Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Need 9mm CCW recommendation

What say ya'll as to the best 9mm single stack on the market, or even discontinued?

I have several .45's, but have an itch for a smaller 9. Thinking Sig or maybe the new XD-S by Springfield.

I would like to hear of your experiences with yours both good and bad. Accuracy, ease of takedown and cleaning, ergos, etc...

Appreciate in advance all the help here on the Fire.

Don't know that it's the best, but the 9mm S&W M&P Shield is worth a look.

The S&W Shield runs away with the small single stack 9mm CCW niche in my opinion.

Springfield EMP, they are kinda spendy.

I want a Sig 938 myself.

But I'm a 1911 fan so...

There are some dandies and I like the XDs, Shield, and Walther PPS. Smaller perhaps the PM-9.

The issue I had with the Shield is that the safety magically engages when I carried it. I like the Shield but I cannot put up with the safety on it, just my personal issue.

On other handguns like my Glock 27 and others I've had the mag release get activated and the mag comes unlatched. No good.

Finally I have went to the overpriced Walther PPS and those issues are nonexistant as it has no safety, the paddle style mag release better retains the mag and there are no retention issues with it. The trigger guard is large and fits my larger style hands much better as does the large backstrap insert.

This is just my experiance from as an common joe type, and I'm certain others will have varying and different experiances.

Near perfect is the Kahr P9. Only possible drawback is that the mag release can be engaged accidentally under recoil due to the grip frame not possessing a raised section to guard against this. The S&W M&P Shield does have a frame with such a raised section, but it has the equally bad drawback of possessing a thumb safety that appears not to have been designed to be used, and shouldn't even be there, since it's not a single action auto pistol to start with, thus doesn't need a thumb safety. Just something else that can go wrong at the worst possible moment.

Consider the S&W 3913. The other recommendations are good too.

There are so many good single-stack compact 9mm's these days. But they vary a lot in trigger style and grip shape. The question is - what kind of trigger are you comfortable with and what fits your hand?

After all these years (mine was one of the first generation), I still have no complaints about the Kahr K9.

The Kahr 9 has excellent ergonomics and it's feather light.

I did have a Kahr 9, which I traded for a S&W J frame. Just never much cared for the trigger. Great gun otherwise, just not my cup of tea I suppose.

Been thinking hard on a Sig, but not sure if they have a single stack or not. Would love to see them do a P232 in 9mm one day.

They have the P239 that's single stack, but it's rather large for the type. It's also a traditional double action auto, which some don't like.

Gonna have to go to a shop and log some fondling time I suppose.

Think they will get pissy if I dry fire a half dozen guns or so?

I fnd that interesting, because I can go back and forth between the K9 and the J-frame without any real difference. The triggers are pretty similar in feel. What is it about the Kahr that you didn't like? Was it a micro?

BTW - any gun shop that won't let you dry-fire a centerfire handgun (using safe practices, of course) doesn't deserve your money. If you can't inspect the gun - including feeling the trigger - you might as well be buying online.

That's how I see it, too.

I remember trying a friends K9 that was one of the very first made. It was a blued version and the trigger was a little rough. By the time they brought out the electroless nickel version (which mine was), they had that fixed and it was "S&W smooth". All the newer versions I have tried have been the same or better.

Kahr fills the 9mm slot in my rotation.

Mine was a P9 as I remember it. Just a very heavy trigger, more so than my J-frames IMO.

Just never warmed to it, but I like 1911's and BHP's as well.

Now that Sig P239 looks interesting to me. Anyone have one and can speak about it?

The 239 I tried had a DA/Sa trigger (don't know if there are other options). I found the DA pull to be heavier than the Kahr, and I didn't care for the grip shape. They have a reputation for good accuracy and reliability though. I'd call it a personal preference, but I personally dislike DA/SA unless I can carry it C&L. I don't know if the 239 safety lends itself to that.

For the price range, if C&L is your cup of tea, I have heard good reports about the Springfield EMP.

Your Kahr must have been an odd one. I thought the P9 triggers I tried were a slight improvement over the original K-series (slightly shorter travel).

That is the one I would get if I was getting.