1911-rock Island Armory Vs. Kimber Tactical?

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DEAC25

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OK, I have a line on a used Rock Island Armory 1911, I inspected it today, it appears to be in good shape, not too much wear. The new owner (read Pawn Shop owner) does not know how many rounds it has seen.

The cost of that pistol is set at about $400.00. I know nothing about Rock Island Armory. Are they good to go?

I am not a match shooter, this would be for an all around gun.

While I am there, he shows me a couple of Kimbers, of course the prices are much higher. These are all new guns.

He has a base model @ $700.00, and of course they go up as the features get better.

The two that caught my eye were Tactical models.
They are 4 and 5 inch models, and were about $800.00
He says they have alloy frames, and may not last as long as an all steel, but he shoots his (a 4 inch barrel) alot, and it does fine for him.

Should I bite the bullet and go for one of the Kimbers? or will the RIA be ok for me as I will not be wearing out any of these guns?

Hold out for a Colt? GI?

I will check back later for input, and thanks in advance.

Deac
 
You should go to 1911forum.com as they have plenty of information you should see.
 
Hold out for a Colt? GI?
Click to expand...

Why hold out? At $700-800 you can get a Colt 1911 or a Commander.

For $500, you can get a Springfield Armory GI-45.
For $700 you can get the SA Loaded gun.

Frankly speaking, $400 for a used RIA sounds really high (if it is the base version), especially since a new one costs about $450.
 
The RIA is well worth $400, but as strat81 has posted your used sample is overpriced.

Get an RIA and use the saved cash to buy ammo or reloading supplies.

--wally.
 
I have RIAs in 45 and 38Super. Solid, reliable, brass-tacks 1911s. I have higher-end .45s, but the RIA gets carried more out in the woods more than the rest.
 
I have three RIA's, and I'm not giving ANY of them up. Great pistols, IMO. I highly recommend that you look at the RIA Tactical model. It's only about $50-60 more than the standard GI, but has lots of features.

AC-RI1911TAC-B.gif
 
Thanks for the input

Folks, I thank you all for the input. I will check further into the RIA, and see what it is. I am pretty sure it is a standard model, so I will check them out.

Deac
 
looks like a nice gun for around $400. I've got a kimber custom II, I just liked the fit and finish better on the kimber. Not to mention it's made in america from forged steel.
 
the RIA can be had for $329 plus shipping and FFL.

if you decide you like RIAs then either buy it new, or print out a bunch of places on the web with the listed selling price. i wouldn't pay more than $275 for a used, unknown RIA. make sure you take a bic ballpoint pen with you to verify the firing pin works, etc. just put the butt of the pen in the barrel, cock the hammer and fire. pen should launch out of the barrel. i once checked a used 1911 at a show like that and suprise! the firing pin doesn't work. the guy wouldn't even let me take the slide off to inspect it. he was asking $600 on a frankengun - para double stack lower with colt upper. what a rip.
 
RIA!

So I took the input from here and went back to buy the RIA.

I talked him down and got it for $300 out the door. I am happy with the price.

The gun has some wear on it, looks like holster usage. As far as the insides go it is immaculate! The bore is great, and everything else looks good.

The gun came with some Pachymeyer? grips with finger grooves, and it handles like a dream.

I took some crappy pics with my cell, as the digital camera is in California with my honey, she is at visiting her Mom which equals plenty of range time for me!

The gun has been flawless in operation. I am very happy with its performance.

RIA1.gif

It is very accurate as well, although I am still adjusting to shooting the 1911 vs my SW 686 revolver. I tend to push it a little right.

This is a great gun!

Thanks for the input.
Deac
 
I cant see the pic as work here blocks almost all pictures, funny because some times I can see them in other threads I guess it depends on how you attach them. Any way I feel like you did ok not a great deal for the record books but you did ok. Unless its a tactical model then youve scored a great deal.
 
pics

Eric,

You aren't missing much with the pic. It is really bad, can't even read the rollmark on the slide. It is a GI model 5 inch.

I think the deal was ok. I did see a couple of RIA's new for a little more but I liked the grips and the pawn shop owner is a stand up guy. I have bought other guns from him, so the 280 or so plus taxes was fine with me, especially as he would take the gun back if there was a problem.

As it turns out, the gun is really well broken in. I cycled a couple of the new RIA's and the slides were a little stiff. Per a prior suggestion, I checked out M1911.org, and the customer service sounded great, so I went for the RIA.

Deac
 
TNT!

TNT that is one beautiful gun. I would be afraid to even check it out in case I put one of those knucklehead marks on that treasure.

I must say I bought the used Rock for that reason. This will be a working gun for me, into the truck, into the woods, etc. Get some scratches? meh. Yours is simply beautiful.

Deac
 
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