Kahr Arms History

[SIGWolf]

Poking around on the Internet, the information I've found indicates the company, Kahr Arms, not the parent company, was founded in 1995 and that the K9 previewed at the 1994 Shot Show. Now this is mostly "Wiki" information, so I take it with a grain of salt. However, the Kahr Arms site doesn't list a date for the start of the Kahr Arms division. So, what are the dates? I don't see anything here off hand, on the history of the company.

I'm curious because the gun I just bought was manufactured in November of 1995 which would make it very early indeed and I'm curious just how early based on the founding of the Kahr Arms division. It's just a matter of curiosity.

[gb6491]

Poking around on the Internet, the information I've found indicates the company, Kahr Arms, not the parent company, was founded in 1995 and that the K9 previewed at the 1994 Shot Show. Now this is mostly "Wiki" information, so I take it with a grain of salt. However, the Kahr Arms site doesn't list a date for the start of the Kahr Arms division. So, what are the dates? I don't see anything here off hand, on the history of the company.

I'm curious because the gun I just bought was manufactured in November of 1995 which would make it very early indeed and I'm curious just how early based on the founding of the Kahr Arms division. It's just a matter of curiosity.

http://www.saeilo.com/comp_history_f.html (http://www.saeilo.com/comp_history_f.html)







1994
• Kahr Arms division formed. The prototype of Kahr's first product, the K9, introduced at the SHOT Show.







1995
• The production of the K9 announced at the SHOT Show, with market shipments beginning in March.




http://www.kahr.com/kahr-news2013.asp (http://www.kahr.com/kahr-news2013.asp)
"Kahr® Requests Company Information Change from Wikipedia

July 23, 2013
Pearl River, NY – Kahr Firearms Group has changed their Wikipedia information to correct misinformation used to describe the corporation.
Currently, Wikipedia lists inaccurate information with regard to the history and ownership of Kahr Firearms Group. The corporation would like to go on record that the Kahr Firearms Group was founded in 1994 by Justin Moon. Mr. Moon is the sole owner of the firearms group which includes Kahr Arms, Magnum Research and Auto-Ordnance. Kahr Firearms Group is a $75-$100 million corporation which employs 250 employees between its Pearl River, NY corporation office, Worcester, MA and Pillager, MN manufacturing plants along with several captive CNC machine shops also owned by the corporation."

[SIGWolf]

Thank you! I didn't think to look up the Saeilo name.

[muggsy]

Good info, Greg. Thanks.

[Scarywoody]

I remember back when Justin Moon bought Auto Ordinance, they had an inventory reduction sale and I could have purchased a Thompson for around $400. I didn't have that much to spend at the time but it would have been sweet.

[SIGWolf]

It was news to me to find out Kahr owns Auto Ordnance and Magnum Research. I missed that transition.

[zaitcev]

One odd piece of history I came across is a North American Arms .380 auto with "Kahr Arms" etched on the frame. Unlike Kahr pistols that came later, this gun is hammer-fired. However, it bears a strange family resemblance to K9, although it is much smaller, certainly.

[ripley16]

Kahr did machining for North American Arms up to the point NAA purchased their own CNN machines.

[JohnR]

One thing they probably corrected in the Wikipedia entry was the allegation that the Unification church was part owner. I never believed that was true, glad to see it corrected.

[hardluk1]

Justin Moon was the chairman of the Tongil Group but had a bit of a falling out a few years back with the Tongil Group that the church is with in and he and one other brother no longer have a roll in family company . Now he running only his own companies and fundations .