In a 1911-style, as was the original question, I would recommend a Charles Daly. They are cheap Filipino knock offs that are primarily cast or MIM, but they tend to work very well and be pretty darn accurate.
Plus, CD service is second to none. The big boss for CD even posts on this forum from time to time.
Paras are good guns, but you have to know how to tune a compact 1911 if you want one that is reliable. My P12-45 is incredibly reliable, but when I got it the gun would jam every three rounds. A detail strip and cleaning and replacing a few springs with the right ones and voila. A primo compact.
If you want to be dead certain you are getting a reliable, quality 1911 compact for under $1,000 there is only one way to go - Colt.
Or, you can learn a lot about 1911s and do what I do - buy a quality gun that someone is selling because it always jams. Then you fix it. I've never had a jammomatic that couldn't be fixed for under $100.
If you can find a Norinco compact snatch it. They are built to better specs than even Colt. They may be the finest non-Colt 1911s ever built.
My hobby is customizing 1911s. I build a few for friends and I customize some for friends. I work with three platforms. Colt, pre-Series II Kimbers and Norincos. Aside from those the only other platforms I'll consider are things like Caspian or Fushion.
I wouldn't own a Brazilian gun any longer than it takes to trade it off. At the risk of offending the Taurus and Springfield owners, they are crap. Stay away from them.
Bear in mind, when you save money up front it will cost you down the road. I really like the CDs and Rock Islands when they are new, but 20,000 rounds later they get sloppy and can't be properly tuned.
If you really want a nice gun for cheap look into the EAA Witness P Compact. I paid $300 for mine last year and it shoots as well and is as reliable as any of my 1911s. And, all my 1911s are in the $1,000 to $3,000 range. The truth is that it is the most accurate .45 ACP I own and that really ticks me off...
