IIRC...1980 vintage.
HI_Power
- Thread starter HOUSTON RICK
- Start date
I've got two HPs left. One is a pristine Practical and the other is an Israeli surplus I picked up from that fella Tenn. who's warehouse burned down.
I had my smith do a complete trigger job (now around 3 lbs) and duracote it. It's one of my favorite guns.
Oh, Steven Camp's remedy for hammer bit: grind off a bit of the hammer. I had my guy do it before the duracote and it's a very well-behaved hammer now.
I had my smith do a complete trigger job (now around 3 lbs) and duracote it. It's one of my favorite guns.
Oh, Steven Camp's remedy for hammer bit: grind off a bit of the hammer. I had my guy do it before the duracote and it's a very well-behaved hammer now.
I carried mine daily on and off duty for most of a decade in Condition One using the factory ambidextrous safety. No incidents of any kind.
I currently have two FN M35's, a matte T-series from 1968 and a Belgian made gun from 1988. I enjoy shooting them and find both easy to shoot well. I could not find differences in quality, or accuracy, in between the 1962 and 1988 vintage guns.
OLDSTER
Member
1967 "T" series I've owned for many years. 
I've got two of the Mk IIIs; a matt and a bright blue.....................
1. The ambi-safety on the Mk III is a great improvement
2. Add a Millet ramp front sight to both..... the one that was standard with the Practical it has a large white stripe...... great for flash sight pictures with 60+ year old eyes.
3. Spegel Grips....... Hogues are good also
4. Got a few Mec-gar 15rd flush fit mags. just in case!
If I still carried cocked and locked it would be one of these............
I've had two FEGs in the past..... wish I'd kept them. IIRC KBI was in Harrisburg Pa. so they were not uncommon in LGSs in the area (live there for about 10 years) Nice guns, most local gunsmiths spoke well of them but they weren't "Browning HP" so somewhat looked down on by BHP owners at the range!
1. The ambi-safety on the Mk III is a great improvement
2. Add a Millet ramp front sight to both..... the one that was standard with the Practical it has a large white stripe...... great for flash sight pictures with 60+ year old eyes.
3. Spegel Grips....... Hogues are good also
4. Got a few Mec-gar 15rd flush fit mags. just in case!
If I still carried cocked and locked it would be one of these............
I've had two FEGs in the past..... wish I'd kept them. IIRC KBI was in Harrisburg Pa. so they were not uncommon in LGSs in the area (live there for about 10 years) Nice guns, most local gunsmiths spoke well of them but they weren't "Browning HP" so somewhat looked down on by BHP owners at the range!
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One of each! favorite?...depends
Love the BHP. Mine is a 1988 serial number, made in Belgium, assembled in Portugal. Nice gun...a specific very accurate favorite of mine for bucoo years. Usually made every range trip, even when big bores were what we were shooting.
Then last year I stumbled into a like new, in box, S & W Model 39-2 and lo and behold...same ammo, same range, same day, just had to put one against the other and range results pics below.
My favorite? Very, very, hard to tell right now. Probably still the BHP because of capacity (13 rounds vs 8), but that Smith is a sweetheart too. In any event I just had to take on a third range bag so both could accompany bigger and smaller bore brothers and sisters.
Collectibles? I don't really know.
Accumulators? definitely BOTH...grab onto them and you'll see.
Love the BHP. Mine is a 1988 serial number, made in Belgium, assembled in Portugal. Nice gun...a specific very accurate favorite of mine for bucoo years. Usually made every range trip, even when big bores were what we were shooting.
Then last year I stumbled into a like new, in box, S & W Model 39-2 and lo and behold...same ammo, same range, same day, just had to put one against the other and range results pics below.
My favorite? Very, very, hard to tell right now. Probably still the BHP because of capacity (13 rounds vs 8), but that Smith is a sweetheart too. In any event I just had to take on a third range bag so both could accompany bigger and smaller bore brothers and sisters.
Collectibles? I don't really know.
Accumulators? definitely BOTH...grab onto them and you'll see
.Attachments
Like most things firearms, it'll work for some and not for others.
I cannot and will not carry a Hi-Power with the ambi-safety because deactivating it on draw pinches the holy heck out of my trigger finger.
False Assumptions and Fat Hands
Apparently, my comment on hammer bite led some to assume that the problem is limited to corpulent shooters. I have average-sized and non-fleshy hands, yet, more correctly, I sometimes get pinched, rather than bitten, between the shank of the hammer and the tang. I estimate that a tang perhaps one eighth inch longer would have solved the issue for both large and average-sized shooters. The excellent ergonomics of the Hi-Power is such that the handgun will seat itself with the tang resting on the web of the hand during multiple shots.
Apparently, my comment on hammer bite led some to assume that the problem is limited to corpulent shooters. I have average-sized and non-fleshy hands, yet, more correctly, I sometimes get pinched, rather than bitten, between the shank of the hammer and the tang. I estimate that a tang perhaps one eighth inch longer would have solved the issue for both large and average-sized shooters. The excellent ergonomics of the Hi-Power is such that the handgun will seat itself with the tang resting on the web of the hand during multiple shots.
22lrfan
Member
Me too, Federali. No one has ever accused me of having fleshy hands, though I have to admit mine are getting to look rather old. 
Try the Cylinder & Slide hammer if you are being “victimized” by the BHP. It’s cured the problem for me. Of course if one takes an extra firm grip and holds the gun low like a “timid little youngster,” he may not need it. Your comment about the BHP seating itself into the web of one’s hand seems correct to me. I think that is what makes the design of the grip seem so natural and comfortable.
Try the Cylinder & Slide hammer if you are being “victimized” by the BHP. It’s cured the problem for me. Of course if one takes an extra firm grip and holds the gun low like a “timid little youngster,” he may not need it. Your comment about the BHP seating itself into the web of one’s hand seems correct to me. I think that is what makes the design of the grip seem so natural and comfortable.
Well, I'm 6'2" and 235 lbs and have never been touched by my stock hammer in 25 years and thousands of rounds.
ContinentalOp
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I have smallish hands, between a small and medium glove size. Definitely not fleshy. The one time I fired a Hi-Power, I was left with a little red welt on my hand from the hammer spur.
This is going to be an individual thing. Some people will get bit, some people won't.
For those that don't get bit, congratulations...
I'm 5-9 and 185 with M-L hands and have never been touched by the ring hammer on my MKIII. The dished out white bar sights are great in dim light but not that great in the day time but I could "black them out" and they would be fine but I'll probably just leave them as is. The guns trigger is light and crisp enough but gritty, not too hard to fix but getting the hammer in and out is tricky if you don't have three hands.
LEO918
Member
Here is one of mine....
WWII WaA140 vet bring-back (stock is for an Inglis I own).
I am a fan of the BHP (and 1911 / 1911A1 for that matter).
I have no problem shooting a BHP. I get a nip on a rare occasion, but no blood. A 1911 can present more of an issue for me.
WWII WaA140 vet bring-back (stock is for an Inglis I own).
I am a fan of the BHP (and 1911 / 1911A1 for that matter).
I have no problem shooting a BHP. I get a nip on a rare occasion, but no blood. A 1911 can present more of an issue for me.
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