1911

[flightsimmer]

I have a RIA GI 45 and have never had a problem with it.But, I have found that a large percentage of problems have been caused by the magazines. If your having problems, start there.

 

[88E30M50]

Problems are more likely to be posted about than non-problems. It would be boring if folks kept posting stuff like 'I have an RIA 1911 and it works'. Since problems are more likely to be posted about, guns with higher problem counts tend to get more problem posts and it builds on the guns reputation. To that, add the tendency of people to join the bandwagon and you will get more negative posts on guns that have a bad rap than you would get on guns with a good reputation. In other words, a problem with an Ed Brown is less likely to get reported than one with an RIA, even if the problem is identical. If the Ed Brown issue is reported, it tends to get a lot of positive reinforcement where as the RIA issue gets more negative reinforcement.

The core of the issue comes down to QA standards. Each part is built with a specific set of tolerances and those tolerances accumulate as a pistol is assembled. On the average gun, tolerances will average out across the build and the result is a pistol that works properly. If all of the tolerances tend to stack in one direction, they can result in a pistol that does not function reliably.

There are hree ways to handle the issue of tolerance stacking. First, built to tighter tolerances to reduce the chance of stacking contributing to reliability issues. This is done by higher end manufacturers and results in a greater reliability, but is expensive in that parts that would be fine with a lower end manufacturer are not acceptable to the higher end one and either are scrapped or sold. The second way is to build to looser tolerances, but employ a higher skilled set of pistol smiths doing the assembly to make sure each part is matched in a way to eliminate the issue of lopsided tolerance stacking. The third way is to build them and then try to eliminate the issues during the test phase. To this, add a very strong warranty and you have a pretty cost effective way of building a gun. The problem is that while the costs are decent, you do have a higher chance of letting a gun out the door that has issues. If you have a strong warranty, most gun owners will feel that they were taken care of and not worry too much about it. But, you do run the risk of building a negative reputation over time.

This is pretty much where RIA lives. In recent years, either their tolerances have tightened or their QA has improved, so you are seeing fewer issues. But, in the past, more people did get marginal guns that might work with ball ammo, but would choke on some others. Or, there could have been a host of other issues, but the fact is that RIA did deliver marginal guns. All manufacturers do from time to time, but RIA and other low end manufacturers had a higher instance.

Do RIAs function well? Most of them do. Have there been issues with some? Sure, but they've got a good warranty to back them up. So, this is, in a nutshell, why I think we see so many people regarding RIA pistols negatively while there seems to be many others that think their fine. Any experience with one pistol cannot guarantee someone else will have the same experience, good or bad.

Oh, one more thing plays into it. The term 'familiarity breeds contempt' is very true here. Folks that know their way around the insides of a 1911 very well will see flaws that others don't. My second 1911 was an RIA (still have it). I thought it was pretty nice when I bought it, but as I've learned a lot about 1911s over the years, I started to see stuff that points to a lower level of manufacture. Does it work? sure. Does it have pits in the frame casting? Sure does. Is it the equal to an Ed Brown or Dan Wesson? Not in a million years.

 

[hondaCBR]

In a few words... You get what you pay for. If you consider the price ranges of all 1911's you will see $500 to 4,000. I like to put into perspective best bang for your buck theory. I don't want the best nor the cheapest. If you do a little research the best bang for your buck 1911 's are in the 800 To 1300 in my opinion. If I wanted a 1911 I would wait till I could save enough to buy one. I did and mine is a Kimber

 

[wizardfitz]

I am one of the one who goes with brand loyalty. I have tbe tactical in 45 and a Filipino wife. Havent had any problem with either one in years

 

[LEADHEAD]

I also have a RI 1911. I wanted a beat around firearm, found it to be more than I expected in accuracy and function.

 

[TheFireArmorer]

I had an RIA Tactical for a couple years. Other than some cosmetic BS, I never had an issue with it. I sold it to another INGO member, just because I wanted something new. I don't know the exact number of rounds through it off the top of my head, but it definitely got its fair share of use and no malfunctions at all. I think there are probably more positive experiences out there with RIA 1911's than bad, but the bad ones are what everyone talks about.

All that being said, I doubt I'd ever buy another one. Personally, I think it's worth the extra money to get a better made gun.

 

[CCC]

I have a Rock Island .45 5". Having trouble with slide locking back before empty. Could be me touching slide lever, not sure. Had it for a few months. Cost is good.

 

[88E30M50]

In a few words... You get what you pay for. If you consider the price ranges of all 1911's you will see $500 to 4,000. I like to put into perspective best bang for your buck theory. I don't want the best nor the cheapest. If you do a little research the best bang for your buck 1911 's are in the 800 To 1300 in my opinion. If I wanted a 1911 I would wait till I could save enough to buy one. I did and mine is a Kimber

I know it was long winded, but my point was that in 1911s, you get what you pay for does not always hold true. With the lower tier 1911s, it's more of a luck of the draw. With higher end ones, there is more scrutiny and tighter tolerances, so the chances of getting a marginal one is much less. But, if you get an RIA that stacked towards the middle of tolerances, it will run fine.

That does not hold true for materials though. Cast frames and slides are not of the same quality as forged, but for casual use, most won't notice a difference. Internals vary among manufacturers, but you typically don't start seeing tool steel internals in place of MIM until you get well north of $1000. The CZ 1911 is the exception there.

I am one of the one who goes with brand loyalty. I have tbe tactical in 45 and a Filipino wife. Havent had any problem with either one in years

One thing to note with a Filipino wife WF: They don't seem to age at the same rate as us and sooner or later, people will start thinking that she's you daughter. I've been getting a lot of that in the last couple of years.

 

[zippy23]

or you could buy a dan wesson and never look back

 

[88E30M50]

or you could buy a dan wesson and never look back

Lots of truth to this ^^^

 

[jamil]

I'll admit Imma a 1911 n00b.

I've always been into the plastic guns. Mostly S&W's and Walthers. Some Rugers. But I've always thought pretty highly of 1911s and have shot them pretty well. So the last few years I've been flirting with getting one.

I've always been a "get what you pay for" kinda guy. I appreciate quality and fit and finish. So I thought about splurging on a Dan Wesson or something on that level. I decided against because it was just hard to pull the trigger on taking that big a chunk out of my gun budget when I don't understand what makes a Dan Wesson worth that much money. I am a "get what you pay for" kinda guy. But I need to understand what makes what I'm paying for worth it. I kinda pushed the 1911 purchase out to "someday".

The last several months I had shifted my focus from a 1911 to just something in 10mm. Long story short "santa" got me a RIA in 10mm for Christmas. [STRIKE]My[/STRIKE] Santa's rationale was, okay, sure, it's hit or miss. If it were a miss, I'd either try to make it work, or sell it and get something else. And as far as durability, the purpose was always for it to be a range gun. I'm not going to carry it. Not for home defense. Not going to take any classes with it. With the cost of 10mm, I'm not going to run it hard. It is just for fun, and that would have been the case even for a higher end 1911.

So far the RIA has been a hit. Cycles every round, except it didn't like Buffalo Bore all that well (I've since read that I probably need to change the recoil spring to run Buffalo Bore). I only have 300 or so rounds through it, mostly Sig Elite Performance. Flawless with that. Ammo is ridiculously expensive, but man is that gun fun to shoot. I love the 10mm, and I think I love 1911s. I'll probably eventually end up with a high end 1911, probably in .45acp (cheaper), but not until I really learn what I don't like about the cheap 1911s.

The point I'm trying to make is, if I'm going to spend a lot on a 1911 I want to fully appreciate what sets it apart from cheaper guns. If you are a 1911 n00b like me I think it makes better sense to buy something entry level and learn about the platform on that--as long as the gun works, anyway. If it's a miss, then that kinda sucks.

 

[HamYankee]

How does Rock Island compare to Citadel?

 

[disGRUNTld0311851717]

Some people just like to talk bad on anything thats not there choice of firearm... run it and let it speak for itself