Rock River Arms is a company more well known for their AR-platform rifles, but at SHOT Show this year the company was showing off their polymer-framed 1911 pistol again.  First displayed 2 years ago as a concept pistol, and possibly to determine market interest, it appears that RRA is ready to bring the polymer framed 1911 to market.  Called the 1911 Poly this pistol aims to combine the proven 1911 design, with the lightweight benefits of modern polymer.  The company is marketing the 1911 Poly as a modern twist on a timeless design.

The 1911 Poly in its case on the SHOT Show floor.

Note the OD grip option.

The 1911 Poly floor models were kept in a glass enclosed box for added security, but the RRA reps were willing to allow onlookers a closer look as long as one of them was present during the examination.  Casually looking at the 1911 Poly it has all the sleek features of the famous John Browning design.  Closer examination reveals some of the enhancements that Rock River Arms has included standard.

Note the speed trigger, OD grip choice, extended magazine release, and beavertail grip safety.

To answer any questions of durability by pairing a 4140 steel slide with a polymer frame on the powerful .45 ACP, RRA has included a steel insert embedded into the polymer frame.  Magazines will be 7-shot steel with a slightly extended polymer base with angled front.  The slide serrations will be slightly angled forward.  Although not provided, it appears that the other dimensions of the 1911 Poly will be in line with the original 1911 design.

A view of the 1911 Poly from the shooter’s grip.

Handling the 1911 Poly on the SHOT Show floor I felt the weight distribution was still balanced, just with a lighter weight package.  Grip and thumb safeties were easily manipulated and sure.  The 1911 Poly is listed with a 4.5 lb. trigger pull.  With the hammer cocked that pull felt like it dropped to 2 lbs. or even lighter.  Trigger pull was very smooth, and the break was positive and crisp.

A closer look at the machined speed trigger on the 1911 Poly.

Here are the 1911 Poly standard features:

• Barrel Length – 5.0 inches
• Twist Rate – 1:16 Left hand twist
• Barrel Material – Chrome Moly
• Frame – Polymer along with mainspring housing
• Slide – Steel with Parkerized finish, steel frame insert
• Grips – RRA over-molded rubber with textured front and rear panels – variety of color options
• Trigger – Aluminum speed trigger with 3-hole machined design
• Trigger Pull Weight – 4.5 lbs.
• Hammer – Commander style
• Safeties – Beavertail grip safety, extended thumb safety
• Sights – Dovetail front and rear
• Magazine – (1) 7-round
• Weight – 2.04 pounds
• MSRP – TBA, but has been suggested to be around $800

A closer look at the Commander style hammer, beavertail grip safety, and dovetail rear sight on the 1911 Poly.

The 1911 Poly will ship with the recognizable Rock River Arms French Blue hard back gun case.  In 2012 RRA showed the 1911 Poly coming with what appeared to be an IMI Defense polymer holster, double magazine case, and ammunition loader, but it was unclear if those options will be a part of the current 1911 Poly package as only the pistols were shown.

The business end of the RRA 1911 Poly.

Rock River Arms is planning on releasing the 1911 Poly in 2014, but an exact release date has not been announced.  Some 1911 fans are sure to feel that bringing polymer to the time-proven 1911 design is a bad thing, but on the other side there may be those who see the design as a natural progression using the latest materials available to the market.  What do you think?