springfield range officer ?'s

[zachkuby87]

Ok guys ive always loved 1911's I only own one as of now. Its an ria tactical in .45. its fun i like it a lot. i bought a few nice holsters to carry it with. but it hasnt proved to be reliable enough for me trust it enough to carry. not to mention im always looking for a new excuse to buy a gun. So my excuse is that my ria isnt reliable enough of a 1911 for carry so i need a different 1911 that will be reliable enough.. I dont mind the weight at all i prefer to carry full size pistols. my carry guns as of now are my g20 or xdm 4.5 in .45 of course...
my question to you is how well does the range officer perform? would you carry it yourself? are there any 1911's similar in price that will be better suited for carry? i personally dont like the super high end 1911's with full melts,checkering everywhere and expensive grips. i just dont care. i want a 1911 that will go bang everytime i pull the trigger that is my #1 concern. so let me know what you think

[Officer's Match]

The Range Officer was built specifically for your needs, and is the best option on the market for said needs.

[dondulah]

Would agree with the above post, I would just switch the sights.

[thedudeabides]

Great gun, lose the sights.

[zachkuby87]

awesome.. i was looking at the sights and was thinking maybe just replacing the front sight with something bright... what is involved with swapping sights on the ro i mean i know with my tupperware i just pretty much need a sight pusher. what about the 1911? it looks a little more complicated than that

[bofe954]

Why not just get a parked loaded with fixed sights?

[zachkuby87]

to be honest i havent looked at em much. whats the difference other than sights and the front serrations? how about the price difference?

[Officer's Match]

The RO is built considerably better than the Loaded, actually to the standards of a TRP or Trophy Match. You might just be surprised at the sights anyway.

[zachkuby87]

I did some researching and i think im going to have to run with the range officer... ill report back when i get it in..

[zachkuby87]

one more quick question about the RO what should i look to pay for the range officer new?

[thedudeabides]

750-800

[Adamantium]

If I were going to buy a 1911 for carry it wouldn't be one that was built tight for target accuracy. When you mix 1911s and the internet together sometimes "built better" and "built tighter" become synonymous. The reality is lots of tighter built 1911s will have more jams out of the box, have more jams when shot dirty, are more susceptible to sand and have a higher number of freak/non-repeatable jams. Also on a preference note it would be stainless and not have target sights.

In the same price range I'd recommend looking at a Ruger, Sig XO or S&W SW1911 or E series.

[jacob2745]

I own a RO and love it but it is purely a range gun for me. The sights are not really intended for SD in my opinion. It if it were me, i would lean towards a more carry oriented model.

[ET.]

I agree with Jacob on this one. I also own an R.O. It is my favorite target/range gun because that is what it was built for. The sights are classic target sights with an adjustable all black rear sight and a drift adjustable black front sight. The selling points of a RO are that they have top of the line frame to slide fit with a competition barrel/bushing setup. They added only the basics for target shooting and left the rest for the new owner to customize to his tastes.

I have never thought of actually carrying this gun for SD. I am drawn to the duty/compact type guns like a G23, G27, M&P 40 or M&P 40 Shield...all of which I have carried recently. For me smaller & lighter is better since I put them on in the morning and don't take them off until it is bed time. If I knew in advance when I would need my gun then I would wait until just before I needed it to put in on...but I don't have that insight, so I wear it every second of the day that is feasible. The RO would get uncomfortable after a while for me. But that's just me...

[10-96]

If I were going for a full sized 1911 to carry, I would likely go with somehting like a SA Mil-Spec. It won't be your front sight that will likely be the source of your worries, but ruther the back one. It's HUGE in comparison to probably all other "carry-type" or "carry suitable" sights. The RO will be great on the range and will make for some very pretty pictures, but the thought of running around all day with that sight gouging into my side... well that just don't put the boogie into my thought of rock and roll.

Maybe if they would change the sights a bit and change the name from "Range Officer" to "Carry Officer"... eh- it's your choice go with what gets your goat.

[riceman44]

The RO is a great bang for the buck 1911. I did change the front and rear for carry purposes. It eats everything from Winchester white box to Speer gold dots. If you don't mind the 5' and the weight of a full frame it's great for a carry 1911. No issues with FTF/FTE's and it's accuracy is beyond my skills.

[dondulah]

Riceman, what type of sights are those?

[Officer's Match]

Really nice Riceman - Sarge grips?

[carguychris]

Am I the only one whose first thought is that the OP should try to figure out what's wrong with the RIA before throwing down close to $1,000 for the SRO?

I've heard mostly glowing reports about the reliability of RIA products if high quality magazines are used. One issue is that RIA has reportedly used several vendors for their magazines, and some of their pistols have shipped with lousy ones.

OP: What problems has the RIA exhibited, and have you contacted customer service?

[jmstr]

I also wonder what is up with the ria 1911. I have one, a tactical 5". It went back to armscorp once, but fired reliably every time and extracted reliably (grip safety quit being safe and bushing issue). After coming back (w/ night sights) it is accurate and reliable.

I'd stake my life on it.

What is wrong with yours?

I mean, buy a new 1911 if you want one: i have 4. But why isn't the RIA reliable? Give Arnel a call at armscorp and they fix their problems well and quickly. Like S.A. they have lifetime warranty.

I'd at least fix it before buying a new one. Then I would buy the new one also!

sent from tapatalk on Evo3G

[michael t]

I agree fix the RIA and but a 2nd 1911 of your choosing .

[riceman44]

Sorry guy's been off the page for a few. dondulah, those are from Harrison Design, and Officer's Match yes these are walnut burl from sarge...

[Officer's Match]

Riceman, feel free to post more shots of that RO, it is a GREAT looking piece. I've said since the RO first hit the market that it would be my choice for a custom build base. I MUCH prefer it's rollmarks and serrations to the TRP/Trophy Match. A modest dehorning, undercut trigger guard and 25lpi frontstrap, the sights you chose and a melanite treatment to a Range Officer would make a pretty sweet blaster.