Local officer was told by Kimber he wasn't gripping the gun correctly when it wouldn't fire. He and the others with Kimber's promptly returned them and they bought SA's.
Serious question...do people still buy Kimber 1911's? I believe most independent shops in my area punted.
The current Kimber LW (lightweight) models don't have a firing pin safety and I've considered picking one up to serve as a backup/trainer for my Colt Lightweight Government. But then I recently bought a steel Colt XSE to serve in that role instead, which is nice because it's set up exactly like the Lightweight Government -- sights and all.Originally Posted by Navin Johnson
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ax8yzAypUtU&t=1s
3 of 3 is up explaining the issues and talking about potential solutions.
That is a pretty elegant solution to the problem!
The question is, does it keep the actual safety component of it operational...
For me, my purposes, I like/prefer the Colt S80 setup precisely because of that issue with the Swartz setup. Having seen/had a 1911 drop from hip height onto a stone floor and watched the barrel flag across my head as it bounced...not so much fun. (yes, I know it probably would not have gone off as it struck rear first and not muzzle down, but still...yikes).
I'd probably never go for a Kimber due to other quality issues (both perceived and realized)...but, if that fix is an appropriate one, at least the safety could be made to function as it should, should I ever fall on my head and say to myself "Self, you should sell your Colts and get a Kimber"
I've removed material on the stop itself in my two Kimbers, and that's worked so far for these guns, but I can absolutely see how this is a better solution for someone with access to the right tools (or a reliable smith who has them). I will say that fitting the stop using a chainsaw file is a pretty elegant solution for those of us trying to get the gun working with minimal additional investment and resources. But I'll of course also admit it may end up ruining the part and requiring one to go back to Kimber for help, which is... not something I want to deal with.
I was also changing the sights on mine anyway. I'd be loathe to take the rear sight off to mess with things now that I have the sights I want installed and zeroed.
I don't totally hate the system now that I have two guns with it that work like they should, but I wouldn't buy one again knowing what I know about them now. It's obvious that Kimber simply won't put in the required time during assembly to actually fit these things, in which case they should stop using it. If your solution to the issue is to just throw parts at it without doing any work to fit them, that's what titanium and/or 9mm firing pins and extra power springs are for.
I do really appreciate the work putting out the information for those of us who ended up with these guns and would rather get them running correctly than get rid of them.
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