Historically I’ve been of the opinion “you get what you pay for” when it comes to defensive firearms, but sometimes a product comes along that challenges your long held opinions.
The SAR B6P 9mm Turkish made CZ75 knock-off may just be that handgun.The B6P is in essence an EAA Witness with a polymer frame, and the EAA Witness is also a clone of the CZ75.

I’ve always had good luck with the EAA Witness line of handguns having owned them in 9mm, .45 and 10mm over the years. Since EAA was putting their name on it, I figured it was worth a shot.My quest for a reliable, well made handgun that was priced substantially less than a Glock or M&P (forget the Sig’s and HK’s) lead me to the EAA imported SAR B6P pistol.

What drew my attention to the SAR B6P? The clear heritage it shared with the Czech made CZ75 is what flipped my interest switch. The resemblance to the CZ75 is more than skin deep, once you strip the two pistols down you can see the parts are nearly identical.

You can’t swap the parts between them, as there are differences, but the similarities are too close to deny. In case you’re wondering, the SAR B6P will accept new production CZ75B/SP-01 magazines with dual locking cuts. Older CZ75 magazines with a single locking cut won’t work in the B6P.

My pistol tips the postal scale at 1lbs 12oz with an empty magazine inserted. The barrel is 4.5″ in length and is made of stainless steel. The OAL of the pistol is 8.2″ with a height of 5.6″ and a thickness of 1.25″. Again, it’s very similar in size and shape to the CZ75, so this is definitely a service sized handgun.

I picked my B6P up with eager optimism as I headed out to the range. I grabbed a few boxes of range ammo including some locally produced re-manufactured ammo with a reputation for low quality. Given the continued shortage of ammunition, beggars can’t be choosers. I also brought along a box of my preferred defensive ammo, Critical Duty from Hornady.

I loaded my first 16 round magazine and charged the pistol. The surface area of the slide that is serrated is very short, only 1/4″ in height, which makes it difficult to grip. This is due to the fact the slide rides inside of the frame which is opposite of most every other pistol made. It’s one of my gripes against the CZ75 which unfortunately carries over to the B6P.

Watch it

I had one malfunction with the pistol which I attribute to the low quality re-manufactured ammo I was using. I’ve had problems with this ammo in the past and it has a reputation locally for being problematic in a wide variety of pistols, it’s even choked my Glocks on occasion. Inspecting the malfunction lead me to believe it was an under powered load that short stroked the action of the pistol. With factory new ammo the gun runs flawlessly, including with good defensive ammo like Critical Duty.

Cons:

Trigger guard is rounded and lacks an rest for your non-shooting index finger (for those that like this feature)
Magazines fit flush which can make fast reloads challenging
No decocker
Excessive markings all over the polymer frame which look gaudy
Proprietary sights
Only available in 9mm (for you .40 and .45 fans)
Mine came with a single 16 round magazine, it would be nice to get at least two mags

Overall I’m very pleased with the quality and function of the B6P. The gun handles, feels and shoots like a $500+ pistol yet comes to market at around $300. A compact version of the pistol is available with a 3.8″ barrel and a 13 round magazine if you need something more concealable.

If you’re looking for an affordable 9mm carry gun I would highly recommend you look into the SAR B6P from EAA. I plan to abuse the B6P in future Military Arms Channel videos. I want to see just how well this handgun holds up to extended use and even how it fairs in water, mud and sand. I mean heck, why not tear it up a bit? I have less than $300 in the gun!