Big Tossup, several disappointments
I've been shooting handguns for 45 years now, so I've had more disappointments than I'd like to admit, but I'll post a few in case newbies are considering something I did wrong.
1 - Charter Arms Bulldog - ugh....
2 - Taurus revolvers, 441 in .44 Special (several mechanical failures) and 941,also mechanical failures. Upon disassembly, they're not designed for durability in my humble opinion.
3 - Kel-tec P40. Discontinued because it has an attitude (recoil in such a small package). Mechanical failure - broke the pin in the slide lock, rendering it inoperable. Too dangerous for a carry gun if it'll do that.
4 - FEG GKK .45ACP double action. Big pistol, should have a 5" barrel instead of 4". One of the worst triggers ever encountered in my years.
5 - Walther P1 - mechanical failure, lost its extractor. I know the design is really good or the Germans wouldn't have kept it in the P38 form, but mine is a French (I spit

) copy.
6 - Iver Johnson Trapper (.22 revolver) ooh, junk....
In net, the disappointments have been 'bargain basement' buys, including the surplus P1. I've learned that even though the top manufacturers charge more, on a really good day, you may get what you pay for.
For the Charter Arms and Taurus .44s, I should have gone S&W, same with the 941 - should have bought a Kit Gun.
For the Kel-tec, should have bought small Glock or Kahr, or something similar.
For the FEG, many full size autos such as another M1911, S&W 4006, Glock, would have been better deal.
For the Walther, same comment.
For the Iver Johnson, cheap is what cheap does (sorry, Forrest).
I'm not a snob for top manufacturers. I hate the S&W idiot lawyer locks (I'm sorry, idiot and lawyer can be redundant terms) and some of the other stupid things lately. I simply haven't found a lot of fault with their quality of design. Reliability's a big deal to me since I'm a vet and ccw. I wouldn't carry anything in the list above. I don't care if they're ugly (like my CZ52) or cheap (like my Makarov) but they have to work. Every time. I won't forgive mechanical failures that can be isolated to poor design or poor manufacturing.