Why would I buy a Les Paul in the first place if there was a really good chance that I could get a bad one?
Is consistency not important?
Sure it is. Quality control is very important-- that's what separates the capsules that companies like Charter Oak or Mojave use in their mics from the capsules manufactured by the same machines and in the same factories for cheaper mics-- better quality control. I've definitely heard accounts of people getting higher priced acoustics or electrics that were "duds." People pay a lot for a brand name. It's true of guitars, it's true of jeans, it's true of a lot of things.
For things like guitars or cheap Chinese mics, people often buy these from online retailers, ebay, off message boards, etc. where you can't try out the exact item you will be receiving. This is not exactly uncommon or new
Yea, but why do that when you can just buy a decent mic in the first place? The MCA SP-1 and
the CAD M-177/79 pretty much already have the improved electronics similar to the Dorsey mod. Audio Technica mics,
for the most part, already have quality capsules, electronics ... and they're very consistent from mic to mic.
My MCA SP-1s are on the way

... they are modded though
"Why do [it]...?"; the chance for something better at a modest expense. If you honestly think that a stock production mic is going to equal a modded mic of similar cost that has been upgraded at a reasonable rate by hand, by a highly skilled technician with carefully selected parts (not arbitrarily, but as the result of significant R&D like Michael Joly has done) in the quality of its components (both the spec quality and quality control from component to component), craftsmanship, etc., I believe (IMHO) that you're missing out on some great tools.
Why even bother mucking around with stuff that's broken ... just so you can send it to someone else to fix it ?
Personally, I wouldn't at this point. I would break it and probably hurt myself and others in the process. I would personally like to learn how to do these things myself.
Now I admit that in some cases and for some types of equipment, mods can be very worthwhile and cost-effective (particularly with Symetrix/dbx/Rane/Ashly comps, mic pres and eqs). But with mics ... there's just too many good ones out there ... for very cheap, that are like that right out of the box..
Those are things you have tried and liked. We all tend to recommend what we've tried and like and our recommendations are limited by our experience with things. I certainly do this-- everyone does. It doesn't mean that better things aren't out there though. Have you tried the Oktavamods or even listened to any of the well-recorded clips of them?
Ultimately, better is always subjective anyway... it's a damn good thing too-- what would we argue about if we all like the same things

?