Since buying the original blue/black Shadow 2 a couple of years ago I have really been bitten by the CZ bug. Several months after I bought the AccuShadow 2, originally with black grips, now with gray. I then did the normal spring changes and extended firing pin with the reduced weight spring. They are both excellent pistols with outstanding, although slightly different triggers. However, the Orange has been really intriguing, almost leading me to buy a TSO recently. However, after mulling it over it was sold in the meantime.

After work today, the first day back in a week due to vacation I made my usual stop in my nearby Sportsmans Warehouse and in the display case was a Shadow 2 Orange! And at a really good price, actually at the pre-COVID price, which was $260 less than my nearest mega gun shop listed it for. On top of that is the extra $100 I saved plus the rewards dollars! I checked it out, found it to be very smooth and VERY TIGHT!! And took it home!!

This message has been edited. Last edited by: sprg03-A3,

Congratulations!
Beautiful collection.
It is a very aggressive bug with no known vaccine.
After you have broken in your new acquisition, would love to read your impressions and comparison of all three.
Enjoy!

Yeah! Really sweet gun. You made the right decision to skip the TSO. Because now, and next, you need to get the TS2. That's exactly what I did.

I actually have another CZ, a 457 American in .22 that is a beautiful rifle!

I have to say that I was really impressed by the polished finish on the frame rails, inside the slide and on the barrel. Also, this thing is TIGHT! Had to work a bit to get the slide back on the frame. Neither my blue/black, or surprisingly the AccuShadow is as tight. As I understand it the AccuShadow isn't select fit like the Orange, and actually is a bit looser than the blue pistol.

If I had to guess I would imagine that I wouldn't shoot the Orange as well as the other two, or at best just as well in single action at least because of the heavier trigger. A quick spring swap would rectify that though. Anyhow, all of these shoot better than I am capable of.

quote:

Originally posted by 12131:
Yeah! Really sweet gun. You made the right decision to skip the TSO. Because now, and next, you need to get the TS2. That's exactly what I did.

Despite the higher cost I think I probably would still opt for the TSO. Sweet pistol!! The TS2 is very nice though.

Beautiful! Congrats!

If and when they make these in inox, I will own one

quote:

Originally posted by sprg03-A3:
I have to say that I was really impressed by the polished finish on the frame rails, inside the slide and on the barrel. Also, this thing is TIGHT! Had to work a bit to get the slide back on the frame...

Yeah, "tight" would be an understatement. When I first got it, my impression was, man, I'm going to have a lot of failure to return to battery or something when shooting it. But, to my pleasant surprise, everything went smoothly. No failures of any kind. I do believe the high polished inner surface of the slide and the barrel's external have something to do with it.

Very nice......

Damn, you guys are killing me wth this whole new world of CZ's. I have always been a fan of all steel guns and in these price ranges of commonly availble pistols, CZ rocks. I see several more in my future.

"If and when they make these in inox, I will own one."

Don't wait buy the pistol now and have it refinished. You can have it now!

I shot the new S2O for the first time today after work, along with the AccuShadow 2 and an H&K VP9. No surprises in that it ran 100%, very smooth and with almost no recoil. Hey…It’s a Shadow 2!!

First, the alibis. I want to try to give as fair an assessment of this pistol as I can. Therefore I need to give an assessment of the shooter. I am at best a decent shot who takes his time to line up the sights and shoots deliberately. I am 55 years old with job related aches and pains from being a mechanic for 37 years: back problems, shoulder issues and hands that are pretty beat up, and eyes that have seen better days. On top of all that I haven’t shot pistol in a few months, and it showed in my trigger discipline, which wasn’t great today. If I had to use an analogy I would say I am like a duffer golfer who spends stupid money on first class equipment because he likes nice hardware. The hardware helps somewhat, but I am still a duffer.

I shot noticeably better with the AccuShadow today, with tighter groups and fewer flyers. After shooting 15 rounds or so with the S2O to get a feel for it I traded off pistols, shooting 5 rounds at 7 yards at one target with one pistol, then 5 rounds at another target with the other. Ended up shooting 15 rounds with the AccuShadow and 20 with the S2O to finish up the box. With the AccuShadow I kept all but 3 rounds inside the 10 ring, with the worst 2 inside the 8 ring, pretty good for me. Rounds were mostly centered in a nice cluster around the bull with others spreading out to the left just a bit.

With the S2O I kept all but three inside the 9 ring as well, but the group was noticeably bigger as the outer shots were on the top and bottom of the 8 ring, with the rest not as nicely clustered and not as many Xs. Still, pretty darn good for me. Shooting over a bag with my wrists rested, except for a couple shots than ended up low but still in the 8 ring at 12 yards because the mag buttplate was actually sitting on the bag, all single action, 12 rounds were inside the 10 ring with one in the 9 ring.

A few things come to mind. Both these pistols have WAY more potential than I am capable of taking advantage of! I am not worthy :P!! A much better shooter than me is required to even begin to get close to the capabilities of these guns. Second, I am sure I shot the AccuShadow better because it had a much lighter trigger as I had traded out the stock mainspring for an 11.5 lb one (IIRC). The difference was mainly felt while shooting in double action, which I had done on the first shot of 5 while swapping out pistols at 7 yards. The difference was less noticeable in single action, but it was still there. Both triggers are very smooth, with the single action being outstanding, a bit of a rolling let off with a clean break. Reset was very short and tactile. One thing I really like about the AccuShadow trigger better than the S2O and my blue/black Shadow 2 is that the trigger breaks a bit farther from the frame on the AccuShadow which for some reason helps me shoot better. I do think the S20 demonstrated excellent potential, even with me not having a great day at the range, and not being familiar with the specifics of the trigger. To be fair I haven’t put more then 4-500 rounds through the AccuShadow either so I am not really familiar with that trigger either although I shot it much better today than the S2O.

I will swap out the mainspring on the new S2O before the next range session, and will extend the range to challenge myself a bit more. Shooting at 7 & 12 yards with these pistols is a bit of a joke as they are capable of shooting very accurately at longer ranges. Question is: is the shooter?!

Thank you for your range report. I have a regular Shadow 2 but have been eyeing the Orange, as well as the new TS2.

Nowadays I shoot my P226 Legion SAO better than anything else in my safe. I'm starting to think it's that crisp single action trigger so I'm starting to lean toward the TS2.

Seems like there's always another gun .....

quote:

Originally posted by Benderx4:
Thank you for your range report. I have a regular Shadow 2 but have been eyeing the Orange, as well as the new TS2.

Nowadays I shoot my P226 Legion SAO better than anything else in my safe. I'm starting to think it's that crisp single action trigger so I'm starting to lean toward the TS2.

Seems like there's always another gun .....

Ain't that the truth! I was really close to buying a TSO recently. Awesome triggers on those too. One day in the future.... I guess I have become a bit of a trigger snob the last few years. I have 2 SAO P226s, a Legion and an RX. The RX has an amazing trigger, and I shoot it very well.

quote:

Originally posted by sprg03-A3:
I actually have another CZ, a 457 American in .22 that is a beautiful rifle!

I have a 452 Trainer (.22LR) that I bought in 2009. I love that rifle.



You can see the difference in the American (below) and European (above) style stocks:

quote:

Originally posted by TheMan:

quote:

Originally posted by sprg03-A3:
I actually have another CZ, a 457 American in .22 that is a beautiful rifle!

I have a 452 Trainer (.22LR) that I bought in 2009. I love that rifle.



You can see the difference in the American (below) and European (above) style stocks:

Yes, I know that. Also explains why European models tend to have open sights where the American models do not, as the American straight stocks are optimized for scopes.

They are great rifles!

Is it possible to receive a short hand notation of the differences in the models above Shadow 2, Orange, AccuShadow, TSO?

Is there a simple good/better/best relationship ship or something more complex like the pistol disciplines intended with each?

Thanks,

HK Ag

quote:

Originally posted by HK Ag:
Is it possible to receive a short hand notation of the differences in the models above Shadow 2, Orange, AccuShadow, TSO?

Is there a simple good/better/best relationship ship or something more complex like the pistol disciplines intended with each?

Thanks,

HK Ag

I don’t shoot competition so I can’t tell you what type of competition these pistols are optimized for. Maybe someone else can chime in and help you out with that question.

Both the AccuShadow 2 and Shadow 2 Orange are hot-rod versions of the Shadow 2 pistol, an all steel DA/SA pistol with a manual safety and no firing pin block. The AccuShadow is a Shadow 2 modified by CZ Customs by installing a competition hammer and disconnector, or disco, doing some internal polishing of the trigger mechanism to smooth out the trigger and shorten the reset, and by installing a 1911 style barrel bushing to eliminate barrel/slide play at the muzzle. There is no effort to select fit the slide to the frame or barrel to slide to tighten the gun up, or to hand choose a tight pistol from the production line. The front sight is pinned on like a typical Shadow 2 (IIRC) even though the front of the slide has been machined to use a bushing. In my example there is noticeable frame to slide play, not much as it can be more felt than seen, but there is more there than on my blue/black Shadow 2.

The Shadow 2 Orange is a Shadow 2 hand fitted at the CZ factory custom shop in the Czech Republic. The slide and frame rails and barrel are highly polished and the fit of these components is very tight indeed!! In fact I had to be very careful when reassembling it for the first time. It almost seems to be too tight to be reliable but that isn’t the case. It also has a competition hammer and disco and some polishing of the trigger mechanism as well as a 1911 style barrel bushing installed at the end of the slide, similar but not the same one as on the AccuShadow 2 interestingly enough. The front sight is retained with a screw instead of being pinned on unlike the AccuShadow and the unsightly pin hole is gone as well. I believe different springs are installed on both pistols to lighten the trigger pull also.

The TSO is a different pistol altogether although it looks very similar. It is actually made with a Czechmate style frame and therefore takes different magazines. It has a mag funnel and all the special Orange spec treatments: polished slide and frame rails and barrel, but no 1911 style bushing. The barrel is about .34” longer and it is a single action only pistol with a trigger pull of less than 2lbs!!

That is it in a nutshell. I hope I answered your questions, as long as this ended up being. I am sure there are a few details I have wrong, but these are the hi-lights. As to whether there is a good-better-best relationship depends on your perspective. Between the 2 Shadows it would seem for a similar price you get a bit more for your money and more potential with the S2O because of the hand fitting and polishing as long as you find the S2O for sale in the $2k price range (list has increased to $2250 lately). How much of a difference in the real world depends on whether the shooter is capable of squeezing everything out of these pistols. Clearly, I am not!! These are very solid, well built, ergonomic and heavy pistols!! And a ton of fun to shoot.

Note: upon checking the AccuShadow 2 front sight is not retained by a pin, unlike the standard Shadow 2. However the hole is still in the slide.

I have to tell you, ladies and gents...my CZ Shadow 2 made me forget about most of my SIGs. Even the German X series guns. The Shadow 2 shoots so well, stock, straight out of the box.

I still love my SIGs, don’t get me wrong....

OP, your CZs are very nice! Enjoy them.

I’ve had a CZ52 in the back of the safe for decades, I’d also had an 82 & 83 but the attraction just wasn’t there. Then the Scorpion EVO came out I had to have one, got it, loved it & sbrd it… then the Bren 805 & a couple 1st gen Scorpions.

When that bug bites, there just isn’t anything else that you can do!

Then a few years ago I’d stopped at a small gun shop and he had a NOS TS from 2005, he’d special ordered it for a customer that never came back for it, went back a week later & brought it home … then I came across a CZ-75SA … which lead to a blue/black Shadow2