FEG made a number of pistols derived from the Walther PP, PPK/S and PPK. They all use the Walther PP operating system with some of the later variants having some evolutionary changes such as a firing pin safety.
I have a few of FEG's steel framed commercial pistols including a couple AP9S pistols (a PP sized pistol in .380 ACP), an APK9S (a shorter slide PPK/S sized pistol in .380 ACP), and an APK7S (an APK in 7.65mm Browning). The pistols imported by Interarms in particular were made to a very high standard of finish with excellent polish and blue, but all of them shoot very well.
Below, top to bottom are an Interarms imported AP9S, an Interarms imported APK9S, and a TGI imported APK7S:
The FEG PP copies have slightly larger slides and grip frames that reflect their lineage from military pistols that were originally chambered in 9mm Makarov, and the AP9M is an all steel commercial pistol chambered in 9mm Mak.
All this is back ground for my post recent FEG purchase - an FEG SMC-380. "SMC" is K.B.I.'s model number for an FEG pistol that uses the smaller PPK sized aluminum frame of their BR-61 pistol with a later APK style slide incorporating a trigger actuated firing pin safety. Michael Kassanar had a habit of naming pistols using the initials of family members, and in the case of the SMC-380, SMC-918 (chambered in 9x18mm Mak) and SMC-22 (in .22 LR) the initials were those of his sales manager.
K.B.I. didn't order the pistols to quite the same high level of finish as Interarms, but they sold them at a lower price point. The slide is nicely polished and blued (the brown color is a reflection of the brown roof over the firing range), and the lower level of finish is evident in the anodized aluminum alloy frame which still carries some tool marks. This particular pistol has a ding on the rear of the grip frame up near the slide, probably from being dropped and shows some wear on the anodizing on the frame around the trigger, and over the barrel hood, but otherwise was in excellent condition externally and had virtually no wear internally.
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I started by loading it 6+1 and then fired 7 shots slow fire at 7 yards to see how well it shot. The clean bore shot went a bit high and right but the next 6 rounds went into a single ragged hole. I then shot another 6 magazines rapid fire, starting with the hammer down, and aiming for the 8 on the B-27 target. The results were not bad for a DA pistol with a characteristically heavy PP series trigger.
I put 100 rounds through it by the end of the session and the only malfunction occurred due to the magazine not being fully seated. That's not surprising given my experience with other FEG PP style pistols. What was surprising is that the 18 oz PPK sized pistol was comfortable to shoot over an extended range session and displayed no tendency toward slide bite.
I like the FEG commercial pistols and in general they are badly under estimated, possibly due to the number of well used surplus PA-63 pistols on the market and more than a few franken pistols assembled from the large number of FEG PP variant military and commercial pistols. That's not all bad however as you can often find FEG commercial pistols like the SMC-380 for around $200 in excellent to LNIB condition.
The SMC pistols also have the distinction of being the smallest pistols imported since the passage of the Gun Control Act of 1968. The finger extension on the magazine is just long enough to squeak it in over the wire for the minimum height dimension while the original black plastic grips with a thumb rest on the left panel were just wide enough to meet the minimum width requirement.
I have a few of FEG's steel framed commercial pistols including a couple AP9S pistols (a PP sized pistol in .380 ACP), an APK9S (a shorter slide PPK/S sized pistol in .380 ACP), and an APK7S (an APK in 7.65mm Browning). The pistols imported by Interarms in particular were made to a very high standard of finish with excellent polish and blue, but all of them shoot very well.
Below, top to bottom are an Interarms imported AP9S, an Interarms imported APK9S, and a TGI imported APK7S:
The FEG PP copies have slightly larger slides and grip frames that reflect their lineage from military pistols that were originally chambered in 9mm Makarov, and the AP9M is an all steel commercial pistol chambered in 9mm Mak.
All this is back ground for my post recent FEG purchase - an FEG SMC-380. "SMC" is K.B.I.'s model number for an FEG pistol that uses the smaller PPK sized aluminum frame of their BR-61 pistol with a later APK style slide incorporating a trigger actuated firing pin safety. Michael Kassanar had a habit of naming pistols using the initials of family members, and in the case of the SMC-380, SMC-918 (chambered in 9x18mm Mak) and SMC-22 (in .22 LR) the initials were those of his sales manager.
K.B.I. didn't order the pistols to quite the same high level of finish as Interarms, but they sold them at a lower price point. The slide is nicely polished and blued (the brown color is a reflection of the brown roof over the firing range), and the lower level of finish is evident in the anodized aluminum alloy frame which still carries some tool marks. This particular pistol has a ding on the rear of the grip frame up near the slide, probably from being dropped and shows some wear on the anodizing on the frame around the trigger, and over the barrel hood, but otherwise was in excellent condition externally and had virtually no wear internally.
\
I started by loading it 6+1 and then fired 7 shots slow fire at 7 yards to see how well it shot. The clean bore shot went a bit high and right but the next 6 rounds went into a single ragged hole. I then shot another 6 magazines rapid fire, starting with the hammer down, and aiming for the 8 on the B-27 target. The results were not bad for a DA pistol with a characteristically heavy PP series trigger.
I put 100 rounds through it by the end of the session and the only malfunction occurred due to the magazine not being fully seated. That's not surprising given my experience with other FEG PP style pistols. What was surprising is that the 18 oz PPK sized pistol was comfortable to shoot over an extended range session and displayed no tendency toward slide bite.
I like the FEG commercial pistols and in general they are badly under estimated, possibly due to the number of well used surplus PA-63 pistols on the market and more than a few franken pistols assembled from the large number of FEG PP variant military and commercial pistols. That's not all bad however as you can often find FEG commercial pistols like the SMC-380 for around $200 in excellent to LNIB condition.
The SMC pistols also have the distinction of being the smallest pistols imported since the passage of the Gun Control Act of 1968. The finger extension on the magazine is just long enough to squeak it in over the wire for the minimum height dimension while the original black plastic grips with a thumb rest on the left panel were just wide enough to meet the minimum width requirement.
