - compact, alloy frame, decocker

(I've never shot an 85, but obviously they have ambidextrous controls.)

The B was my favorite pistol until I shot a D ;) The balance is just perfect with the shorter slide.

That said, S&W 39/59 have always caught my eye as an elegant design, so I couldn't fault you for wanting one :)
 
I have a 6906 which is very similar to the 5906 just compact. I traded a 75 BD for it and regret it to this day. Now the 6906 is a great little gun but it is not a 75 BD in my opinion. I should have just bought the 6906 out right! I have several other CZ's and would sell the 6906 before any of them if I had to.
 
I have the S&W 659:
file.jpg


And a few CZ's now.

I prefer the balance of the CZ and the trigger of the CZ. The S&W has a trigger with no-feed back, which some prefer.

IMG_2313.JPG
 
Well, like I said, I have had 5906's, I was wondering what those that have experience with both think. Honestly, I kind of expected the "get the CZ" feedback, and I was leaning that way already. However, I really want a CZ85 Combat and cannot seem to find anyone that I am sure has one in stock. Honestly, I am more of a .45 guy, I just want a quality 9mm for shooting but not necessarily carrying all the time.
 
Coop45 said:
That is a decocker.
Click to expand...

I never owned one, but I thought that if it weren't cocked and the lever was down, it was on safe, so you'd first have to flip the safety up to make the gun ready. But as Sauer Grapes has said already most people don't use the safety when the trigger is already DA.
 
C0untZer0 said:
CZ because the safety is easy to flip down

Trying to disengage a safety by flipping it up is unnatural for me and would take a lot of traning
Click to expand...
Actually, it's very easy and requires little training (especially for the generation that came up with S&W autopistols and the Beretta 92). Also, since it's primarily used as a decocker, it's typically (these days) seldom used as a "safety."

If you're looking at a range gun, something semi-collectible, go with the 5906 -- it's a classic. Get one now while they're obtainable for reasonable prices. The CZ-75 will be around for a while, and easily obtainable on the cheap. Go with the classic.
 
I would grab up a nice 5906. I got mine a couple years back for $350, almost new, in the original case with 3 mags. It was a police trade in that appeared to have been shot a few times, the gun cleaned, but the mags weren't, and then it was put away for about 5 years. The policeman it was issued to's name was on the case, and I found a pic of him online. But you can't go wrong with a CZ either.
 
Coop45 said:
That is a decocker.
Click to expand...

It's a safety/decocker. After my agency switched from revolvers to autos, I carried a Model 6906 with the safety "off" for years before retiring. As others have noted,Third Generation Smiths and other pistols of their ilk (da/sa pistols having the combined decocker/safety like the Beretta Model 92) are commonly carried with the safety off.

I have both pistols under consideration and like them equally well. I think how well each pistol handles in the op's hand might be the decision trigger.
 
I like the CZ a lot, but between the two, the 5906 is an easy choice. I have a lot of 9mm pistols; if I could only keep one, it'd be my 5906 hands down.
 
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