For those missing Ral Partha miniatures,
Ironwind Metals has the molds and is re-making them. Here's a link to their
Fantasy line.
As for metal miniatures, they've been alive and well all along. I can't bring myself to buy any of the pre-painted plastics and prefer using either unpainted metals or, if I get the chance, I'll paint them myself. But there is just something about the weight and feel of a metal miniature...they're expensive, but they're fun
toys ;-).
There's a lot of stuff out there, but my favorite lines are the now unfortunately OOP Rackham Confrontation miniatures, Enigma Miniatures, and Reaper - which probably has the best D&D-esque miniatures. I just bought and assembled
Xeldorian here who I'm using as the big final badguy in my 4E conversion of
White Plume Mountain (instead of the ogre mage). Reaper also has their own line for
Pathfinder.
Oh yeah, the best place to buy Reaper miniatures is
Miniature Giant - free shipping and at least 26% off (if you buy from there, feel free to write in "jonnybardo" as your referring person ;-).