Opinions on Browning Hi-Power 9mm

It seems like one aspect of the Browning Hi-Power design rarely (if ever!) gets mentioned in threads such as these... it's the curious, atypical connection between the trigger and the sear.

I don't know handgun history as well as a number of you guys, and for sure -- I don't know the inner guts of a lot of European designed handguns. But what other handguns use some version of an arrangement where the trigger is connected to the sear ONLY by a device wholly contained in the slide?

Without the slide installed on a BHP, the trigger and the sear are 100% disconnected from each other. Was this a Browning concept or is it attributed to Saive or is it's origin not generally known?

I find the Hi-Power to be beautiful and historical but I've tried a few different and while they are absolutely significant, I can't truly enjoy shooting them for a few different reasons. I definitely see the beauty and allure, but let me tell you... at some gun shows, a Browning Hi-Power is a funny/frustrating item. Shooters enjoy newer ones for all the reasons any shooter would, but dealer, buyers and collectors turn up their noses as if you are holding a flaming bag of poo when they find out the one you happen to have was made within the last 10 years. :p
 
Just some sources for the British SAS useage...

http://www.eliteukforces.info/special-air-service/weapons/browning-high-power.php

The SAS began the transition in the mid-1990s.

The rest of the British military only last year.

http://www.dodbuzz.com/2013/02/07/mod-adopts-glock-takes-stand-on-side-arms/


http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2013/01/11/uk-military-to-adopt-glock-17-gen-4/

The Australians, who still use worn out Hi-Powers were jealous...

http://www.aspistrategist.org.au/why-the-adf-handgun-is-an-ethics-issue/

Close to 80 years of continuous military service with militaries around the globe and still being issued and used by a number of armies and law enforcement. The record has no peer in the handgun world (the 1911 comes the closest but was never as widely issued). Where it's being replaced it's because of cost. The cost to purchase, replace parts, maintain, etc. is higher for armies than more modern designs. That's high praise.
tipoc
 
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The Bren Ten had some elements of the Hi-Power design, and it was originally chambered in .45 ACP. You couldn't fit a .45" round in the HP, but if you scaled it up to .45, it would look more than a little like a Bren.
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I always thought of the Bren Ten was basically a CZ75 on steroids???
 
Canada was set to replace the Inglis Hi-Power (and the Sig P226) in 2011 for a contract to begin in 2015. The P35s which they still have were built during the Second World, many of them anyway in Canada.

The change-over ran into a problem when it was pointed out that Colt Canada is officially the sole supplier of small firearms for Canada. This posed a problem for some potential international gun companies in the competition. They objected to handing over their specs to Colt.

I'm not sure where things stand now. But in Canada the high power remains on the books as a service side arm.

http://www.casr.ca/doc-pa-gsp-pistol.htm

tipoc
 
While I have to give credit to the GP35 for its history, they're insanely overpriced and I think its successor the CZ75 is the better of the two.
 
I'll second what 10mm4ever said. The HP was the best design of the day, but the CZ is as near to perfect as a 9mm can be, at least mine is. I do have issues with the HP being called ugly:)
 
The BHP is truly "An elegant weapon for a more civilized age". We only thought Alec Guinness was talking about that funny light up sword, he was really talking about the BHP. I have two, they are both well made, accurate, and fit my hand like a glove. If Dept. Regs allowed it, it would be my carry gun.
 
While I have to give credit to the GP35 for its history, they're insanely overpriced and I think its successor the CZ75 is the better of the two.
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The CZ75 is not really its successor. It is really a very different gun. The late Steven Camp has a great article on the 2 guns.

http://www.hipowersandhandguns.com/Browning and CZ.htm

I agree with his statement: But is one descended form the other? In my opinion, the Koucky brothers did not copy the Hi Power. They definitely appear to have used the advances made by Mr. Browning with regard to locking lugs and magazine release location. I am not convinced that the CZ-75's external appearance was intended to be similar to that of the Hi Power.

For fans of the BHP I highly suggest and recommend picking up a copy of The Browning High Power Automatic Pistol By Blake Stevens

http://www.collectorgrade.com/bookshelf10.html
 
While I have to give credit to the GP35 for its history, they're insanely overpriced and I think its successor the CZ75 is the better of the two.
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Why do you think it's insanely overpriced?

Someone else said it, the CZ75 is a very different gun. It does have elements of the Hi-Power, just as it has elements of the Sig P210, but is it's own unique design.

tipoc
 
I do love my 1970s Belgian Hi-Power (still looking for the right T-series). It's a beautiful, elegant, soulful pistol. At the same time, I think people tend to overrate the gun a bit from a mechanical standpoint.
 
rodfac is my hero. Just sayin.......

Big brass ones my friend. I'd be carrying a lot more than a GP-35 in my O1.


:)
 
Recommend taht you goto..

www.hipowerandhandgun.com, for detailed information. The Late Steve Camp, put reality based website together regarding current BHP usage.

Alos, Canada has frankly an unlimited supply of BHP mags that would have to be disposed, and not likely on the civilian market, less the anti's have a MAJOR fit!

My three first line carries are: .45ACP GM & CCC, BHP, & S&W M39-2

A future fourth would be to obtain a CCC in9mm.

CCC = Colt Combat Commander [Series 70]
 
Just got mine.



I have two 10rd mags and two 13rd mags all factory and they are all mousetrap style so they drop free even with the mag safety.

Sights, as you can see are great and adjustable.

Trigger is a little heavy compared to a 1911 but it is crisp and still lighter than a stock S&W revolver.

This is a new FN pistol. Cost me $950 plus tax. Not cheap but the finish rivals anything I've seen from Colt or S&W.
 
I have been reading all the posts on this thread and have learned a lot.

Never owned a Hi-Power but shot one courtesy of an old friend way back in the late 70's. At the time I owned a S&W 39-1 (which I sold to my FIL a few years later). As I remember it, I liked the feel in hand of the Browning but the grip width was a bit much compared to the Smith (I later owned a Para-Ord double stack which was much wider than the Browning and did not like it compared to a single-stack 1911 I had and I sold it). I had never owned a 1911 at the time. That Hi-Power was a beautiful gun: no bluing loss, almost like it was nearly NIB. I did not like the trigger: my 39 had a better SA trigger.

At the time I had no idea that the HP had a mag disconnect (as the 39 had) because I only shot a few mags through it and my friend loaded it for me prior to my shooting it.

When my FIL dies I hope to get that 39 back. I'll bet he has not seen it in 30+ years. He's not a gun guy. It's probably buried in a closet somewhere.

Sorry, OT.
 
AKexpat

...When my FIL dies I hope to get that 39 back. I'll bet he has not seen it in 30+ years. He's not a gun guy. It's probably buried in a closet somewhere...
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Now that's the sign of a true gun-lover ;).
 
Well it's all been said and shown here already...it's a beautiful, ergonomically pleasing classic. I put it in the top ten iconic handguns of all time list.
 
Been reading this thread and finally took my old Highpower to the range last weekend. I had forgotten how well it points, how well it prints, and how the only thing that kept it from being my carry gun was not wanting to carry a single-action pistol in condition 1 (no good reason not to), and the skimpy safety lever (not confident I can instinctively sweep it "down" to fire given how small it is).

Then I shot my CZ75B, which has been my carry gun for years and through which I've fired many, many rounds. I'm comfortable with it, trust it, it prints better than I can hold, the double action trigger is usable and the single action for second and subsequent shots is light enough. It is altogether perfect for my uses. But by comparison with the Highpower, it felt large, ungainly bulky, clumsy, and awkward in my hand. And the single-action trigger (with the small amount of camming/creep that CZs are known for) felt like a double action revolver - too much movement before it fired, where the Highpower was like a 1911 - a little more pressure and it breaks, no perceptible motion.

I need to shoot the CZ more and the Highpower not at all - or maybe put a Cylinder and Slide safety on the Highpower and get a holster with a thumb break retaining strap that goes between the cocked hammer and the slide, and carry the Highpower instead.
 
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