Rock Island 1911, good or bad?

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Panzerschwein

Panzerschwein

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Hey guys. Well I went and done it... I rented a 1911 at the range today, and I have got to have one!! :)

I originally was planning on a Colt Rail Gun... but man, how expensive. I did some reading on the net and it turns out there is a company called "Rock Island Armory" based out of the Philippines who make inexpensive 1911s. Now I've got a Filipino sister in law, and I know they can cook, but can they make good 1911s?

Here is the model I'm interested in:

http://armscor.com/firearms/rock-series/rock-ultra-fs-45-acp/

51486_1911_A1_ROCK_Ultra_FS_45_ACP_leftprofile.jpg

It's got a 5" barrel, .45 ACP, and has a nice blacked out look to it. I doubt I'd change anything on it. Oh, and it's half the price of a Colt Rail Gun. I know this doesn't have a rail, but no big deal. I'll just use the Harries method.

So does anyone out there know if these RIA guns are any good or not? Seems awfully inexpensive, but if they're good enough for home defense use and to carry while hunting I might as well save hundreds of dollars.

Please let me know what you guys think about them. Thanks! :D
 
The Rock Island guns are more expensive than they used to be, but they're more nicely finished than they used to be, too. They're not to my particular taste, but lots of folks like them. If you like it, get it.
 
Sergei Mosin said:
The Rock Island guns are more expensive than they used to be, but they're more nicely finished than they used to be, too. They're not to my particular taste, but lots of folks like them. If you like it, get it.
Click to expand...
I am just wondering about overall quality and reliability. I know this is a budget priced 1911. If these are good solid pistols, I'd rather save the money for ammo and magazines. I'm not looking for anything fancy, but I do want a 1911 that will work if I need to use it in an emergency.
 
Most folks who own RIA 1911s are very positive about them. They are known as well made, good values. They also have a good reputation for repairs if needed.

I spent an hour at the range earlier with my 9mm RIA GI. No problems, the same as last week's outing.

I have the model you are looking at, the best feature IMHO is the fiber optic front sight. Also has been 100% reliable.
 
Considering the street price would be under 600, that looks great to me. It has every feature I like on a 1911-- lowered and extended thumb safety, flat mainspring housing, fiber optic front sight, et cetera. I handled a 4" model at the store that had those same grips, and they're really nice. If you get it, order some of the fiber optic stock, as the insert will fly out eventually. Mine disappear every 1000 rounds or so. And magazines, of course. Lots of magazines.

Please keep us posted!

Edit to add: The same company also has the "Citadel" brand, and mine has been very good other than the usual extractor tension troubles. For the kind of money the guns go for, I doubt the factory is taking the time to do the extractor setup.
 
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I have a three year old RI GI model. According to some, it is of the prior 'lesser' quality. The sear spring had to be replaced out of the box. This was resolved in two weeks by RIA. It has performed flawslessly since.

I broke it in by firing with about 1500 rounds of UPSA Steel Challenge practice. I found no issue for the next two years of Steel Challenge which entails about 250 rounds every weekend (I didn't say I was good competitor). The gun has performed without missing a beat.

This included cleaning the gun once or twice a month and running various factory ammo. I also found great success with proper oiling. While not dripping (running wet), I did oil and wipe all the parts. I also ran grease on the rails. The first year was Frog Lube. The second, was Hoppes.

Being a GI model, I am looking to make a few changes. The changes are to make my life easier and not related to reliability. For example, a palm swell on the grip safety (which necessitates a new hammer, etc). I liked it so much I bought an RIA .40 High capacity with the hopes of working on it for USPSA Limited.

I believe my personal anecdotal evidence i simply a '+1' in the 'good' column of RIAs 1911 manufacture.
 
I have had four RIA's and I still have two. One was a base for a custom build, and the other is a Tac (kinda the precursor to the model you showed) I carried and shot single stack with for years.

The GI I built up proved to be a solid, in spec, frame slide and barrel and a great base to build on. It made a good, solid reliable pistol.

The Tac probably has something like 75,000 rounds through it now. I stopped being anal retentive about round counts and logging ammo and failures when my wife started carrying and shooting it during my second deployment (2009). When I stopped it had about 54,000 rounds through it, and was averaging just under 5000 mean rounds between failures. I'm on, I dunno, like the 15th or 16th set of recoil, main, sear and FP springs on it. (I change them for preventative maintenance every ~5000 rds) other then that and some nail polish on the front sight it's stock. The parkerizing is well worn on the high points.

I should mention RIA customer service as well. After I built up the GI, I had problems getting it to run right. (First 1911 build). I called Pahrump and explained the whole situation to them. That I had taken a working gun, taken a bunch of good parts out of it for no reason, but different ones in it, and now it didn't work. While they were willing to let me ship them the gun (I would have had to pay for work) hey chose to sit on the phone with me for about 45 min, and talk me through some trouble shooting till we figured out the problem(s) and then told me how to fix it. Pretty sure teaching gunsmithing long distance isn't part of the normal warranty.

I personally feel that RIA is one of the best values in 1911's, and are a pretty great company to work with. My Dan Wesson is hands down a better, more refined pistol, but it was also three times the price. In their price point, they can't be beat. And for the most part they can't be beat within 25% of their price point when comparing feature sets. When my disposable income and "want to buy" gun list coincide on a 10mm 1911, I'll be buying theirs.
 
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I have 2. Full size G I and compact.
well made inexpensive pistols
I have enough trouble free rounds down range to confidently use either as my EDC
 
Had 5, now 4. I really like them for their value. Also has excellent customer service. The lifetime warranty stays with the firearm, not just the original buyer.
 
The choice between an American made Colt and a RIA made over seas is a no brainer.The Colt is the clear winner.If its not a Colt its just an imitation.
 
I've heard almost 100% great reports on them, from all over. I eventually stumbled into a government-sized RIA tactical, and while it was a pretty nice pistol, but I did have a couple failures to go fully into battery. But,that could easily be attributed to early break-in issues (Rock Island's manual says to NOT call them about any issues until you have 500 rds through them).
Also, I'd fired it numerous times without cleaning it (after the standard initial cleaning when I first got it), so i was intentionally firing it dirty until something happened. It also may have just needed a nicer/heavier recoil spring.
Anyway, something else caught my eye, as usual, and I sold it locally on Armslist to get into a new toy.
But still, I'd have no reluctance to get another RIA if a deal fell my way.
Also, their customer service is raved about nearly as much as Springfield's.
 
Love mine polished the feed ramp and the rails that the upper slides on and the matching part of the slide


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
As I said elsewhere, my one RIA is a piece of junk. They have it now FOR THE THIRD TIME. My stepbrother and lots of people love theirs. Apparently I just got unlucky.

However, I am definitely not in the "you have to pay lot of money to get a good gun" crowd. I have around 40 handguns. I paid name-brand full-price for just a couple of them. The rest are "lesser brands" such as RIA, or milsurp, or well-used and cheap. The average price I paid for them is... I am not making this up... probably a little less than $300 apiece. And all of them work. All of them.

Just for instance, here is my FEG 9mm that I paid $200 for MANY thousands for rounds ago. Maybe FEG was sort of the RIA of its day. I dunno. What I do know is that 30 years later this pistol still goes bang every time and makes a hole where I point it. :)


FEGHighPower_zps3d293b0c.jpg
 
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If you have large hands the square edge of the right side safety may bother you. It did me and I had to file it down and smooth it out. As far as reliability my RIAs have had zero issues.
 
Cooldill said:
It's got a 5" barrel, .45 ACP, and has a nice blacked out look to it. I doubt I'd change anything on it. Oh, and it's half the price of a Colt Rail Gun. I know this doesn't have a rail, but no big deal. I'll just use the Harries method.
Click to expand...

So just find yourself one of these.

http://www.galleryofguns.com/genie/...All&type=All&cal=45AP&fin=&sit=&zipcode=35120

Same model with rail. They are usually out of stock on GOG but shouldn't be too hard to find in other places.
 
Mmmm IDK... I don't really like the looks of that full-length rail. I greatly prefer the half-length rails.

If you get it, order some of the fiber optic stock, as the insert will fly out eventually.
Click to expand...

It will? That's not good...
 
Cooldill said:
Mmmm IDK... I don't really like the looks of that full-length rail. I greatly prefer the half-length rails.



It will? That's not good...
Click to expand...
You can still use the sight, it just won't have that bright dot in the middle of it. It's merely a plastic rod, and the rounded bit at one end or the other will break off after being slammed back and forth a bunch of times. I carry sticks of the stuff in my range bag, along with a butane lighter to melt the ends into the rounded cap shape that holds it in place. It won't happen every time you shoot.
 
Cooldill said:
I did some reading on the net and it turns out there is a company called "Rock Island Armory" based out of the Philippines who make inexpensive 1911s
Click to expand...
Just for accuracy's sake, the company that manufactures the 1911s you are referring to is Armscor. One of the several different lines of 1911s that they produce and sell is Rock Island Armory.

Rock Island Armory has their domestic headquarters in NV...that is where warranty repairs are handled
 
Does anyone know if the front sight on the pistol I am wanting can be changed out for a different one? If the fiber optic pieces are known to break or come out, I'd rather have a different front sight.
 
I don't know what dovetail they use. Dawson makes a FO for it. Maybe they would make you a plain blade.

Or you can do what I do. A drop of Super Glue at each post where the FO goes through, and I have not had one kick out since.
 
If the fiber optic rod breaks - or you want a different color like I did - you just change the rod...the sight remains in-place.

You can buy fiber rod from Dawson and others (just need to spec the diameter) and installing it is very, very easy.

FWIW - in over 3,000 rounds of 45 (not RIA) and almost 2,000 in a 9mm RIA (Ultra FS #51623) and many thousands through my Mark III (22lr) I had a rod break early on with the 45 and that's been it. I did replace RIA rod as I prefer green and have that color it on all of my target/range guns.
 
I have a RIA Tactical in 9 mm bought it used and so far the only thing that has broken was the sear spring,had that replaced by a local smith. I replaced the sights with Dawson FO sights and replaced the plastic MSH with a steel on from Wilson. Shoots as well as I can shoot and has fed every cast or jacketed round that I put in the mag.
I have 1 cast bullet from a Saeco mold 140 gr semi wad cutter that looks more like something you'd put in a 357 mag,pistol feeds them no problem.
 
Good Lord Cooldill, where you been? Living under a rock or what? People have been talking about RIA 1911's on the interwebs for 10+ years! I have four, and if I could afford it I'd get one of every model and caliber.
 
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