Custom 1911- ria frame

T

The Harmonica Kid

New member
Hey gents the local gunsmith is a friend of mine, and he's offered to build a 1911 in 10mm for me. Problem is, the only 10mm available for cheap are the rIa 10mm. Now I know ria has a great rep right now, but being imports from the Phillipines is the steel in the frame/slide worth using?

Guys please note that I'm not sinking my life savings into a 6 grand le Baer or something. This is a lcoal job, that's more a chance for my friend to practice his skills than to much, and counting cost of gun it shouldn't be more than 11-1200. He said it would be to expensive to buy a 45 to convert to 10mm. So: has anyone had extensive work done on an ria? Any opinions?
 
I would think they wouldnt have a good reputation if their steel wasnt good enough to hold up to a 10mm....

but I cant tell what your wanting, are you wanting to modify an existing gun or build from scratch and looking for a frame?
 
I have 3 RIA 1911s. I like them and think they are great performers for the price point.

I'd love to have a $5000 1911, but I also would rather have 4 or 5 1911s and a few other guns for that price. I long ago realized my abilities do not require the accuracy of that price point, and lower price point 1911s can be made to perform reliably enough to make me confident as a CCW choice.


Is he going to use a 1911 frame already cut for the 10mm ramped barrel? or is he going to get a .45acp frame and cut it for the 10mm ramped barrel?

Is he going to buy the 10mm slide from Armscorp? or is he going to spec a different source for the slide?

The only concern I've really heard of with the RIA 10mm was the reverse plug breaking on the 10mm 1911s.

if it is like my 4.25" mid-sized, the reverse plug is not a standard length for 1911s of that slide length.

I have 3 RIA and would love to add one or two more- including a 10mm. Alas, I am in California, so a 10mm RIA would require me to buy a .45acp RIA and convert it myself.

Good luck!
 
I would have him build a 6 inch longslide with an Armscor slide,barrel. Better yet, have RIA do it for you. Arnel is very experienced and can build you a hell of gun for the $$$. Just give Rock Island a call in Nevada.
 
I've got custom 1911s, I wouldn't use an RIA as a base gun but if that's what you're choosing to work with then just address the build.
What is your vision for this gun, what are you going for? How do you intend it to be better or different from original? If your budget is $1100-1200 including the base gun ($600ish), that doesn't leave much to work with. You can eat up $500 in parts in no time then you still have to cover the cost of fitting everything, any metal work (checkering, etc), sights, finish.
 
Are you paying for labor?

If he is doing this to ply / perfect his trade why not start with a caspian frame / slide and build from the ground up? If labor is free 1200 in parts equals a pretty decent set up.

I'd rather have a plain caspian set built up than a 600 RIA plus 600 in parts. Obviously if labor is being billed then the equation is far diffirent.

Keep in mind though you may not care now should you want to sell either down the road value can be hard to get back on custom builds by "unknown" smiths regardless of if you go the RIA route or caspian though caspain prob appeals more to some
 
I'm not paying for labor, and I don't intend to sell. Odds are this will be the only custom 1911 I ever get, and the man really is a close friend
 
The more I read, the more I want to know what is going to make this a 'custom' 1911?

Some people have different ideas of what 'custom' means.

Is he going to checker parts?

Or is his 'custom' going to be blending the grip safety to a very smooth fit, and fine-tuning the other parts?

Will the 'custom' part be changing grips and sights, or changing almost everything except frame/slide/barrel?

What some call 'custom', others refer to as 'personalizing'.

I'd call grips and sights personalizing the gun. Same with refinishing.

I'd call changing the safeties, bushings, trigger group and other parts out, in addition to checkering and fitting barrel to slide, and slide to frame, and barrel lug to VIS, and barrel lug to slide stop to be part of a true 'custom' gun.

So, what do you and your friend have in mind when you think of this being 'custom'?

There is no right answer. Personalizing is fun, as is true of customization. Personalizing a 1911 is a lot cheaper. One of my RIA is a custom gun. The other two are personalized. Heck, most of my handguns are personalized.

I am just trying to get a handle on what the goal is.

As to buying a Caspian Slide/Frame, that is an awesome prospect, but the slide, frame and barrel combo alone can cost up to $800, before finishes are applied. That doesn't leave much room for all of the other parts necessary to make it go 'bang' every time.

Caspian makes great stuff: I have one. If you get a Caspian platform to start with, you won't want to put mil-spec parts in it. You'll want Wilson/LesBaer/EdBrown/EGW/ or similar quality. That means the odds are your total expense will be between $1200 and $1500 with the Caspian route.

But, it will be truly custom-by everyone's definition.

I say do what you can afford to do and want to do. A RIA 10mm will work well. It can be made into a better gun than as sold off the shelf. It will not be respected the same as a Caspian build, but it will work very well, and you are the only one that needs to like it.
 
By your definition sir I would say between personalizing and a truly customicing. I'm not just swapping grips and sights and my smith will be doing some fitting of many parts. But he's not buying every part for a Caspian slide and frame while fitting Bo Mar sights and a nm barrel. We're basically taking anything we don't like or think we can improve on a 1911 and fitting better parts, while tuning the rest. And while this may not seem like much to the huge 1911 guys here, custom anything is rare around here and the fact my friend is doing it means this is a big deal to me and him
 
Thanks for the clarification.

Custom means different things to different people. I don't think there is one 'right' definition [and everyone else is wrong]. I just realized we might start to be describing different goals, which can lead to confusion in our discussion.

What you are describing sound like a great project. It is what I did when I first started being nibbled by the 1911 bug, back around 2002. My first project was as you described.

Over time, it became more involved. And then more involved.

I am just letting you know that this could become a contagious condition, and this may just be the start of the fun!:D
 
Oh yeah. Don't get me wrong I'd love to start with a Caspian frame and have one of the top smith's in the country fit high quality parts all through out

Then get a really nice blueing on it.....

Put some stag grips on......

Get it engraved.......

Tooled holster.......

Damm there I go

As much as I'd love all that great stuff, I can't afford all that on a grunts paycheck. This build will be just fine for now
 
Now this is just my personal opinion, and I own an RIA 10mm.

For the price of the gun and the cost in just parts, I would purchase a Dan Wesson RZ10 and be done with it.

All the good parts are inside the DW, and at some point, you want to lay some color on it, you can do that as finances become available.
 
That Dan Wesson looks VERY Nice!

I can see the logic in spending all of that money at once to get it right, out the door.

However, I also remember when [like, today] shelling out $500 was a huge investment, and the idea of $1500 was overwhelming.

I remember buying my gun. And then, two or three months later, buying the next $150 in parts. And then doing it again a few months later.

You are right: when all is said/done, it is possible that the same dollar value will be spent. Especially as the RIA may require a refinish of the gun, in addition to all the parts, and the DW you linked is stainless steel.

However, for some it is easier to spend money every 2 months to get it, than it is to wait a year to spend all of that at once.

So, I understand both points. And wish I could buy that Dan Wesson.

BTW, HarmonicaKid [Once upon the time in the west reference?], I didn't pay anyone to do it. I took that long and learned to do it all myself, as I wanted to learn the skill. It would have cost more to have someone else do all of it.

Enjoy your 10mm, whenever you get it!
 
Ive heard that RIA has been making amazing guns for the masses

And ive also heard about how they attend to their customers, I have a few 1911 various manufacturers, but RIA really got my attention on how much they really value their customers. I hope your able to build your 10mm. Im working on a sub compact project and im looking for RIA slides and components.
 
I would reconsider the Caspian frame and slide. I bought an SA loaded to customize.....it only has 2 SA parts now....the frame and slide!
 
datsunrdster67 said:
And ive also heard about how they attend to their customers, I have a few 1911 various manufacturers, but RIA really got my attention on how much they really value their customers. I hope your able to build your 10mm. Im working on a sub compact project and im looking for RIA slides and components.
Click to expand...

I have had great luck with ria service. However, i don't know how much service they will give on a frame you build up.

Generally, when you start swapping out parts on the 1911, the manufacturer will consider the warranty void.

They can't guarantee that their parts/gun will work with whatever we install. We may not do it right, and then expect them to fix our errors.

So, if you are getting a RIA as the platform due to warranty/service, and you plan significant changes, don't be surprised if you run into more issues than i did.
 
I understand wanting a custom 1911 done by a gunsmith friend.
I have one my smith is working on for me.
Base gun is a norinco
Colt nm barrel, bushing, 2 pc guide rod, bomar cut adjustable night sights, adjustable stop trigger, oversize saftey lever, commander hammer, beavertail, lowered/flared ejection port, beveled mag well, and parkerized.

It will be a nice shooter when done, and I'll enjoy owning and using it. I'm not concerned about warranty or resale value on it.

So if its for you, and you plan on having a good example of his work, sure, why not?
Rock island makes a lot of 1911's (parts, frames/slides) for folks other than themselves.
 
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I have worked with a Caspian frame.They are very nice.I understand why folks are recommending them.

I've worked with some Philipine frames,including RIA.I think there are good,sound stuff.

From what I observed,they were a better product than the lower line mil spec Springfield Armory.

I did not have confidence in the cast critical small parts.I replaced them with a Cylinder and Slide hammer,sear,disconnect,a lightweight longer trigger,an Ed Brown slide stop,extractor,...etc.And a pin kit.

I have not seen or handled a 10MM RIA.I read an article about them a while back.IIRC, RIA made some modifications to the basic 1911 design to beef it up for the 10mm.
As I recall,a wider slide for more mass,etc.
For that reason...the R+D to put together an integrated 10 mm pkg,I would think the RIA complete 10 mm handgun is a better choice than just getting standard 1911 components,such as Caspian,to make the build.

Remember,most 1911 manufacturers have not sustained a 10mm offering.Could be a reason.

Once again,I have thought about 10 mm on a 1911,but I have not built one.

I'd suggest,follow your plan !! Have fun!!

I'd just upgrade critical small parts,and "blueprint" a few things.

Good luck!
 
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