I shot 400 rounds of ammunition through my new CZ 83 7.65 mm pistol that I purchased from GunBroker two weeks ago and I wanted to share with you some of my reactions.
The pistol was:
incredibly accurate
resistant to limp wristing
great aesthetics
high-capacity
reliable
solid
New CZ magazines very difficult to load loosened up by the third or fourth loading
Used my Butler Creek 9 mm MagLulu UpLulu speed loader but it was a big difficult because of the narrow top of metal on the CZ magazines. I shot 200 rounds of GECO 73 grain FM J and 200 rounds of Fiochhi 73 grain FMJ. Since I had to put the metal depressor on the Mag loader just below the bullet on top of the casing it caused some of my rounds to became lopsided with the back of the round sticking too far up. I simply taped the magazine and the round straightened out and did not cause any malfunctions while shooting.
The 7.65mm puts much bigger holes in the target than expected. Although many may dismiss this caliber for self-defense, I am encouraged by it.
The pistol is incredibly accurate especially for someone who does not have a lot of muscle strength to hold the pistol steady before shooting and to continue holding it steady from the effects of the recoil. I was easily able to hit bull?s-eyes at 15 and 25 feet repeatedly which I usually do not do with most handguns.
The only negatives of the pistol for me is because of my arthritis is that it is a little hard to rack but I was able to properly rack it and the recoil. I have read on many posts and in the American rifleman by Chuck Hawks that the recoil on the CZ 83 and 7.65 mm was negligible. In fact in the American rifleman article it talks about this gun being recommended for handicapped individuals and the elderly. Unfortunately I can still feel too much recoil in my hands for my arthritis and I do know that continued shooting will only aggravate my condition.
Thus, what I have is another carry gun that I can shoot in a self-defense or emergency situation but not one that I can also use regularly at the range. Unfortunately I wanted one that I could shoot at the range regularly and for as long I wanted to shoot it. It is however, a compact pistol and I do not have any semiautomatics that are compact. I already have 3 9 mm pistols, full-size, and one 357 Magnum (using 38 special) that are carry guns but ones that I no longer use at the range because my arthritis. I was hoping that the CZ 83 was going to fit my needs allow me to shoot it as often as I wanted to do so.
I was considering the CZ 83 versus a Rock Island Armory, 22 TCM (5.7 x 26 mm). It is a 40 ounce 1911, full-size that is extremely easy to rack and who everyone has shot it, states it has practically no recoil due to the weight and size of the gun and it being a locked breech. I hesitated on this pistol because Rock Island Armory is known to have some reliability issues.
Often when I mention this pistol people usually suggest why not the FN 5-7 which is in 5.7 x 28 mm and very reliable. The problem with the FN pistol is that it is a blowback design with an internal hammer and thus, hard to rack. In addition, it only has about 25 to 30% less recoil than a 9 mm pistol. I shot it multiple times and still find the recoil to be uncomfortable.
Well I will probably shoot my CZ 83 again and then get a holster for EDC.
Anyway the CZ 83, 7.65 mm is a great gun.
