POCKET POWER KAHRS

Since 10-19-05

KP9093N P9, 7 shot 9mm black polymer frame, matte stainless slide with tritium night sights

When it comes to concealment pistols, a 9mm is just fine with Kokalis, and he likes the looks of Kahr Arms' latest offerings.

Kahr P9

Once offered only in 100 percent, all-American-by-God steel, this outstanding CCW 9mm finally lightens up by going polymer.

GUNS MAGAZINE, p.44 - 49, p.73 - 74
November 2000

Website: GUNS MAGAZINE.COM / Article: "Kahr P9"

Story by Holt Bodinson
Photos by Ichiro Nagata

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Easy to conceal and carry, utterly reliable and approaching the accuracy of a target pistol, Kahr's new polymer-framed P9 is an intriguing handgun. Here's a classic match between brilliant engineering and ergonomic design - a svelte, bantam weight, powerful little 9mm that seems to please nearly every shooter who picks it up.

One of the nice aspects about being a civilian in the world of concealed carry is that there are no "official regulations." You can carry any make, model, caliber, ammunition type, in any holster or by any other means, any time you want.

With that degree of freedom and flexibility, you would think selecting the right make, model, caliber and means of concealed carry would be simple. It's not, and the choices available today, either good or bad, are simply mind-numbing.
Revolutionizing the concealed carry equation, however, is the recent development of compact, light, polymer-framed, DAO semi-automatics. The mini-Glocks and Kel-Tecs immediately come to mind, and now the 9mm Kahr P9, which may be the best of its type.

THE CHIHUAHUA OF HANDGUNS - SMALL & INTENSE
Over the last few years, the small DAO semi-automatic has emerged as the ideal concealed carry handgun.

Without the projections of an external hammer or safety, it can be made compact, streamlined, snag-proof and virtually impervious to lint and dirt.
Produced from a combination of polymers and metallic alloys, it is highly corrosion resistant and almost maintenance free. Most importantly, its operation is very simple and obvious. At a moment of extreme stress, all you have to remember to do is to squeeze the trigger.

Helping to keep compact DAO autos controllable and comfortable to shoot is the modern 9mm cartridge. While it's 98 years old, it's still the most popular handgun cartridge in the world. It's a small but high-intensity cartridge, operating at an industry maximum pressure of 35,000 psi, which is the same pressure standard set for the .357 Magnum.

The performance of modern +P and +P+ loadings for the 9mm is nothing short of phenomenal. In fact, the most effective loading, based on actual street data, is Cor-Bon's 115 gr. JHP at 1,350 fps from a 4" barrel. Yet, the 9mm round is a gentle cartridge to shoot. When wedded to a small, lightweight DAO auto like Kahr's P9, it is high perfect.

If you really haven't followed Kahr as a company, it is a high-tech engineering, contract manufacturing and design house as well as a leading supplier of CNC machine tools and tooling to various industries. One of its principals, Justin Moon, also happens to be a dedicated handgunner.

When Moon decided to design and manufacture a family of ultra-compact DAO autos in 9mm and .40 S&W, he did it right. He began with a clear set of objectives and applied the considerable engineering and CNC production assets at his fingertips to the ultimate design and manufacture of an award-winning line of highly concealable handguns.

This end toward target.

When you shoot the P9, the texturing on the rear of the grip actually delivers a message in an ancient, nodular code once carved by Anasazi cave dwellers in the darkest recesses of their desert caverns. This one is thought to read: "Sick of eating cactus. Moving to Oregon."

With stainless steel and polymer construction, the Kahr P9 may be only slightly tougher and more durable than your average M1 tank.

LOOKS NEW, FEELS FAMILIAR

The new polymer-framed P9 is the latest offering from Kahr, and it incorporates all of the original patent designs and precision of manufacture upon which Kahr has built an enviable reputation.

Picking up the P9, the first thing you notice is how small and light this little 9mm powerhouse actually is; yet with the magazines in place, it has a full, three-finger size grip. The pistol weighs 15.8 ozs. and the seven-shot, single stack magazine, 1.9 ozs. With a 3.5" barrel, the overall length of the P9 is 6"; its height, 4.5"; and the matte stainless steel slide registers a mere 0.9" in width.

In the hand, the Kahr sits very low with a neutral balance. The low bore axis of the P9 significantly reduces muzzle flip and felt recoil, and is made possible by one of Moon's unique patented design features. The P9 incorporates a locked breech and a modified Browning short recoil system, but the barrel camming lug has been offset from its normal 6 o'clock position.

By moving this lug slightly off center, Moon was able to position the trigger mechanism beside the barrel lug, thus closing the distance from the centerline of the bore to the top of the shooter's hand. as a result, the P9 is a natural pointer. Even with the hot Cor-Bon, 1,350 fps 115 gr. +P load, muzzle rise is almost imperceptible and recovery from recoil, immediate.

GO AHEAD, SHOOT IT A LOT!

The petite P9 is a very comfortable handgun to shoot - a quality that will encourage lots of practice and will appeal strongly to less experienced shooters.

Adding to the fine handling of the P9 is its slim, textured, hard-polymer grip. It seems to fit everyone, regardless of hand size, which speaks well of its ergonomic qualities. The slimness of the grip is made possible by a single stack magazine that holds and functions with seven rounds.

The two magazines supplied with the gun are made of heat-treated, stainless steel with a smooth polymer follower. They exhibit no sharp edges. They load easily, and they feed well. In over 500 rounds of shooting assorted hollowpoints and FMJs, we experienced not one jam, misfeed nor any other malfunction for that matter. Kahr does recommend a break-in sequence of 200 rounds in any case.

Indeed, the functional reliability of Kahr's complete handgun line is well established and documented.

When shooting a DAO semi-automatic for the first time, one always wonders what the trigger will be like. Will it stack up? Will it be rough and jerky? will it be too heavy for little or even big hands?

The quality of the trigger and its linkage to the firing mechanism either makes or breaks a DAO semi-auto.

Moon got it right on the P9. The trigger is like a ball bearing on glass - rolling smooth. It's light, short and consistent at 7 lbs. The trigger face itself is smoothly finished so that your finger glides over it as your pull progresses to a clean breaking let-off point.

We've done our share of serious double action work with tuned revolvers, and always found it a real challenge. The P9 puts revolvers to shame. The trigger action on the P9 is so good it's simply in another league entirely - and so are the tight groups it helps generate.

THRIVING ON THE FIRE

With a 5" sighting radius formed by white bar-dot combat sights (factory replaceable with tritiums) plus a Lothar Walther polygonal rifled barrel, the P9 proved remarkably accurate. It shot to the point-of-aim from 7 to 25 yards. It thrived on the hot 115 gr. Cor-Bon load, which would be our load of choice, and it did almost as well with Fiocchi's standard 115 gr. FMJ, which would be a good, inexpensive practice round.

The heavier 124 to 147 gr. factory loads all shot well but not as well as the 115 gr. numbers.

Frankly, in this light, little gun, the traditional 115 gr. 9mm loads will do anything needing doing with less fuss and less recoil.

Under low light conditions, Cor-Bon's use of low-flash powder makes a world of difference and is an invaluable tactical asset. Other brands of ammunition tested in the P9 generated considerable degrees of muzzle flash which were distracting to the shooter and not exactly beneficial to one's night vision. Muzzle flash is an element to be concerned about in defensive pistolcraft. Cor-Bon has confronted the problem and moderates it much better than their competitors.

For the purposes of carry and concealment, Kahr offers three quality leather holsters from Alessi for the P9 - a pocket holster; a double-loop, belt-slide model; and a clip-on inside-the-waistband rig. In the heat of the Arizona summer the P9 carried comfortably in both the pocket and the belt-slide holsters. Whether you carry the P9 in a holster, pocket, purse, briefcase or fanny pack, you'll quickly forget you're carrying it at all.

Could we recommend any improvements in the P9? Just one. We would like every semi-auto to incorporate a loaded chamber indicator, especially a DAO that has no external safety. Having to rack back a slide to check if there's a round in the chamber is objectionable. Give us something we can feel to verify the chamber is loaded and the gun is ready.

Suggested retail for the new P9 is $527, and Kahr extends a lifetime warranty to the original buyer. In addition, Kahr's operating manual is among the finest ever printed.

If you appreciate quality and accuracy in a highly concealable handgun, you'll really enjoy owning, carrying and shooting the Kahr P9.

 

SHOTGUN NEWS, August 2005, p.4-5, 8-9
Text by Peter G. Kokalis

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Designed for deep concealment and gunfighting at close ranges, the distinctive Kahr Arms pistols have proven popular as backup sidearms with many police officers.

While there is no shortage of compact semiautomatic pistols chambered for serious cartridges from which to select at this time, Kahr Arms has dominated this arena, with justification, for some time. While its line of compact pistols is available in either .40 S&W or 9x19 Parabellum chamberings (and in one case even ,.45 ACP) I personally believe that compact hideout handguns are a dish best served in 9x19mm Parabellum. The recoil impulse is easier to control with this cartridge and with the proper bullet selection they are every bit as effective.

SHOTGUN NEWS was recently sent three different 9mm Kahr pistols for test and evaluation, including a new economy model. The new Kahr CW9 (Concealed Weapon 9mm) has a polymer frame and a slide machined from 321 stainless steel. The overall length of this pistol is 6.0 inches with a height of 4.5 inches and a width at the slide of .90". The pistol weighs 15.8 ounces and another 1.9 ounces must be added for the empty magazine. The 3.5-inch barrel has conventional rifling with a 1:10 right-hand twist. The full-length, one-piece guide rod is made of steel.

The seven round, single-column, detachable box-type magazine has six indicator holes on each side of the magazine body. A steel projection on the left side of the black plastic follower operates the slide's hold-open feature. The magazine falls freely away when the serrated, spring-loaded magazine catch/release button, located on the left side of the frame, directly to the rear of the trigger guar, is depressed.

Rather effective stippling has been molded into the front and rear straps of the black polymer frame. Kahr pistols with polymer frames have steel rail inserts on each side of the dust cover for its entire length and also at the very tip of the end of the frame. The CW9, Kahrs' best value, carries a suggested retail price of $533, complete with one magazine, a trigger lock and black plastic storage box.

We were also sent two of Kahr's smallest pistols: the MK9 Elite 2003 and the PM9. The PM9 has a black polymer frame and the MK9 Elite 2003 has a slide fabricated from stainless steel. THe slide of both pistols is machined from 321 stainless steel. The PM9 slide has been blackened with Tungsten DLC. The MK9 has black synthetic two-piece, wrap-around grip panels held in place by two stainless steel screws on each side. The overall length of these two pistols is 5.3 inches with a height of 4.0 inches and a width at the slide of .90". The MK9 Elite 2003 weighs 22.1 ounces, while the PM9 tips the scales at only 14.8 ounces. In each case you must add another 1.9 ounces for the empty magazine.

The new economy model Kahr CW9 has a polymer frame and a slide machined from 321 stainless steel. It's smooth and snag-free for a fast draw from deep concealment.

The Kahr CW9 9mm is the picture of a modern pistol, with polymer frame, stainless slide, recoil spring guide, and an a complete absence of safety levers.

The new CW9 pistol features conventional rifling and a seven-round single-column magazine. The locking system will be familiar to any Glock or SIG pistol fancier.

The Kahr blade front sight has a single white dot, paired with a vertical white bar centered under the rear notch. Kokalis is skeptical of dots and bars in combat.

A steel projection on the left side of the Kahr Arms magazine's black plastic follower operates the slide's hold-open feature, which Kokalis found to be positive.

Flagship of the Kahr line is the MK9 Elite 2003, a stainless pistol with black synthetic two-piece, wraparound grip panels and six- and seven-round magazines supplied.

Left side view of the Kahr PM9 illustrates the lack of manual controls. Once loaded, it's ready to go. it's no different than a snubnose revolver, ultimately.

Highly touted by many armed professionals, the very compact Kahr Pm9 weighs only 14.8 ounces. Kokalis likes the 9mm cartridge for use in these small hideout pistols.

Though some have pooh-poohed it, Kokalis favors the subsonic 147-grain JHP, here from Black Hills, for use in compact 9mms. Penetration is the vital factor, he claims.

The Ken Null Super Speed Scabbard is a strong-side holster with a rearward muzzle rake that rides so high that the magazine catch/release button clears leather.

ON THE COVER

Senior Editor Peter Kokalis says Kahr's new CW9 makes an excellent choice for a compact defensive pistol. With it in a GunVault from Cannon safe and SureFire A2 Aviator light, reassurance is close at hand when things go bump in the night. Photo by Kristopher Kuhn.

Kahr pistols in this envelope series employ a telescoping recoil spring system with two springs and guide rods. This is now a common feature of compact semiautomatic handguns and helps to insure reliable operation when the slide recoils for only a very short distance.

The 3.0-inch barrel, manufactured by the famous German barrel maker, Lother Walther, has six-groove, polygonal rifling with a 1:9.84 (250mm) right-hand twist for 9x19mm Parabellum barrels. Polygonal bores provide a better gas seal, more consistent velocities, superior accuracy and ease of maintenance. The barrel lug and feed ramp are cut away on the right side to accommodate a projection inside the frame that houses the trigger bar and trigger return spring. This brings the bore's axis somewhat closer to the trigger mechanism and thus the shooter's grip as well, and by so doing slightly moderated the perceived recoil.

Two single -column magazines are provided with these pistols: a six-round magazine that rests almost flush with the butt of the frame and a seven-round magazine with a grip extension. There are six indicator holes on each side of both types of magazines. With exactly the same design as those for the CW9, both types fall away smartly when the magazine catch/release button is pressed. Kahr magazine bodies are made from 400 series stainless steel (tumbled at the factory to remove burrs). The magazine are conventional in design and easily disassembled principally as a consequence of the two-piece black plastic floorplate, and this should be done each time the pistol is cleaned. None of the Kahr pistols have a magazine disconnect safety and they can be fired with the magazine removed.

The suggested retail price of the MK9 Elite 2003 (catalog #M9098), which has beveled edges, a polished slide and frame with laser engraving and beveled magazine well, complete with two magazines, a trigger lock and black plastic storage box is $783. The price of the PM9 (catalog #PM9094) is $707, complete as above.

The grip-to-frame angle (that angle formed by the front leading edge of the grip portion of the frame with a line perpendicular to the bore's axis) for these pistols is 13°. The M1911 Government Model's is approximately 17°.

The front of the trigger guard on the entire Kahr series is rounded. This is a refreshing change from the current dumb fetish to square off or re-curve the front of the trigger guard to supposedly provide a rest for the index finger of the support hand and stabilize the weapon. This is, of course, utter nonsense as high-speed photography has demonstrated many times over that during the recoil stroke the finger of the support hand invariably flies away from the front of the trigger guard. All four fingers of the support hand should remain firmly wrapped around the firing grip.

Both the front and rear sights are dovetailed to the slide. The blade front sight, .14" thick, has a single white dot. The open, square-notch (which measures about .146" in width) rear sight has a single, white, vertical bar centered under the notch.

In my opinion, when fired under stress, these types of colored dots and bars are never seen. The rule for fighting is a "flash" front sight picture and the consequent reaction is "front sight, press." Both the front and rear sight are a secure press fit. Trijicon three-dot self-luminous tritium night sights are an available option.

A salient feature of the Kahr pistol series is that evolution and product improvement has always been an ongoing process. Specific examples are as follows. More than a decade ago, chamber dimensions of the original K9 pistol were opened up .0015" to improve feeding with a wider range of ammunition types. The angle of the extractor claw was eventually increased to further enhance reliable feeding.

The extractor body was re-designed for self-cleaning as a consequence of relief cuts on the top and bottom and a hole machined into the body. The steel recoil rod was hollowed out to reduce weight. The slide's back cover fit was tightened by use of an integral keyway to reduce movement. Both the trigger and trigger bar spring were re-designed for increased durability. The slide's breech face was changed to a broached type instead of milled for tighter corner radii, which provides a tighter barrel-to-slide lock-up. These changes demonstrate Kahr's total dedication to manufacturing a product line possessing the highest possible quality and reliability.

All testing of the Kahr pistols was conducted with 9x19mm Parabellum Jacketed Hollow Point (JHP) ammunition from Black Hills Ammunition (Dept. SGN, P.O. Box 3090, Rapid City, S. Dak. 57709; phone: 605-348-5150; fax: 605-348-9827; website: www.black-hills.com).

Complaints about the US M9 service pistol in Iraq and Afghanistan center around its ineffective performance on enemy targets. Full metal-jacketed 9x19mm Parabellum ball ammunition invariably over-penetrates to an undesirable extent. However, Article 23 of the annex to the Hague Convention No. IV of 18 October 1907 proscribes the use of bullets without full metal jackets. All of the Coalition nations fielding military units fighting against Islamic terrorists in the Middle East conform to this prohibition and do not empty expanding bullets.

Law enforcement agencies and civilians are not so constrained. When loaded with jacketed hollow-point bullets of the proper design, the 9x19mm Parabellum cartridge can be quite effective. A minimum of about 12 inches of penetration in soft tissue up to a maximum of approximately 18 inches is the desired range. That's exactly the penetration performance range designed into the bullets used in Black Hills 147-grain 9x19mm Parabellum ammunition.

In assessing handgun ammunition, penetration is, without doubt, the most important single parameter. The bullet must penetrate deeply enough to crush, cut and break through the human body's vital structures and organs.

Once we've obtained the required penetration, the bullet that makes the biggest hole will do the most damage. It's important to remember that if we drive a hollow-point projectile at too high a velocity, it will inevitably over-expand and reduce the penetration to an unacceptable depth. It may also fragment to an undesirable extent.

There's a correct velocity for every handgun bullet, and it's never the highest velocity possible. Big game hunters understand this, but the hobbyist who write about gun-fighting in the popular gun press, with few exceptions, still don't seem to have a glimmer. In general, the best rule of thumb is to select the heaviest JHP bullets and drive them at moderate velocities. That means 147-grain projectiles in 9mm Parabellum at subsonic velocities.

I have fired several thousand rounds through kahr Arms pistols over the last decade and I can personally testify to their robust construction and completely satisfactory reliability. The accuracy potential matches the intended function of these weapons: close-range, high stress, rapid-fire desperation shooting when all else has failed.

Method of Operation

These locked-breech, short-recoil-operated pistols are a clever blend of both innovative and well-proven conventional features. The barrel and slide are locked together by a rectangular locking lug above the barrel's chamber that engages the slide's ejection port. This form of locking is found on the SIG-Sauer series, Ruger and Glock pistols as well. The slide stop's axis pin passes through a kidney-shaped cutout in the barrel's underlug.

After ignition, the barrel and slide recoil rearward, locked together for approximately a half-inch. At that point, the camming action of the slide stop's axis pin upon the cutout in the barrel's underlug pulls the rear of the barrel downward out of battery with the slide.

At that time, the extractor withdraws the empty case and as the slide continues rearward the case strikes the ejector (pinned to the frame back, a separate component) and is propelled out the ejection port. The compressed recoil spring, which is quite powerful (and will cause some to have difficulty manually retracting the slide), drives the slide forward to strip another round from the magazine and chamber it upon locking with the barrel.

All of this is fairly mundane, but the firing mechanism is not and requires some explanation. Like the Glock. this so-called "trigger-cocking" semiautomatic pistol has no thumb, grip or magazine safeties and the absence of these controls is somewhat startling at first.

When locked in battery, with a round in the chamber, the Kahr K9 is-ready or not-ready to fire. As the trigger is pulled, the trigger bar is drawn forward, pivoting the spring-loaded cocking cam, the left lobe of which engages the spring-loaded, three-piece firing pin assembly, rearward. At the end of its rotation the cocking cam drops out of engagement with the firing pin, allowing it to fly forward and impinge against the primer.

Simultaneously, the cocking cam's right lobe lifts up the firing pin's spring-loaded passive safety block and the cam pulls the firing pin assembly rearward from half-cock to a fully-cocked position under full spring tension. A ramp on the right side rail disengages the trigger bar from the cocking cam and permits the cam to reset itself, reactivating the firing pin block.

When the slide and barrel move forward into battery, the firing pin is caught and put under half-cock tension by the cocking cam. Trigger pull-weights on SGN's test specimens were 5.0 pounds for the CW9, 5.75 pounds for the PM9 and 6.5 pounds for the MK9, respectively. All three were somewhat mushy as the trigger travel prior to let-off describe an arc of .6".

Field Stripping

Remove the magazine and clear any loaded round from the chamber. Retract the slide rearward, about three-quarters of an inch, until the disassembly notch on the left side of the slide is aligned with the slide stop's axis pin. Gently drive out the slide stop lever, from right to left, with a brass hammer or plastic screwdriver handle. Ease the slide forward under control.

Pull the trigger to release the firing pin. Let the trigger go forward, to permit the passive firing pin safety to pass over the cocking cam, and push the slide group forward and off the frame. Press forward on the recoil spring guide rod and remove the guide rod and recoil spring from the slide. Lift out the barrel. No further disassembly is recommended. After cleaning and lubrication, reassemble in the reverse order.

Slapping Leather

An effective holster is an important, but frequently overlooked factor in the deployment of small concealment-type handguns. Kenneth L. Null (Dept. SGN, K.L. Null Holsters, 161 School Street N.W., Resaca, Ga. 30735; phone: 706-625-5643, fax: 706-625-9392) specializes in concealment rigs, of the highest possible quality, for government operatives and under cover federal and local law enforcement personnel. I use his holsters on an almost daily basis.

Ken uses the most impeccable of materials. He has for many years used vegetable-tanned horsehide excluusively. While more expensive than steerhide, horsehide is much denser and the same strength can be obtained with thinner leather. Although harder to work, horsehide doesn't lose its hand-molded configuration as easily as steerhide. Ken emphatically states that horsehide will maintain its retention qualities by a ratio of six to one over steerhide.

My favorite Null belt holster is his Model SSS Super Speed Scabbard and this is the one I selected for the Kahr PM9 and this is his strong-side holster with a rearward muzzle rake rides so high on the belt that the magazine catch/release button clears leather. Another outstanding feature is the absence of leather at the root of the trigger guard, which permits the shooter to obtain a proper grip on the piece while it's still holstered and at the very start of the presentation without ever needing to reposition the grip during the drawstroke.

Ken Null's work represents the highest-level craftsmanship to which a custom holster maker can aspire. Few ever reach this level. Those armed professionals who move in the shadowy world of clandestine operations would be well advised to examine his wares. I can recommend his product line without reservations of any kind.

KAHR ARMS CW9 9mm

A concealed carry special that's priced right!

COMBAT HANDGUNS, September 2005, p.50-55, 89
By Walt Rauch

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The Kahr Arms CW9 with DeSantis Belt Slide and Apache ankle holster.
The new Kahr Arms CW9 (Concealed Weapon) is, as I see it, the "but" handgun, long needed in the Kahr line-up. The CW9 overcomes the one sticking point I've repeatedly heard when someone was discussing various concealed-carry handguns and had almost, but not quite, settled on buying one of the Kahr pistols. They would comment the guns were a bit pricey, saying something along the line of, "It's (while gesturing to a particular Kahr) just what I want, but…it's more (money) than I can afford." (I've also not heard anyone, in similar circumstance, say Kahr pistols were not worth the asking price.)

Gun Details

Kahr Arm's press release on the CW9 describes the pistol as being "value priced," a marketing term which should be familiar to most consumers. For me, when I hear or read this, I think "cheaper" or "less for the same price" and I tune out.

Fortunately, before reading this, I had occasion to meet and speak with Kahr Arms Vice President, Frank Harris, who let me examine a preproduction sample of the CW9 last year at a trade show. He disabused me of any concerns as to a decrease in quality. He explained that the purpose of the CW9 was to allow Kahr Arms to expand its market share, and the company recognized that a lower retail price, while maintaining good quality, would go a long way toward accomplishing this. Frank went on to say that the CW9 is the result of a thoughtful re-examination of the gun's manufacturing process, with an eye to reducing cost via less machine time to make the gun but, he emphasized, without a reduction in quality. Indeed, the CW9 has a suggested retail price of $533, while the PM9 list at $676...a significant 21-percent price reduction.

The author found the CW9 pleasant to shoot.

The CW9's polymer sights have white-dot front and white-bar rear inserts.

The CW9 (right) uses flat cuts to eliminate the sharp edges, while the P9 (left) has its edges rounded.

Compare Kahr P9 (above) to CW9.

Five shots fired from 17 yards.

Bob George, left, and Bill Cassidy, right, each fired half of this 7-yard group with the Kahr Arms CW9.

Kahr feed ramp is offset to left.

The Kahr magazine has a metal insert in polymer follower to decrease wear.

The external extractor serves as a loaded-chamber indicator.

The Kahr slide travels on metal inserts, the front two within the dust cover.

As seen from the under front of the slide, note how the front sight of the CW9 is staked on with two pins.

Upon receiving a regular production T&E sample, I then went about comparing the CW9 with a P9, from which the CW9 derived, while trying to recall the changes Frank Harris had pointed out.

Before getting into these, for review I went back and read what I had written in 1995 about the first Kahr Arms, the K9, on which the entire Kahr line is based, the CW9 included. What I wrote then follows, in abbreviated form.

"The concept for the Kahr pistols comes from Justin Moon, President of Kahr Arms, who, as a longtime admirer of both the GLOCK and SIG pistol designs, went about creating what he saw to be the smallest 9mm that could handle +P 9mm loads. In this he was obviously successful and holds, jointly with Kahr Arms, patents on the cocking cam, the striker and the manner in which the trigger is attached to the trigger bar."

I liked the K9 then and wrote that it was (and is) a comfortable-to-carry, dependable and accurate concealment arm, backed by a company committed to quality. At that time, Kahr Arms sent a letter along with the instruction booklet spelling out the various 9mm loads it had found to be satisfactory, including: Winchester USA brand 115-grain FMJ and 115-grain Silvertip; Remington UMC 115-grain FMJ and 115-grain JHP; Federal American Eagle 115-grain FMJ; Federal Classic 9BP Hydra-Shok 115-grain JHP; 124-grain JHP and 147-grain JHP; and PMC 115-grain FMJ and JHP.

At that time, Kahr Arms also indicated the K9 had been tested with Cor-Bon +P 115-grain loads, but it had not been run through all +P and +P + 9mm offerings. The letter then also admonished the reader not to consider the K9 reliable until 200 rounds had been fired.

The current instruction booklet does not have such a list, but does continue the strong suggestion to shoot a few hundred rounds before considering the gun to be totally reliable. I would guess that over the years, the pistols, both in 9mm and .40 S&W, have had enough exposure to alleviate this concern.

Continuing to review the design, the Kahr pistols do combine GLOCK and SIG styles, if not designs. The stainless slide is very much GLOCK as it's rectangular; and the grip frame shaping, in the PM series polymer, follows that of the SIG P-239. The polymer frames have impressed checkering front and rear, with fine stippling on the sides. The Kahr is double-action-only, striker fired and has a trigger pull weight which can range from seven to nine pounds.

There is no second-strike capability for a misfired round. To re-strike the primer, the slide must be retracted about one-half inch to reset the striker. (I think the desirability of being about to re-strike the misfired round is much overrated, given the quality of modern ammunition. If you do have a bad round, the overwhelming odds are it won't go off even if you hit it with a sledgehammer!) The feed ramp area of the barrel is off-set to the left of center such that the trigger drawbar is flush with the receiver body, decreasing the width of the gun.

The CW9 follows the original design, it does not have any external manual safeties. Indeed, the only external controls are the slide stop and the magazine release catch, both on the left side of the gun in their normal location.
The same magazine used in the standard-size Kahr continues in the CW9, but only one, not the usual two, is included. It has a stainless steel tube, holds seven rounds, has a removable plastic base plate as well as six cartridge witness holes on either side of the magazine body. The magazine follower, while polymer, has a round metal plug insert in its left forward face where the follower and the metal slide stop interact. This greatly enhances long-term durability of the follower.

The CW9's sights are different. They are polymer and the front sight is now pinned into the slide (but with two pins to ensure staying put) rather than being inset into a dovetail. The rear sight continues to fit into a dovetail cut whose width has been reduced front to rear. The sights still have the circular white-dot front and white-vertical-bar centered rear.

The CW9 lacks the rounding of edges found in other Kahrs. Flat and angled machine cuts have been substituted, which achieve the same no-snag surfaces. For example, the muzzle is a series of inward sloping cuts to allow easy re-holstering and rather than rounding the slide, the top edge is now an angle-flat cut. Also, the curved "artistic" line on both sides of the slide has been dropped. The next change is the barrel, which is conventionally rifled compared to the polygonal rifling used in what I now see as the "Traditional" or "Classic" line.

A lower-profile slide stop, first used on the subcompact Kahr, is on the CW9 and is made by Metal Injection Molding (MIM). To doubly ensure the durability of the MIM part, internally the opening beneath the barrel that controls its locking and unlocking is now wider, which then spreads the recoil force over a larger area of the slide stop's crosspin, decreasing stress on the metal. A very clever engineering change!

The recoil spring and guide are not captive, but remove and re-install in the normal manner. Kahr Arms emphatically states that the recoil spring must be replaced after 3,000 rounds. I suggest more frequent change if +P or +P+9mm ammunition is fired.

Range Time

After picking up the CW9, Joe Venezia and I did the range work indoors at the Lower Providence Rod and Gun Club in Oaks, Pennsylvania, due to bad weather. Jointly, we fired about 50 rounds of Remington 124-grain JRN to follow the break-in direction, albeit shortened, and to re-acquaint ourselves with the Kahr DAO trigger. With a Shoot-N-C "Dirty Bird" humanoid target set up at 17 yards, we both shot for group and then did some draw-and -shoot drills using a very nice DeSantis Belt Slide holster previously in earlier Kahr T&Es (Kahr Arms features holsters from DeSantis, Mitch Rosen Leatherworks, Galco and Renegade).

Neither Joe nor I had a good day this time out. We would manage to get three or four good hits, but one would always slip out. It was no fault of the gun though, since we both called the "out" shot before checking the target. But even with this, the groups remained under three inches.

The CW9 liked Remington Golden Saber 115- and 124-grain JHP, Cor-Bon Performance Match 140- and 147-grain JRN and the Cor-Bon 100-grain DPX defense load. The CW9 also shot well with Hornady 115- and 124-grain JHP/XTP and Winchester "white box" 124-grain JRN, 124-grain Partition Gold JHP and 147-grain SXT Personal Protection, as well as Federal 105-grain Expanding Full Metal Jacket Personal Defense ammunition.

I also shot up some old stock: Samson 124-grain JHP and PMC 124-grain JRN. The CW9 did not like any of the brands of the non-toxic or frangible ammunition, with groups opening up to five inches. This is curious, as I have had excellent results with this ammunition in other 9s. Perhaps more rounds through it will improve the performance.

Two other club members stopped by and also shot the CW9 and the four of us had a total of two malfunctions; in both instances a failure to chamber the first round, one from slide lock and other with the slide forward. Both times, the loading cycle was redone and the cartridge successfully chambered. Since these occurred well after shooting over 100 rounds, it might just have been the gun was getting dirty.

This was borne out when I was cleaning the gun and noted it was particularly dirty, perhaps due to burning up the old ammo.

Now, I don't have any inside information about the company's philosophy, but during my continued review and examination of Kahr pistols I've always had the thought that they were over-engineered.

Don't misconstrue this; I mean it as high praise with the Kahr effort ranking with such firearms as the Heckler & Koch Model P7 handgun and their world-famous MP-5 submachine gun, or the SIGARMS Model 210, which looks and runs similar to a Rolex watch (with a price to match).

As my friend John Lysak observed, what Kahr Arms has done here is what some old-timers might remember: Kahr has simply made a more-affordable version, somewhat akin to what S&W did with its large-frame .357 Magnum revolver. S&W simply cut out the "frills" and came up with Highway Patrolman that lacked the high blue finish and some checkering and grooving on the top strap and barrel - same gun, but at a lower cost.