My personal preference is all metal. A gun ought to function well, but I think that it should look and feel nice too. 1911 & Browning Hi-power are perfect examples. They function flawlessly, and it look nice. 100 years later and I don't think that there are any gun designers out there that come anywhere near the designs of John Browning. As far as a carry piece, it's hard to beat the reliability, and power of a j frame .357. It is extremely easy to carry. The only drawback is that it only holds 5 bullets. If I were a policeman I would probably have a Glock, but only because they would make me.
I carried a 1911-A1 during the dry and monsoon season in SE Asia and no different than thousands of others I'll say it worked as did the Hi-Powers. As far as my faith, they earned it. One of my 1911-A1 serial is Ithaca and WWII; it has been in the family since NRA-DCM. Only change is I favor a heavier spring than the issue.
I have my grandfathers WWII Colt 1911-A1 issue side-arm. Passed on to me when my father died. It shoots as well today as it did the day it was made (and that isn't a slight...if I can see it and the pistol can get the round there, I can hit it). It was manufactured in 1936 and is supposed to be under a street in Germany...oops. My next holster purchase will be one that sets it up high enough that I don't present accidentally with an untucked shirt.
I guess I'm weird... I own a very early first Gen. Glock 17 I purchased around 1987-88. Don't remember for sure anymore. Ever since the day I picked it up and shot it for the first time it has been my "baby." It has always been accurate and completely reliable no matter standard or +P, import, reload, or US Factory made ammunition. And I would have absolutely no qualms about passing it on to the next generation of shooters in my family. I have never noticed any kind of deterioration of the frame, or in it's accuracy or functionality in all this time and it's going on 25 yrs old.
