I have three .45's in the 1911 variety. My first was custom built using a Caspian frame and slide. I had it built specifically for bullseye competition. It is a complete work of art. It is more accurate and tighter fit than most anything you could ever buy commercially. It is not a defensive pistol, but is still my own benchmark by which I judge other 1911's.
Eventually, I wanted another 1911 that I could use for shooting full power loads and home defense. I bought a pretty plain jane Kimber Royal II. After getting it home, I found I became dissatified with the frame to slide fit. I sent it back to Kimber and they did tighten the fit. The pistol performed flawlessly. Like alot of 1911's I decided to do some work on it. I switched out the full length guide rod for the traditional GI set, I added a wider safety, installed VZ slim grips, Heine slant pro straight eight night sights and a trigger job. The pistol continues to function flawlessly, is relatively accurate and pretty to look at. However, the workmanship is not in the same league as my Caspian. I don't expect it to be, but both pistols do perform their respective roles well.
Next I wanted a commander sized 1911. I also wanted the "original" 1911. You know, the one with horsey on the side. I bought the Colt Combat Commander in stainless steel. I have not had any malfunctions with this pistol either. It too is reasonably accurate. Again, I customized this one with a trigger job, Heine night sights, Chip McCormick rosewood thin grips and a Greider extended mag release.
I am very happy with all of my 1911's. They all serve different roles. They all make me happy.
As long as you buy a pistol made with a decent frame and slide, just about anything else can be fixed if necessary. I know alot of people will say that you shouldn't have to work on a pistol to get it to perform reliably. Truth is, you will want to add custom features to your pistol (unless of course you start out buying a custum or semi-custom gun). If you gun needs "tuning" which some do, it can be done at this time. I didn't have any functional issues with my Kimber or my Colt. Maybe I was lucky. Granted I wasn't pleased with the Kimber slide to frame fit, but this was remedied by Kimber.
So after my long winded response, buy the 1911 which suits your needs, your wallet and your eye. As long as the frame and slide are well made (most are from reputable manufacturers), most anything can be fixed and turned into whatever you want it to be, within reason of course!
CB
