Say Hello to My New Little Friend: Kahr .40 S&W

Say hello to my new little friend.

I’ve been wanting a new everyday carry piece for quite sometime, and have been doing my research on various models. My current piece, a Springfield XD .45 ACP Compact (with a 5″ barrel) is a fantastic handgun, but it’s a bit heavy (31 oz)  and not the smallest of choices for concealed carry (8.3″ long overall).

Criteria for a new piece:

• .40 S&W or .45 ACP caliber
• Reliable
• Lightweight and shorter barrel length — if a gun is not comfortable and easy to carry, you’re not going to carry it everyday.
• Under $600 — if money were no object, I’d run out and buy a new Kimber Ultra CDP II .45 ACP today, but at nearly $1400, I think that might be a wish item for another day.

A fairly new manufacturer kept popping up in my searches, Kahr Arms, made in Worcester, Massachusetts, in the region commonly known as “Gun Valley.”

On Friday afternoon I stopped into the best gun shop in all of Central Texas, McBride’s Guns just to browse and talk to their exceptionally knowledgeable and helpful staff. Spent about 15 minutes chatting with an older gentleman who works there named Bob. Asked him about the Kahr line and the two old geezers, both wearing Vietnam Veterans ball caps, both chimed in immediately to let me know that they were each carrying Kahr’s (one a 9mm and the other a .45 ACP) and swore by them.

Bob pulled out the Kahr CW .45, and while I was getting a feel for it, he mentioned that they’d just received a CW .40 S&W as a trade in a few weeks ago, and I could walk out of the store with it for less than half the cost of a new .45 ACP.

Range Report

As we’re skipping to the range report, it’s safe to assume I couldn’t pass up such a good deal. Bought a couple boxes of range ammo and headed straight to Red’s Indoor Range (South) to put some lead down range.

First off, the gun fits my hand exceptionally well. It’s a small, compact handgun, but I can still get three fingers on the grip without needing a grip extension. At 16.1 oz, it’s almost half as heavy as my Springfield XD and nearly 2 inches shorter. Since the magazine is a single stack (6+1), it’s also much thinner than my double-stack SA XD (10+1).

I’ve carried it all weekend (inside the waistband, mostly), and hardly knew it was there.

It has a much longer trigger pull than my XD, too…but with a double-action only (DOA) trigger and passive safety, that was expected. I had my .45 with me at the range, too, and was able to do a shot-by-shot comparison. My XD is much more accurate at all distances for me, but with the 1.4″-longer barrel that was expected. The Kahr .40 S&W also has a bit more recoil than my larger caliber .45 ACP, but that’s also to be expected in a shorter-barreled handgun.

Took me a couple of magazines to get the Kahr properly sighted, but once I did, I feel confident that it will be more than effective at typical defense-situation distances (3-25 meters).

I’ve put 150 rounds through it this weekend, and not once did it misfire, misfeed, or jam. Breakdown took less than 3 minutes, and reassembly was no more than that either. Very quick and easy to clean handgun (almost identical breakdown procedure as my XD).

So, until I can afford the Kimber Ultra CDP II, I think I’ve found my new everyday carry piece. For the price, it’s really nice looking (stainless steel slide with a black polymer frame), reliable, accurate, and very easy to conceal handgun. And made in America, too, if that’s important to you (always a consideration for me).

My XD will likely become my vehicle carry piece for the days I drive my truck…simply love that gun too much to keep her locked up in the safe.