Kimber Micro 9 Rapide Black Ice For Sale Online
Kimber Micro 9 Rapide Black Ice For Sale Semi-Auto Pistol is built with the high standards that keep America’s shooters coming back for more. The stepped cocking serrations on the slide and the textured Black Rapide G10 grips provide for easy slide manipulation and improved control.
Kimber micro 9 Rapide black ice
However the strong stainless steel slide and durable aluminum frame both feature a protective KimPro® II silver and gray finish. Slide lightening cuts offer reduced weight and rapid cooling, and the match-grade barrel features a black DLC coating to ensure extreme durability and years of superior durability.
Textured Black Rapid G10 grips, coupled with a Stiplex front strap, offer a reliable nonslip grip and improved control. The clean-breaking V-Cut aluminum trigger has been factory set at 7 lbs. What’s more, the Micro 9 Rapide Black Ice pistol is equipped with TRUGLO® TFX Pro Day Night sights for quick and confident target acquisition in virtually any lighting, while the 7-round extended magazine offers optimal firepower for self-defense.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
- Also built with high Kimber standards
- Stepped cocking serrations on the slide
- Textured Black Rapide G10 grips
- Stiplex front strap checkering
- KimPro II 2-tone finish
- Also has Slide lightening cuts
- Match-grade barrel with DLC coating
- V-Cut aluminum trigger
- TRUGLO TFX Pro Day Night sights
- Extended magazine
SPECIFICATIONS FOR
Kimber micro 9 Rapide black ice
- Height (inches) 4.07
- Weight (ounces) with empty magazine: 15.6
- Length (inches): 6.1
- Width (inches): 1.08
- Magazine capacity: 7
- Recoil spring (pounds): 11.5
FRAME
- Material: Aluminum
- Finish: Kimpro II Silver
SLIDE
- Material: Stainless steel
- Finish: Silver / Grey KimPro II
BARREL
- Length (inches): 3.15
- Material: Stainless steel, match grade
- Twist rate (left hand): 16
SIGHTS
- Tru-Glo TFX Pro Day Night Sights
GRIPS
- However a Grey G10 grips
TRIGGER
Kimber Micro 9 Rapide black Ice (Black Ice) 9mm Pistol: Full Review
The Kimber Micro 9 Rapide Black Ice 9mm pistol has the style of the 1911 but with functional enhancements engineered for a subcompact.
Kimber’s newest entry in the Micro 9 series brings some functional enhancements along with aesthetics from the Model 1911 Rapide (Black Ice).
Kimber micro 9 Rapide black ice
Originally introduced in 2017, the Micro 9 family of pistols has been a winner for Kimber. Although they look like 1911-style pistols externally, they’re actually quite different. For a tiny pistol, that’s a good thing. There’s simply not much you can do to shrink a true-to-form M1911 smaller than an “Officer” size with a 3- to 3 1/2-inch barrel and a shortened frame capable of carrying a six-round magazine. In a full-size pistol, the grip size and angle to the bore’s centerline axis, as well as the reach to the trigger and controls, work to make a well-tuned 9mm M1911 a thing of beauty.
Kimber micro 9 Rapide black ice
Those advantages, however, don’t carry over to the subcompact realm. Officer-sized Model 1911s are generally picky with ammo, prone to malfunctions, uncomfortable to shoot, and gobble up recoil springs. Sure, some run great, but we’ve watched hundreds of micro-frame Model 1911’s come through an armory of a large department and they don’t compare well to modern pistols on the average.
Springfield Armory re-engineered the 1911 around the 9mm cartridge before announcing the Enhanced Micro Pistol (EMP) platform in 2007. (Those pistols start at $1,104 for black and $1,249 for two-tone with a stainless-steel slide over an aluminum-alloy frame.)
Kimber chose a different route with the Micro 9. The new pistol is smaller and more reliable than most Officer-sized 1911s pistols, yet it still feels like the classic single stack, and it doesn’t sacrifice anything in terms of the accuracy and shootability.
Kimber micro 9 Rapide black ice
Still, close inspection of the Micro 9 revealed that several defining M1911 features have been changed: The grip safety has been deleted; the plunger tube on the left side of the pistol is gone; and the Micro 9’s manual safety works differently. There is still a bilateral safety lever at the rear of the frame, similar to those on ambidextrous M1911s, but the safety works as a true trigger safety, which does not lock the slide. The simplified mechanics of the safety allows it to move smoothly through its arc, locking positively in and out of position.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
Guns & Ammo’s test staff felt that the safety operated as easily as most factory M1911s when disengaging it, but inferior to most M1911 safeties when re-engaging it. It is sized perfectly for this pistol, and is well contoured with no uncomfortable edges, but if you have large hands, the primary hand can impede the safety if one is not careful.
Photo Gallery
The slide stop is a slightly abbreviated version of the full-sized piece, and it works well for its intended role. Some used it as a slide release without issue.
The Micro 9 Rapide (Black Ice) takes its styling cues from Kimber’s full-size Rapide (Black Ice) Model 1911 available in 9mm, 10mm and .45 ACP for $1,665. Note the parenthesis around “Black Ice.” That’s a Kimber thing.
Video That May Interest You
Kimber micro 9 Rapide black ice
The aluminum frame is finished in a matte KimPro II silver. It complements the matte stainless-steel slide, which has polished flats with dull recesses wherever the slide is milled.
The frontstrap sports Kimber’s Stiplex pattern that’s milled to provide traction. Grip panels are black G10 with the Stiplex pattern carried over from the front, along with some layered shapes. The motif goes along with the patterns and lines machined on the slide. The slide also features six milled windows to reduce its mass. The overall aesthetics are quite futuristic looking.
Kimber micro 9 Rapide black ice
Porting the slide to reduce mass isn’t just a fad. Less mass with the correct spring makes for less muzzle flip.
In terms of size, thekimber micro 9 rapide black ice (Black Ice) is tiny for a 9mm pistol. With a weight of 15.6 ounces, a height of 4.07 inches, a length of 6.4 inches, and a width of 1.08 inches, it is almost dwarfed by an Officers-size M1911, even though barrel length is similar. The weight difference alone is 10 ounces, which according to my phone calculator is about a 33.3 percent difference. We’re not going to do the percentage differences across every measurement, but, overall, the results are quite noticeable in hand.
Generally, the smaller a pistol gets, the more difficult it is to shoot well. The Micro 9 is definitely small, but the platform has been surprising our staff with its accuracy. Guns & Ammo’s testing protocol is tough. Evaluation guns are benched, and all pistols are shot at 25 yards for five-shot groups with few exceptions. An Officer’s M1911 typically produces between 3- and 5-inch groups.
Kimber micro 9 Rapide black ice
Executive Editor Joe Kurtenbach recorded a few sub-2-inch groups in his December 2020 review of the Micro 9 Triari model. Handgun Editor Jeremy Stafford produced several groups in the low 2-inches with the Rapide (Black Ice), and no five-shot group average exceeded 3.6 inches — not one. This level of precision and consistency from a production micro pistol definitely has our attention.
The second surprise from the Micro 9 has been its reliability. Through 500 rounds during testing, including a variety of ammunition types, there was only one malfunction: a failure for the slide to return to battery on round 450.
Getting off of the bench and on to steel, the kimber micro 9 rapide black ice does certain things well. It moves laterally in predictable form from target to target for a pistol of its size. And the controls are easy to use, including the magazine release. With the extended magazine in place, it is very controllable, and tracks well throughout recoil. The bright Tru-Glo dual-illuminated front sight fits perfectly within the generous U-notch at the rear. It’s good for speed and transitions between multiple targets.
Kimber micro 9 Rapide black ice
Small pistols are sensitive to hand placement, so make sure you find the grip that works with the Micro 9’s layout. Then, practice reaching and using the controls. With the flush fit magazine we were slower, but the pistol may conceal slightly better. Which mag to carry is your call. The pistol does have an abbreviated magazine well attached to it, and while it’s not a competition rig, it does help with feeding the small, proprietary magazines.
The trigger on this model measured a 6 pounds, 13 ounces, close to Kimber’s advertised pull weight. The trigger was OK, but it’s not as good as a traditional M1911’s. It’s hinged at the top, and then moves straight and to the rear. There was noticeable creep, but little overtravel, and it definitely felt like 7 pounds. There are aftermarket solutions, but at this price point, we feel kimber micro 9 rapide black ice missed an opportunity.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
Overall, Kimber’s engineers did a very good job when designing the Micro 9, and it was obvious that they applied a high level of quality control during assembly. If you’re looking for a compact pistol with the features of a M1911 and the reliability of a striker gun, the Micro 9 might be what you’re looking for. If you’re after a touch of modern, find a kimber micro 9 rapide black ice (Black Ice). It looks as good as it runs.
The first Kimber Rapide pistols were full-size Model 1911s in .45 ACP (9mm and 10mm have now been added). They are built for speed and feature a lot of unique and stylish touches. The first Kimber Micro pistols were small .380 ACP pocket pistols.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
They are built for easy carrying. Later, the Micro 9 was introduced, and as its name implies, it is chambered for 9mm. But it is still built for easy carrying and concealment. There have been a lot of different Micro 9s over the last couple of years, and the newest version joins the unique style of the larger Rapide with the small size of the Micro 9. It’s called the Micro 9 Rapide (Black Ice). Here’s a close look at it.
Details
The Micro 9 Rapide is a single-action, recoil-operated autoloader with a 3.15-inch barrel and an aluminum frame. Unloaded, it weighs just 15.6 ounces. Overall, it measures 6.4 inches long and 4.07 inches tall. It is quite thin, measuring 1.08 inches thick.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
The slide and barrel are stainless steel, and so is the recoil spring guide rod. The supported, ramped barrel is DLC coated.
True to the Rapide family, the slide has ports on each side and on the top (in the case of the subcompact, there are two ports in all areas, for a total of six), stylish grasping grooves (forward and aft), and stylish detail lines. The finishes given to the various areas of the slide give it a two-tone effect, which in my opinion is very cool. Combined with stylish treatments to the trigger, the mainspring housing, and the grips, this little pistol has plenty of panache.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
The finish on both slide and frame is Kimber’s KimPro II corrosion-resistant, “slightly lubricious” finish. And while the slide has the two-tone effect, the frame is straight matte gray.
While the Micro 9 Rapide is essentially a scaled-down 1911, it does not use a traditional barrel bushing, and it does not have a traditional 1911-style grip safety.
It does have an ambidextrous thumb safety.
Photo Gallery
The safety can be engaged with the hammer down, but with the safety “On,” the hammer cannot be cocked.
The sights are TRUGLO TFX PRO Day/Night Sights. And while the Micro 9 Rapide is built for concealment and for speed, the sights are rather large. But they are very quick to acquire. They use both tritium and fiber-optic technology, so they are highly visible in all kinds of lighting conditions. Plus, they glow bright in the dark without batteries or exposure to light.
Video That May Interest You
The Micro 9 Rapide’s mainspring housing is polymer and stylishly sculpted. The bottom of the grip frame is fitted with an extended magazine well, which gives the shooter a wide opening for a fast and fumble-free insertion of a magazine. The pistol comes with one seven-round magazine. The magazine has a finger extension, which makes getting all of my fingers on the grip easy. I have medium-size hands and relatively thin fingers. For those interested, with a live round in the chamber, the pistol will fire without the magazine inserted.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
The frontstrap of the Micro 9 Rapide is dimpled, and the black G10 grips are textured in the same style as the large-frame Rapides. I found the grip to fit my medium-size hand quite well, helping make it feel really comfortable to shoot. That’s not always the case with small, thin, lightweight 9mm pistols.
Speaking of shooting the Micro 9 Rapide, the trigger pull averaged 7.0 pounds. There was a tiny bit of take-up, but the break was short and crisp. The trigger’s finger piece is solid, but like I said earlier, it has some unique styling.
Performance
Because this pistol is primarily intended for personal protection and has a short barrel, I rounded up all the specialized 9mm ammo I could get my hands on. All the major ammomakers have 9mm loadings intended for personal defense, and many of them have loads that are optimized for small, concealed-carry guns.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
From Hornady there’s the Critical Defense Lite. From Federal there’s the Personal Defense HST Micro. From Speer there’s Gold Dot CarryGun. From SIG SAUER there’s 365. From Wilson Combat there’s a load labeled “Optimized for Compacts.” And from Remington there’s Ultimate Defense Compact Handgun. I shot all those in the Micro 9, plus I included a few other self-defense loads, namely Black Hills’s HoneyBadger, Browning’s BXP, Hornady’s Critical Defense and Critical Duty, and Winchester’s Defender. A few words about each of the optimized-for-carry-guns loads is in order.
Hornady’s Critical Defense Lite ammo offers the company’s patented polymer FlexTip bullet for improved expansion and penetration in a reduced-recoil option for handgunners seeking to minimize felt recoil from their lightweight, compact personal-protection pistols.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
Federal’s Micro HST features a heavy-for-caliber JHP bullet that is engineered for optimal penetration and superior terminal performance along with high-performance primers and propellants that are optimized for efficient cycling, lower velocity, less recoil, and excellent accuracy from subcompact semiautomatic pistols.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
Speer’s Gold Dot CarryGun ammo incorporates the newly redesigned Gold Dot G2 JHP bullet that has been specially engineered for superior feeding and terminal ballistics from concealed-carry handguns. The hollowpoint is shallower and filled with elastomer that is forced into engineered internal fissures to initiate expansion upon impact, resulting in extremely uniform expansion, better separation of the petals, and more consistent penetration across barrier types.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
SIG SAUER’s 365 V-Crown JHP also is optimized for concealed-carry guns. Like the other specialized loads mentioned here, it’s engineered for reduced recoil while providing optimal performance in short-barreled semiautomatic pistols. It features a stacked hollowpoint cavity, delivering exceptional on-target energy, maximum weight retention, and optimal expansion for ultimate stopping power.
Remington’s Ultimate Defense Compact Handgun ammunition is loaded with a brass jacketed hollowpoint bullet that’s optimized for substantial expansion and deep penetration at a velocity 100 fps less than conventional JHP ammo. Like the others, it is optimized for short-barreled semiautomatic pistols.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
The Wilson Combat “Optimized for Compacts” loading I used is loaded with a Hornady 147-grain roundnose bullet. Wilson says this subsonic load meets the minimum/minor power floor requirement for IDPA/USPSA competition and that the RN bullet and select propellant easily cycle most compact and subcompact Model 1911s, making it a great training choice for recoil-sensitive shooters.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
While Black Hills’s HoneyBadger isn’t specifically engineered for subcompact handguns, I just have to mention it because it is so unique. This line of self-defense ammunition does not use a hollowpoint bullet. Instead, it features a newly designed homogeneous copper projectile, developed in cooperation with Lehigh Defense, that has cutting edges on the forward surface and flutes on the ogive that redirect tissue as the bullet impacts and penetrates. It is tremendously effective.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
Now for my shooting results. As you can see from the accompanying chart, the Micro 9 Rapide averaged from 1.88 to 4.38 inches for five-shot groups at 25 yards with the dozen 9mm factory loads I fired. Overall average was 2.89 inches. In my opinion, that’s quite good for a subcompact gun that’s intended for up-close personal protection.
The best average accuracy I achieved came with Hornady’s Critical Defense Lite 100-grain FTX, and that load averaged 1.88 inches. Second place in terms of accuracy was 2.08 inches, and it was with the Federal Personal Defense Micro HST 150-grain JHP load. At 2.13 inches, third place went to Speer’s Gold Dot CarryGun 135-grain JHP load.
At a range of seven yards, which is an industry-accepted self-defense distance, the Micro 9 Rapide put a full magazine of seven rounds with each load into groups that were easily half the size of their 25-yard counterparts.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
I calculated the energies of each load based on the velocities I obtained using an online calculator, and the loading with the highest energy (343 ft-lbs) was the 135-grain Speer Gold Dot CarryGun. Not far below that was the 124-grain Remington Ultimate Defense Compact Handgun with an energy of 327 ft-lbs. Note that I measured the velocities with my chronograph placed 12 feet from the gun’s muzzle.
Because recoil is calculated using velocity, bullet weight, gun weight, and powder charge, I estimated the powder charges by comparing handloads listed in the 2021 Hodgdon Annual Manual and then used another online calculator to assess each load’s recoil. The values are listed in the accompany chart, but briefly, the softest shooting load was the 100-grain Black Hills HoneyBadger. My internal recoil “guesstimator” confirmed that during the shooting session because this load was very easy on felt recoil. The load with the highest recoil was the 135-grain Speer Gold Dot CarryGun.
kimber micro 9 rapide black ice
Importantly, I had no failures to feed, extract, or eject in the 324 total rounds I fired through the. It proved to be 100 percent reliable and easy to handle. So, in the end, you could say the Micro 9 Rapide (Black Ice) is stylish in both looks and performance. Like I said before, it’s a personal-protection pistol with plenty of panache.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.