1911 Advice

Of the two you are asking about, the RIA would be my choice, although the Ultra is not full size.

Otherwise, I'll take a Series 70 any day, week, month, year.
 
Sounds like you know the answer if the Colt felt right. You're gonna look for the prancing pony and not really be satisfied till you see it.

My first 1911 was a Colt commander. Still my favorite.

The Colt 1911 A1 is a fine shooter and you could happily shoot it straight out of the box for the rest of your life. The ambi safety is a pretty simple modification and many get a beaver tail grip safety. And all of your new range buddies will have plenty of ideas for upgrades.
 
Since when? Assembled =/= "made." SA is a warranty servicing and marketing company for badged engineered imports across most of their product line.

Springfield is now producing their own 1911s beyond just importing and assembling them. That's according to the 1911 forums and reps at Springfield. You're welcome to not believe them.
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Springfield broke their deal with Imbel a couple of years ago, at least.
I got my RO exactly two years ago, and it was made-in-America.

Of course, a lot of older Springfields that used Imbel forgings were considered "made" in America due to the amount of machining and finishing done here, so there are lots of Springfields that don't have the Imbel or Made in Brazil markings, but Springfield no longer imports their 1911s, in whatever form, from Imbel.
 
I have handled the ruger sr1911, my friend's kimber, and a Vietnam-era colt that a family friend has. The only one I have ever shot, however, is the 1991a1 I mentioned. I liked the feel of the ruger a lot, just would prefer to not have stainless. Though that particular one looks good stainless imho.

Oh, and I have shot the sig p938 for what that's worth. I know it's not really a 1911, but it is 1911-esque in its design.
 
I'm hit or miss on stainless myself and the 938 feels a lot like a 1911.

I'd look for a shop that has the Springfield or the Rock Island in stock and see how they feel for you. I suspect that, other than the grips, they won't feel drastically different. I've yet to hold a 1911 that feels noticeably better than my Springfield. Some have been looser fitting and some tighter, but that doesn't mean any were "better". I would expect that the RI will be a looser fit gun than the Springfield, that's typically been my experience.
 
Having owned both, the SA you are mentioning is a great deal. I would caution you that a Colt is typically a better gun, imo.


SA-$730

Colt 1991 blue - $730

Which one was cheaper again? Those prices are from Grabagun and yes, they are reputable.
 
I've owned both. Definitely go with the Springfield. The Mil-Spec model is very much worth the money. The Rock Island gave me issues. I sent it back for FRTB. It was reliable when I received it back but was less accurate than the Springfield. The Rock was also picky with magazines, the Springfield wasn't. That's a sign of quality, in my experience.

For your first 1911, you want something that will give you faith in the 1911.
 
I have had two Rock Islands (I gave one to my son on his 21st birthday) and they have been as reliable as any other 1911 I have ever owned, and I have had a bunch over the years.

My RI compact is one of my carry guns and it feeds hollowpoints 100% reliably. I have done nothing to it besides shoot it with an occasional cleaning thrown in here and there.

That being said, I am a Colt guy and if I was going to get my first and maybe only 1911, I would get a Colt.
 
IMO a Colt is not much out of your range, I'd save a little longer and get a Colt.

Springfield and Ruger make a decent 1911 as well, and they might be a few buck cheaper than Colt.
 
Rock Island is the best bang for the buck plus a lifetime warranty no matter who originally bought it.
 
The two good 1911s I have are a Springfield GI, and a Norinco.
The Norinco may be hard to find.

Sorry, no experience with a RIA. But I do hear good things.

Can I recommend that you have a left-handed safety installed,
if you are a southpaw? Because I had a ambi-safety on my Para,
and I had it removed, because frankly, it sucked. In order to keep the
safety from shearing off, they "improved" the gun, by making the safety
action so light, it defeated the purpose of a safety. It was constantly
switching itself to fire.
 
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joe-lumber said:
Save your money and buy a Colt. Even if you don't like it they hold their value and you can sell it later. But I think you will be pleased. Even the used ones are great.
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This. If you like the Colt, nothing else will do. Sure, a Ruger or a Springfield will be a 1911 style pistol, but you'll forever wish it was the Colt.

The Colt Competition Model can be had in the $800 range for a blued one if you look around. It will need an ambi-safety added for you. But you'll have The Pony, and you'll never wish it was anything else. This is my .45 ACP Competition Model with a set of double-diamonds in Green Lantern from VZ Grips.



It shoots as good as it looks, and aside from me learning how to reload SWC bullets for a semi-auto pistol, it has proven to be very reliable.



I also have a companion to it in the form of a stainless Competition Model in .38 Super. It shoots equally well. However the stainless version is going to run closer to $900-1000 out the door. And I like the matte bluing of the new Series 70 Competition Models better than stainless. Though both beat the ugly spray on matte black finish Colt was using on the "blue" Series 80 Competition Models.

 
Hi RickB,

You're right.

I've recently bought a Loaded Model that was "Proudly Made in the USA."

If a SA 1911-A1 serial number begins with NM, it's of USA production.
 
P-990,

I own a Colt. It's a good gun, but I can't say it's better than Springfield Armory.

I also own an S&W 1911. It's an excellent gun.
 
SA1911 said:
If a SA 1911-A1 serial number begins with NM, it's of USA production.
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Not true.

If it dates to more than a couple of years ago (which is when SA ended their relationship with Imbel in Brazil), the frames and slides were still made by Imbel in Brazil, and shipped to the U.S. for final assembly. The technicality that "more than 50 percent" of the labor (who knows how they calculate that) was done in the U.S. allowed them to mark those guns "Made in USA." It met the letter of the law, but it was basically a lie.

Now they claim their 1911s are made completely in the USA, but we know they don't have their own forge, and as far as I know they haven't revealed who makes their slides and frames now that Imbel doesn't. Springfield isn't talking. Best guess from multiple people who follow this stuff is that the slides and frames are probably made for SA by Daewoo ... in Korea. But they're still marked "Made in USA."

At least Rock Island is honest about where their guns are made. I don't have a problem with Springfield's guns (other than the fact they all seem to shoot several inches below point of aim at 25 yards), but I have no respect for the company because of the way they dance around the truth about where their guns are made, and how old the company is(n't).
 
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