Greetings all, newbie to the forum here.

I'm looking at a pistol with barrel marking "CAL 9m/mP" and serial 245PT44309, apparently a surplus pistol.  

The left side of the slide says "Fabrique Nationale Herstal Belgique".

The bottom of the frame is marked (engraved) in front of the trigger guard with:
Mach 1
Knoxville TN
FN HP/GP

So it looks like this is a Hi Power made in 1986.  Does that make it a Mark I, II, or III?

The rear sight is badly deformed on the right side, looks like the pistol was dropped at some point.  The right side safety lever is loose on the pin, so maybe that got damaged in the same incident.  No idea how accurately it shoots.  

The trigger sometimes has a notchy feel, with an initial smooth pull and then a stop, then pull through that and then the hammer will fall, so something is wrong there.  I've tried a couple different magazines and they don't help with that.  Maybe on the initial shot it will be OK and subsequent shots too, maybe just when I'm testing it without dry firing it (just holding the hammer to keep it from falling with my non-shooting hand) then I'm causing this trigger weirdness.

I've also done the safety click test, and yes it makes the click.

I'm thinking that this pistol should get inspected by a gunsmith prior to firing, right?  Should I check around for a local smith, or do I need to find one with BHP experience / expertise?

When I asked Mach1 about my pistol they said it was police trade in from Israel.

Any idea if this is a MK I, or II, or III?

Post a pic.
First, "MkI" is only a designation for Inglis Hi Powers. FN and Browning didn't call any of their production Mark I's because at the time there was only one. When the Mark II was introduced in the early '80's FN was still churning out Standard models of 1965 and 1973

FN/Browning Hi Powers are usually described as Pre War, Nazi Occupation, Post war, Standard model of 1965, Standard model of 1973, Mark II, Mark III.

If yours has a rib running from rear sight to the front sight, front sight integral with slide and a drain hole at the muzzle end of the slide.....its a Mark II.

Thank You Sir!  A most informative reply.

A Mark II it is, and I shall endeavor to post a picture.

How does one go about finding a good gunsmith?  Me thinks I'd like the opinion of a trained professional to understand all the problems with this example and costs and options.  Is there a thread or area where people post reviews of gunsmiths?  I guess I should look for that...

Thanks!  Also good to know.

FWIW, I bought a Mk II from the Mach 1 guys, Israeli, back in January.  Bob Cogan at Accurate Plating and Weaponry in Newville, AL did the gunsmith work and refinished it in hard chrome for me.   4th HiPower he has done for me in the last 20 years, very pleased with his work, he understands those guns.

Before

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After

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That looks nice. I have had Bob do work for me before. Top notch. What sights are those? Does the rear sight hang off over the edge of the slide or is that just the pic.

Warren Tactical cut for standard Novak dovetail which he cut for me.  He also milled off the fixed and put a Novak cut front dovetail, had him fit a Dawson blank for that and he filed the front to get me a perfect zero with 147gr Gold Dots.   Rear does not hang off by more than maybe 1/16th if that.

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Had him set the trigger at about 4.5 pounds and it is great.  No disconnect present.  C&S no bite gen 2 hammer and sear.  Full spring replacement kit from Wolf.  Stippled front strap and backstrap which seems to help me a lot.

I love this gun (after Bob got through with it).  I plan to shoot the snot out of it.

That old saying, a silk purse from a sow's ear applies here.

How do you determine if a spring kit is needed?  Can a competent DIYer do that, or is a gunsmith needed?  I've fixed everything from boats to cars to smartphones to HVAC work.  If I can get tools and instructions I'll tackle just about anything.

Sorry, double post, now deleted.

I replaced the sear on a surplus high power to resolve the click issue. Just go slow and lay out all the pieces as they come off. The ambi safety has the worlds smallest roll pin. I could not even see it. I'm going to tackle the safety next and i hear that is another layer of difficulty with fitting.

Well if a 35 year old gun has to be torn down to the smallest piece for refinishing, as mine did, it only makes sense to invest the $30 to have a full fresh set of springs.

On a used gun like this, at a minimum, I would replace the firing pin spring (especially if it is Mk II with no firing pin block like mine) and the recoil spring.  Those are very easy.  I don't see much need in replacing the sear spring (it is a leaf spring).   Extractor spring and hammer spring may be just fine, but then again not that hard to replace either if you are taking the gun down.

HiPowers are not the easiest or the hardest to do armorer level work on.  I would rank it at about the same level of difficulty as the 1911.  I have gotten comfortable with it.

@billbotts how much did that run you? Thats kind of how I wanna setup my mk3

about $1K total, I supplied the C&S parts and grips

What grips are those? I think I’m going to send mine out as soon as I get the c&s hammer set. Whats the turnaround time?

Old set of grips I bought 15+ years ago from CDNN when they were closing them out, probably Herretts or Sile.   I think Hogue makes a similar version now.

My turn around was just a couple of months.

I would get the C&S kit that is the hammer and matched sear if you order one.  Getting both from them as that kit they offer has yielded a better trigger for me.

Bob did a Mk III exactly like this for me about 12 years ago, which is what prompted me to get one of the last of these beat up Israeli surplus Mk II's at a good price and give it the full treatment.

I don't think the folks who paid Nighthawk $3K back when they were selling BHP's have a gun that is one bit better and I just like the hard chrome.  The other thing I have learned is a good set of sights like these on a BHP help me a lot.  My eyes are too old to do good work with the factory sights now.

Link to C&S?  I should start pricing these springs and other bits out...

cylinder-slide dot com

I've got a set of grips for my SAR K2 45 from KSD grips, were very nicely done.
I've ordered a set for my new to me High Power will see once they get here since they come from Turkey.
They have several different options and even custom options.
https://www.ksdgripsusa.com/category/browning-hi-power-inglis-mk-i-mk-ii-mk-iii