Kahr CW9; good deal?

1) The slide stop design is a bit ridiculous as part of the spring actually sticks out
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But it has never caused reliability issues for me. The design works fine. Unlike the ridiculously poor design of the Glock slide stop and its flimsy spring.

2) The Mag design is a weakspot as followers sometimes crack, or rounds nosedive
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I agree that some of the mags are the weak link of these pistols. The non-extended mags with the metal baseplate are actually pretty good and work well (I've never had any nosedive issues), but the extended mags with the flimsy plastic baseplates are pure junk.


A breakin of 200 rounds is required......... (they do hiccup before this amount, thats $50 that could go to another gun)
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I've never had a malfunction with my CM9. It ran flawlessly straight out of the box and has for a few thousand rounds now.

I've also never prescribed to the whole "use the slide release to chamber a round" recommendation. I've always drawn back and released the side - like most other pistols - and never had a problem.
 
I will say both of my P45 mags split at the back weld, right at the top... very poor design and/or poor build quality. I have something like 8 CW/CM mags, including extended ones, and none of them have given me problems. After my experience with the 45 maqs, I regularly inspect them.

I don't have problems with the slide hanging or misfeeding, even when I hand cycle it, etc, but I can see where the steep feed ramp might hang some odd shaped bullets.

I've had 4 different CW9's, still have 3 of them; 2 of them were NIB. All 4 of them have never given me feeding or cycling issues, even when using Gold Dots or Hornady HP's. The one odd CW9 shot consistently left of center, so I traded it off.

My CM9, which I bought new, never had cycling issues right out of the box. The advantage I have with the CM9, which is '1rd shorter' than the CW9, is magazine and holster commonality... the CW mags fit in the CM... so I don't have to swap mags or holsters around if I choose to carry the CM, and of course, the manual of arms is identical.

...and, it's no joke. I bought my first CW9 used, from my FFL. It was a pretty good deal, and I thought it would be an easy and cheap way to be disappointed in a poly pistol, swearing off them forever. But it didn't quite turn out that way...
 
In a gun as small as the CW9 polygon rifling will not matter one bit IMHO.
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For most concerning accuracy probably not. Maintenance benefits will still be there. A number of other changes on the higher priced pistols.

I can see where one would go other routes if gettiing up to that amount.
 
I watched a youtube video today where the Kahr rep stated that although accuracy would be a minor factor with the difference between the polygonal barrel and the cheaper rifled barrels, the difference also would be velocity gain.
 
For $250 I'd jump on that deal. Paid $314 for mine last year and thought that was a good price...

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Alas, I've waited too long. It's completely sold out now. Maybe they'll come back in stock, but I'm doubtful at that price. Now I guess I can take my time and properly debate between a Shield, PPS, or the new budget Kahr S9.
 
Contrast Man said:
Alas, I've waited too long. It's completely sold out now. Maybe they'll come back in stock, but I'm doubtful at that price. Now I guess I can take my time and properly debate between a Shield, PPS, or the new budget Kahr S9.
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Go to a gunshop

Hold the CW9 and the Shield.

Rack the slides of both.

One will feel like a more robust design.....One will have some sharp edges that should be cleaned up before shipment.... (That arent)

It will be clear when you hold them

If the gunshop will allow, take both apart. Look at the internals. Look at how much of the slide rides on plastic vs steel.

Look at quality of build. One is clearly more refined.

Look at the Magazines side by side....... one is of higher quality

Does the magazine stick out at the bottom of the pistol? (The "look" really doesnt matter to reliability, but the Kahr regular mag, and extended mag dont seem to match the pistol)

It will be clear when you look at them closely

As mentioned the trigger in the Kahr is VERY LONG. (but smooth)
(To me it resembles a revolver trigger)

The Reset takes forever to get to, and isnt audible. The later Shields have a close reset, and the shooter can sense the click. This allows a 'tap-tap' accurate 2nd shot. I have shot my whole life, and this was difficult with a Kahr (Maybe my weakness)

Out of the box, i think the Shield trigger is a bit gritty. The Kahr is smooth, right from round one. The Shield trigger will greatly improve with 200, dry fires. (I think this is a weakness of the Shield, I have an M&P40C, that I carry a high percentage of the time, that had the same thing.) Its a pain in the keester, but dry fire is cheap :)

$250-$300 is a common price for both (The Shield was on sale for $200 w/rebate 3 months ago)

The Shield ships with 2 magaines, the Kahr ships with ONE.

Most people want a minimum of at least 2 magazines. With shipping and tax,
thats another $40-45 to the NET cost of the Kahr

I will add, for me personally, I added a bike inner tube to the grip of Shield,
which made the thin grip a little "fuller" in my hand

I would also add, that the Remora holster (no clip) is by far the most comfortable IWB holster I have ever tried or used. They dont move. it just sticks.

If you plan on CCW, the holster is important

Good luck on your choice........ in the end, (Though I have owned both, I have my preferences) BOTH are good choices, and both will be reliable in the long run.
 
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anyone else like the looks of the Kahr CW carbon fiber model?

If my deal on the K40 falls through, might go for that one.

Although the specs looks the same as the shield size, it looks larger to me, but can't find any visual comparisons online so far. The slide looks clunkier maybe because it's more squared off at the top?
 
The dimensions of both guns are very similar, but to me the Shield is a bit "bulky" like a small Glock. Whereas the CW9 is a lot smoother overall, and not just in the trigger.
The Shield trigger out of the box kinda sucked, but the gun was a b'day gift for my DIL - so I don't know if it has smoothed out or not. The CW9 trigger is really slick, IMO.
The Shield fit & finish is very good for a budget 9mm. Sorry for the quick shot from my crappy iPhone5 camera....

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The dimensions for the Kahr are found here:

http://whichgun.com/pistols/view/kahr-cw9/manufacturer:kahr

And the Shield here:

http://whichgun.com/pistols/view/smith-wesson-m-p-shield

Looks like the Kahr has the slight edge in being smaller & a little lighter in weight.
 
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