Rost Martin RM1C Comped Review: Best Budget Compensated Pistol?

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With prices high and budgets low, plenty of gun shoppers are looking for the best bang for their buck when it comes to defensive pistols.

Rost Martin’s RM1C Comped just might be what you’re looking for. Building on the original RM1C platform, the RM1C Comped offers an integrated compensator on top of some other improvements — all for a value-packed price.

But does this compact 9mm really outperform other budget models, or does it fall flat when put to the test? We took it to the range and put it to the test to find out.

So, keep reading to get the specs, features, and a full range report on the brand-new Rost Martin RM1C Comped.

Rost Martin RM1C Comped Specs & Features

Specs

• Caliber: 9mm
• Barrel length: 4”
• Overall length: 7.1”
• Width: 1.1”
• Height: 5” (flushed), 5.5” (extended)
• Weight: 21.1oz
• MSRP: $489
• Comes with: RMR optics plate, (1) 15-round magazine, (1) 17-round magazine

Features

• Optics ready
• Black serrated rear sight, white dot front sight
• Integrated compensator
• Nitrocarburized steel slide

How We Tested the Rost Martin RM1C Comped

To test the Rost Martin RM1C Comped, we shot over 300 rounds of both practice ammo and defensive ammo to see how it would feed and shoot.

Ammo included:

• AAC 115g FMJ
• Monarch 115g FMJ
• Blazer Brass 115g FMJ
• Federal HST 147g Hollow Points

We shot 5-round groups starting at 7 yards with a Primary Arms Classic Series Mini Reflex. We also used a Ransom Rest while shooting to remove shooter error and get an accurate gauge of how well shots landed on target.

A Lyman Digital Trigger Gauge was also employed to assess the actual trigger pull, using the average of three trigger pulls.

Background

Rost Martin is a relatively new company in the firearms world, breaking into the market with the RM1C and now offering a few new offerings for 2025.

Based in Dallas, Texas, all of their manufacturing occurs right here in the USA. The RM1C was the flagship offering, and now the company has adapted the original platform for those looking for a higher-level shooting experience with an integrated compensator.

While I would typically consider this to be a port in the barrel, the industry prefers to call them compensators, so I will use that term as well for this article. The good news is that the compensator fits flush with the standard length of the original RM1C, meaning holster compatibility will be a non-issue.

Who Is the RM1C Comped For?

The Rost Martin RM1C Comped would work best for those looking for a factory-comped 9mm pistol, specifically if you’re on a budget and don’t want to spring for some higher-priced competitors.

The RM1C Comped hits that nice balance of functionality without breaking the bank. Even better, it fits current RM1C holsters, so there are no issues with concealed carry.

Ergonomics: Fit & Feel

Grip Ergos & Texture

When it comes to grip ergonomics, seasoned shooters often have a preference when it comes to how the gun feels in the hand. Some may lean towards guns with more aggressive grip angles or less, higher or lower bore axis, etc.

I tend to like pistols that allow the firing hand grip to get very close to the slide and a low bore axis. Rost Martin’s RM1C Comped delivers in both of these categories.

The beaver tail design is thin enough to allow the gun to seat very deep in thehand, while protecting  the thumb from being cut by the slide during cycling. Its controls are designed well and will work for most hand sizes.

In a sense, the RM1C Comped feels as if a Glock 19 and a Canik had a baby.

I really appreciate the teardrop design of the magazine release versus a square or circle. Elongating the magazine release allows the user to depress the mag release more easily with shorter thumbs or smaller hands.

The slide catch is nothing fancy, but does the job well enough to safely lock the slide to the rear and load/unload the gun. Some users might be able to depress the slide catch during a slide-lock reload one handed, but my hand size didn’t work allow for that.

Grip Texture on the RM1C Comped leaves a lot to be desired. Smooth is the word that comes to mind and while that might be a good thing in some areas, grip texture isn’t one of those. A large section of the top of the grip is bare plastic. The portions with texturing  offer very little traction for your hand.

To get the best performance out of the RM1C Comped, I added a piece of bicycle inner tube to give me more traction and allow me to run this gun fast.

Slide

Rost Martin’s slide serrations are perfectly minimalistic — not too large and not too small, not too shallow and not too deep.

They are the perfect size for a defensive carry pistol. The serrations give you positive control over the slide to load and unload the gun from the front or rear of the slide.

On top of the slide, you will notice small lines running vertically along the length. I believe these are technically a form of glare reduction. Granted, I’m not sure I’ve ever noticed glare while shooting handguns, but it’s certainly a nice feature. I guess if you don’t notice it, it might just be working.

Missing from the RM1C Comped is a striker indicator — a small dot in the middle of the back plate that turns red when the striker is cocked. While I do not rely on this feature to tell me when the gun can fire, some gun owners prefer an indicator, so it’s worth mentioning.

Optics & Sights

With the RM1C Comped, you get a pretty standard optics-ready package straight from the factory.

The gun sports a set of metal dovetail iron sights, with a U-notch rear and white dot front post. I certainly appreciate the blacked out rear vs 3 dot system. Adding color filling to the front white dot is easy enough to suit the user preference.

In terms of optics, the RM1C Comped comes with a plate mounting system. An RMR footprint plate is included in the box and mounts into the cut. From there, you can mount your favorite RMR optic on the plate.

Though not quite as low as a direct mount or pin mount system you’d find on the Ruger RXM or Springfield Echelon; the Rost Martin plate system isn’t nearly as tall as something like the Canik or Staccato plate systems.

Your natural point of aim won’t be too interrupted with the optic height after a few dry reps before hitting the range.  

Trigger

The trigger is both the best and worst thing about the RM1C Comped. Let’s start with the good…

The feel of the trigger is excellent!  When you initially depress the trigger, you take up some pre-travel to a firm wall. Once you hit the wall, you press through a crisp break to depress the striker and fire the gun.

I found this trigger to be on par with some of the best striker triggers I have fired. The RM1C Comped has a very similar feel to the Canik SFX Rival — a pistol I noted had one of the best strike fired triggers on the market in my review. 

I will add, the Rost Martin does have a slightly heavier trigger press. Under a Lyman Digital Trigger Gauge, I measured low 4-pound trigger pulls. This is an excellent trigger weight — not too light but not too heavy.

If only Rost Martin switched up its trigger shoe…but more on that in a minute.

The RM1C Comped enjoys a large trigger guard. For those with bigger hands or shooters who prefer gloves, you will like this feature. There is plenty of room within the trigger guard.

However, the trigger guard design, along with the short length of the trigger safety on the pistol, presents a potential position where the trigger is unfireable. Note: This is not a mechanical defect of the trigger mechanism itself. It all comes down to your finger placement on the trigger itself.

If you place your finger at the bottom of the trigger and try to pull,  there’s a good chance the trigger will get stuck, which means the gun won’t fire. Though several gun makers use a trigger safety similar to the Rost Martin, most allow the safety to extend the full length of the shoe. This means that, regardless of the position of your finger on the trigger, the trigger can still be depressed. Glock comes to mind when we’re talking about this kind of design.

If you’re looking at the Rost Martin as a fun range gun, this isn’t so much of an issue. As a defensive or concealed carry option, though, this is a near non-negotiable, at least for me. In a high-stress environment, you can’t guarantee perfect trigger finger placement. And that last thing you want is a gun that doesn’t go bang when you need it to.

I really do believe that if Rost Martin changed the design of the trigger shoe, this would be one of, if not the best, stock striker-fired triggers on the market. I’d love to see Rost Martin go back to the drawing board, improve the trigger shoe design, and implement it in future models.

How Does the Rost Martin RM1C Comped Shoot?

Overall, the shooting experience with the Rost Martin RM1C Comped was excellent.

If you remove the specific trigger issues we mentioned above, this 9mm pistol has been one of my favorite striker-fired guns I’ve shot.

In practice, the only time I noticed the trigger shoe issue was when shooting strong hand only. In this configuration, I drag my finger across the bottom of the trigger guard to have the smoothest trigger press possible.

When firing the gun with two hands, the integrated compensator, along with the added grip texturing from the bicycle inner tube, created a shooting experience that was extremely fast and repeatable.

The trigger, having an exceptionally clean break, allowed me to shoot the gun very quickly. I was able to take the time I needed to place accurate shots on more precision or distance targets.

I would say, compared to a standard 4-inch striker-fired gun, the compensator took 30-40% off of the muzzle rise while shooting. With a proper grip structure on the gun, you’ll notice your do/irons popping back where you look with minimal to no effort put into managing the recoil of the gun.

My favorite way to test a gun’s true shooting ability is to mix in attack and control targets. This means having large, open, and sometimes close targets that you fire on as quickly as your eyes lock onto a spot. You then mix in either farther-distance targets or lower-percentage/harder-to-hit targets immediately after. This tests the shooter’s ability to transition from hammering on the trigger to landing a shot that requires precision.

I found the RM1C Comped performed flawlessly when compared to other guns in this size category.

Accuracy & Reliabilty

For accuracy, we set up targets at 7 yards and shot 5-shot groups with a variety of ammunition, including;

• AAC 115g FMJ
• Monarch 115g FMJ
• Blazer Brass 115g FMJ
• Federal HST 147g Hollow Points

To assess accuracy, we also use a Ransom Rest on a tripod while shooting to remove any user error and make our shooting as stable as possible.

During this portion of testing, I noticed that the RM1C Comped produced fantastic accuracy results — with all groups under 1 inch.  I believe this comes down to the fitment of the parts on the firearm, as well as the ease of the trigger press.   

During the more than 300 rounds we fired through the RM1C, we experienced zero malfunctions. We did test the gun strong hand only, weak hand only, and both hands on to ensure cycling of the gun regardless of hold.

Other than the issues with the trigger shoe noted above, the RM1C Comped performed well in the reliability department.

What Sets the Rost Martin Apart?

With more than enough strike-fired pistols on the market, what does the Rost Martin do that others don’t?

I think what it comes down is the value to feature ration you get with the RM1C Comped. Typically, guns with an integrated compensator run $300 to $400 higher than the RM1C Comped. You’re getting a tremendous value with this pistol.

The affordability doesn’t end there, though.

Often, gun shoppers overlook the cost of magazines when shopping for a new gun. Some handguns can bankrupt you in the spare mag department, so the price of Rost Martin’s magazines sweetens the deal. At an industry low of $25, this is a huge benefit for budget-minded gun owners.

By the Numbers

Ergonomics: 4/5

While I didn’t like the lack of texturing, overall, the RM1C Comped fits well in the hand and will work for most shooters.

Accuracy: 5/5

It was cold, but that didn’t stop the RM1C Comped. Accuracy was phenomenal with 1-inch groups at 7 yards!

Reliability: 3/5

The RM1C Comped experienced zero malfunctions over the course of 500 rounds on a really cold day. We tested with a handful of ammo from different manufacturers, and it chomped through them all. That said, the trigger safety might not engage at certain angles, so you’ll want to be aware of that.

Customization: 3/5

The biggest downside to the Rost Martin is a smaller aftermarket. There are not as many accessories as you’d get out of a Sig P365 or a Glock. That said, there are a few holsters floating around.

Value: 5/5

For a decent gun with an integral compensator, the Rost Martin RM1C comes in at an extremely affordable price point compared to other comped guns on the market. Not to mention, they set an industry low for magazine cost.

Overall: 4/5

Upgrades for the Rost Martin RM1C Comped

If you’re headed to the range, you’re going to need some training ammo. We ran AAC 9mm for this test and it worked well.

Ears and eyes are also needed, so check out the ShellShock Protection Combo for both.

With an optics cut, a red dot is a must. For this review, we used the Primary Arms Classic Series Mini Reflex.

Finally, if you intend to carry the Rost Martin RM1C Comped, you’ll need a holster. We the People carries a model that even offers an optics cut.

Final Verdict

Overall, the RM1C Comped has the potential to be one of the best shooting, feature-rich striker-fired guns in the heavily saturated handgun market.

The only thing holding it back is the trigger shoe design. But cast that aside, and you’ve got a well-made 9mm pistol with a very robust feature set at a fantastic price.

Is the trigger shoe a dealbreaker for you? Let us know in the comments below. If you’re looking for more defensive handguns, we got you covered with our rundown of the Best Handguns for Beginners & Home Defense.