Kimber Ultra Raptor-Unreliable

[RDW]

The bad part of this whole thing is, you will never be able to carry a Kimber as his primary weapon without that little devil in the back of your mind asking..."will everything work when my life or the life of a family member is on the line". You have got to have confidence in your equipment. I hate to see you pass the problem on to someone else. I would tell them to replace the firearm or the bad press that is going to hit the INTERNET will cost them a lot more than replacement cost in the long run!

[wolvie1892]

I have owned 4 Kimbers. One Custom II, a Pro Carry HD, a tactical Pro II, and an Ultra Carry II. The only one that I ever had problems with is the Ultra Carry. I had several FTF and failure to return to battery with JHP's. So I think that it all depends on which gun you get, but it seems to me like Kimber is putting out more lemons lately than they did a couple of years ago. They need to follow Springfield's example of Customer Service and they would probably have more happy customers. I stopped buying Kimbers after this past year and went to Dan Wesson bobtail commanders. Now that gun is worth the 1000 dollars I laided out for it.

[oidsailor]

Sorry to hear about the problems, I have 3 Kimbers and the only problem is the Warrior does not like Wilsom mags but shoots well with Chip Mccormic or the Kimber Mags.

[Zippo74]

I have a Kimber Stainless II that I have yet to have an issue with.

It has a 5 inch barrel and I can drive tacks with it.

I am planning on sending it into Kimber and having the Sights redone.

I called them the other day and they said it was no big deal to just mill the top slide and have Adjustables put on it.'

Im going to do that and turn it into my compatition gun.

Im sorry your having issues like this. though it has made me think.

Because I am thinking of getting an ultra carry because the 5 inch barrel makes it to difficult to carry.. and with turning into my Comp Piece I dont want to carry it every day.

Though with your problems... I am thinking of getting a Springfield instead....

[kejam]

My buddy has a Kimber, and also has had problems. Ive been thinking about getting one. You can talk to 100 hundred people and half will hate them half will love them, sucks to spend the money and wonder though. My $300 Millenium Pro hasnt hicupped after 1,000 rounds. hhhmmmm.

Springfield XD45 Compact
PT111 Millenium Pro
Browning Hi-Power Mark III
SW Md66 357 Combat Mag

[couger8045]

One thing everyone needs to keep in mind is that regardless of the model of gun... glock, kimber, beretta, SW...someone will experience a problem somewhere along the line. We all no Mercedes makes a great car one of the best, do they have problems? sure they do....

Kimber is like a Mercedes...I dont think its a crazy analogy, I think it makes sense...both are great for what they are made for, but yes....they will have problems like anything else.There is not such thing as a flawless gun or anything for that matter. You may have some people like me, who have over 10,000 rounds between 5 kimbers with not a single problem...but, like anything else something will happen at somepoint, its inevitable.

Kimber is a great gun, I wouldnt own 5 of them plus 2 of their rifles if I didnt trust my life with them. Sorry to hear some of you are having problems. Regardless, they are great guns, one of-if not the best 1911. Hope you guys can give them another chance. Also, their customer service is great. if you are having issues, I assure you they will work with you. Give them a call.

[sar]

Their customer service is great when they resolve an issue. When they find they can't resolve an issue they brush it under the rug and act arrogant and condescending. The fact that you pay 1000 dollars for this treatment is completely unacceptable. I have personally and successfully turned at least 12 people away from getting a kimber and am proud that I'm keeping people from spending hard earned money on a product that has a good reputation based on the product THEY MADE SEVERAL YEARS AGO. I'll never buy a new kimber again. I recommend that NOBODY buy one again until they return to the quality they produced several years ago.

Unless they learn, they'll get out competed by springfield, etc.

[sar]

Alright,
I now have my ultra raptor II firing hollowpoint ammo without failures. What I did was: 1) blow another 300 of WWB through it, stripping and cleaning every 50-75 rounds. 2) Use ONLY federal hydrashock 165 grains bulllets.

I'm ok with the hydrashocks, I'm sure they're more than adequate for self defense. I'm still troubled by the way Kimber handled this issue. It's unlikely I'll ever purchase a Kimber product again. Additionally I've turned several potential customers away from them. It's upsetting that a thousand dollar handgun can only feed one single brand and type of hollowpoint ammunition.

I tried(and the gun failed with) winchester sxt, golden sabers, speer short barrel HPs, hornady, winchester white box personal defense.

The gun also seems to feel double tap 230gr fmj-flat points fine, but I only fired 2 mags worth. I use that ammo in my full size kimber when carries as a back up sidearm while bowhunting pigs.

I never tried the corbon stuff, it might work ok given the point shape.

Again, I would've hoped that a weapon made by such a reputable manufacturer would be more versatile as far as ammunition options.

I may still get rid of it and go with an STI guardian or a para single stack.

[Dhaught]

I had been thinking of buying a Kimber for a while but with all this talk on this thread and many others I have read about break in periods, touchy mags, FTF's, broken parts, and poor customer service I think I am going to look at Baer or Wilson, maybe STI instead.

[KenS]

Very disappointing report. Sorry you are having such bad luck with Kimber. I have been thinking I might like to have a Kimber 45, now I'm not so sure.
Best regards, Ken.