Kahr CW9 vs. LC9

[yz9890]

some people chose the CW, CM or PM because of the absence of an external safety.

I don't have long term experience with one but i have fired several. From what I've read and heard, their small 40's are often problematic while the 9's are usually good to go. the P series seems a bit overpriced to me but the CM and CW seem reasonable. they lock up at the absolute end of the slide travel. so apparently they're sometimes hard to sling shot and often don't hold open or even fully cycle until they break in. like any gun, some owners swear by them while others can't trade them fast enough.

[AquaHull]

I really like my Kahr CM9 and yes trigger is awesome. Comparing Ruger to Kahr for my future purchases, I would go Ruger every time. Kahrs seem to require too many tweaks for reliability, long break ins, relatively short recoil spring lives, and have inferior magazines.
The Kahr fanatics always say quit yer bitchen and sand it here, file it there, squeeze it in a vice, oil it at x,y,z. By comparison my Rugers go go bang out of the box and 0 failures period.

"They" told me not to fix what's not broke, even though Ray Charles could see the bullet in mag to slide release lever interference.Then I had my first fail to load and a Gold Dot a couple days ago. They told me the mag springs are probably worn.

Then there's the follower fix, buy a pro-mag, take out the follower, mod it and install it in the $50 mag and pray.

The mags are crap and they cost close to $50

[AquaHull]

At least I have an old G19 ready for duty anytime of day or night.

[mightymouse]

"They" told me not to fix what's not broke, even though Ray Charles could see the bullet in mag to slide release lever interference.Then I had my first fail to load and a Gold Dot a couple days ago. They told me the mag springs are probably worn.

Then there's the follower fix, buy a pro-mag, take out the follower, mod it and install it in the $50 mag and pray.

The mags are crap and they cost close to $50

I put a nice radius and polish on my slide release just to run my magic 124+P Gold Dots. Its been since flawless for 1000s rounds now, but a buyer shouldn't have to do this. One mag slides out, the other drags. No consistency.

[AquaHull]

I put a nice radius and polish on my slide release just to run my magic 124+P Gold Dots. Its been since flawless for 1000s rounds now, but a buyer shouldn't have to do this. One mag slides out, the other drags. No consistency.

I put black magic marker on the GD bullet to see interference and stoned off just enough to clear.

The fail to chamber was me seeing what I could get away with by riding the slide. It turns out, not much at all.

[Capt-Z]

I traded in my LCP for a CW9. I then traded my CW9 (after carrying for close to a yr) for a LC9, much better weapon in my opinion.

[cnj]

I own both a CW9 and an LC9. I know this is a Ruger site, but, stock to stock I believe the Kahr is the better gun overall. Some of my reasons are based on my personal preferences, some are not. Fact: The stock trigger is far better on the Kahr.......shorter, smoother travel and more consistant action. Fact: The build quality on the Kahr is better. Everything is tighter and fits together with less "slop". Fact: the Kahr is simpler to break down and clean (no goofy plastic pins to press out, no safety assemblies to fall apart when dis-assembling, etc). Personally, I prefer guns with less "safety equipment", so I like the fact that the Kahr has no safety, or LCI, or magazine disconnect.
However, in Ruger's defense, the LC9 will conceal far better, as it has more rounded edges, where the Kahr is "blocky". The LC9 mags are easier to load than the CW9's are. The Ruger also looks way "cooler" (more tactical). Both guns are very accurate at 10 or so yards, with neither having a clear advantage. I will also say that the Galloway trigger bar and hammer mods (for the LC9) are well worth the money, as they decrease the trigger travel and pull effort by a good margin.

[bigdogdaddy]

Not sure I buy all your facts as facts. Some are opinions. Either way, both are good guns and the Kahr is certainly a keeper.

[AquaHull]

I traded in my LCP for a CW9. I then traded my CW9 (after carrying for close to a yr) for a LC9, much better weapon in my opinion.

Will you expand on your opinion a bit?

[Tarheel]

Can't speak for the CW9, but my PM9 has functioned flawlessly after putting about 300 rounds down range. It's a pistol you must break in properly, as mentioned by MM. There were a few minor initial hiccups early on, but I carry it now occasionally in a Crossbreed and am confident that it'll go bang if called upon to do so. Other fine pistols I've owned have also had to go through the teething process as well, including one Ruger. It sometimes goes with the territory. JMHO.

Tarheel

....comparison of my PM9 and LCP: