Would most find RIA 1911 9mm more accurate than most polymer

The frame material has little or nothing to do with accuracy. Many polymer guns have excellent ergonomics and a few have excellent triggers.
 
In response to "Triggers are important, but they're not the only key consideration," you replied:

jimbob86 said:
The Good Colonel would disagree.

THE Key Consideration, having more bearing than any other on practical accuracy, is the trigger.

I'd rather have a hunting rifle that shoots 4MOA out of a machine rest with a good trigger than one that shoots 1MOA out of a rest with a long, heavy, gritty one ..... of what use is precision when you can't press and get results NOW, while the sights are aligned?

Sure, humans are very adaptable, and with enough time and money and ammo, we can adapt to crappy triggers ..... but being human, our time (if not our money and ammo stashes) are limited: Life is too short to waste any of it learning to deal with crappy triggers ....... but if that's your thing, that's cool too: some people juggle geese .....
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This discussion was about semi-auto handguns until you mentioned hunting rifles. Let's stick with semi-auto handguns... You seem to be saying that if the barrel and slide aren't consistently aligned with each shot, a great trigger will compensate for that lack of consistent barrel/sight alignment. And if you're out of "point-shooting" range, a great trigger will compensate for horrible sights. And if the gun has both inconsistent lockup and horrible sights, a good trigger will somehow offset those problems...

What you describe above is more about your personal preferences and practices with a given weapon than a gun's ability to demonstrate practical accuracy.

I have a friend who seems able to shoot small groups with almost any reasonably competent gun he picks up. Less than optimal triggers don't seem to be an issue. A couple of times I've let him shoot one of my "new to me" guns before I did, just to understand what that gun might be able to do. Knowing what HE can do with the gun, however, has helped me understand whether a given gun has more potential than I might quickly appreciate or tap.

I like good triggers, too, and if a gun's trigger can't be easily fixed, I generally get a different gun. But that said, I still argue that it takes more than just a good trigger to get good results.

Trigger, sights, ergonomics, consistent barrel/slide alignment and good technique all matter when you talk about PRACTICAL ACCURACY. It's hard to point to any one of them as being the most important factor -- although I suspect that GOOD TECHNIQUE might be the most important variable... Caliber may also have to be considered, depending on barrel length and how the gun is to be used.

Enhancing the crappy trigger on a 1MOA gun may be far more practical than trying to improve the accuracy of 4MOA gun with a great trigger, but if the shooters uses poor technique, the better gun probably doesn't matter that much.
 
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A USP 9mm and a 1911 9mm are pretty close. On any given day one might outshoot the other. Most of my time is spent trying to correct myself, not the firearm. And that's why it pays to buy good stuff. There's no need to second guess the gun.
 
Walt, my point was pertaining to equipment choice. The OP was asking about equipment..... specificly "For most shooters" ..... with most shooters not having a lot of experience, IME, I gave my opinion with that in mind.

Skill is paramount. Good technique will build skill faster than poor technique (and if the technique is poor enough, skill may never come) ..... there are shooters that with enough (usually a lot) practice, can hit a man sized target from the hip at 15 yards ten times out of ten ...... but someone using a modern two handed stance and utilizing the sights will get there much faster .... similarly, with enough practice, a guy with a flintlock pennsylvania rifle could learn to hit a man sized target out to 300 yards, if his technique was sound, but the same guy with a scoped bolt gun will get those results sooner .....

My point was this: the learning curve for the 1911's SAO trigger is easier than that of most any other auto pistol out there.
 
OP here.

I don't think I left ambiguity in my question, but I was wrong.

All things being about equal (price, trigger action if you want), would a cheap RIA tactical 9mm show most shooters better patterns than a comparable polymer. I don't think a H&K qualifies as comparable due to price.

You are right though, material of the grip doesn't matter in my question. Compare it to a CZ or a FS92. I am asking if the 1911 just is easier to shoot and therefore a better range/target gun than an average glock, walther, xd, etc.
 
I am asking if the 1911 just is easier to shoot and therefore a better range/target gun than an average glock, walther, xd, etc.
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IME, new shooters do better with a light single action trigger (either thumbing a DA revolver back, using a 1911 style gun or a SA revolver) than any other. It's easier to keep the sights on target while pressing the trigger than with longer triggers ..... as I explained above, with enough practice, most anybody can master anything ...... but the learning curve is steeper with longer, heavier triggers ......
 
I am not a fan of RIA 1911s. Get a Colt.

Polymer guns shoot just fine. My Ruger SR45 will outshoot any RIA 1911 ever built.

I love 1911s and own many. Just sayin' ...
 
..Would most shooters be more accurate at the range with the (cheap) RIA 1911 tactical 9mm than most of the 9mm polymer guns out there, all things being equal?..
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The short answer is very likely yes. For many of the reasons others have mentioned, foremost the trigger, folks generally shoot a 1911 well.
 
All things being about equal (price, trigger action if you want), would a cheap RIA tactical 9mm show most shooters better patterns than a comparable polymer. I don't think a H&K qualifies as comparable due to price.
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There's no real answer to that question because there are too many variables besides just the make of the guns

People generally shoot best with the gun that fits THEM the best
 
I would say yes to the original question of this thread, although the Browning HP and CZ75 clones are very accurate for the same reasons. YMMV.
 
As long as the trigger on the RIA isn't ridiculously bad, I would say yes, the 1911-pattern trigger is probably easier for most shooters to use. Especially for newer shooters or folks with poor technique.

I've said this many times whenever people say that the strength of a good revolver is its inherent accuracy over an autoloader: If I lopped the hammer spurs off of my S&Ws and forced people to shoot them DA, suddenly my Glocks would become more accurate than the revolvers. Why? Trigger management. The lighter, shorter trigger is easier to learn to use, and it's all relative. If you're used to firing a standard H&K or Ruger DA trigger (sorry, they feel the same to me... :p ), a Glock has an excellent short, light trigger. And a 1911 is world's better than all of those.

(The flip-side being, if you can learn to manage a DA revolver well and shoot good groups with it, you won't complain about a trigger unless it's truly horrible.)
 
It will mainly boil down the the Indian not the arrow. Even guns at the RIA price point are going to be more inherently accurate than the shooter.

It is more about the shooters interface with the gun then it is about the inherent accuracy of said gun. IMHO
 
show most shooters better patterns
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Most shooters lol.

Many of the shooters I see it's hard to even distinguish a pattern at all.

I would say that there will be no clear cut winner with a large enough group of shooters, some will do better with a Glock or XD type trigger some will do better with a 1911.
 
I love my 1911s but, and there always is a but in life, a good shooter with a Glock will outshoot a poor or average shooter with a Wilson! I promise you!!!:eek:
 
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I have owned a RIA Tactical 9mm for several years, it has been great and I would encourage anyone in the market for a 1911 9mm to look at a RIA. Honestly, for the the money they are hard to beat. As to accuracy mine shoots high. Are they as accurate as a polymer 9mm, depending on the polymer pistol you're shooting I would say it would fall in the middle. My brother has a glock and it is much more accurate than my RIA. One thing to keep in mind, the RIA trigger is MUCH better than the Glock trigger. The Glock trigger is not good. If you are looking for a 1911 9mm for accuracy I would steer you towards a S&W 1911 9mm Pro Series. I shoot competitions with mine at my local pistol range and over 2 years I have 4 trophies hanging on the wall; 2 of them using the S&W. I hope that helps. Good Luck.
 
The ease of trigger control is definitely important in determining whether a gun is "more accurate" for a particular shooter. 1911's have a fantastic trigger mechanism in my experience, but are not inherently anymore mechanically accurate than other designs. However, if you are looking for a pistol that is enjoyable to shoot then a 1911 is certainly a good start.
 
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