I may not be the first person to do a CZ Shadow 2 Optics Ready review, but I do want to do the most thorough review of this popular pistol I can. I’ve owned 3 different Shadow 2 pistols over the years and they’ve all reliably performed at a high level. In this article I’m going to review the pluses and minus of this gun, and cover my preferred setup for USPSA Carry Optics shooting. Keep reading for more.
I bought my first standard Shadow 2 back in 2018, before there was an optics ready version of the gun. At the time, it was the preferred 9mm pistol for USPSA Production Division competitors. It was built for competition as it incorporated several features that competition pistol shooters look for like an adjustable rear sight, and heavy weight.
That pistol performed well for several years. However, I like to compete in the most competitive shooting divisions, so I decided to make the switch to Carry Optics. If you’re not familiar with the various divisions, Carry Optics guns are either striker fired, or double / single action pistols that have a slide ride red dot sight, and no compensator. Almost all of these Carry Optics guns are chambered in 9mm Luger.
The CZ Shadow 2 Optics Ready version became available in 2020. Previously, those wanting to shoot their Shadows with a dot had to purchase a custom slide, or send the stock slide to get milled. While I’ve done that before with my Glock build, I really like having a factory option. Here’s a quick overview of the pistol.
CZ Shadow 2 Optics Ready Overview
- Double / Single-Action Trigger with ambidextrous manual safety
- Overall Weight: 46.5 ounces
- Stock Magazine Capacity: 19+1, 9mm Luger rounds
- Fiber-Optic front sight with removable rear optics plate / sight
- Steel Frame
- Left and Right Side swappable mag release.
- $1150-1250 Price Range
The CZ Shadow 2 is my gun of choice for range training or competition. It’s proven to be very durable over high round counts. I would estimate that I have over 50,000 rounds on the Shadow 2 platform, across the 3 different pistols I own (1 original Shadow, 2 Optics Ready Shadows).
In the next section I’m going to cover some of the quirks and features I’ve discovered after shooting this Czech Republic 9mm pistol over last 6 years. After that I will review my current setup for USPSA Carry Optics. I’ll then cover the one key preventative maintenance item you need to do if you plan on shooting your Shadow 2 a lot.
CZ Shadow 2 Optics Ready Review
The first thing you notice when you pick up the Shadow 2 is the weight of the gun. It’s heavy, like really heavy. To give you a good idea how much the 46.5 ounce weight really is, it’s equivalent to two Glock 17 Gen 5 pistols. As such I don’t see too many people wanting to use it as an EDC carry gun. You can find a list of much better EDC guns here.
This weight is designed to decrease felt recoil, and it does an excellent job of that. I can remember one particular match where I shot my Glock 17 with a dot right after my Optics Ready Shadow 2, and the recoil felt very sharp, because of how light the gun is.
The weight really does reduce the felt recoil. This is especially true with my full competition setup, which comes in at 59.6 ounces fully loaded. More about that setup later.
I can also report that it works with all types of factory ammo and reloads. I’ve shot frangible rounds, hollow points, and hand loads through this pistol, without issue. Now let’s talk about the trigger pull. Before we do that don’t forget to join the email list for more awesome articles like this.
CZ Shadow 2 Optics Ready Trigger Pull Weight
The next thing you notice are the great trigger pulls. Like most CZ pistols this gun is double / single action. It has two different trigger pulls. The double action trigger pull is right around 9 pounds. The single action trigger pull is in the low 3 pound range.
The one thing the numbers can’t really convey is the smoothness of the pull. I’ve owned a few double single action guns, and many of the double action pulls are horrendously heavy or notchy. The Shadow 2 has a long double action pull that is very smooth. It feels like a very nice revolver trigger.
The single action trigger pull is quite light, and short. The reset is also very fast. During my training I can regularly hit .15 sec splits if I do my part as a shooter. I can also say I’m not know for my ability to split quickly.
While many competition shooters modify their triggers to make them even lighter, I’ve never done so. I feel like the stock trigger is more than good enough. If you do plan on going for a lighter trigger you might check out Cajun Gun Works, as they have a very nice trigger kit.
The other important thing to keep in mind, for those of you who don’t like double single action guns, is that this gun has an external safety. This allows you to cock the hammer and apply the safety. In effect, it’s exactly like shooting a nice single action pistol. CZ also makes two different safety options, a thin and wide version.
Most shooters that use the gun exclusively in single action mode tend to prefer the wide safety. They shoot the pistol much like a 1911 or 2011, where you deactivate the safety during the draw, and keep the safety pinned down with your thumb on top during shooting. Next in this CZ Shadow 2 Optics Ready review we’ll talk about ergonomics.
CZ Shadow 2 Optics Ready Ergonomics
Because this pistol is built to shoot quickly, it has some great features baked right in to the basic design. When you pick the gun up you notice that the pistol grip allows for a very high grip, close to the bore axis. This is extremely important when shooting.
If we put our physics hats on we understand that as the force of the shot pushes the slide rearward, that creates torque on the pistol because we are holding the pistol by the grip. The higher you grip, near the bore axis, the lower torque you will experience. This allows the pistol to return to target much faster than if the grip was further from the bore. Looking at you Sig.
The other thing that is a bit of a blessing and curse is the small slide. CZ built the slide in a unique manner, where the slide is quite small compared to the frame. This allows them to lower the reciprocating mass, thus lowering recoil. It works well, but it does give you less real-estate to grab when manipulating the slide.
The CZ Shadow 2 Optics Ready variant comes with front serrations which are a must, as you can’t really rack the slide by the rear serrations with an optic mounted. Because of the smallish slide size, you definitely need to practice getting a grip in the web of your off hand to rack it correctly. The good news is that the serrations are very sharp, so you won’t slip off of them.
In the next section I will review all of the equipment I use with my CZ Shadow 2 for the ultimate Carry Optics setup. Let’s get to it.
CZ Shadow 2 Carry Optics Setup
Readers of this website will know I’m not a huge believer in modifying guns I need to be reliable. I’ve carried that philosophy over to my USPSA Carry Optics setup, by choosing equipment that allows me to run the gun comfortably, without affecting reliability.
The first thing you need to modify, if you want to be competitive with the Shadow 2, is the magazines. These factory pistols come with 19 round mags. Because the Carry Optics division has a 140mm magazine length limit, it’s advantageous to find a setup that allows you the most magazine capacity. Remember, the fastest reload is one that never happens.
I use the stock nickel plated magazine tubes that come with the gun and pair them with Henning plus 5 basepads. I then add MBX Extreme magazine springs and followers. This allows you to load 24 rounds into the magazine. It’s important to note that these followers do not lock the slide back when the mag is empty. I don’t recommend this for self defense or concealed carry. It’s a pure competition setup that stands up to hard use.
I’ve found this magazine combo to be very reliable, as I’ve used it for two years without malfunction. It’s currently the most popular option for those shooting Shadow 2’s in competition. Next we’ll go over grips.
CZ Shadow 2 Custom Grips
This is one area where I don’t think my setup is always the best for everyone. I certainly prefer it, but everyone has their own preferences. Currently you’ll find a custom modified set of LOK Palm Swell Bogie Grips (Amazon Affiliate Link) on both my guns. I had to modify them because they were actually too grippy on the draw.
As I pushed my hand on the gun, it would fold the skin of my palm over, preventing me from getting my preferred grip. To fix this, I broke out the Dremel tool to smooth the grips down. I sanded them smooth, retaining the palm swell, and then used some JB Weld 5 minute epoxy (Amazon Affiliate Link) to add silicon carbide to the grip. In my opinion the 46/70 grit mix (Amazon Affiliate Link) to be the best at providing excellent recoil control.
I’ve tried 60/90 grit mixes, and they work ok, but I really like more of a sandpaper texture, so I normally go with lower grit. I’ve used this setup for two years, and it’s still going strong. Pro tip, you need to scrub the grips from time to time, to clean out the skin cells that get packed in there. Otherwise they becomes smoother, and smoother.
I can tell you that I almost never see a CZ Shadow 2 with the standard thin blue aluminum grips in competition. They look good, but don’t provide much grip. The only good thing about them is that they are an ok option for shooters with smaller hands, because they’re so thin.
If you want to make your own set of custom grips then you can check this article out for some tips and tricks. Next, let’s talk about my preferred red dot optic and optic plate.
CZ Shadow 2 Optic and Optic Plate
One thing CZ does not provide with their pistols is an optic plate system. I’m currently using the Impact CNC Machine mounting plate for the Shadow 2. I like it because it follows the factory lines of the slide, with a milled section in front of the optic. This optics plate fits the Trijicon SRO and Holosun line of optics.
Most importantly, it has a cut out that allows you to clean and remove your extractor with out removing the plate. As you’ll see in the next section, this is an important maintenance feature.
My preferred optic is the Holosun 507 Comp. I switched from the Leupold Delta Point Pro for a few reasons. The 507 Comp has a bigger window, which makes tracking the dot during recoil easier. It also has very clear glass with a super bright dot, suitable for the brightest days, shooting with sunglasses. It’s also tall enough to cover the fiber optic front sight, which you don’t want to see for competition.
I’ve also found it to be more reliable than my Delta Point Pro, as that optic would occasionally lose contact with the battery, leaving me with no dot during recoil. I’ve never had that happen with my two Holosuns. The other nice feature is that they are about $100-150 cheaper the the Leupold. Before we finish this article I’m going to cover a critical maintenance need.
CZ Shadow 2 Critical Maintenance
This gun is built to run hard, and it’s very durable, with nothing more than regular cleaning and lubrication. However, there is one item that you need to replace on a regular basis if you’re going to shoot a lot. The extractor spring is a weak point in this design, for high round count shooters.
After about 20 thousand rounds you’ll start to get some fail to extract malfunctions. You’ll see spent casings stove-piped in the gun. This has happened in all of my high round count Shadows, so you should expect it to happen to yours too. Luckily it’s a very easy fix.
You need a punch and a new extractor spring with pin. First, you remove the slide from the gun, and take the optic off the plate. Next, punch out the pin that holds the extractor in place. You should then clean the channel as junk accumulates there. Lastly, replace the old spring with a new factory spring.
It can be a bit fiddly to get the extractor to stay lined up while putting a new pin back in, but if I can do it so can you. Of note, I do not recommend a stronger extractor spring. I tried it, and you can’t reliably chamber the first round because the spring keeps the extractor from moving over the round as it chambers. Here’s a video covering this process.
Apart from this the only other maintenance item you need is a new recoil spring. You should generally swap these out about every 10,000 rounds. This is to prevent excess wear when the slide batters into the frame with a weak spring. You won’t have malfunctions if you don’t replace it, you’ll just beat your gun up a bit too much. Now let’s finish this article up.
CZ Shadow 2 Optics Ready Review Final Thoughts
I shoot a lot of matches with my Shadow 2 and it’s been a great gun. Currently there just don’t seem to be any better pistols on the market, especially for competitive shooters. I shoot with guys that run Staccato’s and other more high end 2011 guns. Do you know what happens to them? They malfunction, like a lot.
I know you won’t see this on some Instagram influencers “review” but those guns are not reliable. They’re race cars. They’re nice to shoot, but they will break, and they are massively expensive. A decent full sized 2011 is about $3000 on the low end, and $6000 on the upper end.
I own two CZ Shadow 2’s with Holosun Optics, both with my preferred grips, and optics plates. One complete setup is about $1700. That means I can have a practice gun, and a competition gun that I keep the round count lower on, for the price of a basic Staccato, with no optic, or accessories.
I just don’t see any other options on the market that offer this much shooting performance for the money. As such, I will be sticking with my Shadow 2’s for the foreseeable future.
If you have any comments or questions about this CZ Shadow 2 Optics Ready Review, put them in the section below, and I’ll get you an answer. Now get out there and get training. Don’t forget to join the email list below.
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