Opinions on Hi-Points

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Dionysusigma

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Something I've just been wondering for a few months now... why all the hatred toward Hi-Points? I mean, I can understand how they wouldn't please the "no polymer" crowd, and I know they're not exactly easy on the eyes, but is there anything else behind this... opinion? They seem solid enough to me, and do what they're supposed to do. The price seems good as well for someone like myself, who can't afford a decent 1911.

Just wondering what's up... and what problems there might be that I've not heard before. :confused:
 
In my limited experience with them, they are cheap, ugly, reliable guns. At least the 9mms are.

Some folks can't quite stomach the idea of there being a $100 gun in the world that is as reliable as their $2,500 Wilson. I also think there are lots of folks out there that like to talk crap about products they've never used and others that like to relay second hand information as their own.

Like you said, they are NOT easy on the eyes and some people value esthetics but I think if someone needs a device with which to defend their home or car, I think the Hi-Point is a good choice. Think a shotgun is a better choice, but less handy for many folks. And I think I'd really try to strive for something a bit trimmer if I were going to carry it on my person but for the home or the car, I'd feel well armed with a Hi-Point.
 
Well, I don't hate Hi Points... I even toy around with the idea of buying one, occasionally. I have handled them before, and yes, they are uber-ugly. They don't balance well (way top heavy), they have wierd ergonomics, and are too heavy and clunky to be a carry piece.

But they are cheap, supposedly very reliable, and are a viable option for those who need an inexpensive gun for home defense.

If a person were to never see a Browning Hi Power, then they might not have to fight the bile rising in their throat when they see a Hi Point, either. :neener: :D

Seriously, though -- if you have to have a truck gun that you just don't care about, it's hard to beat a $100 9mm.

Wes
 
hi-points

i have the 9mm carbine. i put a red dot scope on. it has never bobbled with quality ammo. it is accurate, shooting much better than i can. if you wanna put 10-11 .355 cal. holes in something very fast, it's hard to beat. it is loads of fun.

there seems to be a lot of snobs out there. they are the kind that pay $8.95 for four grip screws for their 1911 cause they have a hex recess or a torx recess. the common screws held the grips on just fine. they have a $135.00 flashlight, a bunch of $80.00+ magazines, and all the other trendy gizmos that they read about. that is fine, it is their money and they should spend it however they wish. they will talk trash about a gun or anything else if it isn't expensive or if it isn't the recent craze. that goes for reloading equipment, cars/trucks, motorcycles, computers, or just about anything else you can think of. some people do not have the extra cash, some folks are just plain thrifty. i sure am not going to put them down for it. no one else should either. putting down another man gun, just isn't the right thing to do.

i have some very expensive guns and some cheap ones. they are all fun to shoot and they all serve the purpose i bought them for.

i wouldn't hesitate to buy another hi-point carbine if it came out in .40 s&w, .45 acp, or .357 sig.

i would probably buy a hi-point handgun, too if i stumbled on to one at the right time. i think it would be fun to wring one out and see how they shoot.
 
I try not to think of myself as a snob, even though I do have a Surefire flashlight and four snobby magazines. My next gun will be a CZ-75, so I don't think I'm one of the guys that feels it has to be expensive to be good.

My brother-in-law just bought a High Point 9 mm for his wife. They don't know a thing about guns and bought it because it was $100. I tried to have an open mind about it, but when I picked it up it felt like it was about to fall apart in my hands. Now I haven't shot it yet, but I'll try not to dismiss it until then. But damn that thing is ugly. It feels horrible too. But if it's reliable. . .
 
hi-points

back in the 80's when glocks first came out, i thought they were as ugly as the back side of a mud fence. and they were PLASTIC and they could go through airport x-ray machines( we all know this isn't true, now). i would look at my shiny blued 1911 combat commander or hi-power and shake my head wondering why any one would strap on an ugly plastic gun.

i own two glocks now and have owned as many as four. i still think they are ugly. but they are cool lookin' and real business like.

hi-points are different, they are ugly, and they are cheap. but, if a person wants to defend his family or himself, and all he has to spare is a $100.00 or so i think a hi-point would be a good choice. you can kill a bad guy trying to harm your family just as dead with it as you can with a $2500.00 custom 1911. if you do have $2500.00 to spend on a finely tuned gun, by all means go for it.
 
What's all this talk all the time about Hi-Points being reliable??? They're the only guns that I see consistently jam at the range. And I've never seen a gun jam up as bad as one Hi-Point I saw.

Usually the people shooting them are a couple cans short of a six pack though. So I bet alot of them don't get lubed.
 
I'm reminded of a re-run of COPS I saw a couple of weeks ago.
BG breaks into a young Man's ground floor apartment through the glass sliding doors. I'm guessing that the apartment dweller did'nt have a whole lot of money from the looks of it. Anyway...
BG was found dead, A**-up on the ground around the corner with a gun shot to the chest.
What was He killed/shot with?
A Hi-point.
Chalk up another one for the good guys.
 
Hi-Points are generally reliable. That's all they are. They are not durable (straight blowback operation and cast Zinc construction doesn't equal a long lifespan,) they have horrible triggers, and they handle like a cordless DeWalt.

Still and all, if all you have is a C-note and a used .38 Smith is out of the question, a Hi-Point may work for you. Don't expect too much.

- Chris
 
Its funny to me when i read about how "ugly" Hi-Points are and how some people will never accept them because of their price.My comp 9 fits my hand like it was custom made for it and ive never had a problem with its supposed top "heaviness".To read some peoples opinions,all you have to do to simulate a Hi-Point is glue a brick to a toothpick and hold the toothpick as you would the grip.
:rolleyes:
Anyway,my Hi-Point is inevitably the one gun people want to hold and shoot when im at a range and we get to talking.They could care less about the 1911,CZ75,Glock 21,TZ99,Makarov etc. that may also be there.All they want to see is that "cool" looking gun with the compensator on the front.I disagree about the previous post that implies that a Hi-Point is a short lived gun.Then again we all know what a POS blowback Makarovs are now dont we? The only gun design that will last for more than 500 rounds MUST be milled from a billet of steel and fire from a locked breech.:banghead:
 
I enjoy a bargain gun, but I have a Hipoint carbine that is the only gun I haven't been able to get running correctly. Every 2 or 3 rounds I get an FTF or FTE. I cleaned it, tried a new mag, nothing has helped one bit.
 
but is there anything else behind this... opinion?
Click to expand...

You get what you pay for. I've seen Hi-Point that worked for a long time... and I've seen more that do not. The ergonomics are horrible(this is of course a personal issue, subject to each person) and I hate the trigger. For the price, it's actually pretty good. But I would prefer something that fits, shoots and works a little better, since I CAN afford a "decent 1911."

Too often the price is not considered for the quality. I do not expect a Hi-Point to perform to the standards of a five hundred plus pistol. If someone's Hi-Point does, they've found a good deal and more power to them.
 
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My carbine's been excellent - so far no failures. Suggest you call Hi-Point (MKS), and they will probably send you a new one and throw in a t-shirt! They are very nice people.

Tony
 
There is a good reason Hi-Points are "Generally Reliable". Most Blow Backs are. The onlything holding the chamber shut is the force of the spring and the enertia of the slide... It's hard to mess that up. You get the right slide weight and spring weight all to balance and presto... you got it. This doesn't mean the gun is blessed. This means it's as rock simple as it can be. You can not make an autopistol more simple. Some say it's a virtue... and that's true... but the Hi-Point proves that you can take a virtue too far.
For the same money as a new Hi-Point, you can buy a Mak or a CZ-52 or something else SO MUCH better it's not even funny.

But hey - if you are down with Hi-Points... Groovy. I'd rather have a Mak.
 
I've never fired a Hi-Point, but I've seen a few at the range.

The thing about Hi-Points is they're not just ugly, they're crude and the design lacks elegance. But if all you need is something to launch lead slugs, a Hi-Point will probably work fine (provided it's properly maintained and not a lemon).

I enjoy having a diverse collection, and I plan to add one to the collection some day.
 
The only gun design that will last for more than 500 rounds MUST be milled from a billet of steel and fire from a locked breech.
Click to expand...
Maybe not 500 rounds, but it cannot be argued that, all else being equal, a gun made from steel will outlast a gun made of Zinc alloy.

I'd be interested to know if anyone has taken a Hi-Point to a multi-day handgun class; and if so, how it held up?

- Chris
 
Chris Rhines said: I'd be interested to know if anyone has taken a Hi-Point to a multi-day handgun class; and if so, how it held up?
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I saved up for years and took the last 4 day pistol course ever taught by Jeff Cooper. I showed him my Hipoint and he actually cried. He felt as though his life's work " the modern pistol technique" had been a waste.

Why Oh why he lamented " did I not see one of these first!"
 
I'd be interested to know if anyone has taken a Hi-Point to a multi-day handgun class; and if so, how it held up?
Click to expand...

If the discussion is to be purely academic, then fine... I see your point. But I fail to see the reason behind taking a multi-hundred or thousand dollar course with a $100 handgun... Not many level-headed folks should that can afford to take a $500+ defensive course would select to daily carry a Hi-Point. There's a serious point of diminishing returns here and it hasn't been reached here! :p

Unless I knew the person was taking the course with a Hi-Point just to make a point or to do research, I think I would be tempted to seriously question the reason of someone taking a $1,200 defensive course with a Hi-Point.

But that's just me. ;)
 
I saved up for years and took the last 4 day pistol course ever taught by Jeff Cooper. I showed him my Hipoint and he actually cried. He felt as though his life's work " the modern pistol technique" had been a waste.

Why Oh why he lamented " did I not see one of these first!"
Click to expand...

ROTFL!!! Tell me... are you serious? Either way, it's funny as all get-out. :D

While we don't know how a Hi Point would do in a gun course, I'm pretty sure that, if it were entered into a pistol-whipping competition, it'd do pretty well. :D :uhoh: :rolleyes:

Okay, sorry. :evil:

Wes
 
I've only even seen a Hi-point once...guy in the next lane at the range was shooting one. Went through a complete box of Winchester White Box wihtout a hitch.

Although it wasn't a particularly AP weapon (Aesthetically Pleasing...ha!), did function as designed.
 
The thing that many of us find so offensive about the Hi-Point... I don't know about you guys, but one of the big reasons I like firearms is not just about the function and end result of the device... but the artistic appreciation to the form and design of a firearm. The Hi-Point's utter lack of artistic value is a system shock to me, like a visual slap in the face. I don't care how accurate or reliable it is because this is a trip that is not just about the destination. It's about the journey.

This is like taking your cherried out PACER to a Hot Rod car show.
Not to be biggoted or anything, but I think the Bartender at the Mos Isley Canteena said it best: "We don't server their kind here! Your Droids... You'll have to leave them outside."

If you showed a Hi-Point to Jeff Cooper, he should have slapped you with it.
A Hi-Point, in front of the Colonel...

:banghead:
 
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