Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Jag special! - "Texas" .45ACP Kimber 1911

Kimber.

No thanks.

That thing is fugly

Good lord, not only is it seriously ugly, it is Kimber. PASS!

Kimber's don't get a lot off love. I've never bought one because of the reputation.

With that said my cousin had a plain base Government model that ran perfectly. But I doubt he ever got more than 400 rounds through that pistol.

I don't understand the hate for Kimber, I have had four and own two of them now, both have functioned flawlessly. One has about 5-7 thousand rounds through it and the other about 800.

Geez, now I have to hate on Leupold, Remington, GoreTex, Nick Saban AND Kimber?

Sig makes a nicer Texas addition in my opinion

Have no problem with Kimbers. Many thousand flawless rounds put downrange.

My Kimber carry is nice.

When kimbers first came out - they stood out because they were a semi-custom with out full custom price and wait.

Forward cocking serrations, beavertail, checkering and commander hammers etc. Decent price. I owned 2 of them with the pre-II prefix.

I think the problem has become that they're no longer the only one making a good, mildly upgraded 1911 in the market at a good price. That combined with some CS failures which tend to get shared quite a lot - they catch heat.

Kimber I had was flawless

Through the years I've noticed that it is "cool" to hate on Kimber 1911's.

The strange thing is that I've owned 5 or 6 at one time or another (still have 4) and have shot a dozen or more others that belong to members of our gun club. Nobody has ever had a problem that could attributed to the gun. Not one person. I've seen folks with "tuned" feed lips on their magazines have issues, but when you hand them an unmodified mag, all the problems go away.

I'll go a step further and say that almost every 1911 I've owned/shot/seen shot was the same way. They just work. (I do know of one Colt that would give you an occasional double tap from a single trigger press. I am friends with the owner and know that the gun came that way from the factory).

But, as for Kimbers specifically, is their defect rate any worse than any other manufacturer? I doubt it. The evidence I've seen from credible, first-hand sources says No.

And FWIW--I don't love the TEXAS model in the original post. It's too much. Get rid of the flag at the front and the lone star at the back; get rid of the Kimber logo (it's distracting), center the word TEXAS on the left side of the slide and move the outline of the state to the other side. Do all that, and I think you'd be onto something.

I had no issues with mine.

Also had zero issues with my Colts

Me, personally - I love Kimber's rifle but in a 1911 today - I don't know why I'd buy a Kimber over someone else's?

I agree with that.

Once you start catching heat, it's hard to put out the fire. (A company that puts out a higher-priced 1911 should at least include a metal mainspring housing and a second magazine. (But, as far as function goes, they do go bang)).

I don't understand it either! I have multiple Kimbers and they are great. I also have Colts, Sigs and Dan Wessons in 1911s, but my favorite is a Kimber 10mm.

I've had more troubles with the Colts than the others and one of my Colts has a platic mainspring housing also.

Guess I'm totally weird because I also like Leupolds and Harleys too.

I think part of Kimber's problem was they sold way more 1911's than anybody. High production can lead to slips in QC and you just plain have more problem pistols out there because of the shear volume sold. An you know how it is you don't hear so much about the good pistols but you darn sure hear about the problem ones.

My problem with Kimber has nothing to do with their firearms. It has to do with their elitist management, and possibly ownership.

I'm sure most Kimber firearms shoot well. I'll never know...

That's a great observation. IMHO, Kimber's used to be ahead of other companies in the "looks factor." If you wanted a reliable 1911 AND wanted a decent BBQ piece, Kimber was a cost-effective choice. 10 years ago, you could get some sweet bluing and grips on a factory Kimber. But now....

Other manufacturers have more than caught up. Some of Springfield's 1911's are pretty svelt looking. Even Ruger, as no-frills as that company usually is, makes a two-tone 1911 with a skeletonized hammer and trigger. If you like/prefer/don't mind an external extractor, S&W offers a cool-looking, functioning 1911 with front and rear scalloping on the slide and laser engraving that is tastefully done for under $1000.

We have a ton of great choices in the market--we should all go out today and buy a 1911!

My Eclipse Target II is more accurate than I am.
It feeds fine, but tends to hurl brass.
I’ve changed recoil and mainsprings, firing pin stop, and extractor spring and it stills flings it. I usually find it slightly behind me, to my right, 15’ away. That’s my only complaint. Admittedly, my loads aren’t mild. 230’s at 900 and 200’s at 960, both with H Universal.
No trouble with MIM parts after 13 years and a couple thousand rounds, but I’m not a hard-charging, tacticool, gunfight a week sort.....