Chances are if you’re new to guns — particularly handguns — a budget 9mm seems like a good place to start. And this SCCY 9MM is just that.
A budget handgun, that is. Budget in every way.
Is the SCCY a good place to start? Find out below whether the SCCY CPX is a good representative of what a 9MM pistol should be.
Let’s look into a full review to see whether the SCCY meets my seal of approval.
SCCY CPX-2 9mm: A Pistol Under Fire
At first glance, the SCCY CPX-2 handgun looks like it could be a strong candidate for those looking for a cheaper option when it comes to handguns.
It’s a sleek-looking pistol that seems to have improved from the major design complaint (the manual safety) of its predecessor–the SCCY CPX-1. The SCCY weighs in at right around 15 oz. and measures out to just above 5″ making it relatively comfortable as a carry gun.
But… that doesn’t necessarily mean that SCCY CPX pistols hit the bullseye as you’ll see later on.
SCCY CPX Specs | |
|---|---|
| Firing Mechanism | Double Action Only |
| Caliber | 9mm |
| Weight | 15 oz |
| Barrel Length | 3.1″ |
| Sights | 3 Dot Sights |
A horrible trigger and serious reliability issues make this gun less than optimal. At any price point, a gun should not sacrifice its basic purpose: to provide the shooter with a safe and and reliable way to fire a gun.
SCCY CPX-2 Key Features and Changes
1Double Action Trigger
The trigger pull of the SCCY CPX is around 9lb and although long and heavy, it is relatively smooth.
2 Removal of Manual Safety
The Manual Safety was removed from CPX-2 after complaints against the previous model’s safety placement.
3Internal Hammer Firing System
The SCCY CPX is equipped with a double action firing system. The hammer is a semi-internal component coupled with an inertial firing pin to prevent accidental discharge in the event of dropping.
SCCY CPX 9mm Pistol – Our Take
Here’s a quick summary: Based on our testing, we do NOT recommend the SCCY CPX 9mm pistol. If you’d like to see a review of a budget pistol that we liked, check out our Canik TP9SF Review.
What we liked about it: We loved the idea of a budget handgun. Despite what you might see/read online, not everyone needs the best handgun for ccw, home defense, or range use. Sure, a nicer handgun is better (to a point) but not everyone can afford $500’ish and up for a handgun.
So, we purchased and tested a SCCY CPX in 9mm hoping that it would be a great budget option. More on this below.
We also liked the color options – we purchased a bright orange frame with a stainless steel slide because we thought that the CPX, as a budget gun, might be a great gun to pack away in an emergency kit and the high visibility and corrosion resistance might come in handy.
Believe it or not, the gun was decently accurate.
What we didn’t like: This is the worst trigger we’ve shot on a handgun – especially one that is supposed to be for ccw/defensive shooting. Sure, a long and heavy double action trigger isn’t normally desirable but we were willing to overlook these qualities because there are other good pistols with these features and because of the price point of the gun. Also, the SCCY seems to be for new shooters so the heavy trigger might (repeat, might) be a little safer for those that haven’t had proper training.
Our big problem with the SCCY 9mm trigger was the reset. It is super easy to “short stroke” this trigger by not allowing it to return all the way forward. This is because it has to go so far to reset, because there is NO audible nor tactile reset indication, and because the return spring is so weak that the trigger doesn’t easily jump back to its reset position – more than once we had merely contact pressure on the trigger and that was enough to keep it from resetting. The only way we could get the trigger to reset was to completely remove our finger from the trigger after every shot. And, because it is so weak, we could easily see a bit fo dirt/grime giving enough resistance to prevent the weak trigger return spring from doing its job.
Despite the bad trigger, there is another major problem with the SCCY pistol we tested: it wouldn’t function for more than a couple rounds in a row! That’s right, we had more than one malfunction for every magazine we fired using factory 9mm Magtech ammunition that we use in every other gun we test without a problem.
Ergonomics – the gun looks ergonomic but it was uncomfortable to shoot.
Finish – Simply taking the gun out of the box on delivery to inspect it and then opening the box one week later on range day resulted in rust on the “stainless” slide. This is unacceptable for a pistol. We’re not sure if it is actually stainless steel or if it is just a color.
We really wanted to like this gun as a budget option for those that can’t afford something nicer. If we didn’t have any hope for it, we wouldn’t have purchased it.
However, after our testing of the SCCY CPX pistol, here’s our advice: stay away. We understand that you might be tempted by the price point but a gun that doesn’t work reliably is dangerous.
If you’re looking for a budget firearm, take a look at the Canik instead – it is the same/similar price and it is a great firearm.
SCCY CPX-2 Pros and Cons
- Inexpensive
- Comes Available in Many Colors
- Trigger Reset
- Doesn’t work!
Report Card | ||
RELIABILITY | It can’t even make it through one magazine. It can’t even make it through one magazine. | F |
ACCURACY | Decently accurate for a pocket pistol | C |
CUSTOMIZATION | Not much you can change. | C |
ERGONOMICS | Horrible – it actually hurt to shoot. | C |
VALUE | Horrible. It’s cheap, but it doesn’t work. | F |
FINAL GRADE : F
Better CCW’s in its Class to Check Out
As you know we were not fans of the SCCY CPX! We are not trying to be mean or vindictive, however when you are talking about a firearm (even a budget gun) that you want to carry and use for self defense…that firearm MUST be reliable in every sense of the word. The SCCY was not reliable, as you could tell from our review and videos. So below, we have some better options for you to review. The guns we have below have MUCH better grades and we feel much more confident in recommending.
1. Glock 43X
The Glock 43X is way above the SCCY CPX in our opinion It is a mixture of the Glock 48 and Glock 43. We don’t like that it has a smaller capacity compared to the P365 but we did love its accuracy amongst other things You can see more by READING HERE.
2. Sig P365
Here’s what I can tell you, for sure… this handgun is the absolute best concealed carry option for me. But, you can read MORE HERE.
If you own the SCCY CPX or are looking to get one, here would be some minimum upgrade options that you could get with your gun. You most likely own some of these items already, but if not, it would be worth grabbing some of them for yourself.
- EXTRA MAG: SCCY CPX High Capacity 9mm 32 rd Magazine
- AMMO
- Self Defense- Barnes 9mm 115 GR Ammo
- Range/Training- MagTech 9mm 115GR FMJ Ammo
- GUN CLEANING KIT: Gloryfire Universal Cleaning Kit on Amazon
- GUN SAFE- Vaultek Biometric Gun Safe on Amazon
Also, I am giving you some possible options to upgrade your SCCY CPX 9mm. These suggestions are specific to the SCCY:
Best Holster for the SCCY CPX
If your getting a CCW or any handgun, a holster is most likely needed. Keep in mind some tips when choosing a proper holster. First, you don’t need anything fancy, just practical. Get something you don’t mind wearing around and you can easily draw your firearm. Next, you need to be sure it will fully conceal your firearm. When it comes to my CCW, I think practical and ease of use first, before any other factors.
Concealment Express IWB Kydex Holster
EDITORS CHOICE: I am a fan of Kydex made holsters because they are well made and are known to hold your firearm perfectly. This holster is perfect for the SCCY, you will get great use out it. Check Amazon Price
Best Gun Laser for the SCCY CPX
Ok, I am going, to be honest…I am not a personal fan of lasers on my firearm.
However, they give some people a level of comfort to see what they’re aiming at.
LaserLyte Laser Sight for SCCY CPX
EDITORS CHOICE: You have multiple colors to choose from with this attachment. (Personal note: not a fan of the pink!) It easily attaches to your SCCY. Check Amazon Price
How to Care for Your SCCY CPX
The most important thing I can do for my firearm is to keep it clean and maintain it. The SCCY CPX or any firearm needs to be taken care of in order to keep it operational. By keeping up with the maintenance, it helps extend the life of the firearm! To help you do this, here is a video on field stripping and cleaning the SCCY CPX.
To start cleaning your gun right away, here is the recommended cleaning kit for the SCCY CPX:
- Gloryfire Universal Cleaning Kit on Amazon
Important Links And Manuals For Your SCCY CPX
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Gun Grades
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Sccy CPX-2
First bad review of Sccy I’ve seen.
Although it sucks to give a gun a bad review, this is exactly why we started Gun University. It is WAY too common to read reviews that say every product is amazing. We wanted to make a place to get the straight truth about firearms. Unfortunately, that means that some guns don’t make the grade.
Not my experience with SCCY CPX2. My gun runs without a glitch. I have not used Magtech ammo.
I’ve had mine over a year and put over 1000 rounds through it without a problem. Used mostly bargain Winchester and Remington target ammo. Trigger isn’t the greatest but acceptable for someone used to using a double action revolver. Like any firearm you are going to carry you must practice with it.
Every other review was about 4 out of 5
Upon rereading, this article feels more and more like a “hit piece”, regardless of the stated problems.
Unlike the article’s author, I particularly like the feel of the CPX2 in hand, when static or firing, as well as its finished fit and appearance, price not withstanding. (I own weapons of multiple price and type categories, and this one is of the lowest price of any I have which only makes me appreciate it more). In my experience, any feed problems are due to roughness/sharpness on the inside edges of the magazine feedlips, decreasing return slide velocity, particularly with brass cartridge casings. Shorter pistols like this often utilize a steep feed ramp with the bullet nose engaging it at a severe angle (made worse by certain bullet types, especially certain hollow points). By deburring the inside feedlips of the magazine and maybe polishing the feed ramp in the weapon, I believe most of these issues will be quickly and easily resolved. This has been the case with both of my CPX2’s and I find it to be one of the most fun pistols I have to shoot. I don’t find the recoil to be uncomfortable at all, I suspect largely to the heft and ergonomics of the stock. I find myself shooting and EDC’ing this weapon as much or more than some of my Glocks or others. (If I were going into a “go to war” situation, I’m going to be carrying the Glocks anyway, out of sheer ruggedness, magazine capacity and increased sight plane, relegating the CPX2 or similar to backup.). Enough said, but I like the SCCY and I like the people behind the product. (I do happen to own a Canik, btw. Though the weapons are dissimilar and more difficult to compare, I would rather support the American company than the Turkish company at present anyway, in view of everything that is happening in our country today.)
I agree with some of what you wrote. I really wanted to like this product – I like the owner of the company, I like supporting American companies, and I think that budget guns are a viable option for many people.
That said, however, the one I bought simply doesn’t work. I am assuming from your comments that the two you had didn’t;t work reliably either until you worked on them. If I’m right, that means we are 0 for 3 on working guns out of the box. If these were a different product, an automobile for example, what grade would you propose if 0 of 3 worked properly without working on them and modifying them first?
I would assume that most people would think it’s unacceptable for me to write “well, the car wouldn’t run at all. But, that happens sometimes with small engines. So after we took it home, rebuilt the heads, adjusted the spark plug gap, and filed down some of the gears in the transmission, it works ok. Not as good as another car I prefer more, but it works now. So… I’m going to give it a good grade.”
Who knows, maybe I’m wrong. I am happy to hear that yours are working.
I didn’t buy this expecting not to like it. I was disappointed. However, we run GunUniversity as a free service to tell you the good and bad exactly as we experience it.
It appears that sccy is a fairly new company trying to give the consumers what they want. People complained about the external safety, sccy took it off. People complained about the double action trigger, sccy is coming out with a striker fired model. The current complaint now is the most important – unreliable. I hope we give sccy a chance to correct this most important problem. I have heard that the problem may be in some of the magazines. Also, the feed ramp is not exactly smooth and has a sharp angle that could be part of the problem. it would be a shame if this company that listens to its consumers would fail because of a rocky start. Please do another review when the striker fired model becomes available.
I have confidence that they’ll make things better. I know the owner and it was really disappointing to see the performance of the pistol we got. I had hoped it would be good (it was a private purchase I made).The company is new compared to some other but it is still 17 years old.
I have a SCCY CPX2 which I bought it in 2016. I have run more than 4,000+ rounds thru it without a problem. Now, I’ve had more expensive semi-autos that have given me problems. Semi-autos in the $700-$900 range. I will say that it does kick a bit due to its light weight.
Reliability. My experience has been that it is very reliable.
I carry a SCCY and have shot it thousands of times and only cleaned it twice ,with only one jam.I have sold many a SCCY and never had a complaint.
That’s great to hear!
The absolute WORST firearm I’ve ever owned! 8-9 lbs trigger, and would not reset until I pushed it forward with my finger. Every mag jammed with various ammo. STAY AWAY from this one!
mcarbo have a solution. Spring kit available to reduce in about 50 percent the trigger pull
i put mcarbo spring kit in mine & it works great mcarbo is fantastic!
Awesome – we’ll look into this upgrade. Was your gun experiencing the same malfunctions ours was prior to installing the aftermarket parts?
And you have owned how many? Several hundred? If everyone gave a bad rating to 1 product they bought and had problems with, nothing g we own would be worth a crap. I don’t care what brand any one owns. It just amazes me to see 1 gun out of however many thousand are made, be judged as all of them are no good.
That wasn’t our intent. Our intent is to give honest reviews of firearms. Does it equally bother you that we only tested one of a certain product, had a good result, and left a positive review?
Here’s what we can do – test something and tell you what happened for us. If it’s good, great. If it’s bad, well, it was bad.
If an honest review of our experience is not good enough for you, we’re not for you.
I have had my cpx1 for a year or so now.
And have also burned through tons of ammo.i can honestly say I haven’t had and problems.i use the extra finger extensions for better grip. I have had problems with auto loading with some magazines though..over all this little guy is a great backup pistol ..
We’re happy to hear that you’ve had a good experience with your pistol
Geeziz, stop using “price point”. It’s an internal term used by marketing teams to indicate where they would like the “price” of an item to end up in retail.
My SCCY CPX2 works quite well. I had one magazine not working properly but have 5 mags that work fine so assuming it’s that magazine. I haven’t inspected it close up under magnification yet to see if it’s something obvious. Gun does kick quite abit for sure because of weight. Over 2000 rounds of Sellier& Bellot, 115 grain FMJ through it so far. Short stroke is biggest fault to me. Looking into parts to remedy that.
Like pretty much everything these days, there’s good ones and bad ones. It’s man made so it’s gonna break sooner or later. Guess I got one of the better ones . . . OH, SCCY will replace your gun for free if it’s faulty, just gotta send it back.
Spot on. I would make 2 points though. Load the magazines and let them set when new. Something about them makes the spring too tight. Once mine were broke in and I ran Fiocchi and Federal it ran real well. I just bought it as a lark to have a 9mm. If you seriously want to carry something get something else.
I picked up my second generation CPX by driving up to Daytona and giving them my first model that had a safety that would come on about every other shot. Since then I have had zero problems with either FTF or FTE. It has consumed thousands of my reloads, proven to be very reliable. On the other hand you are correct about the weighty trigger and the looong reset, you do get points for that.
You should give yours back to SCCY and they will tell you what is wrong with it. It should not jam.
About to trade my Sccy CPX-1 for something better! Anything better! This gun is horrible. My husband and I both have one and BOTH of them jam up every single time we target shoot. We have gotten new magazines numerous times believing that was the issue and it’s not. We’ve had them for over a year and have put quite a bit of ammo through them and we’ve experienced the exact same problems as the guy who wrote this did. The trigger is horrible as well. We sent our guns in to get checked out and fixed because of the jamming issue and they sent them back and said it was fixed. WRONG. I wouldn’t recommend this gun to anyone. For those of you who have no problems out of yours then great. But for my husband and me, this gun would not be reliable in an emergency situation.
Had my SCCY 2 9mm since December of 2016. The first couple of mags fired well. After that it started jamming. The shells wouldn’t feed smoothly into the chamber resulting in the slide not returning to firing position. I had to tap it hard with the heel of my hand in order to feed the shell into the chamber. This happened on two to three shots of every magazine no matter what type of ammo I used. Before trading it in, I took it to a gunsmith for one last shot at fixing it. He said the entry to the chamber area seemed a little rough and polished it down with an electric drill/polisher. Took it back to the range and went through two full clips and didn’t have any problems at all. I know two clips isn’t much of a test but I can’t replace the ammunition I shoot due to the nationwide ammunition shortage. It’s not going to do me any good to have a home defense gun if I don’t have the ammunition for it so I won’t be able to do a real test until 9mm comes back onto the store shelves. But that could be another year if not longer. I’m probably going to keep the gun until I can really test it out but in the meantime, will get a Ruger EC9s or splurge on a full size Glock 17, even though that expensive a gun would be a little bit of a hardship for me. That’s why the Ruger EC9s interests me, as well as the fact I have the Ruger SR22. That is almost the same style gun and it has served me well.
My new cpx2 had a similar problem. The culprit is the trigger bar. With some small adjustments both the reset and release issues have been resolved. I’m not sure how much manufacturing variance they have. The first issue I had was failure to reset. A YT video showed to address that by shaving a hair off the trigger bar. Did that, but then it would not fire.
I wound up changing the angle of the ledge on the trigger bar that engages the trigger. One that was done, both the reset and release issues were completely resolved, and I’ve had several magazines through it with no issues, including third party 15rd mags.
It’s still an uncomfortable gun to practice with. Next step is to see if some tennis racquet grip tape will make it a bit more comfortable to hold.
Mine came with a red dot, and after zeroing, the little beast has been very accurate.
As a 3 or four shot carry gun I think it’s going to be great. But for a 200 round afternoon at the range not so much. Too hard on the hands and the trigger finger.
Ok let be fair you purchased one gun out of millions that have been manufactured.
Personally I like the sccy, you were biased from the start insinuating that you are giving a free review.
I purchased my sccy in 2012 as a matter of fact it was so enjoyable I purchased two others immediately after I have multiple handguns and this one has performed flawlessly as all the others.
I have never experienced a failure to feed or failure to eject.
It feels very secure in the hand and it’s very accurate.
Yes the double action trigger is long, just as any double action revolver the trigger is long hence no safety.
Your review shows that you were negative from the beginning and prefer the canik or the Glock perhaps you’re being paid too push these but let’s be honest if that’s all someone can afford it’s a great gun..
Myself I have multiple guns multiple I have carried the sky since 2012 thousands of rounds put through it again never any issues. But I trust his skin yes I would I also carried as a EDC.
But thank you for your review I didn’t find it enlightening at all I found it very biased from the start.
Again you need to understand everybody doesn’t have a pocketful of money to buy the brand name expensive weapons.
Regardless the price or the name if you pull that trigger and that weapon does it intended purpose it’s a great weapon.
But, if you watch the video, you can clearly see that the gun he purchased with his own money malfunctioned constantly. Plus, you can see no edits to the video. So, are you saying that all reviewers should buy 5 or 10 of the same gun before making a review?
Nice till they blow up in your hand, range instructor was teaching a young lady when her new Sccy 9mm blew apart. Photo shows the tòp half of the barrel gone.
I have three of this they all run GREAT!!!!!!
That’s awesome!
I bought a CPX1 about 8 or 9 years ago. I thought it might be a piece of crap, but wanted to give a new USA Co a chance. I ike the external safety, prior military I’m used to them. We used every low grade, cheap piece of ammo (sometimes I was a bit cautious of) in it. We ran better than 200 rounds through it as fast as we could load it. I ran over it with my full size Bronco, left in the Tn mud for a week, cleaned it and it fired like new. No rust or corrosion. We fired the firearm often and I made it my primary carry weapon. Therefore, I fired box after box of ammo. After all this time, it finally quit on me, I believe that weak spring finally quit. I will send it back to SCCY probably for the repair. Everyone here just says, “it’s not worth fixing, buy something reliable”? I thing this did a pretty good job.
Interesting reads on valuations the CPX series. First purchased the cpx-1 on 2013 and had some of the same issues that others are commenting about (ftf, fte, trigger etc) and decided to do a super cleaning of the firearm. Back to the range and some fte remained. Had a range master fire a couple of mags and he had not issues. Realized then that my grip was part of the problem as well as a break-in period to seat the parts. I have since acquired a CPX-2 in 2017 and a CPX-3 in 2019. No complaints on any of them. Would encourage anyone considering a CPX series to find one for rent at the range or a friend who has one.
Big mistake. Was not like the one I tried in the store. Take all I have to pull back the slide.The trigger pull feels more like 15 lb. pull them 9 1/2. Selling it as soon as I can.
Nothing like my Body Guard or Body Shield.
Sorry to hear that. We really wanted to like this pistol.
Spend $50 more and get a Ruger ECS.
All gun mfgrs will and do have the one that doesn’t work like it should. While I’m not a “gun reviewer” I have made reccomendations, provided training, etc., to buyers of both sexes about chosing a weapon. When possible I’ve made different brands and types available to try.
My gun ownership over the years included the normal range of hunting weapons, most military issues from many countries and beltfeds dating back to cloth belt 303’s and Brownings from WWI to German 15’s 34’s & 42’s to HK21’s, M60’s,M2’s and even a Mini.
So, If I were doing what you do for a living or ego gratification and experienced the problems you did, I would go back to the manufacturer first to either get a fix or replacement before tearing them a new one publicly.
I’m also a serious QA & Inspection engineer working with large companies in the US and Overseas. As what’s called a FAT (Final Acceptance Test) Inspector I am the last word for the buyer on a wide range of technical equipment, processes & performance before shipping. My work also includes mfgr audits, reviews, investigations and expedite on delayed production and deliverys. I also do this work for a number of foreign governments who rely on a comprehensive review before things are released for shipment.
In closing everyone builds a bad one, sometimes too often but not everyone needs a high end sig, walther or custom Kimber etc., and I think you should due two things; 1. Talk to the mfgr before going off on a product. 2. Use multiple brands and types of ammo in your tests
Best from here Bob