My Normal Everyday carry gun failed.

[G.A. Heath]

While at the range Friday evening my normal everyday carry developed an issue with the trigger. The pull increased significantly and the trigger become "gritty". The gun continued to work, although it was not optimum. This is an unacceptable change in a carry gun so It went straight to the gun safe when I got home and stayed there until I had enough time to take it down and inspect it. Currently it's predecessor, a RIA compact 1911, took it's place in my holster.

So lets talk about the gun in question. It's a Kimber Pro Covert II, has around 2000 to 2500 rounds through it, and the failure is rather unusual. I had time today so I detail stripped the gun and as soon as I got the grip safety out of the way I could see the issue, the right leg on the sear had broken off. A careful inspection shows a clean break but it was defective when the part was given its finish as I can see bare metal on about 30% of the interior surface and the rest has the same finish coating that the exterior of the part has. This is the first time I have seen a failure of this type, and fortunately is the first time I have even heard of one. Things would have been completely different if the other leg had failed and the gun could have gone full auto in that case or even fired while out of battery.

Now I really don't want to hear "It's a Kimber so it's junk" or "Get a Glock" because even with the failure of a critical component this Kimber continued to go bang every time I pressed the trigger and I can't say the same about my former Glock. What I want to do is point out that parts do fail, and they do so regardless of the name brand. This is the first time I have seen a Kimber fail like this and I will consider the probable cause to be the manufacturing process as there is finish where there should be bare metal on the surface that should have been the inside of the part. I am looking into what I will do to get the gun back into service, however upgrades are in order.

Sear as seen from behind with the right leg having broken off.

[mgood]

Parts break from time to time. . . .

This is probably one of those metal injection molding (MIM) parts that Kimber uses and everyone likes to gripe about. My thoughts on them is to leave them alone unless they break; at that time I'll upgrade them. The tip of the ejector broke in my Ultra CDP II, but since I've never had a failure to eject, I haven't worried about it too terribly much. I'll get it replaced one of these days when I'm having something else worked on at the same time.

No doubt Kimber would replace the sear and fit everything together correctly for you. But I'd think of this as a good excuse to have a gunsmith upgrade the firing mechanism for better trigger pull anyway. Something like EGW's Ultimate Trigger Kit or similar. Still needs to be fit by a gunsmith.

[karder]

Anything made by man will eventually break. Does this experience make you reconsider anything in your daily carry routine, such as perhaps carrying a BUG as well? I have made a committed decision to carry a BUG daily after taking part in a number of discussions on this forum. For some reason, carrying a main gun is not a problem for me, but the BUG seems like a chore. I am adapting however. A problem like yours would have to be very rare, but it sure would be unfortunate in a SD situation.

[texanron]

This incident has me wondering if we should treat our EDC like we do our vehicles. We have to have the oil changed every now and then on our vehicles. We have new tires installed when the old ones show wear.
I know we can't prevent all malfunctions or breakdowns but should we change out certain parts on our firearms every 1000 rounds or so? Just a thought.

[e-bil]

I had a similar experience with my EDC which just got back from Miami (and its suntan looks awesome). Started having problems with it not returning to battery regardless of ammo brand. They replaced the slide lock clip and the recoil spring. The local gunsmith I talked to prior to sending it on holiday said he recommends at least the recoil spring every 1,000 to 1,500 rounds. I can see needing to change out springs since they are under tension and can fatigue depending on the role.

[G.A. Heath]

First off I am looking at an upgrade to the sear, hammer, grip safety, and thumb safety. I am also considering dropping the swartz safety then installing a heavier FP spring and titanium FP. I have a very serious maintenance plan for all my firearms, especially my carry guns, that I follow which involves a detail strip and cleaning on a regular basis based on usage or carry (This firearm was due for a detail strip this coming Friday. Springs get replaced in my carry guns (and regular shooters) so frequently that the post office thinks I own stock in Wolff. The thing to consider is that every time I have seen a sear failure its been on the crown, until this one. But this is one reason why I own multiple guns that I am willing to carry.

e-bil: Modern springs should never take a "set" (become weaker due to being compressed), but they do wear quickly on firearms that are used a lot (such as many of mine). My current primary EDC has eclipsed the 5k round mark a long time ago and continues to rock and roll with out any real issues, I wish the Covert II had done this as well.

[mgood]

I know we can't prevent all malfunctions or breakdowns but should we change out certain parts on our firearms every 1000 rounds or so? Just a thought.

Generally just springs and such. For other parts, you'd be talking about tens of thousands of rounds before parts should need replacing as part of regular maintenance. 'Bout the only people I know who shoot that much are competitive shooters who are well aware of what parts are wearing by the time they've sent that many rounds down range.

But parts do fail unexpectedly. It might be a one-in-a-million thing and you might replace it with the same factory part and never have that happen again. Or you might choose to upgrade with aftermarket parts for more peace of mind or just because you've been wanting to try it anyway.

[Salty1]

Guns are mechanical devices, as with any mechanical device they can and will fail at some point. Proper maintenance helps with failures but in no way will prevent them. Quality handguns such as your Kimber have less of a chance of failure once broken in than the cheap models but actual costs have little relationship to potential failure. Once you get the replacement part I would check it for abnormal wear the first few times you shoot it just to make sure the tolerances are not off. Fix it, test it and have fun with your Kimber......

[MoJo]

The saying "One is none and two is one" applies in this situation. If the part had failed and locked the gun up in a gunfight you then only have an expensive, rock to throw. Always carry a second gun.

[Pacifist]

...but should we change out certain parts on our firearms every 1000 rounds or so?

Maybe---if it's not a Glock.

[The Annoyed Man]

...but should we change out certain parts on our firearms every 1000 rounds or so?

Maybe---if it's not a Glock.

REALLY?? http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&clie ... =&aql=&oq=

[Toadstone]

Well, if it had to happen, I guess you can thank your lucky stars it happened on the range and not in a more intense setting.
This goes to show that you should always be prepared to transition to kung fu.

[G.A. Heath]

To be perfectly honest I am leaning towards sending the gun to Wilson Combat for new internals and upgrades, although I am open to suggestions for good smiths.