WOW. Great responses and a lot of food for thought.
A couple of things based on the responses. My analogy to the 1911 was not meant as a put down or slam on that system. Not at all. Just a illustration that other older guns made in the past, still have a useful purpose and function.
All guns are afterall, tools. So perhaps a tool analogy would illustrate my point better. Does a 50 year old screwdriver not do exactly what the screwdriver made yesterday does?
Having been introduced to handguns with revolvers at the ripe age of 7, I grew up with finely constructed steel guns. At my current age of 53 I've seen quite a bit concerning handguns over the years. Even when I wasn't around guns or shooting from around 1981 to 1986, I still picked up gunrags now and then to keep my hand in and see what was what. Back then, you could still find an ounce of truth in gunrags and their reviews.
They hadn't yet become the paid shills for manufacturers that they have over the past decade. IMO of course.
For the last 21 years I've carried a handgun as a neccessary part of my job. I started with revolvers and after they were abolished I went to semi auto pistols. I have shot and owned a substantial number of guns from different manufacturers over the years. Colt, HK, Sig, Springfield, Walther, Llama, Ruger and of course S&W. I am not a "brand loyalist". Those folks miss out on some fine handguns IMO.
Back around 2000 we got the word that revolvers were going away. NC Probation and Parole next door was carrying 3 inch 64's or 65's. All loaded with 38+p. I was carrying a 3 inch 66-4.
I started looking around at different semi auto's and purchased a 4566. Nice pistol. Wish I still had that one. I like it fine. Revolver like reliability in my second favorite caliber. I was not on the internet at the time and had not heard about the dreaded DA to SA transition. So I qualified expert with it.
It was a little big for off duty carry though. I was younger and skinnier. so I got a 4516 and a 3913. Great pistols. Accurate and reliable. Bet your life reliable. Durable too. I shot the hell out of those guns and they never malfunctioned or broke. Well.......I did get a broken MIM mag catch during an IDPA match on the 4516-3. But the gun still functioned. You just had to tea cup it to keep the mag in. I replaced it with a forged steel catch from a 4566 and have not had any more trouble out of it.
As I got fatter and older I was better able to conceal the bigger guns and I looked at and purchased quite a few. The Glocks grip and plastic construction, as well as its striker fired mechanism never appealed to me. They are fine tools, if you like that sort of thing. Just not for me.
The HK's are finely constructed guns. Durable and accurate. They usually only get knocked for their MSRP and alleged lack of customer service. Well, the folks I see complaining about the HK prices are usually the same ones who think $550 for a m&p is OK. As far as HK's customer service. Dunno. In 19 years of owning their products I've never needed them. Not once.
I was trained on 1911's. I actually carried one for two years due to sorry circumstances. I still own a couple of them. My Colt Combat Elite, the original one, is a finely made handgun and fun range toy. For most of my career SA 1911 pistols were prohibited. I was fine with that. I prefer a TDA 45. Lately, 1911's are allowed if you shoot high enough scores and qualify 2X a year. I've not bothered to look into it any more than that, so there may be additional requirements. Dunno. I don't trust any 1911 to run reliably enough to trust my life to. Others feel differently and thats why there is chocolate AND vanilla.
As I've aged and worked plainclothes I've been drawn to compact pistols. Both for their concealability as well as their ease of carry. Having both the bad back and blown out knees from 21 years on the job, I REALLY appreciate the lighter weight of my 4513TSW. The 4513TSW is a handgun I really can't find fault with or say enough good things about. If it didn't exist I would have a Sig P245 in my holster. Thats the only pistol that comes close to all the original 4513TSW's attributes.
I'm OK with the 6+1 capacity. Remember, I went to bad places looking for worse people for many years armed with a 6-shot revolver. Again, I wasn't on the internet and didn't know I was poorly armed.
I'm also OK with the shorter barrel. 3.75". If the velocity loss from a 5 inch tube, using Ranger RA45T is even 75 FPS I'd be VERY surprised.
The durability of the aluminum frame concerned me at first. So I joined the internet gun boards to research it.
As the years have gone by and the round counts pile up I've stopped being concerned. These guns will outlast me.
So in conclusion, I don't see where reliability, durability, accuracy and quality construction become obsolete. Less profitable for the manufacturer? Yes. Harder to make with a less skilled, less educated work force? Definitely. Harder to train rookies with who have little to no experience with handguns, and you have no training budget to do so? Yes indeed.
And as to asthetics, yes, asthetics is low on the list of what to look for in a handgun. Based on a quick perusal of the 2013 S&W catalog, asthetics is evidently not even on their list.
But as I've mentioned, I came up when asthetics AND a good trigger from the factory were something that manufacturers GAVE their customers. As part of the original purchase price. No additional expenditure for aftermarket parts was needed to make the guns useable. Unless 1911's were your thing.
My long winded 0.02 Regards 18DAI
