Firearms: the Browning Hi-Power (via the FEG)

This blog is full of classics.  Why not a classic firearm?

The Browning Hi-Power is a classic handgun.

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It was the first "wonder-9" handgun, holding an (at the time) incredible 13 rounds of 9mm.  Introduced in 1935, it was first designed by the gun-prophet John Moses Browning (who designed dozens of other important firearms and cartridges) before his death in 1926.  Browning's French assistant Dieudonné Saive then took over and changed certain aspects of the handgun before releasing it to the French military, who had placed the initial order for the Hi-Power in 1914 and then rejected the finished handgun in 1935.

Their loss.

A prototype Hi-Power with detachable stock

The Belgian military adopted the Hi-Power as its sidearm and the love affair took off from there.  As a military sidearm it was adopted, copied, ripped off, or stolen by dozens of countries across the world over the last 77 years.  It was, at the time, the AK-47 of the pistol world: everyone made and used them.  During World War Two both the Allies and the Axis in Europe used the Hi-Power: the Nazis took over the Belgian factories and put them into production for their forces while the Allies were given plans for the Hi-Power and began producing the handgun in Canada.

Britian, Argentina, Columbia, Canada, Germany, China, Belgium, Greece, Israel, the United States (FBI), Poland, Luxembourg, Iraq, and dozens more countries have put the Hi-Power to use.

One country that produced the Hi-Power was Hungary.  Known as the FEG (Fegyver És Gépgyár) Hi-Power, it was produced starting in the 1970s and was known to be a quality, near exact copy of the Browning Hi-Power.  There were several different variants of the FEG with different finishes and uses, but they were mainly produced for export.

I was able to come upon one of these FEG handguns less than a year ago and have been quite pleased with it.  The model I found was the PJK-9HP, also known as the FP9, and has a ventilated rib running along the top of the slide as well as a slightly different front slide, looking more like the front slide of a Colt 1911 than that of a typical Browning Hi-Power (as depicted in the first photo).  In all other regards the FP9 is identical to the standard Browning Hi-Power.

My FEG Hi-Power, the FP9.

My FEG is a piece of work, a marvel to look at, a masterpiece of gun art.  At least to my eye.  

The deep satiny blued finish of the metal is contrasted by the utilitarian and rugged wood grips.  While normal Browning Hi-Powers are something to look at, the ventilated rib, like those normally found on sporting shotguns, adds another touch of mystique and class to an already attractive handgun.  The lines are smooth and straight-forward; nothing too complex to muck up the flow of the eye as it sweeps back along the slide.  Like many things, simplicity is beautiful.

Now, a firearm can be extremely beautiful but that matters not if it does not shoot well.  So how does the Hi-Power/FEG shoot?  In so many words: as beautifully as it looks.  The action is very smooth and feels great when fired.  The grip fits well in my large hands but might be a tad large or uncomfortable in smaller hands.  And the stock Hi-Power barrel is definitely accurate enough for most intended uses, but just in case it isn't match barrels are available in both 9mm and .40 caliber.  But out of the box any decent condition Hi-Power is an accurate handgun.  

The sights are typical of most vintage handguns: simplistic and rough but more than adequate for the intended use.  Remember, the Hi-Power was originally designed as a military sidearm, not a precision weapon.  

Like the sights, the miniscule stock thumb safety is quite minimalistic.  It is unfortunately barely adequate and is one of the few low points of the Hi-Power, especially for a left handed person like myself.  This is one thing I would change in the basic Hi-Power design.

Another would be the magazine disconnect.  The typical Hi-Power cannot fire without a magazine being fully inserted into the mag well.  It was designed with safety in mind but I would consider it a liability, especially with its intended use being that of a combat sidearm.  The magazine disconnect also makes the trigger pull quite a bit stiffer than it really needs to be.  This issue can be resolved by (1.) removing the magazine disconnect or (2.) polishing the areas on the magazines where the disconnect makes contact.

Another issue that sometimes comes up with Hi-Powers, especially the older versions, is that they may or may not feed hollow-point ammunition, depending upon the shape of the feed ramp and how well polished it is.  Thus far my FEG has had no problems feeding hollow-points.

Hi-Power disassembly is so simple a baboon could achieve it.  First, before disassembling any firearm, drop the magazine and visually and physically make sure there is no round in the chamber.  

Having done so, pull the Hi-Power slide back and lock it back with the safety.  The safety notch fits into a cutout on the bottom edge of the slide.  Next, push the slide lock pin out of the frame and carefully release the safety, slowly lowering the slide forward until it is completely off the frame.  Set the frame aside.

Next, take the slide and hold it so the bottom of the slide is exposed.  Compress the recoil spring from the barrel lug and pull the spring out of the slide, setting it aside.  Finally, remove the barrel from the slide.  And there you have it, the Hi-Power is disassembled.

Disassembled with an aftermarket 17 round magazine.

To reassemble the Hi-Power merely reverse the steps used in the disassembly.  

Like the Colt 1911, it is meant to be carried in a holster cocked and locked meaning with a round in the chamber, the hammer cocked back, and the safety on.  This is a perfectly safe way to carry the Hi-Power.  I carry mine only for special occasions: it is my best and most beautiful handgun, an engagement gift from my then fiance.  Like the dinner jacket, your special cuff links, or your finest shoes, my Hi-Power only comes out with my best.  It is a sort of "BBQ gun", as Texans call it.  It makes the occasion special and the occasion makes it more special.  I was proud to wear it at my wedding.

The Hi-Power has a proud heritage that continues today.  Even if you can't find a vintage Hi-Power fear not, Browning still makes them, though prices are over $1,000.  Prince Harry was recently seen wearing a well-worn and beat-up Hi-Power in a war zone in the Middle East, a tribute to its longevity and ruggedness.

The Hi-Power has influenced handgun design, from multiple Smith & Wesson types to the CZ-75 and -85 families.  It has soldiered on not only as the military sidearm that it was designed to be but also as a civilian sporting and self-defense handgun as well.  And while it may not be the best choice anymore as a combat handgun, it is still a classic that will not let the shooter down.  You cannot go wrong with a well-made and taken care of Hi-Power, whether it's a Browning or an FEG.

As with everything else, look to the classics.  Classics have been proven through time and experience.  There's a reason the Hi-Power is a classic: it was made to be.

Firearms: the Hi-point 995 9mm carbine

Once again we take a short break from sartorial excellence to examine a firearm: the Hi-point 9mm carbine (also available in .40 caliber and eventually .45 caliber).

Before we start let us remember the four basic safety rules of gun handling:
1. Treat every gun as if it is loaded, even when it is not.
2. Keep your booger hook off of the bang switch (keep your finger off of the trigger) until you are ready to fire.
3. Don't point the gun at anything you are not willing to destroy.
4. Know your target and what is beyond it.

Alrighty then, onto the 9mm carbine. These fun little guns are cheap to buy and cheap to shoot. At roughly $200 each, the 995 carbine is the poor man's AR-15. Feeding the little beast is relatively cheap with 100 rounds of 9mm Luger costing roughly $20 (or $.20 each) at the moment, that is if you can find it.

The 995 is by no means a long distance shooter and has average penetration performance when compared to other calibers, especially high-power rifle rounds. But in the role of home defense the little 995 excels. The 9mm Luger round is less likely to over penetrate the target or walls than, say, a 5.56 round fired from an AR-15.
Also, the short length of the 995 makes it ideal for close quarters movement and shooting like that seen in home defense. But perhaps the best thing about the little 995 is the ability of the shooter to customize it to his/her own need or desire.

Check out the 995 below:

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It has been altered to accept a low power scope (shown) or non-magnified reddot sight for fast target engagement and a quick detach bipod for stablized distance shooting.

Here I am firing said 995 with a reddot sight replacing the scope.

I would load one 10 round magazine up with 4 rounds and the other with 2. Then, with the 4 rounder in the gun I would fire two double taps and, while moving to a new position, eject the empty mag and load the 2 round mag into the gun before firing another double tap.
I did several different variations of this drill. The carbine was quick to dump the empty mag and easy to load a fresh one. With the red dot sight all I had to do was point and click and a hole would appear where the dot was at.

Perfect accuracy at 25 yards.

Next I replaced the red dot with the scope and deployed the bipod. The scope is a Wally World special but is a decent scope for my purposes. After getting it sighted in at 50 yards I set up four clay pigeons on the 50 yard board and loaded four rounds into a mag, one round for each target.

A challenge of sorts: four shots, four kills.

After getting settled in I let the four rounds fly.

The result? Four dead targets.

The Hi-point carbine is a surprisingly accurate and reliable gun that is cheap enough for most anyone to buy. It is easy and comfortable to use even for a lefty like myself and the light recoil of the 9mm round won't scare off beginners.

Be aware that Hi-point has finally recently come out with a new 'tactical' stock that is more stable than the original and comes with a built-in recoil pad, a last shot hold open feature, more rails for mounting lights, foregrips, lasers, sights and even a mini-bayonet.

Or if you want something a little sleeker a company called ATI sells a nifty stock that looks like it's out of a sci-fi movie. But I like the ugly utilitarian look of the original stock shown in the pictures above.

Whether you are an avid shooter or just a beginner the Hi-point 995 9mm carbine is the perfect plinking gun and even home defense weapon on the cheap: reliable, accurate, customizable and cheap to purchase and feed. What more could you want?

Firearms: the M-1 Garand

Every once in a while I will break from the sartorial focus of this site and look at something a bit different.

No matter what your political or philosophical view on firearms, I'm sure we all can appreciate the history and beauty of important rifles of the past, such as the WW2 American M-1 Garand (named after its inventor). In this post, we will give this rifle a quick look.

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What you see above is the "the greatest battle implement ever devised" according to General Patton. And he may have been right.

The M-1 Garand was so important during the Second World War because it was a semi-automatic in a war dominated by bolt-action rifles. It was the first semi-automatic battle rifle ever put into major use by a world power.

Bolt-action rifles like the German K98 Mauser, the British Lee Enfield, the Russian Mosin Nagant and the Japanese Type 99 needed to have the bolt manually operated before each round could be fired, giving soldiers decent firepower compared to weapons of the past. But next to the semi-automatic M-1, the bolt-action rifles could not compare. With the M-1, each pull of the trigger released one .30 caliber round without the bolt having to be operated manually. Not only that, but the internal magazine could hold 8 rounds before needing to be reloaded. This gave the American soldier a huge amount of firepower.

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The stylized photo above shows the en-bloc clips that hold 8 rounds. These were inserted through the top of the reciever into the internal magazine.

To do this the bolt was locked open. While the clip was inserted the bolt would unlock, stripping the first round off the clip. This unlocking, though, created a bit of a problem for the soldier. If the soldier did not get his thumb out of the way of the bolt, it would get slammed and pinched between the bolt and the reciever. This caused excruciating pain, swell the thumb and perhaps make the thumbnail fall off. This badge of honor was called "M-1 thumb" and was in a way a rite of passage. Anyone who 'earned' this experience quickly learned how to avoid it in the future.

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Disassembly of the M-1 is relatively easy, especially for a semi-automatic firearm. Field striping the M-1 is not difficult and can quickly be learned by the inexperienced shooter. The M-1 is a gas-operated rifle, meaning the expanding gas that propels the round down the barrel is siphoned to strike the face of the operating rod. This rod is driven back and pushes the bolt backward with it, resetting the hammer and trigger, ejecting the spent shell casing and allowing the bolt to strip off a fresh round on its return trip.

Shooting the M-1 is great fun. The .30-06 round can be intimidating to new shooters, however, the M-1's semi-automatic workings lessens the recoil since the bolt and operating rod take some of it. The M-1 is also a heavy rifle, about 10 pounds, so some of the recoil is also dampened by the weight.

The sights are easy to use. The M-1 has a "peep" sight. With peep sights, the shooter looks through a hole in the back sight and lines up the front post sight with the target. Anyone with an eye can use the M-1's sights.

Caught the brass in mid-flight.

The M-1 Garand fought through the Second World War, the Korean War and the early years of the Vietnam War. Today, it is still seen in the hands of rebels around the world, from Columbia to Iraq, and it is the pride of civilian shooters like myself. That record is testimony to the M-1's design and ability to accurately put fire downrange. The M-1 will live on for decades to come in the hands of shooters and soldiers who love it and put it to use in the protection of lives.