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Which metal framed clone pistol?


  • Total voters
    24
  • Poll closed .
However, I'm keeping the other RIA. The one that looks like an army gun. Which I did not originally intend on doing. For a couple of reasons. (1) It's a good shooting gun, I can do well with it. (2) I just don't feel like giving it away for anything like $275 or $300. Because I can shoot the heck out of it without thinking twice, saving wear and tear on a more valuable gun.
Not long ago, Sarco was selling factory second bare frames from RIA for $180. They sold out. So people will pay that kind of money for just a frame, but hesitate at $275 for the complete gun.
 
I bought Girsan 1911 because it had the feature set I wanted at the price point I was looking for. I also went into it knowing full well of the potential risk of buying a Turkish gun.

I don't plan on putting a ton of rounds through it, but so far it has been 100% reliable (300 fmj and 50 Fed HST). Time will tell if I bought a turd or not….
Mine was reliable. It ate everything I fed it. Never a FTF. Never jammed.. But the trigger pull was hellacious and the finish wasn't the greatest. It was a sub 400 dollar gun, and I got a much better one on sale for about $150 more. I sold it to a friend along with some accessories and didn't take a bath on it because of a pricing error where I bought it. They sold it to me for 100 bucks less than they should have.
 
One thing on 1911's is they aren't the easiest to clean. Not a big deal, but something to consider if spending more time on cleaning matters to you. I'm a big fan of DA/SA and Berettas in particular. Used Berettas can be had for around $500. The Langdon modified ones are more expensive but worth it. They aren't heavy but the PX4 is a soft shooter with the rotating barrel, my favorite. Used ones can be had for around $500. Adding a low cost D hammer spring or a hammer spring from Langdon makes a big improvement to trigger weight for less than $15. Good luck!
 
I'd wait, shop for a good deal, and stretch your budget a bit for a CZ-SP-01 in 9mm. May get lucky and find a nice used one for about your price cap. Or go for a 1911 in 9mm. A friend of mine has a Springfield Range Officer in 9mm that is pretty nice, and I had a Ronin on 10mm that I liked. I think a Springfield 1911 in 9mm could be bought used for $500 with careful shopping, possibly a bit more for a new one depending on models/features.

I have limited experience with the less expensive options you mentioned. I have heard some positive reviews, but also mixed feedback. I do have a Tisas BHP clone which has been fine, but I tend to hold out, and spend a bit more to match my preferences.

EDIT: - after posting, I noticed the OP made a selection. Enjoy your new pistol!
 
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I'll use my RIA as an example. I believe it to be an EXCELLENT value for the $379
This is the main reason they don't bring much money when sold used. Selling used in the USA you're competing with labor making new guns in Asia.
 
Welp i was going to post pictures but im stuck in the queue. Hopefully i can pick it up tomorrow, but it feels nice! And its always a good sign when the ffl has a positive comment about my purchase.

Yeah, im still having second thoughts about a cz or cz style gun but i hope those go away when i can shoot this one.

End the end, this was the calculated choice, and the cz/tanfoglio was just what i wanted. This tisas ticks more boxes for me though.
 
Welp i was going to post pictures but im stuck in the queue. Hopefully i can pick it up tomorrow, but it feels nice! And its always a good sign when the ffl has a positive comment about my purchase.

Yeah, im still having second thoughts about a cz or cz style gun but i hope those go away when i can shoot this one.

End the end, this was the calculated choice, and the cz/tanfoglio was just what i wanted. This tisas ticks more boxes for me though.
Those second thoughts may go away when you can shoot your new one, but chances are they will return when you need to field strip, clean and reassemble your new one. :confused:
 
Yeah, im still having second thoughts about a cz or cz style gun but i hope those go away when i can shoot this one.
Well, I have a CZ 75 BD (And really like it) BUT after getting my RIA and it being a series 70 with a fantastic trigger (I gave it a minor 'trigger job' and got to around 3.5ish lbs) I don't know if ever want anything ELSE but series 70 1911's.

I have had a couple Ser 70 1911s in the past but mostly forgot about how nice the triggers are - or CAN be.

Heck, although my 1991 A1 is a Series 80 I got it's trigger working pretty nicely as well. It's not Series 70 'level' but pretty close.

Hey, the CZ is a great gun and I have shot it a lot but that long takeup trigger leaves a lot to be desired - especially after shooting a Ser 70 1911....
 
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Well, I guess I am in luck then since I am not trying to sell mine nor have any plans to!
Based on the two RIA guns that I've had and fired, I don't see anything wrong with the product. It's just that Colt (for example) who makes them in Connecticut has to pay their workers significantly more money than Armscor in the Philippines has to pay theirs. Which results in a huge competitive advantage in selling a new gun. But which translates to the lower resale value of used RIA guns. And exactly why I'm not giving up the RIA that I mentioned. It isn't worth letting it go for what I can get out of it. I'd rather give it away to a gunless friend than sell it for what I can get out of it. I've done that with another gun that had low resale value.

I'd like to see the paperwork that shows how much it costs importers to bring the guns in from Philippines and Turkey. We might be shocked at the actual mark-up between those figures and what is paid at retail.

It's my opinion based on reflecting upon prices over decades that the prices of new guns have not kept up with inflation. In general, with respect to common models. There are multiple reasons for this. But one has to do with the durability of the product and a huge market that exists in used guns. With even minimal care, most guns will last who knows how long. Manufacturers keep cranking out as many as they can sell, which adds continuously to the potential supply of used guns. Manufacturers want to stay in business, they have investments to capitalize, so when sales slow, what to do but lower prices. Which has happened in waves over the years. And the supply of used guns keeps getting bigger and bigger.

I'm guessing that the US market is the last, great sinkhole for overseas manufacturers to sell guns. Most countries have stricter gun laws on the books. If the political door hadn't closed on most guns from China, we'd be even more awash in them.
 
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It's my opinion based on reflecting upon prices over decades that the prices of new guns have not kept up with inflation. In general, with respect to common models. There are multiple reasons for this.
I've mentioned this in another thread somewhere. But another reason is technology. A lot of work that was done by hand in the past is now done by more modern techniques. And here again, I'm thinking about Colt. So some of the extra cost of inflating labor value is recovered by applications of CNC, etc. Better ways to make a mousetrap kind of thing.
 
I'd like to see the paperwork that shows how much it costs importers to bring the guns in from Philippines and Turkey. We might be shocked at the actual mark-up between those figures and what is paid at retail.
I wonder how they will be able to manage the same markups and prices with the US produced RIAs .
 
I wonder how they will be able to manage the same markups and prices with the US produced RIAs
The capital set-up in the Philippines for making 1911's will likely stay there. The stuff they will or are making here won't be priced at $379. The 5.0 carries an MSRP of over $1,500.

At present, the STK100 and the MAPP, both made with polymer frames are priced comparable to competing products. Both of these have been made in the Philippines. Making polymer frame guns seems a lower cost process than making steel frame guns.
 
Not only that but I'm thinking they could have found somebody a little more 'intelligent' than some goofball with his shirt hanging out and looks (and sounds) like someone coming down off of an 'all nighter' to describe the gun.
You might not be part of the target audience?
 

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