Are The Import 1911 Guns Proven?

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Are The Import 1911 Guns Proven?

Posted: 9/12/2018 11:33:39 AM EDT

I am thinking about getting an import 1911 to scratch the itch.

Question: Are they good to go?

Rock Island Armory, Metro Arms, American Tactical Imports, Armscor, Tisas...

Does anyone have or know of successful high round count through these 1911 pistols?

Posted: 9/12/2018 11:44:14 AM EDT

[#1]

Rock island and armscor are the same company. They are proven. Henderson defense in Las Vegas has a high round counts pistol thread somewhere where they said RIAs where right up there with sig for being the longest lasting 1911s.
Don't lump all the "imports" together though. American classic is made by metro arms in the Philippines, ATI is made by shooters arms Manufacturing in the Philippines.
I've owned 2 American classics and they seem good. The commander came with a weak recoil spring so I bought a Wolff spring and now it runs 100%.

Tisas is made in Turkey. I've heard bad things about them.

Posted: 9/12/2018 12:07:32 PM EDT

[#2]

I've had this RIA for years, probably a couple thousand rounds, works flawlessly and reliably. It's the absolute basic model, except I replaced the original nice (smooth) hardwood grips with these hard black rubber grips. I'm a rifle shooter, not pistol guy, but this gun does what it's supposed to do, every time. Incredibly, I rank it equal to my Colt M45A1 for what I need these guns to do. The target is at 7 yards, two-hand hold.

Posted: 9/12/2018 12:26:14 PM EDT

[#3]

Rockies just plain work. I don't know how they do it at that price point but they do. I would hazard a guess they are the best selling 1911 in the country and have been for several years.

Posted: 9/12/2018 12:41:27 PM EDT

[#4]

Biy your Rock island with confidence. Good to go.

Posted: 9/12/2018 1:16:39 PM EDT

[#5]

I have two RIA's and they are solid guns.

Posted: 9/12/2018 1:28:45 PM EDT

[#6]

I have a RIA Tactical in 9mm. It shoots well.

Posted: 9/12/2018 1:35:08 PM EDT

[#7]

Mechanical device....mechanical devices can wear out.... That being said, the research that I did before I bought one basically said that they use cast parts so parts that are subject to wear in a 1911 will wear/break a little sooner but they are easily replaced with higher quality parts when the time comes.

GTG....

Posted: 9/12/2018 2:33:11 PM EDT

[#8]

I have owned both the RIA and ATI GI models. Never had a problem with either.

Posted: 9/12/2018 10:49:18 PM EDT

[#9]

The RIA's and Metro Arms are GTG...Both are made in the Philippines...Most 1911 guys who are in the know
will generally replace the springs and fire control group parts that are cast or MIM, especially if they are
HD or Carry guns...

Supposedly, the Metro Arms are the best/highest quality of the Filipino made manufactures of 1911 style
pistols from what I understand...

The quality of manufacturing on some of these 1911 Filipino made guns is quite good considering the price
point...

I know for a fact that the RIA and Metro Arms brands are made on US made HAAS CNC milling centers which
is a testament to the quality that the current breed of 1911's coming out of the Philippines have.

Good luck.

Posted: 9/17/2018 11:09:53 PM EDT

[#10]

The only real issue that my ATI Titan has had was do to the stupid recoil assembly. The end plate WAS held on by a little bittsy machine screw. First time I fired it, Ka-boop (?) WTF was that? Dropped the mag, cleared the chamber and looked for the source of the weird sound. I found the end of the recoil spring sticking out from the dust cover! Tore it down and found that the little bittsy screw had sheared off, letting the recoil rod separate itself. Tossed in a slightly modd'ed Kimber set-up and she is, and has been, ever faithfull since. (Steel frame Titan, thank you- NO alloy frame junk in my edc piece!)

Posted: 9/18/2018 10:50:36 AM EDT

[#11]

Quote History

Quoted:
I have a RIA Tactical in 9mm. It shoots well.

View Quote

I have had mine since 2010 and run over 12K rounds through it. It has had exactly 4 malfunctions and all were due to worn out mag spring or recoil spring.
Without a doubt it is the best bang for my buck ever in a handgun.

Posted: 9/25/2018 9:34:53 PM EDT

[#12]

My son and I have RIA's and we are both very pleased with them. I love shooting his .22TCM and his 10mm "Big Rock." I enjoy shooting the RIA more than a G20.

Posted: 9/25/2018 10:04:43 PM EDT

[#13]

The RIAs I've had have functioned better than and had better fit/finish than the entry to mid level springers. I loved them, and it's to the point where I'd recommend a RIA over just about anything until you get into the DW price range.

Posted: 9/26/2018 11:03:05 AM EDT

[#14]

I have only ever owned Colt or les Baer 1911’s. A friend wanted a basic 1911 and I helped him shop, he bought a minimally used Rock ( the slightly fancied tactical model) worked perfect right out of the gate and he is very happy. Great budget blaster

Posted: 9/26/2018 11:23:14 AM EDT

[#15]

If you're on a budget and want to expand your collection, Rock Island isn't a bad choice. I don't personally own one, but the ones I have shot have been fine, reliable, and accurate, especially for the price point.

Posted: 10/10/2018 9:39:58 PM EDT

[#16]

Another vote for RIA 1911s. I have a Rock Standard FS (upgraded basic model with Novak-style sights, beavertail, skeleton/adjustable trigger and FL guide rod), and it is a tack driver. It eats anything I feed it, and shoots just as accurately as an FNX-45 I had.

And to show just how good RIA is, I recently sent in an RIA M200 38SPL pistol that I purchased so the wife could go shooting with me, but it wasn't shooting straight. After verifying that there indeed was an issue with the pistol not hitting POI, I sent it back to RIA in Nevada for repair (they paid for shipping both ways). They ended up sending me a brand-new replacement pistol that shoots to POI; something that I wasn't expecting. Fantastic customer service...they really do stand behind their products. I'm now an RIA fan, for sure!

Posted: 10/10/2018 10:17:23 PM EDT

[#17]

Quote History

Quoted:
Another vote for RIA 1911s. I have a Rock Standard FS (upgraded basic model with Novak-style sights, beavertail, skeleton/adjustable trigger and FL guide rod), and it is a tack driver. It eats anything I feed it, and shoots just as accurately as an FNX-45 I had.

And to show just how good RIA is, I recently sent in an RIA M200 38SPL pistol that I purchased so the wife could go shooting with me, but it wasn't shooting straight. After verifying that there indeed was an issue with the pistol not hitting POI, I sent it back to RIA in Nevada for repair (they paid for shipping both ways). They ended up sending me a brand-new replacement pistol that shoots to POI; something that I wasn't expecting. Fantastic customer service...they really do stand behind their products. I'm now an RIA fan, for sure!

View Quote

RIA customer service has been often praised in the Rock Island Armory subforum over at 1911forum.com

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Are The Import 1911 Guns Proven?

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