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Thread: After A Long Break, a Range Day with the MK9

  1. #1
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    Default After A Long Break, a Range Day with the MK9

    To make a long story short(ish): My personal EDC collection has been through a lot of changes over the past year; I've bought and sold a number of pistols, looking for the "perfect" solution for every carry niche...heavy clothing, light clothing, pocket carry, etc. I've shot dozens of pistols, often pitting pistols against each other in "shoot outs" to see which one prevails. In the course of all this, I ended up selling two of my Kahrs (PM9 and CW380) because I found options that suited me better.

    In the midst of all this, my Kahr MK9...the very first pistol I bought during this period when I was looking for an EDC pistol as I approached LEO retirement...mostly stayed in the safe. I bought it used...it's a 1998 model with almost completely dimmed Tru Dots...and updated it with a Wolff recoil spring setup and Lakeline magazine followers, and with several hundred rounds through it I've yet to see a malfunction. On my very first range day a year ago, I rented a Glock 43 for the sake of comparison, and was blown away by the performance of the MK9 as compared to a manufacturer that I have admired and supported for over 30 years.

    Fast forward a year, and I have a number of pistols that I very much enjoy and often carry. On a whim, I purchased a Walther PPS M2 because of all the awesome reviews it had received (like this one: http://www.gunsandammo.com/handguns/...-9mm-shootout/ ), and couldn't resist when one showed up on Gunbroker for about 2/3 the price I'd previously seen. Before I headed to the range, I decided to throw my MK9 in the bag (I'd pretty much resigned myself to the fact that I was going to sell it like I had my other Kahrs, and had even taken pictures in preparation for that sale).

    I put about 100 rounds through each pistol, and I left the range convinced once again that the MK9 may be the finest handgun I've ever owned. The PPS is a fine pistol, but the Kahr (at seven yards) just flat-out ran circles around it. Long but buttery trigger, amazing recoil management (with +P ammo!), great hand feel, and a ragged hole in the target where all the rounds went...a grouping 1/2 the size of the Walther's.

    I will NEVER get rid of this pistol...I am convinced that not only my son but also my future grandchildren will own and appreciate this fine, heirloom quality weapon. Time for some TLC...I'm going to shop around for some good night sights, and I'll also buy a decent hybrid IWB since that's become my preferred carry method. To celebrate my range day, I came home and reinstalled its wooden grips...this time with some pretty 1911 grip screws.

    Darn, she is one pretty girl.
    Last edited by boscobarbell; 12-02-2017 at 07:44 PM.

  2. #2
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    Great Story. Thanks for sharing.
    NRA Benefactor

  3. #3
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    I own an MK from about the same year. I've been carrying it since legal and feel the same way. I will never sell it. I won't go as far as to say it's the BEST firearm I've ever owned, it's pretty hard to beat HK, but it IS in the top 5 and it will stay and be carried until I'm carried.

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by berettabone View Post
    I own an MK from about the same year. I've been carrying it since legal and feel the same way. I will never sell it. I won't go as far as to say it's the BEST firearm I've ever owned, it's pretty hard to beat HK, but it IS in the top 5 and it will stay and be carried until I'm carried.
    Good point regarding HK. I just picked up a P2000sk with the LEM trigger that is currently at the gunsmith to lighten the trigger a bit further. I've only put about 120 rounds through it so far, but it certainly has earned my respect to date. I appreciate the rugged beauty of it, and it seems very well-built and reliable. As you said, assuming the HK continues to function perfectly and as I grow more accustomed to it at the range, both it and the Kahr deserve top-of-the-list honors.

  5. #5
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    Mar 2016
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    Quote Originally Posted by boscobarbell View Post

    I put about 100 rounds through each pistol, and I left the range convinced once again that the MK9 may be the finest handgun I've ever owned. The PPS is a fine pistol, but the Kahr (at seven yards) just flat-out ran circles around it. Long but buttery trigger, amazing recoil management (with +P ammo!), great hand feel, and a ragged hole in the target where all the rounds went...a grouping 1/2 the size of the Walther's.

    I will NEVER get rid of this pistol...I am convinced that not only my son but also my future grandchildren will own and appreciate this fine, heirloom quality weapon. Time for some TLC...I'm going to shop around for some good night sights, and I'll also buy a decent hybrid IWB since that's become my preferred carry method. To celebrate my range day, I came home and reinstalled its wooden grips...this time with some pretty 1911 grip screws.

    Darn, she is one pretty girl.
    I had almost the same experience, but I came closer to the precipice than you did. Mine's a newer MK9 Elite 03, which had sat in the safe for a while wearing its Crimson Trace laser grips. Finally, I decided to sell it, and put it up for consignment with a pretty high asking price. I thought about that gun every day for a week, and one morning I woke up and thought, "I've got to get that gun back today."

    I drove over to my LGS and it hadn't sold. This being California I had to go through the whole procedure of registering it again as if it was a new gun, and had to endure the new-purchase 10-day wait as well. When I got it back I took it home, cleaned it, removed the laser grips and installed the beautiful wood grips that Kahr sells. Took it to the range, and...handgun perfection. It fits my hand perfectly, is perfectly balanced, and shoots lights out. I won't even THINK of selling it again.

  6. #6
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    Well my MK9 with wood is also sitting in the safe. After reading these stories I will get it back out for some range time.

    As for a holster, the best one I have found and own is the Garret Silent Thunder IWB, it fits the gun perfectly and holds its shape so you can reholster the gun without looking and it has a nice firm grip and very easy draw.
    Last edited by Ikeo74; 12-23-2017 at 08:26 PM.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Ikeo74 View Post
    Well my MK9 with wood is also sitting in the safe. After reading these stories I will get it back out for some range time.

    As for a holster, the best one I have found and own is the Garret Silent Thunder IWB, it fots the gun perfectly and holds its shape so you can reholster the gun without looking and it has a nice firm grip and very easy draw.
    Funny you should mention Garret. I own a couple of Silent Thunder Solos for other pistols, and on a whim I tried my my MK9 in one of them. Bingo! Perfect fit! The Kryptek pattern even compliments the wooden grips. I wore it around town the other day while Christmas shopping, and it really disappears on the waist. With my bull hide belt, the weight isn't an issue, either.

    Garret holsters aren't cheap, but the quality is unmatched and they are the most comfortable I've ever owned.

  8. #8
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    I never used to be an IWB kind of guy but now wear a Garrett Silent Thunder near all the time. I'm still fond of my Mernickles for OWB but find the Garrett convenient and very comfortable. The beauty of leather inside and a hard shell out.
    In Memory of Paul "Dietrich" Stines.
    Dad: Say something nice to your cousin Shirley
    Dietrich: For a fat girl you sure don't sweat much.
    Cue sound of Head slap.

    RIP Muggsy & TMan

    "If you are a warrior legally authorized to carry a weapon and you step outside without that weapon, then you become a sheep, pretending that JOCKO will not come today."

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by OldBoldPilot View Post
    I had almost the same experience, but I came closer to the precipice than you did. Mine's a newer MK9 Elite 03, which had sat in the safe for a while wearing its Crimson Trace laser grips. Finally, I decided to sell it, and put it up for consignment with a pretty high asking price. I thought about that gun every day for a week, and one morning I woke up and thought, "I've got to get that gun back today."

    I drove over to my LGS and it hadn't sold. This being California I had to go through the whole procedure of registering it again as if it was a new gun, and had to endure the new-purchase 10-day wait as well. When I got it back I took it home, cleaned it, removed the laser grips and installed the beautiful wood grips that Kahr sells. Took it to the range, and...handgun perfection. It fits my hand perfectly, is perfectly balanced, and shoots lights out. I won't even THINK of selling it again.
    Phew...close call! I'm glad you didn't make a move you'd forever regret.

  10. #10
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    Jul 2016
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    The MK9 really is nice to shoot. I have quite a few Kahr products and the MK9 and K9 are my favorites to shoot. The K9 is just a bit easier at the range, of course, but the MK9 will put rounds into one ragged hole all day long, which lots of guns its size cannot do.

    I've also shot a PPS M2, and while it is definitely a nice pistol, and I would have no problem trusting it with my life, the MK9 smokes it in the accuracy department.

    However, my EDC is a CM9. Ounces equal pounds and all that. I use the MK9 as a range trainer for the CM9....

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