Kimber Montana. What would you do?

[hnt4life]

Bought a new kimber montana last year, but didn't get to shoot it much. The rifle will not feed the first round out of the magazine. I took the action out of the stock to inspect the feed rails only to find the stock was cracked. The crack propagated at a factory tooling mark. I sent the rifle back to kimber for both issues.

I got my rifle back on Wednesday with a new stock and no work done to fix the feeding issue. I contacted customer service and she confirmed that their notes clearly stated that the rifle has feeding issues. She told me the rifle was test fired before leaving the shop. Same line as when I first called them. Customer service said I can return my rifle again to get feeding issues fixed. Another 6 to 8 weeks.

Should I work the feed rails and ramp myself, have a smith do it, send it in to this joke of a company, or sell for a loss?

I apologize for the poor writing as I am typing on my phone.

 

[mtmuley]

You couldn't give me a Kimber. Get it fixed by Kimber, then SELL it. Don't sell a defective rifle. mtmuley

 

[----]

Bite the bullet and pay a good smith to turn it into a functioning rifle. Then either sell it or use it if it doesn't leave a sour taste for you.

I went through a similar situation, and ended up having my gunsmith fix the issues that kimber should have. It's not worth the stress of trying to deal with that company.

 

[Bomber]

That's a bummer for you, and poor customer service from them.

You have two options in my mind. One is to ask them for a loaner rifle, scope and ammunition to get you through the hunting season. The second is to ask them to expedite the repair and give you a guaranteed turnaround time. They should pay shipping and FFL fees in both directions.

I'm sure this is an extremely busy time for them and those are both big asks, but they obviously screwed up and they should do whatever they can to rectify the situation. Ask to speak to the repair department manager, be calm but firm, and I bet you can talk them into one of those two options.

 

[mtmuley]

Bite the bullet and pay a good smith to turn it into a functioning rifle. Then either sell it or use it if it doesn't leave a sour taste for you.

I went through a similar situation, and ended up having my gunsmith fix the issues that kimber should have. It's not worth the stress of trying to deal with that company.

With all due, for the money a Kimber costs, sucks to have to pay a smith to fix it. mtmuley

 

[----]

With all due, for the money a Kimber costs, sucks to have to pay a smith to fix it. mtmuley

I would have loved to have let Kimber fix it, but after dealing with them for as long as I did I didn't see that as an option.

 

[brymoore]

Read through this thread on how to fix your Kimber. Most fixes are minor issues. Its likely ithe magazine is causing your issues. If you play with Kimbersva little bit, they shoot well.

ampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/848607/gonew/1/Montana_tinkering....#UNREAD

 

[BuzzH]

Read through this thread on how to fix your Kimber. Most fixes are minor issues. Its likely ithe magazine is causing your issues. If you play with Kimbersva little bit, they shoot well.

ampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/848607/gonew/1/Montana_tinkering....#UNREAD

Seems to me, that for the price you pay for one, you shouldn't have to be fixing a bunch of chit right out of the box.

 

[el unit]

I bought a Kimber pistol new. Will not buy another Kimber product.

 

[Tikka06]

I had a Kimber 1911 and loved it. I have always wanted a Montana but these horror stories keep me from pulling the trigger. I hate the idea of spending that kind of $$$ on something I will probably have to work on. Hope you get this straightened out.

 

[schmalts]

I'd sell it and buy a Sako finnlight. That is what I did and never been happier. I never owned a gun I wanted to like more than the 8400 300WSM that I had, But your story brings back memories that I wish to forget, plus mine shot like crap. I replaced it with a Sako 85 finnlight and shot .750 groups at 100 yards with the first batch of hand loads I tried. .750 groups @100 yards compared to the .750 @ 50 yards that Kimber stood behind. I'm sorry, but .750 @ 50 yards is not what I call a good group for a gun pushing a grand in cost. The Kimber has a much nicer feel to the stock compared to the hollow plastic "tupperware" stock on the Sako, but man that Sako shoots....and feeds, and makes me smile.

 

[WapitiBob]

You couldn't give me a Kimber. Get it fixed by Kimber, then SELL it. Don't sell a defective rifle. mtmuley

Problem is, Kimber won't fix it. Been there. I still keep a cartridge that has the bullet tip bent over after trying to feed it into my Kimber.
I saw another guys rifle where Kimber used a dremmel on the feed shoe and sent it back. Awesome service for an $1,100 rifle.
The best day of my rifle owning life was getting rid of that piece of crap.

 

[noharleyyet]

Have had two rifles....both performed. Still have one. Luck of the draw. Also have a custom shop 1911 that had to be returned for lip polishing...disappointing but they got right in it and returned it with no follow up issue.

 

[Bambistew]

I'd get on every one of their social media pages and run them through the mud...

Is it a short mag by chance? I've yet to see any model feed them very well, Rem, Win, Kim, Sav...

 

[schmalts]

I'd get on every one of their social media pages and run them through the mud...

Is it a short mag by chance? I've yet to see any model feed them very well, Rem, Win, Kim, Sav...

24hr campfire probably broke some kind of record for the longest thread about Kimber Montana problems.... And My Sako is a 300WSM and it feeds like butter. There has been times I actually opened the bolt back up just to make sure one went in the pipe because it went so smooth. One thing you will never find, is a long forum thread about Sako problems. If you could put that Kimber stock on that Sako action, you would put a lot of custom shops out of business.

 

[hnt4life]

I did check my rifle per the thread you referenced. Where thing seemed fine. I also asked kimber for a replacement rifle, and they said no way. I love how this rifle feels, but need one that feeds and shoots. It is a 300wsm. It will feed fine with only two in the magazine. I will try the magazine fix. I could see on my old stock where the spring was pushing forward.

To those of you looking to buy a Kimber, I would recommend not to. Zero quality control, and poor customer service.

 

[schmalts]

I will add that the Howa rifles are worth a look. The stocks on those are much nicer than the Sako, the trigger pull is crisp, and they are accurate. I used one on an elk hunt last year and I would definitely consider buying one of those guns over a Sako for my next rifle. Plus since they are a sponsor here my bet is if there was any concerns with a rifle they would make it right.

 

[hnt4life]

Well, I spent about four hours last night with some crocus cloth, flitz metal polish and about 100 q tips and...
Cycled 20 or so rounds with three in the magazine, and all performed flawlessly. Prior to, every single first round cycled out of the magazine would jam. This was only when I had three down. The problem I could see were burrs left on the forward end of the feed rails. These burrs are very sharp and really caught the cases as they were just starting up the feed ramp. Once those were gone, I spent some time really polishing up the feed ramp and all the bolt contact points. Anybody else having feeding problems, check this out.

 

[Mthuntinfool]

Glad you got it figured out. In my opinion, for the money that a Kimber costs, you can build a custom rifle on a mauser 98, winchester 70, or rem. 700 for less $$, and end up with exactly what you want.

 

[406LIFE]

FWIW,
Chris up at Accuarms in Missoula might be able to help you out. Knows his stuff, but seems to be a bit slow.