Browning Hi Power

[sailor723]

Nice find! i have a '77 in 9mm that i like very much and an '04 in .40S&W

I'm a big BHP fan. I hummed and hawed on a chrome one recently and am still kicking myself.

Here's my '77 with the beer can sights.

 

[JohnRippert]

This is the Nazi made (1943 Fabrique National)Hi Power I carried in Vietnam for almost the entire 32 months I flew as a Huey gunship crew chief/door gunner. I had to leave it there when I left in September 1968. In January, 2014, the platoon member I had left it with found me and returned it to me. How cool was that?

That refinish is pretty nice. You should try a set of Spegel grips for it. They fit the hand so well and will make it look really good at the same time.

 

[BudMan5]

When I carried it in Vietnam it was chrome and when I got it back some 46 years later, it was pretty rough. Turns out it was 'bumper chrome' not a hard chrome alloy and years of being cleaned with gun oil (which usually contains ammonia) had pretty badly pitted the gun.

I had the Springfield Armory Custom Shop stripped the gun and recoat it with SA's "Armory Kote".

I just ordered a set of ivory (fake) from Altamont as I want to carry this as my "barbecue gun".

This is what it looked like when I first got it back:

 

[Geoduck]

Nice, I sure miss the mid 80's Mk III I had. My wife does let me shoot it some though...

 

[JohnRippert]

When I carried it in Vietnam it was chrome and went i got it back some 46 years later, he was pretty rough. Turns out it was 'bumper chrome' not a hard chrome qlloy and years of being cleaned with gun oil (which usually contains ammonia) had prtetty badly pitted the gun.

I had the Springfield Armory Custom Shop stripped the gun and recoat it with SA's "Armory Kote".

I just ordered a set of ivory (fake) from Altamont as I want to carry this as my "barbeque gun".

This is what it looked like when I first got it back:

They did a good job. I look forward to seeing it with the new grips.

 

[RobertJ.]

the Browning Hi Power is the best 9mm ever made, IMO

I have one and if I could only have one handgun then this would be the one.

Same here. I've always considered it to be the pinnacle of semi-auto handgun design.

For me, a real close second is the Model 39.

 

[WVSig]

Love the Browning/FN Hi Power. It is my favorite 9mm. One of them is always in the bag when I head to the range. Here are a few of the ones I am fortunate enough to own...

Wild West Guns 72C Custom:




Pre-T



Don William Custom Alloy



1969 C with Bormar rear


Practical MKIII

 

[shawn mccarver]

The P35 is a favorite of mine, but did not become so until the Mark III was introduced, correcting most of the shortcomings - sights that were difficult to use, a thumb safety which required either Condition 0 or Condition 3 carry, ability to chamber only FMJ ammo, etc., etc. Prior to the Mark III, the P35 required work to make it "ready." The Mark III corrected those issues. And it has one of the best feeling grips on the market.

 

[Tracer_Bullet]

Very nice HP (as are all pictured throughout the thread)! One of my all-time favorite handguns and definitely my favorite 9mm

 

[James&theGiant1911]

here is mine, it is the most accurate gun I have or at least the one I shoot best with. Unbelievable accuracy with a fiber optic front site. It was accurate before I sent it to Novak's it came back with a POA/ POI within MMs.

 

[BudMan5]

Altamont grips came in today for HiPower and here they are mounted with the pistol on the M3 holster i actually used in VN. Probably nort the most 'tactical' grips but just fine as a barbecue gun:

Here's the DoD form that got the pistol home by my buddy. I blocked his name and identifying information. The German Army identified the FN P35 as the Pistole 640(b):

 

[Drm50]

Hp Comp
I have owned many 9 mm pistols. Browning was always my favorite. Since I am more
hunter than range shooter they always got traded off. I got this one at an auction a few
years ago. NIB, I didn't want to fire it for trade purposes. My brother harassed me until
we shot it. I'm glad he did, it's not in trade pile anymore. It is the most accurate 9mm
I've ever shot. It's only 9mm I've had that has value as field gun.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Biginge]

I'm telling you right now. After you shoot it you're going to want to "carry it"...regardless to what your current edc is!

Sir, you are absolutely correct. Shot it today and I will be carrying it henceforth. Had one many years ago with tangent sight and did not care for that configuration. I have a lot of guns but none that shoots better than this HP.

 

[WVSig]

If you shoot the BHP with the internal extractor please be careful. It will break. It is a weak point in the design. It is not a matter of if it is a matter of when it will break.

Replacements are hard to come by these days. If you can find one you are looking at $50-$75 for the part alone and that is if you can find one.

There is rumor that someone is making new ones but I have yet to see them on the market.

Nice pistols just be cautious.

 

[Texas Star]

If you shoot the BHP with the internal extractor please be careful. It will break. It is a weak point in the design. It is not a matter of if it is a matter of when it will break.

Replacements are hard to come by these days. If you can find one you are looking at $50-$75 for the part alone and that is if you can find one.

There is rumor that someone is making new ones but I have yet to see them on the market.

Nice pistols just be cautious.

I asked Jeff Cooper about those different extractors, but from a reliability standpoint. He said that he'd seen no difference, but would watch for it. I never heard more from him, though, on that issue.

Your post about breakage of the older extractor is new to me and appreciated.

 

[planojack]

I've owned an Inglis HiPower for ten years or so and love it. I've owned others, but the 500 meter sight on the Inglis is a real plus for long range ground hog shots. I'm sure you all believe that!

 

[ladder13]

Sharp looking HP Bill, congrats.

 

[JohnRippert]

I have always wondered how many of the broken internal extractors on Hi Powers came from dropping the slide on a round in the chamber like with 1911's.

 

[WVSig]

I asked Jeff Cooper about those different extractors, but from a reliability standpoint. He said that he'd seen no difference, but would watch for it. I never heard more from him, though, on that issue.

Your post about breakage of the older extractor is new to me and appreciated.

It has always been my understanding that the internal extractor is a weak point in the original design of the BHP started by JMB and completed by Saive.

This was corrected in 1962. In part cost spurred some of the changes made in 1962 but function also played a part. According to R Black Stevens in his The Browning Hi Power Automatic the change to the extractor did both. It was a simpler design which allowed for cheaper manufacturing but at the same time provided much more positive and reliable action.

I have always wondered how many of the broken internal extractors on Hi Powers came from dropping the slide on a round in the chamber like with 1911's.

JohnRippert you are also spot on. Lots of older Hi Powers were abused by their owners when they dropped the slide on a round in the chamber.

Bill Laughridge of C&S elaborates a bit about the flaw in the extractor and the damage caused by dropping the slide on a round in the chamber.

Many of the Hi-Power's flaws were cured over time by the industry, and particularly by FN/Browning. Until 1962, the GP had an internal extractor that was very small, and prone to breakage. Notes master Hi-Power custom gunsmith Bill Laughridge of the Cylinder & Slide Shop, "The fastest way to break one of the old extractors is to lock the slide back, drop a cartridge into the chamber, and then slam the slide on top of it. Always cycle the first round into the chamber out of the magazine!" In '62, however, the Browning was strengthened by a much more durable outside-mounted extractor.

These days a lot of people know better than to do that but if it was done in the past the extractor is may already be weakened. Again when I say it will break I mean it will break if you shoot the gun on a regular basis. I am not talking about a few hundred rounds a year I am talking about thousands.

Even with all that info I shoot my internal extractor BHP from time to time.

 

[Jim PHL]

the Browning Hi Power is the best 9mm ever made, IMO

I have one and if I could only have one handgun then this would be the one.

I've often said if I had to I could get down to three: my BHP, one of my 1911's and one of my 3" M65's. I'm not sure how I could narrow it down any further!