I'm sure this is a much written question but cant seem to put my fingers on anything as yet so here goes.......I was out with my son gun shopping yesterday, I'm a lefty and dont intend to try and shoot or manipulate my main handgun with my right hand so my first choice and almost written in stone is a S&W M&P in 9mm or .40 cal. Its almost completely modifiable to a lefty, I have heard great reviews from dealers who say customer service from the factory is second to none so I think I'm set on my choice. I also looked at several 1911 .45 cal[who would buy a 1911 in anything BUT .45?]. I looked at several, the Kimber ss was very pretty and no doubt the poser value is 10 out of 10. Then I made a big mistake.....I looked and played with a Norinco 1911 for less than $400!!!!! I could buy 4 for the price of a Kimber. I have my poser piece in my Beretta o/under, beautiful gun but is it worth 3 times what I could have bought an o/u for? Who cares, I like it. But you know, that Norinco looks more like my idea of a 1911 than most others I have played with. Are aftermarket parts easy to get? Are they a reliable viable option for my .45 1911? Money is not a huge factor for me but I really liked the rugged feel of the Norinco, the Kimber felt different, not better, not worse, different. Any unbiased, un emotional opinions out there? I'm a long long time lurker and infrequent poster. This site is bar none, THE BEST resource out there. Thanks for reading me guys and gals...........