"The Shadow 2 Carry bridges the gap between competition-level performance and everyday carry safety." — Guns.com Review Team
The original Shadow line, an all-steel, large-capacity SA/DA pistol, was descended from the CZ 75 SP-01 and used successfully to pull down a first place production division finish in the 2005 IPSC World Shoot. Given improved sights, a longer barrel, and better ergos, the Shadow 2 debuted in 2016, followed by an optics-ready model in 2020. Today, it is used by two out of three of the top competitors in IPSC Production and Production Optics divisions, most notably by nine-time IPSC World Champ Eric Grauffe.
It is, without a doubt, one of the best guns of the century.
With Shadow 2 fans petitioning CZ for a slimmed-down version of the gun, the company introduced the Shadow 2 Compact in 2023, which cut weight with a forged 7075 aluminum frame and a 4-inch barrel. The magazine’s capacity is 15+1 with a flush-fit double-stack mag. Like the standard Shadow 2, the Compact ships with textured aluminum grips and a "butter smooth" trigger pull (single action 3.4 pounds; 10.3 for double action).
We shot the Shadow 2 and Shadow 2 Compact side by side in Czechia last year and were thoroughly impressed with how they performed.
The Shadow 2 (bottom) and Shadow 2 Compact on CZ's range. We loved these guns. (All photos: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
The Shadow 2 Compact, for all intents and purposes, is just a little brother to the more competition-oriented Shadow 2. It is smaller, lighter, and easier to carry but retains the DA/SA with a manual safety. As it’s based on a competition gun, there's no firing pin block plunger system, which can be a pucker factor for some on being drop-safe if carried with a round in the chamber.
Meet the Shadow 2 Carry
Now, the Shadow 2 Carry introduced this week retains everything folks loved about the Shadow 2 Compact but deletes the manual safety lever in favor of a simple de-cocking lever, while adding a safety notch on the hammer and an automatic firing pin block.
The new CZ Shadow 2 Carry has a 4-inch barrel, giving it an overall length of 7.5 inches.
The width over the ambi controls is 1.5 inches, while the height is 5.4 inches.
The frame is made from EN AW-7075 T6 grade aluminum alloy, which is light and strong enough for CZ to craft their select fire rifles from. The weight of the Shadow 2 Carry, unloaded, is 30.4 ounces. Note the internal slide rails that show the pistol's CZ 75 lineage.
The ergos are superb, and the Duralumin grip panels are a holdover from other Shadow 2 models that fans would have never wanted to be left behind. Note the flare on the magwell and the checkered grip front. The magazines are 15-round flush-fit, and the Shadow 2 Carry ships with two.
The CZ Shadow 2 Carry is dimensionally similar to the polymer-framed P-09C Nocturne that debuted last year. For reference, the Nocturne, which is a fine gun, has a weight of 27.5 ounces empty but is nowhere near the Shadow 2 Carry in overall aesthetic.
We observed the trigger on our test gun to be smooth as befitting the Shadow 2's DNA, with a light take-up and crisp break followed by a short reset. Advertised at 4.7 pounds in single action and 11.9 in double action, we found it to test within a half-pound of those figures right out of the box in an average of 10 pulls.
Sights are fixed steel luminescent three dots.
However, an excellent feature for modern EDC is the optics-ready slide, which is milled to directly mount an RMSc pattern red/green micro red dot without using a plate or adapter. We installed a Holosun 507K, and the factory OEM sights co-witnessed in the lower third perfectly.
A short but functional accessory rail is on the dust cover of the frame.
CZ uses cold hammer-forged barrels with a lifetime warranty. If you shoot one out, the company will replace it. Plus, you still enjoy that hallmark low bore axis and gliding internal slide rails of the Shadow's grandpa: the CZ 75.
Left side frame-mounted controls include the de-cocking lever to the rear, the slide catch lever, and an extended push-button magazine release.
The downward rotating decocker is ambi, and is mirrored on the right side of the frame. Note the well swept beavertail on the rear of the grip and the skeletonized hammer.
"Born from Sport, tailored for EDC" is how the company describes the new CZ Shadow 2 Carry, and we are inclined to agree.
MSRP on the Shadow 2 Carry is $1,449, and the pistols are now shipping.
As for a full review, we have only had the Shadow 2 Carry in our grubby hands for a few days and have thus far burned through about 300 rounds with no issue to report. Stand by for a full review in the coming weeks.
