Spats McGee
Administrator
I like steel-framed guns. I carry a polymer-framed one. I do not feel even slightly less manly for doing so.
Metal frame vs Polymer Frame
- Thread starter Grunt96
- Start date
Not to my knowledge, but I'd still prefer DA/SA with safety decocker. After installing the D spring in my 96a1 I was very impressed with the trigger and prefer it over other. I really want to get a CZ, and see what the trigger is like on those. For those that own them is there a D spring type option for the hammer spring on the CZ (lighter factory hammer spring) or does the CZ already have a nice DA pull? All the pictures posted of the CZ 75 ' s in this thread have me wanting to run out and buy one.
I thpught the Kahn was DA only? I don't know much about them though. Nice looking guns.
I totally dig all metal handguns and I never, ever chase polymer/tupperware handguns. However, this is because I'm an enthusiast handgun shooter. When it comes to carry/defense, I do indeed carry my Glock. The Glock works well for me and gives me the same trigger pull for each shot and I'm saving weight with the polymer frame.
I have no plans now, in the past or in the future to buy -ANY- polymer frame handguns for pleasure, fun or enjoyable hobby shooting. Zero. For that kind of shooting, which is my true passion in this world, I buy all metal and typically all steel handguns.
But I'm fine, happy and confident carrying this ugly Glock for a carry gun.
As to DA/SA guns, I enjoy them but I only take that first shot in double action mode as a curiosity. Typically, I'm just shooting purely for enjoyment and I'm shooting them all in single-action mode. My preference in a DA/SA pistol is always first going to be a Smith & Wesson of 1st, 2nd or 3rd Generation guise.
I have no plans now, in the past or in the future to buy -ANY- polymer frame handguns for pleasure, fun or enjoyable hobby shooting. Zero. For that kind of shooting, which is my true passion in this world, I buy all metal and typically all steel handguns.
But I'm fine, happy and confident carrying this ugly Glock for a carry gun.
As to DA/SA guns, I enjoy them but I only take that first shot in double action mode as a curiosity. Typically, I'm just shooting purely for enjoyment and I'm shooting them all in single-action mode. My preference in a DA/SA pistol is always first going to be a Smith & Wesson of 1st, 2nd or 3rd Generation guise.
I was very much the same way but I definitely have mellowed with age. It's probably -NOT- age so much that did it, but more so that these days, I have far, FAR more opportunity and ability to go shooting than I ever had in years past, which means all my guns get shot quite a bit more, handled quite a bit more and I'm either constantly cleaning them or they need cleaned and they don't get it because I know I'm taking that particular one out again next weekend, etc.
It was 6 years ago that I got a carry license and I knew even before I got the license that I was going to need to buy a dedicated carry gun and one of my concerns was buying something UGLY and useful as a tool, some kind of handgun that I simply KNEW was going to get:
dirty, nicked, holster-worn, sweated upon, banged in to door frames, covered in lint, shot a lot for practice, and simply -USED- and worn. So I knew I had to buy a gun for the select purpose of NOT being babied or doted-on.
But I know where you're coming from and I have evolved a bit from the same place. I think there is a genuine part of the whole equation that actually does consider my age. Whereas I would look at many (most? all?) of my handguns as something that I wanted to still look NEW decades in to the future... now I think of them as fantastic items that I'm going to use and enjoy while I'm here on the Earth.
And I'm not even that old, at least... not in THIS crowd around here! 
Walt Sherrill
New member
Worc said:
I'm shooting a Sphinx SDP. It's on loan from the importer. I've had several Sphinx guns from the earlier 2000 series. The new SDP is very similar to the CZ compact guns, with the same basic ergonomics, but seems a bit more refined. (Changing things like the hammer springs, mentioned below, are much easier with the SDP.) The full-size version should be ready for sale in the near future, and they have guns suitable for IPSC, too.
The SDP comes in three basic formats, and several color combinations. They have a stainless model (all steel), they have an alloy model (steel slide, two-part alloy frame) and the model you've probably seen (steel slide, alloy upper frame, and poly lower frame. The poly portion of the frame is the lower portion -- i.e., the grip. All models come with several interchangeable grip inserts, allowing some customization for the shooter.
The SDP I'm shooting is that last version (steel/alloy/poly) in black. You'll be hard pressed to tell it has an alloy sub-frame. It's a very nice shooting gun. Mine had a heavy trigger, and because it's a decocker (safety-equipped models are probably now available), the DA/SA transition was an issue for me. I talked with the importer and they recommended using a lighter CZ hammer spring, and it made all the difference in the world.
Very accurate, very nicely made (fit and finish), and comparable in quality to the two Sphinx guns I had some years ago. Not as pretty as the high-gloss stainless 2000s I had, but they were so pretty that I just didn't want to mess them up. (And high-gloss stainless shows all sorts of minor scratches, etc. I'll never have another hi-gloss stainless gun. In some ways they're more trouble than high-gloss blued.)
I think you'll like the gun, and if you get a slightly lighter hammer spring you'll probably LOVE IT.
You'll see folks comparing the SDP to the new CZ P-07, and they do look alike, but internally, they have nothing in common -- as you can see by downloading the user manuals from the Sphinx and CZ sites. I haven't had a chance to shoot a P-07, yet, but it's apparently a pretty good design, and many CZ enthusiasts are raving about it, and its modest costs. (The P-07 is really a new design, using the Omega trigger system; the SDP is very similar to the traditional CZ internally.)
Is the SDP a lot better than the P-07? Only the buyer can decide that. I'm a big CZ fan, have had a bunch of them over the years, including pre-Bs. All I can tell you is that I'm VERY IMPRESSED with the SDP. If you can find one for $1000 or less, you're likely to be happy with the money spent.
http://www.sphinxarms.com/
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Cyanide971
New member
Grunt96,
CGW (Cajun Gun Works) has all kinds of goodies for practically everything in the CZ lineup.
Concerning stock trigger pull on mine, the P-01 is 5.1# SA/10# DA, and my two P-07s show 4.3#/9.8# and 4.9#/10.6# respectively.
Back to CGW, everytime I read about someone dropping in his trigger kits or sending their pistol for him to do the work, they always seem to end up with a smooth 3-3.5# SA and a 7-8# DA.
CGW (Cajun Gun Works) has all kinds of goodies for practically everything in the CZ lineup.
Concerning stock trigger pull on mine, the P-01 is 5.1# SA/10# DA, and my two P-07s show 4.3#/9.8# and 4.9#/10.6# respectively.
Back to CGW, everytime I read about someone dropping in his trigger kits or sending their pistol for him to do the work, they always seem to end up with a smooth 3-3.5# SA and a 7-8# DA.
Nakanokalronin
New member
Poly guns are great, but they're disposable IMO. What I mean by that is I can sell or trade one off and not care in the slightest because I can always buy another. They're more of a tool like a drill with a plastic housing.
Metal guns somehow take on a personality. It's hard to explain since I don't think they're alive
and I don't give them names, but they're guns that always stay in my possession while the polymers disappear and are forgotten.
I recently bought a S&W CS9 with single side decocker through a private sale. It has a stainless slide, aluminum frame and holds 7+1 rounds of 9mm. It has the same capacity as a Shield and only weighs an ounce more even though the Shield grip/frame is very thin and made of polymer. The CS9 is thin, but it does have thick Hogue grips. I'm going to rectify that by modding some 3913 grips which will then turn it into my new EDC.
Poly guns are great, but they're not the end all be all handguns for defensive purposes.
If you can easily shoot a DA to SA shot like myself then the trigger pulls are not a disadvantage at all. I know some people have a hard time with them, but that's a good thing since it leaves them in the used cases for me.
Google image
Metal guns somehow take on a personality. It's hard to explain since I don't think they're alive
and I don't give them names, but they're guns that always stay in my possession while the polymers disappear and are forgotten. I recently bought a S&W CS9 with single side decocker through a private sale. It has a stainless slide, aluminum frame and holds 7+1 rounds of 9mm. It has the same capacity as a Shield and only weighs an ounce more even though the Shield grip/frame is very thin and made of polymer. The CS9 is thin, but it does have thick Hogue grips. I'm going to rectify that by modding some 3913 grips which will then turn it into my new EDC.
Poly guns are great, but they're not the end all be all handguns for defensive purposes.
If you can easily shoot a DA to SA shot like myself then the trigger pulls are not a disadvantage at all. I know some people have a hard time with them, but that's a good thing since it leaves them in the used cases for me.
Google image
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Walt Sherrill
New member
Colt46 said:
The difference you're addressing is WEIGHT, not frame material. That's why some polymer guns are better "carry" weapons -- they're lighter. If the guns are of comparable weights, the minor flex experienced with most polymer-framed guns can change the recoil impulse just enough to make felt recoil a bit less noticeable. Some polymer guns seem to have less recoil despite their lighter weight.
I've owned and shot a number of different .45s, including steel, polymer, and alloy-framed guns. My Glock 38 (.45 GAP), which weighs 26 oz. is the softest-shooting .45 I've ever shot. Almost every Glock 37 or 38 owner says the same thing.
While they have been sold, my CZ-97B and SIG GSR were both fairly soft-shooting guns -- but they both weighed 41 ozs, which can make recoil a bit less noticeable. Weight matters. My other .45 is a SIG P220 Super Match; it weights 33 ozs. All of these guns are comfortable guns to shoot, but not as comfortable as the lighter "polymer" Glock 38 (which is a a lot like the Glock 19, except for a slightly beefier slide.)
Beachcomber
New member
I still own both polymer and steel frame handguns for when I flip-flop.
Today... I'm carrying a Glock 30... Next month I may be back to my Sig P220?
I learned from past experience that one will want the format he doesn't have after he sells it.
Today... I'm carrying a Glock 30... Next month I may be back to my Sig P220?
I learned from past experience that one will want the format he doesn't have after he sells it.