Tag Archives: bundeswehr p13

CZ Brings 75 Legend & 457 Target to SHOT, Talks German Army P13

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As we have covered before, the current firearms works known and loved by collectors, hipsters, and savvy users alike dates to 1936 when its new factory was established to produce machine guns for the Czech Air Force. However, it became iconic in the West for its CZ 75 double-stack 9mm pistol.

We were fortunate enough to hold CZ 75 Serial Number 00001 when we visited the CZ factory in 2024, the gun that made the company a household name on this side of the pond.

Now, the new Legend repeats the same slab-sided Iron Curtain aesthetic while keeping the pistol’s internals and features modern, including a 16+1 round magazine, making it essentially a “post-B” gun in a “pre-B” body.

The new CZ Legend
The new CZ Legend. Note the slab-sided frame and slide as well as the pebble-style grips. (Photos: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
The new CZ Legend
The new Legend compared to SN 00001, which we saw in 2024 in the Czech Republic. 

MSRP on the new CZ 75 Legend will be $1,399.

Bundeswehr Pistole 13

One of the big stories from late last year was that the German military (Bundeswehr) had selected the CZ P-10 pistol after it beat out a number of contenders to become the country’s new P13 sidearm.

Among the finalists bested were the Arex Delta and Glock G17 Gen5 for what could be an order of as many as 180,000 units. It will replace the HK-made P8A1, a version of the USP

CZ had the new P13 on hand at their booth last week.

In another shift from previous German service handguns, the new striker-fired P13 will arrive wearing an FDE finish instead of the traditional black. 
CZ will work directly with its authorized German partner, POL-TEC GmbH & Co., to fulfill the order and provide the Bundeswehr with support for the new platform.

CZ 457 Target

CZ 457 rifles are known for their superb accuracy, but the new 457 Target, a fully adjustable, ISSF 3-Position competition-ready aluminum chassis co-developed with four-time American Olympic shooter Matt Emmons, raises that bar.

It includes a three-axis-adjustable pistol grip available in three different sizes, a side-tiltable buttstock with a five-axis-adjustable buttpad, along with a three-axis-adjustable, two-sided cheekpiece; and a forehand riser can be adjusted in three different axes. A 26-inch 12-groove .22 cold hammer-forged match barrel equipped with a diffuser is standard as is an adjustable 2-stage Flyweight trigger.

The MSRP for the CZ 457 Target rifle is expected to be around $3,600, which is still less than many European-made alternatives in the same class from folks like Anschutz and Walther.

CZ wins big German military pistol contract

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It would seem that the ghosts of 1938 have been exorcised, to a degree anyway.

Back in July, it looked like CZ was going to get a €25 million award for the Bundeswehr’s new P13 pistol. The award will be for 62,000 pistols first, with an option for as many as 186,000 guns, with an aim to replace the hard-serving polymer-framed hammer-fired 9mm P8A1 pistol, a variant of the HK USP, which has been in service since 1994.

The HK P8 compared to the CZP10. Eger

Well, it looks like the deal went through, with CZ releasing more details last week.

CZ was awarded this contract following an open international tender, prevailing over several global competitors. The pistols designated as P13 for the Bundeswehr are based on the CZ P-10 C OR (Optics-Ready) model, featuring a Flat Dark Earth (FDE) finish. It is a modern striker-fired service pistol designed for professional use, renowned for its reliability, durability, and intuitive handling. It features excellent ergonomics, high magazine capacity, and precise construction, making it a preferred choice among military and law enforcement customers in many countries.

CZ will work closely with its authorized partner in Germany, POL-TEC GmbH & Co., to fulfil the contract and provide comprehensive support to the Bundeswehr.

German Army Looks to CZ P10 as New Pistol

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Reports from Europe point to CZ as being the winner of a huge contract to provide as many as 180,000 new pistols to the German military.

The German federal army, or Bundeswehr, has been conducting trials since last year to replace its polymer-framed hammer-fired 9mm P8A1 pistol, a variant of the HK USP, which has been in service since 1994. Current contenders to become the future P13 handgun in Bundeswehr service have been narrowed down to the Arex Delta, the Glock Gen 5 G17, and the CZ P-10 F.

German defense media site Hartpunkt reported earlier this month that the BAAINBw, the Bundeswehr’s acquisition agency, is finalizing a €25 million award to CZ for the new P13. The award will be for 62,000 pistols first, with an option for as many as 186,000 guns.

The striker-fired P-10 F, introduced by CZ in late 2018, is the largest of the company’s well-liked P-10 series, with a 4.5-inch barrel and a 19+1 capacity. While available in both optics-ready and suppressor-ready variants, it is not known which model the Bundeswehr has under consideration. (Photo: CZ)
CZ’s P-10 series is already in use with the militaries of the Czech Republic and Romania, both NATO allies of Germany. (Photos: Czech Army)

In addition to the P13 program, German KSK special operations and KSM frogman units recently adopted Walther PDP 4.5 and 4-inch variants as the P14/P14K series of pistols.

Before the adoption of the HK P8, the Bundeswehr issued the Walther P-38 and its postwar alloy-framed offspring, the P-1, going back to the service’s birth in 1955.

Savvy gun autists will, of course, point out that the 1940s-era German military used several different CZ variants.