Rock Island

Patriot Brown Cerakote job, G10 Desert Storm grips, skeletonized trigger, combat hammer, GI serrations, and ambidextrous safety, this feature rich pistol is built true to the traditional series 70 design with the addition of next level upgrades.

Armscor—a Philippines-based company that markets 1911s under the Rock Island Armory brand—took its 1911-A1 FS DS and added Cerakote’s Patriot Brown finish to the slide and frame. The blend of brown and bronze gives the pistol look that says it’s ready for hard use, and the application of the finish is evenly applied. The metal finish of the slide and frame is further set off by matte-blue controls.

Both the slide and frame are 4140 steel and are cut on CNC machinery to ensure close tolerances, so the pistol demonstrates minimal play between the slide and frame. The slide houses a full-length recoil spring guide and sports GI serrations on the rear only.

The frame and the barrel feed ramp are polished, and the ejection port is lowered and bevel-cut to ensure brass is kicked out cleanly. The ejector has an extended tip for positive ejection and is pinned to the frame.

The frame features a high-swept beavertail grip safety that distributes the recoil across the web of the hand and prevents hammer bite. The grip safety has a memory bump to ensure it gets depressed deep enough to fire even if you’re wearing gloves.

The grips are sandy brown G10 Desert Storm with black highlights and feature a raised starburst pattern. Between the fit and the aggressive texture, the grips lock the pistol to the shooter’s hand with even the heaviest of loads. The left grip is relieved around the mag release.

The mainspring housing is checkered at 20 lpi, and the checkering is perfectly cut. The magazine release button and slide-lock lever are similarly checkered for non-slip operation. The high-cut frontstrap features multiple deep vertical serrations.

The ambidextrous thumb safety is wide enough for easy manipulation but slimmed down for concealed carry. It has substantial detent spring pressure for that positive on/off click I look for in a 1911.