New CT380

[1stnamebassist]

Hi gang, I'm new to the forum and purchased my first Kahr, a CT380. I put 150 rounds through it the other day. Had a couple stovepipes and one failure to go into battery near the end of shooting, probably from the gun being very dirty. I prepped it before I went to the range. It fed and fired Aquila and PMC hardball no issues, but Geco wouldn't even go into battery. Luckily I didn't fire any of it so I exchanged it for more PMC at the range. It was shooting about 4" left at 7 yards so I drifted the rear sight a tad now it is spot on. The only issue I had was it rubbed my trigger finger raw against the trigger guard a bit. Guess my fingers are too fat! At home I've tried holding it every way imaginable to avoid this happening again. The only way that seems to work for me is if I pull the trigger near the knuckle in the middle of my finger. I ordered a striker from Lakeline as well as another magazine and some Magguts to try also. The Magguts work great on my S&W Shield so I would imagine it wouldn't be an issue on the Kahr. Also a Pachmyr slip on grip to try. If I don't like it I'm not out a ton of money anyway and will maybe try some tape, talons or inner tube to soften the grip a bit. I read through the forum and gleaned a lot of great information on the care and feeding of my new weapon, so much appreciated! Next may be a CM9 for the days when the Shield is a bit large and pesky to carry!

[Ed M]

Welcome to the forum.

Sounds like you've got things in order - congratulations on your new Kahr.

A bit of a warning - if you buy a CM9, you may find your Shield staying home a lot more than you'd think. They're a GREAT conceal carry choice.

[SgtStone]

Welcome.

Suggest you check out the 2017 Tungsten CM9. Mine came w/ Pachmyr grips, finger extension on the mag, 3-dot sights, & cool cerakote finish for just a few $$ more. I followed Kahr's advice augmented by info on this forum to clean & prep the new pistol w/ excellent results. Several hundred rounds of FMJ so far w/o mechanical problems. My new summer primary carry.

Best of luck.

[1stnamebassist]

Yeah that's what I'm afraid of! I like my Shield a lot, but I like the Kahr trigger much better even after installing an Apex trigger spring kit on the Shield. I don't have anything to measure trigger pull but it seems like my ct380 is a bit heavier in pull than other Kahrs I have dry fired. I hope it gets better in time. I checked Galloway precision and Wolfe for striker spring replacements but they only have them for the 9mm and 40's so I'm assuming the springs won't work for the 380. Any other sources of striker springs replacements that I'm not aware of?

[Ed M]

None that I'm aware of, and I honestly don't want to mess with too much in my CW380. It's got a Lakeline stainless guide rod and the nuke proof Lakeline striker in it. The trigger is silky smooth now, and as light as I'd want in a pocket pistol.

Keep in mind these little 380's aren't target guns - they're up close and personal "get off me" weapons. A trigger a bit heavier is probably a good thing, considering their intended purpose.

[shlike]

Hi gang, I'm new to the forum and purchased my first Kahr, a CT380. I put 150 rounds through it the other day. Had a couple stovepipes and one failure to go into battery near the end of shooting, probably from the gun being very dirty. I prepped it before I went to the range. It fed and fired Aquila and PMC hardball no issues, but Geco wouldn't even go into battery. Luckily I didn't fire any of it so I exchanged it for more PMC at the range. It was shooting about 4" left at 7 yards so I drifted the rear sight a tad now it is spot on. The only issue I had was it rubbed my trigger finger raw against the trigger guard a bit. Guess my fingers are too fat! At home I've tried holding it every way imaginable to avoid this happening again. The only way that seems to work for me is if I pull the trigger near the knuckle in the middle of my finger. I ordered a striker from Lakeline as well as another magazine and some Magguts to try also. The Magguts work great on my S&W Shield so I would imagine it wouldn't be an issue on the Kahr. Also a Pachmyr slip on grip to try. If I don't like it I'm not out a ton of money anyway and will maybe try some tape, talons or inner tube to soften the grip a bit. I read through the forum and gleaned a lot of great information on the care and feeding of my new weapon, so much appreciated! Next may be a CM9 for the days when the Shield is a bit large and pesky to carry!

Not to go off on a tangent, but I love your user name; it's very clever. I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that you are a musician and play bass, correct?

[1stnamebassist]

Great guess shlike! Yes I am a bass player although the shift I work now doesn't allow me to play in bands anymore. Maybe after retirement! And Ed M I installed my Lakeline striker and Magguts into my two magazines. I'm hoping tomorrow to get to the range for a bit to try it all out. I got some winchester and maxxtech fmj as well as federal hydroshok and hornady custom xtp rounds to try. I was feeding them from the magazine by hand and they all fed fine, but the hornady rounds didn't want to eject. Had a heck of a time getting the rounds to come out. I didn't get a chance to check the length with calipers because I had to leave, but I'm wondering if they are too long and hanging up on the barrel hood. They will probably be fine to shoot, but to empty a live round out of the chamber would be a pita. Will find out tomorrow hopefully, if I get to the range.. I want to finish break in with fmj first before I run the HP rounds.

[ct9kahrtoter]

Sounds good OP. I usually use the first joint, of my trigger finger, as much as possible. I prefer to trigger press that way than with the pad of the finger. You feel the Smith is a tad big for CC? I love to carry mine, but I most certainly have invested into the clothes and gear to pack a larger pistol, even larger than the 9mm Shield I have. I pretty much carry OWB.

[1stnamebassist]

The Shield is not usually to big, its just when the weather gets hot and humid, which in Florida is about 8 months, and your all hot and sticky and don't feel much like trying to hide a weapon. I have successfully pocket carried the Shield from time to time also, but access is slow so I prefer IWB on the strong side about 3 oclock. May try appendix carry soon for the Shield as well as the CT380. Yeah I sweat a lot so the bigger gun digging into my spare tire on a hot day isn't much fun! Also shooting the CT380 at the first joint did a number on my finger right on the first joint in fact! I still have a hole there healing up. If I shoot tomorrow I'm goin to have to wrap it up and try not to use the first joint again! I was dry firing today on my joint right under the knuckle and was doing pretty good. At least the finger wasn't rubbing on the trigger guard anymore when I hold there. I'm hoping adding the grip sleeve will change the angle of the gun hold a bit so I can go back to shooting at the first joint again.