root
02-09-2014, 05:25 PM
Last weekend I picked up a brand new Kahr CM9 for $430 at my LGS. I went their looking for an XDS-9, which they had, but the price was too much above retail and I didn't feel like haggling. I was almost sold on the S&W shield, as I own another S&W semi-auto in 45ACP that I love dearly, but I moved down the cabinet and noticed the Kahrs...
Long story short, I brought the CM9 home with me.
First impressions? This thing is TIGHT. Originally I had some concerns with it being so tight, as the slide would sometimes not want to return where it should. This was later 'corrected' by just manually racking the slide a bunch. In fact, since I was unsure when I could get to the range I did everything I could to 'break it in' at home. Did it work? I don't know. But after 500+ racks of the slide over the course of a week it certainly seemed much looser and easier to manage.
While perhaps not the 'smartest' thing to do, due to risk of an accidental discharge or smashing your rounds over and over again (bullet setback), I chambers about 10 magazines worth of ammo through it without issue. They all fed properly and chambered properly. And with the gun always pointing in a safe direction and finger as far as hell away from the trigger as possible, I would manually eject and chamber the next round with the slide. No issues there.
Well today prompted a sort of spur of the moment opportunity to go up to a buddy's place in the country to shoot. I brought 250+ rounds with me with the intention of putting about 200 through it. Instead, I only put 109 (I believe, may need to recount) rounds through it with zero issue. Fed reliably, different brands, no issue. Fired my Hornady hollow points with no issues.
The sights and trigger take getting used to but after a while I could plink some cans off an old log. I'm nowhere near as good of a shot as with my fullsized S&W 45, but comparing the two isn't an apples and apples comparison. I'm sure with some more practice I'll get the hang of it, and be able to " John Wayne the s#!* " out of those cans (as my buddy worded it) like I could with my other carry pistol.
Recoil was manageable, but it can be a snappy little bastard if you let it. It was frigid so I had no hand sweat, though the grips as-is were fine. I may look into some Talon grips now that I am confident I'll keep the Kahr... I can imagine those being beneficial in the summer.
All in all, I am VERY pleased with how things performed so far. Only 'complaint' I have is minor, and that is the quality of the polymer body. Seems to be a rough edge here or there... cleaning it (even brand new, unfired) left some edges wanting to snag your cotton patch swabs. We'll see how that goes every 500 - 1,000 rounds. It feels solid, and this is my first polymer pistol so I can't compare it to Glocks or S&Ws or Springfield Armory or anything... just something I noticed when cleaning. I'm used to all metal frames/bodies and slides so I'm used to things being smooth. The note about the roughness may very-well just be a characteristic of ALL polymer guns. I don't know. <shrugs>
I'll still probably shoot it more beyond the '200 round break in period' just to be sure, but I'm feeling confident that this will be a great gun to carry and one that won't give me trouble and I can depend on. I'll be sure to update at 500 rounds, 1,000 rounds and so on.
http://i.imgur.com/FB9UEM6.jpg?2
If it can't handle a little snow, then it's no good.
http://i.imgur.com/1IMFbiE.jpg
The makeshift setup. (Buddy pictured and my Smith. I didn't get any of me with the Kahr)
The good new is we have permission to shoot there whenever. It's my buddy's family place, and when speaking to his father he mentioned we could come out anytime and he was happy to have people shooting there... said, "It kept the neighbors on guard and off the property." Haha.
Don't worry, photo is hard to tell but we were shooting into a valley with no houses anywhere near, out in the country.
http://i.imgur.com/ROxeXpf.jpg?1
I've also got a Galco pocket holster for it which is a solid choice, I feel. It's a pocket holster... it does what it's intended to do.
http://i.imgur.com/K6ovb0p.jpg?1
And as per the suggestion of some members here, I also got a N82 Tactical holster that I think I'll learn to love too. That thing is COMFORTABLE, but you need to remember that before this I carried a S&W 4566 IWB with a Galco Holster that has two belt clips... so once again, the comfort may be due to carrying a gun that is half the size and weight of my old one or due to the one clip design versus two clip I was used to... Either way, damn comfortable and a great American made product to accommodate your other great American made product, your Kahr. :amflag:
I'll report back after 500 rounds and so on, even if it's just an image of a thumbsup with a round count.
For more thorough reviews, just check the web. This is just a first impression / first look / feeler type thread than anything.
Long story short, I brought the CM9 home with me.
First impressions? This thing is TIGHT. Originally I had some concerns with it being so tight, as the slide would sometimes not want to return where it should. This was later 'corrected' by just manually racking the slide a bunch. In fact, since I was unsure when I could get to the range I did everything I could to 'break it in' at home. Did it work? I don't know. But after 500+ racks of the slide over the course of a week it certainly seemed much looser and easier to manage.
While perhaps not the 'smartest' thing to do, due to risk of an accidental discharge or smashing your rounds over and over again (bullet setback), I chambers about 10 magazines worth of ammo through it without issue. They all fed properly and chambered properly. And with the gun always pointing in a safe direction and finger as far as hell away from the trigger as possible, I would manually eject and chamber the next round with the slide. No issues there.
Well today prompted a sort of spur of the moment opportunity to go up to a buddy's place in the country to shoot. I brought 250+ rounds with me with the intention of putting about 200 through it. Instead, I only put 109 (I believe, may need to recount) rounds through it with zero issue. Fed reliably, different brands, no issue. Fired my Hornady hollow points with no issues.
The sights and trigger take getting used to but after a while I could plink some cans off an old log. I'm nowhere near as good of a shot as with my fullsized S&W 45, but comparing the two isn't an apples and apples comparison. I'm sure with some more practice I'll get the hang of it, and be able to " John Wayne the s#!* " out of those cans (as my buddy worded it) like I could with my other carry pistol.
Recoil was manageable, but it can be a snappy little bastard if you let it. It was frigid so I had no hand sweat, though the grips as-is were fine. I may look into some Talon grips now that I am confident I'll keep the Kahr... I can imagine those being beneficial in the summer.
All in all, I am VERY pleased with how things performed so far. Only 'complaint' I have is minor, and that is the quality of the polymer body. Seems to be a rough edge here or there... cleaning it (even brand new, unfired) left some edges wanting to snag your cotton patch swabs. We'll see how that goes every 500 - 1,000 rounds. It feels solid, and this is my first polymer pistol so I can't compare it to Glocks or S&Ws or Springfield Armory or anything... just something I noticed when cleaning. I'm used to all metal frames/bodies and slides so I'm used to things being smooth. The note about the roughness may very-well just be a characteristic of ALL polymer guns. I don't know. <shrugs>
I'll still probably shoot it more beyond the '200 round break in period' just to be sure, but I'm feeling confident that this will be a great gun to carry and one that won't give me trouble and I can depend on. I'll be sure to update at 500 rounds, 1,000 rounds and so on.
http://i.imgur.com/FB9UEM6.jpg?2
If it can't handle a little snow, then it's no good.
http://i.imgur.com/1IMFbiE.jpg
The makeshift setup. (Buddy pictured and my Smith. I didn't get any of me with the Kahr)
The good new is we have permission to shoot there whenever. It's my buddy's family place, and when speaking to his father he mentioned we could come out anytime and he was happy to have people shooting there... said, "It kept the neighbors on guard and off the property." Haha.
Don't worry, photo is hard to tell but we were shooting into a valley with no houses anywhere near, out in the country.
http://i.imgur.com/ROxeXpf.jpg?1
I've also got a Galco pocket holster for it which is a solid choice, I feel. It's a pocket holster... it does what it's intended to do.
http://i.imgur.com/K6ovb0p.jpg?1
And as per the suggestion of some members here, I also got a N82 Tactical holster that I think I'll learn to love too. That thing is COMFORTABLE, but you need to remember that before this I carried a S&W 4566 IWB with a Galco Holster that has two belt clips... so once again, the comfort may be due to carrying a gun that is half the size and weight of my old one or due to the one clip design versus two clip I was used to... Either way, damn comfortable and a great American made product to accommodate your other great American made product, your Kahr. :amflag:
I'll report back after 500 rounds and so on, even if it's just an image of a thumbsup with a round count.
For more thorough reviews, just check the web. This is just a first impression / first look / feeler type thread than anything.