A few months ago I bought a RIA 1911 45. My son took one look and it disappeared to his house. Gun show at the Beach today and my wife said she was tired of me fussing about my pistol being gone so buy another today. Now I've got to figure how many shoes or how much jewelry this is going to cost me. Also I have another son so I'm going to have to hide this one.

I love my RIA FS Tactical....bought it at the end of May. It is my first and only 1911 and I'm glad I bought it. Fun gun to shoot.

I've heard about 50 people say they really like the RIA and one guy who had problems with his. I have one in 38 Super. Shot it a few times with no complaints. Seems like a good, basic 1911 pistol.

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No life story has happy end.

Sure like my Compact. It's beside me at the computer as I type this. I really have to send the slide off to Novak and have night sights put on it; if anything happens it's usually at night.

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As a beginning pistolsmith on custom Colt M 1911s, I was advised to never work on any frame that didn't say, "Colt" on the side. Of course I did go on to work on other brands and some I regretted ever even touching. The first RIA I worked on was with some reluctance. But, it was every bit the equivalent of the majority of Colts prior to it. I discussed the RIA brand of M 1911 with a friend I regard as the best gunsmith/pistolsmith in Nevada. He told me he also was impressed with the RIAs and was as surprised as I in finding a handgun that was impressive in both metallurgy and machining. That was some time ago and I have not run into a truly bad one as of yet. .......

I have a FS 45 tactical that seems nice. And although I'm not a gunsmith, I sometimes am the local go to guy when folk's guns hiccup. IMO, the RIA 1911's are decent, especially for the money. Their revolvers, not so much. I've had to resolve some minor issues, mainly on full size 45, 40 and 9 as they seem the most popular around here.
I will say that RIA customer service seems to be top notch also with replacement of faulty parts, ie; slide locks, main springs, etc.

Since the 70's, for me the Colt was THE 1911, in the past 15 years I have bought some others from Smith, Springfield Armory and RIA. The RIA model I have shot the most is the no frills version of the commander size 45 acp. My approach to evaluating a particular gun, is to take it out regularly and shoot it, a lot. I have run several thousand rds of HB & JHP's thru the RIA. It is as accurate as I am, functions well and will digest anything I load into it. For what I paid for it, I think it was a most excellent investment. I also have a 10mm RIA, I have shot several thousand rounds thru that pistol, hunted hogs with it, and carried it quite a bit. One of my favorite pistols.

...and usually so close you won't need or use your sights.

I bought an RIA .45 Compact eight years ago. at that time they were plain Jane, no bevertail, minimal GI type sights, etc. I corrected both features and it resides in the desk drawer 2 ft. from my right hand as I type this. Great shooter, ideal size. Then I acquired the Tactical 9mm Compact. It came fully ready to go, with beavertail, good trigger, Novak sights, I replaced the grip panels just because I found a pair at a gun show I liked. I've probably shot 3000 rounds through the 9mm without a hiccup. Has everything you need and accuracy is better than expected. 2 1/2" at 10-12 yards is commonplace.

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

Take care of that girl, wive's like that don't come along often.....she's a real keeper !
Plain jane and basic is just how I want mine !
Beaver tails are for beaver's .

Gary

I have several 1911's including Colt, SA, STI, and a basic milspec RIA that I bought about 10 years ago. It functions great, reasonably accurate. My only beef is that the finish is fairly thin and wears easily. Not a big deal as it isn't a safe queen or a rare collectible. RIA may have upgraded the finish since mine was made.

I'm NOT a Fan? I had one about 6 months ago and horrible feeding issues. Sent it back to Armscor twice. Every time they send it back, they said it was good to go. So I Threw away the original mags and used Wilson's. it Got better but still every 5-6 mag loads had jambs. I Polished the feed ramp and it got a little better. now it was down to 3-4 mags? Changed the recoil spring and guide rod and it Helped. I Tried different ammo, nothing helped!

But after owning Colts for years, I couldn't stand the fit and finish, anyway! It looked like it wasn't machined with nothing but a file! I know they are priced cheap. And I only paid $525 out the door for a full sized tactical model, and I guess I got what I paid for. But had hoped for more. I had big hopes for it. I was going to put a muzzle break on it and shoot the dickens out of it. So off to the gun Show it went and let er go for $450. So lesson Learned. So I'll just stick to my Colts and Kimbers and pay more for them and pass on the Philippines made firearms.

Easy for you to say. If mine doesn't have a beavertail, I bleed all over the gun from hammer pinch. I found out first hand how quickly blood removed blueing.

Got My RIA Sunday. Made the mistake of taking wife along. Jewelry expo at the same pavilion. Price of gun was good, but there was an extra $300 for her ring.

Everybody seems to have a RIA 1911 around here but me. When I see someone shooting one I always ask how they like it. I've never heard a bad comment.
Love my Sig and S.A. 1911's in 45acp and have been thinking about one in 9mm. Our refrigerator dying last week and the wife's car needing tires has put a serious crimp in the gun budget. That RIA for $460 shipped from Bud's is looking pretty appealing.

Well, that's where you went wrong...nothing should come out of the gun budget except guns! Get your priorities in order, man...

Congrats on the new Rock. It's funny how new guns sometimes come with a set of shoes or a piece of jewelry.

I really like my RIA. I bought it mostly as a training tool and range toy to compliment my Springfield Champion LW Operator. The factory trigger on the Rock Island is nearly as good as my Springer and it's a pleasure to shoot. At just over half the cost, it was a wise decision.

My dad has a Colt 1911 in .38 Super that he bought probably in the late 50s or early 60s. I will get it someday but decided I wanted an A1 style no frills commander length 1911 and ended up with a RIA one. It had the spur hammer and no beavertail, but a flat mainspring housing. I swapped out the MSH for an arched one.

I loved the gun and the price, but it had a bad habit of hurling brass into my right eye- which does nothing to help with my flinch. My smith went at it three times, no change. It went back to Armscor twice and they were able to correct it somewhat, but every so often- pop- right in the eye.

I ended up selling it off after I found a Sig Carry Nightmare to take its place. They're good guns and they're backed up with great customer service- I just was unlucky with the one I got.

That A1 urge has been gnawing at me again, and I'm looking at the Remington R1 this time.

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I will say I'm impressed with RIA service. My iron site came of my G and they fixed it pronto and threw in a new barrel.

one of my favorites...

best $340 I ever spent in 2006.

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I'm only allowed 30 characters

I have and Tactical model and a Match model. I ran the Match in IDPA for two years without a hitch. I will admit that I run them both with 230 grn ball.

Are those "stock" sights or did you have them installed?

I cancelled my plan to buy a Wilson Combat or Ed Brown, and am getting a RIA at the end of the month. With no "heir" to hand it off to, and considering that it will just be a range fun gun it doesn't make sense to spend that kind of money.

Rookie mistake!

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Stay protected my friends.

never could stomach cheep guns

My M1911-A1-CS. A joy to shoot and good looking as well.

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Mike
S&WCA #3065

I have one in 10mm that I have over 5000 rounds through without so much as a hiccup!

Rock Islands are inexpensive, but in no way cheap. I have owned Colts, Springfields and Kimbers along with Rock Islands, and the RIA is at least equal to the best of the others in terms of accuracy, durability, reliability, and just plain shootability. Armscor is the largest maker of 1911s in the world, and they know what they are doing.

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Pisgah

I've got 1911s in S&W, Ruger and RI. The rock was half the price of the others and shoots every bit as good. Always fires accurately, ejects every round and cycles like it's supposed to. For a range gun I'm happy with it.

As soon as my seller got in a shipment of RIAs, I tore down four of them for evaluation.
Every one showed excellent machining and assembly.
I recommend RIA 1911s to customers without reservation.

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I don't have Alzheimer's- My wife had me tested.

The RIA's have received positive reviews for so long, that I have to attribute comments like that as either trolling, or some means of justification for a more expensive purchase.

My brother has a pair of Colts. He has shot my "cheap" 1911 (a Tisas in my case). He absolutely won't disparage mine, he just says he wanted a Colt, nothing else. And that's fine. But he's said that if he were OK with a different brand 1911, he'd look at the Tisas and the RIA, as you get so much for the price to start with, and can go from there.

Or is it that you cannot stomach inexpensive guns that shoot as well as your really pricey guns?

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Release the Kraken

I simply don't like cheep. It looks cheap.I'm not emotionally invested in my opinion though. I just don't want it.

In any case, I'm not interested in any gun made beyond the 60's

I've noticed in most cases that people that downgrade any particular brand of gun are generally people that have never owned that brand or they are willing to pay more for appearance. My 1911 S&W costs me twice as much as the RIA and looks better, doesn't shoot any better though. Bought the S&W out of brand loyalty, bought the Rock to shoot. Had a Tisas also, never had a problem with it either. Sold it at the gun range to a man that offered me more than I paid for it, he just liked the way it shot. There's a finger for every trigger.

I have an RIA compact in 45acp, and a 9mm on an 80% frame with all RIA parts (it was a kit). All the RIA parts fit the frame as if they belonged there, with no fiddling. Both guns are a pleasure to shoot.

Congrats on the choice of RIA. They make a superb 1911 for your $$$. On top of that, if anything should not be right or you need anything, RIA has some of the best customer service you'll find.

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Lynnie, Professional Pest

Hey Gang, as a 1911 smith for the last 40 years, please know that there are a number of things that can cause a 1911 to malfunction. Feed ramps and magazines are not the only thing that affect how they feed. Extractors and breech faces are often overlooked and can cause FTF. I can also tell not to fully rely on the factory to make them work as advertised. Before you give completely up on one of your pistols, find a local smith with a good rep on 1911's and give him a shot at making it work. The 1911 isn't a tough pistol to get to work, but there are a few things that need right.

Fair enough, I can't fault anyone's taste in guns.

One thing I'll note- RIA, Tisas, and ATI all have basic 5" USGI models, that depending on the stampings looks pretty darn authentic (my Tisas has some small, unobtrusive marks).
Put some nice grips and flush mags, and it looks fine to me


Sorry for the hijack

I don't understand the term "Range Gun"!Why have a gun that's "only"for the range!"All of my guns are "range"guns.I didn't spend a lot of $ to only use "one" at the range!Mine are for edc.
Jim

I am happy with my RIA 1911's. I started out with a Tactical 9mm. Then shortly after bought a Tactical II, in S&W, 40. It is a winner for sure. Have 2 other 1911's. Enjoy all of them. Bob

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