Rock Island Arms (RIA) has been making a lot of noise and headway in the coveted 1911 arena, and for good show. The RIA 1911’s have proven to be reliable and well-built firearms, at an entry-level price. This year at SHOT Show RIA introduced the Baby Rock, a 1911 in .380 ACP.
The RIA 1911 pistols have closely followed the original Colt design, but have also expanded into the modern accessories and upgrades that have kept one of America’s most iconic firearms as relevant today as it was over 100 years ago. The Baby Rock maintains the overall look of a 1911, but goes a little extra with a combat hammer, extended dovetail grip, and Novak-style front post and rear sight. Though marketed towards the CCW crowd, this pistol is a little larger to maintain closer 1911 proportions.
The traditional thumb safety, magazine release, and slide stop lever are all positioned for right-hand shooters. The Baby Rock has a traditional grip safety and trigger as well. There are the standard rear slide serrations, but the Baby Rock also has slide serrations at the front of the slide. Those serrations are also at the same angle as the pistol grip, as opposed to the originals that were vertical.
Richard and I were able to shoot the Baby Rock at the Industry Day at the Range. The Baby Rock felt good, if not surprisingly long for a CCW pistol in my medium-sized hands. The trigger was smooth and had a nice, crisp break when firing. Recoil was very manageable, and the gun can shoot. We were able to easily put our hits into a fist-sized grouping from about 25 feet away.
Baby Rock Specifications
- Overall Length – 6.5″
- Barrel Length – 4.0″
- Height – 5.5″
- Width – Unavailable (I would estimate at just slightly over 1.0″)
- Weight – 1.47 lbs. (unloaded; 1.62″ loaded)
- Caliber – .380 ACP
- Capacity – 7+1
- Grips – Rubberized
- Finish – Parkerized
- Sights – Front post, Novak-style rear sight (notched only, no white dots)
- Magazine – (1) single stack, steel
- MSRP – $459.00
- Available – Mid 2015.
Rock Island Arms has not only made a name for themselves in producing high quality 1911 pistols, but they are also known for their unique and promising .22 TCM cartridge and pistols. The new Baby Rock .380 1911 looks to be another winning concept and design by Rock Island Armory. For those who are die-hard 1911 fans, this could be a great CCW, off-duty, or even back-up pistol.
SidneyGlick says
I have an RIA Baby Rock. It shoots well, eats all the ammo I feed it and has little recoil. The Upper by the way, is
3/4′ wide, and at the grip, 1 1/8″. I am presently feeding it Ruger Poly case ammo. I am completely
satisfied with this ammo.
Aaron E says
Thank you for posting and expressing the Baby Rock’s ability to cycle a variety of ammunition.
stu reder says
How does this pistol compare with the Browning 1911-380?
Aaron says
Stu,
The Rock Island .380 is about an inch shorter than the Browning, including a barrel that is .25″ shorter. The Rock Island .380 has serrations on the slide in front and back while the Browning only has them on the back. The Rock Island is also about $250 less than the Browning.
The Rock Island .380 slide lock lever is smaller than the Browning, as is the manual safety lever – though neither is hard to manipulate.
Browning 1911-380 has a nice skeletonize trigger where the Rock Island .380 has a more generic one. The Browning 1911-380 also has a much more aggressive grip tang than the Rock Island.Both use an extended loop, Combat Commander like hammer.
As far as shooting – both did very well. Accuracy was good on both, as was trigger pull. Both functioned flawlessly in the limited time/ammo we had to try them out. It will likely come down to personal grip and preference, as well as price difference.