Testfire: The 9mm Parabellum Kel-Tec PF-9 Pistol
Imagine a 9mm Parabellum pistol that is lighter and as small or smaller than most .32 ACP pocket pistols. Want one? Well, you can have one – because that is just what the Kel-Tec PF-9 is. A 14.5 ounce powerhouse only .880 inches thick, 5-3/4 inches long and 4-1/4 inches tail. Compare that to the famous Colt Model M .32 ACP at 24 ounces and 6-1/2 inches long or the Savage 1907 .32 at 19 ounces and 6-1/2 inches long and you will begin to appreciate just what has been done with this 9mm pistol.
Designed to be the smallest possible 9mm, it still is a practical general purpose pistol: not an easy feat to accomplish when dealing with extremes of size and concealability. The Kel-Tec will comfortably perform most anything asked of the average pistol.
While some will point out correctly that a larger, heavier gun is more controllable in rapid fire and steadier to aim and fire, the fact remains that there is always a place for the smallest possible gun. In the first place, there are many people who will not carry a full-size pistol every day and so end up unarmed when their lives depend on having a weapon.
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A .25 ACP Baby Browning in the hand is better than a Thompson submachinegun in the gunsafe when you are being attacked, and concealability is always easier in direct proportion to gun size and thickness. That’s why you don’t find people concealing Barrett .50 caliber rifles on their person, although the idea is not entirely without merit.
The PF-9 gobbled up 100 rounds of Remington and 40 rounds of Winchester Supreme hollowpoints without a hitch.
The more compact the pistol, the more options you have for different places and ways to conceal it. While we normally think of the .25 ACP when referring to vest pocket pistols, the fact remains that the 9mm PF-9 fits quite nicely in the modern vest pockets and it rides well concealed there. If it were any heavier, it would not.
When my old friend the late Geoffrey Boothroyd was asked by Ian Fleming what pistol his character James Bond should carry, Geoffrey said the Walther PPK. Ian repaid him by promoting the former private Boothroyd of WWII to Major Boothroyd, armorer to James Bond, in the James Bond series of books. Had the Kel-Tec been out then, I strongly suspect Geoffrey would have had James Bond carrying it instead of the Walther.
The PF-9 is a well-made, properly thought-out design that functioned with total reliability during my test firing. The gun is designed with places for dirt, fouling and miscellaneous debris to escape from the action so that it does not jam. There is a gap between the slide and part of the frame that will allow quite a bit of crud to get out at once – a desirable feature, because dirt always finds its way into guns but often is trapped there with no way to get out.
Get sand inside the lockwork of a revolver and you will find out just what I mean. It will lock up tighter than a bank vault until you disassemble it to get the sand out. Sadly, many automatics are even worse in this regard, but not the Kel-Tec.While you’re not likely to drop your PF-9 into a sand dune in the middle of the Sahara, it’s nice to know that it’s practically immune to pocket grit.
The PF-9 fits the hand weIl and does not recoil excessively. The recoil is a bit sharper than on a heavy full-size pistol but nothing that would bother women or children. That’s important because children need to grow up shooting and they don’t need a vicious kick or muzzle blast to discourage them while you are teaching them to enjoy shooting. The ergonomics of the grip and its texture combine to form a well-pointing gun that properly distributes the felt recoil across the hand comfortably.
The PF-9 has a double action trigger pull like a revolver instead of a safety. That is a very good way to go on a small hideout gun where you don’t need to waste time fumbling for a safety. The double action trigger pull is all the safety you need. The trigger requires the slide to be jacked to the rear to reset it so you won’t waste time repeatedly snapping on a misfire if you get a bad primer.
The PF-9’s trigger pull is light and can be held short just before the hammer falls when you are trying to shoot groups. I began my test session with 40 rounds of Winchester Supreme Elite 147-grain jacketed hollowpoints and 100 rounds of Remington 115-grain jacketed hollowpoints. These two loads are state-of-the-art, modern hollowpoints that give maximum explosive expansion with maximum weight retention.
They work very well on coyotes and other varmints, both four-legged and two-legged. I set up a target at 25 yards and began shooting from a sandbag rest. The gun was able to consistently make 2-inch groups, which of course is very good for this type of pistol and far better than most shooters are ever going to be capable of without a sandbagged rest.
After all, this is a defensive pistol designed for ease of carry and maximum concea!ability. Firing without the rest proved the gun was fast pointing and easily controllable in rapid fire. The sights are clear and weil defined without being so big that they get in the way.