Pistol licence holders in New York get a new CZ to consider. The DUTY 4.0 is the company's next-generation striker-fired 9x19mm, with the serial number on an internal modular chassis and a fiberglass-reinforced polymer grip frame around it. It carries a 4-inch unthreaded barrel, fixed sights and a slide cut for direct-mount red dots, and measures 7.4 inches long by 1.3 inches wide.

There are two frames, the C compact at 135 mm tall and the F full-size at 143 mm, and each is sold with or without a manual thumb safety as an MS model. For licensed shooters in Brooklyn, Queens, Yonkers and on Long Island around Hempstead and Brentwood, as well as up the Hudson in Poughkeepsie and Newburgh, this is a range and home-defense pistol with a 5.6-pound SFDA trigger and a 4 mm reset. Your dealer sets it up in the configuration New York allows.

The C is the short-grip frame. It stands 135 mm (5.3 in) tall, weighs 770 g (27.2 oz) with an empty magazine and carries 15+1 rounds of 9mm, or 17+1 once the extended base plate is fitted. Short enough to hide under a shirt, long enough to get every finger on the grip.

What is new under the slide is the registered modular chassis. The serial number lives on the internal chassis, not on the polymer grip, so the frame module is a part you can change while the gun stays the same gun. Around it CZ put a reworked SFDA striker trigger, rated at 25 ± 4 N (5.6 ± 0.9 lbs) with a 4 mm (0.16 in) reset and 9 ± 1 mm (0.4 ± 0.04 in) of travel, and a slide cut for direct-mount optics. CZ's own photos show it wearing Holosun, Aimpoint and Shield optics.

No manual safety here. The firing pin block, trigger safety and drawbar safety handle drop safety, and the holster handles the rest. CZ sells the same gun with a frame-mounted lever as the MS model.

The CZ DUTY 4.0 C suits anyone who wants a modern optics-ready 9mm with CZ's grip and a trigger that is better than the class average: concealed carry where your state allows it, home defense, and range time that does not need a full-size grip.

New York requires a pistol license before a handgun can be transferred; your county licensing officer, or the NYPD License Division in the city, issues it. Every sale goes through the licensed New York dealer you name at checkout, who runs the State Police background check and applies the SAFE Act and CCIA rules before you take the pistol home. Ammunition ships to that dealer for pickup with a background check; optics and most parts ship to your door.

Questions buyers ask: Can I order the DUTY 4.0 before my pistol license is issued? The handgun cannot be transferred until you hold a New York pistol license, so get the license first; your dealer will not release it without one. What does the New York dealer do at pickup? Runs the State Police background check and applies the SAFE Act and CCIA rules, then transfers the pistol to you. Does the CZ DUTY 4.0 C take CZ P-10 magazines? CZ lists the DUTY with its own 15-round magazine and an extended base plate for 17+1. P-10 magazine fit is not confirmed, so plan on DUTY magazines.