Anyone have an experience with the German GSG 1911 in 22 LR or the comparable Rock River 22 LR 1911 for plinking? Pictures and budget minded alternatives always welcome. Thank you!

I have one of their 22 conversions on my kimber. It was labeled as a Sig conversion. I had to take the series 80 type safety out of the slide as my Kimber didn't have such stuff but otherwise it fit fine. The alloy the slide is made from doesn't seem very durable as it seems soft. Don't use the slide release. It shoots very high with the ammo I've tried even with the highest front sight of the options it came with. I'm not overly impressed with it but it was super cheap at the time and although I no longer remember how much I paid I do remember I still considered it a good deal despite it's shortcomings.

Some years ago I came across a Ciener Platinum Cup 1911 conversion unit on clearance at a very good price. I liked it so much that I built up a frame to mount it on permanently.

While I do not specifically have a 1911 from GSG, I do have quite a few of their offerings.

All of them have been both reliable and durable.

The two that I use the most are the SIG P220 conversion and the Walther PPK/s. Both have been used extensively with suppressors

GSG has been making conversion kits and replica 22 firearms for most of the major manufacturers for probably close to a decade by now. That Rock River Arms that you are looking at might be a GSG produced firearm

First off, I think we have a mis-identification or possibly... I'm at a loss for gun #2. I'm thinking that you meant Rock Island Armory which is quite a bit different than Rock River and on the other end of the price/quality spectrum. I'm not aware of Rock River building or offering a .22cal 1911 pistol but I'm certainly listening if they do.

As to the GSG 1911-22, it's both good & bad. If you want a budget plinker that looks and has the size of a GI 1911, this one fills that role. You can also use many 1911-specific parts with it and a few small boutique accessory makers offer parts specific to this pistol. (GSG does indeed make the Sig branded 1911-22 pistol... as I recall, the Sig is offered with different finish coatings and grips, but is otherwise typically just a GSG 1911-22 with a higher price tag... of course, it should be backed with Sig warranty/service if that matters to you.)

My GSG 1911-22 likes a strong ammo to run reliably all the time these days, but the 5,500 round thrashing that I did to it in the first year I got it was with Federal 550-round 36-grain plated bulk packs before the Sandy Hook massacre deleted rimfire from the market. It's reliability with the cheap bulk ammo was very, very good but I'll make no bones when I also say that the cheap bulk ammo before Sandy Hook was a higher quality of ammo across the board, and I'll stick to that position regardless of any other opinions.

Ran well, was decently accurate for plinking and the trigger was acceptable for a low-end priced pistol. And my goal was to shoot this sucker to failure within the 2-year offered warranty but the rimfire crisis ended that quest before the gun itself could fail.

The negatives... there are plenty, but NONE are deal breakers if a fun plinker at a low price is your end game. Accuracy cannot possibly match up with many/most classic rimfire pistols made before the age of the "duty pistol trainers" that have only recently shown up in the market. Quite simply, before the cheap M&P, the cheap Sig Mosquito, the cheap Walther P-22 and Ruger SR-22 and others... almost all rimfire semi-auto pistols had a fixed barrel that was a solid unit and part of the frame (or part of the serialized upper assembly in the case of the excellent Ruger Standard/Mark-series of pistols.)

The GSG 1911-22 has a barrel that is connected to the frame with a cross pin and a hex bolt. When you take this pistol apart for cleaning, expect 20-30 rounds that shoot a noticeably loose group before it settles in and gets a little more consistent. And if you have any expectations that a GSG 1911-22 will hang with a Colt Woodsman, Ruger Mark ___, S&W 41, S&&W 2206/622/422, Browning Buckmark/Challenger, Hi-Standard or any of the classic .22cal pistols, (or any of the Bullseye-capable grade serious conversions like a Marvel or Ciener) then you've set your sights too high because it won't do that.

The finish on the GSG 1911-22 is the epitome of cheap. The slide is zamak and it feels like it. The frame is heavy and solid but there's no reason to expect high quality precision parts inside of it. The sights work well but they are cheaper than you've maybe ever seen. They are plastic and held with a set-screw and I'd be extremely careful with them. Frankly, I wouldn't leave this pistol inside a car in direct sunlight with these sights.

The magazines are extremely heavy and add heft to the pistol, and they are of VERY solid construction, are easy to load and work very well. The magazine disconnect safety is ultra-cheap and clunky and I eliminated mine in the first week, you simply need to source a GI mainspring housing.

These guns are fun and kids would surely enjoy them a lot, but if you were raised on the above mentioned kinds of .22 pistols, the GSG 1911-22 isn't likely to impress you, unless you drop small change on one and it brings smiles on a range day.

As to the Rock Island .22cal 1911 pistol, identified with the round-barrel upper and half slide, I would say that not a whole lot is really known about these. It's very rare that I ever see one offered new or used, I'm not sure of Rock Island really produced these in volume. My buddy bought one years ago and he's never successfully gotten it to run reliably. It's a project on the back burner.

I will say that they feel quite nice and extremely solid, there's not a bunch of cheap pot metal in the Rock Island pistol like there is in the GSG 1911-22.

I recommend the Ciener units, I have them for my Browning HP and M1911 frames, the Ciener unit fits on the Commander frame with no problem.

I've owned a GSG1911-22 for several years. It has never failed. The finish has held up well. I bought the different magazine followers that allows the magazine to hold 14 rds.. As an inexpensive plinker I highly recommend it.
Lots of after market parts out there for it too.

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S&W Accumulator

I currently have a GSG1911 listed in the FS section. It's been there for about a month now and has had very little interest. I generally agree with what Sevens says about them: nice looking but…..meh. I much prefer the conversion device on my Kimber for a 1911/22. How's that for honesty in advertising? -S2

Yes Rock Island Armory. My bad - not for the last time. Thank you.

Thank you for the recommendations on conversion kits, but I am looking for a 1911 chambered in 22 LR.

If I were to covet a 1911 pattern 22, I'd consider the Browning 1911-22.
7/8 scale.
A friend has one and it seems to be a much higher quality firearm than the pot metal versions.

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-jwk-
US Army '72-'95

I have owned and enjoyed a GSG 1911 for several years now and have well over 10,000 rounds through it and it is still going strong. As stated they are fun plinkers easily cutomizable and have a few companies making specific upgradble parts for them. Not a high end 22 by any means but they are fairly accurate and do last many rounds of cheap ammo. For under $300 it is a top pick but if you want true quality and even better accuracy then nice slightly used High Standards from the 50's,60's and 70's are easy to find for a $100 or 2 more.

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Walther German made. What everyone else said about being cheap and reliable. It's a ton of fun point shooting at cans, but could stand a better trigger for finer work. No problems after a few thousand rounds.

Fixed barrel, zamak slide, 12 round magazines....Everyone that has handled it wants one....will not be sold by me!

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triggers dog-pile egomaniacs

I appreciate all the good information, thank you! Academy is selling what it calls a Walther 1911 Colt Government Tribute 22 LR Pistol. Does anyone have one of these, or experience with them?
Walther 1911 Colt Government Tribute .22 LR Pistol | Academy

I had a GSG 1911-22. I never had a single FTF or FTE while I owned it.

I have the Walther/Colt Gold Cup Trophy. Bought new in 2012, thousands of rounds through it, -0- issues, it's always been a fun plinker.

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LOL, same gun misswired recommended in post 14 - just one post up from yours. You guys must've been typing at the same time.

I bought a barely used Kimber Rimfire Target 1911 .22. I bought from a LGS for $350, they had apparently used it as a rental range gun but it didnt have a mark on it! I had read mixed reviews but I'm happy to say mine runs perfectly with mini mags, and as long as your hands don't rub or touch the slide during operation it will run CCI standard velocity. Mines accurate, good looking and has a nice trigger. It is deceiving though as it is a full size pistol but all aluminum and very light weight for it's size! I've enjoyed it thoroughly.

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I have one of these. I like it, its very well made and reliable.
On the down side, they say its 7/8th scale. But in the hand it feels more like 1/2. Acuracy is ok for a plinker. Just don't expect to do any serious target work with it.
Despite that, mine ain't going nowhere.

I have a Colt branded Umarex ( the rail gun version ) . At the time I compared side by side with a SIG branded GSG , prefered the Colt/ Umarex .

The use 1911 compatible triggers, safeties, etc , so you can upgrade if desired, or configure to be identical with your centerfire 1911 .

Likewise 100% reliable . Someday will do exhaustive bench test of every flavor of .22lr , but so far everything has been more than acceptable .


My ONE gripe with is the dadblasted rail . I don't ever actually use it, and it's just wide enought to not fit into most of my 1911 leather . But the Rail Gun was otherwise configured into my prefered 1911 configuration ( Flat. Long . Beaver . Series 80 base model size thumb safety, on one side only . Stock length slide release . Visable fixed sights .)

Added - I really wanted to like the Browning 1911-22 , but in my hands it feels l one of those Llama .380 1911 inspired pocket pistols . If you have small hands, or will be teaching young kids , it could he just the ticket . For Me w/ XXXL hands, not so much m