Quite possibly the best bang-for-buck value would be the S&W 3rd Gen pistols, like the 5906. I've still seen them running at around $350, give or take.
They're no longer in production, but there are plenty of parts available. Wolff has the springs, mags are pretty easy to find. We're talking a well-designed pistol that had undergone several decades of development, and by the time the 3rd generation came around, I'd say most-all the kinks had been worked out. They are heavy, but for range usage, that's not a bad thing. The control layout on the 5906 is ambidextrous, and parallels the Berettas. Try to price another hi-capacity 9mm with stainless steel frame and slide, new or used, and then see if you can get anywhere near what the 5906's are going for. And this wasn't a marginal pistol, it was used by many PDs, they just cost more than the Glocks etc that replaced them. It wasn't a cheap gun, I imagine it would be well over a grand if still in production today for the commercial market.