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Is the Kimber TLE II Blued or just some paint job/finish? I'm trying to decide whether to go blued or stainless. True carbon steel blued guns are made from harder, more durable steel than stainless. Stainless will resist rust, but is not rust proof. IMHO, true blue is better than stainless, but only if it is true blue. Often, modern guns will have some cheap paint job/finish but not true blue. Please inform.

Thanks,

They are finished with Kimber's "Kimpro" finish.

Not all Kimbers are finished with the "Kimpro" finish.

http://www.kimberamerica.com/1911/custo ... tom-tle-ii

FRAME

• Material: Steel
  Finish: Matte black
  Width (inches): 1.28

SLIDE

• Material: Steel
  Finish: Matte black
  Front serrations

It doesn't say anything about the composition of the finish, but I can assure you that Kimber doesn't use "cheap paint" on their guns. They wouldn't have lasted 5 minutes in the marketplace if they were.....particularly not at "Kimber" prices. My son owns a Kimber Pro Raptor II (steel frame), and the finish appears to be some kind of bluing. The guns that are finished in "Kimpro" have a glossier appearance than the blued guns.

I just know that my Custom TLE II has "Kimpro" on the case and the finish has chipped (not worn, but chipped) around the trigger guard where the holster grabs it for retention. I will admit that the chipping on the finish is no where near as bad as the chipping on the slide on my Pro Covert II but that one has been carried more.

drjoker wrote:True carbon steel blued guns are made from harder, more durable steel than stainless.

A hardness test may show that carbon steel is harder, but that doesn't necessary transfer into durability. Part of being durable is strength and resistance to corrosion. Obviously, both materials are good for making firearms. As with any engineering design there are tradeoffs in material properties. The same applies to coatings.

Please disregard my "cheap paint" comment. All I wanted to know is if the Kimber TLE II is blued or not. Because if it is blued high carbon steel then it is a much tougher/stronger gun than a stainless steel gun. However, if it is just steel of the same hardness as stainless and has a coating finish (not blued), then I'd rather have a stainless gun.

drjoker wrote:Please disregard my "cheap paint" comment. All I wanted to know is if the Kimber TLE II is blued or not. Because if it is blued high carbon steel then it is a much tougher/stronger gun than a stainless steel gun. However, if it is just steel of the same hardness as stainless and has a coating finish (not blued), then I'd rather have a stainless gun.

According to G.A. Heath, the finish on his Kimber is chipping. Blueing on steel does not chip.

IMO most of the gun coatings on stainless steel are designed more for tactical [less glare] and cosmetic [looks] reasons rather than durability. Of course, blueing on carbon steel reduces corrosion.