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. Note the slab-sided frame and slide as well as the pebble-style grips. (Photos: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
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.
After sunsetting the legacy SCAR last year, FN has the new generation of its venerable modular rifle for 2026 – and they are softer recoiling, accept suppressors, and don’t eat scopes anymore.
First fielded in 2008 as sporter (semi-auto) variants of the USSOCOM SOF Combat Assault Rifle, the 16S, 17S, and 20S were a top-shelf option on the commercial market until FN closed that line late last year. Let’s be honest, the original SCAR series was cool but had some issues, and a few needed a significant redesign to fix.
That brings us to the new SCAR line.
The old SCAR, top, compared to a new SCAR, bottom. (All photos: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
Among the new features is that the rifles are optimized for suppressors with a U.S.-standard muzzle profile and barrel shoulder. The platform’s short-stroke gas piston system uses a two-position adjustable gas regulator for improved reliability with cans and different ammo types. The adjustment is accessible via an access port in the heat shield. It works and is an upgrade from the old exposed gas block. Doubling down on the platform being suppressor-friendly as a selling point, FN even designed some new cans just for the SCAR, which we will get to in a separate article.
Another issue with the now-classic SCAR was the tendency to blow out scope crosshairs due to the, well, let’s just call it aggressive recoil. The new SCAR has a new (and lighter) hydraulically buffered modular two-piece bolt carrier that softens recoil. In testing last summer on the range between the old SCAR and the new ones, we could feel the chop decrease and the recoil impulse smooth out significantly.
We found the new SCARs to be much less choppy on the range in testing.
The new bolt carrier system helps with those tight repeatable groups on the 20S as well, which runs a heavy contour 20-inch barrel that now features 5R precision rifling with hammer-forged/chrome-lined durability. We were able to nail confirmed hits on target at 1,385 yards on a new gen SCAR 20 (6.5CM) in front of a crowd (no pressure) after just a few minutes of instruction.
FN realized that the handguard needed to be updated, so now the upper is a good bit longer with less exposed barrel and uses an integrated rail system, replacing the short M1913 rails with a ton of M-LOK accessory slots at the 3, 6, and 9 o’clock position – even on the SCAR 20S precision rifle. Plus, the 16S and 17S rifles now ship with a colorway-matching vertical foregrip.
When it comes to the new SCAR 20S, it runs a rubber over-molded Ergo pistol with a generous palmswell and a fully-adjustable stock.
Triggers have been upgraded with the 20S using an improved FN-designed two-stage precision trigger for better control and feel, providing a 3.5 to 4.5-pound trigger pull. The 17S and 16S have a single-stage trigger that has likewise been updated.
For ergonomics, the pistol grip is now compatible with AR grips and, while the 16S and 17S still ship with the traditional “Ugg Boot” side folding adjustable stock, an AR stock and tube system can be installed.
Yessss.
The new SCARs will accept different stock options.
This is a thing now for the SCAR…
There is even the possibility of using the SCAR SC stock.
You also have more QD cups in more places, and all the guns are “Nerch” (Non-Reciprocating Charging Handle or NRCH) variants.
Whereas the old SCAR was kind of limited in the functionality for southpaws, the new ones are fully ambi when it comes to the bolt catch/release, mag release buttons, and safety levers. Even the selector switches are modular now.
When it comes to durability and serviceability, the old SCAR used Hex screws that could strip, whereas the new ones run Torx, among other changes. We were advised that the testing protocol on these guns was no joke, and the new generation SCAR is designed and built with feedback from nearly two decades of end users, many of whom are “tip of the spear” types.
The new SCARs will be available in 15 different variants across the 16S (5.56 in either FDE, Gray, and Black), 17S (6.5CM or 7.62 NATO in FDE, Gray, and Black), and 20S (6.5CM or 7.62 NATO in FDE, Gray, and Black) models.
You gotta love those Gray models. Cue Jean-Baptiste Emanuel Zorg with “my favorite.”
As for those still hungering for the pistol variant, the SCAR 15P, it survived the great SCAR cull of 2025 but didn’t get any of the new updates and is available in 5.56 and .300BLK, with the latter just screaming for a now zero-dollar Form 1 SBR conversion.
Here comes the rough stuff.
While the new and old SCARs look very much the same – and that was done on purpose for continuity – very little is backward compatible between the discontinued traditional models and the new ones. About the only things that are shared/swappable between the two are the NRCH charging sled (if you had an NRCH model), barrels, magazines, the 9310 bolt and firing pin, and some small springs and pins.
If you have an older SCAR and love it, FN wants you to love it still, and they are supporting those guns for at least the foreseeable future. Remember, they are still making and supporting military/LE contract classic SCARs around the world.
MSRP on the new SCARs is comparable to that of the old guns, but they are still a more top-shelf price than, say, your average AR. The new FN SCAR 17S variants run $3,999, while the 16S is slightly cheaper at $3,799, and the long boy, the 20S, is $4,499. Of course, that is the MSRP, and you can bet that the reseller crowd is going to move into high gear with these, so watch out for the gouging. But if your heart is pure and you wish hard enough and look long enough, you could find one that fits the Ugg-sized hole in your gun safe.
