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Kimber TLE/RL II

7K views 13 replies 10 participants last post by  jwhite75 
#1 ·
I'm new to this site and am going to purchase a new carry pistol very soon. I'm leaning toward a 1911 style with a rail so I can use it at home as well as for concealed carry. Any comments, advice is welcome.
 
#2 ·
Welcome to the forum! With so many different 1911 companies out there it is hard to choose. Definitely go and fondle as many different brands as possible, you can tell a difference in the way they feel and function when you have them in hand, and do lots of research. Try to rent some at the range if possible too.

My personal experience with a new Kimber TLE II was very bad so of course I am going to advise against it. I could not get that thing to function with out problems to save my life, jams, fail to feeds, slide not locking back, etc. Not to say you will have the same experience at all but definitely turned me off to the brand so I traded it in on a Wilson Combat that I wanted to begin with.

Anyway, look and fondle many. There is defintely a huge price range difference as well.

Good luck on your search! :bier:
 
#3 ·
Welcome to the Forum! Like Bowie said there are a lot of 1911 manufactures out there to chose from. I own a Kimber Stainless TLE/RLII and I have had a lot of problems with it until I found magazines that worked well with it. Even with that said though, because of how tight the tolerances are on Kimbers a hundred or so rounds it starts failure to feed every other round because of all the fouling building up in the very little clearance. Now the little clearance there is apart of the reason kimbers are so accurate like most 1911's. The One thing I will say is my kimber is just a Bed stand gun with a surefire x200 mounted with remote. I would never CCW it for the reasons above. For the record the springs get replaced every 1000rnds and it has over 5000 rounds through it, so to say it needs breaking still is not so.

I thought I would put a interesting article thread in here for you to check out.

http://www.defensivecarry.com/vbulletin/defensive-carry-guns/72476-should-stir-up-hornets-nest.html

Now after reading this I will admit that I carry a Glock 30 (.45acp) or my Smith & Wesson 340PD (.357mag) primarily any day of the week and I occasionally one of four Springfield XD's in various calibers. The reason I carry the Glock over my XD's is simply the trigger from the factory is crisper with a shorter reset. The Smith is worn simply when I need ultimate deep concealment. It ways 13oz unloaded, so when I am looking for comfy but with lots of stopping power that is my preference.

I do not want to stir you away from 1911's as they are awesome guns and I love to shoot them. I would just recommend more of a inexpensive, less accurized model for your first one, especially since it is your first.

Good Luck
 
#4 ·
1911s are a great gun...I do NOT feel that they are for beginners. A lot of people buy them because they look cool or were seen on TV. The TLE/RL II is the model selected by LAPD SWAT for their duty gun, so it is a fine example. However, they are not a learner's gun. Go with a Good SIG, a Glock, an HK, a Smith M&P, any of the "point and click" guns. Their tolerances and fitting are usually more forgiving and can make them more user friendly. As you become more proficient, maybe step up to a 1911. IDK your experience or skill level, you may be perfectly adapted to a 1911, and if that is the case...go get it...and enjoy.

OH and BTW...make sure and get your self a QUALITY GUN BELT AND HOLSTER, a 5" 1911 is hard enough to conceal. without good equipment.

Last but not least....welcome to the forum from WV.
 
#5 ·
Thanks for the insight guys. I carried while I was on active duty in the Coast Guard but have not since getting out. I have a Springfield .45 that I can't get to shoot without malfunctions, I thought by going to a better manufacturer that might be remidied. Lots of opinions and information when considering a carry gun. If I could only afford to buy a few then this would not be such a hard decision. Thanks again, I appreciate the info.
 
#8 ·
Springfields are a good base gun, but in order to get them to run right (in my experience with 3 of them) you need a good extractor and better mags and sometimes some other attention to details. Hands down the best mags that I have found are colt factory 7 rounds mags with the hybrid feed lips.

As far as better manufactures. Dan Wesson is currently producing the best out of the box 1911 pattern pistols going. They use just about all ed brown parts and seem to be given some actual human attention instead of just being thrown together from parts. Supposedly the only MIM part is I think the grip safety, which is a part that lends itself well to being made out of MIM.

Odds are very good if you go with a DW you will get a good reliable pistol, or one that will require very little to get running.

The down side is they are somewhat more pricey then a Kimber, the Valor (possibly their best full size carry piece) is something like $1300 out the door. The Commander sized bob tail also gets a lot of good fan fare and is a few hundred less.
 
#12 ·
I have carried 1911's for a long time and as was stated earlier quality holsters and gun belts are a necessity. I now carry a Kimber Eclipse Pro in 4 inch and literally trust my life to its flawless performance. Could not be happier with a ccw. Oh, BTW Greetings from Rocky Top Tennessee.
 
#13 ·
Welcome...

from Central Florida!

You going to love that Kimber...I have two of them!:yup:

ret :31:
 
#14 ·
Wasn't doggin Kimber..just thought you were asking advice of a 1911 as a carry platform.
 
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