Kahr Arms

[AngryRooster]

Kahr fanboy here. I've owned many Kahrs and I'm always an advocate for them. I trust my CM9 more than any other gun I own. If you stick to any of their 9mm variants, you should be good to go.

I just picked up a used P380 and I'm having some issues. I've bought a bunch of replacement springs to see if that works. I'm reading mixed reviews of their 380s online, so I would only buy new if going that route.

I had an extractor pop out of an older CM9 of mine. It continued to function correctly for a few mags before I noticed. Anyway, their customer service was excellent and took care of me. They also buffed/polished the rest of the gun while it was there.




Kahrs definitely have steel rails, just not in the normal spots. If you look at the slide, you can see the additional smaller cuts where the slide meets the steel rails. One could argue Kahr has more steel than other competitors. See the attached:

View attachment 77525

You are correct about the rails. I completely forgot about those little "front" rails being there. I haven't shot or opened up the P9 in a couple years. It's the only gun that has that 'unique' of a trigger that I own. It takes me a little while to adjust to it when I take it to the range. I much prefer the triggers on the other guns I have. I should probably let this one go sometime. I don't normally do that, but it's a good possibility for this one given how little I shoot it.

 

[deeno3432]

I've had a mk9, cw9, cw380 and main carry gun is a cm9. Only problem I ever had was my cw380 extractor broke the bottom tang portion of the extractor off in under 200 rounds, kahr overnighted a new extractor to me and then I sold it. My cm9 is my favorite gun to shoot and it's is my favorite gun to shoot. Make sure to lock the slide back and fully load mags and let them sit for a few days and shoot at least 200 rounds through it.

 

[Tactically Fat]

My opinion is that if you want a polymer kahr, get it in 9mm and nothing else.

If you opt for a metal framed gun - then knock yourself out with whatever you want.

Personal experience: Years and years ago, my formerly owned CW-40 had part of a frame rail break off. In all honesty, I could've probably clipped that piece off and carried on without any issues - as it wasn't a load-bearing surface. But I sent it in and had the frame replaced - under warranty. Then when I got the new gun back, it would drop the mag when it got down to 1 cartridge left. So - they wanted it back again. And they changed the mag catch - and that cured it.

I then proceeded to run another 200 trouble-free rounds through it and sold it, at full disclosure of the above issues.

I wish I'd have gotten a CW-9 instead. I'd probably still have it.

If you're a DA revolver guy - then the Kahr trigger will be old hat. If you're new to guns and you only have a Kahr, then the trigger will be easy to master given enough dry fire / training.

But if you like a more traditional polymer gun's trigger (like M&P or Glock or whatever) then you'll probably not like a Kahr trigger at all.

 

[RMorr64]

I’m leaning towards buying a 9mm to be honest.

 

[Sniper 79]

I didn't have a lot of cash about six years ago and needed a carry pistol. Picked up a new CW45. Took it to the range and experienced light primer strikes and stove pipes. I called and customer service blamed my ammo and blew me off.

Funny how my 1911 fired all the same ammo without a problem. Quickly pedaled it off and bought a Glock. Glock is all I own since then.

 

[MinutemanPatriot]

I have a North American Arms .380 on a Kahr frame; I don't know if you would count that. If you do, I will add that mine has worked flawlessly for many years (over 10 years at this point). My 380 had a LOT of custom work done to it prior to my purchase as a new pistol; the gunshop owner had informed me that he tests all the firearms he sells and for some reason it would NOT work when he got it direct from the manufacturer. NAA put about $700 worth of work into the pistol, at no charge to the gunshop, to get it working so well. I'd like to think I got a "custom gun" on the cheap, rather than buying a lemon that was re-worked into a properly functioning pistol. I say that because sometimes a gun is just missed in the QC process - NAA did not strike me as a company that had a bad rep for selling problem pistols.


When I think of a "lemon gun", I think of the hot mess that was the Springfield Armory XDs, and the MASSIVE recall that was needed to fix what was (from what I've learned) a total failure from design to QC to final release. Though I own other Springfield pistols like the XDM and their milspec 1911, I've made a decision to NEVER buy ANY XDs... just because when something is FUBAR straight from the drawing board, I tend not to trust even the fix to the problem.

 

[SnoopLoggyDog]

Started out with an E9 years ago. Traded it when I upgraded to a P9. Recently picked up a CT9. Trigger reminds me of a S&W revolver. Reliable, accurate, and larger ammo capacity then a revolver. The 9mm versions seem to be the best of the lot.

 

[SmileDocHill]

I have a PM9 and love it. It is built like a tank. It accepts the magazines designed for the larger handguns also so your spare mag you put in another pocket can hold a lot more.
Trigger: very smooth! It is just different.
It has an annoyance with loading the first round from a magazine. By design, and per manual, you are supposed to use the slide release to peal off the first round vs racking the slide. It will load subsequent rounds flawlessly but can be finicky with the first round of a new mag if the round isn't in the right position.

 

[indysims]

I carried a CW9 for a few years then I switched to a TP9 because I prefer a full grip. The TP9 is one in their premium series and the finish and function is really nice. I have noticed that it's best to follow the recommended 200 rnd break in. I saw a few hiccups in that break in period, but they did indeed work out after the break-in and cleaning. I recently started shooting a Glock for recreation shooting (Steel and GSSF) and I've since found the Kahr trigger seems extreeeeeemly long now that I've become adjusted to the Glock trigger. It's still a smooth, constant trigger, but long. I have also seen the first round finickyness mention above, but as a carry gun I'm not constantly loading new mags. It gets a little action now and then to keep up on it, but mostly stays in a holster.

 

[Ark]

My CW380 never ran right, FTF'd at least once per magazine on every brand of ammo I threw at it.

 

[luvall]

CW9
7 years
2,000+rounds
0 problems

 

[WestSider]

Good guns... Carried a PM9 for a while years ago. Trigger does take a little getting used to compared to a Glock/M&P/etc.. In terms of reliability they are good, I wouldn't put them above Glock but I could say that about just about every gun manufacturer. Like any gun you are planning to use for self defense you should shoot it a lot with various types of ammo to see if it has any issues.

I have a CW380 that I currently use as a BUG. Very accurate and easy to shoot for such a tiny gun.

 

[hpclayto]

I’ve had a few. I just can’t do the triggers. The reset is sooooo long.

 

[sparkyfender]

I bought a Kahr MK9 when they first hit the market, carried it for several years. Reliable, robust, easily concealed, but I finally admitted I just didn't shoot it very well, the grip was smaller than I could use with much dexterity. No fault of Kahr. I just went to something with a larger frame.

 

[dan45]

have had 2 cw 9mm and really liked them both. never had any problems with either.

 

[DadSmith]

I just found out that Kahr owns Auto Ordinance and Magnum Research.
When did they buy out these companies?
Has AO and MR improved quality or has quality went down the drain since the take over?
Not a fan of AO, but if Kahr has improved their quality I might be interested in their firearms again.

 

[BE Mike]

I just found out that Kahr owns Auto Ordinance and Magnum Research.
When did they buy out these companies?
Has AO and MR improved quality or has quality went down the drain since the take over?
Not a fan of AO, but if Kahr has improved their quality I might be interested in their firearms again.

That's been a done deal for a number of years. I would think that Kahr Arms would mean that the quality of the products have been improved, but I have no first hand knowledge. I know that, in the past, there were a LOT of problems with the Tommy guns.

 

[BE Mike]

I have a Kahr CM9 with Crimson Trace grips. I bought it used, so I suppose that the original owner shot the 200 round break in period, as it has been 100% reliable with every cartridge, including JHP's and lead reloads. For anyone who has extensively shot revolvers will have a short learning curve on the long, smooth and light Kahr trigger pull. I only quit carrying it because the Sig P365 has a greater capacity. Used Kahr 9mm pistols are probably the biggest bargain out there. I tried to sell mine, for what I thought was a good deal, but got no interest. I decided that it is too good of a pistol to "give away"! It still goes with me once in a while.

 

[Bluedragon]

I've had a couple K9's and a cw380. All were good feeling handguns that carried nicely and had silky smooth triggers.

I hated field stripping any of them however for cleaning as I felt the slidestop pin was difficult to remove.

I wouldn't mind finding another K9 though as it's the model they make that I like the most.
Especially if it were a stainless K9.

 

[Bassat]

I have a (Kahr warranty replacement) CM9 that has been flawless for about 700 rounds. Several brands of FMJ, and at least 100 rounds each of Hornady Critical Defense and Federal 147gr HST have been digested with not a single problem. I have 3 6-round magazines that also work without issue. In the beginning, I spent good money for a 7-round magazine which has proven to be worthless. IFF I load 7+1, the first round fires, extracts, and ejects as expected. The top round in the full 7-rounder then proceeds to nosedive into the feed ramp EVERY TIME. If I shoot 6+1 that does not happen, EVER. My 7-round magazine is for loading the gun up to 6+1 with the other mags. I never shoot the 7-round mag - it is trash.