Where can I buy a CZ 75 Kadet kit?

[dakota.potts]

I want one of these for training and since Christmas is coming up it would be a great time.

Problem is, I'm having a terrible time finding on!

There's one on ebay that I'll consider but I hate bidding without a buy it now option. There's another auction on gunbroker for over $600 right now and frankly I feel that's ridiculous.

I don't want to buy the whole pistol attached, just the barreled slide for the handgun I already have.

Does anybody know where I can find one? I'm even open to solicitations if somebody on here has one they'd like to sell.

Looking for under $400, might pay as high as MSRP ($467) if I can find one new or with extra magazines.

It seems they're sold out in the CZ-store, budsguns, slickguns, Midway, and everywhere else I'm finding.

 

[Pilot]

That I a really good question. I bought mine about 12 - 13 year ago when there was less demand, and more available. I'd start with calling CZ USA to see if there are any in the pipeline, and where. I would also post WTB threads on gun forums like these in the appropriate classified section. They have always been about the price of a base model Ruger 22/45 or similar. Some choke on the price because you can buy an entire pistol for what the conversion costs, but they are worth it.

 

[Hal]

Where did you get the MSRP?

On the CZ web site it's listed @ $391.00.
I just checked the site to make sure the instruction manual is still the same and ran across the MSRP.

Anyhow - The Kadet kit may require some minor fitting.

On page 24 of the manual, this is what it says:
"To ensure correct functioning and high accuracy of fire, it is necessary to fit the
CZ 75 KADET adapter with minimal clearances in the guide rails in the pistol on which the
adapter will be used."

I've mentioned before how a good tight fit of kit to frame is needed for optimal accuracy, and got shouted down here by some other members.
Just so there's no mistake - this isn't my opinion, it's what the manufacturer recommends.

My whole point here in posting this is to say that you, IMHO, would be better off waiting until CZ has new Kadet kits back in stock.
A used one may or may not have been custom fit to someone else's gun.

If/when you do get a new kit, don't rush the installation. I spent about a half hour with a stone fitting mine. Had I taken three or four times as long, I'm sure the results would have been worth it.

 

[Pilot]

Yes, the CZ manual indicates that minor fitting may be required, but often it is not. My Kadet Kit fit just right out of the box on both my 75B, and 75D PCR, and I've read many others that have also indicated that.

However, that doesn't mean that they all will be like that so, I agree, buy a new one or make sure the used one you buy fits properly on your gun before you finalize the purchase.

 

[Walt Sherrill]

I've mentioned before how a good tight fit of kit to frame is needed for optimal accuracy, and got shouted down here by some other members.

Just so there's no mistake - this isn't my opinion, it's what the manufacturer recommends.

While fitting to a particular frame would, in theory, give optimal accuracy, the design of the kit -- which locks the frame, slide, and barrel as one assembly -- reduces the chance of grave problems with a lless than perfect fit. A small part of the slide -- a "slide" within the slide -- is the only part that moves.

With the Kadet Kit, the only possibility of movement is a tiny bit of sideways movement if the lug on the underside of the slide doesn't fit tightly in the frame. But just because it's possible doesn't mean it will occur. Practically speaking, if the opening in the lug connecting the top to the frame fits the slide stop pin well, it's length through the lug in the upper greatly limits the upper's ability to move. This is further enhanced by the fact that the "slide" (which isn't really a slide, but an upper) and the barrel are a single unit that fits in the rails of the frame. That method of installation, itself, greatly limits movement from side to side. Both of these design features suggest reasons why fitting might not be as critical, in a real-world situation, as in theory.

The kit converts a Browning short-recoil locked breech design gun into a fixed barrel gun, which arguably accounts for the accuracy.

Fitting generally means reducing the width of the base of the lug from the barrel/slide assembly to fit the frame -- and that sometimes takes a few file strokes, if any at all. (The fact that some guns require NONE suggests that some kit assemblies may be LOOSE in the frame, as they're clearly NOT all oversized from the factory - it also suggests that not all frames are created equal...) A number of owners use a single Kadet kit with multiple frames, so fitting can't be too big of a deal, given the obvious variance from frame to frame.

I've used my Kadet Kit on several different guns with no noticeable change in accuracy -- which has been exceptional with all of them. (It wouldn't work on any of my pre-Bs (now long since sold), because the pre-B hammer was WIDER than the opening on the back of the Kadet Kit slide, and it couldn't hit the firing pin.

The kit I use now was my second kit; the first kit's mounting lug was so wide that it would have taken a great deal of fitting, and the dealer from whom I bought it -- after checking with his gunsmith -- sent it back. (The instructions for fitting kits weren't as clear, back then, as they are now.) The replacement kit simply dropped in.

I think the manufacturer is correct about fitting, but too many people have had great results with kits that weren't modified to fit all of the different guns on which the kits were used. It may simply not matter that much.

.

 

[Hal]

On page 24 of the manual, this is what it says:

"To ensure correct functioning and high accuracy of fire, it is necessary to fit the
CZ 75 KADET adapter with minimal clearances in the guide rails in the pistol on which the
adapter will be used."

I didn't write the manual.....

 

[aarondhgraham]

$467.00 is way too high,,,

$467.00 is way too high,,,
Right now on the CZ-USA website,,,
Their page shows the MSRP as being $391.00.

I guess I was lucky when I decided I wanted one,,,
I asked The Evil Pawn Shop Guy to order a complete pistol,,,
The Kadet pistol and the CZ-75B in 9mm only took 8 days to hit the store.

Keep searching my friend,,,
It's a remarkable piece of gun-ware,,,
My Kadet goes to the range with me most every time.

Aarond

.

 

[Walt Sherrill]

Hal: nobody is disputing those manual instructions. Nobody is disputing that you believe the manual is correct.

Indeed, my experience indicates that following those guidelines in the manual can't hurt. A lot of CZ owners, however, may NOT be able to do what the manual says unless the owners buy separate Kadet Kits for each CZ through which the owner might want to shoot .22. You'd be surprised how many CZ owners have 4-5 CZs and only one Kadet Kit.

For accuracy, consistent sight and barrel alignment is critical. With guns like the standard CZ, where slides and barrels separate during the firing cycle, it's critical they come back together consistently with each shot. With the Kadet Kit, the barrel, slide (actually an upper, in this case) and sights never separate -- they are a fixed unit. If the Kadet barrel is good and the gun has been sighted in, accuracy (the proper term is, I think, PRECISION) should be pretty good.

As long as the trigger works and you use the sights, it doesn't really matters how the frame and upper unit are fitted together (the function of "fitting" per the manual). That's because the critical units: barrel, upper, and sight never separate!

Explain how FITTING the upper to the frame improves that relationship of barrel/upper/sights.

It would be nice if someone with TWO Kadet Kits and multiple CZs could run a test for us to see HOW MUCH it matters, shooting from a rest -- as I doubt that any two of those guns will have the same specs in the frame area where the adapter must fit. I know from experience that not all Kadet Kits are born with the same specs.

Any volunteers?


.

 

[dakota.potts]

I got $467 from the CZ website itself! They just updated and with it prices changed, actually quite significantly. The more I think about it, it might have been the CZ custom shop website.

Anyways, I did eventually manage to find one online for $399 at a much lesser known retailer. It's a secret until I get purchase confirmation though

 

[Hal]

Explain how FITTING the upper to the frame improves that relationship of barrel/upper/sights.

Tell ya what Walt.
Since this is obviously a real sticking point with you, why not just contact CZ and ask them?

I have no answer for you since I'm not the one that wrote the manual.

I just happen to believe that the closer I get to following the instructions in the manufacturers manual, the better the end result will be.

I also happen to believe that a tight fitting custom fit anything is better than a loose fitting custom fit anything.

 

[Walt Sherrill]

Since this is obviously a real sticking point with you, why not just contact CZ and ask them?

I have no answer for you since I'm not the one that wrote the manual.

It seems to be a real sticking point for you, too.

Your reason for having reached this "sticking point" is that the Kadet Kit manual tells you what to do.

My reasons (already explained), are based on real-world experience and an understanding of how the Kadet Kit mechanism works. Others participating here familiar with these guns should be able to offer valid criticisms if my analysis seems flawed or their experience has led to different results. I welcome that feedback.

I won't call CZ-USA on this point, but if I do contact them, I'll be sure to ask them why so many people with poorly-fitted Kadet Kits also seem to enjoy very good accuracy when their Kadet Kits are mounted on a number of different frames. It seems like that ought not be the case if CLOSELY FITTING THE UPPER UNIT TO THE FRAME IS SUCH A CRITICAL ACTION.

Following a manual is generally a good idea, so I don't fault that part of your response, but I've found that understanding HOW some of these things work is often better than just following instructions, alone. If we can do both, so much the better.

.

 

[Hal]

Well - don't expect me to waste my time calling them either.

You don't believe the manual so I have zero reason to believe that you'd accept anything I had to relay to you.

 

[Pilot]

If the Kadet Kit fits tightly, and solidly with no modifications out of the box, then no fitting is required. As I indicated previously, my Kadet Kit fit perfectly on both my CZ's. No fitting required, and it is as accurate as my Ruger MK II's on both guns.

The manual only recommends fitting IF REQUIRED, it is not a mandate. If you polled Kadet Kit owners, I would bet the vast majority did not require any modification to properly fit their guns.

 

[Hal]

The manual only recommends fitting IF REQUIRED

Show me where it says that........

Here's the manual...
https://czusamedia.s3.amazonaws.com/files/cz75Kadet_en.pdf


I see nowhere in that manual that says "IF REQUIRED".

 

[Walt Sherrill]

The manual can be downloaded from the CZ-USA website. It's been a while since I read it -- the manual that came with mine in the late '90s was different. When I last read a version of the manual, it was to address other issues, not installation. Instructions for fitting start on page 24. Here's a link: https://czusamedia.s3.amazonaws.com/files/cz75Kadet_en.pdf

It says, my emphasis added by underlining, "To ensure correct functioning and higher accuracy of fire, it is necessary to fit the CZ 75 Kadet adapter with minimal clearances in the guide rails in the pistol on which the adapter will be used..." That sentence is the only time "accuracy" is even mentioned.

In prior discussions of this topic on the CZ Forum (where I was a moderator for a number of years) the discussion often focused on the lug under the assembly, part A in the illustration. That was generally the ONLY part that needed fitting -- a few passes with a flat file. But fitting it for "minimal" clearance in one gun often meant it might NOT fit another or, possibly had more than "minimal" clearance in another gun. I had personal experience with both of those possibilities.

The first adapter I received had a very wide lower lug (component "A") and the amount of metal removal needed to fit it in my 85 Combat seemed excessive; the dealer sent it back. The next one dropped in without adjustment. Since it fit, there's was no easy way to assess whether there was minimal clearance or something excessive on the "A" unit, but the slide/adapter seemed to fit the frame without slop. Because this second unit shot accurately and functioned beautifully in a number of different CZs -- even though it would NOT fit ALL of the CZs I've owned (including a very nice 75B SA model) -- it didn't seem like a big deal. I generally used the Kadet Kit on my 85 Combat, which I used in IDPA.

CZ's fitting instructions, it would appear, are more focused on PROPER FUNCTION than ACCURACY, with most attention paid to the adapter's fit in the frame rails, the ability to install the slide stop, and (in the case of safety-equipped models), the proper function of the safety lever. That said, I'll make a point I made earlier -- when the components of the adapter (the slide-like unit, barrel, and sights) are a single unit (and in the CZ Kadet Kit, they ARE a single unit) and the unit functions properly, even if the unit can slip sideways on the frame, the barrel, adapter, and sights will slip around together, and accuracy should not be affected. You just have to use the sights.

.

 

[Hal]

the manual that came with mine in the late '90s was different.

The manual that came with mine in the late 90's reads exactly the same as the present manual.

I'd scan it and post it - but - that would be useless since it's not your manual...

Be that as it may, I'm done with this.

You or anyone else feel free to take the word of someone on the internet over the manufacturers manual & see how far that sort of thing gets you in life.

 

[Pilot]

Guess I will have to dig out my manual. I bought my Kadet Kit around 2000. However, if the slide, out of the box, already fits with "minimal clearances in the guide rails in the pistol," why would anyone want to start filing on stuff?

 

[Bigdave2424]

I have to agree with Walt here. The design of the kadet kit just doesn't make the upper/lower fit critical. I certainly wouldn't file everything away. But what is minimal clearance? Should you have to use a rubber mallet to get the upper on, or should it slide on like a 9 mm upper, which has almost no resistance. The manual doesn't define it. I think you could crazy glue the upper to the lower, and it wouldn't make a difference in accuracy. And I've seen many manuals that were plain out wrong.

 

[vladan]

I have question about fitting and what manual says ... who gives a rat ass? I am sure that all this bickering about proper way to fit the kadet unit is a tremendous help to OP to locate available unit for purchase.

Dakota, I am in the same boat, looking for the adapter myself but there is not much than occasional overpriced used unit on gunbroker here in US...
Few month ago while I was in Czech Republic I have seen several conversions in local store, but unlike in US, in Czech Republic the barrel and slide are registered and one have to have permit to purchase the unit.
Right now we just have to wait until market levels off and CZ catch up and start importing more accessories, not just complete handguns to satisfy the market demands.

 

[Bigdave2424]

I believe the discussion was to help the OP decide if he needs to find a new kadet kit that has not been adjusted, or if it is OK to purchase a used kit that's been adjusted to another lower.