Coming out of right field (it’s even less expected) from Kimber this week is the K6s. It’s a 6-shot, DAO, .357 revolver with a shrouded hammer designed for the concealed carry market. Also new for 2016 is the MICRO in 9mm. Previously offered only in .380, Kimber has expanded their line of lilliputian 1911s adding the larger caliber, with nary a change to its overall dimensions. More photos and details follow . . .
The K6s is an all stainless steel revolver with a 1.39″ diameter cylinder, which Kimber claims is the smallest .357 Mag cylinder out there. She has a 2″ barrel, and a smooth double-action-only (DAO) trigger with a pull weight around 10 lbs. Instead of the normal forward-sliding cylinder release, the K6s’ is a push button similar to the magazine release on a semi-auto pistol but smoother and nicer.
The K6s weighs 23 ounces, is 6.62″ long, 4.46″ tall, and 1.39″ wide. Rubber grips are on the way, but both of these examples were sporting wood.
The rear sight is nicely sculpted into the frame. This is definitely a snag-free revolver.
The MICRO in 9mm holds 6 rounds in its diminutive 4.07″ height.
6.1″ long, 1.06″ wide, and 15.6 oz.
The MICRO in .380…
We also dug the threaded barrel and suppressor sights on the Custom TLE/RL II (TFS) available in both .45 ACP and 9mm.
I have two Kimber micros in 380 ACP, And they kick like a mule Compared to my Glock 42 There’s something to say about polymer frame absorbing the shock of the recoil on a small pistol I’m just wondering how much recoil that 9 millimeter is going to throw into your hand and how much bigger the pistol is In 9 millimeter?
I thought it was pretty dang controllable. It’s slightly longer but stats for height, width, and weight are near-identical to the .380 I do believe.
Sig 238/938. That is all.
That’s a bingo. Got two P938s now. No need to look elsewhere.
It seems the pocket 9 weighs a tad over what a Kel-Tec PF9 weighs and that kicks about the equivalent of a 442 with normal pressure loads in either (130gr FMJ in the 442 and 115 Gr Wally-Ballers/FMJ in the Kel-Tec) soooo it’s stout…..but, the 1911 type frame might help a bit.
Out of my price range but I like them. Especially being 6 shots.
Agreed would like a K or a J next to them for size comparisons. I’d love to see someone throw down with a 7 shooter “K” sized gun in .327 Federal.
Shot it today. It’s definitely J frame size. Very pocketable.
How does it compare to say a 649 or a SP101 in size/shootability?
Any word on MSRP?
I’ve been longing for a 6 shot 357 j frame sized revolver.
$899. I don’t understand paying a few hundred more for a Kimber, just to turn around and put it back in the shop for six months. Hopefully the latter isn’t necessary for a simple revolver, but the price still makes my eyes roll.
So what’s the break in period? 1000 rounds?
1000 rounds of .357 mag in a snubbie…
Do they make bionic replacement wrists and hands?
[ouch!]
LOL! That was my thought too– “Cylinder binding? Have you put 500 rounds through it yet?” I’m sorry, I’m just an anti-Kimber snoot, I know.
Very nice especially the revolver. Never going to buy one but it’s good gun porn!
Revolver manufacturer is a pretty exclusive club. Happy to see a new member.
Nice to see someone introducing a new CCW revolver. I wish they’d made the cylinder revolver into the window (ala Colt), rather than out of the window (ala S&W). Colt’s patents are looooong since a historical artifact, so there’s no reason to spin the cylinder backwards.
I just wish they’d bring out something like this in .44 Special.
It is nice to see new. This one is on my shoot list at TFF!
The strongest DA revolvers rotate counter clockwise (Ruger, Smith X frames). I would think the biggest difference would be which way the little scallops on the cylinder lock grooves point. Don’t see an advantage one way or the other.
.44 Special would be nice. I’d like a 3″ barrel and an exposed hammer, but I’m guessing this is the first of a whole line of revolvers.
3″ with hammer was my exact thought as well #greatminds
Well my EDC is a GP100 Wiley Clapp. Lighter weight would be nice, but if you’ve got a halfway decent belt a 2 1/2 pound (loaded) revolver isn’t bad at all, even with a mediocre holster. I’d even go with an extra 1/4 or 3/8 inch barrel except that would probably leave you stuck with a 4″ holster. You lose a lot of velocity in magnum calibers with short barrels, 2″ is a little less than I’d prefer to carry. But if you simply MUST wear that skimpy outfit…
Dude, my edc was a sp101 wiley clapp until yesterday when i traded it in on my dream gun, a NIB S&W 327!!!! Now that is my EDC, super pumped.
Sweet. Barrel is still too short though 😉
When the cylinder rotates into the window, the cylinder is being pushed up against the frame, and you can achieve a tighter lock.
This is why Colts had the reputation of “bank vault lock-up” – the cylinder was being pushed against/into the frame, and the cylinder is now in a position to be more rigid than you might achieve with locking points on the end of the ejector rod (on later Smiths) or the rear of the cylinder on the take-down pin alone (earlier Smiths).
Seriously – people need to see a S&W and Colt in prime condition side-by side to appreciate this little detail.
However that advantage seems (to me anyway) to be dwarfed by the advent of the crane lock on the GP100s, Redhawks and X frames. I believe Smith even had something in antiquity they called the ‘triple lock’. Rugers have a reputation for never going out of time or cracking forcing cones no matter how hot the loads you’re shooting, so they must be doing something right.
If you fire a 2-3 shot burst, spinning the cylinder counterclockwise offers the practical advantage of having spent cartridges exposed at the 9 o’ clock position when the cylinder is opened. Gentle pressure on the ejector rod raises the fired rounds sufficiently to allow them to be dug free with a finger nail, then a tactical reload from a speed strip is performed.
With the Colt, fired rounds are located inboard, making this maneuver more difficult to accomplish because the available working area is limited by its proximity to the frame
The .357 snubbie is a fighting handgun and design features should favor practical advantage over engineering elegance. The Detective Special is a museum piece; Smiths and Rugers are back alley bludgeons.
Smith and Wesson makes one in .44 Sepcial
Smith hasn’t produced their .44 Special CCW revolvers (the 396 or 696) in years. They’re available in only the used market.
Would a 1.39″ cylinder have room for 5 .44s with enough wall? Would be fantastic if it did. AFAIK the Charter Bulldog is 1.45″, which isn’t that much bigger. For the price I’m sure Kimber will charge, perhaps they can spec tighter tolerances and higher strength stainless?
I’m really a fan of Buff Bore, and now also Underwood’s, full wadcutter offerings for snubbies. No worries of “will it expand though the short barrel”, nor any need to drive it fast, loud, blasty and recoil’y just to ensure “guaranteed” expansion. But non expanding bullets really do benefit from bigger bores……
Also, if perhaps only because the liberals are right that us gun people are buying bigger guns to compensate for having small other stuff, snubby revolvers, even with larger cylinders, are very comfortable to smart carry.
I have the Kimber Ultra Carry II and a Micro 380. Neither kicks that much snd I am able to shoot either single handed.
What is the difference in the Kimber Solo and Kimber Micro 9mm?
What customer groups are they aiming at with these two offerings?
These are not 1911s, they are Colt Mustang knockoffs just like the Sig P238, P938 that appeal to the concealed carry crowd and are very popular. These are prettier than the Sigs, but just like Colt was, Kimber is late to the party with an overpriced gun.
Except that the Sig 238/938 are awesome and won’t spend the first 6-12 months after you buy it back in the Kimber shop. Especially the 938 once broken in and is incredibly accurate for such a small gun. Also, Sig has at least a dozen different varieties of these guns to choose from to suit individual tastes, with night sights or fiber optic sights.
I *thought* I wanted a Solo and a Micro 380, but the issues and price finally drove me to the Sig, and I couldn’t have been happier.
How was colt late? Not sure when they first produced the Mustang, but I’ve had mine since 1991.
At 1.39″ cylinder diameter, that doesn’t seem like a lot of steel between the chambers. A K frame is 1.446″. How much can you trim before you start having problems with the longevity of the cylinder?
GP100 cylinder is 1.55″ so I’m guessing 1.54″.
*chuckle, chuckle*
Depends on the steel alloy.
A Colt DS-II six-shot cylinder is 1.40″ Same as the Kimber, and the DS-II’s predecessors, Detective Special and Cobra.
The weight is well more than the DS and a little less than the DS-II.
I will insist the .357 chambering is a non-issue: using a two-inch .357 with full power loads indoors will stun the shooter as well as the shootee. I tried my Magnum Carry (a stainless, 2″ DS-II) in a darkhouse shoot and have never put magnum ammunition in a 2″ self-defense gun since.
For nine hundred bucks, shouldn’t we be seeing an updated Python instead of a Detective Special with good sights?
If you want a new gun on the level of a Python, you’ll need to bring more than $900. Heck, Pythons cost more than that when they came out in 1955 (adjusted for inflation).
You won’t see something on par with a Python under $2500.
I keep telling people how much hand-fitting there was on a Python. People don’t seem to want to believe me.
Well, I didn’t mean an exact copy of the Python.
Still, with modern manufacturing methods and some careful re-engineering, a functionally and aesthetically similar gun could be made and wouldn’t have to go above $1200-1400.
Having had Pythons and other E/I frames, some of which still inhabit the place and get shot frequently, I probably wouldn’t even want a brand-new Python. The mechanics inside are not for the faint of heart, including those who must count beans.
But there’s more to a Python that a rebound lever.
I have shot a 357 magnum indoors from a 2″ barrel Smith and the only thing that stunned me was that I just had an ND.
Personally I’m happy to see a 6 shot j frame sized gun with a closer to push forward cylinder release. That is the style I always found easier to manipulate left handed and have grown accustomed to/familiar with/comfortable with.
However, I do still kick myself for letting a 2″ish Colt Trooper slip by me for $289.
The new Kimber k6s is attractive. The price is far too high! The price of handguns are high and this only exacerbates that. I would like to try out the weapon as I prefer revolvers over semi autos. Hopefully, when the DONALD becomes our U.S. President the gun fever will diminish and prices will resend to reasonable levels.
‘the DONALD’ sure is a funny nickname for Ted Cruz.
That was a nice Bern.
Your both funny. If you can’t see that its going to be Her royal highness your going to have a rude surprise.
If it becomes “Her royal highness” , you wont have to quibble about the price of guns anymore. She will close the gun ownership loophole.
Be careful of what you wish for.
I don’t think he’s necessarily “wishing”, just “predicting”.
I do predictions too. But most predictions are based on a wish.
I predict that Cruz wins and mops Trumph and Clinton in the process.
That’s my prediction and in that you can see my wish.
Hope you are right about Cruz, but he is the choice for voters who understand self-responsibility, ethics, morals, and rule of law and the Constitution. We have too many voters in this country conditioned against those principles for him to win.
@Durbeday
I agree with your point as it is spot on. It is also a truly sad reality about those voters now as I cant believe that there are that many people that buy into the idea that it is someone else’s responsibility instead of their own. The problem is that we have been outnumbered by people that teach that very thing.
As we regain our rights with hard fought battles, this idea is another battle that needs to be fought or we all lose what we fought so hard to gain. The example of a prediction is but a small example of subliminal messaging or a wish.” Give up already, she wins”. She will if everyone gives into that idea. She wont win if we fight it. But everyone has to fight that fight and not sit at home just because your favorite guy did not win the nomination. Vote for the “R” even if you feel you have to hold your nose. The battles at this point are close but still winnable if your really wanting to win. I believe we can, don’t try to prove me wrong. Work at proving me right.
Will do. I don’t tend to keep flushing the toilet when it is backed up and overflowing with sewage. 😉
Neat little wheelgun. I’m not in love with the squared-off looks (but I think it might grow on me), and that funky fluting/faceting/whatever you’d call it on the cylinder isn’t working for me at all, but kudos for putting a dovetailed sight on the back, instead of just the typical grooved top strap. Doesn’t look like there’s a sharp edge on that thing anywhere.
It’s very nice to see someone new jump into the revolver game. Smart to start with a snubby, too, given the rising interest in concealed carry. Here’s hoping this becomes a successful new product line from Kimber, with longer barrels and other calibers down the road.
Ole’ Twin Beard summed up one of the seldom (never) mentioned advantages of a revolver;
‘Another advantage of a revolver that is seldom mentioned out of political correctness, is that the revolver does not leave the empty cartridge cases lying on the ground as does an autoloader. Even in a justified self-defensive shooting, there are some jurisdictions in which a person will be prosecuted by the law for using a firearm in defense of his life. In such a situation, you do not want to leave cartridge cases on the ground that have your finger prints upon them. A semi-auto flings its empty brass upon the ground. The [revolver] does not. Usually this is not a concern, but there are some areas in which, even if morally justified to do so, using a handgun to defend yourself or someone else will get you time in prison. It ain’t right, but that’s the way it is. In such areas, you do not want to leave evidence at the scene of even a justified shooting.’
i have my lawyer load all my gun magazines for me.
Definitely like both the wood grips and the dovetail rear sight. No doubt Kimber will be coming out with some tritium sights for these as well.
I have zero use for a DAO wheel gun though. Call me when it has an exposed hammer.
I’d like to see how the Micro compares to the Solo. It it’s the same size we have a winner.
If it had a 3 inch barrel I would buy the first one I saw.
Kudos for sneaking “sporting wood” into an article almost undetected. Time will tell if these can generate that sort of excitement in the marketplace.
It’s nice to see new pocket revolvers coming out. Only possible problem for me that I see with this Kimber is the push button cylinder release. As a lefty, I can manipulate the cylinder release on my SW642 by swinging my thumb around the backstrap and pushing the release forward. I’m not sure how well that would work pushing a button.
The sights definitely are an improvement over the 642.
Out of a 2″ barrel how much more velocity is a 357 going to provide? Looking at ballistics by the inch and comparing real world weapons they are +- 50fps. I don’t see the advantage unless shooting a criminal and giving him third degree burns as a bonus is your goal.
Kimber makes beautiful looking pistols no doubt. But at 2x the price of a S&W airweight I would have to stick with S&W.
I agree, there’s little advantage to shooting .357 out of a snubbie, but having that capability opens up your ammunition choices during a shortage, and you also know that it’s going to be strong enough to handle any .38 +P load you happen to want to throw in it.
This model compares more to the all stainless S&W 640, the .357 J-frame. The big improvement I see is the 6 shot capacity and usable sights. But yeah, I doubt I’ll be swapping out my 642 just yet.
Are you looking at the same Ballistics by the Inch that I am?
Comparing the same weight bullet from 38spl+P to 357 reveals a big difference.
Comparing the fastest 38spl+P they have listed, a 125gr Corbon out of a 2″ barrel goes 723ft/sec.
For 357, they have a Corbon at 125gr going 1050ft/sec out of a 2″ barrel.
And, you can shoot heavier bullets out of the 357. All that recoil has to go somewhere — conservation of momentum and all that.
Easy to expand the platform if this takes off. Add a larger grip, 4″ barrel – and I bet they have planned for an exposed hammer with minimal changes.
Glock will unveil the V8 “Vertical Cylinder” revolver in yet another masterstroke of engineering genius.
Yeah, right after they release a colt commander-size single stack and that pistol caliber carbine everyone’s been begging for.
What is the difference between the Micro9 & the Kimber Solo? I don’t see any reason to switch from my Sig P938, but just curious what the Micro9 is.
The Solo is larger, has a double-action-ish trigger and lacks the safety lock.
Some might also say the Solo’s ergos are less comfortable, your results may vary.
I am no fan of hammer-less revolvers or pistols. No shaved hammers, no sealed frames, no striker fired. Just not my type.
Nice gun Kimber, just not nice enough for me. When it has a hammer and priced more realistic then give me a call. I do own other Kimber products, carry one everyday. I own mostly 1911s but also have other pistols and revolvers that I shoot and may carry from time to time. All have exposed hammers. Just my choice
Kimber revolver? Huh. Okay. Looks beautiful. Something about those lines from the back.
Finally! A Kimber that could make it through a match w/o choking! Sorry Kimber peoples, at least they are pretty.
lilliputian 1911? Like the Sig 938, the lack of a grip safety means the Kimber Micro 9 is not a scaled down 1911 but a Mustang in 9mm.
Any single action auto without a grip safety is much less safe for concealed carry but if you want to risk cocked and locked carry it would be wise to invest in a secure high quality leather or polymer holster. A cocked and locked single action auto with no grip safety should never be carried in a pocket or slid into the waist band unless you’re good with the very real possibility of an extra orifice.
Not sure why, but he Springfield EMP 9mm, which actually is a scaled down 1911, scored a perfect 10 on the disappointment scale of pistols I’ve shot. From all appearances the EMP should be a tack driver, but has ridiculously excessive muzzle flip and doesn’t even come close to grouping like a 1911 in the $900 to $1000 price range should.
I don’t understand why someone would want to risk carrying a locked and cocked single action auto 9mm with no grip safety when there are so many other reliable, safe, and accurate alternatives in a subcompact 9mm.
Okay, so it’s an old thread, but as a Kimber person, all I can say to those bashers is “shame.”
Why rip down the choices of your 2nd Amendment supporting brothers and sisters until and unless you actually owned and had a problem with a Kimber. I owned a Stainless II in.45 that was perfect from round 1. Same for my current Kimber 1911s in dedicated .22 and 9mm. No trips to the smith for fine tuning or returns to Kimber for anything. Just one ragged hole while paper punching from all three with total 100% reliability through 1000s of rounds. My former Colt Commander needed hand polishing to run right and even after a thousand rounds would still have routine FTE, or failure to lock open on an empty magazine.
And for those who want a snub nosed revolver with a hammer, you likely do not conceal carry because no one who pocket or IWB carries a revolver would prefer having a hammer spur hang up on clothing while being pulled. For a range gun/plinker, sure a hammer is nice. But shoot in DA and ALL of your shooting skills will improve. The only complaint I could levy at this Kimber revolver effort would be the exposed blackstrap. That will make even hot .38 +p rounds uncomfortable. And maybe make a blued version.
As a happy Kimber 1911 owner with never so much as a hiccup from my Kimbers, I would not hesitate on the K6S.
Agreed. Kimber should make a blued version. Maybe a 3″ blued version for home defense.
Agreed. Kimber should make a nice blued version.
Just LOL at those pre-election political comments ; anyone who truly knows the way the wind blows in AMERICA should’ve seen & believed TRUMP was going to take it……what REAL choice was there?
a senile socialist reprobate, a psychotic communist murdering megalomaniacal bi-‘woman’ & the Savior of America……
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