1911 Kimber Mods: TLR-6, Tru-Glo Sights, CWA slide w/comp

Marauder06

Marauder06

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Was looking for a way to put a light on my rail-less Kimber 1911 without adding a bunch of junk to it or breaking the bank. Heard about the TLR-6, read up on it a bit, ordered one off of Amazon.

Came in when expected, was relatively cheap ($91) went on super-easy in about eight minutes. Came with allen wrench and batteries.

There is noticeable barrel shadow at short distances. Pictured below is at about four feet. Across the room it's negligible. If I had a compact it might not have any shadow at all (I wasn't holding it sideways when I took the picture...)

Haven't cranked off any rounds with it on the weapon yet but pleased with it so far.

Now to try to find some sights...

Kimber with light.jpg

kimber shadow.JPG
 
Devildoc said:
What's wrong with the sites? Why do you want to replace them? I'm not a fan of Kimber, but usually their sites are decent.
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These sights are garbage. They are the baseline, straight black. It's hard for me to line up and I think it makes the gun look cheap.
 
Marauder06 said:
These sights are garbage. They are the baseline, straight black. It's hard for me to line up and I think it makes the gun look cheap.
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Not even their stock night sites? Wow....

There's a reason I don't care for Kimber; the slide and frame are usually within spec, but their parts have been cheaply made in the past. Even some of the old Det 1 guys with the issue Kimber ran into more problems than the 1911 MEU(SOC)s. That said, I know some people who are quite pleased; but I didn't know the 'stock' sites were place holders.
 
Yeah, it was a cost-saving thing. The grips, engraving, presentation box, and some of the internals were highly customized. Going with any kind of decent sight would have jacked the price up another $100-$200 or so and we were already at or nearing the price ceiling I set, which I think was $1200.

I didn't want us to go with a 1911, at least not a single stack. I wanted something shorter with a higher magazine capacity, and in black not chrome. Basically I wanted a carry weapon not a display weapon. But I put it to a vote and this design won.

That said, this is the smoothest-shooting firearm I've ever owned.
 
My wifes Kimber Covert II wouldn't feed, probably somthing simple as polishing the feed ramp, but it became a Ruger LC-9.

Nice pistol though, was with a group that tried to get a custom Sig going but the POC took forever and most folks bailed killing the project.
 
Finally got around to taking it to the range. It was daylight and I was shooting at distance, so the laser was useless in those conditions, which in my experience isn't uncommon for an affordable red light pistol laser. But everything stayed together and still works after cranking off several rounds and letting my 14-year-old have a couple of goes.
 
Marauder06 said:
I'm pretty happy with it and would buy it again. I need to go out to the range when it's overcast so I can dial in the laser.
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Crimson Trace laser or TLR-6 w/laser?

If it's Crimson trace, don't bother. They bounce off zero when you shoot. Good enough for tactical close range and first round hits, but anything past about 20 yds youll be all over the place after the first round. I'd have gone a different direction if I'd known it at the time. Indoor ranges tend to work just fine for zeroing the red lasers, not so sure about the green ones. That said, I have three Kimber 1911's in .45, including a Custom II (Black version of yours), and all three are tack drivers. I'll never be able to outshoot them.

BTW, Kimber polishes the feed ramp as part of their custom shop stuff. You shouldn't have to worry about it.
 
compforce said:
Crimson Trace laser or TLR-6 w/laser?

If it's Crimson trace, don't bother. They bounce off zero when you shoot. Good enough for tactical close range and first round hits, but anything past about 20 yds youll be all over the place after the first round. I'd have gone a different direction if I'd known it at the time. Indoor ranges tend to work just fine for zeroing the red lasers, not so sure about the green ones. That said, I have three Kimber 1911's in .45, including a Custom II (Black version of yours), and all three are tack drivers. I'll never be able to outshoot them.

BTW, Kimber polishes the feed ramp as part of their custom shop stuff. You shouldn't have to worry about it.
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TLR-6. Crimson Trace was too expensive for me, plus I wanted a light option and don't have a rail for it.
 
Finally getting around to replacing the garbage factory sights that came with my Kimber. Replacing with TruGlo high contrast tritium.

I've watched the videos and read the blog posts. I have the sights and a pusher. Any words of advice before I dive in?
 
Take your time if it is your first 'home job' - you cant "unscratch" a favorite pistol.
That is a nice looking gun and I assume from the engraving it has a more personal value than a rack grade Glock-19 bought at the local pawn shop. Since it is a stainless gun, you wont be able to hide a ding with a few dabs of cold bluing and some gun oil.
If it sticks at all - stop - better to pay a pro to finish the job instead of hurting a custom pistol.

Dont watch TV - dont talk to your wife - dont talk to your kids - just take your time working on your gun.
Good luck - cant wait to see the finished product.
 
Box said:
Take your time if it is your first 'home job' - you cant "unscratch" a favorite pistol.
That is a nice looking gun and I assume from the engraving it has a more personal value than a rack grade Glock-19 bought at the local pawn shop. Since it is a stainless gun, you wont be able to hide a ding with a few dabs of cold bluing and some gun oil.
If it sticks at all - stop - better to pay a pro to finish the job instead of hurting a custom pistol.

Dont watch TV - dont talk to your wife - dont talk to your kids - just take your time working on your gun.
Good luck - cant wait to see the finished product.
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Thanks brother. Wife is at work, my youngest is on her room and I’m going to have my oldest help me with this for some Daddy-daughter time. I will have her read your post before we get started.
 
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