[varoadking]

Been looking for something diffferent and have pretty well settled on a BHP GP. I was never drawn to them until I handled one today and I really liked the balance. I like the Practical Adjustable model.

Had a few questions for present and former owners:

1. Is it a big deal to get a lighter and smoother trigger pull out of this thing. The one I tried seemed to have an 11 pound pull. What did you do to yours.

2. Any particular magazines to avoid?

3. Good source for aftermarket wood grips?

4. How about some pic's?

5. You happy with it?

TIA

[Croyance]

FN HiPower (http://www.fnhipower.com) is a good place to look for answers.
1.) I believe that removing the magazine safety spring lightens and smooths the trigger. Then again, my (previously used) HiPowers developed reasonable trigger pulls on their own.
3.) I just got some Navidrex (sp?) from Brownells. You can get Spegel grips from Novak or C&S.
5.) Very happy with mine.

[Stephen A. Camp]

1. Is it a big deal to get a lighter and smoother trigger pull out of this thing. The one I tried seemed to have an 11 pound pull. What did you do to yours.I removed the magazine safety which will usually drop the trigger pull by about 15% and make it less gritty. Some will advise against it for potential civil liability. You decide. That said, a gunsmith can put about a 4.5 lb trigger pull on it for you. HP trigger jobs can be tricky so I don't normally recommend this be done at home...unless you're experienced at it or have some extra sears and hammer. Gunsmiths can put a good trigger pull on a HP having the magazine safety or with it gone.

2. Any particular magazines to avoid?Avoid USA magazines in my experience and go with factory Browning magazines or those from Mec-Gar, who make the factory magazines. My second choice is a clean, surplus Inglis magazine. Third for me is the KRD 17 round magazines.

3. Good source for aftermarket wood grips?I prefer Spegel's grips. They can be found at several sites including www.pickagrip.com

4. How about some pic's?You "might" find some at www.hipowersandhandguns.com

5. You happy with it? I don't have a Practical, but do have several Hi Powers including Mk III's. The Practical is a version of the Mk III. I'm quite happy with these pistols.

I'll bet you wind up with that Hi Power becoming a favorite.

Best.

[hillbilly]

I've owned two Hi-Powers.

One was stolen from me by some pig f&@*ers who broke into my house.

Had to save up money to replace it with another one.

I'll just say this. Every time I pick up a Hi-Power light shines from heaven and I hear angels singing......At least I think that's normal with a Hi-Power.

hillbilly

[varoadking]

...thanks, and keep it coming...:)

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello, Hillbilly. If it makes you feel any better, some years ago before I retired from policing, a burglar attempted to break into a house, but was caught in the act outside the house by two detectives.

He fired on on one of them and missed.

They didn't.

Both were using Browing Hi Powers.

The burglar is no longer with us.

Best.

[WonderNine]

My last Hi-Power, a Silver Chromed MKIII had a fairly decent trigger. I would say around five pounds. I was about six pounds at first and then lightened up more with use to where I would say it had the exact same pull as my father's Italian Beretta 92FS in single action mode. I know the gun hadn't been worked on. The break was fairly crisp with just a hair of creep. I removed the magazine safety when I first got it and it definately makes a BIG difference. Not so much in lightening the trigger (although it does do this somewhat), but in making the trigger grit free.

My current HP, an 82' Belgian pre-MKII has a heavier trigger pull than the MKIII did by quite a bit. I would say at minimum eight pounds, maybe more. I removed the magazine safety immediately, before I even fired it in fact. I prefer this gun though over the MKIII I used to have. The trigger on this gun doesn't even have the slightest bit of creep in it. It breaks absolutely clean. However the heavier trigger tends to make me throw shots left at first until I settle down and get into a rythm, then it is dead on, though a bit high, my MKIII always shot left though not high or low. I did a back to back firing of the guns several times and even switched the barrels to comfirm my suspicions. I noticed the sear in the MKIII was at a slight angle, while the one in the Belgian is straight across and the one in the MKIII seemed to have a tiny piece missing from it. Not sure if this has anything to do with the hair of creep I experienced in the MKIII.

I'm thinking of getting a trigger job for this gun eventually, but there are other things I would like to do such as get a refinish, get the front and backstrap stipled, get some factory white line sights and possibly get an accurized Barsto throated barrel for hollowpoints. So I'm thinking I'll leave it as is for now and eventually send it in to have it all done.

Mr. Camp, any recommendations on good Hi-Power gunsmiths for this?

[Dave R]

Back on The Firing Line, in the Handguns forum, someone once posted the question:

"Which is better, sex or the Hi-Power?"

No one ever asked that of a Glock.

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello, Wondernine. I use a local gunsmith when I have a 'smith do the trigger job. He is Lou Williamson of Williamson Precision Gunsmithing in Hurst, TX. Of the big-name gunsmiths, I have heard good things about Ted Yost, Teddy Jacobsen, Alex Hamilton of 10-Ring Precision, as well as Arizona Response Systems and Novak's. I have NOT had any of these gunsmiths do work on my guns other than Lou Williamson...who is within driving distance.

Best.

[WonderNine]

Thanks, I think I'll print this thread out so I can keep them in mind. The only reason I'm thinking Barsto is for the hollowpoints. Two trips ago at the range I had my first ever Hi-Power failure with the Belgian one I got recently. A FMJ Nato bullet nosedived on the barrel hump. I've fired about 300 rounds out of it so far and that was the first one. Also, I was using a KRD 17 rounder. I'm thinking 127gr. Rangers might have this problem, although I haven't bought any lately to try out and they seem to be the smoothest feeding of the hollowpoints thank to their design. Also I just might end up polishing the barrel throat as you recommended earlier. I was going to leave it as is, but the nosedive sorta changed my mind. Also, it still has the original recoil spring, but the spring seems good. I have a Wolff 17 pounder to replace it with.

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello. I understand. By the way, if interested Corbon's new 100-gr PowRball feeds in about anything and is profiled like ball. Yes, it is expensive, but it has grouped well for me from several 9mm pistols and never malfunctioned in any. These include BHPs, CZ-75s, Springfield Armory XD9, Glock 26, and a Taurus PT-92. If you've not seen it, I did a thingy on it here:

http://www.hipowersandhandguns.com/CorbonPowRball.htm

If you plan to shoot the HP with the warmer stuff, I'd go with a Wolff conventional 18.5-lb recoil spring. I use these in all my HPs and they work fine for me with the std. pressure ammo, too.

Best.

[WonderNine]

Wow, that round has AMAZING power. I'm definately going to pick up a box to try out. The only rounds I've ever had trouble with were the Hirtinberger 124 grainers that were way over 500ft/lbs though. They were so hot that the slide would cycle so fast on my old Browning BDM and first Browning HP that they would fail to go into battery sometimes and the primers often failed to ignite. I'm a little leary about anything hotter than +P+ Rangers, but I'll definately give them a try.

[WonderNine]

I just ran the numbers and the 115 grain load is at 508ft/lbs. :eek:

:D :D :D :D :D

What has your experience been with the 115 grain Powerball?

[Zak Smith]

Ted Yost worked on first BHP, and now has my second. The trigger I got back from him is pretty amazing. It breaks like a 4# 1911 trigger and has reduced take-up and overtravel.

-z

[axeman_g]

I have a FN Police Model with SFS system. I love it, and often compare its shooting to sex. Although not as dangerous. (I have an Italian wife ...)

CDNN has them for a great price right now ... the FN not the wife.

[Sean Smith]

Hi-powers can have very good triggers. My friend has an ancient one that was worked over to have a perfect 3.5lb pull. Once my wallet recovers from my current project, I'm seriously considering getting my hands on one.

[HankB]

1. Removing the trigger disconnect improves things substantially. The latest BHPs seem to have better triggers than older models. The only thing is the rather long reconnect distance.

2. The last 17-rounder I tried malfunctioned. Otherwise, Browning, Mec-Gar, Pachmayr, and European military work well Also, believe it or not, Pro-Mag 13-rounders have given me flawless performance over some thousands of rounds.

3. I got Spegels from Cylinder & Slide

4. No electronic camera or scanner. :(

5. :D :D :D

[BHPshooter]

1. Well, I haven't done anything to mine... yet. I plan on taking out the mag disconnect, once I work up the cajones, or find a gunsmith withing reasonable distance.

2. All of mine have been fine. The Browning factory ones have been the best to me, but my KRDs have been good also. I have recently had a hang up with one of the KRDs, but it seems to be related to the strong spring, so I suspect that it will go away with use.

3. Sorry, I'm in love with the factory molded composite grips, so I can't help you there. I am very tempted to change them to some Hogue finger-groove wraparounds, though...

4. I'll post some pics when I get on the other computer. I promise.

5. I am very happy with mine. I don't know if this makes me a major fanatic, but I have had dreams of/with/involving my BHP. :D :D :D

Wes

[WonderNine]

The 17 round KRD's are really excellent magazines. I have ten of the blued ones. I've used them almost exclusively at the range and they have never given me a problem except for the occasional first round not chambering without giving the slide a slight nudge forward (this is rare) or the one nosedive I had a couple weeks ago, but that was as much of a fault of the humped feedramp as it was the magazine. I never had that problem with my MKIII and the nosedive with my pre-MKII (humped feedramp) was easily corrected by nudging the slide forward.

The KRD's are an excellent value and I consider them reliable enough for concealed carry or defensive purposes. For carry though I prefer the Mec-Gars, but original Belgian "pi" marked mags will do. I'm not a big fan of the later produced factory mags (late eighties and early 90's).. They tend to rattle when fully loaded and inserted into the gun. Also the KRD 17 rounders rattle a bit, though I don't know if the KRD 15 rounders do I've never tried one, but I suspect they do.

[Mike Irwin]

I bought mine from my next door neighbor, who was moving to the hell that is Maryland. It was shot once, and was VNIB, with 2 13-round magazines.

$300 is what he wanted for it, and that's what I gave him.

I finally got a set of Hogue rubber grips for it, and am MUCH happier with how it now feels in my hand.

I can't wait to get to the range.

The trigger on it is rough, but it's not terrible, and even with the trigger and the bad wood grips I was still able to shoot it very well.

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello. It is sad that Hi Powers are not known for stellar triggers, but at least they'll smooth up some with use. Please keep us updated on your results as you use the gun.

Best.

[dsk]

It's a shame that a better setup wasn't designed for the Hi-Power's trigger. I have always loved the HP's size, weight and feel but had a hard time finding one with a pull that wasn't gritty and at least twenty pounds. I think that one aspect is what's kept it from nipping at the 1911's heels when it comes to popularity.

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello, dsk. Well, it sure didn't help!

Best.