1911 Kimber feeding problem

[Colt]

What he said ^

It is almost certainly extractor. If you tension it properly and it has no rough spots, etc. and you still have the issue, then it will probably be mags and or mag springs.

Do not do any reliability work or go to heavier recoil springs without first tensioning extractor and ensuring it has no rough edges and stuff.

The most stock mag would be the seven round Checkmate mag with the hybrid feed lips. If you need to look beyond the extractor, I'd suggest trying that mag. You can order directly from Checkmate industries.

But it is most likely going to be unnecessary.

Good luck.

[MosinVirus]

Also, the pic you provided is not very good.

Need to see clearly how the round is positioned, in relation to breach face/extractor and in relation to chamber

[Johnny.23]

Yea, I think it might be the extractor, my friends Wilson Combat 1911 and Kimber both worked fine with my magazines. So it must be the extractor then and not the mags?

I made an appointment with a good gunsmith here in the Bay Area.

Thanks for the help!

[MosinVirus]

Smart of you to go to a gunsmith. Good luck. Share the outcome please

[Johnny.23]

Smart of you to go to a gunsmith. Good luck. Share the outcome please

Thanks! Sort of having buyers remorse lol The dang thing costed $1300 should of just gotten the Springfield 1911 MC Operator hehe, but wanted to take a chance and tried something different so I got the Kimber hehe. I'll keep you all posted!

Thanks!

[MosinVirus]

No guarantee MC wouldn't have any issues. Sometimes things fall through QC cracks.

[jeffrice6]

Send it home

[Malmon]

Why not send it back to Kimber? I had about half a dozen Kimber and had to send only one back due to an ejector that loosened after I start slamming full size mags into this ultra carry. They cover shipping costs and the gun came back good as new

[ifilef]

Well, that's a shame. I wonder how such a firearm made it through all the wars without much in the way of complaints. With all the problems that seem to crop up on the internet, either guns are just not made with the quality as in the past or there's been a huge cover-up for 75 years, or...?

In any event, I go with Beretta or even the fugly Glock any day over 1911 for home defense. 1911 is more of a fun range gun to me.

[Robert1234]

1911s are better than ever before. How would you hear about all the complaints about 1911s before the age of the internet? The bulletin board at your local Elks lodge?

People didn't really shoot pistols all that much until the 80s with the advent of IPSC and PPC. I think people were more mechanically inclined in the old days, as well.

I do believe he was being facetious.

[ifilef]

I wasn't facetious and I doubt if HopetonBrown was either. That's my take on it.

One never heard Sergeant York complaining about the 1911. And I'm not aware of horror stories from WWII demeaning the 1911 as a fighting pistol.

I just don't understand why so many people nowadays seem to have problems with 1911. True, they were designed for FMJ and that's all I intend to shoot out of mine 95% of the time.

Whatever...

True, I'd be miffed if I spent what OP had spent and had such problems.

[Colt]

Gunsmith? Geez.

Let me guess. You were told about polishing feed ramp and throating barrel. Also some jumbo jumbo about springs. Maybe he talked about extractor.

Only do one thing - tension the extractor. Then shoot it with same mags you were using when you had issues. If problem goes away you are gtg. If not, change mag springs. If still a problem, change mags. If still a problem, send it back to Kimber.

Do not touch it with a file, a dremel, or anything eelse that removes metal if it is still under warranty.

Good luck.

[Robert1234]

I wasn't facetious and I doubt if HopetonBrown was either. That's my take on it.

One never heard Sergeant York complaining about the 1911. And I'm not aware of horror stories from WWII demeaning the 1911 as a fighting pistol.

I just don't understand why so many people nowadays seem to have problems with 1911. True, they were designed for FMJ and that's all I intend to shoot out of mine 95% of the time.

Whatever...

True, I'd be miffed if I spent what OP had spent and had such problems.

Remember where you are; online people like ato stir the pot. Say stuff to get a rise.

And a ton of people who can't do any basic mechanical troubleshooting and repair. As stated by others.

Cat buys a new gun, has minor issues, and wants mfr to fix it. I get it to a certain extent. These things aren't cheap but forcing Springfield to foot the bill for shipping and adjust your extractor isn't going to make their products less expensive?

And then you realize Glock and the rest of the plastic guns run from day one with no issues and cost half as much. Kind of spoils us. Of course if Kimber and Springfield Armory would take the time to properly set up their guns before shipping them they'd have a lot less complaints.

[MosinVirus]

Remember where you are; online people like ato stir the pot. Say stuff to get a rise.

And a ton of people who can't do any basic mechanical troubleshooting and repair. As stated by others.

Cat buys a new gun, has minor issues, and wants mfr to fix it. I get it to a certain extent. These things aren't cheap but forcing Springfield to foot the bill for shipping and adjust your extractor isn't going to make their products less expensive?

And then you realize Glock and the rest of the plastic guns run from day one with no issues and cost half as much. Kind of spoils us. Of course if Kimber and Springfield Armory would take the time to properly set up their guns before shipping them they'd have a lot less complaints.

I don't know much, but I do know that a 1911 is not thrown together like many polymer wonders. The designs have changed a bit. Some are super simplistic compared to even a 1911, others more complicated, but usually all parts for polymer wonders are drop in. Not so much in a 1911.

I don't think it would ever be fair to expect a 1911 to work right if it wasn't built properly or parts were not adjusted properly. However, as labor costs go up, so would the price of a properly configured 1911. And while companies are trying to keep costs down there will be some negative effects of cost cutting to keep the guns affordable.

No biggy though. In many cases some light adjustments and tunning with make alost any 1911 run like a champ. And it is by far my most beloved semi auto postol.

If people want every single 1911 pistol to be completely flawless in function, it will be a mil spec with mil spec accuracy potential. If people want every single 1911 pistol to be an absolute tack driver and perform flawlessly, recall what Pythons go for/went for and get ready to pay that price for a hand fitted and tunned 1911.

Again, the design is solid, but it is not a design that relies on drop in parts if you want amazing performance. So let's not pretend that we are expecting to get a hand tunned 1911 for a price of a polymer wonder.

Yeah it sucks that you pay more for a 1911 and then possibly get something that doesn't work 100% of the time, but again, if companies were to get really detailed about their 1911s, the prices would go through the roof. Personally I am ok with either fixing something small or sending it back for a FREE tuneup rather than paying an arm and a leg upfront.

Different designs, people.

[Robert1234]

I don't know much, but I do know that a 1911 is not thrown together like many polymer wonders. The designs have changed a bit. Some are super simplistic compared to even a 1911, others more complicated, but usually all parts for polymer wonders are drop in. Not so much in a 1911.

I don't think it would ever be fair to expect a 1911 to work right if it wasn't built properly or parts were not adjusted properly. However, as labor costs go up, so would the price of a properly configured 1911. And while companies are trying to keep costs down there will be some negative effects of cost cutting to keep the guns affordable.

No biggy though. In many cases some light adjustments and tunning with make alost any 1911 run like a champ. And it is by far my most beloved semi auto postol.

If people want every single 1911 pistol to be completely flawless in function, it will be a mil spec with mil spec accuracy potential. If people want every single 1911 pistol to be an absolute tack driver and perform flawlessly, recall what Pythons go for/went for and get ready to pay that price for a hand fitted and tunned 1911.

Again, the design is solid, but it is not a design that relies on drop in parts if you want amazing performance. So let's not pretend that we are expecting to get a hand tunned 1911 for a price of a polymer wonder.

Yeah it sucks that you pay more for a 1911 and then possibly get something that doesn't work 100% of the time, but again, if companies were to get really detailed about their 1911s, the prices would go through the roof. Personally I am ok with either fixing something small or sending it back for a FREE tuneup rather than paying an arm and a leg upfront.

Different designs, people.

That was my point; the plastic guns and their reliability have spoiled the gun buying public and they now expect that from every gun.

I do not believe it is too much to expect the extractor to be adjusted properly before a gun leaves the factory though.

And Springfield Armory's customer service reputation was gained on the back of a ton of customer returns, which ain't so good. Great that they made the guns right, but it ain't helping the cost of future guns. They ain't in the business of losing money, money spent on CS has to be made back somewhere. Usually in the price of their products.

I'm no expert but from what I read on these forums it seems extractors are a large percentage of the complaints (usually in the form of feeding issues). lt seems if they could ensure extractors are adjusted at the factory, they'd get less guns sent back (it seems they've gotten this message, fewer guns get returned from what I read) and might be able to lower prices (or at least not raise them so much).

My last Springfield gun was a Loaded 9mm Target. Loosest gun I've ever felt. Took a bunch of work to get it to where I want it. I suppose I could have sent it back, but it worked, and was accurate enough so I made it a project. But that thing cost over a grand. I expected better quality for that price. I have a buddy got the same gun a couple of months later, same loose, gritty gun. They should have never made it past QC. They shouldn't rattle when in battery with the hammer down at that price point.