Posted: 4/13/2008 2:25:45 PM EDT
| I have only one 1911, and it's a Kimber Desert Warrior. It runs, looks, and feels great. I've seen a lot of Kimber bashing lately, and I'm wondering if my positive experience is unique? |
There are a lot of Kimbers that will not run out of the box. The Series II firing pin safety is known for timing issues. The external extracter is known for having issues. Luckily for you, the Warrior has neither. Although, the new Warriors seem to have issues of their own. So much so, that Hilton over on 10-8 has removed them from their recommended 1911 list. They have went away from the external extracter but the Series II bullsh$t seems to be here to stay. |
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No it's not unique. However Kimber has QC problems with a greater frequency than it's competitors. Combine that with their external extractor debacle and it's understandable why some folks don't like Kimber. I myself have two Kimbers and they run well. My custom II has had the Swartz firing pin block neutered. 
Removed from recommended DUTY list wasn't it? |
Might have been a "Duty" list, doesn't matter to me. If it's not good enough for duty use, I won't trust my life to it. If it's strictly a range toy, might not matter to you. I had an early Warrior with a real Novak rear sight, it was 100% reliable. It's the newer guns that Kimber has slacked off on the quality. |
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I have had numerous Kimbers over the years with no issues. I currently have a Gold Match Stainless and a TLE II with rail. Both have been 100% reliable. I recently bought a SIS Ultra. Went to the range today. Fired approximately 200 rounds. probably had 20+ malfunctions. Mainly failing to go into battery and going into slide lock with rounds still in the mag. I totally cleaned and lubed the pistol before going to the range. I never had a bad thing to say about Kimbers, but now I am a little ticked after spending 1000+ on the pistol.  Haven't decided if I will send it back or sell it. I can see where the hate is coming from!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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I think much of it at least from more knowledgeable people is that Kimber really pissed away a good thing. They were are the forefront of the the revitalization of the 1911 design-you could almost argue that they created it! Circa 1995-1996 you could buy a pistol from them that worked right out of the box, was accurate and had all kinds of "custom" features for about $600. It was practically the Second Coming! Then, as they became successful they became more of a marketing company than a firearms company. They kept introducing new models "Super Duper Tacticool Thunder Chicken Special"..... that made no real improvements along with features like the Schwarz and the external extractors which are mostly anathema to the knowledgeable 1911 user. With the increased popularity they ramped up production and overall QC declined. That, along with drastically increased prices and the design changes was more than alot of us could stomach. More players entered the 1911 market and Kimber essentially found themselves in the position of Colt from say 1980-1995....former market leader, now wallowing. Springfield in particular introduced their "Loaded" line and while not as polished as the Kimbers they were solid pistols and cheaper in most cases. Eventually they expanded their line to include the higher end TRP etc... and about the same time many of the big name shops began producing "package guns" at very attractive prices. At one point you could get a 1* pistol from Yost for $1000 not including the base gun (which you could buy, shoot and keep saving for the mods).....that makes a $1,300 Kimber look not nearly so attractive. Just my .02 on the situation. |
Kimber NO1. purchased 1998 Blue Gold Match. Real nice blue, nice machine work, fit and finish excellent, very accurate. Had to trim slide stop for premature slide lock with ammo in mag. Kimber NO2. purchased 2001 Blue Poly/BP10 Gold Match.  Blue ok, machine work ok (alot of machine marks on bbl. and slide), fit and finish good, accurate. Had to trim slide stop for premature slide lock with ammo in mag, ambi safety kept walking out (replaced by me), plastic mag release worn out (BUL-5 frame issue) replaced by me with a RESCOMP for $50 I got from the other side of the world. (very nice part as it should be for the price) Kimber sent me a new one but it was for their newer poly frame and did not fit properly. Kimber NO3. purchased 2006 Tactical Pro II.  Kimber coatings ok not real durable on frame , machine work ok, fit so-so looser than I would like, least accurate of the 8 1911s I have. Barrel looks like a washboard road and leads badly with the same load used in all others with no issue. Returned slide to Kimber for front sight replacement, shot 6/8in low at 15yds, had it back in a week to their credit. Had to trim slide stop same as others. Uses Officers recoil spring and not Commander size WTF? It is a 4in. bbl. and Commander size frame.  FTF or FTE 1 out of every 200 rds. Has the internal extractor and tuning is a pain with the FP safety in tact (now gone). Still looking for the 100% combo I think I am close  .Just enough  nagging in the back of my brain to make me not carry it. It will work or I will wear it out tweaking on it. In order NO.1 to NO.3 the price went from low to high and quality went from high to low. Unless things change these are all the Kimbers I will ever have. As always YMMV. All shot with factory ball of many manufacturers or my 200gr. SWC load. |
They all try to pinch a penny to make a penny and in the end suffer for it when the word gets out. With internet it gets out fast now. |
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If there is one thing I see, it's that the big 3 or 4 constantly yo yo up and down on the QC list. Colt used to be the worst and now they are putting out a pretty nice but plain Jane [stock] reliable pistol, SA' higher end stuff is nice and K has sort of dropped the ball. Their problems as suggested seemed to start with the K2, and tho they have LOTS of models, they are hit and miss on reliability. Some work very well and some just plod along like Colt used to do. It's that final fitting and handwork that makes a 1911 type pistol reliable, it's something that CANNOT be skimped on no matter how fancy it looks or how many doodads it sports. |
| I have one of the first Kimber Warriors and it has been great. The only problem was the sights were off and Kimber fixed that by changing them out for the newer ones in about a 2 week turn around. The new Kimber sights were brighter and shot POA. That was back in 2005-2006 and the round count keeps going up with no problems. I hate that the new ones are having problems but I would not trade mine for a Brown. I have two Ed Browns and like the Kimber much more. Both the Browns had to go back. The 5" Kobra twice. |
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My best friend has been carrying a Kimber Pro CDP II for a couple years, always told me he never had problems with it. Until just recently. Here's part of an email he sent me last night. "Shipped my CDP off to Kimber finally. Took your advice and complained about the extractor. Also, it was jamming intermittently last time at the range (OCT 07). The slide stop would move out of the frame laterally about 1 mm. Then the slide would get caught on the way back into battery. Been carrying my old faithful Colt Gov't. (from the S.G. Bass Twin City Airport Gun Shop). Since it's still jacket weather here, I can wear it in my belt holster. Steve at Kimber called yesterday, says that the frame was cracked. I couldn't see it, but they mustv magnafluxed it or something. So they'd have to replace the frame. Also, he says the extractor is "the external type and out of spec". So he says they are going to send me a NEW GUN!!! "We stand 100% behind our product", he says. WOW!! I was very surprised to say the least. I was expecting a "we couldn't find anything wrong" type of answer. He says the bad news is: we are back ordered on the CDP Pro for at least 5 weeks. So I say's "can I get a 5" model instead?" (which is what I've been wanting anyway). So the new Custom CDP II is supposed to be on it's way tomorrow! " |
That's incredible! Customer service like that would make me consider buying another Kimber. I like Colts, but I know they wouldn't do that for me. |
Kimbers customer service does seem to be improving - at the cost of their quality recently I hope they get it together, they do seem to make a nice 1911. All the Kimbers I have owned were reliable expect one. I had a Custom II that had Swartz safety issues. I think 85% of the Kimber hate was related to the external extracter. The rest hate the Swartz, but that can be removed. They use solid frames, slides and barrels. Even their MIM parts (which is everything else in the gun) seem to hold up pretty well.
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I've got a Compact Aluminum with an 0008XXX serial number. I can't remember how long I've had it. Ten years +/-? Anyway, it's beautifully finished and has never had a stoppage. It's not a range beater, but it gets its fair share of rounds. My neighbor, on the other hand, has two Kimbers. They're both Eclipses. One's a five inch and a small one, an Ultra. They both started life with the external extractors. The big gun ran pretty well, with the occasional stoppage - not acceptable, but you could at least enjoy range time for the most part. The little gun was a constant pain in the ass. I convinced him to send them to Kimber. The little one got a new slide and barrel and it now runs 100%. The big one just got a new slide as far as we can tell and it too runs 100%. Why they can't/won't get that stuff right from the get-go I don't know.
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I picked up a Classic Custom series I that is the Heritage edition, something to do with the shooting sports foundation. Anyway. I finally just gritted my teeth and shot it, now has about 350 rounds through it with nothing much more than wiping the GSR orr the end and lightly oiling the exterior. I get bored at work and go run a mag here and a mag there. First failure or as soon as it hits 500 will clean it again and treat it a little better. The finish is wearing but I expect that out of thier black oxide. got new grips and some other new parts for it, but gotta wait till my smith isdone with my full build first.  Have had a BP10 II, ultra carry series I, custom II, most were pretty reliable, but kept them well cleaned and oiled, |
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Please help me with two acronyms I've found in the responses: MIM parts Plastic MSH Also, can anyone tell me if my Desert Warrior is one of the "early ones"? K1822** Ran 200 more rds through it a couple of days ago.......alternated different HP's, and cheap ball ammo......no problems. Maybe I just got lucky? |
MIM = Metal Injection Molding MSH= Mainspring Housing. NOT ALL Warriors are problematic, Kimber has just been having a higher than average QC problem. |
| personally, I just can't see spending $1000 on a pistol, when I can get another brand for a LOT less, and it's just as good, if not better. my RIA is a totally 100% reliable, GI spec pistol, for under $350. The Charles Daly I used to have was great too, and it was under $400. My next 1911 will probably be a Taurus, life time warranty, and I know thier customer service is top notch. |
Ahhh, OK. 
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NO it is not ................................
Worst customer service in the industry
I don't know about the PASSION/HATE thing, I do know I will tinker around with mine until they work properly and I feel they are GTG for carry instead of dumping them at a BIG loss. I do know I won't be purchasing any more. Uh-Oh  this might be a little PASSION/HATE!
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