New CW9 - probably old questions

[tomwalshco]

Just got to a point where I was losing confidence quickly with my current 9mm carry piece so I jumped on the Kahr wagon after months of reading about them. Got the CW instead of the PM because of size, not price, really. Should be here end of the week.

I guess my 1st question is what exactly is getting broken in during the 200 round period. Mating friction parts? Springs? Feed ramp? I'm a tinkerer so I'll break it down and clean it up (including the striker channel) and lube before I put 1 round in the chamber. Mags, too. I can certainly rack the slide a few hundred times to mate the slide surfaces.

Or do I have to drive it like I stole it?

I also find beltclips very comfortable. Don't need a lecture about the dangers.... Have a Glock 36 and 2 Kel-Tecs that have clips and wear great. Just wondering if anybody else packs their Kahr that way.

Read a few posts down where a guy couldn't get the slide closed (or open again) on his maiden round even with a gunshop guy right there. What the hell?

Thought I read somewhere that the ramp is nickel plated. Is that true? Chamber, too?

Thanks.

[jfrey]

Welcome to the club of happy CW9 owners. Mine has been great, as have most here. My CW has now replaced my G36 as my main carry weapon.
Yes, the feed ramp, chamber and barrel are chrome plated. I'm sure that is more cost effective than all the polishing it would take otherwise.

You can sit and rack the slide if you want, but it is a lot more fun to run ammo through the pistol. The 200 rounds smoothes things out all over the pistol and the trigger will be a lot better afterwards. From there just pour the ammo to it and have fun.

I've got around 450 rounds through mine so far and only (1) light strike and I still don't know why. Clean everything well before you shoot it the first time and then get after it.

[wyntrout]

tomwalshco, welcome to the forum. Check out the info available here before getting too advanced in tearing your gun down. I hope that I never have to get past what Kahr considers adequate, or have to do what Kahr advises against. What I mean is that there are instructions and aids available to help you tackle the striker channel and all. Too many guys start taking things apart and stuff shoots everywhere and they ask for help on putting it back together. There is a lot of experience available here... and most of it is good.
Enjoy your new gun and the forum.
Wynn

[Vinikahr]

Welcome.

This is my CW9 during break-in period at 15 yrds.

[rkirk]

Cw9

Welcome to the forum.

I shot several different models, last year. The MK9, it shoots very nice, a little heavy for me. Also tried the PM9, lighter and the grip was torture. Like you I decided the CW9 with a full grip and a 3.6 inch barre. l decided it would be easer to control and shoot. Its grip is also killer on the hand. All of the polymer frame Kahr pistols are textured the same. I added a Hogue Handall grip when I ordered a spare magazine from Kahr. The Hogue grip makes a big difference. Clean and lube the pistol before you shoot. Oh and follow the instruction to load the first round using the slide release. You will love this pistol.

-- Richard

[jocko]

tomwallsh co

PM sent. nice gun u will love it.

[ripley16]

Just got to a point where I was losing confidence quickly with my current 9mm carry piece so I jumped on the Kahr wagon after months of reading about them. Got the CW instead of the PM because of size, not price, really. Should be here end of the week.

Congrats on your new Kahr. What caused you to lose confidence in your CCW (Glock?)?

I guess my 1st question is what exactly is getting broken in during the 200 round period. Mating friction parts? Springs? Feed ramp? I'm a tinkerer so I'll break it down and clean it up (including the striker channel) and lube before I put 1 round in the chamber. Mags, too. I can certainly rack the slide a few hundred times to mate the slide surfaces.

That's a good question. I'm not a great believer in the "break-in" theory myself. Personally, I think it has more to do with getting aquainted with the nuances of the gun, rather than any actual changes that occur to the parts of the gun. Kahrs aren't especially tight, but they are small and light and that's a combination that many shooters have to adjust to, especially with the larger calibers the Kahrs come chambered for.

I'm of the opinion the hand racking a slide accomplishes little. Shooting and racking are't the same dynamic. I view it more as a bonding event, intead of gun altering or fixing. But that's just my opinion.

I also find beltclips very comfortable. Don't need a lecture about the dangers.... Have a Glock 36 and 2 Kel-Tecs that have clips and wear great. Just wondering if anybody else packs their Kahr that way.

Personally I'm uncomfortable using a clip because it leaves the trigger exposed. A holster is just as concealable and just as accessable IMHO.

Read a few posts down where a guy couldn't get the slide closed (or open again) on his maiden round even with a gunshop guy right there. What the hell?

Not enough info in the post to tell. Who knows what happened?

Thought I read somewhere that the ramp is nickel plated. Is that true? Chamber, too?

Nickle or chrome? It seems they are plating with chrome now. I'm pretty sure my older barrels are plain stainless. They sure look different. Chrome is a good thing to have on the barrel.

[tomwalshco]

[QUOTE]

Congrats on your new Kahr. What caused you to lose confidence in your CCW (Glock?)?

No, my Glock 36 has been perfect. It's the 9mm little guy from Cocoa, FL that won't get a round in the chamber reliably. Probably weak mag springs. I've changed everything else. Got some single stack Smith springs coming...

Personally, I think it has more to do with getting aquainted with the nuances of the gun

I think that's a great observation. Anxious to see how I quickly I take to the trigger. I like DA triggers for SD, I just don't like heavy AND long. Give me one or the other, thank you. I like long and smooth, personally.

Personally I'm uncomfortable using a clip because it leaves the trigger exposed. A holster is just as concealable and just as accessable IMHO.

I love them. In the summer, even a great holster can feel like a wadded up wool sock with a bar of Lava Soap wrapped inside. I'm sure Plaxico Burress wish he'd had one on his.... G22 I think. I try not to buy pants and shorts that are sewn together with 20# fishing line.

Nickle or chrome? It seems they are plating with chrome now. I'm pretty sure my older barrels are plain stainless. They sure look different. Chrome is a good thing to have on the barrel.

I like stainless barrels, but I'm sure Kahr tested the hell out of the plated parts. But that would also account for some "mystery flakes" people write about. I'll keep my eye on it, thanks.

Very good input, ripley.

Last dopey question this trip will be - what kind of luck have people had with cheap-ass ProMags? Any MegGars on the market? $44, wow? I've bought a couple of guns in my life for less than that!

[jocko]

u can find factory kahr magazines cheaper than directly from kahr, stock with the factory magazines. they are the best by far. save a few bucks take a big chance...

If you own a kahr be it one year old or 16 years old IT HAS BEEN NICKEL PLATED. Never was a stainless barrel in the first place. Made by Lothar in Germany out of "proprietary" steel (what ever in the hell that is) Stainless will rust, not easily but it has ironin its make up and that is sometimes why someone willnotice some coloring in his stainless.

Nickel and chrome palted are totally different also.

[tomwalshco]

I borrowed this pic from another post about night sights - thanks, Greg. Are the darkened areas on the rails (both sides) of this slide where the nickel (or chrome) has flaked off???

Is it a warranty issue or just "live with it?"

[jocko]

No

I borrowed this pic from another post about night sights - thanks, Greg. Are the darkened areas on the rails (both sides) of this slide where the nickel (or chrome) has flaked off???

the slide is all stainless. Looks like crude to me but also could be discoloration on the slide there to . Stainless will discolor sometimes as it has iron in its make up. Certainly nothing to loose any sleep over, especialy when you are looking at a photo of someone else's slide that you know nothing aobut either.

It is a tool more less, and used will like all tools show signs of being "used"

[tomwalshco]

Thanks, man. That makes me feel better. No problem for me with wear or peening marks, but flaking - not so much. I don't want my Kahr looking like a bumper on a '59 Cadillac after a few hundred rounds.

I've got an old Beretta 92 that's been shot a million times, and the slide movement is still as smooth silk....

[jocko]

bet

Thanks, man. That makes me feel better. No problem for me with wear or peening marks, but flaking - not so much. I don't want my Kahr looking like a bumper on a '59 Cadillac after a few hundred rounds.

I've got an old Beretta 92 that's been shot a million times, and the slide movement is still as smooth silk....

ur butt, you wish you had an original 59 caddy. Bumpers like slides can be redone:33:

[wyntrout]

Welcome.

This is my CW9 during break-in period at 15 yrds.

Hey, Vini'! Were you shooting at that little red thingie? You did nick it a little bit, but it looks pretty healthy!

Ha! Ha! Just pulling your leg a bit. Pretty good shooting, really, especially for 15 yards. I think you would have nailed the BG.

Wynn

[Vincent]

As far as detail stripping the slide it is just not needed. I did it on my carbon steel E-9 when we parkerized it last year. The pistol was bought new in 1995-1996 or so(??) when they first came out and was used as a first line defensive pistol all those years. It was looking kind of poorly. Other than that I never saw a reason to detail strip the slide.