Kahr CW9 vs PM9?

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I had pretty much settled on a PM9 (or 40) for concealed carry but have not got my hands on one yet. Yesterday saw a new CW9 for sale $450 and I might be able to get it for a little less. I know the PM is a little smaller in the grip but the CW is here in front of me. I live in a part of the country where gun shops and gun shows are scarce and far between.
any advice?
thanks
 
Either would serve your purpose but the PM9 is easier to pocket carry.
With the 9mm ammo available today I see no need for the (or 40).

Buds or gunsamerica have lists of FFL dealers throughout the country that will do transfers for cheap, check it out for FFLs in your area.
So buying online can be done
 
Knowing what I know now, I would buy CW9. I have medium hand and the PM9 grip is just too short to have a good grip. To add a Pearce grip extension will make the very close to the grip length of CW9 anyway. Do not worry on MIM slide lock, if you don't like it, you can replace it with a P9 parts.

Save the money on ammo or on a good IWB holster.
 
buy the PM9 if you can get it for less than $450

I bought my second PM40 yesterday (one for each pocket :D).

Best compact gun trigger I've ever seen.
Cycled like a Deere
Recoil was manageable
.40 S&W is a show stopper when the chips are down
 
I have fairly large hands and I haven't had a chance to hold a PM9. I don't want to buy one online and have it sent to me without first handling one. I liked the size and feel (first impression) of the CW9 I found yesterday. There is also a CW40 in the case next to it.
 
I've been kicking around getting a Kahr lately myself, but being a larger fellow, I have issues with manageability of such a small sized line of weapons. It appears the CW9 or 40 would be acceptable as I hate pinky dangle, which I think would happen with the PM9 and one reason I don't like the mini-glocks.
So now I have to decide 9mm or .40 S&W, which I lean towards .40 as I prefer that caliber and have lots of stashed ammo for it. I am wondering though, if anyone is having or had durability issues with the higher pressured cartridge in a small frame like the CW40? I don't want to get a few thousands rounds into it and come up with a cracked frame or the like. Not to steal the OPs thread, but it is sort of relevant to his question, too.
 
Get a CW9 no need for the 40 . Will fit hand better . I loved mine for the hour or so I owned till other half claim it. She really likes it
 
Those with larger hands will most likely still have a bit of "pinky dangle" on the CW grip but it will definitely be better than the PM grip. Another consideration is the narrowness of the grip. Both the CW and PM grips are narrow, single stack grips. I own both a PM9 and a CW40 but it's taken me a while to find a good two-handed grip that keeps me from pulling my shots to the left as I squeeze the double action trigger.

Don't get me wrong, I like both guns now that I've gotten used to them and my CW40 is my primary carry gun but they definitely don't have a particularly meaty grip. IMO, you either need to shoot one (or both) before you buy them or be committed to practicing until you find a good grip.

Texas XD, I've had no durability issues with my CW. With that said, I have more like a few hundred rounds through it (maybe 1000), not a few thousand.

Edit: I don't believe there is much of a difference in the grips between the CW9 and CW40. The slide is .04" thinner on the 9mm. My guess is the grip difference is similar.
 
When I was new to handgunning I rented and tried a number of guns; including the PM9 and CW9. I found the recoil of the PM9 to sharp (the PM40 would be worse) and the gun too hard to control. I also didn't feel comfortable with no place for my pinkie on the PM9.

Eventually I found that of all the guns I tried the CW9 was the smallest and lightest gun I felt I could shoot and control comfortably, so that's what I bought, and I've been very happy with it.

Maybe now that I've been shooting handguns for a couple of years and have sent thousands of rounds downrange I'd find the PM9 comfortable and controllable. Or maybe not. In any case, the CW9 is quite satisfactory and I have no real desire to revisit the question.
 
I recently got to shoot the CW9.

Now, I haven't even taken a look at the other guns, but the CW9 is one very, very good gun. IT shoots smooth, has a great trigger and is QUITE concealable.

I'd get the CW9 now. You're by no means buying a bad gun for carrying.
 
I like the CW9, I got mine for a good price and found 2 aftermarket magazines on fleabay at a good price.

the only problems I have with mine are:

1. large hands, if you shoot right handed, your thumb may brush against the magazine release.. (training issue)
2. if you have a spouse.. they may want it..:banghead:

after the initial break in period, my CW9 has taken any 9mm that I've fed it and had no issues.. most of the FTF after break in have been due to limp wristing the weapon..
 
There is a little more difference between the CW9 and the PM9 than size.
The PM9 has a dovetailed metal front sight vs a plastic fixed front sight on the CW9.

The PM9 has a machined slide stop vs a MIM slide stop on the CW9.

The PM9 comes with two magazines vs one with the CW9.

The PM9 has a polygonal barrel vs conventional rifling on the CW9.

There may be more differences that I'm not aware of.
 
They are both excellent firearms for CC. What you have to decide is whether you want to sacrifice some concealablilty and get a full grip and extra cartridge in the mag (CW9) or go the opposite route and get the pm9 and have greater concealability.

I decided on the pm9. While the cw9 is easier to shoot (and has a great price), I can pocket carry the pm9 which is a big plus for me. I'll probably pick up the cw9 eventually, but if I can only have one I want the pm9 for concealabily.

BTW, the pm9 is one of the most comfortable guns to shoot with an abbreviated grip. Comparatively my glock 26 feels like its going to slip from my hands sometimes because it's so fat, but the pm9 is slender so you can get a really secure grip on it and having no space for your pinky is not a big deal. I can shoot it almost as well as my full sized guns. This gun absolutely disappears IWB under a t shirt.
 
A friend has a PM9 I would like to get away from him. Very portable, quite shootable.
My old E9 is pretty compact but rather heavy and will sometimes bump a chair or car seat.
 
Both are great guns, but unless you are planning to pocket carry I think you would be better off with the CW9. I have one and I cannot say enough about it. Yes it is a little bigger than the PM9, but I think of that as an advantage and you can still make it absolutely disappear IWB. With the money you save you can buy a nice holster and some practice ammo. I have around 1200 rounds through mine without any problems at all.

Bottom line is you can't go wrong with either gun. The CW9 is about $200 cheaper, had plus 1 capacity, and is still very, very concealable. The PM9 can be pocketed, doesn't have the MIM slide stop, and a few other features you will probably never miss.

If you are going to pocket carry get the PM.
If you are going IWB get the CW.

Here are some reviews from Buds on the CW.
http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/product_info.php/cPath/21_51/products_id/18442

If the MIM slide stop bothers you, you can buy a non MIM slide stop for the P9 for $25.


Best of luck either way.

Shawn

P.S. The pic attached is 14 rounds at 10 yards.
 

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Like Mudinyeri, I have a hard time finding the room for a 2 handed grip on both the CW and PM9.
It's kind of annoying, for me, when my trigger finger touches my left hand fingers during the long squeeze.

One good thing, for me, is the single stack Kahr (9mm) is much easier to shoot one handed than a double stack gun.
I cannot coment on the 40 Kahrs though.
Most self defense gun use seems to be "in bad breath range" and may be one handed from the hip, without a 2 handed straight arm grip or even the use of sights.
This is were the Kahr out performs the double stacks (for me).
I use the CW9 for tirgger practice and IWB carry, but when pocket carry is the only option it's the PM9.
So...I guess you will need to buy both.:D
 
If it is to be primarily a pocket gun or BUG, the PM9 is the better choice. For belt carry, I would choose the CW9, since with this type of carry the smaller size of the PM is no real advantage.
 
Comparing the PM9 to the CW9 are like comparing apples to grapes
Click to expand...

Not really, I find the extra "nice features" to be pretty irrelevant, except for the extra mag. Lets see polygonal rifling, don't care, extra cuts in the side of the slide, don't care, I might be missing a few things but they couldn't be that fabulous because I forgot them. Here they are:

img_cwvsp9.gif
 
thank you for making my point

you put up a comparison of the P9 to the CW9

NOT the PM9 which is smaller

Trust me...I have a PM9 and wish I owned a P9 (but not a CW9)
 
I know it is the p9 and not the pm9, but it still illustrates the fancy features that come with the P series compared to the CW series. Oh well, to each his own. If they had a CW version of the pm9 I would have gotten it instead.
 
YOU get it but a lot of folks are comparing features and not speaking of the most striking difference...the size.

(seems like I was on the other side of this "size vs features" discussion in a bar with a woman...and I seem to remember that I was not convincing in that discussion....*SIGH*)
:(
 
I thought size was one of the first things mentioned, anywho.

My optimism will be placed upon my vote at the voting booth.
 
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