Kimber raptor II

[Alexander831]

Just jailed one, want to know what to expect from it? Accuracy, reliability ect... Read mix reviews everywhere about them. My very first 1911.

[trigger945]

You got the blued one I presume?

I have the stainless one and I am very happy with it. In fact, it is my favorite handgun among all that I own or owned.

Mine has been very reliable and very accurate. Feeds ball and hp ammo well. I was able to compare its accuracy against other more expensive 1911's and it can hold its own very well. And plus, it is one beautiful 1911. The craftmanship and machining are superb.

You will be happy I think.

Congrats and stay safe.

[Alexander831]

Yes blued. Yeah should of asked before but had an impulse buy. Oh well loved the feel and design.

[trigger945]

I don't think you will regret getting it as it is one fine 1911.

[S0M1L9S]

Congrats!

Since this is your first 1911 (in general), search about the 1911 idiot scratch.
Research disassembly as well, springs do come flying out, unlike the more modern designed pistols.

Have fun!

[Khromo]

That is a sweet pistol. I have the stainless version, and it is very accurate and has been totally reliable. Clean it, lube it, and feed it decent ammo, and you will be in tall cotton.

Mine eats hardball, hollow points from several manufacturers, and lead and jacketed semiwadcutters like I eat pizza. I've never tried cheap factory ammo, so I can't speak to that.

The only modification I made to mine was to install an Ed Brown chainlink pattern mainspring housing, which somewhat matches the rest of the gun.

http://www.brownells.com/userdocs/skus/l_087000042_2.jpg

http://www.brownells.com/handgun-parts/frame-parts/mainspring-parts/mainspring-housings/1911-auto-mainspring-housing-prod1335.aspx

I installed a Brownell's mainspring housing rebuild kit as well. The rebuild kit has a 23 pound hammer spring, and that bumped the trigger pull weight up a bit, but it remains within my comfort zone, so I am using the gun for competition.

http://www.brownells.com/handgun-parts/frame-parts/mainspring-parts/mainspring-refill-kits/1911-auto-mainspring-housing-rebuild-kit-prod27082.aspx

If you wanted to retain the Raptor II's original trigger pull, and it is a creamy trigger, just load the Kimber factory hammer spring in the new housing and you will be fine.

Nice gun. It's not much more expensive than a plain vanilla 1911, and definitely worth it to me. Many of the folks on this board seem to consider it a pimp gun, marketed to rich, sissified fancy boys, but hey, that doesn't necessarily make one a bad person!

[trigger945]

^^^ I use Bulletman reloads and they shoot just fine. FYI.

I also did some mods on mine (through a gunsmith) - Ed Brown chainlink MSH as it does blend well with the Raptor's design, Ed Brown competition spring, Ed Brown short trigger, Ed Brown GI guide rod, 10-8 spring plug, polishing of the trigger contact points and Ahrends custom slim grips. The trigger weight is at 3.25# now

The Raptor is marketed to rich sissified fancy boys? Ehhh, sure. I'd like to think it is marketed to people with taste

[Alexander831]

Not sure of modding it until I can fully understand 1911s and I'm terrified of taking it apart once I receive it since I don't want an idiot scratch but I definitely don't want a safe queen. Dam it, I'm screwed.

[trigger945]

Why do you feel that you are screwed? Btw, I only listed the mods in response to Khromo's post and to give some ideas.

Don't freak out man. You will be fine. The idiot scratch is way too hyped up. Just watch a few youtube videos to get an idea.

[Alexander831]

I just saw a couple of videos on how to dissasamble looks easy but won't know until I have it home. After how many rounds do u clean yours? (trigger945) maybe ill just clean it after every 250 rounds idk I just have a feeling ama get that scratch. I'm going to try painters tape to tape the frame and slide so when I dissasamble it.

[trigger945]

Kimber's recommendation during the first 500 rds is to clean after every 100 - 150 rds. And ball ammo only during the first 500 rds (break in period). You can see this on the manual. I would suggest you follow it. I did and mine has been nothing but a delight to shoot. Not sure what would happen if you didn't follow Kimber's recommendation but why wouldn't you, right?

After break in period, I probably clean mine every 250 rds or so. Only when I get to it I clean my firearms almost at the same time.

Good point on painter's tape. It's actually the re-assembly part that you are more likely to put the idiot scratch, not so much when you disassemble it.

Good luck!

[Kilibreaux]

Just jailed one, want to know what to expect from it? Accuracy, reliability ect... Read mix reviews everywhere about them. My very first 1911.

You can expect it to shoot inside 3" at 25 yards if you do your part.

You can expect it to experience a stoppage on average 1 out of 50 times during the first 250 rounds for the first fifty round.
You can expect it to experience a stoppage once every 15 rounds AFTER 50 rounds during the first 250 rounds unless you pull the slide and clean the barrel/chamber/slide face/extractor.
You can expect one stoppage every 100 shots for the next 500 rounds when using hardball.
You can expect flawless functioning after 700 rounds when using hardball IF you are using stock springs. If you bump up to 18# springs expect FTE at the rate of one per 75 shots without cleaning unless you go to a hotter load.

These are AVERAGES, so your mileage as they say will vary.

[axhoaxho]

I have an Ulta Raptor II. Love it, and it is very accurate even in Ultra barrel lenth.

Mine is also reliable within any hiccups, as all of my Kimbers -- Just if this is your first 1911, make sure to research on how to break-in a Kimber with the first few hundred rounds. Also clean and lube it before shoot it, and like 1911s the Kimber likes to be 'wet' with extra oil.

Enjoy it in good health.