Mike Brownhouse
01-18-2013, 03:08 PM
Just picked up a new CM40, I'm very happy with it so far. I've wanted a Kahr for a long time, the first .40 S&W I fired was a K40. I had been thinking about an MK40, but couldn't find one. The CM40 was handy and the price was right, so I went with it. Here are some of my experiences with it up to this point. The first thing I did was take it apart and clean it. It needed it. It was lubed heavily, and it was also dirty inside. Lots of polymer shavings, along with some small metal shavings, including one that was an inch long from along the pickup rail. I think a better job could have been done at the factory to clean up polymer flash at the machining points, but I'm extra-picky about stuff like this.
It was extremely tight to begin with, as expected. The slide stop was difficult to operate or remove, and the mag release required an extra long push to release, which could only be accomplished by rotating the gun 90 degrees to the left and using the tip of the thumb. The slide took a great deal of effort to operate, much more than other larger .40s that I have fired. Some of this was due to the fact that it was new, and some due to the fact that this is a tiny .40. I operated the slide about 200 times prior to firing, to loosen it up a bit.
On my first trip to the range with it, I put about 75 rounds through it. It is definitely a snappy gun, but not uncontrollable or the least bit uncomfortable. Having fired a Glock 23 extensively, I'd say that the CM40 is a bit harder to control in follow-up shots, but more comfortable to fire. My first attempt at rapid fire destroyed the target holder on the second shot, but practice should improve this. Firing more deliberately, I was actually very surprised by it's accuracy. At 21' I was able to manage groups well under 2", and at 50', excepting for the occasional flier, I was able to get some sub-4" groups. I had no failures of any kind, except for a broken mag follower after about 20 rounds. Kahr is sending replacements, they indicated that this would improve after break-in, but others here have talked about modifying the feed ramp. I'll get through break-in, read a little more, and then decide what to do. Other than this, the range trip was uneventful.
Cleaned it up after shooting, nothing unusual for a new gun. It has begun to loosen up a bit now. The slide is a little easier to operate, the slide stop can be released manually with an empty magazine installed, the mag release can now be operated with the side of the thumb as it's supposed to be, and the empty magazine drops free without any hang-up.
It took me a while to finally get a Kahr, but it was worth the wait. I'm very happy with the CM40.
It was extremely tight to begin with, as expected. The slide stop was difficult to operate or remove, and the mag release required an extra long push to release, which could only be accomplished by rotating the gun 90 degrees to the left and using the tip of the thumb. The slide took a great deal of effort to operate, much more than other larger .40s that I have fired. Some of this was due to the fact that it was new, and some due to the fact that this is a tiny .40. I operated the slide about 200 times prior to firing, to loosen it up a bit.
On my first trip to the range with it, I put about 75 rounds through it. It is definitely a snappy gun, but not uncontrollable or the least bit uncomfortable. Having fired a Glock 23 extensively, I'd say that the CM40 is a bit harder to control in follow-up shots, but more comfortable to fire. My first attempt at rapid fire destroyed the target holder on the second shot, but practice should improve this. Firing more deliberately, I was actually very surprised by it's accuracy. At 21' I was able to manage groups well under 2", and at 50', excepting for the occasional flier, I was able to get some sub-4" groups. I had no failures of any kind, except for a broken mag follower after about 20 rounds. Kahr is sending replacements, they indicated that this would improve after break-in, but others here have talked about modifying the feed ramp. I'll get through break-in, read a little more, and then decide what to do. Other than this, the range trip was uneventful.
Cleaned it up after shooting, nothing unusual for a new gun. It has begun to loosen up a bit now. The slide is a little easier to operate, the slide stop can be released manually with an empty magazine installed, the mag release can now be operated with the side of the thumb as it's supposed to be, and the empty magazine drops free without any hang-up.
It took me a while to finally get a Kahr, but it was worth the wait. I'm very happy with the CM40.