Is a Kimber worth it?

[B.Bonham]

Frankly guys, I do not carry or buy a design that is not 100% proven! Fired a few 40 cal rounds through a Glock a few weeks back - very impressed! I will still stick with my wheel guns- 38/357 - designs, I trust them! I Will always love the K frames from Smith and Wesson!

[HKFan9]

Yes revolvers are great.... until you DO have a problem with them, then it will require a nice trip back to Smith & Wesson and they are running about a 4-6 week turn around time at the moment depending on the nature of the repair.

I get to see the good the bad and the ugly, unfortunately I see more of the bad and the ugly.

[CSG]

I've owned one Kimber, a Compact CDP II. I carry it regularly and it's an excellent pistol. It was about $950 new a few years ago and as a lefty shooter, it works the way I need a 1911 carry gun to work. It's an excellent firearm in my experience.

All the rest of the Kimber internet noise is just that in my experience. I also carry a full size Springfield Loaded when I can take the extra weight.

Maybe I've been lucky but every 1911 I've owned has worked as designed and I currently own, in addition to the above two, a Springfield GI, Norinco, and '44 Remington Rand.

[RCL]

I've owned one Kimber (Ultra Carry s couple of years ago). Had a feed problem. Went back to the factory. Still had the problem when it came back. Dumped it for something else. So to me they aren't worth it.
Just recently I bought a Remington R1 for a little more than half what I paid for the Kimber. Totally reliable so far, no issues. It's easily as tight (barrel to slide and slide to frame) as the Kimber was.

Now, my brother has had several Kimber 's with no issues. Go figure.

[Stevie-Ray]

I like my Kimber Ultra CDP enough to be carrying it for the last 10 years or so. It replaced an H&K USPC, so that should also say something. That said, I'm a Colt guy through and through; it's just that Colt made only the Officer's in small size, and even SA's micro wasn't yet being produced when I got this. Now that Colt makes more small 1911s, I'd be looking to them again. I paid $950 for my UCDP, and I thought it a ridiculous price, but it was a complete package, and exactly what I was looking for. Obviously, since I've carried it this long.

[Rinspeed]

I can't for the life of me figure why the hell some of you choose these mini 1911s and then can't seem to figure out why they don't run right. Don't blame it on the manufacturer because they're dumb enough to make them blame it on yourself because you're dumb enough to buy them.

[HKFan9]

Rin it might have something to do with the fact we all don't believe what we read on the internet.

If you also think Glock is "Perfection" call them up and ask them how many guns they currently have in house for repairs, I send a few them of there a week.

[Tactical Jackalope]

If you also think Glock is "Perfection" call them up and ask them how many guns they currently have in house for repairs, I send a few them of there a week.

Look..meaningless statement is meaningless.

How many reliable cars go to mechanics? How many thousands upon thousands upon thousands of guns are made by Glock? SIG? Hk? Smith and Wesson? Springfield Armory? Colt? I can go on..Call any of them and "ask them how many guns they currently have in house for repairs".

Gosh that was such a funny statement. lol...Does a mortician see dead bodies? Yeah...people die.

Tools require maintenance, issues happen with anything that is mass produced.

A healthy person can get sick. I can give more examples that relate to guns. Just trying to break the vague tunnel vision of what people "expect".

[BuckRub]

Les Baer may be worth it if you had it idk. If I don't have it I ain't got to worry bout it. Since I went polymar steel is too heavy. Never thought I'd say that 10 years ago. Another 10 years probably 90 percent will have gone polymar. Time changes things!

[KimberUltra]

I have an ultra carry II as well. Doesn't like flat hollow points. I've tried a few different mags and it helps, but I think the shorter barrel versions have more issues than the full size. Ill buy an XD someday

[DennRN]

Hi all,
To the OP, sorry to break it to you but the interwebs are full of opinions, the only one that really matters is your view.

Every manufacturer puts out gems and lemons, those who get lemons, cry foul, those who get gems will never hear a word to the contrary.

Personally I own a bottom tier Kimber it's a Pro carry II. In the month or so I have owned it I have put just about 900 rounds through it, the first 14 were with the stock Kimber mag, and then it went into the case and hasn't been loaded with anything but snap caps since, I'm hoping the spring will ease up. The problem with it was the spring was too tight, and it would seize up with any horizontal play since its, metal on metal, on a metal spring. It fed okay but it didn't instill confidence that it marred the casings just loading it, let alone trusting it too feed in an emergency.

I walked out to the sales floor and bought 3 Wilson Combat mags and proceeded to put 200 holes through overpriced paper with one failure to feed with binding on the feed ramp.

Next time at the range I went through 2 more boxes of Winchester white box with one more failure to feed, same problem.

Since then it has gone bang every time the trigger has been pulled.
The manual that came with it said the break in period is 500. My last hiccup was somewhere in between 220-240 rounds. The break in period was pretty damn expensive to see if it would wear in nicely, or if it was an unreliable piece of junk but MINE did break in nicely.

Being on the low rung of Kimber's lineup I'm always surprised when people are impressed with it and ask how it shoots. I haven't been to the range yet and not had at least one person look over my shoulder and comment on it. Even the guy who sweeps the brass pointed to me last time I was there and said "that's the kid with the Kimber" I always make it a point to tell anyone who asks, that the sticker price was JUST A LITTLE more than the Ruger SR1911 I was eyeballing before I made my decision.

In terms of accuracy, it's better than I am, but there is not doubt that the Ruger can out match my ability at this point too.

As with any 1911, the grip fits great in my hand since they are single stack mags. The trigger pull is real crisp with no discernible trigger creep.

Yes, the mainspring housing is plastic. The checkering on it feels great with zero defects, but I can see how people would be put off by the mere fact that there is plastic on it. I'm of the mindset that if it saves an ounce or two and works well, it isn't broken, but to each their own.

I love the stock grips it came with and the Meprolight night sights, but I have replaced the grips with Crimson Trace Laser grips while working on my control, I use the laser to tell if I'm anticipating/jerking/even forgetting about controlling my breathing. The stock grips make the Crimson Trace grips feel like slippery turds in an oil bath, but that's just my opinion . (I picked up the Laser Grips a bit over 33% off on Ebay from someone else who didn't like the feel of them so I can't complain.)

The one thing that I wish my Pro Carry had that it doesn't have on it is a checkered front strap but I don't regret saving a few hundred dollars and living without it for now.

Would I believe this gun is better than any similar 1911?
The short answer is NO.
Do I like it? Heck yeah!
Would I buy a similarly priced "lower end" make that has upgrades on it or custom work, sure why not. If a 3-4 hundred dollar Ruger .22 can be made into a competition pistol, anything can.
Bottom line though is that I bought this particular one because it had everything I needed, and didn't require any extra work/wait-listing to get there.

My sincere advice is to head to the gun shop see what they have available and handle each one that catches your eye. The one that fits your hand the best, has the fit and finish you want, and just feels right for you will most likely be the one you will be most happy with. Don't settle for what others think is cool/trendy/"worth it", go with what you think just feels right to you and trust that you don't luck-of-the-draw a lemon.

[CPO15]

Like DennRN, I too have a new ProCarry II with similar success. In the week I've owned it it has fired 300 rounds with only two issues in the first 50: one fail to feed and one stovepipe. I have no issue with the stock magazine and the gun functions well with all my Springfield mags.

This is my first Kimber. I really did buy it on impulse. Although I admired them in the ads and in the display cases for years, I was never convinced to "take the chance" on one: the Internet chatter was just too negative and, since I let myself get burned on a Taurus and a KelTec, wasn't willing to risk the cash on a gun with as many negative reviews.

I'm happy with this purchase and may consider another Kimber in a full-sized model.

This gun doesn't (yet?) display any of the issues I feared. I find it accurate and a joy to shoot. After a few hundred more rounds, I hope to make it my summer carry. I don't love it as much as my Springfields, but it is growing on me.

Still think Kimber may be a gamble though. YMMV.

[HKFan9]

Look..meaningless statement is meaningless.

How many reliable cars go to mechanics? How many thousands upon thousands upon thousands of guns are made by Glock? SIG? Hk? Smith and Wesson? Springfield Armory? Colt? I can go on..Call any of them and "ask them how many guns they currently have in house for repairs".

Gosh that was such a funny statement. lol...Does a mortician see dead bodies? Yeah...people die.

Tools require maintenance, issues happen with anything that is mass produced.

A healthy person can get sick. I can give more examples that relate to guns. Just trying to break the vague tunnel vision of what people "expect".

Constantine that was my point entirely. Crap happens... to any brand. Some however more than others. I spend 35 hours a week dealing with broken guns, the other 5 hours I get to spend with custom guns the Gun Smiths where I work create. I am a paper pusher for them so they can spend their time doing what they need to do, I also help out working the counter for when my boss needs help. I spend a lot of time dealing with warranty repairs on guns with issues.

I can tell you very well that certain brands DO have more issues than others, even down to being model specific. I will not try to turn this into a brand bashing thread.

Kimber is NOT one of the brands we have a lot of issues with. Neither is Glock, however it can and does happen for both brands, as does any brand.

Do I hesitate to recommend a Kimber to someone? No, based simply on the fact I have sold 1000's of them, with generally a low incident or return rate, I have owned 5 or 6 different ones personally, and I also worked with one of their former smiths, not even to mention some of the very reputable contracts they held in law enforcement and military.

The last two Kimbers I had returned for issues, one was a first run Solo with FTF, FTE, no surprise there, Kimber had it for 3 weeks and I haven't seen it since so I'm assuming the customer is happy with it now. The second was a Super Carry where the G10 grips on it were either milled wrong or the grip screws and bushing were defective, Kimber sent me a new set of grips for the customer, and we switched out the grip screws and bushings for the customer at our shop, and it was go to go.

I personally own/owned at one time or another the following:

Ultra Carry Stainless
Pro Covert
Custom TLE
Desert Warrior
Custom Raptor
Tactical Pro

None of which with any kind of issues.

I am also a big Springfield Supporter, I own/owned

GI
Stainless Mil-Spec
Lightweight Champion Operator
Lightweight Champion with OD green frame
Stainless Loaded
Trophy Match
TRP

Out of those;

The GI grips cracked because screws and bushings were over torqued
Stainless Mil-Spec had an issue with the grip safety properly engaging
Stainless Loaded, Slide stop pin was fitted too loose, would ride itself out of the gun and seize the slide.

I fully support Springfield, unfortunately, crap happens like I said in any brand. But I still stand by my statement not hesitating to recommend a Kimber to people.

[KimberUltra]

i have about 500 through mine and it still FTF's on the last round in the mag. Feed ramp was polished to and using wilson combat mags. Haven't been able to afford to shoot since the great Halloween power outage.

[Rinspeed]

Kimber is NOT one of the brands we have a lot of issues with. Neither is Glock, however it can and does happen for both brands, as does any brand.

Do I hesitate to recommend a Kimber to someone? No, based simply on the fact I have sold 1000's of them, with generally a low incident or return rate,

You must be lying because I've read on the errornet that all Kimbers are junk.

[Rinspeed]

i have about 500 through mine and it still FTF's on the last round in the mag. Feed ramp was polished to and using wilson combat mags.

I believe that is what's called a bolt over base malfuntion and it caused by overly fast slide speed. It happens on the last round because it doesn't have a round under it for support. If you go down 2 pounds on the recoil spring it might take care of it.

[HKFan9]

Yes and you have also read that all Colts are top notch when we repair quite a few of them a year.

It sucks when any guns has an issue, however they are all simple machines, given enough rounds and time they can and do break down, also people make lemons.

The real measure of a company is to see how the handle those issues and customer service. That is why despite my issues with a few Springfields I have owned, they will continue to get profits from me because they are always very polite, helpful, and fixed all the issues. They are always stellar to deal with even when I get customers guns with issue.

I just picked up an XDS about a month or two ago for summer carry, I have shot maybe 500 rounds through it so far with out issues, so I trust it to carry.

[Tactical Jackalope]

HKFan9, Sorry about my tone and misconstrued response.

[Stevie-Ray]

That is why despite my issues with a few Springfields I have owned, they will continue to get profits from me because they are always very polite, helpful, and fixed all the issues. They are always stellar to deal with even when I get customers guns with issue.

Actually that's what I now hear about Kimber, now that that goofball that was the real problem is acting that way for SIG instead.

[BuckRub]

He must have a twin brother that works for Glock. It must run in their family. Talking about Stellar, you must mean Smith & Wesson. Hats go off to them.

[Plumbnut]

Here is the first tim I ever shot a .45 acp and the first time this gun had ever been fired. It also groups tighter now....this is at a pretty good distance however I didn't measure it. If I had to guess it was around 30 yards.

I think they are worth the money

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=leO4gkj1Mzc