Recent manufacture Practical model report
Browning Hi Power Practical Model Manufacture date March 2003
I received this pistol as a Christmas Gift. Yeah that's right a Christmas gift not a holiday gift. Live with it.
I don't know what my wife paid for the gun but I imagine it was around 700 dollars. I opened the package inspected the contents and found in the box; the pistol, two magazines, a manual, Two spent shell cases in a envelope for ballistic finger printing. The shell casings were a disappointment because they were not re-loadable. This is a shame because I figure if one firing of the case would make them a good way to identify
my pistol, firing them ten or fifteen times should really make the cases useful.
I had to brace myself a bit because while I own a number of other guns I really only shoot 1911 pattern pistols. I knew the trigger was bound to suck. I was right it did. ( more on this later) The two magazines were of the reduced capacity variety. They had little springs on them near the floor plate to help them eject past that silly magazine safety. This in my opinion is what you get when you go in search of a answer to a non-existent problem. The unneeded magazine safety, requires the addition of a silly flimsy spring to get the mag out of the gun. Fortunately there is plenty of other wise wasted room thanks to the ten round limited magazines. Wait a sec I will be right back I need to take some antacid.
Fit and Finish.
I must say FN is making some nice guns for Browning. The hard chrome frame is nicely done. Really good for a factory gun. I have heard that the guns FN is producing for Browning are nicer than the less expensive versions marketed under the FN name but who knows for sure. Mine is nice and that is good enough for me. The slide of course is a black finish. It looks almost like some kind of polymer finish, as opposed to a traditional blue. I could be wrong. I do know that it is very even and attractive. FN did a nice job with the sharp edges all nicely broken and the gun is comfortable to manipulate. I have to say the slide is not as easy to grasp as a 1911 and do to the lower weight of the reciprocating mass it has a stout recoil spring. Still the gun was fast to clear and I got plenty of chances to clear malfunctions on my first time out with it. (more on that later)
The grips that come with it suck. Those wrap around rubber things are an abomination in the eyes of God. They make the grip huge, slow the index of your hand during a draw, and have the same kind of class as a big gold chain around your neck. I have a set of nice checkered wood grips on order. (Internet purchase 5 mins after opening the box) To get by, I took the rubber back strap off and cut the front strap off as well. Much better. Feels less like a latex Coke can and more like a gun already.
The frame and slide as well as the other parts are correctly fitted. This is not to say target pistol tight. This is not a target pistol as a primary design imperative. Does this mean it can not be used to shoot targets? Of course not! But there is some room in the fit of the gun for heat and dirt build up. This is the way a pistol is meant to be built. I like this.
Range session:
I took my new little toy to the range and shot it for a few hours on steel plates in a pouring rain. I did this for you the reader. Because I knew you could not wait even one more day for my range report. I am a selfless bastard or what?
Ammo brought with me: 200 round speer 124 FMJ factory ammo. 100 rounds, Reloads 125 RN over 3.4 grains of 231. ( light load) and 100 rounds of reloads 125 RN over 4 grains of 231. ( full power).
I started with the light loads. I had so many malfunctions, failures to eject, that I was getting really good at the old tap, slap and rack routine clearing the stove pipes. Not enough powder. I did not panic because I new it was a new gun and the load was WAY light. I struggled through this stuff and broke out the factory load. 200 rounds without a problem with this more powerful load. As an added bonus the trigger was starting to settle in nicely. It was getting really crisp and the grit and creep was pretty much gone. Last up was my full power reloads. Once again no problems noted.
I have no idea how accurate it is. I was just blasting steel as fast as I could for fun and to break the pistol in. This thing sure points nice. It¡¦s easy to shoot it FAST and get hits on steel. Part of this is do to the low power and minimal recoil of the itty bitty 9mm cartridge.
Took it home and broke it down to get the water and crud out. No unusual wear or any thing scary at all. Cleaned up quickly and went back together without incident. I am a gun tinkering fool. I love to screw around with my pistols. But I think I will leave this one alone. Except for one thing, that silly magazine safety is coming OUT OF THE GUN.
I am not a super big fan of Hi-cap 9mm pistols to begin with but I think this gun is a good as any out there. It has a John Browning FEEL to it. It can be recognized as one of his efforts. (At least part of it, I understand there were other contributors to the design) I can see why so many police and military organizations have used this pistol over the years.
I like it and would recommend it to someone that has use for a pistol like this. I feel the current (FN) Browning offerings are very good and represent a good value in today's gun markets.
I will post pictures in follow up posts
Jim
Browning Hi Power Practical Model Manufacture date March 2003
I received this pistol as a Christmas Gift. Yeah that's right a Christmas gift not a holiday gift. Live with it.
I don't know what my wife paid for the gun but I imagine it was around 700 dollars. I opened the package inspected the contents and found in the box; the pistol, two magazines, a manual, Two spent shell cases in a envelope for ballistic finger printing. The shell casings were a disappointment because they were not re-loadable. This is a shame because I figure if one firing of the case would make them a good way to identify
my pistol, firing them ten or fifteen times should really make the cases useful.
I had to brace myself a bit because while I own a number of other guns I really only shoot 1911 pattern pistols. I knew the trigger was bound to suck. I was right it did. ( more on this later) The two magazines were of the reduced capacity variety. They had little springs on them near the floor plate to help them eject past that silly magazine safety. This in my opinion is what you get when you go in search of a answer to a non-existent problem. The unneeded magazine safety, requires the addition of a silly flimsy spring to get the mag out of the gun. Fortunately there is plenty of other wise wasted room thanks to the ten round limited magazines. Wait a sec I will be right back I need to take some antacid.
Fit and Finish.
I must say FN is making some nice guns for Browning. The hard chrome frame is nicely done. Really good for a factory gun. I have heard that the guns FN is producing for Browning are nicer than the less expensive versions marketed under the FN name but who knows for sure. Mine is nice and that is good enough for me. The slide of course is a black finish. It looks almost like some kind of polymer finish, as opposed to a traditional blue. I could be wrong. I do know that it is very even and attractive. FN did a nice job with the sharp edges all nicely broken and the gun is comfortable to manipulate. I have to say the slide is not as easy to grasp as a 1911 and do to the lower weight of the reciprocating mass it has a stout recoil spring. Still the gun was fast to clear and I got plenty of chances to clear malfunctions on my first time out with it. (more on that later)
The grips that come with it suck. Those wrap around rubber things are an abomination in the eyes of God. They make the grip huge, slow the index of your hand during a draw, and have the same kind of class as a big gold chain around your neck. I have a set of nice checkered wood grips on order. (Internet purchase 5 mins after opening the box) To get by, I took the rubber back strap off and cut the front strap off as well. Much better. Feels less like a latex Coke can and more like a gun already.
The frame and slide as well as the other parts are correctly fitted. This is not to say target pistol tight. This is not a target pistol as a primary design imperative. Does this mean it can not be used to shoot targets? Of course not! But there is some room in the fit of the gun for heat and dirt build up. This is the way a pistol is meant to be built. I like this.
Range session:
I took my new little toy to the range and shot it for a few hours on steel plates in a pouring rain. I did this for you the reader. Because I knew you could not wait even one more day for my range report. I am a selfless bastard or what?
Ammo brought with me: 200 round speer 124 FMJ factory ammo. 100 rounds, Reloads 125 RN over 3.4 grains of 231. ( light load) and 100 rounds of reloads 125 RN over 4 grains of 231. ( full power).
I started with the light loads. I had so many malfunctions, failures to eject, that I was getting really good at the old tap, slap and rack routine clearing the stove pipes. Not enough powder. I did not panic because I new it was a new gun and the load was WAY light. I struggled through this stuff and broke out the factory load. 200 rounds without a problem with this more powerful load. As an added bonus the trigger was starting to settle in nicely. It was getting really crisp and the grit and creep was pretty much gone. Last up was my full power reloads. Once again no problems noted.
I have no idea how accurate it is. I was just blasting steel as fast as I could for fun and to break the pistol in. This thing sure points nice. It¡¦s easy to shoot it FAST and get hits on steel. Part of this is do to the low power and minimal recoil of the itty bitty 9mm cartridge.
Took it home and broke it down to get the water and crud out. No unusual wear or any thing scary at all. Cleaned up quickly and went back together without incident. I am a gun tinkering fool. I love to screw around with my pistols. But I think I will leave this one alone. Except for one thing, that silly magazine safety is coming OUT OF THE GUN.
I am not a super big fan of Hi-cap 9mm pistols to begin with but I think this gun is a good as any out there. It has a John Browning FEEL to it. It can be recognized as one of his efforts. (At least part of it, I understand there were other contributors to the design) I can see why so many police and military organizations have used this pistol over the years.
I like it and would recommend it to someone that has use for a pistol like this. I feel the current (FN) Browning offerings are very good and represent a good value in today's gun markets.
I will post pictures in follow up posts
Jim
I highly endorse the Uncle Mike's/Butler Creek grips.
