Should I Purchase a K9?

[Shadetree]

There's a T9 on Buds Gun Shop website in case you are interested. The K9 is a great gun and it won't disappoint you.

[capp5050]

Pulled the Trigger...

...and bought the K9. I'd love to share a photo of my new girl, but can't for the life of me figure out how to upload a photo here.

I can't even seem to provide a dropbox link that works.

[Big Sexy]

Hi, Capp --
I'm anxious to see how you like your K9. I've had my K9 Elite for about a year now, and I absolutely LOVE mine! It is my primary CCW, and she's a sweet shooting beauty. Being the type who can't leave well enough alone, I had to add some bling. So, I added night sights, Lakeline G10 grips, Lakeline aluminum follower, Stainless steel guide rod, and I sent the frame to Cylinder and Slide and had them checker the front strap 30 LPI. Now in its current form, it's my idea of the perfect compact CCW and it's not a bad range gun either. Despite its size, it has a nice heft to it, and I shoot it just about as well as I do my full size Sigs and Glock. It's about as small as a pistol can practically get while still allowing a full 3 finger grip, and I find the ergos to be great, especially with the Lakeline grips! It and my H&K P7 are the last pistols I'd ever consider parting with. I have an MK40 as well, and love it too, but it's in my EDC rotation and is a little too small to be what I'd consider an ideal primary CCW.

I hope you enjoy your K9 as much I have mine!

Ted

[rjt123]

...I sent the frame to Cylinder and Slide and had them checker the front strap 30 LPI.

I have seriously considered having the front strap checkering done on my K9 Elite. How much did C & S charge you for that work?


NRA Life Endowment Member

[Big Sexy]

I don't recall honestly, but I believe it was about $225 or so. It wasn't cheap, and I do recall it was enough that I was on the fence about having it done. But, I'm glad I did, as it looks and feels great!

[RonW]

but can't for the life of me figure out how to upload a photo here

Congrats on your new K9!!! Great choice man!! I recently purchased a new stainless K9 with night sights and it is THE smoothest shooting pistol I've ever held in my hands. You're gonna love it... Now as far as posting photos is concerned, you'll have to wait until you've made your 30th post on the forums before it will unlock that feature.... Just keep posting!

[capp5050]

K9 Elite First Impressions...

Hi, Capp --
I'm anxious to see how you like your K9. I've had my K9 Elite for about a year now, and I absolutely LOVE mine! It is my primary CCW, and she's a sweet shooting beauty.
Ted

I ended up with a new K9 Elite 03 with the night sights. It's real pretty. I've taken it to the range once and put about 60 rounds through it - that number would be much higher but for a novice friend who was with me that I shared my range time -but not my K9 with, and the 7/8 round mag limit.

Initial impressions (see the OP if you need context):

• Look/Appearance - LOVE - the polished slide is not gaudy or excessive. Fit and finish are impressive all-around. I see why some people consider this a collection piece.
• Feel - LIKE A LOT - very comfortable, thankfully doesn't 'feel' too small to be a range gun (prior to purchase had not handled, let alone seen the K9 live)
• Trigger - LIKE A LOT (I think) - I now understand why some shooters don't care for this trigger system. It's unquestionably different from my other two handguns (VP9 and PPQ 22). So I wasn't surprised when I looked 7 yds down range occasionally wondering where my shots went. That said - as I started to 'forget' or 'unlearn' what I had been accustomed to, the beauty of this system started to emerge. No 'take-up', no 'break'. Just keep pulling and eventually it goes 'bang'. I think its easy to discount how much anticipation of the next shot with a traditional 'SA-like' trigger can affect your control. Doesn't happen with this trigger. So I have a feeling that the more I practice with this, the more I'm going to like it.
• Recoil - PRETTY GOOD - I had set high expectations here. My prior experience with smaller guns was primarily with .380s and blowback recoil systems which I found too 'snappy'. I figured that the K9's heavier metal frame would result in recoil characteristics similar to my larger (but polymer frame) VP9, but alas, it's a bit snappier than the VP9. That's Ok though, it's still not what I would call unreasonable, and less than the .380/blowback examples I had tried. And I THINK it might be a little quicker to get back 'on-target' than my VP9 due to its compactness.
• Operation/Control Manipulation - OK - The spring is tight as hell. The slide release is virtually useless with no mag installed (I know, it's supposedly by design) and racking the slide on the first round is really difficult - almost annoyingly so. Definitely made easier by racking back empty, inserting loaded mag, and then snapping the slide back to release - which is probably the recommended method as well. But I like that I can do it either way on my VP9 and I kind of miss that. I've also heard that the mechanism loosens up a bit after break-in and some usage, so I'll reserve final judgement.
• Takedown - TERRIBLE - Crazy difficult to remove the slide release. Unfortunately I think I've already put some marks on the frame from 'tapping' it with the back of a screwdriver as recommended by Kahr. The popular technique of inserting an empty mag to facilitate release doesn't seem to apply to the Elite 03. The best method I've gleaned (from this forum) so far is sticking a Sharpie in the open ejection port and then pressing (still hard as hell) with the bottom of an empty mag. I see that people defend this craziness, citing the 'tight tolerances' etc., but I think there should be an easier way.
• Ammo Capacity - OK - I knew what I was getting here, but I'm not a CCW user, I'm a range and HD guy. And 7/8 rds is a little light for my taste. And the mags are really hard to load (especially on the 7/7 and 8/8 round) Recommendations for loaders appreciated here. I was very pleasantly surprised that the K9 came with 3 mags (two 7-rd and 1 8rd), but alas, I've already ordered 2 more 8-rounders.
• Shooting Performance - TBD - Unfortunately shooting performance involves the weapon and it's handler, so until the latter has a bit more experience with this baby, judgement is reserved.

Thank again everyone who goaded me into making this purchase. Thus far, I like it a lot and am looking forward to getting to know her!

... Now as far as posting photos is concerned, you'll have to wait until you've made your 30th post on the forums before it will unlock that feature.... Just keep posting!

well, that seems kind of arbitrary if you ask me; and something the forum moderator *wink wink* has control over.

Meanwhile, I'll try to provide a link to the photo, we'll see if it works: https://www.dropbox.com/sc/82wcjzaibekssf8/AAB7uWl0blyPpktVXkE6yiM9a

[Islander]

Congratulations on your new K9. I love mine and it's become my EDC. Take down gets easier with practice, the slide gets easier to rack with use/break-in, and I use an Uplula loader for the magazines.

[capp5050]

...the slide gets easier to rack with use/break-in, and I use an Uplula loader for the magazines.

I own an Uplula that I use for my double-stack 9mm, but it felt awkward to use on the Kahr; but after you suggested Uplula, I did a little research and found the Uplula 1911AI which is a small plastic/rubber(?) insert that easily attaches to the bottom of the Uplula and serves as a guide for single-stack mags. It was $18 (for two, but who needs two?); not cheap, but after testing it once, I already know it was worth it. Thanks!

[Big Sexy]

• Takedown - TERRIBLE - Crazy difficult to remove the slide release.

Totally, 100% agree. It and the stiff slide release are my 2 lone criticisms of the K9.

[ZardozCZ]

Lots of good comments here, maybe mine will be helpful, maybe not. First of all, I'll state that my second centerfire pistol was a Kahr K9 police trade in. (first was a Glock G27 for campouts/backwoods abuse). I then got tempted to try a 'combat league' a friend attends and I could barely hit the target in the 50' stage. So I sold it to get a full size - longer sight radius - 9mm. I went to the gun store and tried all sorts of pistols that had similar models in both 9mm and 45 (which I was determined to own some day). Affordability was a big factor that kept me from some manufacturers. I had read that it's important to good accuracy to have a pistol that you can pick a spot, close your eyes, raise the weapon aiming at that spot then open your eyes to see how close it is. Glocks always point to the sky for me, but CZ was right on, and their 75B and 97B were very similar (blind pointed at the same spot). So I got a stainless 75b, having really liked the stainless K9. Fast forward a few years, I've a few more CZ pistols, and a CM9 that is my daily carry.

My funnest shooter is a CZ 83 in .380, with it I can get fast and accurate double or triple taps. It is likely my most accurate semi auto. But it too is a bit big for carry. Something about Kahr's slimness that makes a huge difference for me, and I'm 5'10" at 195. I can carry the CZ P-01 with 3 season Minnesota clothing, just don't like to have the bulk.

My point is, do the blind pointing and see what works for you best, you never know when THAT alone will save your life. Since you won't be carrying in NJ, and won't have other state reciprocity with no carry permit from NJ, size won't matter so much. If Kahr blind-points for you well, then by all means! If it requires up or down adjustment, or grip adjustment for left-right, then maybe another will be a better choice for HD/SD.

If your other pistols are more likely to be your HD/SD choices than for sure get the Kahr of your choosing!

I'm shopping for a K9 in my price range at present, hope to bring one home soon. Nope, not going to lose the CM9, it's earned a place in my life.

Oh, I've a CZ PCR (sold for P-01), P-01, 75B stainless, P-06 (Cajunized!), 97B, and 83, so you can tell what I'm liking. The SAR K2 45 is a great beast as well, actually prefer it to the 97B at this point of my ability, but the glossy blue 97B is awful nice too. Still, there's a hankering for another K9 that needs to be fulfilled.

Can't have everything I'd like, but sure can try!

PS Just won a K9 on GB, hope to see it soon!