Kahr Arms is indisputably the front-runner of 9mm and .40 caliber ultra compact handguns. I've been a Kahr fan from the very beginning, but like many have found the all-steel miniatures awfully heavy. My natural skepticism rose to the surface, however, when the very petite polymer framed Kahr P9 was introduced. Would its small polymer frame withstand the thousands of rounds of steady shooting a gun in my holster must endure? After one initial misstep, the results are heartening.
By now, the year 2002, polymer is a proven component for pistol frames, and with the success of the P9 and Kahr's later polymer .40 caliber model, there can be little doubt that even the small frames and miniaturized parts of a diminutive, deep concealment gun can succeed in polymer.
Kahr's portrait in polymer differs somewhat from the designs promulgated by Glock, Heckler & Koch, Taurus and others. Like these, steel slide rail inserts reinforce the frame, but the Kahr's front inserts sit far forward and slightly down in the body of the frame.
The P9 and I got off to a bit of a bad start at the outset when the pistol I'd borrowed, one of the first released, broke and shed a small tab that secured the slide stop retaining spring to the frame. Kahr Arms quickly repaired the break, adding a screw to assure that it would remain in place. Although it is reported that other owners of early P9s had similar experiences, it does not seem to have dampened enthusiasm for what must be one of the most compact, slender framed 9mm handguns around.
Since the P9 came back to my gun safe, I've put it through a variety of shooting tests, and found it surprisingly pleasant to shoot, accurate even at distances and in the course of my testing, capable of standing up to +P 9mm ammunition in quantity.


Proving A P-9

When the P9 returned from the repair shop, I ran several hundred rounds of assorted ammunition through it simply shooting 8-inch steel plates and other fun-to-shoot reaction targets. Becoming increasingly optimistic that the gun was going to hold up, I carried it during a weekend Defensive Handgun and Qualification class, at which I was "second chair", to a primary instructor. Though I did almost no shooting that weekend, I was pleased when the small pistol put a dozen Black Hills Ammunition's 147 grain full metal jacket rounds cleanly in the A-zone of an IPSC target from the 25-yard line.
The next day, returning to the range on my own time, I set up with a sandbag and several varieties of ammunition to see just how well the super-compact Kahr would do on accuracy from the 25-yard line. Group sizes ranged from 3.32 inches with CorBon's 115-grain hollowpoint, 3.44 with Federal Hydra Shok's 147-grain FMJ, 3.86 inches with Federal American Eagle's 124-grain FMJ, and 3.88 inches with CCI's 124-grain FMJ round. This from a gun with a 3.5-inch barrel and five-inch sight radius! I was impressed.
Wanting to put more ammunition through the gun without squandering the trigger pulls, I pulled out my file of various qualification and training shoots. On Washington State Basic Law Enforcement Academy's final firearms practical, the Kahr P9 dropped only six points of the 460 available.
Accustomed as I am to the short trigger reset of the Glock pistol, I had some difficulty resetting the Kahr trigger smoothly and quickly on a test with exercises requiring me to draw and fire three shots in two seconds, or draw and fire five shots in four seconds. I expect practice and familiarization will make that longer Kahr trigger pull as manageable as that of a double action revolver.
The other hit in the seven-score ring? I tossed it there during a left handed string of fire, and cannot blame the gun in the least. Next I put the Kahr P9 through the 60-round qualification shoot used by Massad Ayoob of the Lethal Force Institute. I wasn't too surprised when the small polymer gun turned in a perfect score on a test with distances from four to fifteen yards.
Finally, I put the Kahr to a challenging test with Ken Hackathorn's thirty round practice regimen. The times are extremely short, and I ended those thirty rounds with the resolve to practice harder with the Kahr pistol. Buried in a Blade-Tech Ultimate Concealment Holster beneath a baggy fleece pullover, I was hard-pressed to accomplish the two-second time limit for draw and fire drills at the 15-yard line.

The Kahr's Role

Though it performed surprisingly well on distance marksmanship, the real role of the Kahr P9 is personal defense at closer quarters. In that role, its most important attribute is extreme concealability and ease of carry, since the first rule is to have a gun when danger occurs. Unloaded, the 6 inch by 4.5-inch micro-compact weighs just 16 ounces. Women rightfully complain that it is difficult to conceal a self-defense handgun. That's understandable, when our smaller choices have included five-shot revolvers, and compact pistols derived from duty guns shortened at the barrel and grips.
The Kahr P9 fits nicely in one of Coronado Leather's smallest holster handbags, but with a gun so small, thin and light, one really must ask "why?" Worn in a high quality holster on a contour belt for extra comfort, the Kahr P9 is almost forgettable. Yet, if a threat is unavoidable, it provides eight rounds of 9mm +P ammunition for personal defense.
In addition to easing the difficulties of concealed carry, women will value the Kahr P9 as a superlative defense gun for small-handed shooters. I've been surprised to find myself adapting to a handgun that is actually a bit too small for my hands. That's something that rarely happens! Humor aside, as an instructor, I frequently need to teach women who have extremely small hands. The Kahr P9 represents an amazing solution for women who have all but given up on finding a good defense pistol that indisputably fits small hands. I'd say the polymer Kahr is here to stay.