Rock Island Armory 1911's in 9mm are here.

[Guest CK1]

FYI, RIA 9mm GI & Tacticals are available finally and starting to show up... The 1911 in 9mm is getting even harder to resist... They're running around $430+ (600 from some goofballs on gunjoker), Bellshire will have 'em at $500 and change OTD shipping in a week or so and Centerfire and a few others are already sold out and backordered... The 9mm STI Spartan is probably worth the extra $150 if even only for the harder STI sear and hammer to hold a trigger job better, but since the RIA is the base gun and can be added to easily just like any other 1911, at these prices a 9mm 1911 for the Everyman seems to finally be a reality...

For those that care this is good news, getting a gun that'll run in this format up until now has been about double what these cost.

[Mykltn]

A 1911 in anything other than .45ACP just seems wrong.

[Dolomite_supafly]

Are they available in 38 Super?

Are they "in spec" as far as the fitment of aftermarket parts?

Thanks

Dolomite

[Guest bkelm18]

Yes RIA does make .38Super 1911s.

[Smith]

I just don't get it. If you want a fullsize steel framed 9mm get a Hi-Power. My understanding is that 9mm 1911's have had continuous problems with reliability and you're limited on capacity. Only pluses I see is the trigger and price.

[Ebow1]

9mm Hi-Powers cost a lot more then $430.

[deerslayer]

I just don't get it. If you want a fullsize steel framed 9mm get a Hi-Power. My understanding is that 9mm 1911's have had continuous problems with reliability and you're limited on capacity. Only pluses I see is the trigger and price.

A full size 9mm 1911 is mainly used for competition. A 9mm 1911 that will run is usually preferable to a 9mm Hi Power in a competition setting for various reasons--trigger (especially reset), wider availability of aftermarket parts--sights, holsters, etc, and familiarity. A lot of competition shooters who buy 9mm 1911s already have 1911s in other calibers--there's little or no learning curve when you're not changing platforms. Capacity in competition is often not an issue--in IDPA, all 9mm guns are limited to 10 rounds in the magazine, and in USPSA, most 9mm 1911s will compete in the single stack division. Those who haven't had the chance to play with a tuned 9mm 1911 don't know what they are missing.

[willis68]

A full size 9mm 1911 is mainly used for competition. A 9mm 1911 that will run is usually preferable to a 9mm Hi Power in a competition setting for various reasons--trigger (especially reset), wider availability of aftermarket parts--sights, holsters, etc, and familiarity. A lot of competition shooters who buy 9mm 1911s already have 1911s in other calibers--there's little or no learning curve when you're not changing platforms. Capacity in competition is often not an issue--in IDPA, all 9mm guns are limited to 10 rounds in the magazine, and in USPSA, most 9mm 1911s will compete in the single stack division. Those who haven't had the chance to play with a tuned 9mm 1911 don't know what they are missing.

The same can be said about the .45 1911. and to have that pistol "tuned" as you put it, that can dramatically change the price of this pistol. I would never own a 1911 unless it was a .45 it just seems wrong to me as well

[Guest 73challenger]

The same can be said about the .45 1911. and to have that pistol "tuned" as you put it, that can dramatically change the price of this pistol. I would never own a 1911 unless it was a .45 it just seems wrong to me as well

Is a AR in anything but 5.56 also wrong?

[willis68]

to each their own:)

[gnmwilliams]

It'll be cheaper to shoot that's for sure!

[Magiccarpetrides]

I might get one for the GF down the road(9mm)...me im more of a .45 guy.

[I_Like_Pie]

So why would someone get a 9mm 1911 over a 38super?

I could understand for the non-reloaders who typically don't shoot very much, but that extra case capacity really makes the 38 super a superior chambering for that gun.

[Magiccarpetrides]

So why would someone get a 9mm 1911 over a 38super?

I could understand for the non-reloaders who typically don't shoot very much, but that extra case capacity really makes the 38 super a superior chambering for that gun.

I would assume price of ammo and recoil.

[deerslayer]

The same can be said about the .45 1911. and to have that pistol "tuned" as you put it, that can dramatically change the price of this pistol. I would never own a 1911 unless it was a .45 it just seems wrong to me as well

Having it tuned by sending it to a smith? Yes, that can get expensive. Enlisting the help of a couple local 1911 whisperers, however, can get the shooter good results for a small amount of money if the problems aren't huge.

I recently picked up an STI Trojan. This is my fourth 1911. What I am finding is that some 1911s don't necessarily have to be constantly "tuned"; just the right combination of parts, springs, etc. has to be found. Once the right recipe is discovered, the gun is fairly trouble-free.

[willis68]

Having it tuned by sending it to a smith? Yes, that can get expensive. Enlisting the help of a couple local 1911 whisperers, however, can get the shooter good results for a small amount of money if the problems aren't huge.

I recently picked up an STI Trojan. This is my fourth 1911. What I am finding is that some 1911s don't necessarily have to be constantly "tuned"; just the right combination of parts, springs, etc. has to be found. Once the right recipe is discovered, the gun is fairly trouble-free.

Absolutely correct, I just do not know if the magazines for the 9 mill have been perfected most people that I know of that have owned a 9 mill 1911 have had issues with them and sold them

[Guest CK1]

Absolutely correct, I just do not know if the magazines for the 9 mill have been perfected most people that I know of that have owned a 9 mill 1911 have had issues with them and sold them

Ahh, the mags can be the catch in 9mm 1911 land... seems the Tripp Cobra's, Wilson ETM's, or Metalform/Springfield's in 9mm are either the holy grail or pieces of crap depending on who you talk to... depends on the gun, from what I've seen/heard the Tripp's seem to have the most fans.

As for who'd want a 1911 in 9mm... a shooter would. You can shoot twice as much for the same dollar, that's a big deal, it means instead of hitting the range and just getting warmed up doing what you normally like to do, you have the freedom to burn some rounds working on stuff you're not already good at... which is something most have a hard time doing once the ammo starts getting low, and while the lessened recoil may not be very different depending on one's loads, you can certainly shoot more rounds in 9 at a stretch without feeling any punishment.

The nonsense that a 1911 will only run in .45 is well, nonsense... ask any good gunsmith (I did), over the hundred years the platform has been around there has been remarkably little effort put into getting the 9 to run right in the first 90 years or so, it's only been in like the last decade or so that smiths have really started to have it figured out... 2 or 3 changes to the .45 platform and it's in business as a 9. Besides a different breech-face and barrel, mostly it's just a lighter recoil spring and then mags that will feed right and fill the extra space front to back left over from the longer .45's length. For a time with a 9mm 1911 it was thought that a ramped barrel was a must or it wouldn't run, but that is even turning out to not necessarily be true, maybe Browning's original design has more legs than first thought...

IMO, for many guys the .45 over a 9 is some sort of macho thing, or treating the 1911 as some tradition that cannot be broken with in any way seems just foolish... when you hear this kind of stuff, sorry to say, usually just means you're talking to someone who's more collector than shooter.

Edited May 15, 2010 by CK1

[I_Like_Pie]

IMO, for many guys the .45 over a 9 is some sort of macho thing, or treating the 1911 as some tradition that cannot be broken with in any way seems just foolish... when you hear this kind of stuff, sorry to say, usually just means you're talking to someone who's more collector than shooter.

Actually 45 is much easier to reload for.

Much easier to cast bullets for.

Is a much lower pressure cartridge,

less prone to setback,

less likely to lead your barrel, and at the same time has more surface area to engage rifling,

accepts a much larger variation of powders.

It does take up more room than 9mm....will give you that.

[Dolomite_supafly]

The reason I asked about 38 Super is because it will be the easiest to convert to 7.62x25 Tokarev. With a necked cartridge feeding shouldn't be an issue. The rim diameters are withing .007" and OAL is within .03 so it is definitely doable.

When I get the Tokarev 1911 built it will no doubt be a carry gun. The round is an amazing round that has very few equals in the auto pistol world.

I have actually checked into having a all steel 9mm 1911 built. I liked th idea of having a light recoiling pistol to both shoot and carry.

Dolomite

[I_Like_Pie]

The reason I asked about 38 Super is because it will be the easiest to convert to 7.62x25 Tokarev. With a necked cartridge feeding shouldn't be an issue. The rim diameters are withing .007" and OAL is within .03 so it is definitely doable.

Dolomite

A 7.62x25 Tokarev 1911 would certainly be unique!!!! Would be a flame throwin SOB too. Cool idea and you would be the only one at the range with it! The problem is finding good bullets...they tend to be overpenetrators.

[Guest spoolie]

It'll be cheaper to shoot that's for sure!

It cost me .08 per round....but I reload, and btw I need brass if anyone has some to spare.

[timcalhoun]

For a time with a 9mm 1911 it was thought that a ramped barrel was a must or it wouldn't run, but that is even turning out to not necessarily be true, maybe Browning's original design has more legs than first thought...

Well, ramped vs unramped was never about reliability with competent 1911 builders. It was about case pressure. The 38 super that has about the same case pressure as a 9 or 40 would often experience case head separation. In the 80's when 38 super took off in IPSC the guns were built with non ramped barrels and when the gun went boom (in a bad way), it was commonly/jokingly known as "super face". The problem was multiplied by reusing cases for reloading. The fully supported chamber that a ramped barrel offers eliminated this problem. I would recomend a ramped barrel for 9 too or 40.

[redstategunnut]

Is a AR in anything but 5.56 also wrong?

Yes.

[Guest CK1]

Think I'm going to buy an STI Spartan 9mm, it uses the RIA as a base gun and the more I think it over I believe you may more than get your money's worth in having an actual STI-affiliated Texan doing the fitting and to get the harder S-6 hammer and S-7 sear... though it could be argued the Spartan's sights are better than the RIA's, and to some even the "STI" name itself justifies the $150 or so more than the RIA.

The RIA's are rock solid as I know from experience, seems pretty obvious too that STI doesn't want to put out bad guns, even ones in the $600 range.

As for better sights, I almost wish guns came without sights like ski's or snowboards do without bindings, the Spartan's are better if you're still trying to find what you like I guess, but I'm not sure what I'll do in my case as I'm pretty set in running the same .115 front with a .150 rear notch fixed sights like on my Glocks which seems to be a thicker ratio than what is run on Bomar equipped guns and 1911's in general (my guess is I'll end up getting the notch widened by a gunsmith and look for a thinner front too... or maybe they're out there).

No ramped barrel with these mind you, which has me a little hesitant, but with Tripp and Wilson mags I've read reports of 1000rds without a failure which is what I'm used to seeing with Glocks, and wish I saw more of with 1911's.

I'm very weary of getting sucked into trying to get a 1911 to run how I want it to, and getting one to run in 9mm for short-money is like asking for a double-miracle, that said, the power of the crisp-single-action side of the force is strong.

(Also, thanks to timcalhoun mentioning it, I now know what an Aftec Extractor is, and believe that bit of info may come in handy if even as only a reminder that not all of the 1911 aftermarket is based on prettier grips and the annihilation of parts that are MIM, some things are out there only to gain performance... and hearing fellow austrian-plastic-true-believer deerslayer say he digs his STI Trojan and now may think some 1911's can run well without constant tinkering is encouraging... but beyond moving to a more "performance" extractor and maybe a trigger job, I'm not "tuning" it... if it doesn't work out it doesn't work out.)

Edited May 17, 2010 by CK1

[Guest bkelm18]

If you don't like them, don't buy them. Fairly simple concept.