Kimber 1911 sights

C

cdoc42

New member
My .45 APC Kimber TLE-II pistol has fixed sights and consistently shoots to the left.

I looked through the Kimber website but there is no information about their 1911s in general nor anything available when I found the TLE-II other than telling me it has fixed sights. They have a 1911 manual available but it speaks only to the presence of adjustable sights.

Does anyone know if this model can be modified to have an adjustable rear sight, or preferably, a red dot sight? I have a Crimson Trace installed but the laser can't be seen in daylight shooting.
 
Tap the rear sight to the right a little or tap the front a little to the left.
Fixed only means they're not adjustable for elevation.

IIRC, Novak (and maybe some others) make elevation adjustable sights for the fixed sighted Kimbers, but you're still going to have to move the front or rear to correct for windage problems.

The Kimbers that come with adjustable sights have a different cut in the slide for the click adjustable sights.

You can have the slide milled for the adjustable cut.

There are red dot mounts.
 
Hammerhead said:
Tap the rear sight to the right a little or tap the front a little to the left.
Click to expand...
If the sights are dovetailed into the slide you can use a brass punch and tap them left or right to where they shoot POA. If it consistently shoots left, tap the rear sight a little bit to the rght ... or the front sight to the left. Take your flat-tipped brass punch, your little hammer, and some kind of block to support the gun whith you to the range, tap the sight left or right, move it a little bit, shoot it to see where it is hitting, rinse and repeat until the windage is right.
 
Thanks to all- I wondered if I could tap the rear sight , but I hesitated because there is small allen wrench screw in it that the manual says can be used to change elevation and no similar device on the side(s). But the Kimber website ad for this model says the sights are "fixed."
 
cdoc42 said:
Thanks to all- I wondered if I could tap the rear sight , but I hesitated because there is small allen wrench screw in it that the manual says can be used to change elevation and no similar device on the side(s). But the Kimber website ad for this model says the sights are "fixed."
Click to expand...
Before you do anything, please post a good, detail photo of the rear sight. The TLE-II is supposed to have Tritium night sights. You should be able to see those in the dark.
 
but I hesitated because there is small allen wrench screw in it
Click to expand...
That is likely a set screw that you will need to loosen before you can drift the sight. Be sure to tighten it afterwards.

Jim
 
don't mess with it

I would send it back to Kimber maybe after I called them. They have been very good to me if I had a sight problem on my CDP. I would call them before I boogered it up.
You can booger it up after you call them any time at all.
Those Kimber sights are pretty tight.
 
don't mess with it

I would send it back to Kimber maybe after I called them. They have been very good to me if I had a sight problem on my CDP. I would call them before I boogered it up.
You can booger it up after you call them any time at all.
Those Kimber sights are pretty tight.
 
Aguila, the sights are tritium night sights. I noted that I would lose that if I bought the Dawson Precisions, but I sent them an email for clarification on the use of their sights on a Kimber TLE-II. BTW, I'm not sure how to post a photo on this site.

Laytonj1, you have a point. It may well be a set screw rather than a height alignment adjustment, but info on the Kimber site is not superb.
 
cdoc42 said:
Laytonj1, you have a point. It may well be a set screw rather than a height alignment adjustment, but info on the Kimber site is not superb.
Click to expand...
I assume the passage you saw in the manual is this:

Sight adjustment

Make sure the firearm is unloaded (see
pages 48-52) before adjusting sights.​

Some models have a rear sight which is adjustable
for both windage and elevation.

Elevation

To adjust the point of aim up, turn the elevation
screw counter-clockwise. This will raise the rear
sight blade and raise the point of aim on the target.
Turning the elevation screw clockwise will lower the
sight blade and the point of aim on the target.

Windage

To adjust the point of aim to the right, turn the
windage nut clockwise. To adjust the point of aim to
the left, turn the windage nut counter-clockwise. Make
a significant movement of the blade until the point of
aim and point of impact are close, then fine tune
Click to expand...

I think that's clear that they are describing how to adjust the target-type sights, which have two screws. I'm equally certain that the screw on your rear sight is just a set screw, not an elevation adjustment. I don'd think I've ever seen an adjustable sight that used an Allen (hex) screw for the adjustment.
 
Yep, that's what I saw, and unfortunately it led to my confusion because it is apparently generic for all their 1911's and has nothing specific about my model TLE-II. In a highly unusual circumstance I can't find the original product manual that came with the gun, so I searched the website.

While I'm waiting to hear from Dawson Precision, I'll tap on that rear sight to see if it solves my issue.
 
You don't take a car to a mechanic to adjust your seat, and you don't send a gun back for a sight adjustment, you do that yourself.
 
Last edited:
Hammerhead said:
You don't take a car to a mechanic to adjust your seat, and you don't send a gun back for a sight adjustment, you do that yourself.
Click to expand...
I usually adjust my sights but a kimber I bought about a year ago wasn't having any part of that.. The rear sight was in really tight. It was in a vise with rubber to protect the slide finish and I pounded on the sight with a hammer and aluminum punch. I hit it hard but it wasn't moving. Before I messed something up I called Kimber. They gave me a return tag so I sent it off. They adjusted the sight and had it back to me within two weeks. Great customer service
 
Just to be sure...your gun looks like this one,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtur7wTtzes

If so the sight is drift adjustable. That means you loosen the screw and tap the rear sight in the direction that you want the bullet to go.

You may want to shoot it some with different ammo before making the adjustment just to be sure it's is the gun and not the shooter.

tipoc
 
Kimber rear sights are extremely tight not to mention Meprolight rears can be damaged by hitting with a hammer breaking the tritium vials.
 
Loosen the set screw.

Use a sight pusher to move the sight.

There's also a spring under the sight you need to be careful of if you go too far and remove the sight.

IIRC, there's a Youtube video of how to remove the sight from a Kimber.
 
Great advice, all. I've viewed some of the video instructions. With the Tritium sight on the TLEII I suspect there is no spring under it since it is not height adjustable. I will take care no to get too forceful to prevent damaging the vials as noted by krunchnik above.
 
Post_19,
Wrong assumption, there's a spring under the rear sight for the Series II firing pin safety. It's got nothing to do with whether the rear sight is fixed or adjustable.
 
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