Archive for March 3rd, 2010

Why I chose it:

I’ve been wanting a 3″ 1911 for a while to serve as a quasi-replacement for my PPK/s as a backup and as a primary on the rare occasions that I couldn’t dress around my fullsize 1911. I also prefer SAO guns and want to move that direction with all my SD firearms. I also like the small 1911 as a backup because I’ve found that the 1911 ergonomics and controls are perfect for me, and it would be great to have my SD platform based around, and the mag interchangeability between primary and backup is a plus.

I like heavy guns, so I wanted a steel-frame 3″. As far as I could tell, that left me with 4 options: Springfield GI Compact, Citadel Compact, Kimber Eclipse Ultra and the Kimber SIS Ultra. Front strap checkering is a must, so I was left to choose between the two Kimbers. The SIS won out because I really like the raises sights for belt cocking, the slightly bobbed MSH, (I also prefer serrated MSHs), the Series I safety, the memory bump safety, the stippled grips (stippling or Nill Rhomlas are by far my favorite grip textures), and the solid trigger. The fugly SIS serrations are a downside, but I’m not buying this to be pretty.

Ordering the gun:

This was an adventure all on its own. For those not aware, the SIS line was discontinued for 2010, so whatever was on dealer shelves when I was looking for the gun would be all that’s out there. The first site I found it on required FFL info before you could order. By the time my FFL got his info faxed in, it was out of stock. The second site showed in stock, but when they recieved the FFL info and went to ship it, they didn’t have one, and neither did any of their distributers. I finally scored one on a third site, and for a decent price to boot.

The Gun

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