KAHR Reliability?

[MOHunter1978]

Yeah, I cleaned the mag before I even shot one round. Cleaned the whole pistol and lubed it in fact. I did buy an extra 6 round mag as well, but I have not tried the 7 round mag. I am going to polish the feeding ramp and probably give the 7 round mag a try. I can tell you that Kahr pistols come pretty dirty from the factory as they test fire every pistol and don't clean them as thoroughly as they should before shipping them. Not a problem, I'm just sayin.

 

[Ankeny]

At the time I voted, only 78% indicated their Karh was nuts solid reliable. If the numbers are accurate, I don't see how anyone could buy one in good faith. FWIW, mine has been 100% reliable.

 

[Dean1818]

I am also surprised...... my K9 has been flawless, I trust it 100%


The Kahr folks have just released a CM9, that I have seen glowing reviews on.

I looked for bad input on the CM9. and have only seen one, everything else is 100%
(maybe Kahr has continued to improve the design)


I may have also added to the list by the way the question was worded.

From seeing the feedback all over the net, it appears that some pistols have FTF or FTE during the breakin period, then after "seating" they become
extremely reliable.

On my second choice I should have worded it, 1-2 failures per 100, AFTER breakin.


I think with Kahrs the larger cal pistols seem to get more complaints

CW45's the most (Maybe too much bullet for the gun?)

CW40 P40 the next closest

CW9 P9 the next

lastly it seems that the steel Kahrs do very well



either way, even taking this into effect, it appears that Kahr needs to "catch"
another 5-10% of the rejects before they ship.

All guns have a % of failures, the kahr is probably "in the middle" , with some better and some worse

There ARE Glock owners that post about the FTF and FTE issues...... maybe just not as many

There still are a lot of people that are happy with the Kahr choice.......and I am one of them
It just may not be the pistol for everybody

THANKS FOR THE RESPONSES!!!

 

[TucsonMTB]

There is a thread over on the Kahr Talk forum that describes some sanding you can do on the plastic magazine follower that pretty much solves the first round sling shot issue common in many of the polymer framed Kahr pistols. You can find the entire thread at this link: http://kahrtalk.com/showthread.php?t=6943

For my CW40 this was not absolutely necessary, but it helped. It made an even greater improvement for my PM40. For what it's worth, rather than a pencil as described by the author, I used a larger diameter round file to create a contour that more closely matches the diameter of a .40 S&W round when sanding mine. It feeds really well!

 

[luckyalaska98]

I have both a PM9 and a P45 that i carry daily.The P45 I have had for 2 years and no issues at all.The PM9 I have had for about a year and no issues at all.

 

[MOHunter1978]

Tuscon, thank you for the post! Glad to hear there is a simple fix. 'preciate it.

 

[waidmann]

After having owned a CW 9 and a K 9 and having no issues I opted for a TP 9. Going on 3 years and still my principal CCW. Bought a P 45 off an acquaintance it has been a pill. It is now (so far) fully reliable with factory ball, but has issues feeding reloads. Gunsmith's opinion is they got a few too many chambers out of a reamer.

 

[exdetsgt]

I recently purchased a CM9. After 200+ rounds it continues to function without a hitch. Ordered an extra 6 round mag and a 7 round mag from Trading Post Supply in St. Cloud MN. Both arrived today. I'll try out the 7 rounder tomorrow as one poster reported some problems with it. Another poster had problems with his six round mag and one in the chamber; however, without a round in the chamber he had no feeding problems.

I have never had a 6+1 problem of any kind, and the CM9 has replaced my G26 as a daily carry. It's smaller and slimmer and shoots as accurately as the G26. In short, I'm quite pleased with it.

 

[papaairbear]

Just bought a P380 last month and only have 230 rnds through it but it'd been flawless, all wwb. No failures whatsoever. I did clean it thoroughly when I got it and worked the action without a mag in it quite a bit but that's all. I'm going to get a P9 later this month, too. Those sights are quick and easy to line up, the trigger is smooth and reliable. Go for it!

 

[Blade37db]

Had a CW9 for 2 weeks. After 250 rounds, I traded it in. Multiple failures to fire and failures to feed. Different types of ammo, 2 different mags and a detail cleaning by a gunsmith didn't do it.

 

[c1ogden]

I don't have a CW or P series, both of mine are K9s.

Had a problem with the first K9 with the slide not going all the way into battery when it was new (1997). A new recoil spring solved that problem.

Had another problem with the same gun earlier this year when the firing pin broke. Fortunately it happened during qualification and not on the street.

Never had a problem with the other gun (2003) though its Tritium sights are getting pretty weak (to be expected at this age).

 

[rodinal220]

I dont own a CW or P series Kahr but I do own a K9 and K40 and they have been very reliable.Only time they didnt run was with some crappy reloads(not mine) I used.With factory ammo they have run just fine.Even the older style Federal HS with the sharp hollow point fed fine.I didnt vote since I do not own the models in question.

 

[TucsonMTB]

Bought a second PM40 yesterday. This one is black instead of silver stainless like the first one. Took it to the range this morning. Unlike the earlier gun that needed a trip to Kahr, this one is 100% right out of the box!

Yeah, I did prep it before shooting, but this one runs like a Swiss watch.

There is a God and he might even like me.

 

[sheepdog96]

My CW9 has been 110% reliable since day one out of the box. Eats every type of ammo I feed it. Gold speed dots, WWB, Federal, and Tul. Only gripe I had was the grip and my ghetto bike tube grip fixed that. It has been the perfect carry pistol IMO.

 

[shootingthebreeze]

After months and reading a lot about Kahr, I have settle for the Kahr P380-everything I read screams reliability.

 

[trlhrv]

My primary carry piece is the Kahr PM40. It has been great for six years and over 2000 rounds until this past March when both mag followers disintegrated. I replaced those and am off and running again. I like the extended magazine for better grip and one more round.

 

[Big L]

After renting (and being impressed with) a Kahr K9 several times, I decided to purchase a Kahr K9 Elite 2003 Stainless and believe that I have found the perfect ccw. Absolutely heavier than any polymer model out there, but any legitimate holster handles the weight w/o issue. My opinion is that the all stainless Kahr K9 is a perfect blend of what you'd want in a ccw -which is what it is designed for. The thing is very compact, rock solid, shoots like a larger firearm, and the all steel Kahrs have a repuation for reliable performance.

I have about 750 rounds through mine, and the thing has been flawless. I did run into what I initially thought was a FTF issue w/ my first few magazines, and naturally started second guessing the purchase after reading some internet grumbling about improper feed angles, people using sandpaper on brand new magazines, and how Kahr's have systemic FTF issues. Turns out that such a small weapon does take some getting used to, as my issue was with my grip - at certain times when I wasn't paying attention, my finger was tapping the slide release just enough to foul the feed process and gave the appearance of a FTF. My local rangemaster insisted that Kahr builds ultra high quality weapons and was the one that helped me figure out my issue.

700+ rounds later - zero problems and my grip is 2nd nature. I use decent factory range ammo (Federal, Winchester White Box) and Speer Self Defense JHP rounds.

Another popular conversation piece on Kahr weapons is how long the trigger is. Being a revolver guy, it was no big deal to me, but its important to note that this weapon is designed for concealed carry with one in the oven ready to go, so the long, silky smooth trigger pull also functions as the safety. If you want a range piece and/or to carry a concealed weapon with just a loaded magazine and the need to manually rack the slide, then the Kahr weapons are not for you. There has never been an accidental discharge/failure of the in-built safety that I could find anywhere.

Absolutely 100% satisfied with my Kahr K9, and would highly recommend.

My .02....

 

[Mr.357Sig]

My EDC is a Kahr CW45. When I first took it to the range, I was more than just a little upset when the mag would drop down about 1/4-inch, not allowing the last round to chamber. I contacted Kahr and they sent me a replacement metal mag release catch, replacing the plastic one.

Since swapping that part, I've had absolutely no problems with my Kahr. Zero FTF/FTEs, from white box FMJs to Remington Golden Sabres. It's snappy, but it conceals really nice. It rides in a OWB Looper holster at 3 o'clock each and every day. I trust my Kahr.

 

[papaairbear]

I like the P380 so much I just got a P9 2 weeks ago, and with 350 rounds through it there have been no flaws. Perfect operation. These guns are the best in my possesion!

 

[heeler]

I took my PM9 to the range yesterday as I wanted to test some hollowpoints for carry.
So I brought with me one box of Gold Dot 124 gr +P short barrel and a box of the Winchester PDX1 147 gr.
Zero issues with either brand.
After finishing those two brands of hollowpoints off I then shot up a 50 round box of 115 gr. Blazer Brass.
Flawless.
I am starting to think my PM9 can feed,fire,and eject anything in 9mm.
I truely like this pistol.

 

[franco45]

I'm glad I revisited this thread. I own 3 Kahr pistols and all have been 100% reliable. My cm9 is now my everyday summer carry and my cw45 is my nightstand gun. This is the highest compliment I can pay a handgun, trusting my life to it. I will probably work my cw9 back into the rotation because I really enjoy that gun too.

 

[Capt. Ct.]

I had a 9mm Covert. It had a KB on the 76th round. The range owner said that Kahrs do that all the time. I don't necessarily believe that but that is what he told me. Never felt comfortable shooting it again.Got rid of it shortly after it came back. Hey, that is my personnal experience.

 

[P7]

Capt. Ct.: I've followed Kahr postings on various bulletin boards for the past several years. Your report is the first KB I've ever read about with a Kahr product. I suspect the "range owner" who reported this to be a frequent event with Kahrs has been picking his own mushrooms. I'd like to know more about exactly what happened.

 

[9mmepiphany]

The only problems, of over pressure, I've heard/seen with Kahr 9mms has been due to he used of lead reloads and lack of cleaning the polygonal rifling...as a matter of fact, that was a range rental also

 

[Judo]

I have a PM40 and my dad has the PM9. Mine has over 1000 rounds down the pipe and no malfunctions. My dad has roughly 500 down the pipe in his PM9 with no problems. I will say this though, the PM9 is a little more controllable when practicing doubletaps. I feel I can get back on target faster with his. If I had to do it all over again, I would probably have gone with the 9mm, JMO. Either way, fabulous concealed carry weapon. Very concealable. I carry mine every day.