Kimber Custom Eclipse II - my first 1911
 

I'm a black-guns only kinda guy (Glock, HK USP Compact ...) ... but I had a moment of weakness just yesterday and bought a Kimber Custom Eclipse II .45. It was just too damn pretty to ignore.

If California didn't have this 10 day waiting period I'd be posting pics right now. Until then you'll just have to settle for stock photos.

Mine is like this one except I have combat sights instead of the adjustable.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...7-1_edited.jpg

Any other Kimber owners out there to grunt approvingly?


Believe it or not I own a lot of guns but not a single 1911 - until now. That's because I shot my buddy's Jardine full house custom .45 - and it's hard to settle for anything less in a 1911. The Kimber ain't in the same class (the Jardine was $3Kish) but it'll do for me.
His is similar to the one depicted below except his roll markings are of a Colt Series 80.
http://www.jardinescustom.com/april2...gWellprops.jpg

There's no doubt that's a pretty gun and Kimber has a great rep.

After shooting a USP and a 1911, my personal preference for a .45 is the USP, but to no one can fault your choice.

I do own a USP Compact .45 which I absolutely adore. I carry cocked and locked and the USPC is a workhorse. I still plan to get a fullsize USP in the future.

But why settle for one or the other when you can have both?
;)

What I always liked about the 1911 was its slimness of the gun as well as the single stack magazines. Most of all a well-built 1911 can have the sweetest trigger you're ever going to find. In terms of combat practicality I can still shoot the lights out with my Glock's trigger though.

All in all, this wasn't a logical decision ... it was more an emotional reflex.

Any advice on full sized USPs? I generally don't like guns that are bigger than they need to be - but the USP .45 has a 12 rd capacity and I understand it shoots quite nicely. (And I'd rather have a USP than a ParaOrd or double-stack 1911) My USPC is not as big as I thougt it'd be - probably the oversized trigger guard gives it an illusion of bulk.
IMO - the USP is supposed to be a .45 ... why anyone would shoot 9 or 40 in one is beyond me - IMO it's like getting a S&W N-frame .32 (no such thing) - it just don't compute.

Well isn't .40 supposedly as effective (or almost) as .45? If so, it's just a matter of fitting more bullets into the frame. :) (that, and slightly cheaper ammo)

Yeah. You're absolutely right. Still, the .45 ("they say") still has a slight edge when it comes to stopping ability ... the .40 is not far behind. If you have to corner me for a definite opinion ... I agree the .40s higher capacity more than makes up for the difference in stopping ability.

I shoot both .40 and .45. It might be all in my head but the .45 is a tad more exciting to shoot.

For practical purposes my carry weapon (...err.... assuming if I was carrying, of course ... yeah ... assuming) is a Glock 23 - a .40 with 13 rds. I carry a spare Glock 22 mag .40 with 15 rds as well (... err... if I were carrying, of course).

nice peice...

I think you may be surprised just how little your friends three thousand dollar gun has on the kimber you picked out.


edit: .40 is a clusterfuck of a round. I still can't believe how the whole damn thing came about :lol:

but anywho, .45 is more controllable to me, push vs jab, yadda yadda, botom line is along as it starts with a 4, it's good :D

advice on the USP .45, well, the XD's are coming out in .45 caliber, mebbe take a look at those before you commit.

I want a full size USP too, just might be hard to conceal.

Cool Photography of your weapons.

That looks nice, makes me want to go out and buy a full size 1911 .45. Can't wait to see the picts of yours.

I own a Kimber .45 Ultra Compact Sport 1911. It's a shorty that's easy to carry. The 8 round mag kills me but hey what do you expect for something that's easy to conceal.... that is um if I concealed my weapon.

I keep having to click on the thread to look at that handgun again. I can absolutely see how easy it would be to buy that thing (even if you weren't shopping for one) after seeing and handling it.

Kimbers are great guns, your'e going to love the way that gun shoots. I wanted to get one last year but ended up getting a Thompson Encore muzzle loader. I guess it was a need vs. want thing!

I was kicking myself this weekend. If I hadnt bought a new dvd playe last week I would have had the cash for the Kimber I saw at the gun shop when I went shooting Saturday. I don't remember what model it was but it was a brand new full size kimber for $500. I've been wanting a Kimber for a while now and for that price I was half tempted to let a couple bills slide for a couple weeks. But alas.....the bills are paid and I'm still Kimberless.