User Panel
Posted: 7/25/2004 6:00:04 PM EDT
[sgtar15]discuss[/sgtar15]
Most importantly, if you had a problem did Kimber fix it? |
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Series one Kimber, took 15 rounds and the front sight fell off, they fixed it immediatly and shipped it back same day. Total turnaround was maybe 4 days. This was quite some time ago.
No problems Since - Over 5,000 rds. |
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No problem, but I did want to have some stuff changed on my CDP II.....I had all hard use potential MIM parts replaced by Novak. While it was there I had them do their reliability package, zero the sights specifically to my practice round at 25yds, and a couple other things that they recommended on all 1911's that came to their shop.
This was all optional and the firearm had been perfect in about 600rds I had through it. |
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Leaking rear sight after the second range trip, fixed in about 10 days.
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Kimber Tactical Custom II. Multiple FTEs, sent back to Kimber, 6-day turnaround, came back, worked fine for 400+ rounds. I found myself not liking the gray/black finish or the look of the external extractor, so I sold it for $750 to finance a Rem. 700 project. Was a little miffed as to why a $945 pistol did not work out of the box, but they did make it right. Bottom line: I tried a whiz-bang 1911 with all the amenities, didn't like it. I will stick with parked gov't model 1911s. Kimber no longer has products that interest me.
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Kimber Custom II, SN 119XXX
front sight fell off while shooting...........fixed it myself |
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There is not a respomse opn the poll tht fits my experience. Yes I have had problems with the pistol, but they were not caused by probems with the gun, they were either mag problems or my fault.
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Kimber ultra eclipse II
FTF FTE TRied different mags, ammo etc... No worky Sent it back to kimber, not fixed... Played with extractor, a little better (not even 1/10th as good as my USP) Would not feed hollowpoints. Sent it to Wilson Combat... FIXED (even feeds hollowpoints now. I would not buy another Kimber at this point. (abstained from voting as none of the above applies to me) |
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Have not had any problems with my Custom II. Have maybe 1200 rounds through it, including some hollowpoints.
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Kimbers are beautiful pistols. But I've seen a couple of students in classes I've taken suffer multiple Malfs throughout the class. I probably would not buy one.
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External Extractor needs some work. Thus far, all I've done is bitch and moan. Planning on sending it in when I get around to it. Gotten the idea that they should have stuck with the internal extractor. So I'll get it working fine and see if I decide to trade for a Warrior, would really like a Warrior without the rail as well.
Thanks for calling me out on it Lump! Editted to say: I'm a bit "miffed" too that a $900 gun doesn't work right out of the box....Have to say it does have me thinking... |
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I'm gonna sneak out the back door. It's fixin to get ugly. |
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Performance wise: fantastic. No functional problems of any sort.
Finish-wise: pitted up pretty bad after 4-hour flight, evening in foam case. Cleaned up nicely, but still surprising. Overall, highly satisfied owner. |
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Have owned 6 so far with both internal and external extractors. All functioned perfectly with the exception of one with an internal extractor that was a tad tight. After about 250 rounds it ran perfectly. Front sight came off one, fixed and back to me in 2 days.
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Now all I want are Kimbers, Kimbers, Kimbers. I still like Colts, but the Kimbers are feature rich from the box so I don't have to spend months of waiting in line at the gunsmith. I'm still in the break-in period with mine and I do have two minor problems. First I had to replace the punji stick wooden stocks with something I could actually hold onto without drawing blood. The other is I cannot release the slide release on an empty Wilson magazine. Wilson's work fine in my well worn Colt. I'll have to try the Colts slide release on the Kimber one of these days. |
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The only problem with My Custom II is that I didn't get one sooner
Now having said that I've personaly handled a Ultra Carry and an Eclipse that where having FTE problems. Reshaping the Extractor hooks cured both to the toon of 400+ rounds [as fast as they could be loaded and fired) each without a hitch. |
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Have had my TLE since October 2003. No problems what-so-ever! All ammo has fed flawlessly!
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You forgot an option for, had a problem or two when it was brand new, but no problems after the first couple hundred rounds to break it in. Mine had the slide lock back on a mag that wasn't empty a couple times, but it hasn't had any problems in a long time.
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When I first bought my Pro Carry I would have some failures to feed/eject. Turns out the gun just won't function correctly if it's bone dry! (My Sig P220 will) A little bit of lube and the gun's been problem free for the 4 years or so that I've owned it. Probably 2000-3000 rounds through it by now.
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Kimber Gold Match II. I compete with it and have close to 25,000 (that’s right, 25 THOUSAND) rounds through it with no failures of any kind.
It still has all the original MIM parts and all of the safeties work just like they did when I took it out of the box new. After reading all if the hysteria about MIM parts I decided to just shoot the gun until something broke and then replace that part with a “good” part… I’m still waiting. Ed |
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Whats the point of this poll? I appears someone is trying (again) to pass the blame of a poor quality product/quality control, onto the owners of these pistols.
Lumpy, why would whether or not Kimber fixed the problem be more important than the actual quality of the pistol? Lets say someone has numerous problems with their Kimber, and needs to send it off numerous times to be fixed by Kimber, does the fact that the factory fixes the problem, erase the fact that the problems/quality control issues existed? Good customer service DOES NOT make up for poor product quality. If what I have heard is accurate, nearly 30% have reported problems with their Kimbers according to this poll.(Past 24hrs.) Whether Kimber fixed it, or all the owner did was bitch about it on the internet about it, 30% is completely unacceptable. |
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Something that is not factored into the poll is quite a few of us own multiple Kimbers. You can only vote once. So for someone with multiple Kimber handguns, that has only had a problem with one, it would not represent an accurate percentage of problem guns. Just an observation.
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If you dont like Kimber. Dont buy them. If you think they are crap, dont buy them. I am still getting lost on what your looking to accomplish with your posts. Seems to me you were hoping that folks around here would jump on your bandwagon of not liking Kimbers and saying they are crap, and now your upset because that hasnt happened.
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What it does is establish how many people have actually had problems with their guns. I myself have yet to see a problematic Kimber and Ive seen quite a few. Are they out there? Sure. Anything man made can be screwed up. But Im not jumping on YOUR bandwagon of trying to convince people they make a shit product when I havent seen that to be the case. And sorry, knowing that people are human, customer service DOES mean something. |
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Every so often when I'm shooting the slide will not return all the way forward, which will not allow for another round to be fired until I give it a little tap to complete the cycle. I don't know if it's the Kimber or the Wolf ammo I am putting through it. I have had a similar problem with Winchester ammo.
Suggestions? |
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Mine did that sometimes when it got dry. Try a squirt of breakfree or other lube - it worked for me. |
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I'll do that, thanks. |
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Sounds like a slightly tight extractor. How many rounds do you have through the gun? Usually they loosen up after abou 250 rounds +/- a few. |
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How old and how heavy is your recoil spring? |
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Probaby coming up on the break-in # above...
The recoil spring is as old as the pistol, which is about 2 years-ish. I have no idea how heavy it is. Here it is. Fullsize Image |
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Give it till about 300 rounds. If its still acting up, give Kimber a call.
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I already own one. *Dont worry I wont buy another one. I dont think they are crap, but they do have a quality control issue that needs to be dealt with. *If Kimbers QC improves, I will surely buy another. Im not looking for anyone to jump on my bandwagon. I would like to inform potential buyers that I have had many problems with my kimber, along with kimbers customer service. In my opinion, thats the best thing about this forum, you can get info from many different sources that have actually paid out of their own pocket to buy one of these pistols instead of relying on the BS reviews/advertisements in the gun magazines. If you look at many of the replies to my posts, you will see that I am not the only one who's had problems with my Kimber, many others have had problems similar to mine. |
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You are correct, and the poll has indicated close to 30% of the voters have had problems, but the available choices make it sound that if you decide to complain on this forum about your problems, that you in some way are at fault for the problem. It should simply be a YES or NO question. I also never said that customer service DOESNT mean anything. I said it DOESNT make up for a poor quality product. |
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So what we've established is THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING KIMBER CAN DO TO MAKE YOU HAPPY IN THIS STITUATION. Therefore, the experiences of any other Kimber owners mean NOTHING to you and you will continue to troll Kimber threads, correct?
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Lumpy, its obvious that Kimber is capable of making a good product and do, but myself along with too many others have had problems with their pistols.
I did contact Dennis at the Kimber custom shop concerning my problems, and the guy would'nt let me finish a sentence. He was quick to interrupt every time I tried to explain my issues. He never even mentioned the apparent fact that they were having problems with some of their external extractors, that would have satisfied me, just say "hey, send it in we will take care of it, sorry we have had some problems with that extractor design" instead the guy was a prick, and I refuse to deal with him. Hey, if it makes you feel better...Im sorry I had a problem with my Kimber, where do I get off. |
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The way you sound on the net, and your attitude towards the company probably had more to do with being hung up on than the problem with your Kimber. Now, if you actually would send your Kimber back to the factory, instead of somewhere ELSE to put it together wrong, you might have a leg to stand on. You won't send it back and have it fixed for free, you just want to create a ruckus, why is that? Just an observation. |
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I believe you are correct. |
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What the hell are you chameleon guys talkin' about? How do I sound on the net, like a unhappy Kimber owner? Okay! you got me!
I purchased a defective pistol. And when I contacted the company to try and resolve the problem, I was treated like my problem didnt mean anything to the rep. that I talked to. I tried to be friendly with the guy on the other end, but it didnt seem to help my case any. I was given excuses instead of solutions. If you guys want to ignore the fact that Kimber has a quality control problem just because you have not had a problem personally, then I dont know what to tell you guys. Just curious what some of you guys consider a "TROLL" because I find alot of the same guys following me from thread to thread, talkin' shit whenever I relate in a Kimber related thread that I have had problems with my Kimber. Alot of people search this forum looking for info when they are considering the purchase of a new firearm. My experience, along with the many other Kimber owners who post their praise or complaints should be taken for what its worth, someones personal experience. |
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"Chameleon Guys" I pay threefiftynone a sizeable amount per post to carry the title. It is a form of advertising. Now, back to the issue, why not do something outrageous, like "call Kimber back"??? |
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I wouldn't buy another Kimber, but it's not because I'm not happy with mine or that I don't like their products... I just like to try other brands to get a better first hand perspective on what is and isn't good. If I had the sick amout of money it woud take I'd have an STI, Sig, Colt, and Springfield 1911... just because. Once I get all the various brands I want to own/try then I would probably circle back and start buying same brands.
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I had the same problem with most ammo. (among a ton of other problems I mentioned before) After sending it back to Kimber without success I eventually sent it to Wilson Combat and they did thier "reliability thing" now it works flawlesly... Needless to say I personally was disapointed with the QC and Reliability of my Kimber.... |
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Kimber has made a successful entry into the 1911 market because they offer an exceptional bargain for what you receive. They make their pistols to cram as many features as possible into one package and keep it under $1000. May get outperformed by a Wilson, but mine has had no problems and I am very pleased with it. To keep costs down, there will always be corners cut, or else a Kimber would cost $2000hinking.gif
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My Kimber has been trouble free and ultra reliable since day one.
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I was at the shop today looking at a brand new TLR RLII (I think). The external extractor differs quite a bit from the one on my Tactical ProII. I have noticed all of the new Kimbers being shipped have this newer design. It looks longer, and the "claw" has a different profile. Does anyone know if that is what they are replacing the older "problem" external extractors with? The channel that the extractor sets in looks slightly longer also.
I will give Kimbers custom shop another chance and call them monday to see what they can do. |
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I bought a Classic Custom Target Model in 2000 (which has since fallen out of the boat while duck hunting). Detail stripped it and cleaned it right out of the box, one grip screw bushing crossthreaded, fortuneately only inserted about 1/2 thread so it was easily fixed. The sear was absolutely mutilated, the engagement surface was uneven and dropped off on one side, replaced with new sear. Runs 100% with ball or HP, but doesn't like to run on SWC's. I didn't see the point in shipping it back since they were easy fixes, but it was somewhat disappointing. FWIW, between myself, friends and co-workers I can count over a dozen Kimbers and this was the only problem gun I've known of.
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I've had my Kimber Custom since 1997 (sn#0005xxx). So far it has worked great. It has cycled everything I have fed through it including my reloads.(semi wadcutters)
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