Rock Island 1911A1

I would look at a Les Baer Premier II .It is there flag ship model that all the rest are based from.I also have one so I am talking about what I do know about.
The price might seem a little high but actually you are getting the best bang for you buck .You will find it a bargain for all you get a hand fitted pistol and out of the box accuracy. You won't need to do anything to make it run.Just shoot the crap out of it and enjoy it.
I don't see how you can recommend a Les Baer when I'm looking for a budget 1911 Haha. If I can't get a decent 1911 for range duty @ $500 I think ill just stick with my XDs
 
I would look at a Les Baer Premier II .It is there flag ship model that all the rest are based from.I also have one so I am talking about what I do know about.
The price might seem a little high but actually you are getting the best bang for you buck .You will find it a bargain for all you get a hand fitted pistol and out of the box accuracy. You won't need to do anything to make it run.Just shoot the crap out of it and enjoy it.

I don't see how you can recommend a Les Baer when I'm looking for a budget 1911 Haha. If I can't get a decent 1911 for range duty @ $500 I think ill just stick with my XDs

That was my thought too. A guy is looking at 500 dollar 1911's and you recommend a 2000 dollar Les Bear ?
You don't have to spend 2000 dollars plus to get a good 1911. I've owned so many different 1911's I would have to really sit , and try to figure out how many exactly. I collected old Colts and Winchesters for quite a few years. My oldest Colt was a U.S ARMY Colt 1911 made in 1918 (pre A1 ). I tore it down completely, replaced the springs, and gave it a thorough cleaning, and it functioned flawlessly. I even carried it for awhile. Granted, it needed a new bushing so the accuracty wasn't outstanding, but it worked...

The Les Baer pistols are nice, but I never took a liking to them. If I was going to blow 2k + on a 1911, I would buy an Ed Brown or a Wilson. Just personal preference.

If the pistol is set up correctly, and you use quality magazines, it will be reliable, and probably more accurate than most people can shoot.

Hands down the most accurate 1911 I ever owned was a Springfield Loaded I bought used. It had a couple little things that bothered me about it, so I sent it in to Springfield. They fixed the little things, and even spent some time tuning it in the custom shop.

Don't get caught up in the, You have to have a Les Baer or similar 1911 to have a good one. It's crap... Buy one you like, shoot it and enjoy it. You can get a bad one no matter who makes it, but it's that way with anything
 
That was my thought too. A guy is looking at 500 dollar 1911's and you recommend a 2000 dollar Les Bear ?
You don't have to spend 2000 dollars plus to get a good 1911. I've owned so many different 1911's I would have to really sit , and try to figure out how many exactly. I collected old Colts and Winchesters for quite a few years. My oldest Colt was a U.S ARMY Colt 1911 made in 1918 (pre A1 ). I tore it down completely, replaced the springs, and gave it a thorough cleaning, and it functioned flawlessly. I even carried it for awhile. Granted, it needed a new bushing so the accuracty wasn't outstanding, but it worked...

The Les Baer pistols are nice, but I never took a liking to them. If I was going to blow 2k + on a 1911, I would buy an Ed Brown or a Wilson. Just personal preference.

If the pistol is set up correctly, and you use quality magazines, it will be reliable, and probably more accurate than most people can shoot.

Hands down the most accurate 1911 I ever owned was a Springfield Loaded I bought used. It had a couple little things that bothered me about it, so I sent it in to Springfield. They fixed the little things, and even spent some time tuning it in the custom shop.

Don't get caught up in the, You have to have a Les Baer or similar 1911 to have a good one. It's crap... Buy one you like, shoot it and enjoy it. You can get a bad one no matter who makes it, but it's that way with anything
No That is not exactly what I was saying. What I am saying is I have seen a lot of $500 RIA at the range that just won't run or be accurate. So than they dump 5-7 hundred into it and than it still won't equal a used $1200 Les Baer. There are not really a whole lot of good pistol smiths that will even work on them. Just do it right the first time even buy a used Kimber ,Springfiled TRP or the pro and you will have a nice pistol to be proud of .
 
I appreciate the advice but I was only willing to go up to $500 or so on this with extra money from my tax return. Going above that isn't going to happen for me at this point. If $500 wont buy me a decent serviceable 1911, ill just wait for the XD45 slim
 
Yes that would be a better bet the XD will run and run. For plastic guns I would look at Glock ,FNH, SPRINGFIELD XD in that price range
 
I appreciate the advice but I was only willing to go up to $500 or so on this with extra money from my tax return. Going above that isn't going to happen for me at this point. If $500 wont buy me a decent serviceable 1911, ill just wait for the XD45 slim

Thats probably good thinking. No sense in spending money on something that may be disapointing. If this is your first 1911, and you get one that doesn't function correctly, it will give you a bad taste, and that would be bad, because the 1911 truly is great, and I will go as far as saying IMHO it is the best pistol ever made.
 
Yes that would be a better bet the XD will run and run. For plastic guns I would look at Glock ,FNH, SPRINGFIELD XD in that price range


I would agree, if you go the polymer, there are a lot of good options for the price range. Glock21, FNP45, XD45, M&P45 all good and around the price range you're looking for.
 
I have always been of a fan of the classic Colt or Kimber. However If your looking for low price and that platform look into Ruger SR1911 or the Taurus 1911. I have heard good things about the Ruger.

I manhandled RIAs and uh...that other philipine made 1991...

I went with the Taurus. It's a little more spendy, but they feel much better in hand IMO, fit and finish are much much better.
 
I would look at a Les Baer Premier II .It is there flag ship model that all the rest are based from.I also have one so I am talking about what I do know about.
The price might seem a little high but actually you are getting the best bang for you buck .You will find it a bargain for all you get a hand fitted pistol and out of the box accuracy. You won't need to do anything to make it run.Just shoot the crap out of it and enjoy it.

If someone says they would like to buy a Honda Civic do you recommend looking as a Corvette?
 
My RIA runs circles around my Kimber Pro Carry II, especially considering the price. I'm not sure how you can recommend a Kimber in good conscience after some of the junk they've been putting out the last few years... for the money RIA is great, especially the "Tactical" version.

I also own Colt 1911s as well, neither the RIA nor the Kimber are up to par with it. But then again, the Colts tend to cost at least twice as much as the RIA.
 
No That is not exactly what I was saying. What I am saying is I have seen a lot of $500 RIA at the range that just won't run or be accurate. So than they dump 5-7 hundred into it and than it still won't equal a used $1200 Les Baer. There are not really a whole lot of good pistol smiths that will even work on them. Just do it right the first time even buy a used Kimber ,Springfiled TRP or the pro and you will have a nice pistol to be proud of .

I have heard horror storied about Kimbers.

IOW, all the arguments you are using about reliability and accuracy, could just as easily be said about Kimber or some other big name companies. And accuracy IMO is a lot more about operator than the gun itself.
 
I have heard horror storied about Kimbers.

IOW, all the arguments you are using about reliability and accuracy, could just as easily be said about Kimber or some other big name companies. And accuracy IMO is a lot more about operator than the gun itself.
I don't own a Kimber but I have been around them .There is a lot of Kimber bashers on the web sites.I don't agree,but one thing for sure Kimber is leeps amd bounds better than ANY RIA.
 
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I have the RIA 2011. It's been a great pistol. I have put 800 rounds through it at this point, and a generous mix of ball and hollow point even some Tula without a single FTE /FTF. Its accurate as any other 1911 I've shot. I replaced the front sight with a DP fiber optic. Oh and FYI the STI Spartan is made in the Phillipines by RIA. Look it up on STI's website.
 
I don't own a Kimber but I have been around them .There is a lot of Kimber bashers on the web sites.I don't agree,but one thing for sure Kimber is leeps amd bounds better than ANY RIA.

for the price of a Kimber and the stories I have heard, I would never buy one. I'd drop the money into a Nighthawk or something that has a proven record of hard use reliability.
 
for the price of a Kimber and the stories I have heard, I would never buy one. I'd drop the money into a Nighthawk or something that has a proven record of hard use reliability.

O-yea they are over priced .someone has to pay for all there adds in every mag. you are right for a few more hundred you can get a much better pistol.
 
I also own Colt 1911s as well, neither the RIA nor the Kimber are up to par with it. But then again, the Colts tend to cost at least twice as much as the RIA.

Must be a 70 series Colt. I've yet to see a newer one (besides the Delta Elites) that were what I would consider worth the money.

I have heard horror storied about Kimbers.

IOW, all the arguments you are using about reliability and accuracy, could just as easily be said about Kimber or some other big name companies. And accuracy IMO is a lot more about operator than the gun itself.

I've yet to have 1 issue out of my Kimber Custom II. Fixed sights, and still groups well at 30-35 yards. Runs smooth as silk, when I had the full length guide rod and when I installed the GI.

Yes, Kimber has put out a few turds, their external extractor model never worked well, their Polymer Gold wasn't that great, and their dedicates 22s are well, junk.

Every brand puts out models that don't work, or one that slips through QC, NO company is excluded.

Colt, Kimber, Smith and Wesson, Remington, Weatherby, Beretta, Ruger, Mossberg, Taurus, RIA........

Every company has a horror story. It just seems that with RIA there is more bad than good.
 
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