lmacrichter
Member
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- Aug 18, 2014
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Any thoughts + or- on this pistol?
Khar 380
- Thread starter lmacrichter
- Start date
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getoff
Member
i work at a LGS and have heard quite a bit of complaining about the break in on these. 200-300 rounds is the norm. i'd add that to the msrp before i bought it. fine little gun though...
LVSteve
Member
All Kahrs seem to require a fair amount of break in.
rck281
Member
Love mine. Actually has sights you can see and a slide hold open when empty. You do have to get used to the long trigger pull. Owned a Kel-Tec and a Ruger LCP before the Kahr. No need to look further.
Own 2 P380's, one I purchased new and one used.
The plusses … it is a true pocket gun, decent sights, one of the better triggers on a gun this size, and locks back open. Fun to shoot and can shoot well with it. Kahr stood behind their product. Running well now and both are reliable with the 6 round magazines.
Minuses … Both required trips back to Kahr to get them running right even after the break in. The new one they just grooved and polished the feed ramp a little. The used one they replaced parts and swapped off a magazine. They are finicky with the 7 round magazines. You can torque the 7 rd. mag extension and throw the next round down into the feed ramp and get a failure to feed with some ammo. So I only carry the 6 round mags. My wife did not like the Kahrs … slide stop too sharp, slide too stiff and hard to jack with its small size.
Anecdotally, after the break in, I seem to see less complaints on the CW380 than my own and others experience on the P380.
After resolving all this, I like them. I pocket carry one often.
The plusses … it is a true pocket gun, decent sights, one of the better triggers on a gun this size, and locks back open. Fun to shoot and can shoot well with it. Kahr stood behind their product. Running well now and both are reliable with the 6 round magazines.
Minuses … Both required trips back to Kahr to get them running right even after the break in. The new one they just grooved and polished the feed ramp a little. The used one they replaced parts and swapped off a magazine. They are finicky with the 7 round magazines. You can torque the 7 rd. mag extension and throw the next round down into the feed ramp and get a failure to feed with some ammo. So I only carry the 6 round mags. My wife did not like the Kahrs … slide stop too sharp, slide too stiff and hard to jack with its small size.
Anecdotally, after the break in, I seem to see less complaints on the CW380 than my own and others experience on the P380.
After resolving all this, I like them. I pocket carry one often.
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I had a Kel-Tec P3AT & hated the trigger and sights. I sold the Kel-Tec and compared the Ruger LCP and the Kahr P380 and bought the Kahr ......the Kahr is worth the extra $ IMO......the trigger is nice for a pocket pistol as are the sights. As far as the break-in....it's been my experience that most of the pocket pistols need to be broken in to some degree.
It's what I carry 90% of the time ....... it's just so easy to slip it (with the Nemesis pocket holster) into my pants pocket.
Don
It's what I carry 90% of the time ....... it's just so easy to slip it (with the Nemesis pocket holster) into my pants pocket.
Don
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I have a P380 and I have had no problems with it firing any type of ammo. I have about 400 rounds thru it in training and qualifications. It has decent sights and trigger pull that allow quals on a full course. The mag does have to be stripped from the firearm as mine does not drop free.
JaPes
Member
I own the Kahr CW380. Less machining on the slide, MIM slide stop lever, traditional lands and groove rifled barrel equals affordable buy in price. It has usable sights and last round hold open. A pocket .380 compromises capacity, power/velocity, and overall comfort for conceal-ability. Out of all the pocket .380's, the Kahr CW380 both my intended use and me best. It doesn't mean it's the best for you.
If you do choose a Kahr P380 or CW380, I do have a few tips.
1. Inspect the one that is getting logged on the 4473. Rack the slide a few times. A brand new Kahr CW380 will have just a hint of drag. Make sure it doesn't feel like it has alot of drag when racking the slide. Take a good look at the feed ramp. If it don't feel right, politely ask to see a different one.
2. When you get it home, give it a good field strip and clean. Give it a light lube.
3. Kahr states a break in of 200 rounds. I don't know about your area, but 200 rounds of .380 isn't easy to find in a bricks-and-mortar store. .380 FMJ's cost more than 9mm. There's also the issue of RN v.s. Flat Point. Do yourself a favor.
I repeated for a total of 1000 times over a couple evenings while watching TV. I then field stripped the gun and wiped down everything with a lubed patch.
4. To chamber a round, do not rack in a round like normal. Lock the slide to the rear. Insert mag. Use the slide stop lever to release the slide. Doing it any other way will induce failure (at least it always does for me).
5. Hold onto the pistol with a firm grip. Trust me.
On the first range trip, I fired 200 rounds: RN, RNFP, JHP. I had no problems. The added bonus of hand cycling and dry firing the pistol 1000 times is that it smoothed out the trigger. One last piece of advice. If you can, don't shoot 200 rounds over a single hour range session like I did. At round 120, it became a truly miserable and painful experience.
Good luck.
If you do choose a Kahr P380 or CW380, I do have a few tips.
1. Inspect the one that is getting logged on the 4473. Rack the slide a few times. A brand new Kahr CW380 will have just a hint of drag. Make sure it doesn't feel like it has alot of drag when racking the slide. Take a good look at the feed ramp. If it don't feel right, politely ask to see a different one.
2. When you get it home, give it a good field strip and clean. Give it a light lube.
3. Kahr states a break in of 200 rounds. I don't know about your area, but 200 rounds of .380 isn't easy to find in a bricks-and-mortar store. .380 FMJ's cost more than 9mm. There's also the issue of RN v.s. Flat Point. Do yourself a favor.
- No magazine anywhere nearby.
- No ammo anywhere nearby.
- Manually cycle the slide
- Pull Trigger
- Repeat
I repeated for a total of 1000 times over a couple evenings while watching TV. I then field stripped the gun and wiped down everything with a lubed patch.
4. To chamber a round, do not rack in a round like normal. Lock the slide to the rear. Insert mag. Use the slide stop lever to release the slide. Doing it any other way will induce failure (at least it always does for me).
5. Hold onto the pistol with a firm grip. Trust me.
On the first range trip, I fired 200 rounds: RN, RNFP, JHP. I had no problems. The added bonus of hand cycling and dry firing the pistol 1000 times is that it smoothed out the trigger. One last piece of advice. If you can, don't shoot 200 rounds over a single hour range session like I did. At round 120, it became a truly miserable and painful experience.
Good luck.
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Stevie
Member
My wife has a pink-framed Kahr P380..bought new and has always ran perfectly if you can keep your thumb off the slide-stop lever during recoil.
The big slide-stop lever is the only reason I bought a Glock 42...the Glock being enough bigger that I can shoot it without having to worry about accidently locking the slide open.
Both the Kahr P380and the Glock 42 have a online history of issues...but for us..just hasn't been so. Of course take either pistol out brand-new and shoot every brand of .380 ammo known to mankind...and come home heart-broken because either gun wouldn't feed 'brand-X' hollowpoints or 'type-Y' steel-cased cheap ammo....I started both pistols on a diet of domestic round-nose ball ammo and made sure they got shot a bunch...
The big slide-stop lever is the only reason I bought a Glock 42...the Glock being enough bigger that I can shoot it without having to worry about accidently locking the slide open.
Both the Kahr P380and the Glock 42 have a online history of issues...but for us..just hasn't been so. Of course take either pistol out brand-new and shoot every brand of .380 ammo known to mankind...and come home heart-broken because either gun wouldn't feed 'brand-X' hollowpoints or 'type-Y' steel-cased cheap ammo....I started both pistols on a diet of domestic round-nose ball ammo and made sure they got shot a bunch...
shamelessinct
Member
I went through two Kel Tec P3AT's and a Ruger LCP. All worked fine in their role as back up gun. About six months ago I sold the LCP and bought a Kahr CW380 to match the Kahr PM 40 that had become my EDC. I fired 100 rounds of FMJ reloads through it before shooting 25 rounds of Winchester Ranger HPs. It has yet to malfunction. It carries just as well as the KelTec or the Ruger and shoots more accurately than either of it's predecessors. YMMV
I ran a course today with my P380 and identified why I had to strip the mag to reload. I was releasing the release button while my fat little hand was blocking the mag from dropping more than 1/2 inch. My fault. When I concentrate on keeping my hand clear, it drops.
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