[mountainpass]

ALE director John Ledford said the Kimber pistols repeatedly suffered such problems as rounds jamming during training exercises, broken sights and the weapon's safety button sometimes falling off.

The Kimbers replaced Sig Sauer handguns bought in 2003 and 2005 for about $685 each. The Sig pistols, which Chandler said were worn out, were declared "surplus" and sold to agents for $326.

As with state troopers and SBI agents, a state law also allows retiring ALE personnel to buy their last service weapon at a price set at the discretion of the agency. Historically, that price has been $1.
Chandler, the former director, bought his ALE Kimber for $1 when he retired in 2009. Records show he also bought a Sig pistol for $250 in 2003, a Remington shotgun for $92 in 2006, and another Sig pistol for $320 in 2009.

But with the manufacturer's warranty expiring at the end of 2010, Chandler wrote Young that the best solution was to trade in the troublesome Kimbers for new Sig Sauer 220 pistols similar to what the agency had previously.

Read more: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/0 ... z1DNXEo7kE

Sooo they got rid of the "surplus" Sigs...replaced them with Kimbers....and now are replacing the "problematic" Kimbers with Sigs. :roll:

 

[gunsmoker]

I didn't know any LEO's were issued 1911 style single-action autos.
Except for SWAT team types.
Still, I would not have predicted all the trouble they had with them.
Kimber should have extended the warranty period to try to prevent bad publicity like this.

 

[tbill]

Where is the safety button on a Kimber? I've looked on their website and can't find a model with one. It must be a LE option.

Dear Charlotte Observer,

It's called research and fact checking. Try it sometime, you will be amazed at what you find out.

Idiots with bylines!

 

[Puffyfish]

After buying three Kimbers I gave up. They are not what they used to be and the prices are through the roof.
Too many MIM parts breaking on me.