I agree with what your saying too. I only mention Baer because I like them in the 2k range.  Totally agree finish etc isn’t even the same league as more expensive guns.  But that’s not what they are going for either.

I would love a full custom from heirloom, or any of the top builders. Over a semi custom. But I also think semi custom is the way to go if you have a budget.  Once I tried a semi custom there was no going back to full assembly line 1911’s.

If I had a Vickers, I'd shoot it as much as I wanted.

I don't think it's something that will be historically significant and will only appreciate in value so much before it's just an old gun.

We see in this thread that already many people don't really get or appreciate the significance of LAV and the modern 1911.

It's significant to me only because I was around LAV some in '07--'12 during the hot and heavy days of training back in the GWOT.    That was  a great time in my life even if I didn't realize it then.

To someone coming up now, or in the future, it'll just be an old 1911.  Just like a Clark, Swenson, Pachamyr, 1911 don't hold any special place for me, but they do to guys 15-20 years older than me.

That is an opinion I can agree with.  I too would shoot the hell out of it if I were fortunate enough to be able to buy it.  The late Al Mar (knife designer) once told me that it was silly for someone to buy some neat bit of kit and not use it.  He said that if you don't use it, after you die, your widow will probably sell it for pennies on the dollar, and whoever buys it at that bargain price will then use the hell out of it, so you might as well be the guy using it, and enjoying it.  That gave me a different perspective on buying neat stuff and using it, rather than "saving it" for some thing else.

Chances are, that for most people who buy firearms for speculation, that unless they sell the items before they die, whoever has to liquidate their estate either won't know the true value of the piece, or the auction house, or seller will get a large share of the value of the item.

The above thoughts have caused me to liquidate most of the guns that I had collected.  I still have more than I can shoot, so I realize I am fortunate, and I enjoy what I kept.

I buy dan seasons and made the mistake of handling a springer custom shop trophy match.

It was so much nicer

Man...now I wanna go look at some old Swenson and Pachymar builds....and the old Devel guns too...

Some wise words here. LAV is a top notch trainer, shooter, and a 1911 smith along with great insight into all other firearms. Took a few courses with him and I don't regret a single penny spent.
Like all collections in life, one man's treasure is another man's trash. Considering the quality of the components and having handled a personal 1911 of his, I don't doubt this gun will run circles and if I had the money I'd splurge. The best part of this gun is that I would'nt mind shooting the snot out of it, and just refinishing it after a good 10,000 rounds.
I'd bet a hundred also that if you asked Larry to do do a lookover on one of his built 1911s, he'll do it. First time I've seen one of these in the wild.