What I need now is a Browning Hi Power...

[gregintenn]

Show me yours and tell me about it if you don’t mind. I need an education before I lay my money down.

[Grayfox54]

Wonderful pistols! My favorite 9mm.  

Browning discontinued the Hi-Power a couple of years ago. Since then prices have gone up considerably.  An average condition pistol now costs in the $1200+  range. You can probably find a .40 cal a good bit cheaper as they aren't near as popular. Honestly, I don't like the .40 and wouldn't have one. 

Along with the 1911, the Hi-Power is one of the most copied pistols in the world. There are lots of excellent clones out there. FEG, , FM, Kareem, Israel, plus several more I can't remember have made them. I've never heard of a truly bad clone.  Most of the real differences are in the finish. You can find these at much better prices, but even they are going up.

As for the Browning versions: The pre-war and WW II pistols are extremely sought after by collectors and very expensive. Likewise the "T" series serial numbers are collectible and pricey.  For a real Browning, your best bet will be the MK III version which was the last. I have one of these and love it.  

I currently  have 3 versions of the Hi-Power and love them all. 

Top: Browning MK III I bought new in the early 90s.

Middle: FEG clone. Just as good as the real thing. Just not quite so pretty. 

Bottom: FM Detective Model. This one is the Commander sized version of the HP with a 1" shorter slide and barrel. These are scarce and prices are rising dramatically.  I just lucked into this one. 

 

[Chucktshoes]

You are speaking my language good sir. I have two. One is a 1990 produced MK III that I had refinished and fancied up. The other is a Charles Daly Hi Power (only US rollmarked HP) that I bought here on TGO. The CDHP is essentially a US built clone made with Hungarian FEG parts. That one has been cerakoted black and is currently at the Smith to be milled to accept a Holosun 507k. 
 

I love the HiPower. It’s the 1911, perfected. 
 

I’m not at home, and I can’t find my pictures of them, though I know I’ve posted some here before. Sorry I don’t have any pics of them for you. 

[Snaveba]

This is a “bucket list” pistol. I have always wanted one. Nice ones are not cheap. 

[Moped]

I had one that was stolen in a breakin back in 07. It was one of my most favorite pistols. It was a MkIII. 

TIsas is making a blue version and a stainless steel version. Both are great looking pistols. I’ve thought of trying to find one.

[xtriggerman]

Heres my HP lineage pistols. A FEG made FN stamped impostor that I put a real FN barrel in (shoots better). The DA Arcus has HP DNA buried in a bit more steel covering. If I find some time, I may whittle a bunch of that metal off to mimic what Gf54 has there in that Detective. Finally bought a pair of Mec Gar 15 round mags for these pop guns. You need 2 men and a boy to fit #15 in em but they will run them out with no problem. Back when I first got my carry permit at the legal 21 age, I bought a Browning HP from Numrich Arms where I worked across the street at Auto Ordnance. Carried that thing everywhere I went.... One night I was watching Cher dancing around on TV while I was leading her with my HP sights, Just as she stopped moving around, I dropped the hammer on her, thinking i had ejected the round earlier......Bang goes the HP and Cher was gone! Those 9mm FMJ rounds dont go threw an old style TV, I can tell you that for sure! That was one of 3 times a round got away from me back when I was young, dump and full of.... you know... LOL. Sold that HP to a buddy of mine when he wanted it for the PD job he had. The Feg was not polished very well when it was parkerized but it satisfies the HP desires as far as shooting holes in things..... 

[Smith]

I've had several, and the FN's I've had were absolutely beautiful. So beautiful I felt guilty just handling them. They are still on this board... somewhere !

I started my gun journey with an FEG PJK-9hp. I let that one get away because I didn't know what it was. Found another one years ago and it's a keeper. Love these things. It's a shooter!

 

[gregintenn]

I was hoping this would he a good thread, and you guys sure aren’t disappointing! Keep it coming.

[TripleGGG]

Love the HI-Power. Picked this one up about a month ago. Have a couple more but can't find any pics. 

[MacGyver]

^^ This is the one you want.

That deep blue of the old Belgium made ones can’t be beat. 

[phiferran]

2 hours ago, Snaveba said:

This is a “bucket list” pistol. I have always wanted one. Nice ones are not cheap. 

Agreed. At the top of my “bucket list”. 

[gary_boom]

I’ve wanted one for probably 30 years but even the FEG and Regent are more than I am willing to pay.

[Verne]

Here is mine BHP. Was my father's and was passed down. Serial dates to 1961.

It's got character. Quite a bit but shoots great.

Just let me know and you are welcome to shoot it. I'm up in Macon County often given it's only 15 minutes from the house.

[Whisper]

The FEGs are great guns.  One cautionary note if you get one -- most but not all of the parts will interchange with the Browning or FN.  If you decide to replace parts in yours, check first. 

Cheers,

Whisper

[BJB]

Crap Greg

you just had to stir that pot. My desire to get a HP was on the back burner 

Thanks Ole Buddy

[tnhawk]

Just when I thought that I didn't need another gun

 

[xtriggerman]

One note of caution when buying a P35. The safety to seer contact point is very small and the fact that the safety lever is not an easy "snap to on" motion due to its small size, The factory assemblers had a tendency to cut more rather than less off the safety side of that to seer contact so as to not have a friction fit of the safety to seer to hammer. A tiny bit of friction fit could make the gun come back with the complaint the safety is to hard to engauged. So, you are likely to find a number of guns where if you put the safety on, and pull on the trigger, the trigger will move the seer a tiny bit. To check for this "over cut", you simply put the safety on and put pressure against the back of the cocked hammer while you then pull on the trigger. Then let up on the trigger while still pushing the hammer forward. then, stop the forward pressure and pull the hammer back. If you hear the seer reset to full cock position, you have seer creep because the safety is over cut.  I'v fixed a few of these by putting a small dab of weld on that safety cut area and then hand file the weld down to the very slightest friction fit when moving the safety to on. Mind you, there is not a hell of alot of seer to hammer full cock notch to begin with, so any seer movement forward while the safety is engauged is certainly not an optimal condition on a single action auto that many think condition 1 is a safe carry on a BHP. I personaly would much rather carry a loaded chamber with half cock notch engauged rather than on a over cut safety. Half cock notch carry on this particular design is rather under rated to begin with IMO. The extended safety I put on my FEG is a casting unit and needed alot of fitting to work perfectly. Now I wouldn't hesitate to carry it in condition 1. It has a clean medium pressure "snap" on and off.

Edited March 3, 2021 by xtriggerman

[papa61]

17 hours ago, Verne said:

Here is mine BHP. Was my father's and was passed down. Serial dates to 1961.

It's got character. Quite a bit but shoots great.

Just let me know and you are welcome to shoot it. I'm up in Macon County often given it's only 15 minutes from the house.

man,,,from the year I was born. and SO nice!

I almost traded for an FM detective (compact) model. just couldn't quite get the deal closed. sad, it's worth more now and I wasn't trading a firearm so I would have come out ahead.

[tacops]

I wish I could post pictures but I had two (Twins) Browning Hi-Power Practicals. One in 9mm and one in .40.

They were beautiful weapons and functioned without fail.  I sold them a few years back simply because the brunt of my training was with da/sa design weapons and I was more comfortable with that format.  I wish I had kept them though.

[Griffen]

My two HiPowers. These are some of my favorite pistols and they are almost in a class by themselves. The ergonomics, accuracy, and reliability are stellar. Another genius design by John Browning.

[i1afli]

Any of you hi-power folks remove the mag safety, a common mod., to improve trigger feel? (And I hope this isn’t considered a thread hi-jack...the OP is, in his own words, looking for an education on the Hi-Power).

Edited March 11, 2021 by i1afli

[papa61]

for the fun of it, there is a nice HP that came up on armslist in Knoxville today. $1325. 

[expendable]

Knoxville ?

I think it’s in Memphis.

I get those two mixed up all of the time, they are soo much alike.  

[Verne]

I removed the mag safety from mine a couple of years ago.  It made a difference but given this was the first semi auto I ever shot and have been shooting it since the mid 80's it didn't make a huge difference.

Just my thoughts.

Verne

[Chucktshoes]

There was a significant difference in mine when I removed the mag safeties. I imagine each gun is different.