What is the difference between....

Israeli Hi power
Browning Hi Power
Belgium Hi power
Argentina Hi power...

etc...

The "original" Hi Power was introduced by Fabrique Nationale  of Belgium (FN) in 1935. They continue to manufacture the HP to this day.
ALL genuine FN Hi Powers are currently "made" in Belgium and final assembly is done in Portugal. Only the HP's destined for sale in the USA by Browning will carry the "Made in Belgium, Assembled in Portugal" rollmark. HP's not imported by Browning are marked only "Made in Belgium".

So.......a "Belgium Hi Power" is one made by FN.

Browning Arms is just the US importer.......Browning Arms doesn't make guns, never has. FN has owned Browning for several years and for some reason rollmarks them with the "Portugal" mark. The Hi Power was a design worked on by John M Browning, but he died before it was even close to being finished. Deuidonne Saive actually did the majority of the design.

The "Israeli" Hi powers are genuine FN HP's that are surplus military & police guns......from Israel. A gazillion were imported over the last year.

In the early '60's FN sold a number of Hi Powers to Argentina for police and military use. Argentina liked them so much that they bought a license from FN to produce them at their own military factory using equipment and tooling they bought from FN. After several years the Argentines decided to start selling their HP's in violation of their licensing agreement with FN. They even marked many of these Hi Powers "FN Browning" in an attempt to capitalize on the good name of Browning and FN. To confuse the marketplace even more, Argentine marked these HP's as FM (Fabrica Militar).  The original FN licensed Hi Powers built by the Argentines are fine guns. The later ones are not IMHO anywhere close to the quality of a FN Belgian made HP.

Can you explain to me if they are the same than why does browning arms cost double the other ones?

Are you making an apples to apples comparison? Typically surplus guns with an unknown history bring less $$$.

A used Browning "T" series is not an equal to a used Israeli MkII HP. Military and police contract Hi Powers are almost always parkerized (like in the MkII versions) or the matte black epoxy (like the MkIII versions) while commercial HP's will often be available in polished blue. A used polished blue HP will bring more $$$.

Then there are those who think a Browning imported FN Hi Power is better than an FN imported by FNUSA, Vector, Howco or Cassi. They aren't.

are these real?!?

so cheap

http://www.gunsamerica.com/919394684/Guns/Pistols/Military-Misc-Pistols-Non-US/FN_Browning_9mm_Hi_Power_Israeli_ca_1953_Chrome_w_2_Magazines_High_Power_HiPower_Belgium_Belgian_.htm

http://www.gunsamerica.com/953876421/Guns/Pistols/Browning-Pistols/Hi-Power/FN_Browning_9mm_Hi_Power_Israeli_Good_1987_w_2_Magazines_Fabrique_Nationale_High_Power_HiPower_Belgi.htm

They are real.......dogs.
Neither of those two Hi Powers are worth what Robertsons is asking.

The chrome plated one was probably a beater when it was plated and the other sports a replacement hammer.

IMHO they are both overpriced by at least $100.

Is there a major difference between the blued Brownings and the epoxy/painted models? I prefer the blued look and the ring hammer of the old style but can get a good deal on the new version. Trading my XDm for the BHP + $200. I think that's decent.

I wondered what happened to all of the guns AIM was selling out of so fast.  I guess these guys bought them and added $100 to the price.

The major difference is one is polished blue the other matte black.

Everything else is exactly the same.

You can always swap out the spur hammer for the round hammer.

Ok, thanks for the info. I'm foing next week. I'd rather have made in Belgium than made in Croatia...

is this a good deal?

$575 + shipping  , how much is the common shipping $ btw?

I think retail on the gun above is around $900, for that price you can't go wrong.
You can always pick up original good condition Hi powers in the 6-7 range.
Get a Captain model if you can "only difference is the hammer". I like the MKIII's just because they have already been cut for sights.

I am an old HI-power fan but have been getting an ich to try a CZ or AR24

how can I tell if that is a mark 1 or mark 2 ?!

really good wiki artical.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browning_Hi-Power

A little better one,
http://www.hipowersandhandguns.com/Why%20the%209mm%20Hi%20Power%20Remains%20Favorite.htm

i hope the one i posted was a mark 3 from all that reading I did.....

Ya think they made the switch to MKIII around 1992. They started those markings in the late 90s I believe.

how come I cant find any silver and gold ones anymore?

and im buying from a person on this forum, how can I check their ratings?

That is a genuine FN Hi Power imported by FNUSA, not Browning Arms. For a brief period about ten years ago FN thought it would be a good idea to market HP's through their FNUSA subsidiary, rather than their Browning Arms subsidiary. (FNUSA focusing on the mil/police market, BA focusing on the "sporting" market). It was basically a duplication of effort and FNUSA stopped selling them on their own in about 2005. CDNN and other were selling these for as little as $369 in 2006. I bought two . I should have bought all the credit card could handle. It is exactly the same gun as a Browning HP and while not rare, it is definitely worth $575.

Shipping from a dealer shouldn't run more than $25 via USPS Priority Mail Flat Rate Box. If the seller is not a dealer they would have to use a common carrier and ship Next Day which could run $60+.

Current MSRP for a Browning Arms Hi Power is $1000- $1,100 depending on sights and whether it is matte or polished finish.
No one in their right mind pays MSRP, so the average dealer price is closer to $750-800nib. CDNN runs them on sale every few weeks at $679.

The "Capitan" (not Captain) is the MkII tangent sighted model and was discontinued about a decade ago. I own four tangent sighted HP's and believe me.....while beautiful, they are extremely impractical for carry purposes. The tangent sight was mean't for use with a detachable stock and not "one handed" use.

The hammer on the Capitan is identical to the hammer on the OP's Hi Power.....a spur. The older round hammer HP's with tangent sights were never called Capitans, simply "standard models with tangent sight". The silly nicknames like "Vigilante", "Sport" and "Capitan" were the work of some marketing genius at FN back in the early eighties.

There isn't a "Mark I".

In the beginning.................

There was the "standard" model. It wasn't called that because there was really only one model with several variations. The first HP featured tangent style sights because it was intended for use as a pistol/carbine and came with a detachable stock/holster combo.

The basic HP didn't change much from 1935 until the early '80's with the introduction of the MkII. The MkII differed from the Standard HP in that it featured:
-higher profile front sight, rather than the small "half moon" sight.
- a "rib" running the length of the slide between the front and rear sights
-an improved feed ramp. the original HP had a "humped" ramp that worked fine with FMJ, but could cause problems with some of the new hollow point 9mm rounds that started becoming popular in the early '80's.
-a "drain hole" at the muzzle end of the slide.
-Parkerized finish instead of the highly polished blue. Some came out a gray-green, others gray-black and some coal black.

Early MkII's had the tiny thumb safety, later MkII's had the larger ambi safeties.

The MkIII introduced dovetailed sights and later the cast frame.

Look on GunBroker for the Rennaissance models.

At the top of the EE there is a Feedback Forum where you can look up his username.

new deal, which one do you think is better,made in 1991, same price as the other one, $575 + shipping  

Neither is "better" than the other........they are identical save for finish, sights and rollmarks.
It depends what you will be using it for. The Silver Chrome model has adjustable sights...not the most snag free sight if you plan to carry concealed. (but easily replaced if need be)


The answer my friend is buy both.

greedy. you must have two wives.