Kimber 2K11 Pro “Minotaur” DS 1911 Review

The Kimber K211 Pro Minotaur. Let’s check it out. (Available Here)

 

Kimber’s known for their 1911s, one of the largest in the U.S., and when they came out with the 2K11, which is a double stack 1911, these have become very popular because there are some features that you’re just not seeing with other 2011s.

One is the aluminum grip shell. Instead of the polymer, it has a more rigid feel to it. We have an external extractor, and there’s some other things that Kimber just brings to the table, and the 2K11 has been extremely popular.

And because of that, Kimber has now launched their 2K11 Pro. This is more of your commander style or a 4.25 inch barrel. It gives you a little more of a concealable option and just a little smaller, but yet it shoots extremely well.

It still retains that aluminum housing, but you can get models with a new carbon fiber Kevlar instead of just the standard polymer. There are going to be five different models released, and today we’re looking at the Minotaur. This has a really beautiful finish on it, man.

When I pulled this out of the box, I was like, wow. But their other offerings are beautiful as well. It’s one of the things that Kimber is really known for.

Now this one’s in 9mm. The original 2K11 that we introduced was in .45 ACP, which they are making .45 ACP in some of the models. But the 2011 handguns have really taken off, and one of the big reasons is you’re taking that tried and proven, and for that matter, legendary design of your 1911, which had a single stack mag, to a 21st century double stack 1911 that gives you a lot of capacity.

In fact, the 2K11 Pro features a 19 plus one round magazine capacity. So a big thank you to Kimber for sending the K211 Pro Minotaur for this review. Well guys, here we have the Kimber 2K11 Pro.

This is their OR for optics ready. We have the cuts here. We’ll look at that in a second, but this is the Minotaur.

Now there are five different editions of the 2K11 Pro if this is not your taste, but I’ll just tell you guys this is an absolutely beautiful handgun. Very well done. I mean it just really stands out.

There’s no doubt. Now obviously this comes off the heels of the original 2K11, and here we have the full-size version. This has a five inch barrel.

Let’s go ahead and drop our magazine. Now this one’s in .45 ACP. It holds 13 rounds, and we’ll check the chamber, and it’s empty.

And we’ll go ahead and check the Pro model as well. 19 round magazine, and this is nine millimeter. And man, that slide.

I’ll tell you what guys, it comes back so smooth. Now the disconnector has been angled, and when you take a standard 1911 and pull it back, it has a little bit of a resistance as it goes over the disconnector. But with the 2011s, they’ve really worked on working that and smoothing that out, and it’s definitely so with the 2K11s.

Now one of the big features of the Kimber 2K11 is this external extractor. And you’re seeing that in very few 1911s. They’re starting to, I think SIG, their 1911 has that external extractor.

Originally it was set right here in the back of the slide. It came out. It had to be tuned.

I have had issues with extractors in the past, but with the external, it’s just going to make it more positive, and it’s just going to give you better reliability and better feeding. And so that’s a big plus just in itself. Of course, another big plus for the Kimbers are the aluminum grip shell.

This is all aluminum, which most of your typical double stack 1911s or 2011 style pistols have a polymer grip shell. And then we have steel here for this grip module, and then we have steel for the slide. Now this is stainless steel.

Of course, this has been coated with a Cerakote finish, and it’s a SST distressed sandstone finish, and that’s what they’re calling it. Guys, I’ll tell you, it has those dark recessed areas, and it just really accents this handgun. I think this is one of the most beautiful handguns that I’ve seen as far as the coloring, the color combination with the black, and it really stands out.

Now again, that may not be your preference, but they do make, again, a number of different models, and this just happens to be the one that Kimber sent. With the original, of course, it was just that DLC coating, has a really nice finish to it. I love these serrations, and that’s what they have on the Minotaur as well.

One thing that Kimber’s really known for is just unique slide serrations, again, that are very effective. I mean, these are deep and wide, so it gives you a lot of surface to be able to grab, even here at the front. Now with this being a 4.25 inch barrel, which you can see it is fluted, this is a match barrel.

It has a DLC coating on the barrel, which is going to give it some slickness and some lubricity, but it’s also going to retain that beautiful finish, and it’s going to keep down on corrosion. Of course, with the optics ready plate, this is from CH Precision, and this has the sight attached to the back, and it comes with a Trijicon RMR adapter plate, so that comes with the handgun. If you want different ones, you know, you can get that, but the whole plate comes off, the sight comes off.

Here at the front, this is the Tag Fiber Lock II, and the way it’s set in, you can see that it actually recesses into the end instead of just hanging out. These can be replaced fairly easily. If they break, you can put another one in, put a lighter, and just heat it up, and it retains it, and it is dovetailed in.

Now I love this flat top. I mean, that’s definitely a custom feature for most of your 1911s. They are rounded off.

This has some cuts, angled cuts, on the side just to give it some more slickness, pulling it in and out of holsters, but that flat top is absolutely beautiful, and it’s the same with the original model as well. In fact, this is just a smaller version, and again, they are coming out with some pretty cool models. It has a high-ride beaver tail, ambidextrous safeties.

We have the commander style hammer, which I really like this styling, and it has the little memory notch right here when you’re gripping it, and it extends out, so it’s a very positive close. One of the things about the 1911 originally is that this was part of the government requirements, U.S. military, and so having this, it’s a passive safety, and honestly, 1911s are some of the safest guns to carry because of this grip safety, and then you have your standard safety. We have an extended mag release, and we have nice serrations on the slide release, and there’s serrations on the ambidextrous safety.

With the grip shell, it has texturing all the way through it. Now, I will say that with the original, they’re a little bit more aggressive, and part of that has to do with the surcoat finish that went into this. They’re aggressive, and they catch, and they bite very well.

This has just a little bit more texturing. Now, some of the models that they’re offering in the pro model are going to have a carbon fiber Kevlar grip shell, which is going to give it a lot of strength. It was funny, I was at NRA talking to the guys at Kember this past year, and one of the things they said was these grip shells take a little longer to produce, and because of the machining and with the polymer, it’s actually quicker, and so that’s one of the reasons why, because they have gotten backed up on getting these type handguns out.

They are so popular, so the grip shells are in high demand for the aluminum, and now they’re offering that carbon fiber Kevlar grip shell that’s really going to be nice, and it’s going to give it a lot of durability. We do have an undercut, and it’s kind of a different undercut right here below the trigger guard. It doesn’t really go up high.

It actually cuts into the grip, so as you’re bringing it around, it’s going to be just a natural grip, and there are not other finger grooves to interfere, because they seem not to fit anyone, and then we have a match trigger, and this is the GT trigger. It’s a three to four pound. We’re going to test that out, and we’ll look at all the details.

Nice little angled trigger guard right here, and we have a four slot Picatinny rail, and these are made in Troy, Alabama. It has a flat front, and we have a deep dish crown. This is really nice, and this is going to preserve your accuracy.

The barrel, again, is DLC coated, and we’re going to look at it. It’s a heavy bull barrel, and then the chamber is fluted, and we’ll look a little bit at that when we break it down. It has a natural mag well, and so that’s really nice.

You don’t have to attach a mag well. It is part of the grip itself, and you can see it has the beveling, allows those mags to go in really quickly, and the mags, of course, do have the beveling up to the front. Now, these are checkmate mags.

They’re made in the U.S., and they’re very high quality, and then they have an aluminum base pad, and the mainspring housing area also has that really nice checkering. Now, one big plus also is their patent-pended guide rod system, and this is toolless. Even though it’s a full-length guide rod, I really like this guide rod, how easy it is to disassemble, and so we’re going to look at that when we break it down, but this is a very ingenious way to be able to have this set up and easy to disassemble, and the slide stop is a slide release as well.

The interior of the grip well has been designed to allow these magazines to fit snugly, and as they go up right next to the barrel and the barrel ramp, it’s going to fit and have a lot of stability. One of the things about a magazine, if there’s a lot of play, if there’s a lot of wobble, if it can be extended too far when you’re jamming the magazine in, it can cause reliability issues, and so the grip shell itself has been designed to be able to feed those magazines into the proper alignment. The 2K11 series is very unique for Kimber.

In fact, these are actually built by one armorer gunsmith that is an expert in 1911s, and he goes through the entire process of each handgun, so he makes it a very uniform fit, and they’re there for every process. They’re individually fit together, so it just allows for more consistency with each handgun. Now let’s look at the slide to frame fit.

I’m going to tell you guys, I feel no movement at all. With the barrel, for sure, this thing locks up really solid with the slide, and it is tight. Here at the back, I don’t really feel anything.

There may be a little bit, but no perceived movement. This thing is locked down. You’ll notice down here at the end of the magwell, it doesn’t have a bob cut, but it does have a slight angle, and right here is the pin that drives out for your mainspring housing.

All the different controls are DLC coated, and they have a nice finish to them, and it really allows for a very uniform look to contrast with this distressed sandstone finish, and guys, I love that coloring inside. It gives it kind of that almost steampunk or Star Wars look. I mean, this is really a beautiful gun.

In fact, I can see Han Solo walking around with this thing as a blaster. Now the full-size model is really designed for competitive shooters. Obviously, anyone can shoot it, and if it’s good enough for competitive shooters, it’s great for home defense, and then with the five-inch model, I mean, it’s a large gun, and it has some heft to it.

With the pro model, you’re just bringing that slide down to make it a little more manageable for concealed carry, and then we have about three quarters of an inch coming off the end. Grip length is the same, and that’s the way it is with your commander version. Now guys, I just wanted to bring out the Bull Armory EDC.

This is one of my favorite 2011 style handguns that has the polymer grip shell, but this is a really major difference between the two. I mean, polymer is great. It’s really kind of transformed a lot of the gun industry because it is lightweight, it’s very durable, and it does make it, I mean, this thing is really lightweight compared to the Kember 2K11 Pro, but man, there’s something about that aluminum grip that just gives this some class, some confidence, some rigidity, and all this is subjective, guys.

You know, you have to pick out what’s best for you, and again, Kember is putting out some of those Kevlar carbon fiber grip shells, which, you know, they’re going to be great, but I’ll tell you, I love this handgun. I mean, it is excellent, but there’s something again about this aluminum that just gives it a touch of class. Now here we have the GT match trigger.

Skeletonized aluminum, very well done. We have a little bit of take up right to here, and it stops. Trigger pull, man, that is really nice.

Reset, right there. Very fast reset. Let’s check the trigger pull weight with our Lyman trigger gauge from Brownells.

Two pounds, 12.4 ounces. Two pounds, 14.9 ounces. So they say between three and four pounds, this is just under three pounds.

And the weight on the 2K11 Pro, 39.2 ounces. Go ahead and check the weight on the Bull Armory EDC, about the same size, 29.82 ounces. There is a considerable difference in weight.

Now how that translates at the range, you know, it gives you a little more heft. It’s going to make this give a little bit of weight at the front. And I think the aluminum does add just a little bit, but definitely a little bit heavier firearm.

Big thank you to Fiocchi for sponsoring our ammo. All made in the USA. One of the biggest suppliers of ammunition in the country.

And very consistent. All right guys, Kimber K211, the original that we got, the full size. I love that gun.

That aluminum grip shell makes a huge difference. Now we have the Minotaur, and that’s this model. It’s the compact, has the four inch barrel.

This one’s in nine millimeter. The original I had was in 45 ACP, which 45 gives you kind of a push, and nine millimeter is a little more of a punch, even though it’s a softer punch. Really light on the recoil.

19 plus one the magazine, but the slide to frame, it’s so smooth. And with that aluminum coming at the back, it gives you some rigidity. Ambi safeties, and just good solid full grip, and we have a bevel in the mag well.

I mean, that is smooth. Sights, beautiful. Love the fiber optic at the front, black outline.

It is optics ready. The slide serrations are definitely unique, and it’s one of the things that Kimber does. I mean, a lot of their different models have different type slide serrations, and these are very well done.

And we have a match trigger, and the trigger pull is excellent. Still gives you all the controls of your 1911, and yet with a high round capacity. And that full grip, the checkering all the way around, gives you a good solid firm purchase.

Overall, this is just a top notch 2011 style double stack 1911, and Kimber really is coming out with some beautiful models. Guys, we had a mishap with our camera, which I hate, because the accuracy was really good. In fact, I shot one group, and this was it.

Five rounds, four right here together, and then we had one right here, which was actually just a little touch of a pull. They all should have been right here, and that’s the accuracy of this handgun. This was at seven yards, and it was with the Oki 147 grain full metal jacket.

All right, now we’re going to go through disassembly. We’re going to drop our magazine, go ahead and check the chamber, point the gun in a safe direction, pull the trigger. First thing you want to do is to bring back your slide, and we’re going to line it up with the little notch in the slide.

Bring your slide back in that first little notch, just line it up with your slide stop. Here on the other side, we have the slide stop, and we’re going to push it through. Then just bring out your slide stop.

Now as we let the slide go forward, just put your thumb over the recoil spring, but it’s not going to come out. It’s a full-length guide rod. Now this is the interesting part, and this is what I really like.

We’re going to take our full-length guide rod. We’re going to compress the spring forward, just like this. Once you see the ending, it has some texturing right here.

You just want to turn it like that. When you release it, it captures the recoil spring and this little cup that’s in the end of your dust cover, and that’s it guys. There’s no paper clips.

There’s no small little tools that you lose. Makes it really easy to do. Take the barrel link, drop it down, and then we’re going to take our barrel right out of the end of the slide.

Now let’s take a look at this barrel. It is absolutely beautiful. I love the fluting.

We see the lugs. We’ve shot 500 rounds through this gun, and there is no perceivable wear. I mean this DLC coating is holding up extremely well, and this is just a beautiful finish.

This barrel is absolutely beautiful. These are ramped. They’re ramped barrels.

Gives it more support for your nine millimeter. Makes it easier for it to go right into the chamber, so that’s a big plus as well. The interior finish is beautiful.

No tooling marks. It is a little bit dirty from all the shooting, but overall very well done. And with the frame, same thing, but we do have a considerable amount.

Again, we shot this about 500 rounds, so it is dirty, and we need to clean it up. Then here with the disconnector, it is just beveled just to make that a very slick movement back and forth with the slide. And guys, for the 1911 design, that is a very simple way to disassemble this, even much more than your government model.

With the barrel bushing, and then all the different ways you have to do it, this is really simple. So let’s take our barrel. We’re going to reinstall it.

You can feel the fit. Man, that is nice and tight. Next we’re going to take our guide rod, go ahead and put it in, and our recoil spring.

And once you get it fit in, that turns counterclockwise. What it does, it just offsets just a touch. And here we have this locked in.

We’re going to drop our barrel link, because that’s what your slide stop goes through. Go ahead and return it to our slide. Now once you find that barrel link and it’s clear, go ahead and put in your slide stop.

And I like to leave it down first. Then I’m going to bring back my slide and get this notch in the correct place. Lift up on your slide stop, bring it down, and then just push it in.

And it should go in. We’re going to test for function. And guys, we’re back in business.

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Comes in a Kimber box, but inside we have one of the best cases that I know of. It comes with a gun. And we use these considerably at the range.

One of the big reasons is that it will fit multiple guns. So here we have our K211 Pro. Very well protected.

You can even put one in the center. And you can put another one here. So I can carry three guns to the range.

This makes it really easy. But here at the front, we have a place for our magazines. And of course, we have slots for five magazines.

And then here in the front little compartment, we have all of our lock, all of our other information sticker, and we have a owner’s manual. Very nice case. Very well done.

I like these little grip pulls on here. I mean, Kimber really did a good job. And of course, it has grab handles as well.

But a really nice touch by Kimber. Retail price for the Kimber 2K11 Pro starts at $22.45. The Minotaur edition is $25.75 retail. Now, market price typically is less.

You go into your gun shop and more market value. When it comes to magazines, on the Kimber website, they are $84.99. And again, these are checkmate magazines, high quality, and they are made in the USA, even Markso. 19 plus one.

And there are other additional magazines you can get. So what are some pros and cons? First off, the finish is absolutely beautiful. Again, whether you like this styling or not, this is just one of the most beautiful handguns I’ve seen.

I love that antique-like look to it, or the battle distressed look. And that Cerakote sandstone just really pops out with those black accents. I love the aluminum grip shell.

It’s definitely a big plus as far as I’m concerned. And I like just the rigidity, and it just feels solid. The external extractor, big plus.

That’s going to give you better reliability, and they’re not as finicky as the standard, you know, in the back of the slide type extractors. It is a ramp barrel. It’s fluted, and it has that DLC coating.

The sights are really nice. The tag front fiber lock sights, and then the CNH plate with the sight, and then it comes with an adapter plate for your Trijicon RMR. So that is a big plus, because a lot of times you have to order them.

I love the magwell, and I love the magazines. The magazines are well done. The trigger is extremely nice and light, down to about three pounds, but very shootable.

And we have a nice accessory rail. I love the full-length guide rod, how easy it is to disassemble this handgun. So those are the pros.

As far as cons, it is a little steep with price, not necessarily for your 2011s though. 2011s can run a lot more, and honestly, I don’t think you’re going to be getting anything any better, or near as beautiful. But again, they do make a number of different models they’re going to be offering, and the finish may be something that just doesn’t appeal to you.

And again, they’re going to have other models. Very reliable. We had no malfunctions.

The accuracy was over the top. It is heavy at around 40 ounces. That’s going to be one factor for a lot of people.

If you’re wanting to carry this for concealed carry, I really see this as a barbecue gun, just to be honest, or for a home defense gun. I mean, I don’t buy guns to collect. I buy them to shoot.

But man, this is really a beautiful gun. And when you compare it to the Bull Armory, it’s about 10 ounces heavier. So that is definitely something, you know, to take into consideration according to what you’re looking for and how you’re going to use this tool.

These are made by an individual armorer going from the process, hand fitting, and making each part fit. And so that’s going to give you a lot of consistency. I love the disconnector being tapered.

Really smooth. There is no resistance at all. And also with the grip shell and fitted for the magazines to keep from them being over inserted and to allow them to fit really well.

So that keeps up your reliability and your control a little better. Well, Kimber’s given us a couple of choices. It’s good to see them expanding the line, especially with the more compact size.

The original 2K11 has been incredible. Of course, this was M45. I was really glad to get a hold of a 9mm.

But with this round capacity and just the traditional 1911 feel to it, I mean, this is just two excellent handguns. So guys, really great to see Kimber bringing out a new model of their 2K11 handguns. I mean, this again takes that legendary 1911 style design and it puts it up to the modern standards of a high capacity magazine.

Plus a lot of other refinements that just go beyond your standard 1911. Check out the 2K11 Pro if you’re looking for a double stack 1911 or 2011 style handgun. These are absolutely beautiful handguns, again, with a number of enhanced features.

And again, a big thank you to Kimber for sending the 2K11 Pro Minotaur for this review.

 

Be strong, be of good courage. God bless America. Long live the Republic.

 

-Don