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Kimber vs. Springfield 1911's

jlgray70
I am considering buying a 1911a to have worked by a local gunsmith. I have been told by some to buy a base model Kimber and have the smith work it and others have said don't spend the money on a Kimber when all you get is a good slide to frame fit and the internals are all drop in parts. I'm just trying to get some more intelligence before I make my purchase.....

Thanks,

jg
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Comments

10 comments

Date Votes
  • select-fire
    I don't know what plans you have for your new .45 but Kimber's shoot well right out of the box.

    " It Ain't Over till its Over"
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  • perry shooter
    Hello what kind of pistol do you want to end up with RACE GUN, IDPA, or BULLS-EYE ? does your smith have equipment to correctly tighten slide to frame? If you are building a BULLS-EYE gun and have a good smith your best bet is to buy a CASPIAN frame and slide and then the parts you want BARSTO or KART BARREL that has to be fitted and all the small parts that you want. This will be cheaper then buying a complete pistol and replaceing the parts that come in it. There are very few LES BAER WILSON etc match pistols that you can buy off the rack that will shoot better than the sharpshooter level. quote:"PRAISE THE HARDBALL GUN"
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  • Mooseyard
    If you are only going to buy one of those, then I would get the Kimber. They are made in the USA. If you are open to another idea, then re-read perry's post.

    "My faith, my country and my family will guide me; nothing more, nothing less" -Gen. Tommy Franks

    Jess Hoffman
    Mooseyard Precision
    LE Supply & Firearms
    NRA Certified Instructor
    Shawano, WI 54166
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  • ContacFront
    Can't beat a Kimber out of the box.
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  • perry shooter
    Hello If you are building a "HARDBALL" bulls-eye gun make sure the one you buy is legal for CMP matches KImber with grooves on front end of slide is NOT but they are good guns as well as springfield.
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  • Oklahomabound
    The Kimber is the best out of the box .45 compared with the springfield...in my humble opinion. Have shot both, shopped around, and ended up with the Kimber...

    976371019-1.jpg "Know the true value of time; snatch, seize, and enjoy every moment of it." Lord Chesterfield
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  • BigBarn
    you would be hard pressed to buy better than either of these guns, for a factory out of the box shooter. Either one will perform very well. But if you are looking for an absolute accurate 1911A1 pistol, that you can shoot at matches, and be sure it will perform as you expect it too, you need to look into Ed Brown, or Wilson Combat, first. It all has to do with the money you can afford to spend, and the end result that you expect to achieve with it.
    Do a fair amount of investigating on all there is too offer, and there are a ton of good to great 1911A1 manufactured pistols out there that will shoot great, without very much "smithing" right out of the box!

    Good Luck,

    BigBarn[:o)]

    "Respect the land, and it will respect you"
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  • gonzo1510
    I was given a Kimber Custom II which has to be hands down, one of the tightest fitting 1911's that I have ever shot. No work was done to the pistol as there is no need. There is no play in the slide to frame fit. The fact that the LAPD chose this model for their SWAT team don't hurt either. It all depends on what you want to do with the pistol. Most of the features that you want to get for a springfield come standard with the Kimber. The choice is yours of course, but if you want quality for a great price..... get the Kimber.
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  • mpolans
    If you're going to have a gunsmith build you a custom gun, starting out with a Kimber is an absolute waste. Kimber's are put together pretty good from the start (but not as good as a well-built ground-up custom gun), and the first thing a gunsmith is going to do is take the frame, slide, and grip safety and fooeycan everything else. That's a LOT of wasted money!

    I wouldn't even start off with a base model Mil-spec Springfield.

    I would HIGHLY suggest you start off with just a bare slide and frame; this will allow your gunsmith to use all the best parts and fit them piece by piece, without having to waste money on a bunch of parts you'd just throw away. A decent frame and slide can be had for about $375, and if you shop around, you can probably find decent ones for $250 or so. That's a heck of a lot cheaper that $500-1000 you'd spend on a complete gun (where you'd be throwing away 95% of the parts anyway).

    For example, Of my two 1911s that I built, the only factory Springfield parts were the slide, frame, grip screw bushings, mag catch (I don't like extended ones), and mainspring housing (which I later modified and checkered)...that's it!

    Now the above guns are fully tricked out for IPSC shooting and were state of the art at the time. I don't know what your goals are, but if you want something that's top of the line, competition oriented (IPSC, IDPA, bullseye), a complete gun is NOT the way to go.
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  • easygo6
    Talk to your 'smith to see what he prefers to work with as a 'foundation' set of parts (he is the craftsman/artist that will create the piece, afterall).

    mpolans gave good advice. Plan to spend som money for a quality custom gun and do not expect to receive it for at LEAST 8 weeks. Give the 'smith the room/time to perform his magic. If you rush it, you'll get a pistol sub-par to HIS/HER ABILITIES as a 'smith.



    "They're in front of us, they're behind us, they're to our left and to our right...they can't get away now."

    Chesty Puller, Chosin Reservoir, Korea

    SEMPER FI
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