NDZ Performance Kimber tool
Own a Kimber subcompact and need an easier way to take it down for cleaning than those chintzy paper clip looking things you have been using since you bought the gun?
Yeah, we thought so. Well, to us, the NDZ Performance Kimber tool for the Kimber Ultra II’s isn’t revolutionary, as we have been using tools like this for a long time, but they were all one off pieces we made to service large quantities of the guns as they became popular over the last decade or so. I made one out of a hard nylon cylinder a few years back that I use occasionally, but to be honest, it’s only a useful tool if you are doing a ton of work on small Kimbers, or shoot quite often.
I have used my handmade “jig” for the full sized guide rods of other manufacturers, as I built it to be multi dimensional, but the NDZ Performance Kimber tool is an excellent version of it, albeit a bit more limited in functionality.
Pros of the NDZ Performance Kimber tool:
- Easy to use
- High quality material
- No risk to damaging the finish on the firearm
- No need to make your own “jigs”
- No more spring jump
Cons of the NDZ Performance Kimber tool:
- Hefty price tag for a casted piece of delrin
- Pros who know their pistols well, will have no need for this tool, as a punch or paperclip is easy enough
- How hard is it really to break the gun down?
- It’s got a single purpose, and may not be the most utilitarian tool ever invented
The bottom line for the NDZ performance Kimber tool is this:
If you own several Kimber sub compacts, (or other guns that can take advantage of this tool) it COULD make sense for you to buy one, but the price reflects the low marketability of such a tool. They must price it high, because of the small pool of people who actually think the disassembly is difficult. In their youtube video, the company has a funny moment where they try to address this concern: The actor/representative hypes up how difficult it is to stick a straight piece of wire stock into a hole. It’s a bit like when Oj Simpson had a chance to try on the bloody glove, everyone knew that it wasn’t that tough, but they indulged the farce, because the prosecutors were so idiotic to ask him to do it. Well, when the instructional video gets to the part where he has to act like the glove doesn’t fit (the wire stock doesn’t fit in the hole easily) it’s awkward for all involved. That said: the tool is useful for those who have the right gun and don’t want to risk scratching the frame, or having a slip and catching a spring in the eye, but don’t think for a second that this is the only thing you can use for a 1911 to get it taken apart.
Worth the money? No, not to me, but I will admit this: had the NDZ Performance Kimber tool been around when I was servicing Kimbers by the gross, I would have jumped for it, even at the $18 price tag. It took me 45 minutes to machine a one off part, and that part, as useful as it is, still doesn’t do the job as well as this little thing can, for the specific gun.
If you have the guns, and you don’t like the paperclip method, then go for it. The NDZ Performance Kimber Tool is not necessary, but it’s useful.
Video Courtesy of NDZ Performance
