I've been wanting to buy a Springfield SA-35 since they came out nearly a year ago. I've had my name on several dealer's 'please notify me' lists, including Brownell's, and have yet to be notified- and see continuous 'Out of Stock' notices on every dealer's ads.
Yet they're continuously on Gunbroker, selling for an average of $300-$400 over list price. So SOMEBODY is getting them... sometimes even consecutively serialized!
How long is this going to go on? Springfield keeps bringing out new guns, while they apparently can't meet the needs for this gun. I wrote them at the beginning of the year- or late last year and they stated that production would begin to pick up on them in March or April... wrote to them again in late June- and got no reply this time.
Frustrated.
NOT going to pay 50% markup over retail.

I am wondering the same thing. I have read that there were extraction issues with these pistols when the first ones hit the market, but surely there has been adequate time to resolve those issues. I really want to see and handle one.

I’ve yet to see any in the wild yet I’ve seen posts here from lucky members who have picked one up at MSRP or below ……

I managed to get one at MSRP. But I had to drive to another town 75 miles away to do it.
This was a good sized store in a medium sized town. I asked how they managed to get some when nobody else could? They said that they order directly from Springfield Armory and that they only got three after months of waiting.
I'm guessing that SA is giving priority to stocking dealers.

It is a nice gun at a very attractive MSRP, so many were/are motivated to pay over that amount for one. Eventually, supply will exceed demand (it always does in a market economy) and you'll see them regularly at or below list price. Don't be surprised if it takes another year or two, however.

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

I have seen a few for sale in stores around SE PA. The last one I saw they wanted $795. I’m surprised they aren’t more available by now.

I got my SA-35 at my local police supply for $605. Ordered it in November, got it in April. They didn’t expect to see anymore of them any time soon.

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Wheel guns are real guns.

I think supply chain issues have got everyone bit in the keister. When I bought my little Honda 250 Recon atv to augment my 23 year old (and still running fine) one, the largest powersports dealer in 300 miles of me told me he hadnt seen one in 6 months. Ended up getting a call out of the blue from a dealer one town over that got hold of one. Full msrp and no choice of color lol. Also, as a machinist by trade, getting materiale, especially any high grade aluminum or steel alloys, is VERY hit and miss. Need incolnel, titanium, etc?? Fuggetaboutit.

Saw one in a local pawn shop in N.W. Louisiana this past week for $850 plus 9% tax NIB. They also had one of the Girsan Hi Power copies NIB for $550 plus tax. I have also read,I believe in the Gun Digest a few weeks back, that they had extraction issues with their Springfield SA-35 test gun. The article also indicated that the forged frames and forged slides for the SA-35 are made in Turkey by Tisas. Nothing wrong with that. I have a Tisas 1911 .45 Government model that is a great shooter, very well made, and a good shooter.

One needs to realize that Springfield Armory isn't concerned with how long it takes you to get one. They have a production schedule that is computed based off of materials, machining, and labor... not on how quickly they can get one in the hands of everyone wanting it. Demand for your product is a much better problem to have than production exceeding what you can sell. Two choices for those wanting one immediately... pay the scalpers or have some patience. Actually 3 as I see it... you could buy a Girsan MCP35 instead.

Stumbled across one at my local shop just after they came out. They had three, one of which was sold. I bought the second and an hour later my friend bought the third. $609 as I recall, under MSRP. Those are the only ones I've seen in the wild. Mine has run flawlessly. I'm thinking the extractor issue is borderline internet myth.

I suspect the parts are sourced from Turkey, possibly the same source as Girsan. The Girsans seem easy enough to find so perhaps they are getting a preference on parts.

I'm not a huge fan of the HP platform. But I'd pick the Girsan over the SA, and not only for price.

The Girsan is pretty much a copy of the MkIII, so it is southpaw friendly.

Seems like a well made gun, especially for the cost.

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BTDT, Got The T-Shirt

There is a recent article in Guns Magazine that states the SA-35 metal parts are sourced from the USA.

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

I've been waiting too. Too long as a matter of fact. Just ordered the Girsan version from Range USA. Black model, $477.99 shipped plus tax.

If you think it is a myth you would be incorrect. The extractor is a known problem with the SA-35. There are multiple explanations for the failures. It was confirmed to me by a SA Customer Service Rep that around serial number 7000 the extractor design was changed. She would not go into further detail. The extractor below came out of a gun with a serial number 6800+.

From what I have personally seen there are 3 explanations for the extractor failures on the SA 35.

• The claw on the extractor is different than the FN part. It might not have enough surface area to grab the rim or they got a bad batch of parts which are soft and prematurely wearing.

• The Springs is not strong enough. The extractor in a BHP is basically a claw hook and unless it was not properly hardened it should last 10,000+ rounds. The spring however is under stress and is known to wear out. Again speculation is that the spring is not up to snuff or that they got a bad batch of springs.

• Finally the serrations on the slide are cut on after the extractor channel. The are not properly cleaning up the channel. This leave chatter marks on the extractor where it is making contact with the channel. You can see chatter on the extractor. This could be causing the spring to work harder than design and it could be enough interference to prevent it from working properly. See the pic below.

Lots of people who have had the extractor issue simply swapped the extractor and the spring with a FN part or a C&S part which are both known to work. Most reported no further issues which tells us is is reason #1 or #2.

Other people continued to have failures which leads us to believe that #3 was the cause of their issues. As of now no one knows if it has really been resolved.

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Use should dictate gear!

Is this the article you are referring to? Mas makes no mention of where the parts are sourced from. Other articles I can find state "Made in the US" but that does not mean the parts came from the US. SA has been playing that game for a long time.

GUNS Magazine The Springfield Armory SA-35 - GUNS Magazine

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Use should dictate gear!

The article that you are posting about was in the Aug issue, the Sept issue is the issue and article that I imagine Alan is referring too. It has two SA35's customized by Cylinder & Slide on the cover.

Tim

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SWCA #3463
SWHF #970

I bought one a while back for $650
So far it's running well, but I haven't put a lot of rounds through it.
It shoots great and is more accurate than I am. Pretty good looking too I think.

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Found it it does say forgings from the US doesn’t say what part one I guess one can assume slide barrel frame.

GUNS Magazine Cylinder & Slide SA-35s - GUNS Magazine

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Use should dictate gear!

From the Sept issue.

"When SA announced their version of the beloved Hi-Power in October 2021, it pretty much caught everyone by surprise. The surprise had most assuming it would be some sort of import with “SA” stamped on the side. Nope — wrongo. Springfield’s aptly named SA-35 is American made, with machined forgings done right here in the U.S.A. The rest of the gun is superbly constructed, presenting a high level of attention to engineering and details — like their 1911 line-up — and immediately captured the shooting public’s attention."

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SWCA #3463
SWHF #970

Yup that entire article is a fluff piece. C&S is a good BHP shop and they build a nice gun. They are not my shop of choice but they have been in the game a long time.

I have a SA 35 and having owned 20+ FN BHPs over the years the SA 35 shows why it is a $700 gun. It does not make it bad it just makes it what it is. They have a QC problem. I have no doubt that the guns they are sending to paid reviewers are gone over with a fine tooth comb but that arrives to the avg consumer is not consistent. I believe that they will serve as a solid base gun for custom builds but are currently hit or miss as out of the box shooters which is what 99% of the people buying them are looking for. If you wanted to send it out for custom work most people would start with a FN.

Here is my review of the pistol I have.

So I picked it up Overall the gun is pretty nice. The finish is a matte blue sort parkerized finish. I imagine with hard use it is going to show some wear. I honestly think they would have been better off with a cerakote type finish but that would have added cost to the production. It would not surprise me if the slides and the frames are coming to SA already finished. Serial number is in the high 6000s. The Rollmarks are clean and well done. They are nice an subtle. No giant billboards. There are numbers on the underside of the slide and on th barrel lug. I assume they are date codes. 2.20 on the slide 7.3.1 on the barrel.

-The overall machining is good. Pretty clean inside and out. I don't see any glaringly bad tool marks. I did not take the pistol all the way down. I want to shoot it stock before I do anything but clean it. Lots of people complain about the sharp edges at the rear of the frame in the "beavertail " area. Some say it eats up their hand. I did not find it to be any sharper than a late model MKIII. Sure it could be dehorned a bit and refined but I did not find it overly sharp. That might change with firing of the pistol. If I were to do any custom work on this pistol that area would be addressed.

-The sights look good. The dovetails are well cut. The sight fit the dovetails as I would expect from a $700 pistol. The U notch rear with a front white dot. If the gun stay long term I might replace the front sight with a gold dot. There are some marks in the finish on the front sight from where they installed it. Just a little contact wear which I believe they touched up. You really have to look at it to see it.

-The magwell has a slight bevel to it. Maybe a little nicer than the standard FN. One nice part about the magwell area is that the front corners measure .039" at their thinnest point. 40 LPI checkering is .019-.020" deep so this frame would be suitable to checker if your smith will do it. This makes it a possible base gun for a high end custom build. BHSS tested the hardness and it was harder than the FNs but harder is not always better. This is a sample of one but still promising.

-The thumb safety is a nice design. The sights and the thumb safety are the 2 biggest upgrades IMHO. The contour is nice. It has serrations on the top of the lever. Some people complain that it is mushy. It is not 1911 click click but it is not bad. I think that a stronger detent spring would help it. C&S sells that part. It is the best factory safety I have seen on a BHP. It is better than the C&S aftermarket part but not as good as ones made by some custom smiths.

-The grips which people complain about are fine. They look to be barely finished Turkish walnut, see a recurring theme. They are definitely machine checkered with a diamond pattern. Again if the gun stays they will be swapped out for Navidrex grips. Again this is clearly a cost cutting measure. Better grips would add cost. I am actually surprised they did not go with VZs. Most people would pay a little more for better grips. One thing that I had heard about but had not been able to confirm is that the frame is cut for a lanyard loop. This tells you someone else is using the frame. Why would SA spec that for a gun intended for the US commercial market.

-The extractor looks sound. I didn't remove it because I don't have a replacement roll pin spring and there is always a chance you are going to destroy it when removing it. The plan is to run the factory extractor until it fails if it fails. If it does I have a replacement extractor in house and will get a back up rollpin before I swap it out. The hammer looks good and I don't see any cast marks on it. I don't see any cast marks on the small parts.

-The hammer is a rowel hammer model which is said to be no bite. BHPs don't bite me so I am not the best person to judge if the design change is effective in stopping that. A lot has to do with your individual grip. I personally like the look of the rowel hammer. Again I don't see any cast marks on the part. Jason Burton of Heirloom Percision said he believe they were all tooled steel on the example he got sometime last year. The trigger pull is about 5.6 LBs. That is an avg of 5 pulls. Low was just under 5Lbs. I would guess if you cleaned up the surfaces you could get it just under 5 consistently which is good for stock part BHP. Out of the box at 5.6 is pretty good. FNs were often above 8 Lbs.

-The only oddity was the fit of the barrel. It reminded me of the Tisas which is not a surprise. The barrel has a lot of side to side play. It will rotate a bit in the slide. If slightly rotated it will not assembly properly. Reports say it does not effect accuracy and that make sense because that point of fitment is not where the guns accuracy comes from.

I will post more once I have shot it. Now for some ****** cell phone pics. These are not glamour shots. Most of what you see is lint and oil. My initial impression is that if you can get one for less than MSRP then it is a sold deal. It is has some nice upgrades vs the FN MKIII and at under MSRP it is cheaper than a FN. A FN in similar condition is still a $1000+ gun. It is a perfect gun to scratch that BHP itch and if you don't like it you can sell it for what you have in it, no profit allowed FJB & Congress, quickly in todays market. I am going to try to get my hand on a Girsan and shoot them all at the range and do a comparison. I don't think this is going to stop me from wanting FN/Brownings but it seems to be a viable option.

For me I don’t think it will change my love for the FN guns. I bought it for testing and out of curiosity more than anything. I am not sure it will stay but we will see.

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Use should dictate gear!

The SA 35 I own crapped out at 150 rounds. FTF due to FTE. Serial number 68XX

-The gun was accurate. Shot at 8, 10 and 15 yards. The trigger was a little vague vs the Garthwaite that came with me today but was as good or better then the T series in this session. All shooting was done standing unsupported. Once I was used to the sights I was hitting a 3/4 IDPA steel target at 25 yards consistently. So even with the barrel wobble it is certainly more accurate than I am. I used the 15 round Mecgar which came with it along with older 13 and 15 round mags known to work in my other BHPs.

-The backstrap is sharper and I noticed it after about 4 mags. It was not sharp enough to cut my hand or anything like that but if I was going to have any work done on it I would have it smoothed out along with some of the other edges. The reset is similar to other stock BHPs. Not as good as it can be but right out of the box it is fine. SA should have increased the weight on the trigger return spring when they removed the mag disconnect on the stock gun. This minor change would help.

-Mags loaded and dropped free without issue. The bevel in the magwell made mags changes smooth enough. I did not run the gun hard I was really looking to test function and get a feel for the trigger and the sights.

-Thumb safety worked as it should. In real use it had a more positive click then when thumbing it on and off sitting at the bench. I still might up the spring tension on the detent spring but for now this one works for. It certainly is strong enough that there was no movement during firing.

Now for the not so good. At about 100+ rounds the gun failed to feed. Case was left in the chamber so a failure to extract. I shot S&B, Browning, Geco and my reloads. Some were 124gr some were 115Gr. Intermittent failures to extract continued with all mags and all ammo. So at that point I put it away and shot other guns.



When I go home I swapped the extractor and the extractor spring. The design of both parts in the SA 35 are different than the FN parts. The shape of the hook is a little different. It seems more rounded on the SA-35 part. The FN part is a bit more oval. I did not see any signs of damage or excessive wear. There is some wear which might indicate that the part is dragging in the channel and there is some chatter which might be showing interference with the slide serration cuts. I inspected the channel and it seemed clean. The spring on the SA-35 was different. I did not have a way to test if it was heavier or lighter than the FN part. Coils appeared thicker.

So I took the replaced the SA -35 OEM extractor with a FN extractor from the parts kit. I did not do any extensive testing but did go out back and shot 10 rounds. The brass landed in a nice little pile to my right. All cased extracted as they should. I of course will have to take it to the range and run a few more than 10 rounds before I declare it good. I believe that there is something off about the extractor or the extractor spring that is causing these malfunctions. I talked to SA customer service and of course they claim it is not a know issue and only a few pistols have come back with this problem. I image that it is true vs the total number of guns shipped. They are somewhere over 8500 IIRC at this point.

I could have sent it in but they said it would be 2-4 weeks to get is looked at and repaired. I replaced the extractor in about 20 minutes with a $12 part. Seemed like the easier route. If the FN extractor fails the pistol will go back to SA at that point. I wish I could say that SA knock this one out of the park but I can't. It is a work in progress. I will update when it gets back to the range for more testing.

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Use should dictate gear!

So to answer the OPs question SA is behind in production because the gun is still a work in progress and they are ironing out the rough edges. It seems like more are flowing out serial numbers are now over 9000 but the demand is still high.

If you track GB prices they are coming down. Lots of auctions end with no bid at the $850 range these days. Just like ammo when the dealers can no longer keep them in the back and sell them at scalper prices on GB suddenly they will be on the shelf.

I think eventually they will be sub $650 guns. When you look at dealer and distribution costs on the gun from SA there is profit for dealers at $650.

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Use should dictate gear!

My first HP was purchased new in late 70's. Bright blue in the Browning red-lined rug. Good shooter but it eventually found a new home as I settled into L.E.
Had an itch for a .40 HP that I never scratched. Then I passed on a .40 HP Practical just after Browning announced HP's being discontinued.
Enter the SA-35. Don't NEED it,,,, but I'm on some order lists anyway.
In the interim, I found a LNIB 2010 Browning (Belgium/Portugal) HP with the factory LOW-mount adjustable sights. Bright blue, Ambi safety, three factory mags,,, and less that the SA-35 suggested retail.
I'm still on the lists for a SA,,, but I'm good until then Sometimes if you look REAL hard for something,,,,,,, something else pops up. Karma, I guess

I bought the SA-35 out of pure curiosity. I did not need it. Snap shot of part of my BHP collection. Not another clone in the bunch. Most of them are custom guns.

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Use should dictate gear!

WVSig, thank you for a most excellent review and commentary.

All the SA-35s are in a bank in Beverly Hills

My usual local guns shop is one of the sellers on GB selling them for way over the MSRP.

The next gun I purchase from them will be an SA-35 at MSRP, which means I haven’t done business there in quite a while.

——

In 37 years of hand gun buying I’ve learned that being an early adopter of a new handgun is almost never a good thing.

They all get rushed to market by the marketing folks who announce an upcoming release before the engineers and the production department have the bugs worked out.

What follows are customers with problems having to send them back for fixes that are not even developed yet. In some cases it’s so bad it kills the reputation and long term sales of what is eventually a good handgun and it gets discontinued.

Oddly enough this risk of a product failure drives some people to buy early and pay way too much, which just encourages the marketing folks to push new designs out the door too soon.

Me? I’ll wait however long it takes for a reliable product to finally start shipping, and selling at a normal price.

My usual local guns shop is one of the sellers on GB selling them for way over the MSRP.

The next gun I purchase from them will be an SA-35 at MSRP, which means I haven’t done business there in quite a while.

——

In 37 years of hand gun buying I’ve learned that being an early adopter of a new handgun is almost never a good thing.

They all get rushed to market by the marketing folks who announce an upcoming release before the engineers and the production department have the bugs worked out.

What follows are customers with problems having to send them back for fixes that are not even developed yet. In some cases it’s so bad it kills the reputation and long term sales of what is eventually a good handgun and it gets discontinued.

Oddly enough this risk of a product failure drives some people to buy early and pay way too much, which just encourages the marketing folks to push new designs out the door too soon.

Me? I’ll wait however long it takes for a reliable product to finally start shipping, and selling at a normal price.

I'd love to see some more pics of that two tone with the k frame sights. Gorgeous collection!

Good eye. That is a T series and was built by Bob Cogan of APW Cogan.

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Use should dictate gear!

I agree for the most part. I believed that the extractor issues were worked out before I bought this one. I also did not overpay. From what I understand now my gun was made right before they changed the extractor to the newer version.

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Use should dictate gear!

"Around", LOL...gotta love it. Mine is over 100 units north of that.
Hopefully tomorrow will be the first go-'round.

I think 469 is the lowest I've seen on that for now. There's both a two-tone, and a full cerakote model option at extra cost.

Excellent write ups and reviews WVSig.

Mine is a low 8100 serial number. Maybe it had some of the kinks worked out before it was shipped. I put my name on a list at a local store in December, and I received it in May. I think I paid $649 + tax. First time at the range I shot 115gr and 124gr. It seemed to like the 124s while my CZ prefers the 115s. My shooting buddy and I went to the range last week and we ran several hundred rounds through the SA35 and the CZ. Mine has been good to go at this point but it is still early. For the entry price, I am pleased at this point.

Tim

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SWCA #3463
SWHF #970

I remember when adding a K frame rear sight was almost common on 1911's too!. Combat guys loved them. Bullseye guys stuck with bomars & ribs

Begs the question(s).....how does it run, and do you like shooting it?
Still waiting to see one in my neck of the woods

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!אחרי
144:1

I bought mine over a year ago below MSRP. Well over 500 rounds down range with zero failures. I just wish they had a better front sight, but Dawson keeps saying they will have one for it soon.

The BHP I have has some old school C&S Custom work and is a much better shooter.

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I’ve had it since April, have run about 600 rounds thru it so far. The pistol has run flawlessly thus far, good accuracy, very pleased with it. Most of the ammo has been FMJ, but I’ve run about 100 HST hollow points thru it as well. Several friends have shot it also, they all liked it.

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Wheel guns are real guns.

Well, at least one of them is in my safe. Got lucky at a gunshow in Pasadena, Texas a while back and bought for below MSRP. Someone who had given it a good look, then turned it down came back after changing his mind. I had already handed over the cash and the paperwork was in process. You snooze you lose. Been on that end of the equation before, and I was happy to be the one who got it this time. Sharp edges is my main complaint. Also, the recoil spring was a half inch longer than OEM which is something I have seen from Wolff Springs. Makes me wonder. I installed a OEM spring and it has been flawless. When I get down to taking the extractor out I will check for the "rough channel" that some have talked about.

Been hunting one for about a month now too.

Just posted a WTB ad on the forum for one, lets see if any will come up

-Sam

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Admirer of Vintage Smiths