HK CC9
HK may have been late to the party, but the wait was worth it
HK CC9! Heckler and Koch’s Concealed Carry 9mm auto pistol is here at last, an entry in today’s most competitive defensive handgun space, a “micro” that holds a double-digit round count of full power 9mm Parabellum. One HK exec has been quoted as saying that his company is late to this particular dance but has brought the prettiest girl.

Admittedly, it’s hard to find anything “pretty” in a pistol of this type; rather, its beauty is in its function and features.
The CC9 is carry optic compatible; my test gun came from On Target already wearing a Holosun SCS Carry-GR (“green reticle”). Ergonomic grasping grooves are found fore and aft on the slide. If you’re comfortable with iron sights, the CC9s are excellent: a generous square notch rear and big front sight complete with a glowing green night module.

This pistol is thoroughly ambidextrous, with both slide stop/slide release lever and magazine release buttons present on either side. Little but important details have been addressed. We find little stippled finger pads molded into the polymer frame above and ahead of the trigger guard on each side of the frame: on one side, to give the trigger finger a felt index of where it should be when the gun is drawn but not about to be fired and on the other side, for the support hand thumb to keep it the hell off the slide, helping to cure a common shooter error. There are wisely placed indents found on the bottom edges of the frame and edges of the magazine floorplate to help rip a depleted magazine out if the little finger blocks a clean mag ejection, which happens commonly with such short-butt pistols. It has interchangeable backstraps, a feature almost expected today on such guns, which, if I recall correctly, was popularized by HK’s own USP service pistol introduced in 1993. It is barely over six inches long, just under an inch in width, and with the Holosun mounted and magazine removed weighs just over nineteen ounces on my calibrated scale. In “free states,” it comes with one ten-round mag for maximum concealment and a twelve-rounder; I suspect there will be a pair of ten-rounders if you buy in a state that mandates the same. Oh, and there is a mounting rail for a small white light or laser attachment.

The CC9 in Action
Heckler and Koch avers that this pistol, made in the USA, has passed all the relevant drop safety tests with a round in the chamber. I’ll take their word for it. The tabbed trigger was measured for weight with a Lyman digital trigger pull gauge and averaged six pounds on the nose. Good for a street trigger and well within spec for striker-fired pistols like this one intended for use in hands that are under stress. The pull has a good, moderately light take-up before it hits “the wall” of resistance, followed by a very short, consistent roll and a clean break. From a Matrix rest on a concrete bench at 25 yards, the test CC9 put five rounds of Remington-UMC 147 grain jacketed truncated cone ammo into 2.95”, with four of those in 2.80” and the best three in 1.45”. Round nose full metal jacket 124 grain American Eagle was consistent with that: 2.95” again for all five, four in 2.85” and the best three in 1.75″. The 115-grain Federal +P+ 115 jacketed hollow point went somewhat larger but still close enough for general self-defense needs. That “best three” measurement seems to factor out enough human error to equal what a machine rest would produce for all five.
Recoil was very easy to manage. Reliability was 100% across the board. We didn’t get into four-figure round counts, but those who have are reporting the same reliability.

Perks and Quirks
HK reliability is something you can take to the bank, and it appears that the CC9 will continue that tradition. I really appreciated those finger/thumb memory pads and the ambi mag release. This gun appears capable of sub-two-inch accuracy at 25 yards, twice as good as the oft-quoted service pistol standard of four inches at that distance. “Trigger reach” was excellent.
The mounting of the Holosun optic did block the use of the iron sights as a backup. A heavy recoil spring, which probably contributed to the CC9’s very controllable recoil, made the slide difficult for weak hands to rack.

Packed with features, carrying a legacy of confidence-creating reliability and build quality, the HK CC9 pistol at $699 MSRP has earned its 2024 On Target Editors’ Choice Award. See it at your nearest HK dealer, or for more information, contact Heckler & Koch; Tel.: (706) 568-1906; E-mail: [email protected]; Web: www.hk-usa.com — Massad Ayoob
Specifications:
Caliber: 9mm
Barrel Length: 3.32 Inches
Slide: Steel
Frame: Polymer
OAL: 6.03 inches
Weight: 18.40 Ounces
Capacity: 12+1
MSRP: $699