Id say its somwhere in between. My Kimber is definately tighter in the slide to frame fit area and in the grip safety. But the barrel lock up on the Colt is tight as a drum. My Kimber doent have a barrel bushing bc its a 4" model and uses a bushingless bull barrel. The thumb safety on the Colt is stiff but as Ive been playing with it and after a good lubing its getting better. The slide movement on the Colt is smooth as buttered silk out of the box where as on my Kimber it was a little notchy. The Kimber now has almost 1K rnds through it and its just now as smooth as the Colt is out of the box.
Ive heard that about Colt too and it seems to be true. Ive heard they build thier guns a little on the loose end so that they run out of the box with little to no break-in.
The funny thing is that even though the Kimber feels tighter it flys apart during disassembly and falls together during reassembly. Even new out of the box.
The Colt is a little harder, it takes a little shove to get the slide off the frame and another to get it back on the frame. Im sure after a few hundred rnds it will wear together and be easier.
All in all Im very happy with it. This was a dream gun for me. Ive been looking for one for about 2yrs and everytime one came up I either didnt have the money or it sold before I could make my move. One time I remember standing next to somone at the 1500 who was looking at one and was obviously thinking about buying it but having reservations about the price. I had money in my pocket and was just waiting for him to put it down and move on but instead he bought it. That was last year I think. Ive got this one now and its not going anywhere except with me in my holster!!
I was actually saving money for for a new Stihl Kombi-motor weedeater, but I wasnt about to let another XSE get away. Ill just stick with my 10 year old hand-me-down Stihl for now.
