With seven decades of rifle manufacturing behind them, you might think Anderson Manufacturing would continue to stick to what they know best. But then they came out with the Kiger 9C, the compact polymer pistol that brought them into an entirely different market. The Anderson Kiger 9C is a gun that’s been met with skepticism by many—and understandably so—but it’s also one that’s done surprisingly well. So, just how good is the Kiger 9C? Check it out.
Why Did Anderson Make a Handgun?
It’s not a shock Anderson wants a piece of the defensive handgun market, and that’s why the Kiger 9C became a thing. Unlike some companies that jump into handguns with full-size firearms, Anderson went the compact route right off. Keeping it polymer helps hold down the price point while simultaneously cutting overall weight and increasing durability. As a first-time entry into defensive handguns, it’s well thought out.
Anderson Kiger 9C Size
The exact dimensions and specifications of the Kiger 9C matter because we all know different manufacturers have varying ideas when it comes to size. Just because it’s compact doesn’t mean it fits the idea of compact you might have in your head. However, in this case, it’s a neatly designed compact. The pistol has a 3.91-inch barrel length, an overall length of 7.35 inches, and an overall width of 1.26 inches. It weighs 1.2 pounds empty and about 1.8 pounds when it’s loaded to its 15 +1 capacity.
Grip and Slide
Anderson checked the necessary feature boxes when it made the Kiger 9C. As its name implies, it’s chambered in 9mm, the current king of the self-defense handgun world. The grip is aggressively textured on either side—so aggressively that you can count on it to stay put even if your hands are sweaty. Ridges cover the backstrap and frontstrap and there are no finger grooves. Whether or not the grip length results in a dangling pinky is going to depend on your hand size—it isn’t an issue for me, and I do have large hands for a woman. The odds are good it’ll fit you just fine.
Deep, angled serrations are located at the front and back of the slide, allowing manipulations however you see fit. Of course, if you’re going to rack the slide from the front, take care to use the proper technique and do so safely. The trigger guard has blunted yet sharply turned edges, giving it a squared-off design rather than a rounded one. There’s ridging on the underside and face of the trigger guard. For further grip potential, there are textured areas strategically placed on the frame under the slide.
Other Features
The gun ships with a white dot front sight and blacked-out, notched, drift adjustable rear sight. Interestingly, Anderson made those factory iron sights extremely low-profile, which can contribute to making the gun lower risk for snagging, but it might also cause some issues acquiring targets.
Other features include an accessory rail for lights and lasers ahead of the trigger guard, an extended beavertail to encourage a high grip, and Diamond Like Carbon (DLC) treatment on the barrel and slide. This is a striker-fired, lock breech, short-recoil operated pistol that doesn’t have an external thumb safety but instead features a series of internal safeties (and also a safety blade trigger reminiscent of Glock). It’s clear thought went into the gun’s design, but how does it shoot?
Shooting the Kiger 9C
As a compact, the Kiger 9C fits my hands well. There’s an undercut to the trigger guard that lets my fingers grip a bit higher, and that’s why the compact grip length doesn’t force my pinky to hang into midair. It’s not so wide that it’s difficult to hang onto and I’m able to get a comfortable grip on it whether one-handed or two-handed. I always say the thumb position and stance can vary depending on the gun—if I want the best possible performance, that is—and the Kiger 9C does great with the expected thumbs forward. If you like thumbs down, it’s doable, but it’s slightly awkward at least for me.
The trigger is decent quality and doesn’t have grit or stacking. It’s possible to feel the moment the trigger engages, but it isn’t problematic. The break is clean and the re-set is short. Overall, no complaints about the trigger, especially not at this price point. Felt recoil is a little sharper than you might expect for a compact 9mm which has something to do with the spring and design, but even so, it’s manageable. It’s a fairly well-balanced gun.
The Handgun’s Accuracy
As for accuracy, the Kiger 9C is a generally accurate gun, just not a precision handgun—and it isn’t meant to be. At close-quarters ranges, shots are accurate enough for defensive purposes. If you’re a fan of playing card drills, this gun can deliver a ragged one-hole group of 5 shots from 5 yards, but it’s better if you don’t time it. Although rapid target acquisition is possible, your group will open up. At 10 yards you can get a five-shot group around 1.5 inches and at 25 yards it opens up to 4.0 inches and more. It isn’t an ammo finicky gun and hasn’t had issues changing bullet weights. Unsurprisingly it does its best with 147-grain ammo.
A few downsides—the sight height isn’t desirable and does negatively impact rapid fire. Also, the slide lock is basically flush to the gun. It isn’t impossible to use, but it is challenging. The magazine release is one-sided, which isn’t unusual, but with the undercut of the trigger guard your top finger can—will—stop the mag release from functioning. Because of that, you might find you can’t easily drop a magazine without shifting your grip. It all depends on your finger size and grip strength.
Is the Kiger 9C Compatible With Glock Parts?
This is the question everyone is asking, and the answer is yes—mostly. The Kiger 9C is compatible with many Gen 3 Glock 19 parts. It can take standard aftermarket Glock 19 iron sights, which is important for many reasons. The first thing you’re going to do when you get your Anderson pistol is swap out those sights. Internal components also match the Gen 3 Glock 19, making this a nicely user-serviceable and customizable handgun.
Kiger 9C Takes Glock Mags?
Yes, the Kiger 9C takes Glock 19 magazines. In fact, it ships with a Magpul GL9 PMAG. That makes it easy to get as many mags as you want from whatever source you prefer.
Kiger 9C In A Self-Defense Context
Yes, you could use this gun for self-defense. The hard and fast rule of defensive handguns is that they must be reliable, accurate, and comfortable to shoot. So far, the Kiger 9C has been reliable and hasn’t had any issues cycling a wide variety of 9mm ammo. In the past, I would’ve said you’d ideally run 3,000 to 5,000 rounds through a gun to ensure reliability, but that tends not to be as possible anymore. If you can run at least 500 rounds—150 or more of which should be your chosen defensive ammo—you can figure out reliability. Keep this gun lubed, because being lubed is more important than being sparkly clean.
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This is a great budget-friendly pistol from a somewhat unlikely source. It might not have the pleasing aesthetic or super-comfortable feel of some pistols, but at this price point, it’s fine. I’d suggest putting aftermarket sights on it, but beyond that, it’s good to go.
Specifications
Model: Kiger 9C
Manufacturer: Anderson Manufacturing
Caliber: 9x19mm Parabellum
Capacity: 15 +1
Action: Striker-fired
Barrel length: 3.91-inches
Total length: 7.35-inches
Overall width: 1.26-inches
Overall height: 5.175-inches
Weight: 1.25 pounds, empty; 1.8 pounds, loaded
Frame material: Polymer
Slide material: 416 stainless steel
Safety: Internal safeties and safety blade trigger
MSRP: $429.00
Learn more on Anderson’s website here.
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