Really disappointed in Kimber

[Chaparral]

Recently I went into a local gun store and saw a real clean Kimber 22 conversion kit for 1911 frames. It was in the Kimber blue plastic box. Came with the slide, manual, and magazine. It was in great shape. Took it home and could not get it to slide on to any 1911 frame I had. I tried it on 4 full frame Kimbers, 1 Para Ordnance, and a Springfield Armory. I drove to a Kimber authorized dealer close to my house. The manager looked at it. He laid a mat out on the counter. He tried it on 3 Kimbers, a Sig, & Ruger 1911 frames. He told me to send it back to Kimber. I then drove back over to the gunstore just to talk to my buddy in there and show him. We stood there and tried on 4 frames. I then drove home. I sat there in my shop staring at it wondering what was wrong. I then read the manual for the 15th time. I then tried it on 2 Kimber frames off the commander size 1911s. No go. I called Kimber the next day. Someone answered in Troy, Alabama. Before I always talked with someone in New York. Well this young lady gives me an RMA # to return the pistol slide. I box the kit up and send it off. I don't even get it shipped off good and a couple days later I find a message on my phone from a young lady advising they tried it on 5 of their 1911s and it fits great and they are sending it back. I called back the next day and a young man answers and instead of helping me tells me the girl that left the message is off. I call the next day. Another girl answers stating the other girl is on another phone, but she will help. I tell her the issue. She looks up the notes and tells me it fit on 5 of their guns with no issue. I ask her," Ma'am how is it that it will not fit on any 1911s at my house (and I told her of the different brands of 1911s), it would not fit on any Kimber or other makers at the authorized Kimber dealer, & would not fit on any at the place I purchased it, but miraculously when this gun gets to Alabama it just slides right on 5 of your frames? She would not answer me. She then ask," Did you try it on more than one pistol?" I ask her," Have you not listened to a word I have said?" I then repeated myself. She then put me on hold. Came back and repeated herself about it working on their frames. She then says," If you purchased it used it has no warranty." Then she says," It being a conversion kit it is not considered a firearm but an accessory." On and on with her Kimber's excuses why they would not help someone. Folks I say this to say customer service is not what it use to be. I'm an older guy, I have firearms from Kimber from when they were in Oregon. They are not who they once were. Just another sad story of these changing times. I ask her if it were one of my pistols what would they do. She advised they only back their guns for 1 year from date of purchase!!!!! Kimber only backs their firearms for 1 year??? Folks shop around. Can you imagine being a firearm maker asking people to pay easily over a thousand dollars for your 1911s, and their rifles and only caring enough for your supporters to warranty it for 1 year? I'll never buy another Kimber after this week.

[10-96]

Yeah, I'd never buy a non-Oregon Kimber. I guess they're still riding on their glory days reputation. It just isn't the same company they were before they got all big.

[SHR970]

Expose one to a little bit of moisture. You'll see Kimber Quality PDQ.

[ms6852]

I personally never saw the attraction for Kimber . My brother had one and compared it to my Springfield TRP and sold his. Never had I racked a slide as stiff as a Kimber.

[Nodak1858]

I personally never saw the attraction for Kimber

I will say I've never had one either, but for the money there seems to be a lot of issues with that name. I just picked up a Tisas 1911 for $340 last year. I was surprised by the fit and finish. It is as nice as my Springfield or my brothers Remington 1911. And it shoots well, no issues, all that for under $350, count me in.

[jetinteriorguy]

I bought a used RIA in 9mm with the .22TCM extra barrel/spring set. 9mm was great, .22TCM not so much. After about 8 rounds the .22TCM would stick in the chamber, the only way to get it out was to knock it out with a dowel. I called them and within 15 minutes they emailed me a return label. I boxed it up and sent it in and two weeks later it came back. They installed a new barrel and tuned it, now it works flawlessly. Excellent service, no questions asked on a used gun I purchased. It’s one of the best shooting pistols I’ve ever owned, especially for $400.00. I wouldn’t waste a nickel on a Kimber.

[Hal]

This owner of two Kimber 1911s believes Kimbers are vastly overrated.

20-25 years ago, a Kimber1911 was one of the hottest things out there - right alongside the Sig 220.
I bought one & was somewhat unimpressed & very impressed at the same time.

the accuracy & the inclusion of several "custom features" - in a base model production 1911 was impressive, as was the accuracy. My Kimber target gave up very little in the way of accuracy to the much more expensive Colt Gold Cup.

At the same time - lack of attention to detail & very poor QC - were huge disappointments & customer service was an unknown to Kimber.
Kimber had an online presence in the old newsgroups (alt.kimber maybe?) or it might have been a very early version of BBS or maybe even a spot in the old rec.guns - I don't remember & it doesn't really matter. What's important was that it got so overloaded with people complaining about quality - Kimber pulled out after one a couple of weeks & shut it down.

The non-working magazine that came with my original Kimber is still under one corner of my tool shed. I used it as a shim to level the shed. @ least it worked for that...it sure didn't work in the gun..

[pete2]

A Kimber is a copy of a Colt 1911 more or less. They usually work. Now, the kit was bought, It is not unusual for a company to NOT warranty a used part. Heck some won't even warranty a new gun or they will half a__ warranty it. This includes S&W, Ruger and prolly others (I have experience with S&W and Ruger). I always hold my breath when I buy anything used.

[ms6852]

Originally Posted by Nodak1858

I will say I've never had one either, but for the money there seems to be a lot of issues with that name. I just picked up a Tisas 1911 for $340 last year. I was surprised by the fit and finish. It is as nice as my Springfield or my brothers Remington 1911. And it shoots well, no issues, all that for under $350, count me in.

I too was surprsied by the fit and finish of a Turkish made shotgun a Yildiz, I bought about 15 years ago. It's an over/under 12ga with engraving on receiver and beautiful walnut stock. I think I paid about $400 back than, when I showed up to our skeet meet with it the guy with the big money firearms made fun until I out scored them. What is the use of paying $$$$ for a firearm if you can't shoot it, it definitely won't make it shoot more accurate.

With your 1911 it won't be long before the price doubles once everyone realizes that Turkish guns are well made and for the cost, it is equal or better than a higher priced 1911made by another manufacturer.

[4V50 Gary]

Take calipers to the slide. What height is that cut for the rail and what depth? It may have to go to a machinist/gunsmith for some widening or deepening. Now compare it to the rails of the frame. You might also want to measure the inner distance of the slide and see if it is slightly larger than the frame. If not, somebody could have compressed the slide to tighten it.

BTW, local undersheriff had a Kimber for a duty arm. Front sight fell off. No, it wasn't loose in the dovetail. It's a MIM part and the blade separated from the base. Poor quality material. I hate MIM.

[Chaparral]

Originally Posted by 4V50 Gary

Take calipers to the slide. What height is that cut for the rail and what depth? It may have to go to a machinist/gunsmith for some widening or deepening. Now compare it to the rails of the frame. You might also want to measure the inner distance of the slide and see if it is slightly larger than the frame. If not, somebody could have compressed the slide to tighten it.

BTW, local undersheriff had a Kimber for a duty arm. Front sight fell off. No, it wasn't loose in the dovetail. It's a MIM part and the blade separated from the base. Poor quality material. I hate MIM.

You are exactly correct. Each and every individual who looked at the slide going onto the frames noticed it stopping each time on the same piece of metal. Once again isn't it amazing that every slide we have attempted it on stopped at the same place, but miraculously the 5 frames they tried it on at Kimber it slid right on!

[Bottom Gun]

It was in the Kimber blue plastic box.

That sounds like it is one of the early .22 conversions which were made for Kimber by Jonathan Ceiner. The Ceiner units have a small dia (about 1/8" or so) guide rod and an aluminum magazine.

The later Kimber conversion units, which I prefer, use a different style guide rod with a recoil spring plug more like a real 1911 and come with a polymer magazine. I'm assuming Kimber now makes its own conversion units.

I've had both the early and the later versions of the .22 conversion units in the past and presently have a Kimber Rimfire Target which is a complete pistol with a new style .22 conversion top end. It's an excellent pistol.

Personally, I like Kimbers. I've had a number of them in .22, 9MM, .38 Super and .45 ACP. Each has been perfect, 100% reliable and very accurate. I've also had Kimber do some custom work on one of my 9MM 1911s and was very pleased with both the work and the turn-around time.

Lots of MIM part haters. Seems like every part that fails these days is branded as an MIM Part whether it really is or not. Can someone please explain what they dislike about MIM parts and what they base their opinion on?

I don't understand why Kimber gets such a bad rap for its use of MIM parts. Most manufacturers use MIM these days. S&W was one of the pioneers of MIM parts but nobody ever complains about them, only Kimbers. I wonder why?
Frankly, I think MIM parts make good sense for dimensional accuracy and cost. I wouldn't hesitate to use them in a new design.

[Chaparral]

Originally Posted by Bottom Gun

That sounds like it is one of the early .22 conversions which were made for Kimber by Jonathan Ceiner. The Ceiner units have a small dia (about 1/8" or so) guide rod and an aluminum magazine.

The later Kimber conversion units, which I prefer, use a different style guide rod with a recoil spring plug more like a real 1911 and come with a polymer magazine. I'm assuming Kimber now makes its own conversion units.

I've had both the early and the later versions of the .22 conversion units in the past and presently have a Kimber Rimfire Target which is a complete pistol with a new style .22 conversion top end. It's an excellent pistol.

Personally, I like Kimbers. I've had a number of them in .22, 9MM, .38 Super and .45 ACP. Each has been perfect, 100% reliable and very accurate. I've also had Kimber do some custom work on one of my 9MM 1911s and was very pleased with both the work and the turn-around time.

Lots of MIM part haters. Seems like every part that fails these days is branded as an MIM Part whether it really is or not. Can someone please explain what they dislike about MIM parts and what they base their opinion on?

I don't understand why Kimber gets such a bad rap for its use of MIM parts. Most manufacturers use MIM these days. S&W was one of the pioneers of MIM parts but nobody ever complains about them, only Kimbers. I wonder why?
Frankly, I think MIM parts make good sense for dimensional accuracy and cost. I wouldn't hesitate to use them in a new design.

Yes sir it is an earlier one. And like you, I own numerous Kimber pistols and rifles. I have 9mms, 38 Supers, and 45 ACPs. All reliable, accurate, and fun to shoot. I too have sent things back to them and was completely happy with their work. But this last and only bad incident has placed a very bitter taste in my mouth. Plus hey lied to me. Upon shipping it back to me they emailed me their comments that stated "Part Repaired". They did nothing!!!!!! The young lady on the phone stated out of her own mouth," We did not check the functionality of the conversion kit." What????? Why did she think I sent it to them? Then when I get it back from Kimber it says in their notes they offered a replacement but I rejected it. Horse dung! They never offered nothing.

[Bottom Gun]

My guess is they didn't want to work on it because they didn't make it. Too bad they couldn't be honest and tell you that.

I had a similar complaint with Sig and the garbage they sell as rimfires and rimfire conversions. The P229 .22 conversion and the 1911 .22 I bought were total junk and nearly soured me on Sig until I discovered they were made by someone else and re-branded with the Sig logo.

[kenny53]

15+ years ago my co worker bought a Kimber. We went to the range Him with his brand new Kimber and me with (his words)" piece of crap Llama" With in 20 rounds his Kimber locked up and would not move. My piece of crap Llama out shot the Kimber from the start. You don't always get what you pay for. I have upgraded from the Llama, now carry a
Hi point, Just kidding

[Chaparral]

Originally Posted by kenny53

15+ years ago my co worker bought a Kimber. We went to the range Him with his brand new Kimber and me with (his words)" piece of crap Llama" With in 20 rounds his Kimber locked up and would not move. My piece of crap Llama out shot the Kimber from the start. You don't always get what you pay for. I have upgraded from the Llama, now carry a
Hi point, Just kidding

That Hi Point doubles as a good fish weight. LOL

[pete2]

A Tisas, RIA, Yildiz, most any new gun may work just fine when new but the Citori or Beretta will still be on the skeet field many years after the Yildiz gives up the ghost. If you only shoot 3 or 4000 rounds a year the Turkish gun may hold up for many years. Same goes for the Ria or Tisas. I have a Citadel 1911 gun(same same RIA). Mayb3 4000 rounds on it, ejector broke, rear sight is so loose I had to use Locktite to keep it in the slot. Slide to frame fits well, everything else loosey goosey. The cheaper stuff is cheaper. Good enough maybe if you don't shoot much. Quality now days really sucks from the big guys, several of the new guns I've purchased in recent years have defects including Ruger, S&W, Browning, Beretta, Kimber. Sadly a sign of the times.

[Scorch]

How did this go from "I'm disappointed in Kimber" to "that High Point makes a good fishing weight"?

[Chaparral]

Originally Posted by Scorch

How did this go from "I'm disappointed in Kimber" to "that High Point makes a good fishing weight"?

kenny53 had made a joke about upgrading from a Llama to a Hi Point. Just cutting up with him.

[Nodak1858]

kenny53 had made a joke about upgrading from a Llama to a Hi Point. Just cutting up with him.

I haven't bought a Kimber but am the happy owner of 2 Hi-Points

[2wheelwander]

I bought a Kimber Gold match when they were all the rage and when the rumors or shady quality were beginning to emerge. Deep blue, pretty wood grips, nice looking gun. When I got it home you could see the laser etched Kimber logo was faintly done on one side of the slide. Like the slide was laying cock eyed when it was etched. Called my dealer who referred me to Kimber. Kimber said they would take care of it but shipping was on me, couldn't guarantee they'd do anything about it, and they did not come across as either surprised or giving two bowel movements about what they'd shipped out the door.

As much as I like to looks of their snub .357, I won't own another Kimber. Maybe petty to some, but its the principle. I paid at the time for a relatively premium 1911. It wasn't.

[Erno86]

My Kimber Eclipse 1911, MIM plunger tube broke in half at my 18,000 round mark.

I was upset when I found out my mainspring housing backstrap on my Eclipse was made out of plastic...so much that I replaced it with a steel one.

I also had trouble getting a tight fit with my tritium rear sight, after I had the old one replaced, because the radioactive tritium was going dark in the original one.

I prefer Kimber 1911 pistols over Springfields.

Even though tungsten guide rods are banned in certain competitions --- My Kimber tungsten guide rod works wonders with balance and controlling recoil with the 45 acp round.

I was also upset...when I heard that Yonkers Kimber, discontinued the 22 Kimber Classic rifle --- Since spare parts are now scarce for my Kimber Classic 22 rimfire bolt rifle.

[hub1home]

Could it be that the conversion kit was made for a Series I Kimber versus a Series II Kimber? The I does not have the Swartz safety and the II does have the safety.

[BJung]

Businesses need to be reminded that if they upset one customer, they are not dealing with just one but the business they could acquire or retain from 20, 50, or 100 more people. Reputation is very important.

[luger fan]

AT ONE TIME Kimber was a stand up company. Those days are LONG GONE.