KelTec PF9 opinions

I had a PF-9 for my EDC for several years. It was the first pistol I bought, and I only had one issue with it, and it was an ammo related failure. Finish was not great, the polymer grip needed a lot of sanding to make it comfortable to hold, and the addition of a Hogue Handall jr. sleeve helped tremendously. Mine had the parkerized finish, and while the finish was a little uneven, it was not too thin. I never had any problems with corrosion. The trigger pull, while heavy, was even, and without slop (I appreciated the heavy pull,though, on a pistol without a safety). I installed a Kel-Tec trigger shoe, which increases the surface area of the trigger, making the pull seem lighter because more of your finger is in contact with it.

The uber-thin design makes it a joy to carry. Once you get over the mental hurdle of "Oh man, I'm carrying a gun... can anyone see it?" you really can find yourself forgetting you have it on your hip, or in your pocket. It is a double-edged sword, though, in that if you have big hands (as I do), the snappy recoil can make it hard to hang on to. You get used to it, but it takes a bit of practice.

As a whole, I liked the PF-9, but I really am more of a wheelgun kind of guy. I eventually stopped carrying the KT in favor of a Ruger LCR, and recently I had the opportunity to trade the PF-9 for a S&W Model 60, which has become my new EDC.

After the NYsafe Act came into being this January I decided to move some guns around and pick up some new, NY relevant carry guns to try out. Two of those being a PF9 parkerized and a PPS 9mm. I have shot both quite a bit over the last few months. I believe the PF9 is going to become my "larger" pocket-carry gun from here on out. I am used to Kel-Tec products having owned a P11 and owning (and loving) a parkerized P32 for years. The PF9 is a good pistol for the money if it fills a need that you have. Mine has been 100% reliable with quality 115-125gr factory ammo, as well as my 147gr plated IDPA loads. I did run a mixed bag of crap (CCI Blazer alum case, old Wolf steel, Brown Bear) through it and my PF9 did not like it one bit. It also is not accurate with the 147gr hollowpoints that I prefer. Not an easy gun to shoot, and shoot well. Hard to hold on to with sweaty, oily, dirty range hands. Shooting the PF9 back to back with an XDs stoked with +P 230gr hollowpoints, the PF9 still seemed like a handful.

Pros: The trigger is not that bad for what it is, the sights are not that bad, it is small and flat, and it holds the NY maximum of 7+1 of a real caliber.

Cons: It is not fun to shoot, your friends will probably make fun of you for buying it, the rifling looks like a blind caveman rifled it and takes forever to clean.

I've owned three PF9s over the last few years and only had one problem, that being failure to extract issues with the most current one. I read a little on the internet forums and came up with a fix that worked for me and the gun has been 100% reliable since. It is lightweight, thin and very easy to carry. The recoil can be a little snappy but it is certainly not unmanageable. The sights and trigger pull are good for this type of gun. I like the gun a lot and it is priced right. I carry mine when I need a small gun and have confidence in it.

Now for the bad stuff. The internet is full of posters who have issues with their PF9s. Enough to dissuade a first timer from purchasing one. But if you are the kind of person who doesn't mind tinkering a little, even a faulty PF9 can usually be made to work reliably. It is a very simple gun, parts are cheap and often free from Kel Tec, and you can usually make parts replacement repairs yourself. I have some Glocks and find the PF9 about as easy to work on as them. PF9s are generally roughly finished, pretty basic firearms ( that's one of the things I like about them ) that you won't feel inclined to treat gently. If you have one of those infamous boating accidents and lose your PF9 to the fishes, you didn't have much tied up in it anyway.

I think it is best to use them just as they come from the factory. +1 magazines, special springs etc. often result in reliability issues.

i pickup a used one when they first came out for cheap. it was junk, would not shoot. no matter what i did to it. went back to kel tec for new slide and barrel. firing pin hole was off center. replaced all parts except frame and it still would not shoot a full mag without a problem. no matter the ammo. lite strikes and the mag would fall out after every two shots. i worked on this gun for several months and ran over 900 rounds trying to get it to fire one full mag. factory and my reloads, nothing but problems. then one day on the phone to kel tec talking to a nice lady, i was telling her my story. i made the statement that i changed every part except the frame and grip. she said she would send me a new grip and asked what color i wanted. i went back with black. three days later a new grip. quick change out and off to the back yard to fire some rounds. no problems!! now the gun can fire six mags as fast as i can pull the trigger and reload without any problems. pickup pop's trigger and the gun is even better. so, the short of it is the new pf9's with pop's trigger is a good way to go. my pf9 likes 115/124 gr ammo. will eat it up all day long. got around 1,500 plus rounds down range with this gun. it is not a range/target gun, but a carry, zero to ten feet gun.