In my quest for a pocket pistol, I have questions...

[Katygunnut]

I went through a number of guns in my personal quest.

I had a Kel-Tec PF-9, then a Taurus 709 Slim. Both were good choices, and would get the job done. Of these two, I liked the Taurus a bit better overall, but the Kel-Tec was more accurate.

I finally settled on a Kahr PM-9 and also a J-Frame. I rotate between these two. For my primary, I am usually carrying a G26 or a G19. I also have a Kel-Tec P3AT that I hardly ever carry, but it's nice to have for those days when I need a REALLY small gun.

If I had to choose one and only one pocket pistol, I would choose the Kahr over the J frame (but it would be close). The Kahr has been 100% reliable for me, is more accurate than the J-frame, and also has a higher capacity than the J frame. Plus the Kahr can be carried on my belt (IWB or OWB). The J-frame is too wide to carry in that manner as easily as the Kahr. Although, the J frame makes a great option for an ankle holster, plus there is something gto be said about the reliability of a revolver.

Surprisingly enough, the J frame is easier for me to conceal in my pocket. YMMV, but for me the curve of the grip helps it to just disappear in a way that the Kahr doesn't.

[xb12s]

For pocket carry my vote goes to the kahr. The pm9 will not be a fun range gun but it is not meant to be a fun gun to shoot.

The PM9 is not a "range gun" per se if you are target shooting. It is not unpleasant to shoot though. I can shoot through two boxes without any pain or whatever might discourage you from shooting a lot. I find shooting my Glock 22 (full size .40) more unpleasant than shooting my Kahr PM9.

[Dave2]

I'm probably going to go to the range this afternoon and see what I can rent from the list, so maybe I'll be able to update my own thoughts on the matter this evening.

Just like was often the case when played basketball as a kid, I forgot my follow-through...
It'll almost certainly be the Kahr or the PPS. Probably the PPS... The PM9 wasn't too bad, but I actually like shooting the PPS.

[xb12s]

Probably the PPS... The PM9 wasn't too bad, but I actually like shooting the PPS.

Which one YOU like is most important, assuming you can carry either comfortably.

[TexasCajun]

Of the many choices, I've shot three:

•Ruger LC9 — It's alright. I've never shot a gun which was so easy to not anticipate recoil with... mostly because it only actually fired about a third of the time... which in my mind isn't actually too bad considering that its firing pin had broken... I view it as kind of a wash. On the one hand, how do you break a firing pin? On the other, how does a gun with a broken firing pin go off at all? In any case, I've a poor record of remembering thumb safeties at the range, so its probably near the bottom of the list.
•Glock 26 — Not too bad. The "standard" Glock criticisms apply, plus, even for someone as big as I am, it seems a bit on the thick side for a pocket pistol. I think I could live with it as long as I can find ways to avoid sitting in well-lit areas, but realistically I think its thickness puts it next to the LC9.
•Walther PPS — By far my current favorite. If it weren't for its limited magazine capacity, I'd be ok with it for my EDC. Its recoil is a bit much for me to call it "fun to shoot", but not by much. Its mag release is a different than my current EDC's, but I'm probably going to switch that over to a PPQ anyway (my new favorite handgun). Also, I haven't had any trouble remembering weird mag releases in the past, either on the rented PPS or my S&W 22A (which is more than I can say about the thumb safeties on two of the handguns which I actually own), so I'm not too worried about it.

Still on my to-shoot list:

•Kahr PM/CM9 — I've heard so much good about them that I've almost bought a used PM9 twice, without first verifying that I like the way it handles.
•Sig P290 — Dry-firing one at the counter when they first came out, I really didn't like its trigger. The one at Gunmasters a week ago seemed to be a fair bit better than I'd recalled, so maybe they're ok now (or maybe it just takes a while for their triggers to smooth out).
•Sig P938 — the P238 is the only .380 I've shot that I actually liked, so maybe that's indicative of how I'll feel about its 9mm brother? I have a slight reservation about its reliability from a youtube review. I'll have to look it up again and check how long ago the guy made it. If it was back when they first came out, I'm sure Sig's got it taken care of by now. Either way, though, unless I just love this gun, its high cost and thumb safety make it probably my least likely choice.
•Beretta Nano — I know a guy who loves his, but... it seems a bit tall compared to its grip... like it'd have a lot of muzzle flip... might be trying to give me the "slip"... (I'm a poet and I didn't know it! )

I just went through a very similar excercise. I have access to a few indoor ranges that I can try-it-befor-I-buy-it in several calibers & platforms. I tried out the g26, pps, cm9 (also the cw9 to see if 1 round really makes a difference), and nano. The g26 fired well enough, but I figure if I'm going to carry a double stack I might as well go full-size. I don't like external safeties & levers so the Walther didn't really have much of a chance & I quickly moved it to the side since I really didn't like the overall feel of the gun. I couldn't seem to get it to sit right in my strong hand (ymmv). Since I've never liked any Sig that I've fired, that brings us to Kahr & Beretta. I thought I'd go through this excercise & end up with the cw9. The Kahr shot exactly like I expected a sub 9 to shoot - no problems hitting a target at defensive ranges, enough recoil to know that you're shooting a small frame gun & that you don't want to stay at the range all day with it, and controls where they should be.

But the Nano really surprised me. It fit & handled like it was made for me. There's not much muzzle flip & follow-ups are pretty decent. I've run about 200 rounds (115g-wwb to 147g-American Eagle) through the Nano & haven't had a problem. I'm planning on running about anoher 300 more higher-end sd before bringing it into rotation. I will warn you, though. Out of the box, the Nano has a heavy & long triger pull since there's no external safety. But it's not a huge obstical because of how the frame fits. It just takes a bit of getting used to. Once I finish my break in, I don't think I'll have any reservations about it.