Springfield Armory Ronin Commander?

[King Medallion]

I'm selling my Sig 1911 Emperor Scorpion Fastback 45acp to my buddy who want's it more than I do. So a replacement is in order. I've pretty much decided I want a SA Ronin Commander in 45acp. It's in my price range and so far I haven't seen any bad reviews. Looking for thoughts, good or bad on the Ronin.

 

[Riomouse911]

My Ronin 4.25” 1911 is a 9mm model, so it isn’t a perfect match but I can say that my Ronin is a well-made pistol that wasn’t all that pricy. The blued slide is nicely done, the sights are easy to see and it has been 100pct. reliable since the first shot.



There were two semi-negatives; the Ronin is shipped with just one magazine so you will need to get more if you don’t have some. And the trigger pull was a “meh” 5 lbs and a tad creepy out of the box. I put in a Cylinder & Slide kit from Brownells and it is now a creep- free 4 lbs.



The first time I shot it the gun was right on, no sight adjustments needed.



Second time, and all the rest, has been more of the same.



I think they are great guns, you won’t go wrong buying one.

Stay safe.

 

[DTL]

I also have the 4.25" Ronin in 9mm and can verify everything Rio has already said about it. I had the same in .45 but traded it for a 9mm Range Officer Target model. The .45 was as reliable and accurate as either of my 9's, but at 71 I didn't enjoy the .45 as much and it reduced the calibers I needed to have on hand.

 

[SimonRL]

I had a Ronin full size in .45. It is very nice looking and an ok shooter, but I also bought a stainless SA Range Officer Target in 9mm at the same time, which Is a much better shooter and is on the will-never-get-rid-of list. The Ronin got sold.

 

[King Medallion]

Thanks for the replies thus far. From what I've read, the difference between the Ronin and the Ronin Operator in the Commander sizer is no difference, the name Operator is for full size version with the rail, correct?

 

[gotboostvr]

My Ronin 4.25” 1911 is a 9mm model, so it isn’t a perfect match but I can say that my Ronin is a well-made pistol that wasn’t all that pricy. The blued slide is nicely done, the sights are easy to see and it has been 100pct. reliable since the first shot.

View attachment 1081282 View attachment 1081283

There were two semi-negatives; the Ronin is shipped with just one magazine so you will need to get more if you don’t have some. And the trigger pull was a “meh” 5 lbs and a tad creepy out of the box. I put in a Cylinder & Slide kit from Brownells and it is now a creep- free 4 lbs.
View attachment 1081281
View attachment 1081280

The first time I shot it the gun was right on, no sight adjustments needed.

View attachment 1081278

Second time, and all the rest, has been more of the same.

View attachment 1081284

I think they are great guns, you won’t go wrong buying one.

Stay safe.

Fun fact:

I have that exact same trigger pull gauge and decided to compare it to my works $60k pull weight tester just to see how it stacked up. It was within single digit percentage difference surprisingly.

For our purposes, close enough.

 

[gotboostvr]

Thanks for the replies thus far. From what I've read, the difference between the Ronin and the Ronin Operator in the Commander sizer is no difference, the name Operator is for full size version with the rail, correct?

Springfield's naming convention is a little different. Champion means Commander and Operator means railed. So you can have a Champion Operator which'll be a railed Commander gun.

 

[JTQ]

Springfield's naming convention is a little different. Champion means Commander and Operator means railed. So you can have a Champion Operator which'll be a railed Commander gun.

Yeah, you sound like me. Up until a year or so, I would have agreed with you, and historically you're probably correct.

However, a Champion was a 4" gun that covered Springfield's "Commander-ish" size guns, but Springfield now offers actual 4.25" Commander size guns, and I don't think they have a 4" Champion in their line-up anymore.

 

[gotboostvr]

Yeah, you sound like me. Up until a year or so, I would have agreed with you, and historically you're probably correct.

However, a Champion was a 4" gun that covered Springfield's "Commander-ish" size guns, but Springfield now offers actual 4.25" Commander size guns, and I don't think they have a 4" Champion in their line-up anymore.

So they dropped the 4" barrel and are making true Commander sized guns now? That's nice, holsters will fit a little better, easier to find recoil springs too.

Springfield loves rotating their line-up. Kinda wish they'd just settle down a bit. Wish I could find one of their Lightweight, 4" railed 9mm's with the black slide and OD green frame to bobtail and undercut.

 

[Madcap_Magician]

So they dropped the 4" barrel and are making true Commander sized guns now? That's nice, holsters will fit a little better, easier to find recoil springs too.

Springfield loves rotating their line-up. Kinda wish they'd just settle down a bit. Wish I could find one of their Lightweight, 4" railed 9mm's with the black slide and OD green frame to bobtail and undercut.

Sig, too, it seems half their models are out for a year and then gone.

 

[jag1954]

I have 3 Ronins in each of the calibers, 10mm 5", .45ACP 4.25" and the EMP 9mm 4". All very good shooters for the money. No issues here.

 

[md7]

Thanks for the replies thus far. From what I've read, the difference between the Ronin and the Ronin Operator in the Commander sizer is no difference, the name Operator is for full size version with the rail, correct?

At least one other difference is the Ronin Commander is an aluminum frame vs steel frame on full size.

 

[SimonRL]

Ronin Operator was the original name of both the 5in and 4.25in gun. Operator was eventually dropped and both sizes are referred to as Ronin.

 

[ontarget]

What exactly makes a Ronin, a Ronin? Is there a specific feature set or one specific feature?

 

[JTQ]

What exactly makes a Ronin, a Ronin? Is there a specific feature set or one specific feature?

Two-tone is the most obvious feature. https://www.springfield-armory.com/1911-series-handguns/1911-ronin-handguns/

 

[JTQ]

Ronin Operator was the original name of both the 5in and 4.25in gun. Operator was eventually dropped and both sizes are referred to as Ronin.

That was a thing that drove me (and I suppose a bunch of other people) nuts, as gotboostvr mentioned above, an "Operator" in Springfield lingo traditionally meant that it had a rail. A Ronin Operator without a rail caused confusion. I suspect Springfield recognized this and changed the name.