Great — another striker-fired, polymer pistol. Not exactly. The CZ P-10 C is something different.
Polymer guns dominate the tactical and defensive pistol arena. It’s impossible to walk onto any range and not immediately observe a sea of plastic pistols. Although polymer guns are popular, we’ve seen little advancement in the design of these pistols in the past two decades.
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Although genie rubbing these pistols for thousands of dollars is an “in” trend, we often see that these upgrades afford little advantage other than a cosmetic makeover. Similarly, large gun companies continue to release their next generation pistol, only to be met with criticism from fans that see a repackaged retro gun.
So what about CZ’s P-10 C?
Get a Grip
Without even getting my hands on the P-10 C, I was satisfied to see that CZ took into account something that other polymer gun manufacturers tend to ignore: Massive grip area on the frame of the pistol.
One of the biggest issues shooters have with gripping polymer guns is that they run out of real estate on the frame, which forces novice shooters to place their hands up onto the slide.
Hands on with the pistol, CZ nailed it with the ergonomics.
A chief issue with other polymer guns is that the grip angle forces shooters to roll their wrists too far forward. This becomes problematic because a shooter will start to lose traction on the frame of the pistol with the meaty portion of his hand. Add to this a firearms instructor that dogmatically repeats that the shooter needs to get his hand higher on the frame and you set in place the formula for a right-handed shooter to miss low left or a left-handed shooter to miss low right.
The grip angle on the P-10 C helps to ease these issues while also allowing for more control of the pistol.
Along the side of the frame and towards the muzzle, there is distinct stippling for support thumb placement. This stippling isn’t as pretty as a genie rubbed striker pistol, but it’s massively functional. Unlike other striker fired pistols, manufacturer stippling either covers an area that is too small, or is in awkward places. The P-10 C negates these issues by affording enough stippling so that you can fit the gun to your hand, regardless.
Range Time
I got my hands on the pistol at the Athlon Outdoors Rendezvous in Gateway, Colo. Grip and ergonomics aside, how did it actually shoot? First, lets see what CZ has to say about the P-10 C’s trigger:
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“The trigger is designed to minimize creep and stacking, and after initial break-in averages a clean 4.5-5-pound pull and rebounds with a short, positive reset — meaning single shots can be meticulously placed while follow-ups are effortless.”
Whenever I test a new trigger, I perform three specific exercises.
First, I load a single round into the chamber, then remove the magazine and shoot freestyle. This allows the me to focus in specifically on the pull and reset of the trigger.
Second, I perform the exact same load and shoot with just my strong hand, then reload and shoot with just my support hand.
Last, I load up a full magazine and cycle the gun slowly and then on rapid fire with a full magazine.
The best way to describe the P-10 C’s trigger is by placing it between novice and intermediate shooters. New shooters will appreciate the distinctiveness between the wall and the break. If you like less resistance, the P-10 C makes up for this with reset between shots. Regardless, the trigger preforms within similar thresholds as other out-of-the-box striker-fired guns.
One suggestion for the improvement of the pistol was noted during single-hand firing. As I pressed the trigger during strong or support hand manipulations, if I didn’t press directly back to the rear of the pistol, the sides of the trigger would catch along the inside of the frame. This would create a slight drag and would occasionally slow up the shot.
Final Thoughts
If you’re looking to dominate the competition arena with a gun you can modify or genie rub, the P-10 C isn’t you’re gun. But, if you’re looking for a user-friendly, intuitive design (grip!) for home defense or duty, perhaps CZ should be on your list of considerations.
The pistol is available in 9mm and .40. MSRP is $499 for the 9mm and $516 for the .40.
For more information, please visit CZ-USA.com.
