newbie question CZ 85 and beretta 92FS

[sandmanx]

Hello general question on metal thickness/etc on the CZ 85 and Beretta 92FS.

note: new to guns and came to the point of getting a CZ maybe the CZ 85

After reading some saying some of the metal parts/sides?? on the CZ are thin/etc.. and after looking at both at a gun show I liked them both.. The CZ did feel good in the hand - so did the Beretta.. The Beretta did feel/look/seem like a heaver, better made gun.. Not saying it is better in shotting, acc., maint as I know nothing about them.. Just saying it seemed to be better made in way of "durability" of parts??

[shooterdude]

I own a Beretta 92FS and a CZ-75 and a CZ-75-SPO1 so I can tell you that both are very well made pistols designed for combat and will withstand any normal use and most normal abuse you can dish out.  I think the CZ's are more accurate due to better barrel lockup but they are both more than capable of combat accuracy in stock form.

The CZ's are heavier than the Beretta but I think the Beretta "feels" more substantial because the grip is wider.

These are my opinions....I made them myself 

[recoilguy]

I do not have a Berreta 92 I have shot one and I have shot the Taurus version of it also. Very nice and straight shooting weapons. They do feel like you are holding a wapon when you pick one up no doubt!!!!

The cz85 AND THE 92 are 2 very different guns and need to have the "Metal" in the places they do to function correctly. I have to think the Berreta is a very fine weapon and i know it is very common and there is a butt load of them out there.

I own a few CZ's so my opinion will reflect the bias of the brand I chose. The CZ 75 or 85 are fine weapons that will last you through out your shooting career I am pretty sure. that is unless your new hobbybecomes your obsession. Well then it still most likely will. As far as duribility of parts go, feeling which one is better seems like it would be a tough job. The durabilty of both guns is proven....... both are a good choice. I would not shy away from the CZ because the metal feels heavier and more durible on the other gun. It is just a function of the design and where metal needs to be to make that design work.

RCG

[sandmanx]

thanks and may I say I don't think I did bad.. in a matter of a few days never owning a gun and thinking about getting one.. I came to the CZ 85, 85 combat / Beretta..

note: I am a lefty!

I am thinking of having CZ customs do the trigger fix, and smooth out the parts, change springs and somewhere I thought I read that one can fix something on the ejecting slot (file??) to help in ejecting used shells?? I know a lot of this is prob. basic stuff when u come down to it.. But I don't think it would be a smart idea are me to do the - do it your self job - seeing I know nothing about guns... and guns can kill.. I don't want a hair pull trigger, just smooth, not too heavy pull action..

now the real prob is a 2 tone, or polyblack?? 

Does the black powder really made cleaning a 2 tone, nickel, stainless gun a lot more work/harder..

[bang bang]

thanks and may I say I don't think I did bad.. in a matter of a few days never owning a gun and thinking about getting one.. I came to the CZ 85, 85 combat / Beretta..

note: I am a lefty!

I am thinking of having CZ customs do the trigger fix, and smooth out the parts, change springs and somewhere I thought I read that one can fix something on the ejecting slot (file??) to help in ejecting used shells?? I know a lot of this is prob. basic stuff when u come down to it.. But I don't think it would be a smart idea are me to do the - do it your self job - seeing I know nothing about guns... and guns can kill.. I don't want a hair pull trigger, just smooth, not too heavy pull action..

now the real prob is a 2 tone, or polyblack?? 

Does the black powder really made cleaning a 2 tone, nickel, stainless gun a lot more work/harder..

welcome,

before you do any work on the gun, i would hope you would take the gun out and shoot it alot.  you can worry about "what ifs" if you want , but i think its a waste of time.  shoot the gun and then deal with the problems as they arise since you wont know what issues you will have if any.

not sure about the cleaning of the powder reside from the nickel finish. since nickel is really hard, i would expect it to be a good finish. 

[MrAnderson]

I'd agree with bang bang.  I bought a CZ85 Combat last summer.  Out of the box it is the most accurate pistol I've shot AND I don't see why I would have a trigger job done on it, unless I wanted a "hair trigger."  It has a very easy trigger pull and, as with all guns, the surfaces will smooth out with use.  I only have 250 rounds through it.  The only mod I plan is a FO front sight.  Oh, and I put the rubber grip panels on it - but haven't shot it since then (it is rain season here in Oregon! ).

I would like to get some checkering done on the front and back of the grip, however.  I prefer lots of checkering to keep my pistols in place while I am shooting them.  I always use non-slip tape but, because of the contours and surface of the tuotone CZ85 Combat, it's a little difficult to keep it on.  Anyone know a good shop that can checker a stain nickel grip?

Thanks,
Dave

[Redleg06]

Some of the big differences between the Beretta and the CZ are first the frame material.  The CZ is steel and the Beretta is Aluminum.  Although it will not be until after many thousands of rounds aluminum will eventually fail, this may or may not be before the frame of the CZ would fail but with enough material steel parts can be made to never fail in normal use.  You could do a finite element analysis to figure out which would fail first, but I and most people tend to trust steel more as far as durability in firearms goes.  This probably is not an issue for any normal persons lifetime use of a firearm.

The biggest difference between the two and the main reason I prefer the CZ is the frame mounted controls.  The safety on the CZ is mounted on the frame and easily reached, while on the Beretta it is mounted on the slide and your grip needs to be changed substantially more to reach it.  All the  controls are also in the same locations as they are on the 1911 pistol so if you own one or get one (and if you are a shooter you eventually will) the controls are familiar.   You can also carry the CZ cocked and locked like a 1911 pistol or carry it hammer down the 92 comes standard with a decocker which some prefer (it is also available on the CZ), but I for one prefer a standard safety. 

I have carried the 92 for years as a dual armed infantry officer and have shot the hell out of it.  Do I own one? No.  I have sent many 92's to the armorer for small parts replacement while I have many thousands of rounds out of my CZ-85 and the only things I replaced are items that I have replaced only recently because I wanted to not because anything broke. 

[blackcampbell]

I've owned a Taurus knockoff of the 92SF and wasn't overly impressed (but it was one of the first run), I've carried the 92SF in the army and while they shot okay, they were crap (I thought)...until I found a Brescia gun.  The American-made Beretta do not have the hand-fitted block the Italian ones do.  Run the slide on an American one, you get three clicks; the Italian is smooth and clicks once.  The Brescia gun shot better and operated more smoothly.

So I can give a thumbs up on the Italian Beretta 92SF.  I currently have a CZ-85 Combat and it is the single-finest 9mm handgun I've ever owned, and on par with my other favorite, the FN FiveSeven.  I've got almost 7000 rounds through the CZ in a year and I've had NO malfunctions of any kind.  I'm getting sub 3" groups at 25 yards standing and unsupported (I get similar groups from the Tanfoglio Witness .45,a CZ knockoff.)

They cost about the same, so between the two, I'd go CZ, but you would not get a bad weapon in the Beretta (just get the Italian one!)