![\"This](\"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/kimber-bel-air-29.jpg\" "\\"Kimber")
<\/a>This is the Bel-Air in bright sunlight. The color changes slightly depending on the light.<\/p><\/div>\n
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Check out the Micro Bel-Air: https:\/\/www.kimberamerica.com\/kimber-micro-bel-air-special-edition-a<\/a><\/p>\n Buy a Kimber Micro on GunsAmerica: \/kimber micro<\/a><\/p>\n In all of the reviews I’ve done in my career as a gun writer, I’ve never had the opportunity to review a gun that so embodies a specific season. This Micro is part of Kimber’s Summer Collection–a group of familiar Kimbers dressed up in unfamiliar finishes. This one is Bel-Air Blue. As if that wasn’t summer enough, the slide has been buffed to a mirror shine that picks up the sun in a glaring way that evokes hot days on the range. The size is also keeping with the theme. The Micro is ideal for summer carry, as the small size allows for effortless concealed carry.<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n [\/one_half]<\/p>\n [one_half_last]<\/p>\n A 1956 Bel-Air. Back when cars looked good. Perhaps the inspiration for the Bel-Air came from the handsome Chevy.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n Not this Bel-Air.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half]<\/p>\n [one_half_last]<\/p>\n [\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n Let\u2019s talk a minute about manliness. I\u2019ve texted photos of this gun to a lot of friends and the reaction seems to be mixed. Some of the people I\u2019ve shown it to have instantly proclaimed it to be an abomination. The other half think it is badass. I\u2019ve yet to find someone who waffles.<\/p>\n I\u2019d like to say that the response was predictable, that those most secure in their masculinity loved the color and were willing to admit that this is a beautiful gun. But that isn\u2019t the case.<\/p>\n I\u2019m in the badass camp. I think this is a handsome gun. I love the blue. But I\u2019m a color snob. I just got into a knockdown argument with a paint monkey at Lowes when I asked for a quart of paint in the exact hue of Pantone Bachelor Button. The paint he mixed wasn\u2019t Bachelor Button, but Delphinium. And he couldn\u2019t tell the difference.<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n I’ve tried to get photos in varied lighting conditions so the color variance can be seen.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half][one_half_last]<\/p>\n The Bel-Air, as I’ve found with all Micros, eats whatever you feed it. The feed ramp feeds well and ejection is clean.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n If you\u2019re into hues and shades, the blue in question is (according to Pantone, at least) Cielo Turquesa <\/em>(Pantone 14-4809)<\/a>. It is a kickass shade of sky blue. It is the color of the New Mexico morning. It is the color of the turquoise the Spanish stole from the Pueblo and used in their royal crowns. I like it so much I\u2019ve asked if they\u2019d build me one with the slide and frame finished in Bel-Air.<\/p>\n In my biased opinion, I’m going to say this is a damn good-looking gun. But this begs a question that I must ask. I’ll preface it by saying this: I’m not a collector of firearms. I have guns I use, and family guns, and a couple of old relics I’ve picked up, but I’m not one for safe queens. So is this a gun that’s meant to be carried, shot, used and abused? Or is this a collector’s item? I hope to reach an answer before it is time to conclude this review.<\/p>\n This Kimber, like most all of the Kimbers I\u2019ve shot, is a little ass-kicker. If you like the .380, and aren\u2019t averse to carrying a single action, than this should be a no-brainer. But both of those issues are just as divisive as the color. And I\u2019m not going to try to settle those debates here and now. Either you are fine with a .380 or you aren\u2019t. You will trust your biscuits to a single action, or you won\u2019t. And if you won\u2019t, odds are you aren\u2019t that interested in Kimber\u2019s pistols to begin with.<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n The big rear sight has been rounded over nicely, but there are no extra dots for speed of target acquisition.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half][one_half_last]<\/p>\n The front sight is a clean black blade. The mirror finish may reflect light well enough that there would be little need for night sights.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n Well I\u2019m fine with the .380 and with the single action, and I\u2019m able to meet the gun on its own terms. It is small, which means it won\u2019t offer as much control as some of the larger .380s (the Browning, Walther, Taurus, GLOCK, etc.). But it is made of aluminum and steel, and isn\u2019t a mouse gun, so it will offer more control than the Kel-Tec, Ruger, Beretta, etc. It fits nicely right in the middle. Controllable? Yes. Concealable? Of course. Not the best of either, as .380 goes, but not a bad mix of features. The bigger frames of some .380s are easy on the hands, but hard to conceal. The mouse guns drop in a pocket, but hurt like hell when you are practicing.<\/p>\n I\u2019m not going to carry a single action in my pocket. That\u2019s too much for me. But a gun like this is ideal for appendix carry, even in the hottest summer months.<\/p>\n I’ve worked out my fair share of Kimbers. I’m a fan of the brand. I’ve never run into a problem with one of their pistols. Their 1911s have a devoted following. They exist in the mid-tier of price points and offer a lot of custom options at reasonable prices.<\/p>\n The Micro line is no different. I find the pistols easy to draw and get on target. Accuracy is reliable and shot placement is predictable. Try as I might, I can’t get a full magazine into one ragged hole, but that has more to do with the size of my hands, I think. With the trigger breaking just over six pounds, I pull the occasional shot. I get too much finger on the trigger.<\/p>\n But I’m not looking for one-hole accuracy from a concealed carry gun. If I could reliably hit a playing card sized target from seven yards, repeatedly, than I’m satisfied. In a defensive situation, I’m not highly likely to try to get six rounds in one hole. I’d rather spread them out. Still, accuracy is accuracy. The Micro performs well.<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n Accuracy is good for a gun this small. These six shot string is from the holster at 7 yards. Cheesy bad guy targets, but they get the job done.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half][one_half_last]<\/p>\n The six on the top are aimed right at the nose. I couldn’t get one-hole groups with the Bel-Air, but that’s hardly the point.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n After punching up my Birchwood Casey bad guys<\/a>, I took the gun back to a bench at 25 yards. For kicks, I loaded up a magazine and took aim at a 10″ plate at the target line. Sitting at the bench, I could ring the steel every time. Standing, I averaged 4 hits from every mag.<\/p>\n I’ve never liked that I can switch the safety on when the hammer isn’t cocked. That’s about my only complaint about the platform. Otherwise, the gun is a typical single action. Here’s where I start leaning toward the safe-queen\/collector’s gun answer. The front strap isn’t checkered. The micarta grips, while stunning against the blue, are slick. The mirror polish on the slide is also slick. There is a small strip of checkering on the back strap, and nice grooves on the front of the trigger, but there isn’t as much texture as I’d like on the gun.<\/p>\n As this is summer, and I live in the hottest place this side of hell, I was shooting for this review on an afternoon that was over 100 degrees. I found myself wiping sweat off my hand between magazines. I ran so many rounds thorough the Micro that the motion became almost habitual. As a summer-time gun, I’d like more\u00a0 texture.<\/p>\n Still, wouldn’t that mess with the aesthetic?<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n The mag well is slightly beveled, and easy to find. You can see how the dirt starts to show on the blue.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half][one_half_last]<\/p>\n The safety is small, but easy to manipulate. The hammer’s polish makes has taken the edge off of the serrations there, too.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n I think it kill the aesthetic. And that for me places this into a rare category indeed. The gun is fully functional as is, and it is certainly engineered to be carried and used. Yet there have been some decisions made that make this gun look good. Some of those decisions, like the slick grips, are made to the detriment of function. Form, in this case, trumps function. That is my opinion.<\/p>\n Still, I’m smitten. After putting a good 500+ rounds through this Micro, I want to clean it up and put it up. This feels to me like a special occasion gun. This would be a fantastic gun to wear with a tux. And it is the type of gun I’ve taken to handling in between the sentences I’m typing, as I’ve had it sitting on my desk ever since the shooting stopped.<\/p>\n Maybe its a companion piece. Perhaps I’d get a more aggressively textured Micro for everyday kicking around, and one of these for special occasions. MSRP on the Bel-Air isn’t as Bel-Air as you’d think. $810. For craftsmanship like this, it is hard to pass that up. If the Bel-Air isn’t for you, check out the other guns in the Summer Collection.<\/a><\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n This is indirect sunlight on a white background. Not a good photo.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half][one_half_last]<\/p>\n The fit of the slide and barrel is solid. Even though it looks like a showpiece, it shoots like the rest of the Kimber line.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n The finish on the sold trigger matches that on the rest of the pistol.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half][one_half_last]<\/p>\n The silver shine is like jewelry against the ivory and blue.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n This group is from the bench at 25 feet. Accurate enough for reliable shot placement.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half][one_half_last]<\/p>\nSpecifications<\/h2>\n
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Not Your Typical Blue-Gun<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/a>So on with the damn review already.<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/a>How does it shoot?<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/a>Controls<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/a>The answer as I see it<\/h2>\n
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