Back when I lived in the big city, I mostly carried small semi-autos, but arthritis in my left hand comes and goes and sometimes makes it hard to work the slide on an autoloader. No problem. When the hands were hurting, I used to fall back on Smith J frame Airweight 5 shot 38 revolvers, so I headed to the local shop to see what was available.
No Smith Airweight this time, though. Came home with something I like better.
This is the new Kimber K6 xs, 6 shot, 38 +P Carry and a great carry gun it is. Weighs only 15.9 ounces, easy to see fixed sights, 6 shots and great DAO trigger (and I do mean great). Frame is aluminum alloy, but barrel and cylinder are stainless. I have had a couple of the all steel Kimber K6s 357s and they were great shooters, so I was confident this new lightweight Kimber would be, too.
I was not disappointed. The fixed sights were almost perfect for windage, even at the 17 yard distance I was shooting. As for elevation, at 17 yards the 158 grain 38s were a couple inches low, 125 grainers a bit higher and the still lighter 110 grain Hornady Critical Defense 38 +Ps about dead on. At the more conventional 3 and 7 yards this gun was designed to shoot, this little Kimber should shoot right where I aim/point it.
As for accuracy, again, not disappointed. It was very easy to stay on target, shot after shot. The K6 XS shot more like a heavier, all steel 38 for me. The K6 XS followed through the recoil naturally and stayed right on target for the next shot. The DA trigger seemed to flow right into the target through its cycle, instead of pulling the sights off target. Whoever designed this Kimber is a shooter for sure. This little 38 made my day. Love it
My old J frame Blackhawk 06 J frame holster is a nice fit, too, though I'm sure Kimber can supply plenty of holster choices, too.
I have one with a magnetic closure.
