P09 or P07

[Cipivts]

Hi guys, i'm new in pistols / shooting and trying various guns before making my buy choice.
I started with the P09 that i really loved accuracy and feel, tried the shadow 2 that blew me away with its accuracy and overall feel. Probably better weight, great trigger feel and fiber optic sights.
Then i tried again the P09 va a P07 at my local range and i really loved the compact feeling of the P07 and the way it sits in my hand. Better recoil control over the P09 imo...

As i'm considering a buy i am wondering if it's worth paying so much for the shadow 2 especially if i don't know if i'll get hooked up with ipsc shooting so that leaves me to a dilema:
1. should i go for the shadow 2 as my first gun but pay the extra price just for range shooting (if ipsc will not play for me)
2. should i go for the polimer series and use the extra cash for ammo and training? Will i get used to them comparing to the amazing feel of the shadow2?

If 2. should i go for the bigger frame and choose the P09 or just take the P07 that feels better in hand and balance? Will the P07 be less precise for target and ipsc if i finally choose to go for some competitions?

Thanks for any advice!

[SI VIS PACEM PARRABELLUM]

These are  mainly questions you can answer for yourself. Decide what your primary intent for the pistol will be. If you are looking for a pistol to carry then the P-07 would be the better choice of the 3. If you fully intend to get into competition the Shadow may be the way to go.
If you have handled all 3 and favor one more than the others that may be the one too start with. You really don't have much of a dilemma though as once you get into CZ's you'll eventually own all 3 and more.

[whitecap]

OH brother, what he said. You have now opened the can.

[M1A4ME]

I'm a big guy (6'3" and 300 lbs.)  I've tried carrying the P09 and don't like it.  My P07 is my EDC handgun.

I don't own a Shadow but I own some CZ 75 framed guns.  While the CZ 75 framed guns really feel good in my hand, so far, none of them shoot like my P07/P09.  That could change if I had a really expensive on, or just got lucky and bought one that was put together just right.

Remember, if you go with the plastic framed guns you might use the left over money for aftermarket parts (CZ Custom and/or Cajun Gun Works) to improve the trigger/accuracy of the cheaper guns.  Look around here on the forum, lots of info from folks who have spent money to improve their pistols and both CZ Custom and Cajun Gun Works have a presence here and can answer your questions.

[rdcinhou]

... You really don't have much of a dilemma though as once you get into CZ's you'll eventually own all 3 and more.

I concur with this observation.  My first CZ was a P-09.  I later added a P-07.

As for the Shadow consideration, I've held both a Shadow and a Phantom and I chose the Phantom.

[Jonesn]

Just choose 1 and the others will follow in due time! I bought a CZ Rami 9mm as my first CZ and so after they started multiplying like rabbits. I now own 3 a Rami,P09,P07 all in 9mm and in the order I bought them. Eyeing a 75 SP-01 Phantom now.........give me a couple days on that one.

[DCSigCZ]

You have a tough decision at hand.  Regarding accuracy, the P-07 is a compact so it has a shorter sight radius. A shorter radius means that any error you induce in the sight picture will be a bit greater at the target than a larger pistol with a longer sight radius. That being said, your comfort with the P-07 and the confidence that you have as a result can completely make up for that "disadvantage".  My wife and I shoot our compact DA/SA pistol as accurately, or better than, our full size pistols.

I'd buy the pistol for the use that you KNOW you have and use it for everything.  When you prove to yourself that you will be active in another activity that could warrant another pistol, e.g. IPSC competition, then go purchase a pistol for it IF you think you need to. FWIW I have found, after trying many different types of pistols searching for the one that will make me more accurate, the most important part of the equation is ME. A great shooter (excellent technique) will shoot a mediocre pistol extremely well.  A mediocre shooter will shoot the best pistol in the world - mediocrely.

I have found that dry fire practice (15 minutes every other day) has made me MUCH more accurate in live fire. And I am only shooting two nearly identical DA/SA CZs. No more switching and trying striker fire, etc..   

You may find that you get the P-07, use it all the time and get so good with it that you do not need more.  Want is a different thing, however.  Whatever you get, stick with it, master it and become as good as you possibly can with it.

[Joe L]

I held off getting a P-07 way too long after first getting a P-09.  I absolutely love the P series guns, but I am a bullseye match competitor and actually need a heavier pistol for the windy conditions where I shoot.  But I get the P-07 out often and it is my favorite "training" gun, meaning it and a SIG P-226 are the first two guns I have new shooter shoot.  Then I let them shoot a P-09.  Most favor the P-07 initially.  The size just seems right to most people, not too big like a P-09 or other full size gun, not too small like a Kahr PM-40 or PM-9 or a SIG P938. 

Accuracy wise, either is excellent.  I was pleasantly surprised to see how well the P-07 shot when I finally got one in early 2016, so I decided to shoot it in a small local bullseye match just to make the point that a smaller than full size gun can still be shot very well with a little triggger time and a CGW hammer.   I had high score in that match, but it was a little lower than what I could do with the fully tricked out CZ-97B"E" match gun that I normally shoot, due to the wind that day, and the weight difference.  There were several people shooting custom 1911's that were more than a little surprised to see that a polymer gun could be competitive in their sport.   

If you don't have a compelling reason to do otherwise, I would suggest a P-07, which are available for around $400 now, and then get yourself some trigger time and wait a year before buying anything other than maybe a CGW hammer if your P-07 single action pull is rough or gritty like mine was from the factory.  I've shot my P-07 out to 100 yards with excellent results and you can spend many years refining your skills with a P-07  before moving to a larger gun.   

I just wish I had gotten a P-07 sooner.  But the P-09 is perfect also, just larger and a little heavier.   As others have mentioned, you will eventually have both anyway.   

Joe

[s0nspark]

My vote is for the P-07 ... and I would highly recommend you dedicate a period of time to just shooting that one gun. I noticed the biggest improvement in my 8 years of shooting when I set aside a full year and shot one pistol exclusively.

Now, at the end of that year I rewarded myself with a few more purchases, but that year made me both a better shooter and a more discriminating consumer. ;-)

$0.02

And all that said, both the P-09 and a Shadow 2 are on my list for next year. My P-07s will continue to rule the roost, though.

[DCSigCZ]

Some quick follow ups:
1) Joe, I am still looking for that pistol which is great out past 100 yards. 
2) Whichever pistol you buy, stick with it for at least 6 months of shooting it weekly (at a minimum). 
3) I think I'd really enjoy the Shadow2 but, alas, I cannot afford it. So I will just continue mastering my SP-01 and P-09

[MikeLW]

I like hefty full size pistols a lot but a P-07 is pretty awesome in every way. I have not shot a P-09.

My 2014 P-07 has a very smooth, easy to shoot trigger, right out of the box.

[copemech]

P-09 is a nice tradeoff between things CZ, and with a bit of trigger work??? Sweet

[regular_guy]

Cipivts,
What will you be using the gun for? Competition only? Competition and Carry? Range use?

If you are not planning on carrying, I would skip the P-07. In my opinion, the P-09 or Shadow 2 are much better options for range/competition use for fine-tuning recoil control and general gun manipulation skills.

Speaking from experience, I would recommend (starting out) that if your goal is to become a better shooter, pick one pistol and stick with it. For a few years, I jumped from new gun to the next new gun, convinced that each one would make me a better shooter. Ultimately, the only thing that happened was I remained an average shooter with a gun collection (not necessarily a bad thing)

Over the past few years, I've stuck with mostly the same type of gun, and focused more on training. As I've become a much better technical shooter, the gun I'm carrying matters less and less.
   
Not saying this is "the" strategy, but I wish someone told me this when I first started out!
 

[s0nspark]

Speaking from experience, I would recommend (starting out) that if your goal is to become a better shooter, pick one pistol and stick with it. For a few years, I jumped from new gun to the next new gun, convinced that each one would make me a better shooter. Ultimately, the only thing that happened was I remained an average shooter with a gun collection (not necessarily a bad thing)

Over the past few years, I've stuck with mostly the same type of gun, and focused more on training. As I've become a much better technical shooter, the gun I'm carrying matters less and less.
   
Not saying this is "the" strategy, but I wish someone told me this when I first started out!

I wish I had too I learned a lot of good lessons jumping from gun to gun (mostly how to see through the marketing spin the hard way and how to spend more money than necessary LOL) but I would have become a MUCH better shooter, faster, had I just stuck with the first one I bought, gotten some solid training and practiced my butt off. Ah well, lessons learned...

You also make a great point about the fact that as you get better as a shooter - better at applying the fundamentals consistently and properly - you gain the ability to shoot most any gun well. Some will, of course, be easier to shoot - due to personal familiarity or ergonomics - but you can make good hits with almost anything you pick up. I use this to good effect when some of my shooting friends blame their gear for their misses ;-D

[Cipivts]

Thanks guys, great advices! I'll focus on trigger time as that seems to be the key
I will think about the pistol options but i am now leaning towards the P07.
I'm not going to carry the gun (not allowed in Switzerland unless you're law enforcement, military or working as security agent) but will mostly do target shooting and some ipsc competitions.
I understand P09 would be better if i don't intend to carry it so that's my second option.
Will most likely try them in parallel at my local range before making my final call