The Colt 1911 was designed in 1911 and it served the US military until 1985. It’s a proven design and a lot of that has to do with the caliber. It has a lot of knockdown power, even though it’s limited to seven rounds during military times, but you can get the eight round magazines as well. I cut my teeth on the 1911—it was really the gun that I put a lot of rounds through doing matches, IDPA and other competitions. I really like the 1911 because it’s very thin, very pointable, and easy to shoot.
Today we’re going to take a look at the Kimber Pro Carry II. Now this is a shortened version of the 1911. There’s a lot of different upgrades on these handguns, which there’s a lot of different companies that make 1911s. And some of these have become synonymous with just the design, including the highride beavertail, the extended safeties, and other different things. This is an aluminum frame which makes it really light, it is in 45 ACP, it has a four inch barrel, but it is very pointable to shoot. Now while you have those old steel frame 1911s that are heavy, this is a great little carry option. We really appreciate Kimber for sending this Pro Carry II and we’re going to add this to our collection because there’s nothing like having a 1911 on your hip.
Kimber is known for really high quality 1911s and they started out in 1979 in Oregon. Jack Warren, who was an Australian, moved to the US and started building really nice 22 rifles. In the mid 90s, after some acquisitions, they began to build 1911s—really high quality 1911s. Some of your older Kimbers are really sought after because they’re just really fine quality and the finish is excellent. A few years ago, Kimber did go through some quality control issues, but they are back and they are putting out some really nice 1911s again. This is the Pro Carry model and there are some cool features about this that are different than a lot of the cult variations.
Taking the Pro Carry II down to the range, it’s definitely lighter with that aluminum frame. It doesn’t quite have that heavy field that your standard 1911 has with the all steel frame. With that, you’re going to have just a little more recoil and you have a little shorter barrel, but it’s very manageable to shoot. And it’s one of the things about the 1911, it’s so thin and it’s so very pointable, it just tracks well—one of the reasons why I’ve loved 1911 for so long. Really one of the biggest downsides is that it is a single stack magazine with seven or eight rounds, compared to a lot of the polymer frame striker fired pistols that can carry 15-17+ rounds. But definitely in 45 ACP, you know that you have an effective round that you’re carrying on your hip, plus all the tradition in the US military, how this has been an excellent self-defense option.
SPECS
- Height (inches) 90° to barrel: 5.25
- Weight (ounces) with empty magazine: 28
- Length (inches): 7.7
- Magazine capacity: 7
- Recoil spring (pounds): 22.0
- Full-length guide rod
- Frame Material: Aluminum
- Frame Finish: Matte black
- Frame Width (inches): 1.28
- Slide Material: Steel
- Slide Finish: Matte black
- Barrel Length (inches): 4
- Barrel Material: Carbon steel
- Barrel Twist rate (left hand): 16
- Sights: Fixed low profile
- Sight Radius (inches): 5.7
Big thanks to Fiocchi USA for Supplying our ammunition! #KimberProCarryII #1911 #Kimber1911
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