The Kahr has a double-action-only striker-fired mechanism. The trigger pull is excellent. There is no manual safety.

Frankly, I feel a little uncomfortable about giving guns "rave" reviews-particularly in a case like this, where we have an all-new gun from a totally new company. These pistols have been on the market for only about a year and a half as I write this. I don't know as yet how well they will stand up to the pounding of intense and protracted service.

This is the first regular-production gun I have fired, and so I can't say with certainty that it is typical of all K9s. With these disclaimers out of the way, I will go on record as saying I have never been more impressed by a handgun. It verged on perfection straight out of the factory box.

I say "verged on perfection" because there was on thing I didn't care for about this pistol. For me, at least, it shot between two and three inches below point of aim at 15 yards. If I were into grading pistols, this would keep the Kahr from getting an "A+" and reduce its grade down to a mere "A." In all other respects, it was just outstanding!

Let's backtrack a bit and talk about the Kahr pistol for those who may not be familiar with it. The Kahr is a very compact all-steel 9mm auto pistol that somewhat resembles a Glock 26. Unlike the latter pistol, however, its butt frame permits a full three-finger grip. It uses a single-stack seven-round magazine.

(Top) The electroless nickel finish on this Kahr K9 contrasts handsomely with the black rubber stocks. This all-steel pistol displays a high level of workmanship. (Bottom) The Kahr K9 is a very compact DA-only pistol that is proving to be an outstanding performer. The electroless nickel finish is an appealing new option.

The locking system on this pistol is of the modified Browning type, with a setup similar to that used on the SIG-Sauer and the Glock. The firing mechanism is also somewhat akin to the Glock's. Racking the slide brings the striker to a semi-cocked position. There is a plunger-style striker block that stops forward motion of the striker while the pistol is semi-cocked. Pulling the trigger causes the striker block to disengage and brings the striker back to a fully cocked position. Continuing pressure on the trigger causes the cocking cam to release the striker and fire the pistol.

SPECIFICATIONS
KAHR K9
MAKER:	KAHR ARMS DEPT. GAH 184 PRESCOTT ST. WORCESTER, MA 01605
ACTION TYPE:	LOCKED-BREECH, DOUBLE-ACTION- ONLY SEMI-AUTOMATIC
CALIBER:	9MM PARABELLUM (40. S&W FORTHCOMING)
CAPACITY:	7+1
OVERALL LENGTH:	6 INCHES
BARREL LENGTH:	3.5 INCHES
WEIGHT:	25 OUNCES
FINISH:	BLACK OXIDE, ELECTROLESS NICKEL
SIGHTS:	FIXED, WHITE INLAYS
GRIPS:	BLACK RUBBER

The trigger is one of the most appealing aspects of this altogether appealing pistol. It is long and heavy enough to be a true double action, not an ersatz single action masquerading as "double-action-only." On the other hand, it is short and light enough (approximately seven pounds let-off) to permit excellent shooting, especially in fast combat-style scenarios, where it is impossible to anticipate let-off with this trigger.

The sights are excellent. Both front and rear are dovetailed for easy inter-changeability with tritiums, etc. Inlay pattern is the dot-and-bar style sometimes known as the "Von Stavenhagen" type. Stocks are pebbled rubber and wrap around the backstrap-less rear of the butt.

Since this is an all-steel pistol, it weights 25 ounces. This is more than some aluminum or plastic-framed pistols of similar dimensions weigh. However, 25 ounces is not too much for comfortable protracted carry, and it makes this 9mm pistol quite pleasant to shoot.

Sights are fixed and offer an excellent sight picture. Both front and rear are dovetailed for easy interchange with tritiums.

Because of its small size, it is particularly important to keep the springs fresh to avoid battering. Kahr recommends replacing the recoil spring after every 3,000 rounds.

This pistol displayed a very high level of workmanship. The only area where I could fault it was that there was minimal or no polishing around the triggerguard cutout and a few mold marks were visible. The electroless nickel finish made a handsome contrast with the black rubber of the stocks. This is an honest steel gun, built in New England by American craftsmen, many of them longtime veterans of "Gun Valley." Its is definitely a gun that conveys pride of ownership, unlike many contemporary designs.

This pistol was evaluated for shooting performance at the Insight Shooting Range (17020 Alburtis Ave., Artesia, CA; 310-860-4365). It was used with the following types of ammo: American Ammunition 115-grain Completely Copper Coated, Cor-Bon 115-grain JHP +P, Cor-Bon 124-grain JHP +P, Federal 124-grain Hydra-Shok, Mag-Tech 115-grain JHP, Remington 147-grain Golden Saber, Speer 124-grain Gold Dot, Triton 147-grain JHP +P, Winchester 147-grain SXT.

Since this was a short, double-action-only pistol, I thought that accuracy testing at 15 yards might be a fairer test than the customary 25 yards. As it turned out, I was probably selling the Kahr short. Best accuracy was achieved with the Federal 124-grain Hydra-Shok, with five shots going into just over an inch. The Pistol did not group well with the Speer Gold Dots, and the American Ammunition 115-grain CCC yielded a 4&1 group with four shots going into a little over an inch and one flier opening things up to roughly three inches. The remaining six loads all turned in very similar performance, with groups running about two inches at 15 yards. This would probably equate to about 3^1/3 inches - the size of an NRA Rapid Fire 10-ring - at 25 yards. All loads grouped between two and three inches low. Kahr advises me that in the near future replacement front sight blades of varying heights will be available to correct this problem.

To field strip the Kahr, make sure the gun is empty, magazine out. Pull the slide back until the slide stop notch is even with the slide stop pin and tap out the slide stop. With the slide back in battery, snap the pistol to release spring tension and remove slide assembly from frame.

Rapid fire was a breeze. Shooting at 10 yards at the B27 center, I threw my first couple of shots a bit high, trying to compensate for the tendency of this pistol to shoot low, then punched the last eight rounds into a well-centered group in the X-ring for a final score of 100-9X. This was with the American Ammunition load. Shooting the powerful Cor-Bon 124-grain JHP +P at seven yards weak-handed gave me a score of 100-8X, with most shots clustered at the bottom of the X-ring. I hung up a pair of B27 centers at eight yards and fired magazineful after magazineful into them, seguing back and forth from one target to the other as fast as I could. Not a single round strayed outside the 10-ring, and the vast majority were inside the X-ring.

This pistol was a delight to shoot. It proved totally reliable with all nine of the loads tried. It was fast into action, dynamic in handling, and the trigger pull offered a very rhythmical, flinch-free sort of firing.

One interesting thing about this gun is that everybody who holds it loves the way it feels in his or her hand. It elicited similar reactions form Dave Arnold, who towers almost six-five, and Joy Whittemore, who is only a little over five-one.

Best group at 15 yards-a trifle over one inch- was fired with Federal 124-grain Hydra-Shoks. This pistol shot somewhat low with all loads.

This pistol seems perfectly suited for its intended tactical niche: plainclothes, off-duty and undercover police, as well as duly authorized civilian gun carriers. It also makes an outstanding choice for the woman who wishes to make the commitment to mastering a semi-automatic pistol. It would, of course, serve equally well in static defense situations (home, business, vehicle, etc.).

Until recently, the Kahr has been available only in 9mm Parabellum. those who like this pistol but prefer a larger caliber will be gratified to know that Kahr has just begun shipping a .40 S&W version of the same pistol with only very minor dimensional increases. To sum up the Kahr K9 briefly, it is an extremely size-efficient pistol that offers good ergonomics, simple operation, fine workmanship, a smooth trigger action, excellent reliability and very good accuracy. And that is a very hard combination to beat!