Tag: 2011

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1911 2011 RIA Rock Island Armory Rock Ultra Tac Ultra

I Asked RIA-USA to Build A 2011-Pattern Firearm!

I checked my email this morning and saw that RIA-USA had sent me a survey. I usually don’t get much from them, but I have bought handgun items from them the past few years.

They basically asked me what gun(s) I had, which I told them. I’ve a Commander-sized TCM that came with 22TCM and 9mm barrels. I’ve a Rock Ultra Commander. I also have a Rock Ultra Government double-stacked 10mm. All three are the slate-gray parkerized variants, which I love. They’re extremely utilitarian but shoot well! I’ve hangups about the 10mm, though, but that’s just me.

They also asked me if I’d had any issues. I explained that I have an issue with the Rock Ultra Commander – the front sight came off and I can not get it back on. I’ve never asked for support, but I may do that soon, as the gun shoots great and I’d like to keep shooting it.

They also asked me what I think they could offer their customer base. While I know they already make double-stacked 1911s, I said I’d like to see an RIA 2011. If Live Free Armory or Tisas could do it, RIA-USA could also do it. I asked them to make a 2011-stype handgun that takes Glock mags – if they did that, I’d definitely buy it. I also stated that it would have to be under $1000.

We’ll see what they do with that suggestion!

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1911 2011 9mm double-stack Fusion Firearms XP Comp XP Pro

I Was FINALLY Able To Obtain Support From Fusion Firearms!

Back in April, I tried to reach out to Fusion Firearms. I was unsuccessful. Why was I trying to contact Fusion Firearms? My XP Comp came with two RMSc plates instead of an RMR and RMSc.

I tried to reach out to them several times, without success, so I gave up. I had to remove the RMR plate that I was using on the XP Pro so that I could use it on the XP Comp.

Last week, I tried again, using their online support system. This time I was able to get through to Tyler. I had included a picture of the two optic plates that came with my XP Comp, which was enough to get him to send an RMR plate to me.

The RMR plate arrived yesterday. I will eventually use it on the XP Pro, once I obtain another RMR optic. Speaking of which, I might actually just get another RMSc-footprinted optic. There are a few RMSc optics that have large windows now. I just need an optic with a large view-port, as that’s what I prefer.

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AF1911-S15 Alpha Foxtrot Attila recoil rod

DPM Systems Recoil Spring Assembly Ordered for the Attila!

Since I had the issue with the Attila where the recoil spring assembly deconstructed itself while at the range, I wanted to purchase a one-piece guide rod system for this firearm.

DPM Systems has a kit for the Alpha Foxtrot S15 and 3.5″ Romulus. It is SKU 1000386 on their website. It’s price is 99 euros, but I also ordered a second set of springs with it, which was an extra 12 euros.

As I ordered from the DPMS website and not a 3rd party vendor, shipping is rather high, as they’re located in Greece. I don’t mind, as I live in VA and there are a lot of US vendors not currently shipping to VA due to the recent batch of tyrannical gun laws.

It’s good that this system comes with six recoil springs. It gives me the opportunity to tune system to the gun. The springs are designed for the S15, not the Attila – the Attila is compensated. I did compare the two OEM recoil spring systems and they’re the same (springs may be different in weight, though), so I’m thinking I shouldn’t have any issues.

Keep in mind that if the OEM recoil spring assembly comes apart again, the gun will still fire. I’ve footage of the failure occurring but the gun not being incapacitated by the rod failure, which is extremely satisfactory.

There was no catastrophic failure. I’m not trying to cover a fault here, but I hate two-piece guide rods – a good firearm should NEVER have a two-piece guide rod, IMO. I wasn’t even aware that the firearm had a two-piece rod until it broke. Awhile back, folks were having similar issues with the Bul Amory SAS II Ultralight’s guide rod, which uses a very similar guide rod.

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2011 ammo Fusion Firearms range ammo recoil spring steel-cased XP Comp XP Pro

I Changed the XP Comp’s Recoil Spring to 10-lb!

The last two range visits, I’ve been shooting my XP Comp 2011, attempting to test/review from an owner standpoint.

I’ve been shooting steel-cased ammo lately, specifically Magtech 115-gr FMJ. My Alpha Foxtrot Attila just eats up that ammo, without complaint. Both of my Fusion Firearms 2011s hate that ammo, though. I’ve both the XP Pro and XP Comp. While they eat will shoot the ammo, they ocassionally will not fully go back into battery (sometimes, but not always).s

The last range visit, I actually anticipated the issue and bought some brass-cased Federal 115-gr FMJ. I shot much of that ammo through both XPs, without issue (50 rounds of it). Whenever I’d swap back to the Magtech (purposely attempting to determine if it was an ammo issue), the failures would occur, so I know this is due to the ammo.

Now, this particular make/model of ammo is using polished steel casings, so it’s not the case coating that’s the issue. I think the ammo is slightly underpowered – most steel-cased ammo is cheaply made.

A while back, I bought a spring kit from Fusion Firearms. That kit comes with 7-, 9-, 10-, and 13-lb springs. The XP Comp comes with an 8-lb spring. As I didn’t think the 9-lb spring would cure the issue, I opted to install the 10-lb spring instead.

I also conducted research and the above is a satisfactory solution. Alternative solutions would be to switch to a better ammo type (brass cased or a make/model with a known good reliability history).

I do not blame the ammo as the cause of this issue, as most guns with comps will have light sprints and this is a known thing with the XP Comp. As well, the XP Pro has light springs from the factory, so that’s why it was exhibiting the same issue.

My fix will hopefully resolve the issue (at least with the XP Comp.

While I love Magtech ammo, I might need to switch to something with a bit more power, at least until the XP reaches 1000 rounds. I may go back to Winchester White Box, as it has power.

Categories
1911 2011 9mm Alpha Foxtrot Attila handgun

The Alpha Foxtrot Attila Now Has Over 1000 Rounds – Video Posted

This video details my ownership experience with the gun thus far.

1082 rounds have been shot out of the gun. There have been no feed/extract issues. There have been no reliability issues whatsoever.

As well, due to YouTube being extremely tyrannical, I’ve taken extra steps to ensure my videos are compliant with their terms of service. Because of that, there’s a banner being depicted when embedding the video into this blog post. This is something I can’t avoid. Apologies.

Below is the Rumble link. Although I’d rather use Rumble (to counter YouTube tyranny), YouTube gets far more traffic. I’ve had little success in getting my Rumble-posted videos to gain traction.

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AIWB Alpha Foxtrot Attila holster Weapon-Mounted Light

I Ordered A Second QVO Tactical “More Discreet” IWB Holster

Yes, I ordered a second holster from QVO Tactical.

Why? I want to try the Olight PL-X weapon-mounted light and my current More Discreet holster will only accommodate the Streamlight TLR-7X.

This particular holster is barebones. Well, not really…as with the first holster, I opted for the metal wing and dual plastic clips, but I didn’t opt for an overlay and also opted to keep the black kydex.

I tried to cut costs, so the holster is somewhat minimal (at $88, with the options I chose).

I also ordered an Olight PL-X – it should arrive tomorrow.

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Alpha Foxtrot Attila Fusion Firearms recoil rod recoil spring XP Comp

My Alpha Foxtrot Attila Now Has Over 1000 Rounds!

Yesterday, I went to the range with a focus to push to 1000 rounds. I wouldn’t have been difficult, as I already had 861 rounds through the gun before yesterday’s range visit.

It how has 1084 rounds through it. There were no fails to feed or extract this range visit, nor with any range visit. The 1084 rounds were error-free.

I didn’t post the information here, but during the range visit previous to yesterday’s, the recoil spring assembly (RSA) deconstructed. I was not aware that the recoil spring rod was a two-piece system and is screwed together. Well, the pieces became unscrewed. I wasn’t even aware it happened because I was focused on the target when shooting. I emptied the magazine and then looked down on the table to see the recoil rod lying on the table. I shoot with a GoPro and, when I got home, I reviewed the footage. The rod popped out but the gun still operated – I was able to finish the magazine without issue.

Does that constitute a failure? No. There was no stoppage and the gun continued to function.

I was able to reconstruct the RSA and applied thread locker to the rod when reassemblying it.

Needless to say, I’m impressed, especially since I’m currently carrying the gun, but I’m still planning to buy a DPM recoil spring assemby to replace the OEM RSA.

Next, I plan to test a 15-round Glock 48 magazine. I just need to buy one online since I can’t find them locally.

So, the goal was to reach 1000 rounds. I’ve achieved that goal, now I need to work on the 1000 round review.

The next gun to push to 1000 rounds will be the Fusion Firearms XP Comp, and that’s going to be fun!

Categories
1911 2011 9mm Fusion Firearms Glock 17 magazines XP Comp XP Pro

RWB Glock 17 Mags Are Too Tight Of A Fit For Fusion Firearms XPs

I bought a few extra Glock 17 magazines for my Fusion Firearms XPs. They arrived today.

I’ve a handful of KCI magazines (not the sets that came with my XPs). While they fit, I don’t like them, as the springs are really weak. They’re weak straight out of the packaging.

Well, I’ll give it to the KCI mags – at least they actually fit into the gun. The RWB Glock mags do not fit. I can get them maybe halfway inserted before they bind.

To be fair, I think Fusion Firearms built their XP guns around the KCI mags, as this is a common problem – the mag well is rather tight.

They fit now, though, because I took sandpaper to them. They fit, but they look like ass, even after using smaller grit sandpaper to lessen the coarseness of the scoring. They won’t drop out of the gun – I have to pull them out (they pull out with a very small amount of effort). Over time, they’ll wear-in.

This weekend, I’ll try to visit some local gun shops in an effort to obtain a few more mags. I don’t have time to order a different brand, as today is 6/26 and the new laws take affect on 7/1.

Categories
1911 2011 9mm Alpha Foxtrot Attila double-stack

My Thoughts Regarding Alpha Foxtrot and the Attila

I’m still in the process of shooting 1000 rounds through the Alpha Foxtrot Attila. I’m at 702 rounds, so far.

What I’ve been wondering is, why is Alpha Foxtrot not sending T&E Attilas to the firearms press (press and influencers). I think that’s odd, because they’ve been doing it with their other guns – the Romulus and AF S15.

I wonder if they’re having issues with this gun, to the point that they’re not sending the gun to influencers to review. If things were that bad, you’d think they’d not have them within public circulation. I’m not sure things are that bad, but AF not sending out test guns is odd.

As well, there were no YT entities reviewing guns that they actually bought, which I also think is odd.

Another oddity is that AF’s product page for the Attila is bare of details. That page has no gun stats and no indication that the gun is in public circulation.

I have the honor of being the first non SHOT Show reviewer of this gun, but the second would be GBGuns on YouTube.

Here’s his review of the gun.

While I’ve had the gun a few months, I only had one of his issues with my gun.

He reported and demonstrated that only one of his two safety levers worked – the right-side lever worked intermittently. I had that issue, as well. Also, I know of two other owners that had the same issue. I detail stripped the gun (to document which internal parts are MIM) and noticed the ambi safeties were easy to remove (usually they are not easy), and that immediately grabbed my attention. I’m thinking that maybe the parts weren’t installed correctly because when reassembling the gun, it was difficult to align the two levers to install them, which is normal. The right lever was functioning.

His other issues were that the gun wasn’t accurate and upon further investigation, he found two issues: 1) the barrel and comp had exessive play, which would affect accuracy – a possible barrel lockup issue; 2) there were copper marks on the inside of his comp – they appear to be bullet strikes.

Another issue he had wasn’t with the gun but was with AF’s customer support. They initially said that they wouldn’t conduct warranty work on the safety since it was deemed an intermittent issue – that doesn’t even make sense, because a safety needs to work every time you enable/disable it. The also initially didn’t want to investigate it for possible lockup issues. They asked him to send a video showing the issue. He sent a portion of the review footage of him troubleshooting the issue and he thinks they noticed that he was a YouTube entity. They changed up and wanted to see the gun to remedy all of the issues.

This is both embarrassing to me and also quite hokey for AF.

I’m a GBGuns Patreon member. There are a bunch of us. We donate funds so that GBGuns can conduct his reviews. Every so often, we vote on guns for him to review. I was one of the members who voted for this gun. I’ve this gun, as well as the AF S15 and, since GBGuns hadn’t ever reviewed an Alpha Foxtrot, I wanted to see his thoughts on the gun. I never considered that he’d receive a bad gun. So, I felt bad. Now, rationally, there were like 40+ others that also voted as I did, so this isn’t something I needed to take blame for, but I consider myself to be pretty knowledgeable about the AF brand, so I was taken by surprise since I’ve rarely heard of this many QC issues with a particular verion of S15.

Also, I was somewhat shocked at how Alpha Foxtrot handled the situation. They only agreed to take the gun in for repair when they suspected that GBGuns was a YouTube entity. I could have issues with mine – would they refuse warranty work in such a case? I’m not a huge YouTuber or influencer. While I think I trust my particular gun, if I have issues with it, I’m doubting that Alpha Foxtrot would fix things – not after seeing what GBGuns experienced. And they still need to fix that gun’s issues.

As well, GBGuns said that manufacturers that do this are untrustworthy and that gun makers such as Bul Armory wouldn’t do such a thing. Yeah, well, they did with me – remember that grip safety issue that I have with my Bul Armory Ultralight? It was sent to them twice and the problem always recurred after 60 days or so. It happened a third time and I opted to not send it back – it’s obvious that they either refuse to fix it or are unable to properly fix it.

I’m sure there are other folks with similar CS stories regarding other brands, too. I say this because I think that all gun makers have times where they fail to get it right regarding warranty committments. I don’t expect every manufacturer to be perfect but I do expect them to support my request within the limit of the warranty. A good gun with bad warranty support = bad gun, in my opinion. If the gun maker comes off as sour or non-accomodating but eventually fully repairs your gun, that’s a bad gun. Having one very bad experience is going to sour the whole overall experience.

This is also the second time I’ve seen AF make decisions based on influencing. It seems as if they’d rather focus on appeasing influencers/entertainers than anyone else. Awhile back, I was speaking with one of their marketing folks in the AF subreddit – he said he wanted to help me and was considering sending me something but wanted to see my YouTube channel first. I wasn’t sure why he was asking, but I provided him the URL to my channel and afterward, he ghosted me. I’m sure he was going to offer to send me a T&E gun but saw that I’ve less than 1000 subscribers and decided that I wasn’t worth it.

AF has always had very weak CS. It made it difficult to advocate for them in the past.

So, I’m going to stop advocating for AF because I’m starting to see that they’re kinda shady.

Categories
1911 2011 9mm Alpha Foxtrot Attila double-stack

The Alpha Foxtrot Attila’s Frame Inserts Are Pinned

I posted a 5-6 minute video that shows that Alpha Foxtrot has reinforced the frame inserts on the Attila. I noticed that they pinned it not long after I bought it, but hadn’t looked at the pinning until now. Here’s the video.

This is good news and is also somewhat important to know, as it shows that Alpha Foxtrot is aware of issues and are trying to fix them.