New gun

[victorj]

Here is my problem. I have been saving up for quite a while to buy myself a nice Christmas present, yes I did say Christmas and if you don't like that then I am sorry for you. But I digress, I have been saving up for a Kimber in 1911 45. The other day i was talking to a guy I work with and he told me that I should not get a Kimber because they were to picky what they would shoot well and to difficult to maintain. He just recently bought a H and K and was telling me how much better they were than Kimber. He even said I would like a Sig better than the Kimber?? So what do you think???? I have been saving and he went and rained on my parade. I would really appreciate any input you might have. Thanks for reading and once again Merry Christmas and "I guess" Happy Holidays too!!!

[6.5s4ever]

Victorj, If I were you I would buy the Kimber, There is no way you will ever regret that purchase. They are the top of the line in 45 ACP pistols . Dont let anybody tell you any different! And a MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU!!!!!! Enjoy!

[TreeDoc]

Tell your friend that if you wanted any more smoke blown up your ass that you'de be at home with a pack of smokes and short length of hose.

As for the Kimber? Ehhh! They're good....sometimes. They usually look real nice though. I've seen a few of their $2000 match guns crap out like a $2 dollar pistol. That however, could happen to most any gun I suppose it's just their customer service that sucks....BIG TIME. I know several people that had the high dollar models that finally gave up on 'em. IMO, they're overrated and over-priced when you compare what else is out there.

If it's a Kimber you want, then a Kimber you should have. The 2 guns he compares them to are not even in the same league, nowhere close. The H&K and the Sigs ARE good, dependable guns but he's comparing apples to oranges. Everyone should have at least one good 1911 in their inventory.

That's my nickle's worth of free advice.

[BILLY D.]

victorj,

my bs meter pegged again. tell your friend? he is as full of crap as christmas goose. the kimber is a great pistol. i,ve got the match target and it is a great firearm. it eats every thing i feed it.

if you are considering a 22 conversion unit i would go with the marvel. if you can't shoot a one holer with it you might want to practice a bit more. they cost a little more than the kimber but they are well worth it. extremely well made.

i agree with tree doc about the match pistols to some degree. their tolerances and maching are so rigorous some will not shoot every kind of load or every bullet type well. they can be finicky in that respect. the folks that i have talked to at the range that have standard kimbers have voiced no complaints that i've heard.

good luck, merry christmas and a happy new year.

[Rapier]

Victor,
Go buy yourself the Kimber.... If it isn.t the best single stack 1911, it is so close that the #1 has Kimber's hands in both front pockets and hot breath on the back of the neck.....
Ed

[RUMLUVER]

I had a Kimber TLE Ten II high cap .45 once and was not inpressed I took it out for the first time and it jammed horribly over and over. It did it with factory and reloaded ammo it would not feed truncated bullets at all. I sent it back to Kimber and was not impressed with thier service at all. When it arrived to them I got a letter stating when they predicted my pistol to be back in my possesion and it took 3 weeks longer than they stated. I was most dissapointed when my gun shop called them and Kimber told them the pistol had been shipped we waited and it never arrived so they called again 1 week later then they said they just got done test firing it that day and would send it the next day! I got it back with a list of what had been done then took it into the basement of my gun shop and did my own test firing it worked. It was an accurate pistol with a smooth trigger and it fed better after the work was done but still jammed once in a while so I traded it back to the gun shop and bought a Para Ordinace TAC FOUR and have never looked back it is stainless steel that has been smoothed out for concealed carry and has the best DA trigger pull I have ever felt! I feel through my personal experience that I'm better served with my new pistol. It is just as accurate as the Kimber the trigger is as good as it gets and it doesn't jam. I don't think Kimber is bad but I feel Para is just beeter for me.

[Adam Helmer]

Victor,

Most times the "Free" advice a buddy gives you about guns is worth what it costs! If the friend is a knowledgeable fellow, he is ONLY talking about a certain gun, or two, he has owned. This is like the age-old question about "Which rifle is the most accurate out-of-the-box?" Well, it depends on which box the gun came out of!

As firearms coordinator for 100+ agents in the past, I can tell you I have seen good and bad Smiths, Colts (revolvers) and after the change over to semis, both good and bad Glocks, Rugers and Berettas. Place your money and take your chances on a mass produced product akin to an autmobile; we all hear about "Lemons."

Adam

[Lycanthrope]

Kimbers are some of the tightest shooting 1911's for the money. The base models, however, shoot just as well as the "match" models and whatever new parkerizing/grip panel scheme they come up with every week. All new Kimbers are really tight. You do need about 500-1000 to smooth them up and get perfect reliability. They get a bad rap for this, but they shoot one hole groups...pick your poison. Get the barest one that fits you.

I currently have a couple Kimbers, but for out of the box reliability I think the STI Trojan is a much better pistol. My carry piece is a Compact Aluminum Stainless Series I that has been trouble free. It has about 3000 through her. The Series II Eclipse Target II I have was plagued with problems such as the rear sight blade shearing while firing, the tritium in the rear bar going dim and the series II plunger breaking twice in dry fire. I eventually ripped that out. The weak link in the Schwartz safety is how the grip safety is set up. If the grip safety is set up to disengage with just the slightest movement you can drop the hammer before the series II firing pin block is out of the way fully. This will hammer the FP block over time causing it to break...or cause light primer strikes.

The Polymer frames for Kimber were made by Bul and are notorious for never running right. The mags were really expensive as well.

Being an IDPA SO, I've also seen a lot of the newer external extractor guns have problems. The first runs had the external extractor notch cut out of the frame where the hammer strikes the firing pin. The slide would crack there. The newer guns no longer have this machined out. I also know of at least one gun that was sent back a couple times and then fitted with an internal extractor by Kimber (not by customer request). The gun runs now. This isn't internet rumor, the shooter lives in Ohio near me....

So..being that it seems to be hit or miss with Kimbers, I'd currently go with the STI (or maybe a Dan Wesson). The 1911 is still one of the easiest and fastest guns to shoot and you won't be sorry.

[victorj]

Hi again, thanks for all of the input. I am definitely still leaning toward a kimber but I may take my time and see what else is around. No one up here has what I want right now. Plus I am going to be down in the Denver area for the first month and a half of 06 so maybe I will look in some shops down there and see what they have. Again thanks for all of the input!

[sgtrock]

Hi Guys
I guess this is as good a place to jump in, if I may.
Just my 2 cents worth, of what I know, which is'nt alot.
My first handgun I bought and still have is a Springfield, loaded model, off the shelf, .45, I love it, I think I paid around 780.00 including tax. I, like so many of you, did my home work on what I wanted. I shot quite a few friends guns but, none had a 1911, or a .45, I did shoot one a few times in the military, but was not an officer, so I did not carry one. But I sure liked the feel of them, they just fit my hands so good. And now I own 3 of them, the other 2 are both Dan Wesson's one is off the shelf, one is custom made by the guys at DW which is now DW/CZ. They are both in 10mm, I fell for the ballistics of the 10. it is some snotty cartridge.
My DW's did not cost as much as a Kimber but they still do have hiccups like all 1911's will. I reload for everything I have except for 9mm and 40s&w[cheap buy on these], any ways, It took me a little restlin around to get my reloads to function properly. All 3 are different in what they like. It does keep it interesting. I say buy what you like, I jumped on the Springfield, because it felt nice in my hands , price, plus I wanted a .45. I will how ever stay away from the really cheap stuff out there. I do have a piece of junk that I wittle on so I don't touch my good guns with my dremel tool though. pretty long post I know. Thanks for time. sgtrock