We’ve admired the kahr Arms Line of pistols for several years now, appreciating the quality and unique design, but somehow had missed testing one. When the PM9 became available however, we could no longer wait since it offered the firm’s most compact dimensions in combination with the weight saving of a polymer frame. An order was placed and upon arrival we were immediately impressed by just what a compact package it was. At roughly six inches long by four inches high by one inch wide it’s about the size of a Walther PPK but in a true service cartridge chambering, the 9mm Parabellum.
    It’s fairly easy for a manufacturer to build a gun that is short in height and length by simply chopping off the muzzle and frame of a full-sized model (whether or not it will cycle is a different matter). Much more difficult is to make one that is less than an inch wide as are the Kahr nine millimeters. The Kahr’s designer, Justin Moon, accomplished this feat by offsetting the feed ramp to the left in contrast to its location on the centerline in most other pistols. This allows more room for the trigger bar on the right side of the frame’s interior and saves space. The textured grip portion of the frame is also slim due to the single column magazine. Women shooters with small hands who have lamented the large grips required by double column magazines will enjoy enchanced control with the Kahr design.
    Another notable feature of the PM9 was a weight of slightly less than one pound, making for a handgun that is truly easy and comfortable to carry concealed. The sights were equipped with a white vertical bar rear and dot front for a highly visible sight picture (Tritium night sights are an option). The stainless steel slide had rear serrations and contrasted with the black frame for a nice two tone appearance. Kahrs are striker fired via a relatively long trigger pull so there was no manual safety. The only controls besides the trigger were a magazine release and slide stop; no safety to disengage prior to firing, nor decocker to activate afterwards. The Kahr was a "point-gun, pull-trigger" design; pure simplicity, a very good thing in a self-defense pistol. Two magazines were shipped with the pistol, a five-rounder that fit flush with the frame and a seven rounder which extended a bit with a plastic sleeve around the exposed portion and made for a more secure grip.

    Initial testing was conducted at DFW Gun Range and Training Center, the premier indoor range facility in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. It was a very happy experience. The PM9 turned out to be one of those guns which is a joy to test and write about. It could do no wrong. First rounds fired were Black Hills remanufactured 115-grain ball and hollowpoints. We went through 100 rounds of each without any kind of a malfunction. Accuracy was all we could ask for from a gun of this type with off hand groups of about three inches at fifteen yards. The high profile sights, which were dead on by the way, were a definite help in utilizing the Kahr’s intrinsic accuracy as was the quality of the Black Hills ammo. Recoil was very manageable thanks to the high grip design and 115-grain bullets which do not impart as much of a recoil impulse as heavier designs, especially at standard non-Plus P velocities.
    Was there anything not to like? Only one thing really and it was minor. The corners of the slide stop were sharp. Dropping the slide with it was an exercise in caution to avoid spilling blood. This was not a big concern for us as we normally use an overhand grip on the slide to retract it slightly, which depresses the slide stop and allows the slide to close, which makes pushing the stop unnecessary. Those who don’t use this method will want to round the edges with a file which should be only about a ten minute job. Also removing it for field stripping was a bit difficult the first time. The trigger reset took just a bit of getting used to being somewhat longer than that of the Glocks we have shot for so many years but after only a few minutes it was no longer noticeable.
    Subsequent range trips proved equally enjoyable. The PM9 was reliable and accurate to the point of being almost mundane. Throughout our test we fired close to five hundred rounds of the reasonably priced yet wonderfully accurate Black Hills ammo (note to readers; this firm has been great about providing test ammo and we hope you will reward them with your business-you won’t be sorry) and several hundred more of our reloads with zero malfunctions. We let a dozen or more people fire it. Some, such as Alice Davison who along with husband Bill owns and operates Tac Pro Shooting Center, were longtime shooters. Others, such as our friend Harriet Langston, were less experienced. But everybody loved the Kahr and most importantly, nobody could make it malfunction at all! Sweet. We were a little worried that the combination of inexperienced shooters who might not hold it firmly enough and the polymer frame, which can flex and rob the recoil spring of the resistance it needs to function, might cost the PM9 its perfect reliability record but our concerns proved groundless.
    With a gun that ran this well there was no reason not to carry it concealed, something the Coxes do every day. Naturally it was decided that Serina would be first and thus the pistol was placed in the special compartment of her Bianchi backpack purse. After several weeks Will finally got a turn and the Kahr took up residence in the front pocket of loose fitting fatigue pants where it disappeared without any printing even though no pocket holster was utilized. Such a holster would have been a better plan in order to keep it oriented properly however. Nine millimeter power in a handgun that is truly small enough to be carried comfortably in a pants pocket is a rare and wonderful thing. Very cool. Also the light weight was appreciated as much as the size.
    We both elected to load the pistol with the five round flush fitting magazine for maximum compactness and carry the extended one as a spare. This made sense not only from a concealment standpoint but a tactical one as well. If reloading in a crisis had been necessary the longer magazine would have been much easier to use in a speed reload. Two sizes of magazines offer the best of both worlds.
    And so it is that the Kahr Arms PM9 has truly earned the title "luxury compact." It offers not only the luxury of easy concealment but light weight as well and is made to be carried. It offers the luxury of service round power via its nine millimeter chambering yet is easily controllable. It offers the luxury of accuracy. And most important of all, it offers the luxury of reliability because it just keeps on running like the Energizer Bunny. In the world of defensive handguns it doesn’t get more luxurious than that.