The last 3 weeks I have been running my faithful Glock 19 and my new CZ P-10 C side by side. I now have just over 1000 rounds through my P-10, and many thousands of rounds through this particular Glock 19. If you were to count all the 9mm rounds I have fired through a Glock 17 or 19 in the last 20 years, we are talking tens of thousands of rounds. Maybe even 100,000+ rounds.

That said, I am not a guy who runs around and says Glocks are the best. I have owned 250 some odd handguns over the last 25 years, and there are many brands and models I have been very fond of. But I am not a single gun brand guy. About a decade ago I decided I prefer striker-fired handguns for concealed carry and defense. I really like the idea of the exact same consistent trigger pull for every shot, and not having to fumble around with any switches or levers. That's probably why I often carried a revolver before switching over to striker-fired pistols for carry/defense ten years ago. For me, the gun that has defined the compact striker-fired pistol niche is the Glock 19. I simply have not been able to find a better compact striker-fired handgun than the Glock 19. Not only is it the standard for a concealed carry gun; it would even serve anyone on duty extremely well. The G19 is also great to shoot at the range. It is also extremely durable and reliable. There is also a plethora of aftermarket parts that allow you to tweak and personalize it any which way you like. It does lots of things very well, but, there is always room for improvement. I have found myself waiting a long time for something better to come along that could improve upon what I see to be the two weak spots of the Glock 19: The mediocre trigger and the grip angle.

I have played around with and shot some of the striker-fired new comers that had the Glock 19 firmly in their sights. The HK VP9, Sig P320, Walther PPQ. All nice guns in their own right, but I didn't feel any of them really did everything better than the Glock 19. About 2 months ago I picked up the latest challenger to the Glock 19, the CZ P-10 C. I think CZ makes some of the finest DA/SA pistols around, and had high hopes that it may be THE ONE that would do everything as well as the Glock 19, and improve upon its shortcomings.

The Glock factory trigger, and most aftermarket triggers for it are okay at best. I am going to make this real simple. The factory trigger on the P-10 is vastly superior to ANY Glock trigger, factory or otherwise. The reset on the P-10 is incredible. It has the shortest reset of any other factory striker fired gun. It is also clean and crisp. Though I have not measured it, I can tell my P-10 breaks under 5 lbs for sure. To improve the trigger on your Glock you would have to spend over $100, and it still would not be as good as the factory trigger on the P-10. I am a huge trigger guy, meaning I love a good factory trigger, and I love the P-10 trigger. In my opinion not only is it the perfect trigger for a carry gun, it is good enough for shooting any matches you may participate in. I would not change it in anyway. The P-10 trigger is truly PERFECTION.

The other weak point on the Glock for me is the grip angle. Though I have put more rounds through Glock pistols than I can possibly remember, I still don't like the grip angle. Unless I consciously point the front down a little bit, I will shoot right over my target. The grip angle is just not natural for me. If I close my eyes and raise up a Glock, the front sight is always a little higher than the rear sight. The P-10, like most CZs pistols I have handled, is a very natural pointing gun. Draw and raise it up to my line of sight, and the sights are naturally aligned. There is no question the P-10 points better for me than the Glock 19.

As far as shooting is concerned the P-10 is really a pleasure to shoot. The few extra ounces the P-10 has over the Glock 19 really seems to absorb enough recoil for me to notice the difference. The improved trigger and preferable grip angle, make the P-10 a better shooting gun for me. The P-10 just points so nicely and naturally. Combine the P-10s point-ability with the mild recoil, and accurate follow up shots just come up one after the other. Groups like this are the norm for me with this gun at 10 yards. I have to really focus to shoot groups like this with my Glock. With the P-10 it is almost effortless!



When it comes to shooting the P-10 quickly, I am truly amazed and how quickly the sights fall right back on target after each shot. These are rapid fire groups in the picture directly below. When I say rapid fire, I mean I bring the gun up quickly and fire as quickly as I can pull the trigger. I CANNOT do this with my Glock 19. Shooting groups the same way with my Glock 19, they are at least twice as large.




I had 5 rounds left at the end of my range session yesterday. I put the target out as far as I could (50 feet), raised the P-10 and shot 5 rounds as quick as I could pull the trigger. That's good enough for me!




Will I be carrying my P-10? You bet. I am carrying it right now. Will it completely replace the several Glock 19's I own? No. Do I prefer it to my Glock 19? I think I do. I shoot it better.

I should also mention I have had no failures of any kind in the over 1000 rounds I have put through the P-10 thus far. I am going to buy another P-10 when the Night Sight model comes out. I am also going to buy a Suppressor Ready P-10 when they come out and have the slide milled for an RMR. The Glock 19 I ran against this had and RMR mounted on it, and I still shot the P-10 better and faster! I am very impressed with the P-10. I highly recommend you try one out.

I wish I could find one with a nicer trigger

Attached File


They do feel very nice in the hand

I'm interested, but I'm going to let you guys work the bugs out first.

I've tried replacing my G19 many times, but i always come back to it. I don't bother trying anymore.

Yep always back to the G19.

Yea I have really tried to find something I liked better than my Glocks and it hasn't happened for me yet.  1911s are awesome guns but not a replacement, I couldn't get into my VP9, The P-10 looks like a well designed pistol... I may pick one up in a few months as an adjunct to my glocks.  I may be happier if I buy it as an adjunct and not a replacement

I plan to rent one of these and the new m&p first time i'm near a place that rents them

I'm not in love with glocks i use them because they are stupid reliable nothing else i've tried makes me want to spend money.

In all honesty, the M&P 2.0 is a perfectly fine gun. If it was the only gun I could own, I could live with that. But the P-10 does everything better. It is very impressive. From the first mag I shot, I knew something serious was up. The first 10 rounds I shot were just to the left of the bullseye in a nice 2" group. I took out my tools and adjusted the rear sight over a tad, and I shot out the bullseye with the next 10 rounds. That's never happened to me before when trying a new gun for the first time. Not like that. It has a lot to do with the trigger and the excellent handling characteristics of the P-10.

Ill keep my g19 over a cz anyday!

If the CZ shoots better groups, has a better grip angle and a better trigger how do you shoot the Glock better ?

He's saying that he prefers the CZ to the Glock because he shoots it better.


Vulcan94

They should give you a free gun because you're selling them for CZ that's for sure!

Good write up. I just got a SP-01 and now am very interested in CZ's other offerings. 

Wouldn't that be nice!

CZ pistols are very well made for the most part outside the horrible triggers you get on some models. But all the issues you said you have with the Glock ? Grip angle, sight alignment, shooting high ? I had none of those issues from day one when I picked up my first Glock. If you like CZ that's fine and you made a good choice -but there's no reason for me to try and replace what I already shoot extremely well.

I find the P10 much more shootable than a G19 (no finger grooves, and a grip I can get all my fingers on).  The trigger guard is still a little tight for me but I guess I can work with it.  I still need to grab both sides of the slide release to drop the slide on an empty mag.  If that doesn't wear in, I may sell it.

Not suggesting you do anything. Just one man's experience. If you are happy with your Glock, that's awesome. I have always been happy with mine, except for the trigger and Luger grip angle. I always have my eye out for something better, or something that improves upon what came before it. For me that's the P-10 C. Does that mean I am selling all my Glocks. Absolutely not. Will I buy other Glocks? Of course.

The absolute best pocket pistol is a Glock 42. The grip angle issue disappears on the shorter 42, and I don't want a lighter trigger on a tiny gun. Nothing can replace the G42 for me and i am not looking for anything to replace it, or for improvement on it. I love Glocks. I just the think the P-10 C does a couple of things better than the Glock 19. And the trigger is a VAST improvement.

As a guy who has shot other people's Glocks over the years and have never been able to get comfortable with the grip angle, I find this relevant to my interests.  
I've been seriously considering the PF940Cv1 80% frame for a while but now that the CZ P-10C is out, I may just opt for that.  
FWIW, a CZ 75 P-01 finally got me to purchase my first 9mm, first double stack, and first DA/SA I've ever owned.  I've always been a revolver and 1911 guy.  The P-10C may be just what I need to get my first striker fired handgun.

Awesome but how the hell do you shoot like that.  Your fast groups are smaller than my slow groups at shorter distances.

Still can't find one to  finger.

I will tell you my secret. About 7 years ago I went through a big revolver phase. I spent a solid 3 years shooting mostly revolvers Double Action Only with 10lb. to 14lb. triggers. I still try to bring a revolver every time I go to the range, but that doesn't happen as much as it used to. I dusted off one of my S&W J Frame Airweight snubby's and took it along to the range on Sunday. Here is a cylinder full at 10 yards:



Regularly shooting Double Action Revolvers improved my shooting a hundred fold. Do yourself a favor, get yourself a K or L Frame S&W .38 with a 3" or 4" barrel, and put 50 to 100 rounds through it every time you go to the range. Once you can shoot well with a DA revolver, you can shoot everything else really well! Your shooting will improve many times over. Get a used beater, it will probably shoot better than a new one. But you have to go often/regularly to the range. I go to the range once to twice a week. So Practice a lot and shoot a revolver. Seven years ago I was lucky if I could shoot 6" groups at 10 yards!

Do you shoot with both eyes open or just 1?

It's cheaper for me to just rent a would be G19 replacement. I put 50 rounds through the contender, swap back to the G19 and just laugh at the difference.

Nothing has more rounds in such a small package with fewer parts and such a low bore axis with an ideal grip angle. Nothing. Other pistols make 9 feel like 40.

I hope your joking about the ideal grip angle if your referring to your 19.

The P-10 C is definitely a good place to start with Striker Fired handguns. They built upon the 30 years of development that has gone on in this niche, and seem to have crossed their T's and dotted all the I's with the P-10 C.

I practice both ways. For fine accuracy shooting I use one eye. For defensive drills usually both. It just depends on what I am doing.

The Steyr series is pretty close and I much prefer its grip over Glock.

I really liked my P10c and I too shot it better than my Glock 19. Unfortunately, mine is back at CZ and my Glock 19 is back on the hip. Bummed out, as it truly was a great shooter. still have hope for the P10c over time though.

I am tagging this for updates. It is on my very short list but want to see more in the wild

Same. I think the P10C, especially in it's second generation which is bound to happen eventually, will be the perfect striker fired gun for anyone who has not been shooting Glocks for any number of years prior. For the rest of us, there is no reason to try getting away from something that just flat out works with an ideal mix of dimensions, weight, simplicity and shootability.

ETA: Yes, I have both. And a VP9. And M&Ps. And a 509. And an APX. And...

Makes perfect sense, if something works for you, no need to change.

I shoot way better with the p10c the only reason I've still been carrying my g19 is that the p10c grip is to aggressive for IWB tucked carry.
I will fix that soon enough but I want a few more rounds before I start hacking it up

Thanks for the write up on the CZ.  And, I couldn't agree more with your thoughts on shooting DA revolvers.  As someone who grew up sending 1000's of .22 lr, .38 spl and .357 mag rounds through "classic" S&W and Colt revolvers, it always makes me smile when someone complains about the consistent 6 pound pull on their latest strike fired gun.  Even if you don't take a DA to the range every time, dry fire the hell out of them and you'll see an improvement in your shooting.  Smooth and steady from front to back, and "click".  There it goes!

... Why wouldn't you just drop the slide then put the mag in?

Why would THAT of all things be the deal breaker?

Short answer: I don't like having to work around a design flaw. I have already radiused the corner of the slide stop that catches the breechface.  A little more might help.  But I admit it will never be a favorite of mine or even close to it.

OP HERE:

I took a new shooter to the range today, my Brother-in-law. He has shot a handful of times in his life, maybe 2 or 3 times before today in the last 10 years. I brought a couple of rifles, a .22lr target pistol, and three 9mm handguns. I brought a Glock 19 with iron sights, a Glock 19 with an RMR, and a CZ P-10 C.

First I was amazed at what an amazing shot he is. He had no problem shooting 3" to 4" 10 shot groups and 7 to 8 yards with any of the 9mm handguns. However, he really shot the CZ P-10 C consistently well. Pretty much 2" to 3" ten shot groups every time. He put 100 rounds through the CZ P-10. And a couple of hundred rounds through the Glock 19's. I was really amazed at how well he shot it.

At the end of the session, he turned to me and said "I really like that CZ, it has such a great trigger. It is so much better than the Glock trigger...I have been thinking about buying a gun, and I just decided I am going to buy one. I'm going to buy that CZ P-10 when I get back to Colorado."

It was so interesting to see a new shooter make that observation about the trigger. It was also amazing to see how well he shot for a brand new shooter. I have taken dozen and dozens of new shooters out over the years, and this guy was naturally an amazing shooter. If this guy shot as much as I do, he would be a champ.

My P-10 had a 4.5# trigger, but there was some weird drag on it if you didn't pull it back perfectly straight. And it had a little even if you did. I have giant palms and stubby fingers.

I agree it's a great gun out of the box (if you get a good trigger--smooth AND less than 5#).

BUT my Glock 19 with an Overwatch trigger and a Ghost PRO 3.3 connector has less pre-travel, less over-travel, a crisper break, and about the exact same amazing reset. Of course, I paid a lot for this and had to do some fitting.

I want to go back to the P-10 someday when they have more aftermarket support. I want sight options--the OEM rear (and aftermarket rears) is too narrow for me--I like a .150 rear and a .115-.125 front. And some trigger enhancements would be good to eliminate the discrepancies that people are seeing in the wild (triggers from 4.25# to 7.5# that are gritty to smooth).

I can agree with the fluctuation in the triggers, I checked several before settling on one and they were very inconsistent. After picking one I liked and polishing some of the mag release components, overall I am very pleased with the gun.

I have found the exact same thing to be true.  I mastered an old S&W model 65 in double action and it really helped me with all other handguns.  I used to try to find the perfect trigger, now I believe that a super short/light trigger is actually a bad thing on a SD handgun.  I'd rather have something with a bit heavier and/or longer pull when fine motor skills are diminished in a life and death situation.  

These days, I tend to carry a G19 or a 9mm HK P30/P30SK LEM.

I handled a P10c a few days ago and I do think it was a very nice gun. The trigger is pretty darn good for being factory. As a Glock owner, this was another pistol brand I was seriously considering.

The thing that always stops me going outside Glock is the mag prices. I had considered a P320 until I saw the mag prices, so I had drop the idea (pun intended ). I saw the CZ mags online for $35! I've got probably 40 Glock mags that I bought over time for under $20 each every time Brownells had a sale. I just can't justify the 75% price increase in the mags!

Outside of Glock, $35 mags are the norm for most pistols.

The gun locking back positively on an empty mag isn't a design flaw.

Not being able to drop the slide on an empty mag is.

Why would you want to drop the slide on an empty mag?