Kimber picked up a reputation of bad QC for a while... likely deserved... but I think it's a little unfair to dump all that on Kimber when '80's era Colts, for example, are also known to be pretty crappy... I know, I had two.... and other manufacturers as well, and this isn't limited to automatics, but revolvers, too. 1911 guys are pretty legion, so when word gets out, it becomes legend. FWIW, I consider most Kimber 1911's a 'mid-range' pistol, not a high-end pistol... although some features will jack the price up into high-end territory, it's still just a mid-range pistol with farkle on it.
I knew nothing about all this when I bought my first Kimber... I was happy as a pig in slop. Liked it so much, I bought another a few years later, but in alloy. Personally, after shooting the 4.25" 1911 for 20 years, a standard 5" 1911 seems like a boat oar compared, but I don't know if I'd really like a 3". Just my personal preference.
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My 2... Pro Eclipse II on top, plain vanilla Pro Carry (pre-II) on bottom.