Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Hungarian Hi Power clones

Anyone have any experience with, or opinions on, the FEG Hi Power clones coming into the US now?

I think Kevin Gibson made a detailed post on the FEG "High Powers" a while back (last year or two). You might find it using the Search feature.

I think he said he liked them. Parts interchangeability might be an issue, though, as between them and the Brownings. Not sure.

I remember when they first hit the market. Although I never owned one, I had a friend that did. They were inexpensive and while not up to Browning standards, they were well made with a good fit and finish on a par with other Eastern European firearms hitting the market at the time. The Hi Power didn't have a great trigger pull, and the FEG was much worse making them hard to shoot accurately but functioning was fine. I can't remember if the parts interchanged with a Browning, but I think the magazines did. Given the robust construction, I doubt if parts would be a problem for the average shooter.

That's my recollection of what Kevin posted. I think he might have written the post because I asked the same questions about the FEGs.

Bought one in 1996. It is still going strong.

They're pretty well made, but be aware they had 2 distinct versions. Earlier ones used the original locking system as designed by JMB. Later they switched to the S&W locking block to reduce cost. Were it me, I'd stick with the original.

The way to tell the difference (assuming external photos only) is the presence of a very faint oval on the right side of frame directly above the trigger. This is where the JMB lock was installed and match polished.

Pete

Try GOOGLE-ing searchwords:


DECODING THE FEG HI-POWER by JAY PEE


(You will find 'EVERYTHING' including pics.)

They�re not just good, they�re excellent. The FEG (Hungarian) Hi Powers are not a �licensed� copy, but they�re typically better than the other licensed copy, the Argentine (The later Argentine�s are pretty darned good though). The FEG is parts interchangeable in general. Most any aftermarket part you buy for a Hi Power is interchangeable with the FEG. There is one major exception.

When FEG decided to make a .40 version, they went a completely different direction than FN did. Rather than making a heavier slide, they redesigned the barrel locking cam system to match that of the S&W Model 59 series. What that means is, if you have a .40 FEG (which are fairly rare in the US) or one of the 9mm�s made with the S&W style barrel, then you�re very much stuck with the barrel it came with. Which isn�t a bad thing at all, it�s a damn good design, a clear improvement on the original cam/locking system.

Some of the later imported FEG�s have a VERY nice extended safety design that is worlds better than Browning/FN�s ambi-abomination.

So all this is to say, the FEG is an outstanding value in a Hi Power. So much so that�A friend of mine and I are setting up to go into the custom Hi Power business and we fully intend to work on FEG�s as a lower cost option without sacrificing quality.

That is one of the best pieces of online journalism I�ve seen in the gun world in a long time. Here�s an area where confusion exists and he had the resources available to put together a fantastic, fully definitive discussion on the matter. Him and I disagree on the reason for the change in the locking system. He says it was a cost saving matter; I disagree. To make the gun with the S&W type cam system significantly adds cost to manufacture the receiver and the barrel as it�s much more complex from a machining standpoint. On the basic Hi Power, all that machining is just skipped and they heat press in a cam block; done�quite brilliant really. But the weakness is that the cam block is inserted into a part of the frame that is rather thin. When the Brits started using SMG ammo (which eventually became �NATO Pressure�), those cam blocks started setting back after several thousand rounds, but typically it was the slide that failed before the cam block.

So my take is that it wasn�t cost savings, it was to make the whole system more robust to accommodate 9mm NATO and .40 S&W.

I had a FEG back in the '80s, it was true to the FN design, and I replaced the safety and some other parts with aftermarket stuff for the Browning with no trouble whatever.

It was an excellent pistol and held up very well until I bought a .41 AE barrel from Behlert and proceeded to beat it to pieces. Poor thing lasted quite awhile even in that rendition, though I never did get it reliable enough to trust it.

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbth...7843/Re_Two_pistols_for_sale#Post6957843

One for sale!

Mike

Mike,

The gun in the link appears to be an FM (Fabrique Militar) from Argentina, not an FEG. Still a great pistol though.