Alternate title: Yes, you guessed it, another gunnie bleg...
The Good: Found two new gun shops close to me.
The Bad: Temptation, combined with poor impulse control and lack of funds, is a baaad thing.
The Enigma: Got a line on an Argentinian FM Browning Hi-Power clone. Good price, considering that actual Brownings are not MA-compliant {spit} and as such are pretty much unobtanium. This has the effect of driving up the price to Pluto, whereby a used Hi-Power in fair shape fetches more than MSRP for a new one in America. The only limiting factor is that there are zillions of C&R eligible Hi-Powers around the same price.
That said, I found an FM for about half the general going rate of a Hi-Power in MA. The conundrum (and bleg) is that I'm not certain how close the FMs are to actual Hi-Powers. My limited understanding is that the relationship is similar to the Colt Sistema, in that the FMs were originally produced in Argentina using Browning specs and tooling, as was the Sistema (using Colt specs and 1911 tooling). However, new(er) FMs get more difficult to peg, as the specs diverged at some point.
My main concern is that of magazines and grips - I don't want to drop $40/$50 on a set of wood grips to find out they don't fit, or find some pre-ban hi-cap magazines and have them not work.
Anyone have any info/horror stories/accolades/etc. for the FM Hi-Power clones? I'm curious to see what the buzz is...
Thanks in advance.
That is all.
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6 comments:
Whadaya mean "found" 2 new gunshops? You're JayG! You've sniffed out every purveyors of shooting iron in your state and most of the neighbor states. To admit otherwise compromises your gun-nut standing.
Ah, grasshopper, you have much to learn.
One must always be looking; always seeking new truth.
Wish I could help you out on this one, but I got nothing. I have a limited knowledge on the BHP (besides a major case of WANT), much less forrin' versions.
But this guy would know blindfolded.
http://www.hipowersandhandguns.com/index.html
That's Steven A. Camp's website dedicated almost entirely to the BHP. He's on THR and other forums, so he should be easy enough to conctact. He's forgotten more than I could ever learn about that gun.
Hope that helps!
BTW, any word on the Beretta vs. Sig situation? Or is this BHP poised to take over? Inquiring minds want to know!
tweaker
I talked myself out of the clone - I'll either wait until I get the hell outta MA to buy a REAL Hi-Power or else find one as a C&R. One of the neat things about the H-Power is that there are so many C&R-eligible ones out there.
The Sig will be joining the G. armory this weekend. Pics will follow...
Oh, and thanks for the link...
Well, a bit late but here's my 2 cents...
The FM BHP clones were originally made under license from FN (the original manufacturers of the BHP).
And up until a few years ago, they still were. But the license agreement ran out, so FM doesn't have to fork over royalties to FN any more.
I bought mine in '98 or '99, and I've had no problem putting current manufacture BHP magazines and springs into it.
I doubt I'd have any problems with any other parts, because they haven't changed any of the specs that mean anything for parts interchangeability.
I've read several times of folks getting the "detective" uppers from FM and putting right onto FN built BHPs with little or no fitting.
You'll usually read of folks talking about the FEG BHP clones, but those were reverse engineered, and never built under license.
The FM's don't, as far as I know, comply with the latest versions from FN (with the SFS decocking system), but should be a fine performer.
Are there tool marks and a plain jane finish? Sure. But for a pistol that was 1/3 the cost of a BHP when I bought it, and is still more accurate than I am, and goes bang every time the trigger is pulled (as long as I'm not using crappy magazines) then I'm OK with it being a bit of an ugly duckling.
My 8 year old nephew likes it just fine.
YMMV
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