.22 cal Kimber conversion kit or complete .22 cal pistol

[USMC_MP]

I have search and read most of the pages and have seen little feedback but not enough to answer my question(s).

I plan on having my family start shooting and I just got my custom SS TLE II and love it. Is getting the conversion kit the best for my 13, 12 and 8 year old to practice on, or should I just get a complete .22cal pistol? I did see a Browning and Ruger mark III/22/45 that looked nice for avg $275-475. I guess I am asking for your opinions/feedback on accuracy and quality and is it best to have 2 guns or a gun and a half, because if my kids drop my TLE, I'll just freak out.

Thanks;
Chris

[singlestack00]

Total waste of time and money. Did I mention that they are dirty and inaccurate. The only thing 22 pistols are good for is malfunction drills because thats all they do.... MALFUNCTION! Some JA will surely tout how wonderful they are and what a great experience he had with them. I call BS......

Just my $.02

[USMC_MP]

singlestack00;

Thanks for the quick reply. So what do you suggest for a good training pistol, 9mm pistol? I probably will eventually get my wife a Glock 19, which should fit perfectly in my kids hand with out any trouble. Keep the comments coming :D

[cleetus-van-damn]

Total waste of time and money. Did I mention that they are dirty and inaccurate. The only thing 22 pistols are good for is malfunction drills because thats all they do.... MALFUNCTION! Some JA will surely tout how wonderful they are and what a great experience he had with them. I call BS......

Just my $.02

What are you talking about? .22cal target pistols are some of the most accurate in the world.. Did you have a bad expireince with one? or are you just ranting about something you obviously know nothing about.
USMC MP check out link: http://www.ssaa.org.au/OFFICIALREVIEWS/22lrpistol/22targetpistol.htm
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BQY/is_3_50/ai_112646118

[srt]

a good 22 pistol, such as a ruger mark 2 or browning buck mark (i have one of each), are reliable and extremely accurate and some of the most fun you can have with a handgun, especially with kids. i have no experience with 22 conversion kits so i cannot comment on accuracy or practicality but i think i would prefer a whole separate pistol in 22 rather than have the conversion kit.

steve

[Fish Head]

I have a Kimber Team Match II and a Kimber 22 conversion I shoot on it. I love both of them. I also have a Ruger mark II as well as several 22 revolvers. By far I like the conversion best. It is much more accurate than I am and I think shoots better than any of my other 22 pistols. What I like most about it is the 1911 platform and the ease to clean and care for. It can be particular in regard to the ammo I use but is less so after breakin.

If you like 1911's you will love shooting the conversion.

FH

[scooter]

He had problems with his conversion kit!!http://forum.m1911.org/images/icons/icon11.gif
However mine has been flawless since day one,If you read thru the sight here you will find MANY others with the same results.Dont let one (JA) person scare you away from having more fun for less moneyhttp://forum.m1911.org/images/icons/icon10.gifhttp://forum.m1911.org/images/icons/icon10.gif

[Barry in IN]

Some JA will surely tout how wonderful they are and what a great experience he had with them. I call BS......

Yeah, they had to drop the .22 portion of the National Matches because the constant malfunctions made the match take six months to shoot. That, and lack of any hits on target due to the inaccuracy of .22 pistols.
In addition, most ammo makers have stopped production of .22 ammo, since nobody can use it.

JA checking in here!

To address the original question:
I have a Kimber Rimfire Target (complete gun). I've only had it a couple of months, but it's been fine so far.

Function-
I had two malfunctions the first time shooting it (a little under 150 rounds fired). One was a case of the slide passing over the round without picking it up, and the other as a failure to fire (although the round fired on the second hit). The second one could be blamed on ammo.
Although Kimber is very clear in their advice to use Hi-Velocity ammo only, I shot some of each- Std and Hi-Vel that day. The first malf (slide ride-over) was with Std Vel.

I haven't used any Std Vel since (Hi-Vel is what I have the most of), and have had zero malfunctions.

I have read several reports of malfunctioning Kimber Rimfires and conversion kits, BUT- Each report I've seen mentioning a lot of malfunctions fails to say what ammo they are using. Any report that mentions using the reccomended ammo has been favorable.

Accuracy-
I don't think it's as accurate as my High Standards or S&W 41, but I'll probably never know. I doubt I'll ever bench or Ransom Rest the Kimber. I didn't get it to shoot IHMSA or Bullseye. I got it to play with.
But it does pretty well. I shot several types of ammo that first time out, just to get a rough idea. I shot it from standing, unsupported, shooting as fast as I got a sight picture. Ten-shot groups at 15 yards were all around 2". Some were a little over, some a little under. That's not earth-shaking, but pretty good for the effort I put into it. I think I was most impressed at how consistent everything grouped. Nothing stood out as particularly good or bad, and point of impact was essentially the same for all.

Complete gun or Conversion Unit-
You will have to decide that, of course. But...My mind was changed by this gun.
I had thought a Conversion Unit would be all I needed. It's less money, of course. I have plenty of 1911s, so I wouldn't have to take it off the frame every time I was done using it to have my .45 back.
But I found this gun, which was used/unfired, at a good price, and got it.

There are advantages to the complete gun:
-The first reason is it's weight. It doesn't weigh anything. Besides being just plain "neat", my kids may be able to start shooting earlier with a lighter gun (although the grip size will probably determine that).
-I said it wouldn't be a big problem to leave one of my 1911s "converted" for a while, but it sure is nice to never have to mess with it. It's been handy having it there, ready to go, anytime.
-If I did mate a Conversion Unit to another frame, it would probably one I seldom use, like my SA Loaded. That gun has a different feel to it than the Kimber TLE I usually carry, due to different grip and thumb safetys, trigger, etc. Although the weight is a lot less, my Rimfire feels like my TLE. The only difference I can feel is the lack of frontstrap checkering. I have to "look" for it, it isn't obvious. Some grit tape would probably fix that if it was obvious.
-In your case, it would probably be nice just to have a second gun. It would be a pain switching parts back and forth at the range. It is nice to have two guns- a 22 and 45- ready to go at the same time.

[WmLozier]

I bought the complete rimfire all in all still didn't cost that much. And last trip to the range at 25ft it shot as good as my IZH 35M.

[bearboy]

I have owned and shot dozens of .22 rimfires.Colt ,High standard,walther, smith and wesson ,kimber ,beretta, ruger and probably some others i can't remember.the best of these are incredibly accurate especially at ranges up to 25 yds.The kimber i have now will shoot 1/2 inch at 40 feet,Thats the distance i have in my indoor range.I have had a few misfires .they seem to have gone away as the pistol was broken-in.the only other problem has been to occasionally fail to pick up the second round in an after the market magazine.These pistols are excellent training tools particularly for beginners who may be noise and recoil sensitive.Additionally the kimber being a 1911 aids in acquiring familiarity with the 1911 platform for shooters who wish to move to a larger caliber in 1911.

[USMC_MP]

Just amazing!!! All the great helpful comments. I thank you all that took the time to post.

To "Barry in IN",

I think you are right I would hate to have to keep switching out the barrel, when I got the urge to shoot my 45 and great information in your reply, top notch.

To "cleetus-van-damn",

I really appreciated the web links they had the information I was trying to find on the net but was unsuccessful.

I think eventually I will get a conversion kit for myself but for the time being I think since the whole family will be using the 22, a complete pistol would be the most logical choice, thanks everyone once again.

Chris
USMC
Semper Fi (always faithful)

[warmrain]

The pistol is $800 street price and cannot be anything but a 22. The conversion kit is $300. You could get a plain 45 ACP 1911 and the kit and have two pistols...

[Barry in IN]

I got my Rimfire Target for $525, used unfired.
For the difference over a conversion unit, it made more sense for me to get the whole gun. Now that I have it, I would think it would be worth the difference even if it was a little more money.
For $800- no thanks.

[erikras]

I have the Kimber .22LR kit on my Tactical Custom II. It works great and is a lot of fun to shoot. Once in a while (maybe 1 or 2 times every 100rds) I'll have a failure to eject or something simple like that. But keep in mind mines not fully broken in yet either. If I had to go back and do it over again, I might just buy a complete $300 .22LR pistol though. That way I could take my Kimber 1911 and a .22 to the range with me in the same day and not waste time field stripping, cleaning off the rails, and relubing if I want to change calipers. But on the other hand, a $300 .22 is by no means a 1911 :) !

[500 Magnum Nut]

The most accurate in my collection is the Ruger "slab slides" Mk II target pistol. Revolvers are fun like a 617 S&W. I have the Kimber conversion as well. It was expensive to buy and had some problems with magazines (follower not rising high enough and rear sight shooting loose) but I enjoy it and it's a good plinking add on. Sometimes FTF but I know it's a 22 so it don't worry about it. The accuracy is OK. They are all fun to shoot!

[texasbatman]

HEE HAW HEE HAW :)

I have the conversion kit and love it. I have fired several thousand rounds through it with 0 problems. Never had a misfire, FTF, or FTE. I can nail a fly at 30 yards............well maybe not. :) Anyway get the conversion kit and enjoy it. It is a great way to shoot and is very economical. I have recently purchased the 17 mach 2 kit but have not had a chance to use it.

Jim

[mayagrafix]

For under 300 u can get a conversion unit, then later on buy a lower (80% job) at a gun show later on for another couple of hundred, then youll have 2 pistolas.

The Ruggers and S&W 22's are great but only worth the 800+ price tag if u are serious into competition.

[Veeflys]

I bought the black Kimber conversion for my Springfield Champion and love it!! I did have to modify the slide some in order for my thumb safety to work but other than that I'm very satisfied with the money spent on the kit.

[WmLozier]

Ok guys I need you help with this one I have a Rimfire Target it will shoot Winchester X with no problems at all. However with anything else the first several shots will have stove pipes, failure to return to battery or won't load at all. But if I just put in say five rounds no problems again at all. I am beginning to believe that this a mag problem can anyone provide some insight?

[schmidty_dog]

What do you guys think about the different calibers for the conversion kit such as 17 mach 2 as opposed to a .22? I am going to get something for my kimber... mostly because I love shooting the darn thing and want to take it grouse hunting and be able to shoot some lighter cheaper ammo through it... 45 eats my wallet up!!! I think I can get my wife to shoot something light also. Any ideas??? Oh and I wondered if I get the .22 kit, should I shoot any special ammo through it, or does it really matter how quality it is? Thanks guys, schmidty

[warmrain]

Remember you can convert a 45 ACP 1911 to .22, but you cannot convert a .22 1911 to 45 ACP, to the best of my knowledge.

Another fine 22 target pistol is the S&W Model 41.

http://www.smith-wesson.com/wcsstore/SmWesson/upload/images/firearms/130512_thumb.jpg

[Barry in IN]

Schmidty Dog-

I haven't been interested in the .17 rimfires at all. And this is from someone who had a .17 Remington for a while, and still have a .17 Mach IV.

You say you want something that uses cheaper, lighter ammo; want it for your wife to shoot; and it sounds like you don't want to mess with special ammo.
You just described the need for a .22, not a .17.

Regarding special ammo for a .22- It's true that some .22s prefer a some ammo over others. But what I've seen is that they shoot a couple types "really accurate", a bunch "pretty accurate", and a few "just OK".

For example- The .22 I shoot most (Ceiner suppressed Ruger 77-22) shoots it's smallest groups with Eley Tenex and CCI Green Tag, but the much cheaper and more available Winchester T22 was right behind them. I happily shoot the T22 without worrying about giving up accuracy. If I run out, and can't get more, there are plenty of other ammo types that will do fine before getting to the ones that don't.

One thing that stood out to me about my Kimber Rimfire is that among the ammo types I tried, it liked them all about the same. Kinda like the 77-22 I just mentioned, it shot only slightly larger groups with the Federal ammo that WalMart sells in the milk carton-like box than more expensive types. That's what it will get, because I have a bunch. After it's gone, I'll move to the next biggest supply.

[cginn]

I ordered a Marvel #1 and it has been very reliable and the accuracy is unbelievable. It came with a test target group of .33 inch at 50 yards. The Marvel takes only a few seconds to mount to my Kimber frame.

[kc2llw]

Chris,
I would get the Ruger I have a mark II with the bull barrel SS and love it all my kids shoot and love the gun my kids are ages 15,14,12,10,& 4 two girls and three boys they all enjoy shooting and hunting it is a great family sport my wife has an XD 9mm which the two older kids also shoot I of course have a Kimber custom II target model .45
Semper Fi
Steve

[mayagrafix]

The hotter high velocity stuff (40gr CCI Velocitor for example) seems to work much better (provides better recoil for slide action and does not foul up as much).