Kahr: The Reliably Unreliable Brand!

Status
Not open for further replies.
Kahr directions.

Buy new gun at a premium price.

Don't bother the manufacturer until you have spent money on 300 rounds of ammo to break it in.

If the gun still won't run reliably, blame the consumer for not following directions.

I'm sure some Kahrs are OK. My K9 is and it broke followers out of the box so I don't believe it had anything to do with a stainless model gun barrel being in a polymer frame. It was simply tight specs and poor quality control.

Now it's possible that most guns "break in" but I bet most have problems out of the box based on the ones I've personally had experience with. rc
 
rc said:
Kahr directions.

Buy new gun at a premium price.

Don't bother the manufacturer until you have spent money on 300 rounds of ammo to break it in.

If the gun still won't run reliably, blame the consumer for not following directions.

I'm sure some Kahrs are OK. My K9 is and it broke followers out of the box so I don't believe it had anything to do with a stainless model gun barrel being in a polymer frame. It was simply tight specs and poor quality control.

Now it's possible that most guns "break in" but I bet most have problems out of the box based on the ones I've personally had experience with. rc
Click to expand...
first there was the barrel hood peening, then there was the magazine followers breaking, then there was the 200 plus round break-in period if you were lucky. I was lucky on a few of mine, but I worry my luck has run out and just can't afford to gamble anymore with them.
 
The broken Kahr followers was traced to the use of the same barrels used in the all steel gun being used in the polymer guns.......
Under recoil the rear of the barrel feed ramp was impacting the plastic follower and snapping the front of the follower off.

Kahr solves this by machining a small amount of the lower edge of the barrel ramp off. Problem solved.
Click to expand...

This sounds exactly like my CM9. It broke followers at first. Kahr had me send it back on their dime. They fixed the barrel ramp that was breaking the followers. It runs like a top now. I also had a CW45 that I gave my stepson. It runs fine too.
 
My old E9 kicked the front sight off about its second day, but Kahr glued one back on which has stayed put. It shoots reliably.
My CW9 - NRA banquet model - has been trouble free.
 
Try and buy a Les Baer and have a malfunction in the first mag, post about that on the internet...better don Nomex.

4 Kahrs (2 PM9s, a CW40 and a CW45). One of the PM9s was bought new, ran 300 rounds through it with a few bobbles in the first 100. The other three were bought used from folks who had put a few hundred through them and were scared about reliability.

I have at least 1000 rounds through all of them since without a single bobble. The PM9 is my primary daily carry pistol and it is utterly reliable. I feel fortunate to have saved several hundred dollars on the other three I picked up after my first PM9...due to their original owners not being willing to complete their engagement process. :)
 
I have owned and periodically carried a CM9 for about 10 years now.

It has been an utterly reliably pistol with a wide range of ammunition types.
 
I have a T9, shoots quite well and without issues. A family member has had a couple of Kahrs over the years, never had problems with them.

I think the thread title would be better named: Kahr, the reliably inconsistent brand.
 
To be fair peeps, the CM9, CW9, P9, and PM9 are karh's least troubled models.

Saying you don't believe issues in Kahr because of your above gun doesn't make your model great. Nor does it mean the others like the 380 and 40s aren't trouble.

They are.
 
"Saying you don't believe issues in Kahr because of your above gun doesn't make your model great."

I might not have read every post, but I certainly did not say that and I don't recall others saying it. OP made a statement about the "Brand" which several have agreed with, and many have not. But you now seem to refute the OPs assertion saying it is only certain models.

So no-one was being "unfair" in fact, most appear to have merely posted their own experiences without labeling any one, or the brand, as good or bad.
 
Not that you need another opinion, but my used CM9 has been great. When I bought it, someone had already "bubba'd" the barrel by trying to polish it with a dremel so it looked... different.

But it must have had it's break in period because it's had no troubles.

Somehow in my hands it's more accurate than my M&P9c and Glock 19'ish Polymer 80 project despite its shorter sight radius - with a slower rate of fire due to the trigger (~1 round a second). Groups tend to spread out more with the Kahr as I ramp it up compared to larger pistols.

Now I see CM9's for ~280, and I wonder why I paid 300 some for a second or third hand one. But I did get to carry and practice with it for 5-6 years in the mean time. If you get a "good" one, it's great. I still think for the size, it's a package that's hard to beat. (I'm afraid my opinion will change if I ever try a P365... so I'll hold off on that for a while)
 
Wrong:
I have a problem gun from Brand X so Brand X guns are all bad.
I have a good gun from Brand X so Brand X guns are all good.

Right:
I have a problem gun from Brand X so at least some Brand X guns are problematic
I have a good gun from Brand X so at least some Brand X guns are good.

Wrong:
Comment: I have a problem gun from Brand X. Response: Well I have a good gun from Brand X so you must be wrong.
Comment: I have a good gun from Brand X. Response: Well I have a bad gun from Brand X so you're wrong.

Right:
Comment: I have a problem gun from Brand X. Response: My gun from Brand X works fine--sounds like quality control is spotty, or maybe you got a lemon.
Comment: I have a good gun from Brand X. Response: My gun from Brand X is a problem gun. Maybe I got a lemon or maybe Brand X needs to work on their quality control.
 
That is so funny and true. Perhaps they should make a sticky.

Regardless, one Kahr that might be my next purchase (I do not need any more guns) is the Kahr S9. I get getting drawn to it and I like Kahrs.:)

VGGSsSS.jpg
 
Last edited:
JohnKSa said:
Wrong:
I have a problem gun from Brand X so Brand X guns are all bad.
I have a good gun from Brand X so Brand X guns are all good.

Right:
I have a problem gun from Brand X so at least some Brand X guns are problematic
I have a good gun from Brand X so at least some Brand X guns are good.

Wrong:
Comment: I have a problem gun from Brand X. Response: Well I have a good gun from Brand X so you must be wrong.
Comment: I have a good gun from Brand X. Response: Well I have a bad gun from Brand X so you're wrong.

Right:
Comment: I have a problem gun from Brand X. Response: My gun from Brand X works fine--sounds like quality control is spotty, or maybe you got a lemon.
Comment: I have a good gun from Brand X. Response: My gun from Brand X is a problem gun. Maybe I got a lemon or maybe Brand X needs to work on their quality control.
Click to expand...
Copy to Military Arms Channel..
 
Carl the Floor Walker said:
Lol, ya got to love the internet. Khar has been putting out the PM9 now for about 10 yrs, same with the CM9. I can only guess how many millions they have sold. Personally never paid any attention to the complaints or issues on the internet. I did just out of curiosity go to Buds to see what the people were reviewing the CM9 had to say. A 4.6 average Star rating out of 178.
I love breaking down the Kahr, just a lovely well made gun. I like how the 380, actually has steel inserts at the stress points.
The bottom line, if you feel the Kahr is a bad gun fine. Just do not buy one. But to compare a Kahr to a Jenning? Like I said, I love the internet.

178 Reviews. Average Rating: 4.6 of 5 Stars!
Click to expand...

Carl,

I am not saying that all Kahr's are bad. Reviews can't always be relied upon. There is often a biased of self-affirmation where a buyer will post a positive review to validate their purchase. They may have fired a few rounds or maybe not even fired it yet when they write their review.

My issues with Kahr come from my personal experience. As I stated in my earlier post, the quality of the stainless steel used in the MK9 is subpar. I got pit rusting when carrying it in a pocket holster. It is also too heavy for a 6+1, although I guess I'd rather have that gun as a club compared to the PM9 or Glock 43.

My biggest issue is the internals are NOT RUST RESISTANT. I know that we are supposed to take care of our guns, but mine rusted after a few days of sweating all over it to the point the trigger was not reliable. That would never happen with a Glock. This was after a hurricane and I had no energy left at the end of the day to disassemble and clean a gun after clearing debris. Feel free to call that abusing the weapon if you'd like.
 
I have 3, when they work they are 2nd to none. My P9 after 2 trips back is good. K9 good from day one. P380 is so freaking sweet with hot ball ammo but so bad with HPs
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top