You absolutely get what you pay for in many well made 1911's ! The idea that you don't, just makes no sense to me.
Cost can be an indication of better parts, more features & options, better fit & finish, more skilled labor in terms of putting guns together, fine tuning the fit on triggers, etc....and in the case of Wilson Combat 1911's as an example...you get a much better gun & they stand behind it for the life of the gun...( whether its 15+ yrs or 500,000 rds...or much, much longer...)...and while I think they're worth every penny - I understand a gun starting at $3,000 - $4,000 is not what everyone wants. Wilson Combat flat out in my view makes some of the best 1911's out there.
There is value out there in other 1911's for less money than a Wilson...but they're not nearly as good as a Wilson....that's why I still think a gun like the TRP for around $ 1,500 is a good value, with desireable options on it and fairly good internal parts in it - even though its not a Wilson.
I have a Wilson Combat 5" Protector model, in 9mm, all stainless, ambi safeties, match grade barrel & hand fit bushing, a mag well...that I paid $2,100 for new about 11 yrs ago...its my primary range gun, as of about 2 yrs ago its my primary carry gun ...and to date, I have a little over 200,000 rds thru it. Yes, I have had some parts fail ( an extractor broke at about 80,000 rd -- and the shaft on thumb safety snapped at about 170,000 rds....in both cases, Wilson insisted I return gun to factory in Arkansas ...they paid freight both ways -- and in both cases, gun was repaired & returned to me within 10 days.
My backup range & carry gun ...is a Wilson 5" CQB model in .45acp...its about 18 yrs old and I retired it as my carry gun because my arthritis in my hands is getting worse ..not because its 18 yrs old.....I only have around 100,000 rds thru it & its never had to go back for service....and I think I paid about $ 1,650 for it new in 1999.
In my view, there's a lot of cheap, poorly made 1911's out there...with really low quality internal parts...price is not the only way to tell they probably cut some corners on those guns, but its a strong indication...and on many of them, they sure don't have much of a warranty.