RIA 1911 thread

[Joe in PNG]

After perusing a couple of other threads, I'm seeing a lot of good things posted about RIA's 1911s.

So, good for a cheap gun? Something that can work with a bit of fiddling? What sort of fiddling can one expect?

[feudist]

I bought a .45 Tactical in 2018.
A 1911 specialist buddy examined it in detail and was (very) reluctantly impressed by the build and component quality.
Mine worked quite well with good mags and ammo. It was only bought as a "Own a 1911" box check, so I haven't wrung it out.

[45dotACP]

The praise of Joe Chambers notwithstanding, the one I bought was a nearly irreparable POS.

Maybe it was before their quality got a lot better tho.

Either way, I have no need for a cheap 1911. I have plenty of expensive ones

Sent from my SM-A326U using Tapatalk

[SecondsCount]

About 10 years ago, a good friend's son was in his early teens and wanted a 1911. I suggested a Rock Island Tactical in 9mm.

It is a little rough around the edges but I've shot with them a few times since and the gun always runs, and he is happy with his purchase.

[DDTSGM]

I bought one used to help a guy out. It is a 1911A1-FS, parkerized finish. I haven't had any trouble at all with it. I bought a Wolff tuner pack of recoil springs and found that the 14 pound spring worked best for me with my loads.

It didn't shoot POA for me so I bought a set of Dawson fixed fiber optics - lucked out on the math and got it right the first time.

Accuracy was okay, but I went ahead and bought an Ed Brown barrel and bushing which improved accuracy.

The only other change I made was to add some Bogey grips.

I was suspicious of the ambi-safety which is of the type retained by an extended sear pin, but it works okay.

I've taken it down, cleaned everything and adjusted trigger travel to my liking.

No problems using Chip McCormick RPM's, PM's, and the OEM mags which came with it, although I have less than 2,000 rounds through the pistol.

Based on my experiences with this pistol I jumped on a Taylor Tactical branded 9mm 1911A1 FS and another in .45ACP. Reason being these things are cheaper than a frame from JEM or Caspian and it just make sense to me to practice on them for the time being.

[CarloMNL]

The guns are made my in country and Armscor quality has improved over the years. They generally work out of the box after some extractor tuning. They start to get interesting if you decide to do a trigger job using factory components. Some might take the action job well but I've seen a bunch that didn't.

I am guessing that the decision to sell the guns in the US market has made it necessary for Armscor to improve quality, tolerances, etc. I do not know if they have people doing further inspection and QC when the guns arrive in the United States.

[MandoWookie]

My question is, are they good enough base guns that having custom work done on them isn't just throwing money away.

Like are the steels used good quality, or pot metal? Are the frame and slide dimensions generally good or are they like a Khyber pass gunsmith eyeballed it?
Are the barrels worth keeping or is an aftermarket a necessity even if you aren't looking for target pistol accuracy?

Same question for the Tisas 1911s.

Reason I ask is my father has a Commander sized Rock Island languishing in the safe because it has ejected 2 front sights, but otherwise has been completely trouble free for him.
I don't trust the local 'gunsmiths' to work on it again after the hack job they did on the sights last time.

But...Nighthawk is only 45 minutes from where we live, and if we are going to spend the money to fix the sights, might as well and spend some more to get it worked over lightly in other areas.

I also missed the boat on the Dan Wesson A2s, and if I am going to be spending the amount they want for them on the secondary market, might as well go custom, just need a base gun that won't break the bank.

Will Nighthawk or other custom 1911 gunsmiths even accept work on Rock Island or Tisas 1911s?

Oh, and what about Springfields basic GI 1911s?

[Evil_Ed]

My question is, are they good enough base guns that having custom work done on them isn't just throwing money away.

Like are the steels used good quality, or pot metal? Are the frame and slide dimensions generally good or are they like a Khyber pass gunsmith eyeballed it?
Are the barrels worth keeping or is an aftermarket a necessity even if you aren't looking for target pistol accuracy?

Same question for the Tisas 1911s.

Reason I ask is my father has a Commander sized Rock Island languishing in the safe because it has ejected 2 front sights, but otherwise has been completely trouble free for him.
I don't trust the local 'gunsmiths' to work on it again after the hack job they did on the sights last time.

But...Nighthawk is only 45 minutes from where we live, and if we are going to spend the money to fix the sights, might as well and spend some more to get it worked over lightly in other areas.

I also missed the boat on the Dan Wesson A2s, and if I am going to be spending the amount they want for them on the secondary market, might as well go custom, just need a base gun that won't break the bank.

Will Nighthawk or other custom 1911 gunsmiths even accept work on Rock Island or Tisas 1911s?

Oh, and what about Springfields basic GI 1911s?

The short answer is "no", with an asterisk next to the Springfield. Springfield can be hit or miss, but generally retain their "customized" values better than Kimber...and for sure better than an RIA, Armscor, or Tisas. Think about it - you're browsing gunbroker and see a worked over Colt for $2200, next to it an identically worked over RIA for $1500 - they're almost a grand apart, but do you really want to spend more than a grand on an RIA, no matter how much work and time went into it?

I don't think most custom 1911 places will even accept anything other than Colts, Springfields, and maybe Kimbers...there's just too much variation with all the other makers, though you'd have to contact your gunsmith and find out from them for sure.

Except for Chuck Rogers, who's currently going nuts on a his personally owned 9mm Tisas just for shiggles - he might just be participating in a "bring the worst possible gun to a competition" challenge or something though :D He put an impressive amount of time into it from what I've seen, and I still wouldn't spend money on it, personally...I'm sure it's awesome, but bleh, Tisas..and I don't think he's going to open up his books for work on them, frankly, but I could be wrong.

Anyway - It won't hurt to ask your gunsmith of course, but there's TONS of stories on various 1911 smithing boards from gunsmiths who tried to do a favor for someone with an RIA or Tisas or some other ...let's call them "thrift brands"... and wound up spending a lot more time and effort than a better base gun would have needed - and they couldn't charge for the time because no sane person is going to spend 2k+ for gunsmith time on an RIA/etc, most of which was spent just getting it into spec to the point where they could begin to do work.

Getting the slide milled for good sights like Novaks or Heinies, and maybe a dehorn and refinish I think just about anyone would do...start getting into more work than that, and you'll see gunsmiths start to shy away from putting too much time into any of those brands.

Just my observations from decades of watching 1911 forums and etc...take it with a grain of salt.

[RJ]

As a complete noob to 1911s I went to a local gun shop/range near Petoskey MI this past summer. They let me rent a RIA 1911 so I took my Glock 34 and shot it side by side.

99767

This is from my write up at the time:

https://pistol-forum.com/showthread.php?53192-The-%93I-need-a-45-but-do-I-need-a-1911-%94-thread&p=1368103&viewfull=1#post1368103

I had no malfunctions. 20 out of 20 rounds, no jams, stovepipes or misfires, which I was happy about. The sights bugged me a little, because I had to constantly go from sight, to target, back to sight, back to target (ok I am probably exaggerating but it's been a while since I shot irons -- I carry either a Glock 19+507c or a Sig P365X+407k).

I was a bit surprised at the small group size, cold, for not having shot this gun, or many 1911s, before. Cold, I did better with the RIA than with my Glock. Perhaps some of this was my eyeglasses (this pair was made specifically so I could shoot irons), some of it perhaps my absolute focus on making a clean shot, and perhaps some of it was this "1911 trigger" I hear so much about. Or maybe it was just luck.

After the initial mag, I then shot another mag of five. Group size was similar, but up and to the right. The next two mags were slightly larger, I was playing around a bit with dot hold, or top of sight hold, or low hold.

Numerically, the average of the four, 5-shot groups out of the RIA was 2.6", at 21'.

I perceived recoil as "slightly" more than the Glock, but not by a heck of a lot. The steel frame of the 1911 seems to be well matched to the .45. It was neither particularly snappy nor particularly light. I have a Tungsten guide rod and a 2 oz brass thug plug in the 34; it is otherwise stock / factory parts (ok, ok, I have a 5.0 lb Wolff trigger spring, but that's it.)

I was pretty happy with the RIA, actually. This being a Big Fat Case of I *Really* don't know what I don't know, if I bought one of these I would probably be ok with it. The rhetorical question is, do I shoot a $1,200 1911 better than a $579 1911.

I do know I did not like the RIA sights. I would vastly prefer even a big white dot, or a orange Ameriglo Agent, or a fat Dawson FO front. The rears I would sharpie out. As to an adjustable rear, I dunno. My G34 came with one of those. Seems to me like for what I want to use it for, at 7 yards the error I induce with poor trigger control will swamp the margin of adjustment for tweaking a rear sight U/D or L/R. So I think fixed sights for me, would be fine.

Subjectively, I also did not like the RIA grips. They are a plain wooden version, with some kind of slippery surface. But grips appear to be an easy change.

I liked this RIA gun a lot, actually. Just not the sights, and the grips would need to change. I also only shot ball ammo. I would be curious to know whether/if there were any issues in shooting JHP bullets (preferred for the Pin Shoot) out of this or any other 1911. Obviously that would be something I'd need to vet.

One last point. Every RIA model has an Ambi Safety. As a lefty, this is a huge plus for an out of the box gun for me. I don’t think I would buy a gun without one.

[Welder]

7 or 8 years ago at least, back when I was shooting IDPA, my Dad came to a match and got interested. The problem with him and shooting pistols has historically been that his trigger finger is missing a joint from a farming accident, so a RIA Tactical 9mm was his solution. We took it to Richard Fletcher of Fletcher Customs in Lexington, VA for a trigger job with installation of a Wilson short trigger, Dawson FO sights, and maybe some other things like an extended mag release which I can't remember for sure about now. Richard's comment was that the gun wasn't hard to deal with or work on; no unusual problems.

We brought it home and put VZ Alien grips on it with the thumb notch and I bought a set of Tripp mags for it based on online reviews of the mags at the time. Dad shot it well enough, but we had failures to feed pretty regularly with ball ammo although the stock mag (a Metalform if I remember right) would always run. Dad ran out of interest and I sold the gun for him at a LGS....$650 was the most I could get. People held the RIA brand against it. I sold the Tripps separately, which worked perfectly in a buddy's STI Sentry.

The one thing I'll say about those guns at the time was that the finish didn't hold up well at all. Dad probably put less than 500 rounds through it all told, and I'm sure he wasn't regularly practicing holstering with it, but it looked like it'd been to war and back. The holster wear was pretty significant. Knowing what I know now, I wish I'd have bought it from him and kept it, just swapping mags. But I didn't know anything about 1911's at the time; all I knew was that my B92's ran no matter what I put in them and that Dad's gun didn't.

It always shot great for me when it ran.

[MandoWookie]

The short answer is "no", with an asterisk next to the Springfield. Springfield can be hit or miss, but generally retain their "customized" values better than Kimber...and for sure better than an RIA, Armscor, or Tisas. Think about it - you're browsing gunbroker and see a worked over Colt for $2200, next to it an identically worked over RIA for $1500 - they're almost a grand apart, but do you really want to spend more than a grand on an RIA, no matter how much work and time went into it?

See, 'resale value' is something I really don't care about. I will never get back what I spent, and I'm not one of those gun of the month people. If I am sending out a gun to drop its value+ on customization, its because I dont intend to turn around and sell it. There is nothing a 1911 can do that my police trade in M&P45 can not do better, except have pride of ownership. The only reason I am even considering buying a 1911 and having it customized is because Dan Wesson no longer makes the A2, and I dont want to pay double its original cost to get a used one.

I don't think most custom 1911 places will even accept anything other than Colts, Springfields, and maybe Kimbers...there's just too much variation with all the other makers, though you'd have to contact your gunsmith and find out from them for sure.

Thats an issue, I don't have a gunsmith. The local shops that claim to have gunsmiths are just glorified parts swapper. The last work we had them do they literally left the slide out in the open behind the counter for three months claiming they had it in the shop working on it until we drooped by and pointed out it was still sitting there. Then 4 more months before we got it back, just to have the front sight fall off in less than a box of ammo.

Except for Chuck Rogers, who's currently going nuts on a his personally owned 9mm Tisas just for shiggles - he might just be participating in a "bring the worst possible gun to a competition" challenge or something though :D He put an impressive amount of time into it from what I've seen, and I still wouldn't spend money on it, personally...I'm sure it's awesome, but bleh, Tisas..and I don't think he's going to open up his books for work on them, frankly, but I could be wrong.

Anyway - It won't hurt to ask your gunsmith of course, but there's TONS of stories on various 1911 smithing boards from gunsmiths who tried to do a favor for someone with an RIA or Tisas or some other ...let's call them "thrift brands"... and wound up spending a lot more time and effort than a better base gun would have needed - and they couldn't charge for the time because no sane person is going to spend 2k+ for gunsmith time on an RIA/etc, most of which was spent just getting it into spec to the point where they could begin to do work.

And I have run into plenty of anecdotes on forums(including this one) about similar problems on Colts, Springfields and the like.

Getting the slide milled for good sights like Novaks or Heinies, and maybe a dehorn and refinish I think just about anyone would do...start getting into more work than that, and you'll see gunsmiths start to shy away from putting too much time into any of those brands.

I think that is a problem too. '1911 guys' have a much different idea of what 'custom' means than the average gun owner. You describe milling sight dovetails and refinishing as something anyone can do. My experience is different. Seeing as those two things are pretty much the extent of the custom work i would want done, as I dont comprehend what voodoo 90% of what Nighthawk or Wilson does to their guns that justifies $2000+ price tags when I just want a 1911 that has sights I can see and I can shoot without it trying to draw blood, but still looks like a 1911.
Just my observations from decades of watching 1911 forums and etc...take it with a grain of salt.

[Evil_Ed]

See, 'resale value' is something I really don't care about. I will never get back what I spent, and I'm not one of those gun of the month people. If I am sending out a gun to drop its value+ on customization, its because I dont intend to turn around and sell it. There is nothing a 1911 can do that my police trade in M&P45 can not do better, except have pride of ownership. The only reason I am even considering buying a 1911 and having it customized is because Dan Wesson no longer makes the A2, and I dont want to pay double its original cost to get a used one.

Thats an issue, I don't have a gunsmith. The local shops that claim to have gunsmiths are just glorified parts swapper. The last work we had them do they literally left the slide out in the open behind the counter for three months claiming they had it in the shop working on it until we drooped by and pointed out it was still sitting there. Then 4 more months before we got it back, just to have the front sight fall off in less than a box of ammo.

And I have run into plenty of anecdotes on forums(including this one) about similar problems on Colts, Springfields and the like.

I think that is a problem too. '1911 guys' have a much different idea of what 'custom' means than the average gun owner. You describe milling sight dovetails and refinishing as something anyone can do. My experience is different. Seeing as those two things are pretty much the extent of the custom work i would want done, as I dont comprehend what voodoo 90% of what Nighthawk or Wilson does to their guns that justifies $2000+ price tags when I just want a 1911 that has sights I can see and I can shoot without it trying to draw blood, but still looks like a 1911.


Well, the basic question is - are you willing to spend the guns value, if not significantly more than that, in gunsmith work and time into the gun to make it what you want it to be? To put it another way, would you buy a Chevy Cruze to then spend a lot of time and money to turn it into an AWD rally car? Or would you buy something a little more suitable to the task and closer to the end product from the get-go, like a Subaru WRX/STI, and then build on that?

Just as importantly - what's your plan if it doesn't work out? On an RIA, if it doesn't work, no big deal...this is a plus :)

Also - if you're thinking "I'll bring this to a local gunsmith to work on", stop right there - there's a %99.99 chance that you'll need to ship the gun for anything you want done. As you discovered, you pay for what you get from local shops unless you've vetted them thoroughly first. You're gonna need to ship; I'm a little surprised you didn't just do that from the get-go. If you do have a local gunsmith anywhere near, stop in, ask for examples of work if you don't want to ship. Any gunsmith who's not a jerk would be happy to show you examples if their work...if they shy away from that, well, if you ignore that big old red flag...not much can help you :)

As far as milling dovetails and refinishing - yes, any decent shop can do that, but you don't need to go far to find them. Midwest Gun Works for example; they can do this. Though honestly, if all you want is sights and a mild dehorn, call Novak and ask. They charge $125 for milling the dovetails, plus the cost of the sights...so figure around $200, plus or minus? And ask them while you're on the phone if they can do a dehorn job (they're a 1911 shop so in theory it should be possible, if they're accepting work), and refinish. Figure another $65-100 for that all told, maybe more. If all you want is sights and don't need the dehorn, call Novak anyway. This is their bread and butter. There's no reason to ever send it anywhere else...that is assuming you don't mind Novaks on the gun, of course. Heinie is another possibility if all you want is sight dovetails cut and sights fitted.

When I say "custom work", I'm talking cutting the frame and fitting a new grip safety, or french borders, or ball endmill cuts in the slide, or hard-fitting a barrel. Things that are more involved than milling dovetails in a fixture. If all you want is a dehorn and sights, basically any shop on the internet or on any of the various 1911 forums should be able to do that for you. I would highly suggest though that your first try be calling Novaks and see if they can fit a dehorn in with the sights.

Plus, there's at least one guy (https://hayescustomguns.com/rock-island/) offering RIA-specific gunsmithing...

[JRV]

Last summer, I bought a RIA GI in .45 as a base gun for CMP "as issued" matches. Changed the thumb safety, mainspring housing, trigger, and stocks to GI-format parts to make sure it was compliant. Little things like the stock trigger break and slide-to-frame fit compared favorably to the Turkish options, and I wasn't itching to give the CMP "Dan Wesson money" for a rack-grade GI beater.

My initial impressions were positive, but it's not like I was running it through the ringer. "As issued" is a low round count 25-yard match for which I would be shooting ball ammo, so my practice with the gun followed suit. I cannot make any statements about compatibility with exotic mags or bullet profiles. Here are my takeaways, for what they're worth:

- All aftermarket parts (most or all from EGW) needed for "as issued" compliance fit easily.
- Didn't have to replace the slide stop. It mic'd right at .200". Fits the frame and link snug and smooth. My primary bullseye gun (a Range Officer) came with a slide stop that was .195-.196" at various points across its length.
- It shot to windage-perfect 6 o'clock hold on a B8 with WWB 230gr ball.
- No unusual or "imbalanced" wear on the slide stop, rails, or hammer.
- The frame fit and functioned with a Marvel Unit 1 Conversion upper perfectly (better than, once again, the Range Officer).

The barrel/bushing fit is generous at the muzzle. I've taken it to the long line, and it performs exactly the same that my Range Officer did before a new bushing and link. High 70s, low 80s, tough to call with any confidence, but still in the scoring rings.

I've been impressed enough with the RIA that I've changed gears. It will be a "retro" hardball gun, so I'll have a backup for EIC/Service Pistol matches. Slide's on its way back from my smith with a Kensight adjustable rear and a patridge front. I'll be fitting an EGW bushing and checking to see what kind of performance it will put up with known-quality match ammo. The EGW bushing brought groups with the Springfield down from 6" to about 2.5" at 50 off bags (and my long line scores into the high 80s/low 90s). Hopefully the RIA barrel can hang with the Springfield unit. If not, it will get a Kart.

[Joe in PNG]

I'm more interested in one as a JCN DIY project/ training gun sorta thing, so I'm not going to be especially interested in sending it off for a grand in custom touches.

And I won't feel as bad about fiddling about and learning stuff as I would with a new Caspian frame, slide, & box-o-bits.

[feudist]

I misspoke in my post.
I have the less expensive FS instead of the tactical. I bought that because as a lefty I need the Ambi, and I liked the sights and beavertail. The Tactical adds a light rail.
I painted the front sight orange, took a file and some cold blue to a sharp edge on the LH safety...and would carry it like that, after JHP vetting. The trigger, as issued, breaks crisp between 4/4.5 pounds. Beyond cosmetics and fine recoil/load spring tuning, what else do you need for a defensive pistol if it works?
I learned to detail strip it and saw the in and outs of the various fitments and whatnot.
For what I wanted-an immediately shootable inexpensive 1911-it was perfect.
I actually looked around several times for the lightweight compact 9mm, with an eye to carrying it, but they are hard to find.

[Trooper224]

From what I've seen over the last few years, RIA has become the leader in the budget class 1911 niche. I'd put them above the Turkish made guns, let alone companies like Auto-ordnance, etc.

The finish is still pretty basic, a no frills kind of thing. Except the nickeled guns which I don't care for. I like a nickeled gun, just not theirs. They're chalk full of MIM parts, but so are expensive TRPs and the like. The thing I quite like about them is, everything seems to be in spec. I'm talking about the relationship of pin holes in the frame, slide dimensions, etc. Most mid to lower teir 1911s can have a lot of variance in these areas, RIA seems to keep it on point, which isn't surprising since I believe they originally bought Colt's old facility in the Philippines, back in the day.

When the gun's in spec it makes repair and modification orders of magnitude easier. Kimber and "gunsmith" were mentioned in the same sentence upthread. I've never known a gunsmith who wouldn’t have an apoplectic fit if you asked them to work on a Kimber, for those very reasons.

Resale? It's not an Heirloom Precision gun. The last thing that should be considered with an RIA is resale value. But, that doesn't mean it won't make a solid base platform for enhancements. You don't always need a Rolex, sometimes a Timex will do. It's also a good choice for getting into wrenching on 1911s, no big price tag to worry about. I council everyone with an interest in God's Gun to try a bit of wrenching themselves. A while back, I sent a front sight off to John Harrison for a gold bead installation. That was the first time in decades where someone else has worked on my guns.

A RIA is a good place to start your education.

[DDTSGM]

I took my RIA 1911A1 FS's to the range today - one .45 which is approaching 2,000 rounds and the other in 9mm for it's very first rounds.

The last group I fired (rounds 21-25) with the 9mm is pictured below. It was shot off a barricade @ 25 yards onto an action pistol target - the bull is 4". Ammo was ARMSCOR 124gr FMJ.

99813

I'm pretty sure that the black-on-black sights didn't help me, so will order a set of Dawsons. Also need to clean up the trigger.

The 9mm worked well every type mag I have - OEM, Mecgar and Brownells - although 5 to 8 rounds out of each is hardly a test.

I do not like the vertical grooves on the front strap of the 9mm. I had to check and see if the older .45 had them, it did, surprisingly they have never bugged me on that pistol. The newer 9mm feels like they are a little sharper and a little recessed as compared to the older .45.

Here's the link to the pistol, it was clearanced and is currently OOS. Not a bad deal for $359.00 - ambi safety and a magwell.

https://palmettostatearmory.com/taylors-company-m1911-a1-9mm-pistol-5-10rd-black-56670.html

[JRV]

Finally got the bushing fit on my RIA “ball gun” fun build.

It shoots. Timed fire after sighting it in went well. Shoots on call, trigger break is consistent.

100131

Even with getting the slide cut for the front sight, I have less in this than my Range Officer. Cannot imagine a cheaper option that could realistically compete for EIC points.

[revchuck38]

<thread drift>

There is nothing a 1911 can do that my police trade in M&P45 can not do better...
In terms of a .45 ACP pistol, this is my opinion as well. I bet there are a bunch of G21 owners who feel the same way about their pistols.
</thread drift>

That said, I need to hit the next local gun show and offload some guns I no longer need. Because I want to get an RIA in .38 Super. It'll be a range-only gun, and I'll probably feed it 150-grain SWCs or 160-grain RNLs, depending on which it prefers...because I want to. Depending on how well the chamber supports the round, I might load to Major, albeit not the old 175 PF.

The things geezers do in their dotage...:rolleyes:

[HeavyDuty]

Interesting new Officers size doublestack 1911 in .45 announced from RIA:

https://www.armscor.com/firearms-list/310-45acp-10rd

[JRV]

Updated the reload recipe. Printed two sandbagged 5-round groups at 25 yards to get a zero… with the RIA barrel (and EGW bushing), they were sub-inch. Haven’t tested the new load from the SA Range Officer barrel yet (it’s getting new sights at the moment), but this was surprising.

Went straight into timed fire practice, because I was stuck indoors and hate reduced slowfire bulls.

100420

Still shooting high 90s consistently. The trigger is different from my primary ballgun (much more travel through the break; not sure I’d call it “roll” as much as it is “creep”), so I am prone to milking towards 7:30 during rapid strings—or when I’m being careless.

100421

It’s not a bad setup. If I needed to run it at a match for any reason, I’d have no doubts in it.

[Trooper224]

Updated the reload recipe. Printed two sandbagged 5-round groups at 25 yards to get a zero… with the RIA barrel (and EGW bushing), they were sub-inch. Haven’t tested the new load from the SA Range Officer barrel yet (it’s getting new sights at the moment), but this was surprising.

Went straight into timed fire practice, because I was stuck indoors and hate reduced slowfire bulls.

100420

Still shooting high 90s consistently. The trigger is different from my primary ballgun (much more travel through the break; not sure I’d call it “roll” as much as it is “creep”), so I am prone to milking towards 7:30 during rapid strings—or when I’m being careless.

100421

It’s not a bad setup. If I needed to run it at a match for any reason, I’d have no doubts in it.

That's a nice setup, gives me nostalgic feels.

I'm tempted to buy on of these, or a Tisas and run it until it breaks to get a read on the failure points.

[JRV]

That's a nice setup, gives me nostalgic feels.

I'm tempted to buy on of these, or a Tisas and run it until it breaks to get a read on the failure points.

If you decide to go make your own “retro” ball gun, I took a GI RIA .45 and added:

Kensight Compact Adjustable Rear Sight (it’s an Elliason copy, no need to tap the slide)
Dawson Novak Patridge .330” x .115” Front Sight (had to cut the slide)
EGW Angled Bore Drop-in Bushing and Recoil Spring Plug (had to fit bushing)
EGW Arched Mainspring Housing with Lanyard Loop
Herrett Checkered Stocks
C&S Sear Spring

All in all, picking up stuff during sales (including the gun) and paying for some shop time, I think I spent $400 on the gun and about $370 on parts/labor. The RIA is not as refined to shoot as my Range Officer (which has had another Range Officer’s worth of work done to it), but it’s really good. Not just for the money—it groups like a custom gun for less than the cost of a typical base gun, pre-accurizing.

[SecondsCount]

If you decide to go make your own “retro” ball gun, I took a GI RIA .45 and added:

Kensight Compact Adjustable Rear Sight (it’s an Elliason copy, no need to tap the slide)
Dawson Novak Patridge .330” x .115” Front Sight (had to cut the slide)
EGW Angled Bore Drop-in Bushing and Recoil Spring Plug (had to fit bushing)
EGW Arched Mainspring Housing with Lanyard Loop
Herrett Checkered Stocks
C&S Sear Spring

All in all, picking up stuff during sales (including the gun) and paying for some shop time, I think I spent $400 on the gun and about $370 on parts/labor. The RIA is not as refined to shoot as my Range Officer (which has had another Range Officer’s worth of work done to it), but it’s really good. Not just for the money—it groups like a custom gun for less than the cost of a typical base gun, pre-accurizing.

Is the front sight staked on a factory RIA or milled as part of the slide?

[JRV]

Is the front sight staked on a factory RIA or milled as part of the slide?

It’s a narrow tenon stake.