First and foremost there is the slide stop pin... It is junk. It is a simple plastic piece. I get nervous disassembling the gun for cleaning just because I think that the pin will break. I am doubly worried about shooting, because I always shoot +P rounds. This round is the same round that I use as my self defence round. I do this because I want to be intimate with how my gun handles with the ammunition that I will use on the street. These rounds throw the bullet just a bit harder than the normal ammo, so performance and placement is different. I want to make sure that I put rounds on target on the range and on the street, ESPECIALLY on the street.
Anyway, because I am using +P I need a pistol that can stand up to the abuse. I have an irrational fear that the pin will shear and I will end up with a slide in my forehead... I have read about problems with the pin shearing on the Mill Pro PT145s, but never embedding in any-one's brain box. Newton doesn't play that game.
Next, there is the accuracy of the pistol. I know that it takes time and practice to put rounds where you want them with any gun. BUT I have been able to make groupings with nearly every gun I have picked up since I was about 12 years old. Bullets should go to where you aim them. I realize that the short barrel length and the hot round sacrifice accuracy down range, but I can't make a grouping at 15 yards. Sure all are in the "center mass" area of the target, but Christ on a crutch I should be able to have something resembling a clover leaf at 12 freaking yards! I can put bullets through the same damn hole at 12 yards with a 1911, and I can't put two shots even close together with the PT145?? Somethings not right.
The gun I should have bought was the Kahr CW4545 or the Kahr PM4543. These pistols have the best reputation since Springfield started pumping out the 1911 model. Virtually everything I have read on these guns is positive. Rare negative comments are for chickenshit things, like feels too light, or I wish the slide was blued. Nothing ever about the performance, handling or accuracy.
Let's take a look:
Kahr CW4543
| Width: | 1.01 inches |
| Length (Overall): | 6.32 inches |
| Barrel Length: | 3.64 inches |
| Height: | 4.8 inches |
| Weight: | 19.7 Ounces |
| Capacity: | 6+1 |
| Price: | $400 |
Kahr PM 4543
| Width: | 1.01 inches |
| Length (Overall): | 5.67 inches |
| Barrel Length: | 3.25 inches |
| Height: | 4.49 inches |
| Weight: | 17.3 Ounces |
| Capacity: | 5+1 |
| Price: | $600 |
Taurus Millennium Pro PT 145
| Width: | 1.25 inches |
| Length (Overall): | 6.125 inches |
| Barrel Length: | 3.25 inches |
| Height: | 5.125 inches |
| Weight: | 22.2 Ounces |
| Capacity: | 10+1 |
| Price: | $240 |
The Taurus uses a double stack magazine, so it can hold nearly twice as many rounds as the Kahrs. That was a major selling point for me, because I did not want to have to carry a reload with me. With only 7 shots on board the CW and 6 on the PM, it might just be easier, and cheaper, to go with a revolver. I like the .45 ACP round, though, so screw that. On the other hand, what good is the extra rounds if you can't put them on target consistently. I would rather have fewer rounds and be accurate than a bunch of rounds and not hit anything.
Both the Kahrs are thinner, lighter, and shorter than the Taurus. These weapons are very easy to hide, and they won't pull my pants down like the Taurus does.
The Taurus was very inexpensive... that really held my attention. To get to be that cheap, the both sacrificed quality, accuracy, and labor costs (they are manufactured in Brazil). Kahrs are not cheap... They are not Kimber and HK expensive either. Kahrs are accurate, high quality, and are manufactured in the USA, so you pay a premium for what Americans will work for. They have the superior product, though.
I am kind of at an impasse... I have never shot either one of the Kahr pistols, so I have no idea if they are any better than the Taurus. The gun range around here does not have any Kahrs to rent either, so my purchase is essentially site unseen. If I want to put the time and effort in to getting approval to buy yet another pistol after purchasing one so soon, I really want it to be the gun I stick with for a long time.
I don't think that the gun I will stick with for a long time will be the Taurus. I simply don't trust it. Will I trust the Kahr?
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