Crimson Trace Issues with K9

[OldBoldPilot]

I recently purchased a new K9 Elite 03, and love the pistol. While they're not for everyone, I also love Crimson Trace lasers, and have them on most of my pistols. When you're 73 years old and operating a firearm with an extremely short sight radius, you appreciate all the help you can get. I noticed that Amazon has Crimson Trace grip-style lasers specifically for the K9 on sale via Optics Planet for $129, and bought one. However, I had to return it.

For one thing, the grip screw holes are extremely difficult to line up. You don't want to force anything, of course, as you don't want to strip the threads. Eventually I got the screws in, but not without a great deal of effort. On my other pistols with grip-type lasers, this was never a problem.

Inside the grips themselves, the batteries don't snap into place like they're supposed to. They just kind of lay there, so when you go to wrap the grips around like you're supposed to, they want to fall out. There are battery covers (two batteries) that are supposed to prevent that from happening, but they don't snap in properly, either.

Finally and most significantly, once the grips are installed and the grip screws tightened down, it becomes nearly impossible to insert or eject a magazine. It seems like the upper grip screws, when tightened, are the culprits. In any case, there was no question that the laser grips were unusable and I returned them.

On another note, this particular pistol did not come with night sights. I purchased the correct Meprolights (Trijicon doesn't make my preferred HD's for the K9), but had a lot of trouble fining a gunsmith in my area who a) was reliable, and b) who would so much as venture an estimated return date. So I checked with Kahr, who said "Sure, send in the sights and the slide. We have a one-to-two week turnaround and charge $40." So that's what I did. As I was sending only the slide there were no "Fedex overnight" issues, and now I can be reasonably certain the job will be done right. I'd sure hate for that pretty polished slide to get scratched!

[jtsmall]

Thanks for the heads up. I've elected not to go with lasers but at 70 with bifocals I've experienced increasing difficulty keeping focus on the front sight. Perhaps a Crimson Trace is worth a try.

Sent from my SM-N930V using Tapatalk

[finpro]

I used a CT LaserGrip LG-460 on my K9 Elite 03 for 6 years. I never had the problems OldBoldPilot experienced or any problems whatsoever. My guess is he did not install the plastic battery covers. I checked my unit and do not see how batteries would stay in place without them. A loose battery might explain the screw issue. I have several CT units, but have dealt with the Crimson Trace company only once, when my P9 unit got wet due to my carelessness. CT was very helpful. I sent them my broken unit and they sent me a brand new one with no hassle. In my small sample, they had excellent customer service. CT announced it was being acquired by Smith & Wesson recently. I hope their good customer service continues.

That said, I recently retired my K9 CT and also a CT for my SIG 239 in favor of the original K9 rubber grips and rubber Hogue grips for the 239. The CT units made the guns' grips wider and felt less secure in my small to medium sized hands. They are more slippery than I like and I prefer the feel of the rubber grips. Though recoil is not a problem with a K9, there may also be a slight recoil reduction due to the rubber backstrap. The CTs have hard plastic backstraps. I think thinner grips make point shooting easier. They feel better to me and are somewhat more concealable. I want to try this for a time. Obviously, this is an individual preference issue and those with larger hands might even prefer the somewhat larger CT grips.

Red lasers are less visible than the newer green lasers, day and night, but especially during the day. If I had green lasers on these guns, I might have continued to use them, as I think they make a worthwhile difference that justifies the extra cost. Unfortunately, to my knowledge, no one currently makes green lasers for current Kahr models. If Gen 2 railed Kahrs become available, CT Rail Master green lasers should fit them. I have one and recommend it. Different holsters are needed to accommodate the mounted laser, but the grip is not changed and it can be moved from gun to gun with standard rails.

I am a fan of lasers. For night use, they can be better than night sights. Red lasers are fine at night, though green units are better. (Obviously, the owner must monitor the battery condition, especially of the faster power-draining greens, which is easy.) Laser use is also a good practice method when real shooting is not possible and this is a big benefit.

[ripley16]

I too have used the CT LG 460 grips for years with none of the problems, aside from loose battery issues that only cost a few seconds to fix. I recall the grip costing much more than $129.

[Bobshouse]

Check Viridian at http://www.viridiangreenlaser.com/ I purchased one for my cm45, works great, but burns through batteries quick. Super bright, easy to see in bright sunlight.

[Romadoc]

I also had problems with the Crimson Trace mounted on my K9. The first time it was that it would not shut off. It was returned to CR for repair. Recently, it would not work with a normal grip and one had to feel for the button to get it to work. Not good for a defense weapon used by older folk with eye problems. I've very recently had Big Dot sights installed and hope to try them out soon. I'm really only concerned with a 10 yard distance as I would not envision shooting at a greater distance except for a truly dire condition. Incidentally, I'm older than the young folks who initially started this thread.

[finpro]

Bobshouse, thanks for your post. I was not familiar with Viridian lasers, so I checked buyer ratings on Amazon. I was surprised to learn it turns on with an awkward left side button that requires something other than finger activation and is then inserted into a special holster to turn it off. It turns on again when drawn from the holster and has continuing battery drain while sitting ready in the holster. (Would it help to turn it off when simply stored in the holster to conserve battery life and then turn it on only when about to carry it?) Being able to turn lasers on and off while out of the holster seems much better. This odd on-off system and apparent high battery consumption are negatives, but small pistols usually have various negatives. Beyond these issues, most Amazon raters seem impressed by the build quality and performance. If it had normal controls and battery life, I would definitely buy one. I would not buy these for pistols for which there were quality green lasers with normal controls, but as these seem to be the only green lasers for Kahrs, I may buy one. Thanks again for your input.

[OldBoldPilot]

Update to my initial post:

I had twice ordered the LG-460 grips from Amazon. They were sold by and shipped from Optics Planet, and were on sale for $129. As I wrote, both sets were problematic in one way or the other, and I returned them both. The $129 offer no longer appears on Amazon.

Not one for easily giving up, I decided to order the sights directly from Crimson Trace to see whether there was a difference between them and the ones I received from Optics Planet. Indeed there was. On both Optics Planet sets, one or both batteries would not snap into their holder. And on both sets, the battery covers were loose in the box.

With the Crimson Trace originals, the battery covers were snapped into place when I opened the box. Both batteries snapped smartly into their holders, and the battery covers snapped on easily as well. In addition, there was no problem lining up the screw holes, whereas with the Optics Planet sets it was quite a struggle to line the holes up. I'm very pleased with the grip sights I received from Crimson Trace, which installed in minutes and operate exactly as they should.

I can only conclude that both sets of sights I received from Optics Planet were known to be defective, which is why they were selling them for $129 -- once again proving the old adage, you get what you pay for. Though I have had decent service from them in the past, I will think long and hard before I order anything from Optics Planet again.