Kahr CM9, your thoughts?

[AWCherry]

So I've been looking into picking up a compact 9mm for a couple of reasons.

1: My daily carry is a full sized 1911. I love it, and it's comfortable, but it also limits the pants I wear to heavy jeans. Come summertime, I'd like to have something that won't pull my shorts down

2: Price. As much fun as it is, going through boxes of .45 at the range is starting to break the bank. After the ammo hoarding dies down, I'd wager that a few boxes of 9mm will run about the same as 1 box of .45.

During my browsing, I came across the Kahr CM9, and it climbed to the top of my choice list so far. If anyone has any comments or experiences with it, or suggestions for a different carry piece, I'd love to hear them. Thanks!

 

[fxstchewy]

Mine has been great so far, i have about 250rds through it and not one problem, easy to carry.

 

[wild billz]

I love mine. I have 500 rounds through it with 0 problems. I added a crimson trace laser guard to it, nice. It's slim, very. Comfortable to conceal. It is a little snappy as its small. I added Pearce extensions to my magazines and that helped. I believe it's a great carry gun.

 

[OregonJohnny]

I have both a CM9 and CW9. Both have been 100% reliable through hundreds of rounds each of various different types of ammo. I shoot the CW9 as well as some of my full size handguns.

If you are planning on pocket carry, the CM9 doesn't look much smaller than the CW9 on paper, but makes a huge difference in pocketability. However, if you're going to carry primarily on or inside the waistband, I'd recommend the CW9 over the CM9. The CW9 offers 1/2" more barrel length and sight radius, and 1/2" more grip to hold onto. It is a much better shooter for me than the CM9, with less recoil and snap. On the belt, you probably wouldn't notice the additional size of the CW.

Great guns. I recommend the Hogue Handall Jr. grip sleeve. It makes it much easier to shoot these guns for extended range sessions.

 

[wild billz]

I find the cm9 doesn't fit comfortably in a front pocket. I carry mine in a thin Kydex holster appendix carry or in an uncle mikes behind my hip. Maybe it was the pocket holster but it filled the entire pant pocket in my slacks, forget about jeans. It does disappear on a belt holster and I really like that it's so small. Try a p380 for a pocket gun.

 

[jad0110]

My father owns a K9 (steel frame) and it his favorite semiauto. He used to carry it daily, but has since switched to a S&W 442. The Khar is cheap to feed and reliable (other than the odd stovepipe every 400 to 500 rounds). Very thin and easy to carry and conceal (according to him). Simple to operate with a very smooth trigger, though I will say the pull feels longer than that of the DA revolvers I'm used to shooting. So much so that I sometimes reset the trigger before the shot fires.

I think my father would agree with the above poster in that the Kahrs aren't really small enough to be good pocket guns for most people. They excel IWB or OWB though.

 

[OregonJohnny]

I find the cm9 doesn't fit comfortably in a front pocket.

the Kahrs aren't really small enough to be good pocket guns for most people.

Yes, when I pocket carry my CM9, it's in a Galco leather pocket holster, inside of a large jacket pocket. It is a little too big for pants pocket carry, although I've carried it in a large front pocket of baggy cargo shorts once or twice.

I forgot to add that the CW9 carries 1 more round than the CM9. Another good thing is that the 7 and 8 round 9mm mags from Kahr will function in the CM9. I carry a 7-round mag from my CW as a spare sometimes when carrying the CM.

The Kahr trigger is unique. It is very smooth, pretty light and has a crisp break, but the pull is long and so is the reset.

Also, a thumbs-forward grip is necessary for me when shooting the Kahrs. If I get sloppy and use a thumbs-down revolver grip, I'll occasionally hit the magazine release button when the gun is under recoil, and get a mushy trigger with no bang on the next shot unexpectedly.

 

[k_dawg]

I carry one all the time. Out of all the current small/thin/light 9mm I shoot it the best.

However, make sure you try the trigger before buying. It is a 'love it or hate it' type thing. Mine is very smooth and crisp, but it is long. It is perhaps the most 'revolver like' out of any semi-auto i have fired.

 

[Alfonse99]

I have a PM9 I've carried for years. It has been flawless. Fits in the pants pocket just fine. It has become my primary daily carry and has kept most of the others in the safe.

I've been thinking of getting a CM9 just to have to backup the PM9. I haven't found another 9mm I like better.

 

[wally]

I've got a CM40, been 100% reliable out of the box. Made a mount for it to use a Trijicon RMR, it'll be my new carry gun once I find some time to make a holster for it.

I've been running about 40 rounds a week for the past five months with only minimal cleaning. I've total confidence in it.

 

[CZguy]

Come summertime, I'd like to have something that won't pull my shorts down

I think that we can all agree on that.

I really like Kahr triggers. I started out on revolvers though. A P45 is my daily carry, and a P380 on Sundays.

 

[bannockburn]

Love mine too. The DA trigger takes a little getting use to (especially if you're coming from an M1911 as your daily carry), but once you do, you'll do fine with it. I looked at a Beretta Nano at the same time as I was looking at the Kahr and felt that the Kahr was the more natural and instinctive feeling gun between the two.

 

[sharpenit]

I've put several thousand rounds through mine. After a troublesome break-in period requiring 400 rounds, a new recoil spring and some careful correction of the bend in the slide-stop spring, the gun has performed dependably ever since. Read the Kahrtalk forum to see what sort of issues people have had. Many people have no problems. Others have significant problems, as I did.

The gun comes with a 6-round magazine. These generally work fine. But a significant number of people have had problems with the 7-round magazines.

Again, read the Kahrtalk forum to get an idea of the good and bad about the CM9.

 

[Hunter991]

I have both the cw and the cm. both fantastic. Carry the cm. haven't had issues with either of them.

 

[Fishbed77]

I love my CM9.

It's accurate, easy-to-shoot, and has been 100% reliable. A fantastic pistol all-around, especially considering the price.

 

[steveb4c]

when i went to buy my cm9 last summer, the guy behind the counter tried to get me to look at a Diamondback 9mm first, but i had my mind made up before i walked thru the door. i really like my little kahr, it spends the least amount of time in the safe.

 

[C0untZer0]

OregonJohnny made good point about pocketability.

A lot of times people will just point out that the size difference between two guns in .25" which is like nothing.

Well it can make a diffence getting in and out of a pocket. At some point a .10" difference is going to make a difference - one pistol is going to come out of a pocket and another one that is .10" taller is going to be an exercise in tugging it out.

I personally thought the CM9/PM9 fit fine in normal jeans front pocket. But I didn't have a holster around it.

I think you have to try it yourself.

There are people who claim that their Beretta Nano fits fine in a normal front pocket, and some people have said that of the Glock 26.

I'm just using that to illustrate that when it comes to "pocket" you have to actually put the gun in and take the gun out of your own pants pocket because other people's opinions seem to run the gamut.

 

[Bassleg]

I just picked up a CW40 with 3 mags.........$419 out the door.

 

[hardluk1]

Good pick up