Driving the Kahr - a Review of the PM40

There are few times I don't carry (I'll take my chances in the shower, I could always clobber them with the Irish Spring ). There are weapons I carry when where I'm going warrants some heavy iron, and then there are the "back up gun" days. When I'm comfortable with something smaller, lighter, that will conceal a little easier. A gun that's reliable,accurate and will preferably chamber a duty-caliber round. I love my Sig, S and W's and the XD's but I was wanting something a little bigger in caliber, while still remaining decently concealable.

Enter the Kahr PM40. It's ultra-compact without being wimpy, double action only (DAO), chambered in .40 S&W. For a long time my BUG was a S&W J Frame, (Speer GDHP 135gr +p) but when a friend bought one of these I had to try it, and liked it well enough to add to the "want to buy" list, though the S & W will always have first place in my heart.

When the first Kahr pistols appeared on the market in 1994 they were constructed entirely of carbon steel. The Kahr models such as the K9 were praised as being well-made and solidly constructed, but criticized for their excessive weight. Excess weight is a disadvantage in any weapon intended for concealed carry. Kahr took this in mind in refining the line, introducing pistols which were physically smaller, as well as a line of polymer framed models. The PM series combined both these approaches, introducing polymer framed pistols that were also the smallest Kahr models ever produced

This one came with a stainless steel slide, barrel, and trigger. The stainless slide is finished in a blackened matte that almost borders on satin. With the many stainless components corrosion or pitting on warm, sweaty days won't be too much of a problem. It does sport a somewhat heavy spring so when you rack the slide you will need to grip it and rip it.

With an empty magazine it's only about 17 ounces and is less than an inch thick. It shoots a lot like a Glock 27 but it’s even smaller and thinner. I put a S&W 642 on top for a size comparison and the PM40 is smaller than the J frame, (and thinner when you take the cylinder and grips on the J frame into consideration).

Caliber? It’s a 40 S&W! Of course, there will be lots of debate as to what is the best ammo for it, though the Federal HST in .40 is quite the potent round, solid in a compact gun.

Is this a fun gun to shoot? Well, it put holes exactly where I wanted on paper. That in and of itself is fun anytime, but I'd have to say not for use all afternoon long with this as a target gun. Give me my Sig or the 1911 or the new XDM, but it's fun enough to keep proficient in case

There is no external safety, the gun relying rather on that long trigger pull (think revolver). In an adrenalin situation, the fine motor skills are the first thing to go. Simplified controls are a positive attribute in my opinion and contribute to a desirable package for concealment use.

The trigger pull, though long, is silky smooth without being insubstantially light, but there's the matter of recoil. A little more than I imagined but quite manageable, if you're not going to shoot 100 rounds at a time through it. It's a light pistol with a high pressure cartridge, you're going to have recoil.

But the Kahr ergonomics are excellent and it's quite controllable. I'd say it was closest to the .38 special J-frame with heavy +P loads. If you're going to fire off a whole box of ammo, the web of your hand is going to smart. But that's not why I have it. It's lightweight, it's powerful, and it's small. It is also a gun you want to practice with. Like the .45 caliber variant it can have some gun handling challenges in rapid fire due to the heavier recoil and resulting muzzle rise, the same as about any small and light large bore pistol. Not an issue for an experienced shooter who practices.

Size Matters. About 5 and a half inches long and 4 inches high, it will fit under most of my shirts without obvious bulk. Kahr has done a bang up job in making a weapon that will fit perfectly in my delicate but large hand. If you've got, not big, but huge hands, this might not work, but this is for concealed right? Small concealed. If you have Shrek sized hands and want something that fits it perfectly you'd best look at a full-framed pistol. It's solid, and if you need to point it at someone, the look of it alone will get their attention more than that slim little Kel Tec.


The compact size of this piece makes it an excellent choice for carrying. It comes with two stainless magazines, one 5 rounder that is flush with the mag well and one 6 rounder that sticks out below the mag well with a place for your pinky to grip.

But if you try it and the grip just isn't going to work, even considering why you are carrying it, you might look elsewhere. This is not a gun you can mess around with your grip with. "Firm and relaxed" need not apply. You need to grip this gun like a snake with PMS. Hold On. After your first shot, when you realize that the recoil you expect is much more pleasant than something light weight in the .44 Magnum category (ow, ow ow) you might be inclined to smile and relax just a little. Don't. Hold on tight. You'll be surprised how well you can shoot right off the bat with a firm grip. It's also quite accurate, with a firm hand.

Straight out of the box I shot this target with my first magazine at about 30 feet. I bent my support hand a little more on the next round, but I was pleased. My range buddies didn't snicker at me either.

The only problem I had with it was when the gun was new. I place a loaded mag in the weapon and pulled the slide manually back and let it go. It did not go all the way into battery. I then went from slide locked back position and used the thumb release to chamber a round, and perfect! I think that was more a one time, being new thing, as after a few rounds through it it worked great, no misfeeds, misfires or jams. The manufacturer states that the gun is not to be considered to be reliable (aka broken in) until at least 250 rounds have been run through it, and I agree though 500 rounds was more like it. I did not have that problem again.

The sights? Bar-dot like my Sig. Easier to pick up than 3 dot in my opinion.


My only complaint is that slide release. The pistol is so small, and the release so sharp, I ended up away with painful gouges on my shooting hand thumb until I adjusted my grip a bit away from the frame. I don't know if it's enough that I'd want to take a file to those edges though.

As for price, well they are a tad expensive. They run between $660 and $700 for the full stainless one depending on where you get it. That's a lot of cash in today's economy for a back up gun and you could buy a couple of Bersa's for that amount. But you are paying for life long quality and although quite a few have been sold in the local gun stores you rarely see them come back in the used guns.

All in all, it's a super small, light, high quality, big caliber pistol that you can depend on. There are other guns out there in that category but this is one that I like. An excellent piece. . . . to support or reinforce.