By R.K. Campbell | Contributing Editor
A company I have the greatest respect for is CZ. Their handguns have provided good service.
I was especially impressed by the original CZ 75. I had my first experience with copies of the CZ 75 before the real thing was available in the United Stated. The Czech-made CZ’s are superior handguns and have proven accurate and reliable.
CZ came into the polymer frame striker fired pistol market later than some but introduced a handgun with good features and superior ergonomics. There must be a good reason for choosing a particular handgun. The CZ may be the best hand fit and the best trigger action for your hand and your style. Whatever your preference, you will admit the CZ is a reliable handgun.
Personal preference is the rest of the story. The P10 C is the original CZ striker fired handgun. Since the introduction of the P10 C CZ has introduced compact and subcompact versions including the single column CZ P10M subcompact, a larger pistol with a longer slide the CZ P10 F, and now the ported barrel CZ P10 C. The pistol is designed to maximize the good attributes of the P10 C and improve on them. The primary improvement is in limiting muzzle flip. Barrel porting redirects gas upward that is normally traveling out of the muzzle end of the barrel. This brings into play Newton’s Third Law of Motion. For every action that is an opposite and equal reaction. By redirecting gas upward muzzle flip is limited. Felt recoil is limited to an extent, difficult to measure, but muzzle flip is definitely limited.
Do You Need a P10 C Ported?
If you own a P10 C, would you think the P10 C Ported is worth an upgrade? The casual shooter may not think so.
A shooter who wishes to be all they can be will embrace the easier shooting characteristics of the CZ P10 C Ported. The pistol features a nicely machined and finished slide, which, is fitted with three-dot sights and forward and rear cocking serrations. The barrel is heavier than the original P10 C, which is also ported. Both slide and barrel feature a kind of bottle opener cut in the slide. The, and the barrel features a nicely done crown.
The frame features a good texture, not too raspy but allowing a good firing grip, and there is a three notch light rail. Two 15 round magazines are supplied and there are two + 2 magazine pads in the hard case. Two additional grip inserts are also supplied.
When the ad says the sights are luminous I am afraid this is overly optimistic. They are simply green painted inserts. The pistol’s 4 inch barrel is nicely rifled and finished. There is no manual safety safe the trigger lever set into the trigger face. The pistol breaks down like a Glock, simply unload the pistol and press the frame mounted levers down and remove the slide. The recoil spring guide and barrel are easily pulled out. Maintenance should be simple enough.
Polymer frame striker fired handguns are big on reliability and low on maintenance. The slide is optics ready. There are no plates supplied, so you must order individual plates from CZ USA. I would like at least one plate with the gun but it is what it is. The trigger action is crisp and clean, with compression at a clean 5.0 pounds and .16 travel to reset. This is a good striker fired trigger action. Be certain to clean grease from the trigger as it is unboxed. You may experience a heavier trigger action or failure to reset with a striker fired action due to packing grease.
Firing Tests
I lubricated the pistol along its long bearing surfaces, slide rails and slide ways, and barrel hood. The magazines were loaded with handloads using the Hornady 124 grain XTP over enough TiteGroup powder for 1120 fps. This is a standard load that provides good results in any 9mm you care to load it in.
I fired the pistol for combat groups at 7 yards. The CZ is fast on target and easy to get good results with. A 9mm this size isn’t going to hammer the wrist. Just the same, the ported pistol limits muzzle flip. The heavier barrel adds about two ounces to the P10 C Ported another advantage.
I increased the firing range to 10 and then 15 yards, hammering out a hundred rounds in the initial evaluation. The pistol shoots flat and stays on target. Trigger reset is as important as a smooth trigger and the CZ is an impressive handgun to fire and use.
Accuracy Testing
It was good to note the pistol is properly regulated for 124-grain ammunition at 25 yards. The CZ 9mm did well with standard pressure ammunition and a limited amount of +P ammunition. I also fired the pistol with a number of bullets weights and test fired the handgun for accuracy from a solid benchrest at 25 yards.
I fired the Hornady American Gunner 124-grain XTP +P load off hand in combat firing. Control remained excellent with this hard hitting load.
Next came the Buffalo Bore 147-grain JHP which uses the XTP bullet. This is a heavy hard driving bullet I often deploy in the winter months, especially when hiking. Buffalo Bore loads this heavy bullet to over 1,100 fps. Expansion and penetration are excellent.
The pistol also fed, chambered, fired and ejected with a limited number of the Buffalo Bore 147-grain hard cast Outdoorsman load.
Accuracy results
Groups Benchrested 25 yards
Load 5 shot group
Hornady 124 gr. XTP American Gunner 2.25 inch.
Hornady 135 gr. Critical Duty 1.9 inch
Buffalo Bore 147 gr. Outdoorsman 2.45 inch
Buffalo Bore 147 gr. JHP 2.0 inch
The CZ P10 C Ported is an accurate handgun. But then the loads listed are proven accurate in a wide range of firearms and exhibit excellent quality control.
Carrying
The pistol is similar in size to the Glock 19 and will fit well in Glock holsters. I am not a fan of mismatching fit but many makers do not offer a CZ P10 C holster. Tulster.com offers a full line of IWB and OWB types as well as range holsters for the CZ P10 C.
Offering a good balance of speed and retention this holster is a good choice for concealed carry. The Contour rides close to the body for concealment. Yet the draw angle is excellent making for a sharp draw. There is a unique retention adjustment device included.
Specifications – CZ P-10 C Ported
- Caliber: 9×19
- Magazine Capacity: 15 rounds
- Weight (empty): 26.8 oz
- Overall Length: 7.3 inches
- Width: 1.3 inches
- Height: 5.3 inches
- Barrel Length: 4 inches
- Barrel: Cold hammer forged
- Sights: Three Dot outline
- Trigger Pull: 5.0 lbs
- Trigger Travel: 0.4 inches
- Reset Length: 0.16 inches
- Frame: Fiberglass-reinforced polymer
- Safeties: Trigger safety, trigger bar safety, firing pin block
