First time gun owner - Bought a CW9

[djzero]

Hi all. I moved to California from New Jersey, where it's a big to-do to own a handgun, and made my first pistol purchase a CW9.

To be honest, I'm in my 10-day waiting period right now and without having taken possession, I'm not sure it's the right gun for me based on everything I'm reading. I went for the most affordable 9mm option that was regarded as a decent brand/model (paid $389), but I live in Los Angeles county, where I'm pretty much resigned to the fact that I won't be issued a ccw, so the primary function of the gun will be home defense/range. From what I've been reading, it seems like the CW9 is primarily sought after as a ccw pistol, so I'm fitting a square peg into a round hole, using a ccw-oriented pistol this way.

I'm going to do my best to make the Kahr fit the role. I've already bought an 8-round mag and a Hogue grip sleeve. I've seen some pretty high numbers as far as rounds being shot through at the range from members here, so I can't imagine it's that bad to shoot recreationally. My hope is that I'll either be able to eventually get a ccw after Baca steps down or my small-handed fiancee takes a liking to it, in which case it can serve a more intended purpose. For the time being, I at least have something that goes bang if the bad guys come through the door.

What do you think? Am I being too pessimistic? Any reassurances or tips on how to make it fit the role I've got in mind for it would be greatly appreciated.

[wyntrout]

That's a nice sized pistol. I carry the P9 and the P40 more than the PM sizes, but IWB with a Crossbreed Minituck.

Welcome to the forum. I'll include a bunch of info and links for you to peruse while awaiting your new pistol.


Welcome to the Kahrtalk forum supported by K a h r Arms.
Here are a few essential links and things to do BEFORE you take your new pistol to the range, and ESPECIALLY BEFORE taking it apart and trying to re-assemble it! The Kahr is a different design… 6-7 unique patents cover the Kahrs. I’m not trying to imply that you don’t know anything about guns, but many don’t know anything about the Kahrs and some of the things you can do to damage or cause malfunctions of your new, or new-to-you Kahr pistol.

First, if you don’t have a manual, yet, or one didn’t come with your pistol, you can view it and/or download the pdf file here:
http://www.kahr.com/PDF/kahrmanual.pdf

Please watch one of these videos FIRST! These videos can point out possible problem areas and emphasize correct procedures!
Take down and re-assembly videos:
T, TP, CW, P, & PM/CM Series:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=G2cZgVg_SwA
MK series:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...mSCnIOaUk#t=0s
K series:
http://www.kahr.com/Pistols/Kahr-K9-Elite.asp

There are many links on fixing problems listed in several places… under the New Member or Kahr Tech sub-forums. To start, a very good one:

Proper Prepping of a new Kahr:

http://www.kahrtalk.com/showthread.php?t=14748

A very handy one is the Kahr Lubrication Diagram:
http://kahrtalk.com/showthread.php?t=14750

Many of your questions can be answered in these areas and you can learn how your Kahr works and not damage it with improper handling.

Another great resource for information on Kahrs... Archives of Magazine and Internet Reviews for Kahr pistols by industry experts. They test these pistols and report on their views and the ammo they tested in it. This is a good way to find ammo that might fit your needs along with accuracy and feeding in the pistol... usually from a rest with velocity and energy, as well as penetration and expansion sometimes... very informational.

http://www.kahr.com/product-reviews.asp

Frequently asked questions: http://www.kahr.com/faq.asp?

One very important bit of advice: Hold the Kahr pistol firmly when firing OR CHAMBERING a round. These compact pistols need all of the force they can get from the slide to get a round into the chamber successfully. If you don't hold the pistol firmly, part of the needed momentum is transferred to MOVING THE PISTOL and the top round will DIVE and jam into the right side of the feed ramp. The weak hand, over hand rack method gives the best grip and a firm rack will give you the best chance at chambering a round.

Use the weak hand fingers over the slide(clear of the ejection port), thumb along the slide and pointing to the rear. Use the gun hand to simultaneously firmly push the gun as you give a vigorous rack with the weak hand and cleanly release the slide as it reaches the rear limit and is "snatched" from the weak hand. This approximates a real rack from firing and beats the slide release method WHEN executed properly. Much more strength can be exerted when this is done closer to the body.

Here's a video on that. The first part is what I'm talking about:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=hjLbFOw8sow

There are many helpful members here most of the time who might be able to help you, but as anywhere, there are many opinions and not all are correct. Be mindful of this before doing anything drastic to modify your pistol!


Wynn
Aka wyntrout

PS: I keep thinking of stuff to add and help new members... and am trying to cover most of the popular subjects. Yes, it's repetitious to many, but possibly not to all new members. This approach is easier than having to look up every tidbit for each new member or question that arises.

[muggsy]

In my opinion you picked one of the best of the best guns available for concealed carry. Some may prefer the slightly shorter CM9 for pocket carry, but most people carry in waist band. Make sure that you read the owners manual cover to cover. Let us know if there is anything you don't understand. Safe gun handling is no accident.

[codegeek]

Nothing wrong with having the CW9 as your primary home defense weapon, especially if you might CCW some day. There's always time to pick up a double stack or shotgun in the future.

Sent from my SM-P600 using Tapatalk

[FLBri]

I have to agree. You. apparently were attracted to the CW9 for .... whatever reason ......

Don't second guess that now. It's a great pistol for multi purpose. If it shoots for concealed carry it will also shoot for home defense. Instead put your energy into learning to be accurate with it.

God forbid, if you ever need to use it ... the best gun to have is the one that is closest and loaded. You won't be apologizing for not having the "correct" one.

The best move you can make now is to be prepared and learn to handle like it is part of you. There is a "place" for so many different types of guns, when it come to personal defense. You started in a good place. Eventually, you will want to learn and own more. Accept it ... it's part of the process and the journey.

[RevRay]

A CW9 is a very good first gun ... easy to hold, shoot, carry, lock up, take apart, etc. Don't 2nd guess yourself ... you did good.

[Ugly_Dog]

keep it and build an AR to keep it company!?

The links on wyntrout's lead to nowhere?? some one might need to check them?

[b4uqzme]

Nothing wrong with having the CW9 as your primary home defense weapon, especially if you might CCW some day. There's always time to pick up a double stack or shotgun in the future.

Sent from my SM-P600 using Tapatalk

I agree with all. You done good. This will be a very comfortable gun to shoot and should perform well as a home defense pistol.

I think Kahrs are a good gun to learn on because they do demand some care and knowledge. My Kahrs helped me develop a good pistol grip and I used them to learn the ins and outs of pistol care and cleaning. There's a lot of good lessons on this forum so have fun sifting through.

Welcome!

[djzero]

Hi all, thanks for the encouragement. I just picked it up yesterday. Today I took it apart and prepped it as per the stickies (wiped out the packing grease, lubed up all the areas in the lube diagram with frog lube clp, took apart the magazines and sanded the tops/made sure the springs were in correctly, then hand-racked it 200 times) then I took it to the range and put 150 rounds of Speer Lawman 115gr through it (plus 8 rounds of Gold Dot 124gr, just to see how different it felt).

It performed terrifically, only one FTF in the last round of the magazine about halfway through that I attribute to limp-wristing. I didn't even make that conscious of an effort to stop limp-wristing after that but it didn't happen again anyway. The biggest thing I was worried about, it being too small for my hand, was a non-issue. It felt fine. I didn't even use the grip sleeve that I bought, and afterwards my palm felt fine, no chafe from the back stippling. The only part of my hand hurting is my thumb, from pressing the rounds into the magazine. The long trigger definitely takes some getting used to, but it isn't worse than an SA trigger at all, just different. Overall I'm very pleased with my purchase and can't wait to get back to the range and work on my aim some more.

[Baklash]

Sounds like you are off to a great start with results very similar to mine. I have large wide hands with thick fingers, yet the cw9 fits really well. I haven't tried any ammo other than Winchester white box 115 gr since that was all I had at the time. After another 100 rounds I'm gonna start trying some other brands FMJ and then experiment with a few JHP til I find a favorite.

[berettabone]

Hi all, thanks for the encouragement. I just picked it up yesterday. Today I took it apart and prepped it as per the stickies (wiped out the packing grease, lubed up all the areas in the lube diagram with frog lube clp, took apart the magazines and sanded the tops/made sure the springs were in correctly, then hand-racked it 200 times) then I took it to the range and put 150 rounds of Speer Lawman 115gr through it (plus 8 rounds of Gold Dot 124gr, just to see how different it felt).

It performed terrifically, only one FTF in the last round of the magazine about halfway through that I attribute to limp-wristing. I didn't even make that conscious of an effort to stop limp-wristing after that but it didn't happen again anyway. The biggest thing I was worried about, it being too small for my hand, was a non-issue. It felt fine. I didn't even use the grip sleeve that I bought, and afterwards my palm felt fine, no chafe from the back stippling. The only part of my hand hurting is my thumb, from pressing the rounds into the magazine. The long trigger definitely takes some getting used to, but it isn't worse than an SA trigger at all, just different. Overall I'm very pleased with my purchase and can't wait to get back to the range and work on my aim some more.

Now, get yourself a Maglula mag loader...............saves the fingers