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Thread: WANTED: DEFINITIVE answers as to whats wrong with Kimber 1911's.

  1. #11
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    I was gone when we switched from the MEU(SOC) 1911 to the Kimber, but those guys told me the MIM parts broke too frequently, and I recall the firing pin safety was an issue.

    The only one I ever shot to any extent was one I borrowed for a 2-day class, about 700 rounds, and it did fine. I don't recall what model.

  2. #12
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    WOW- THANK YOU ALL for this information...exactly what I was looking for.
    My Kimber didnt have the Swartz Safety, it was a Yonkers gun.
    Now, the next time someone asks about MIM parts and people start chiming in "oh theyre AS GOOD as steel"...Im gonna refer them back to this thread.
    I dont like MIM & never will. The cost savings CANT be so much as to warrant use of an inferior part.
    Question: Whats the cost ifference between, say a MIM hammer & a steel one?
    The obedient always think of themselves as virtuous rather than the cowards they really are.

  3. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Straight Shooter View Post
    I dont like MIM & never will. The cost savings CANT be so much as to warrant use of an inferior part.
    Question: Whats the cost ifference between, say a MIM hammer & a steel one?
    Generally speaking MIM will give a 30-60% savings over other production methods depending on volume produced and the complexity of the part. The strength of the end material - assuming it’s properly produced - ends up between a cast and a forged part but the labor for production is greatly reduced due to the minimal finishing work required. Most of the issues arise due to improper cooling leading to weakening of the structure.

    The technology is solid - MIM components are used in turbine engines where they’re exposed to high temperatures and rapid temperature cycling with minimal dimensional clearances between parts but those components are being made in tightly controlled conditions where the cost benefits are far down the concern line, not being shopped out to the cheapest overseas factory as we’ve seen manufacturers like Sig do.

  4. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by DirectTo View Post
    Generally speaking MIM will give a 30-60% savings over other production methods depending on volume produced and the complexity of the part. The strength of the end material - assuming it’s properly produced - ends up between a cast and a forged part but the labor for production is greatly reduced due to the minimal finishing work required. Most of the issues arise due to improper cooling leading to weakening of the structure.

    The technology is solid - MIM components are used in turbine engines where they’re exposed to high temperatures and rapid temperature cycling with minimal dimensional clearances between parts but those components are being made in tightly controlled conditions where the cost benefits are far down the concern line, not being shopped out to the cheapest overseas factory as we’ve seen manufacturers like Sig do.
    Yes, the technology is good to go if done properly. How often do you hear of HK guns having issue with their MIM pieces?

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  5. #15
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    I own a Kimber TLE with a standard extractor that was made in NY. I've only experienced one negative issue. The MIM thumb safety broke at what appeared to be a fissure in the metal at around 500 rounds. I did not want to spend the money to ship it to Kimber via UPS Next Day Air, so I purchased a thumb safety from Brownell's and fitted it myself.

    For the past several thousand rounds it has been stone cold reliable and very accurate with my 185g handloads. It will feed semi-wadcutters, hollow points, FMJ round nose and JSP rounds reliably and I sometimes carry it when I leave the house.

    It would appear that Kimber has relocated outside New York.
    Train 2 Win

  6. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by The_War_Wagon View Post
    I don't make enough money, to buy all the ones I want.

    Other than that, MY statistical sample of 2 (TLE RL II, Ultra Covert), have worked just fine, for 11+ years each. Use the factory mags for range mags ONLY though.
    What is the round count on those pistols?

  7. #17
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    I've never held a Kimber I thought was worth the asking price. My money continues to go to Colt / SA for 1911's. They're kind of like the SIG of 1911's with all the silly models. Speaking of SIG, some cat on HKPro was trying to sell a Sig "P226 Elite Emperor Scorpion FDE." -Seriously?

  8. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by HKGuns View Post
    I've never held a Kimber I thought was worth the asking price. My money continues to go to Colt / SA for 1911's. They're kind of like the SIG of 1911's with all the silly models. Speaking of SIG, some cat on HKPro was trying to sell a Sig "P226 Elite Emperor Scorpion FDE." -Seriously?
    Im OUT on almost all things Sig. Have NEVER liked the P226, ever. Ugliest, most unergonomic thing Ive ever shot, tho reliable. One of my most hated pistols.
    I dont have much more experiance with Kimbers after I sold mine. I just keep reading how they are "junk" or "crap" and wanted to WHY, exactly.
    Good answers so far.
    The obedient always think of themselves as virtuous rather than the cowards they really are.

  9. #19
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    Quote Originally Posted by HKGuns View Post
    I've never held a Kimber I thought was worth the asking price. My money continues to go to Colt / SA for 1911's. They're kind of like the SIG of 1911's with all the silly models. Speaking of SIG, some cat on HKPro was trying to sell a Sig "P226 Elite Emperor Scorpion FDE." -Seriously?
    Maybe not now, but back before 2000 the 4" Elite Carry I had cost me less than a grand OTD. To touch the features and appearance it had out of the box, would've cost North of $2K on a Colt/SA base gun + custom gunsmithing. If nothing else, Kimber shocked the 1911 world into the modern era. They couldn't keep asking the same money for a gun that hadn't been updated for a half century or more.
    What if this whole crusade's a charade?
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    Justified in the name of the holy and the divine…

  10. #20
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    Quote Originally Posted by Straight Shooter View Post
    Im OUT on almost all things Sig. Have NEVER liked the P226, ever. Ugliest, most unergonomic thing Ive ever shot, tho reliable. One of my most hated pistols.
    I dont have much more experiance with Kimbers after I sold mine. I just keep reading how they are "junk" or "crap" and wanted to WHY, exactly.
    Good answers so far.
    On a deployment I swapped the 1911 with a P226 with a guy in the accompanying SEAL platoon...one-for-one, gun, mags, ammo, mag pouches. Of course we almost never go to pistol, so the only time I shot it was in training. I liked it, very much. I would have been happy carrying it. It IS 'chunky', tho.

    Speaking of SIG and 1911s, one of my fave 1911s is my SIG 1911 Revolution, SN around 11K. Best out-of-the-box trigger of any of my sub-$2K 1911s. The only 'in-class' 1911 that compared was a TRP. Otherwise every other 1911 I had, I had a trigger job.

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