Is there a 100% FEG clone of the P-35?

[Dr.Rob]

ifit, remove the extractor (several roll pins) clean the channel and the spring you probably have primer/power residue or cosmoline gunk in the channel. Also see if the extractor tip is rounded or chipped.

As for failure to fire, could be someone has lightened the hammer spring by cutting coils off of it.

 

[ifit]

thanks doc, will give it a go and see what happens. as for failure to fire, my bad i meant to say falure to feed. have no problem with it firing. and yes great info jaypee, thanks

 

[killertom]

Just to clear it all up, here is the Hungarian terminology for all the produced models:

The P9M is the one with Browning internals. Earlier versions had the Browning style slide release and safety, later ones have the modernised slide release and extended safety, the designation remained the same.

The FP9 is basically a P9M with the ventillation rib on the top of the slide. It was also made using both the older slide release and safety and the newer ones.

The P9R is a modified copy of the S&W M59, it is double/single action with a slide mounted safety/decocker. This is the one in use by the armed forces and police. There was no model of the P9R produced with a ribbed slide.

 

[JayPee]

Ifit,

I believe you are describing a double feed, which is always a failure to extract. One common fault of these pistols was that they frequently had weak extractor springs in them, which I believe yours has. You can pick up one from the FEG parts site referenced above, or from Browning Arms Parts Dept, or from Wolff Gunsprings. It would also be a good idea to obtain a standard 17 lb recoil spring from any of these sources if you think the recoil spring is not adequate or is malfunctioning.

With regard to the ftf, I also would be suspicious of the magazine you are using. Try it with factory ammo and a better mag (MecGar is best) and see how it goes. Replacing the extractor spring is a snap and there are lots of internet tutorials on how to do it. A good, thorough cleaning never hurts, either. Let us know how it turns out.

JayPee

 

[Hammerhead6814]

My FEG 9JK-9HP is compatible w/ my BHP Mk I. It will not take the MK III magazines though. Though the MK III works fine w/ FEG and MK I magazines, go figure.

 

[gyvel]

I don't know how many of you are aware of this, but in the late 80s a dupe was pulled on Sadaam Hussein where a large order of FN Hi-Power pistols were delivered that were actually spuriously marked FEG Clone guns.

These guns you refer to: Were they marked "Fabrique Nationale Herstal Belgique" and stamped with Belgian proof marks? If so, I have one of those guns and the giveaway was the font, style and placement of the serial numbers, plus a couple of inspector's marks on the inside of the pistol that matched other FEG marked pistols I have.

 

[gyvel]

Earlier versions had the Browning style slide release and safety,

The earliest FEG versions, sold here in the mid 80s had a 1911 style slide release which will work in an FN Hi-Power, but doesn't cover the large slot cut in the slide.

 

[sb123158]

FEG

YES ! you have to check the right side of the frame for an OVAL above & slightly behind the trigger pivot pin . if there it IS a P-35 MK1 copy. the oval is the Only way to ID the old browning firing system. the oval is the crossbolt for the barrel. no oval indicates a S&W type lockup system, do not waste your money on these!

best regards sb123158

 

[killertom]

The earliest FEG versions, sold here in the mid 80s had a 1911 style slide release which will work in an FN Hi-Power, but doesn't cover the large slot cut in the slide.

I see. That must have been a feature ordered by the importer. Here in Hungary the earliest versions were the ones completely identical witht the original HP with the exception of the markings of course.

 

[JayPee]

gyvel, is this the slide stop you are referring to?



JayPee

 

[gyvel]

gyvel, is this the slide stop you are referring to?

No, not exactly. Mine is similar, but quite a bit shorter. The thumb ledge ends approximately at the front edge of the grip.

My gun is an early Kassnar import from ca. 1987-88 or thereabouts. The workmanship is absolutely first class.

The left side slide logo reads: "Imported by Kassnar Imports Inc. Harrisburg PA 17112" in very small letters.

The right side slide logo reads: "PJK-9HP FEG Budapest Made In Hungary"

My camera skills stink, but I hope you can tell something from these pix.

 

[TWA]

Gyvel has one of the best FEG PJK's ever produced, from a time when they still had employees who took pride in what they produced and managers who, even under "Ghoulish Communism", understood quality when it came to finishing a firearm.

Sadly, that didn't last after the Warsaw Pact collapsed. As a new capitalism appeared, the company was soon privatized, and a new generation of workers schooled in a different work ethic produced quite different firearms than those that came before.

Still functional, but not nearly as well "finished". Prices increased and overall finished quality decreased over the years.

 

[gyvel]

Here are a couple of shots of my FEG FN counterfeit. As you can see the S/N prefix is "L," not "F" as I had previously stated. My memory (and my eyesight, for that matter) aren't as good as they used to be.

 

[JayPee]

Well, learn something new every day, as they say. Gyvel you are correct that your slide stop is shorter than the one on my gun, which is a TGI P9M with the Smith and Wesson operating system. Thank you for the information, I had no idea such a difference in length existed.

I found my pet PJK 9HP in unfired condition in a little tackle shop up on the Great Lakes two years ago. One of their old timer customers liked to buy guns and put them away without firing them after petting them for a while, and this was one of his collection. It too has wonderful workmanship and a flawless finish. I'm not really sure when it was made, but others with similar serial numbers believe in was somewhere around '93. This one is B50XXX. The grips are Herrett's cocobolo's.



If I had to throw all my Hi-Power and Hi-Power style pistols away but one, this is the one I would keep. Thanks again for the help.

JayPee

 

[gyvel]

Given the very high degree of interchangeability (it's been 100% in my experience with two dozen or so pistols), is it possible that FEG bought manufacturing equipment from FN? If not, then it speaks volumes of their abilities to "reverse engineer" the Hi-Power.

 

[killertom]

Given the very high degree of interchangeability (it's been 100% in my experience with two dozen or so pistols), is it possible that FEG bought manufacturing equipment from FN? If not, then it speaks volumes of their abilities to "reverse engineer" the Hi-Power.

Unlikely. Hungary was member of the Warsaw Pact when the production of P9M-s started. I don't think Belgium would have sold firearms manufacturing equipment to us.

 

[gyvel]

Unlikely. Hungary was member of the Warsaw Pact when the production of P9M-s started. I don't think Belgium would have sold firearms manufacturing equipment to us.

It could have possibly come through a neutral third party intermediary, although FEG has had a long history of manufacturing fine weapons. I acquired a 29M several years ago and I was in awe of the workmanship on that gun. (Craftsmanship would be a better term.)

 

[JayPee]

Well, this is a bit off the subject, but I feel that if the Soviets could completely reverse engineer the Boeing B-29 Superfortress and its engines, and then go on to manufacture 1500 of them, I don't think Communist engineering skills would be held up long by reverse engineering a pistol. Just my opinion. Everything I have ever heard that has had a ring of credibility to it has me pretty well convinced that FEG produced the gun all on its own, certainly without any help from FN. Having said that, Communist governments were the world's most skilled experts at industrial espionage, so I won't rule out that they may have had some of somebody else's prints or specs at some point in the process, but I still tend to lean towards it being essentially a reverse engineered product. BIG IMHO's.

JayPee

 

[TWA]

Definitely reverse engineered.

 

[killertom]

Ah yes, the 29M. Prewar guns made at FÉG are on a whole different level in my experience. Postwar wasn't so bad until about 2000 when they started going down the hill. And then came their rather shameful demise in 2006...

 

[2ac]

I'm very happy with my FEG, it's one of the best shooting pistols I own. I'll never get rid of it.