The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - New Solo

Fargazer · August 26, 2011, 09:35 AM

Well, yesterday my Kimber Solo came in. Bottom line - I like it quite a bit. I'm going to focus on reliability and operation; there are plenty of places to go to if you are looking for fit and feel.

When I picked it up at my LGS over lunch, I brought along 2 boxes of American Eagle 147gr 9mm, as well as two boxes of Fiocchi 147gr (my normal practice ammo). I ran it through 75 rounds or so - a full box of the AE since that particular round is specifically on the recommended ammo list, then some of the Fiocchi.

I was expecting some minor issues in this initial session - after all, best practices say to clean and lubricate the gun first, and I was taking it straight out of the box - not because it was a Solo, but because I would with any gun straight off. I saw two things:

On occasion, the slide would not go forward all the way. This was usually on the first round of a magazine, and happened much more frequently on the Fiocchi round nose ammo than the American Eagle truncated nose.
The magazine release is stiff, and requires quite a bit of pressure on the button to do so - minimal risk of an accidental mag release. It was particularly difficult to operate when the slide had the above issue.

I purchased 2 extra magazines (and their last at the end of the session, for a total of three), and the slide issue happened regardless of magazine.

For me, precision was outstanding - at 3 yards, one big ragged hole. At 7 yards, a slightly more elongated ragged hold, a bit low and right. At 15 yards, I suck

- but consistently sucked a bit more low and right. Other shooters tended not be quite as consistent - probably because of recoil anticipation.

After work, I field stripped the gun - relatively smooth operation - and cleaned it with Militech-1; afterwards, I used a hair dryer to help bond the lubricant with the metal (something unique to Militech). I reassembled the gun, worked the slide about 30 times, and took it back to the LGS range for a second round. This time I took not only the remainder of the AE and Fiocchi ammo, but also a box of 50 Remington Golden Saber.

Right away I ran into an operator induced error - the gun's slide would lock open after every shot. This is covered in the owner's manual - it means that during reassembly, I did not put the slide stop under the retention spring. I cleared the gun, removed and replaced the slide stop, this time making sure the spring was in the proper place. You can tell by eye whether the spring is properly oriented - you just have to actually check it

.

I ran the Solo through about 50 rounds; a mix of AE, Fiocchi, and Golden Saber. I ran into the slide locking issue from lunchtime only once; on a hunch, I loaded the 6 shot magazines with only 5 shots, and I could not replicate the problem that way.

I did let a few other people shoot the Solo while I was at the range. None of the gun staff had any issue other than the first session, with the slide locking. One friend had a failure to feed (again, full mag), and after clearing the gun it shot fine.

I consider the initial set of shooting sessions with any gun "getting to know you" time; though I am happy with completely trouble free operations, I don't expect perfection immediately - particularly with a gun that specifies right in the manual any sort of "break in period". Overall, I"m pleased:

I think most if not all of the slide issues are actually magazine issues. I've heard of this before with new magazines, though this is the first time I've seen it in person. I've fully loaded the magazines, and will keep them loaded for a few weeks to see if that clears up the slide issues.
Remember for the initial session, I shot it out of the box; best practice is to field strip and lubricate first.
For the second session, the gun was a bit "wet" from lubrication - the manual specifically states the gun is designed to run relatively dry. After the shooting session, I wiped off excess lubricant, and just made sure the slide slots had a drop in each.

Other thoughts:

For me, the gun is quite precise; I'm just now finding what proper trigger finger placement is for the pistol to get better accuracy (right now I'm consistently low and right - other people have been right on target).
Recoil is stout, but not unbearable - significantly better than my LCR .357 even with .38s loaded. My hand started to feel uncomfortable after the first 75 round session. I'm going to try a Hogue HandAll Junior on it and see how that works.
The 3 dot sights are easily visible, and quick to line up.
I have both a holster from H.B.E. Leatherworks (Pro TL) and a Remora. The gun is extremely easy to conceal, either in the waistband or in the pocket (I wear pleated dark chinos).
Minor finish wear marks on the slide grooves and under the slide stop; not visible unless field stripped. Not an issue to me at all.
The magazine fits flush with the pistol butt, and needs to be pushed in with a bit of authority to fully engage.

There are three things I'm thinking about for this pistol:

I'm definitely going to look at something to make the handle a bit more "sticky". When I field stripped the Solo in my second session, I got a bit of oil on my hands, and it affected my shooting. I'll try a Hogue HandAll Junior first, and think about anything more in a month or two.
Sights are very good, but not night sights. I think the sight mounts are standard Kimber; if I can confirm that's true, I'll consider putting some TFO sights on it. I like the Kimber sights, but I've been lusting after some TFO sights for a while now, and this is the only pistol I have that I may be able to fit with them. I just got confirmation from Kimber that the dovetails are NOT the same as their other 1911 pistols, so anyone like TruGlo who says they have sights for "Kimber" will apply only to their 1911s, NOT the Solo. If you want night sights, you will need to wait a while.
The KimPro II Finish is very nice, but as it shows wear I'll save up to send it to Robar for their NP3 Plus treatment.

Lots of promise for this pistol. I'll update next week to keep you all informed how things progress; I should have started reliability testing by then.

August 26, 2011, 09:35 AM	#1
Fargazer Senior Member Join Date: October 4, 2010 Location: Chattanooga, TN Posts: 466	New Solo - impressions Well, yesterday my Kimber Solo came in. Bottom line - I like it quite a bit. I'm going to focus on reliability and operation; there are plenty of places to go to if you are looking for fit and feel. When I picked it up at my LGS over lunch, I brought along 2 boxes of American Eagle 147gr 9mm, as well as two boxes of Fiocchi 147gr (my normal practice ammo). I ran it through 75 rounds or so - a full box of the AE since that particular round is specifically on the recommended ammo list, then some of the Fiocchi. I was expecting some minor issues in this initial session - after all, best practices say to clean and lubricate the gun first, and I was taking it straight out of the box - not because it was a Solo, but because I would with any gun straight off. I saw two things: On occasion, the slide would not go forward all the way. This was usually on the first round of a magazine, and happened much more frequently on the Fiocchi round nose ammo than the American Eagle truncated nose. The magazine release is stiff, and requires quite a bit of pressure on the button to do so - minimal risk of an accidental mag release. It was particularly difficult to operate when the slide had the above issue. I purchased 2 extra magazines (and their last at the end of the session, for a total of three), and the slide issue happened regardless of magazine. For me, precision was outstanding - at 3 yards, one big ragged hole. At 7 yards, a slightly more elongated ragged hold, a bit low and right. At 15 yards, I suck - but consistently sucked a bit more low and right. Other shooters tended not be quite as consistent - probably because of recoil anticipation. After work, I field stripped the gun - relatively smooth operation - and cleaned it with Militech-1; afterwards, I used a hair dryer to help bond the lubricant with the metal (something unique to Militech). I reassembled the gun, worked the slide about 30 times, and took it back to the LGS range for a second round. This time I took not only the remainder of the AE and Fiocchi ammo, but also a box of 50 Remington Golden Saber. Right away I ran into an operator induced error - the gun's slide would lock open after every shot. This is covered in the owner's manual - it means that during reassembly, I did not put the slide stop under the retention spring. I cleared the gun, removed and replaced the slide stop, this time making sure the spring was in the proper place. You can tell by eye whether the spring is properly oriented - you just have to actually check it . I ran the Solo through about 50 rounds; a mix of AE, Fiocchi, and Golden Saber. I ran into the slide locking issue from lunchtime only once; on a hunch, I loaded the 6 shot magazines with only 5 shots, and I could not replicate the problem that way. I did let a few other people shoot the Solo while I was at the range. None of the gun staff had any issue other than the first session, with the slide locking. One friend had a failure to feed (again, full mag), and after clearing the gun it shot fine. I consider the initial set of shooting sessions with any gun "getting to know you" time; though I am happy with completely trouble free operations, I don't expect perfection immediately - particularly with a gun that specifies right in the manual any sort of "break in period". Overall, I"m pleased: I think most if not all of the slide issues are actually magazine issues. I've heard of this before with new magazines, though this is the first time I've seen it in person. I've fully loaded the magazines, and will keep them loaded for a few weeks to see if that clears up the slide issues. Remember for the initial session, I shot it out of the box; best practice is to field strip and lubricate first. For the second session, the gun was a bit "wet" from lubrication - the manual specifically states the gun is designed to run relatively dry. After the shooting session, I wiped off excess lubricant, and just made sure the slide slots had a drop in each. Other thoughts: For me, the gun is quite precise; I'm just now finding what proper trigger finger placement is for the pistol to get better accuracy (right now I'm consistently low and right - other people have been right on target). Recoil is stout, but not unbearable - significantly better than my LCR .357 even with .38s loaded. My hand started to feel uncomfortable after the first 75 round session. I'm going to try a Hogue HandAll Junior on it and see how that works. The 3 dot sights are easily visible, and quick to line up. I have both a holster from H.B.E. Leatherworks (Pro TL) and a Remora. The gun is extremely easy to conceal, either in the waistband or in the pocket (I wear pleated dark chinos). Minor finish wear marks on the slide grooves and under the slide stop; not visible unless field stripped. Not an issue to me at all. The magazine fits flush with the pistol butt, and needs to be pushed in with a bit of authority to fully engage. There are three things I'm thinking about for this pistol: I'm definitely going to look at something to make the handle a bit more "sticky". When I field stripped the Solo in my second session, I got a bit of oil on my hands, and it affected my shooting. I'll try a Hogue HandAll Junior first, and think about anything more in a month or two. Sights are very good, but not night sights. I think the sight mounts are standard Kimber; if I can confirm that's true, I'll consider putting some TFO sights on it. I like the Kimber sights, but I've been lusting after some TFO sights for a while now, and this is the only pistol I have that I may be able to fit with them. I just got confirmation from Kimber that the dovetails are NOT the same as their other 1911 pistols, so anyone like TruGlo who says they have sights for "Kimber" will apply only to their 1911s, NOT the Solo. If you want night sights, you will need to wait a while. The KimPro II Finish is very nice, but as it shows wear I'll save up to send it to Robar for their NP3 Plus treatment. Lots of promise for this pistol. I'll update next week to keep you all informed how things progress; I should have started reliability testing by then. __________________ NRA Life Member Last edited by Fargazer; August 26, 2011 at 10:08 AM.