Rittmeister
Member
I have an Argentine FM Hi-Power. As it was explained to me they were made on FN machinery under licence in Argentina for their military. This one is actually stamped "F N Browning" on the left side of the slide, for which I have no explanation.
Anyway, I'm afflicted with the compound conditions of "always looking for a bargain" and "modify to suit." I bought this gun in 2001 or 2002 from SOG near me in Cincinnati, for what I considered to be a good deal when compared to the price of a real Browning.
In the intervening time I removed the mag safety (free) and added Cylinder and Slide safety, sear, hammer, hammer strut/mainspring (not free). I also had Novak 3-dot sights mounted and had the whole thing Gunkoted satin black.
I really like the gun; it fits my hand very well and points quite naturally for me. However, the slide-to-frame and barrel fit have never been great; there's enough play that it rattles faintly when shaken. It's quite reliable but I wonder if the accuracy could be bettered.
So the question is, would it be worth trading up to a real BHP (Mark III I think)? I doubt I'd get more than $400 for this even with all the extras added to it, and a new Mark III is going to run more than double that. The Mark III has decent sights to start with and a safety I could live with though it'd be back to a spur hammer which I don't like, so either bobbing it or a replacement would be in the cards.
I don't know if the slide-to-frame fit on my FM could be tightened by a good gunsmith or not. I had one I liked to work with but his schedule has become unworkable for me.
Any info/opinions would be appreciated. Thanks!
Anyway, I'm afflicted with the compound conditions of "always looking for a bargain" and "modify to suit." I bought this gun in 2001 or 2002 from SOG near me in Cincinnati, for what I considered to be a good deal when compared to the price of a real Browning.
In the intervening time I removed the mag safety (free) and added Cylinder and Slide safety, sear, hammer, hammer strut/mainspring (not free). I also had Novak 3-dot sights mounted and had the whole thing Gunkoted satin black.
I really like the gun; it fits my hand very well and points quite naturally for me. However, the slide-to-frame and barrel fit have never been great; there's enough play that it rattles faintly when shaken. It's quite reliable but I wonder if the accuracy could be bettered.
So the question is, would it be worth trading up to a real BHP (Mark III I think)? I doubt I'd get more than $400 for this even with all the extras added to it, and a new Mark III is going to run more than double that. The Mark III has decent sights to start with and a safety I could live with though it'd be back to a spur hammer which I don't like, so either bobbing it or a replacement would be in the cards.
I don't know if the slide-to-frame fit on my FM could be tightened by a good gunsmith or not. I had one I liked to work with but his schedule has become unworkable for me.
Any info/opinions would be appreciated. Thanks!