Kimber Solo Carry

[circa1885]

While shopping for and researching a very small and concealable 9mm I decided to spend more money than I should have and bought a Kimber Solo. Saw both bad and mostly good reviews. Kimber suggests firing 24 rounds of premium ammo to break in the gun. They also suggest field stripping and re-assembling the gun. Something that in my somewhat limited experience I have never heard of. Used the premium ammo and at the end of 50 rounds could not get through a magazine without a mis-feed and jam. Not cool in a strictly self defense handgun. Called Kimber tech support and was told to read page 37 of the Instruction manual. It stated that you should be certain that the slide stop picks up the retention spring when re-assembling. Aha! The reason for the field strip is to correct the problem with the spring that they are apparently unable to correct at the factory. Naturally I had to properly install the spring. I am really irritated at paying way too much for a gun that I am expected to tune. I dropped 50 bucks on ammo for break in. Still have to buy more premium ammo to see if just maybe it will feed properly now. Bottom line is that I still don"t have a gun I can trust.

[gdmoody]

Thanks for the short review, I have been toying with the idea of getting a Solo. I have just decided to go another direction!

[Double D]

Hmmm. I take apart every gun I buy and clean it and oil it prior to shooting it. But I dont remember ever reading anything like that before. I know kimber is suppose to be quality but I have heard quite a few stories about them having issues and then their customer service being a little stand offish when contacted like you shouldnt be having any issues, you own a kimber. Oh well, I am still no closer to owning one.....

[rogertc1]

Advise you find the kind of ammo the Solo likes. Ammo sensitive gun. Do a google search:

The guy stating he had failures used PMC, UMC, and WWB which are all 115 grain full metal jacket rounds. The interviewer and the Kimber engineer both stated that the Solo should be fired with a minimum of 124 grain premium hollowpoint ammo. Supposedly this is in the literature that comes with the pistol.


The guy in the Kentucky Gun Company video used Hornady Critical Defense ammo which is still 115 grains but it is loaded to a higher velocity than regular FMJ 115 grain ammo. If you go back to the video with the Kimber engineer he mentioned that they had to make the slide as heavy as possible of the slide's abbreviated length. With a heavy slide they are going to need a higher velocity round to make it cycle properly. A slide that is too light will cycle before the bullet has left the barrel allowing the pressure and energy to escape out of the ejector port rather than using the pressure and energy to project the bullet at the proper speed. in 2003 I bought a Springfield Micro Compact 1911 chambered in .40 S&W and it had this problem; the slide cycled too quickly. The report and recoil were like I was shooting a .22 rather than a .40 because all of the energy was escaping out of the back of the pistol instead of the front. The bullet also keyholded the target meaning that it was tumbling end over end rather than spiraling which was another indication that there was not enough velocity to stabilize the bullet. The weight of the slide is critically important in short barreled semi-automatic pistols. If they just cut a full size slide back to the shorter barrel length it will cycle too quickly.
http://averagejoeshandgunreviews.blo...ry-pistol.html

[rogertc1]

Good luck..more on eth ammo>


Sorry to disappoint all you Kimber Solo haters but with my latest trip to the range I have now put exactly 300 rounds through this gun with zero failures or malfunctions of any kind.
Federal HST 124gr +P
Speer Gold Dot 124gr
Remington Golden Saber 124gr
Federal Hydra-Shok 147gr
AND
50 rounds of WWB 115gr

Regardless of what I have read on the internet , this little pistol feeds and fires everything I have put in it.
Along with a superb trigger, I say "three cheers" to Kimber for making THE BEST small 9mm on the market today.

http://www.defensivecarry.com/forum/...ct-rounds.html

[Shooter45]

Originally Posted by circa1885

While shopping for and researching a very small and concealable 9mm I decided to spend more money than I should have and bought a Kimber Solo. Saw both bad and mostly good reviews. Kimber suggests firing 24 rounds of premium ammo to break in the gun. They also suggest field stripping and re-assembling the gun. Something that in my somewhat limited experience I have never heard of. Used the premium ammo and at the end of 50 rounds could not get through a magazine without a mis-feed and jam. Not cool in a strictly self defense handgun. Called Kimber tech support and was told to read page 37 of the Instruction manual. It stated that you should be certain that the slide stop picks up the retention spring when re-assembling. Aha! The reason for the field strip is to correct the problem with the spring that they are apparently unable to correct at the factory. Naturally I had to properly install the spring. I am really irritated at paying way too much for a gun that I am expected to tune. I dropped 50 bucks on ammo for break in. Still have to buy more premium ammo to see if just maybe it will feed properly now. Bottom line is that I still don"t have a gun I can trust.

I don't think you are understanding what you are reading. If I'm wrong, sorry. Just going by the info you typed.

As stated in the owners manual, the field stripping is to clean the factory grease off the weapon. These pistols are tightly fitted and the factory grease is to prevent rust while in storage prior to being sold. Did you clean it before going to the range ?

The part about making sure the slide stop picks up the retention spring, that's just an FYI when re assemblying to make sure it's done properly.

A tightly fitted 1911 full of factory grease will not function properly. I've had several returned to the gunshop where I was working and ALL worked as expected after a proper cleaning and oiling.
The customer excuse was always, " it's new and shouldn't need cleaning".

[circa1885]

Reply to Shooter45- Trust me, the Solo is no 1911. I didn't field strip until after I fired it the first time. The spring had not been installed properly at the factory and I had to correct it. Moreover, the manual states in no uncertain terms that the Solo should not be over lubed. There was no "factory grease".'

[firefighter1635]

I've never owned a Kimber but have friends that do and have shot there kimbers many times. They are nice but for the money i'll stick with my Sig Sauers thanks.

[Shooter45]

I should have googled it first as I didn't know Kimber made anything like that.

No factory grease is strange as most all weapons do before leaving the factory.
Good luck with it.

[Double D]

Originally Posted by rogertc1

Good luck..more on eth ammo>


Sorry to disappoint all you Kimber Solo haters but with my latest trip to the range I have now put exactly 300 rounds through this gun with zero failures or malfunctions of any kind.
Federal HST 124gr +P
Speer Gold Dot 124gr
Remington Golden Saber 124gr
Federal Hydra-Shok 147gr
AND
50 rounds of WWB 115gr

Regardless of what I have read on the internet , this little pistol feeds and fires everything I have put in it.
Along with a superb trigger, I say "three cheers" to Kimber for making THE BEST small 9mm on the market today.

http://www.defensivecarry.com/forum/...ct-rounds.html

Uhh, there isnt one person here that even hinted they were a solo hater...I really hope your little gun is functioning properly for the amount of money they are charging for them, they sure better be. As for the best 9mm on the market, well, that jury is still out...

[rogertc1]

Nothing to do with hate. Following link I google that shows ammo someone had good luck with. They are ammo sensitive.