Spitting Kimber

[Stupid]

It's not really the design of 1911. I did some research on this, back in the 1930s (cannot remember the time, but around the time when the army adopted 1911), the requirement was 5000 rounds without malfunction - this was documented in the army's specification. Today's pistols typically can last through 10,000 rounds or higher.

My Kimber wouldn't last more than 50 rounds.

[WildBill]

It's not really the design of 1911. I did some research on this, back in the 1930s (cannot remember the time, but around the time when the army adopted 1911), the requirement was 5000 rounds without malfunction - this was documented in the army's specification. Today's pistols typically can last through 10,000 rounds or higher.

My Kimber wouldn't last more than 50 rounds.

FYI, Mil-Spec 1911's were designed to be fired with Mil-Spec ball ammo.

[Stupid]

It's not really the design of 1911. I did some research on this, back in the 1930s (cannot remember the time, but around the time when the army adopted 1911), the requirement was 5000 rounds without malfunction - this was documented in the army's specification. Today's pistols typically can last through 10,000 rounds or higher.

My Kimber wouldn't last more than 50 rounds.

FYI, Mil-Spec 1911's were designed to be fired with Mil-Spec ball ammo.

I know that. My Kimber couldn't last more than 50 rounds for any ball ammo.

[vickark]

Thanks guys- ya'll saved me a bunch of money.
I had full intentions of buying a kimber just because they look good. This review taught me a lesson on buying on looks alone. I've never shot a kimber nor known anyone who has. But with this many complaints there has to be a problem going on with this pistol.I know there's a few posts that swear by them- but seems to be more swearing at them.
I have 2 semis. one Ruger p-95 9mm and a s&w .40 ve model. I've shoved a lot of lead thru them and have yet to have any problem at all. I would surely not want to spend 3-4 times the amount on a gun that can't surpass the reliability of the ones i have now.
I guess i will start looking at other makes. Maybe colts or dan wessons in a 1911 .45
model? This sure busted my kimber bubble.
Good shootin'

[TxDrifter]

Any gun can fail anytime. I have three Kimbers and so far no problems. Still within the first 500 rounds on two of them. This I found to be an interesting read, although not exclusively Kimber, but 1911 platform vs. Glock. This is a NO ifs, ands, or buts contest that is done annually.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.p ... 567&page=2" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Worth reading, but the Glocks fail a lot also.

[MTICop]

I have a Kimber and I love it. It's my daily carry gun. I have shot it multiple times and any issues I have had gave been either caused by me or because the gun was really dry after shooting for an extended period of time. I have heard a lot of complaints here lately on various forums though that more and more people are having trouble with them. Most of the "gurus" if you will are saying that Kimber has started using cheaper parts and this is degrading the quality of the guns they are making. I can't personally attest to this but this is what is being said.

[Stupid]

I just came back from another range trip. This time I fired about 100 rd of lead round nose handloads with my Kimber. I had 1 failure due to the slide stopper was pushed slightly up for some reason - I didn't think that was my thumbs hitting it but it's a very likely cause.

I want to say that I knew what I was getting into before I bought my Kimber. Through my extensive research, I read both good and bad reviews and fully anticipated multiple trips back to Kimber as many CDP II owners indicated - however, some owners claimed there's absolutely no problem.

Kimber's service has been great - paid for all three trips without a gltch and did their part of work. I am now happy that the pistol can last 100 rounds. It is still spitting brass though

I personally wouldn't do that again. In between the ammo that I had to go through to get it work "right" or "break-in" and the trips back to Kimber for which I had to take time off from work to wait at home, its high price certainly does not justify. The total cost to me is probably more than $1300 now.

I am also not so enthusiastic about Colt due to my absolute nightmare with my 1991A1 commander which cannot even last through 2 magazines without a failure to feed. It's now sitting in my safe as dead weight.

I think Sig, Glock and Beretta are doing their job much better than the 1911 manufacturers. Also the HK even though I boycott all HKs but their reputation for reliability is quite good.

Ironically, I still carry the CDP II.

[WildBill]

I want to say that I knew what I was getting into before I bought my Kimber. Through my extensive research, I read both good and bad reviews and fully anticipated multiple trips back to Kimber as many CDP II owners indicated - however, some owners claimed there's absolutely no problem.

Kimber's service has been great - paid for all three trips without a gltch and did their part of work. I am now happy that the pistol can last 100 rounds. It is still spitting brass though.

I really don't understand this mentality at all.

I have worked in the quality assurance field for many years and I wouldn't have the audacity to think that my company was doing a great job just because our customer service department arranged quick shipping three times to repair a defective product that we sold to a customer. And then, to top it off, the product still doesn't work!

The whole concept of a "breaking in" period for a "custom gun" is a bunch of horse pucky. A thousand dollar pistol should work, straight out of the box. Period.

[Stupid]

I really don't understand this mentality at all.

I have worked in the quality assurance field for many years and I wouldn't have the audacity to think that my company was doing a great job just because our customer service department arranged quick shipping three times to repair a defective product that we sold to a customer. And then, to top it off, the product still doesn't work!

Tell me about. I have been in the QA for a very long time (long for me) too. I know exactly how the feeling.

[Excaliber]

I just came back from another range trip. This time I fired about 100 rd of lead round nose handloads with my Kimber. I had 1 failure due to the slide stopper was pushed slightly up for some reason - I didn't think that was my thumbs hitting it but it's a very likely cause.

I want to say that I knew what I was getting into before I bought my Kimber. Through my extensive research, I read both good and bad reviews and fully anticipated multiple trips back to Kimber as many CDP II owners indicated - however, some owners claimed there's absolutely no problem.

Kimber's service has been great - paid for all three trips without a gltch and did their part of work. I am now happy that the pistol can last 100 rounds. It is still spitting brass though

I personally wouldn't do that again. In between the ammo that I had to go through to get it work "right" or "break-in" and the trips back to Kimber for which I had to take time off from work to wait at home, its high price certainly does not justify. The total cost to me is probably more than $1300 now.

I am also not so enthusiastic about Colt due to my absolute nightmare with my 1991A1 commander which cannot even last through 2 magazines without a failure to feed. It's now sitting in my safe as dead weight.

I think Sig, Glock and Beretta are doing their job much better than the 1911 manufacturers. Also the HK even though I boycott all HKs but their reputation for reliability is quite good.

Ironically, I still carry the CDP II.

When you say it is "spitting brass," do you mean that the ejected casing is coming straight back instead of going to the right/rear?

If so, there are a couple of possibilities. The easiest one is the handloaded ammo you're using, which may not be driving the slide back at the speed it's designed for. If it happens with new factory ammo too, it's probably the gun. If it doesn't happen with new factory ammo, it's the handloads.

If it's not the ammo, out of spec angles on either the extractor or the ejector (or both) or improper extractor tension can cause this problem. I had this issue with a Colt. A little knowledgeable gunsmith work on the ejector angle cured it.