Brownell's Browning Hi-Power clone?

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IWAC

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Browning sadly has discontinued its line of 9mm Hi-Power handguns. Brownell's has filled the gap:) by contracting with TISAS, a Turkish arms manufacturer for a clone designated the REGENT. I have wanted a Browning since my college days when the price in a LGS was a princely $112. In those days, cash was scarce, and I could eat for 3 months on that sum, and take a girl to the movies with a hamburger after for $2! Life was good, but I didn't notice.:thumbdown:
Anyhoo, Brownell's has an apparently very good clone, and for a reasonable price. The one problem that has plagued the design since forever is still present, according to one reviewer. The "hammer bite" on the hand's web. Without buying a $pecial hammer that eliminates the problem, increasing the cost, is there something that can be done to the round "rowel" style hammer, like grinding a small bit off the bottom rear, that will cure the problem? What say, Gurus?
 
Tisas makes the Hi Power clone but Brownells is but one retailer that sells them. Other retailers sells the BR9 too. I've never had hammer bite on any Hi Power over the past 30 years whether it's the regular hammer or commander style hammer. Maybe meaty hands may get bitten? However the Tisas clone has gotten good reviews. Good luck!
 
I would pass but thats me. Firing pin retaining pins break, extractors break, out of spec barrels and the pistol only has a 1 year warranty. It is a Turkish clone with Turkish QC and quality. Do the research high round count guns have issues.Get a real Browning/FN and get a C&S no bit hammer and life will be good.
 
I don't get hammer bite either. Ask a random person if your hands look like giant fleshy meathooks. If the answer is no, you may be fine.
 
All High Power bite me. Passed on a very nice C&S custom one a friend had made, shot like a dream (had to get rid of for circumstances), because I could not shoot it without bleeding. I tried so much I had a visible scar for years.

But... everyone else I know didn't have that issue.

I have once seen a beavertail that wraps up around the cocked hammer and half conceals it, but remember it's not a 1911. You have to cut and silver solder and buff it smooth and so on. Involved. Expensive.
 
I was issued a 1968-era Hi Power as an off duty for a little while back around 1995 or so. I never had the hammer bite me either. For a full-sized pistol it did conceal in a vertical-carry shoulder rig very nicely. I had to turn it back in when one of the less ethical guys somehow "lost" his issued Taurus-made 92 copy right about the time he ended up in hot water, so we had to turn in all the issued off-duty guns... and they were all destroyed. :thumbdown:


I do have a FEG PPK/s clone. In my hands it felt and shot better than my Interarms-Manhurin PPK/s did, so I sent the PPK/s packing and kept the FEG. I've read their Hi Power clones are well made.

Stay safe.
 
I've been a fan of the Hi Power since the '60s. Much as I like them, they all bite me. The spur hammer a bit less than the rowel type, the Cylinder and Slide hammer a bit less than the spur type. But they all bite me, and blood is shed. Yes, something can be done to the rowel type hammer. Years ago, gunsmiths sometimes removed, say the bottom 2/3 or so, of the rowel hammer. This reduced, or even eliminated for some, the hammer bite.
 
This whole issue of Hi-Power hammer bite is very interesting to me....Every one of my Colt 1911's with the old standard grip safety "bites" me...It is not painful but is noticable...however my FN Hi-Power with the standard issue spur hammer has never touched my hand! It is almost as if the bite of the HP is venomous in the handgun community but it is just accepted with the 1911...or it could just be the "design" of a shooters hand! Funny though...
 
I have the Tisas and I have real Browning Israel import that is marked Browning made in Belgium. The Tisas is a good gun shot it over 1000 rounds no issues. I upgraded springs in both and took out mag disconnect to get better trigger. Hi Powers triggers are always heavy. No it’s not as good as a Browning but it is a good pistol C&S makes customs out of it. I like mine very much. It will give hammer nite if you hold up high on gun but not bad only occasionally. Hope this helps
 
Only the round hammers bite me a bit, spur hammers never do.

This has been my experience as well.

Every one of my Colt 1911's with the old standard grip safety "bites" me...It is not painful but is noticable...

I don't have much experience with older Colts, but I have an inherited older Series 70 and used to have one of the newer Series 80 pistols. Neither one of them bit me. I did find it interesting though that the Sistema 1911s bite me pretty bad. I think it must have to do with the shape of the hammer, because the grip safety seemed more or less the same between them all.
 
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This whole issue of Hi-Power hammer bite is very interesting to me....Every one of my Colt 1911's with the old standard grip safety "bites" me...It is not painful but is noticable...however my FN Hi-Power with the standard issue spur hammer has never touched my hand! It is almost as if the bite of the HP is venomous in the handgun community but it is just accepted with the 1911...or it could just be the "design" of a shooters hand! Funny though...

I'm the opposite, 1911s don't bite me but my BHP does, a long day at the range often leaves me a little bloody. Also, for me it's not the hammer that gets me, it's the slide.

Note that this is only if I'm working from the holster as my immediate grip is very high on all guns, if I'm just doing range work I can adjust down some and not get bit.

The Glock 26 without a beavertail backstrap will do the same, it's just something I live with to get the comfortable grip that works for me, and influences the choices I make on which gun to carry.
 
I had a Tisas 1911. The fit and finish were nice and it never malfunctioned. I traded it towards something else I wanted a lot more, reluctantly.

I bought an FEG Hi Power clone barely used in the 1980's for $200. I still have it. It goes bang every time. It has a ring hammer. My hands are XXL. It has never "bitten" me.

My FEG PP and PPK are also very nice. It's a shame that the company isn't still in business.
 
The Turkish-made guns in general have a reputation for very poor quality control. I almost bought a Turkish Tri-Star O/U shotgun that was 'bootifool' but my friend had one and advised against it. He offered to sell me his for quite a bit less than he paid for it but I passed.
 
Clearly everyone’s hand is different. I have small hands for a man, and the Hi Power is a very comfortable gun to shoot and doesn’t bite, at least, not with the spur hammer.

I’ve been looking hard at these Tisas guns for several months now. Would rather have a blued Belgian or Portuguese Browning, but it’s hard to find one that’s not either very, very worn surplus, or nearly mint and sold for big $$ as a “collectible.” A nice shooter doesn’t come along everyday.
 
I have a lot of hi powers. one of my favorite pistols right behind the 1911. own a tisas 1911 and the stainless hi power clone. mine been fine so far with couple hundred rounds. havent shot it that much yet. the 1911 I've run hard and still does good.

my impression of the tisas hi power clone is for range work it's fine. for someone wanting a mil spec handling pistol plan on upgrading some parts. the bh spring guys have done a good job running it very hard and reporting on it. I expect we'll see improvements in the tisas as time goes by.
 
Mosin-
The latest round of worn Israeli surplus High Powers are very good shooters , based on my recent experience.(3 for 3)

The ones coming from police have nicer springs and triggers , mine (marked with a stylized “n” in a circle near starboard side trigger guard ) breaks nicely at about 5.6#. Military (Star of David) marked ones are somewhat heavier.
Been shooting mine regularly for nearly a mont , zero malfunctions.
 
Mosin-
The latest round of worn Israeli surplus High Powers are very good shooters , based on my recent experience.(3 for 3)

The ones coming from police have nicer springs and triggers , mine (marked with a stylized “n” in a circle near starboard side trigger guard ) breaks nicely at about 5.6#. Military (Star of David) marked ones are somewhat heavier.
Been shooting mine regularly for nearly a mont , zero malfunctions.

If I were buying a surplus gun in todays market this is who I would look to buy from. He used to work for CDI sales and he sells on GB as well. His guns are properly rated. He import marks the guns discreetly on the barrel and the gun you are looking at in the pics is the gun you will get.

https://www.dwjimports.com/firearms

https://www.gunbroker.com/Semi-Auto...4&Sort=13&View=1&Ch-manufacturerName=Browning
 
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Hammer bit on BHPs seems to be totally dependent on the geometry of the user's mits. And it's not only with the spur hammers. The original ring hammers were reportedly just as bad.

I have the factory spur hammer on a Belgian/Portugal production BHP from 2010 and have never had any issues.

C&S has a modified ring hammer they call the "No Bite" and it seems to solve the problem for most.

It is also very common to see the spur hammer shortened up by cutting it at the second serration from the tip and then rounding the corners and putting a dab of cold blue on.
 
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