9mm Baby Eagle - First Impressions
After weeks of research and handling dozens of handguns my deliberation ended with the purchase of a 9mm Baby Eagle. I have never owned a semi-auto before and have only fired a few magazines from various pistols. Nothing that can be considered real experience with those particular hand guns however.
My decision to purchase this particular gun was primarily a result of the gun fitting my hand and feeling very positive in my grip. I could have gone either way, with polymer or steel pistols, with or without fancy extras like an accessory rail. Besides choosing a gun which felt right the only real question was choosing a platform I was comfortable with. DA/SA? DAO? SA? I had tried pistols of each variety and never had a chance to grow accustomed to any particular operation, so my unbiased approached left a lot of possibilites.
I had gone back to the gun shop to handle this gun twice, with many guns in between, and realized that all the time I'd spent driving back and forth trying to make up my mind had made some of my price limits negligible. Shopping around isn't fun for long, either. So, I asked for their best price and picked up the pistol 3 days later. I took the pistol home, read the manual, familiarized myself with its operation, field stripped and inspected all parts, and was at the range with 200 rounds of Remington UMC 9mm within 2 hours time.
All I can say is...... Wow. I'm a better shooter already. I am not a particularly good shot with my S&W M67, even in single action. My very first 15 rounds of 9mm were already more accurate than my standard revolver shooting, and by no means is my model 67 innaccurate - it is entirely my fault for not using it to its full ability. The heavy pistol dampened recoil enough to let me squeeze off shots more quickly and accurately than ever before.
The pistol performed flawlessly in my inexperienced hands. There were no feeding problems and ejection was consistent. The DA pull is quite stiff and gritty in my opinion. It is worlds away from the trigger on my S&W and although it really isn't fair to compare a brand new DA/SA pistol trigger to my buttery smooth revolver, it's all I've got. Single action was both crisp and smooth straight out of the box. Magazine ejection and slide action are positive.
Wherever the "Baby" in Baby Eagle comes from, it is quite a misnomer. It is a solid, robust weapon. The machining is high quality and all parts show good finishing. The black finish is workmanlike and might be seen as a negative by others. Time will tell how it holds up but I am happy with it (I also think the CZ-52 is an attractive pistol so your mileage may vary
) Of course, I also find this pistol to be extremely attractive.
Complaints? My hands are sore from dry firing and loading a stiff magazine. If you over-reach the trigger your finger will slap into the mag release. The slide mounted safety and decocker would not be my first choice for a CCW, but without a license to carry it was not a consideration for purchase. As the Gunblast article points out, the long DA pull gives a good degree of safety for carrying a loaded weapon. I can't imagine the gun being fired by accident unless being handled by an extremely incompetent person.
Overall I'm very happy with my purchase. It may not be the most gun you can get for your money, but that doesn't make it a bad gun. I'll get some pictures posted soon....
After weeks of research and handling dozens of handguns my deliberation ended with the purchase of a 9mm Baby Eagle. I have never owned a semi-auto before and have only fired a few magazines from various pistols. Nothing that can be considered real experience with those particular hand guns however.
My decision to purchase this particular gun was primarily a result of the gun fitting my hand and feeling very positive in my grip. I could have gone either way, with polymer or steel pistols, with or without fancy extras like an accessory rail. Besides choosing a gun which felt right the only real question was choosing a platform I was comfortable with. DA/SA? DAO? SA? I had tried pistols of each variety and never had a chance to grow accustomed to any particular operation, so my unbiased approached left a lot of possibilites.
I had gone back to the gun shop to handle this gun twice, with many guns in between, and realized that all the time I'd spent driving back and forth trying to make up my mind had made some of my price limits negligible. Shopping around isn't fun for long, either. So, I asked for their best price and picked up the pistol 3 days later. I took the pistol home, read the manual, familiarized myself with its operation, field stripped and inspected all parts, and was at the range with 200 rounds of Remington UMC 9mm within 2 hours time.
All I can say is...... Wow. I'm a better shooter already. I am not a particularly good shot with my S&W M67, even in single action. My very first 15 rounds of 9mm were already more accurate than my standard revolver shooting, and by no means is my model 67 innaccurate - it is entirely my fault for not using it to its full ability. The heavy pistol dampened recoil enough to let me squeeze off shots more quickly and accurately than ever before.
The pistol performed flawlessly in my inexperienced hands. There were no feeding problems and ejection was consistent. The DA pull is quite stiff and gritty in my opinion. It is worlds away from the trigger on my S&W and although it really isn't fair to compare a brand new DA/SA pistol trigger to my buttery smooth revolver, it's all I've got. Single action was both crisp and smooth straight out of the box. Magazine ejection and slide action are positive.
Wherever the "Baby" in Baby Eagle comes from, it is quite a misnomer. It is a solid, robust weapon. The machining is high quality and all parts show good finishing. The black finish is workmanlike and might be seen as a negative by others. Time will tell how it holds up but I am happy with it (I also think the CZ-52 is an attractive pistol so your mileage may vary
) Of course, I also find this pistol to be extremely attractive. Complaints? My hands are sore from dry firing and loading a stiff magazine. If you over-reach the trigger your finger will slap into the mag release. The slide mounted safety and decocker would not be my first choice for a CCW, but without a license to carry it was not a consideration for purchase. As the Gunblast article points out, the long DA pull gives a good degree of safety for carrying a loaded weapon. I can't imagine the gun being fired by accident unless being handled by an extremely incompetent person.
Overall I'm very happy with my purchase. It may not be the most gun you can get for your money, but that doesn't make it a bad gun. I'll get some pictures posted soon....
Last edited:
