Despite being in the gun-making business for 180 years, Turkish firearms manufacturer Sarsilmaz is not well-known in this country. That is a situation SAR USA, based in Opelika, Ala., is working to change with the B6C semi-automatic 9 mm pistol, along with many other pistol and shotgun offerings it’s currently importing into the United States.
As a more compact version of SAR’s full-sized B6, and hence the “C” in the model description, the B6C is based on the iconic CZ-75 design, and as such is built with a slide that rides inside the frame’s rails. On many semi-automatic pistols, including the workhorse 1911, the slide rides outside the frame. The inside-the-rails placement allows the barrel of the B6C to ride just a bit lower than it otherwise would, providing a lower bore height for improved accuracy.
Following its CZ-75 lineage, the hammer-fired B6C features a single-action and double-action trigger. But, unlike the Czech favorite, the B6C is built on a polymer frame, making it lighter and less expensive than an all-steel CZ-75.
The B6C is very reliable and ran without a single malfunction in 300 rounds fired including basic target, self-defense and frangible training loads. The pistol’s frame comes in three different color options including black, flat dark earth and olive drab green.
While the frame and grips of the pistol are made of polymer, the slide and barrel of the B6C are steel. The hammer-forged barrel is 3.8” long. The pistol features fixed three-dot style combat sights, a manual thumb safety on the left side, and an integrated spur hammer. The B6C comes standard with two 13+1 magazines or 10+1 for capacity-restricted states.
My Lyman electronic trigger-pull gauge measured the B6C’s single-action trigger pull at a crisp 4-lbs. 1-oz., and the double-action at 6-lbs. 8-ozs. In single-action, the trigger has approximately 0.14” of take-up before it engages. This isn’t terrible, but may require some practice to use effectively without a take-up induced wobble. The take up is approximately 0.10” in double-action, which actually provides stability in this mode by shifting the trigger-finger and pistol back into the shooter’s hand.
For those who want another layer of security, the double-action capability of the B6C’s trigger means a shooter can carry the pistol with a round in the chamber without the hammer being cocked. That’s in addition to the manual safety on the slide and the internal firing-pin block-safety.
There is nothing fancy about the grips on the B6C. Grooves are molded into the polymer front and back-straps, with small checkered rectangles cut into the grip at just the right positions to engage fingers and the palm below the shooting hand’s thumb. I had no problem achieving a solid grip throughout my shooting, even when heat and humidity created a slick surface on my hands.
With a barrel just under 4” long and weighing in at just 25-ozs. unloaded, the B6C is certainly a concealed-carry option. I was without a B6C-specific holster, yet the pistol looked to have similar dimensions to a Smith & Wesson M&P Shield. So, I tried out a Premium Leather Inside-the-Pants Shield 9/40 holster made by Blackhawk I had on hand, which fit nearly perfect.
I carried the pistol with the Blackhawk holster for a week. It proved to be a comfortable carry rig, with the holster providing plenty of support and keeping the butt of the B6C at the right angle for easy drawing. Fully loaded with self-defense ammunition, the B6C felt much the same in weight and bulk as the Smith & Wesson M&P 45 Shield I regularly carry.
Accuracy testing was done with two brands of 9 mm range ammunition, Precision Delta remanufactured Performance Standard loaded with a 147-grn. FMJ bullet and an average muzzle velocity of 915 f.p.s. along with Winchester USA Ready with a 115-grn. flat-nosed FMJ bullet at 1,172 f.p.s. I added one brand of self-defense round into the mix, SIG Sauer’s 9 mm +P loaded with a 124-grn. V-Crown hollow-point bullet leaving the muzzle at 1,180 f.p.s.
(All velocities measured with 10 shots of ammunition fired approximately six feet from a RCBS AmmoMaster Chronograph.)
I first fired the above rounds at 7-yds., offhand standing with five, five-shot groups of each. On average, the Precision Delta rounds scored groups of 1.45”, the SIG at 1.25”, and the Winchester at 1.20”. At this distance, my best groups were 1.03” with the Winchester, and a 1.05” with the SIG with four of the SIG rounds scoring a neat little 0.70” cluster.
At 25-yds. firing from a rest, the B6C averaged five-shot groups of 2.5” to 3.5”. The SIG scored the tightest group, right at 2.5” while the Winchester averaged approximately 3”. The Precision Delta scored at 3.5” and also printed one group at 4”.
Field stripping the B6C is very easy. As with most CZ-75 clones, the B6C has tiny dots pressed into the left-rear of the slide and the frame. Make sure the pistol is unloaded and the magazine is removed first. Cocking the hammer halfway, ease back the slide to line up those two dots. Now, with the dots still lined up push out the slide stop from the opposite side of the pistol. Then pull out the slide stop.
The slide itself comes off the frame by pushing forward. Now, the recoil spring guide and the twin springs it holds can be removed from inside the slide, as well as the barrel. At this point the B6C is ready for cleaning. I asked for a B6C with an olive drab green frame, a nice change from all the black-on-black handguns I review.
The B6C is a sturdy workhorse of a semi-automatic pistol. It’s a good fit for concealed carry, the nightstand or vehicle use as well as a fun plinker. The pistol has a suggested price of just $333, while online prices are right at $280.
The B6C is a great deal even at $333. At $280, for an accurate and reliable carry or home-defense pistol, the B6C represents an amazing value. For more information on the SAR B6C pistol visit sarusa.com.
Specifications:
Caliber: 9 mm
Action: Semi-Automatic
Trigger: Single and Double-Action
Slide: Steel
Slide Finish: Matte Black
Frame: Polymer
Barrel: Hammer-Forged Steel
Barrel Length: 3.8"
Overall Length: 7.4"
Overall Height: 5.2"
Overall Width: 1.1"
Weight: 25.2 oz. Unloaded
Sights: Fixed Three Dot
Safety: Manual and Firing-Pin Block-Safety
Magazines: Two 13+1 Capacity (10+1 for Restricted States)
Frame Color Options: Black, Flat-Dark Earth, or Olive Drab Green
MSRP: $333.00
