Beautiful pistol. I'm addicted to 1911s. That's good advice from Shooters Plus. Don't be discouraged by some malfunction early on. I almost freaked when my Baer jammed shortly after I took it out of the box, but then I thought about it some. Spending $$$ makes you emotional sometimes. It will work out and be a great gun for you. Practice with the ammo you will carry as much as you can without breaking the bank, but obviously FMJ will be what you shoot the most (and I've relied on the Remington ammo you mentioned to get me through an IDPA match, shoots great and is reliable). Different loads act differently with recoil, feed differently, and can vary a little in where they hit. Especially when you practice with "the cheap stuff" and carry high end self defense ammo in the gun but never shoot the stuff. It can make a difference. Oh, and I would recommend carrying the grain weight bullet you practice most with. Just my preference. Shoot 230 gr if you're carrying .45, I say. Obviously cleaning after shooting is pretty important. If the barrel bushing is a little snug and hard to turn like mine is, you might think of investing in a bushing wrench. Learn from me and try to find a composite one (not metal, please) or you can rub the recoil spring plug and be irritated - if you are obsessive with your guns like I am. But enough about my OCD with guns. Just shoot it whenever you can, keep it clean and oiled and enjoy the heck out of it. Also, think about at least a short class on shooting. I went forever with the wrong grip because I grew up around rifles, not pistols. Look up the high thumb hold for that one and maybe you won't have to un-learn the wrong grip like I did. Man, I hope I didn't just start up a debate somewhere in this message.