I have a BHP Mk III that my wife and I bought about 15 years ago. It's the nightstand gun, so I hate to go blasting with it too much as it's the one semiauto in the house my wife can shoot really well (she recently kicked butt on her CHL qualifying test with it.) I really wanted a range toy I could mess around with and not get in a tizzy if I left it dirty, had it broken down for mods, etc. So when SOG was advertising these for $250, I couldn't pass it up. With the 3% CC upcharge, postage and transfer, It was in my hands for under $300. Not bad at all!
I told my neighbor to grab his old Hi Power as we were going to the range. He reminded me it was in my safe, but away we went. Other than the muzzle configuration, his old (1960-ish, give or take) one looks just like this one. Except his bluing is immaculate.
This FEG shot every bit as accurately as my Mk III and his HP. Despite it's rough looks, the barrel looks perfect internally. That's not to say the range session went without problems. It rarely went a complete magazine without a failure to extract.
However, when I got home and broke both pistols down for cleaning (my neighbor can clean his own), I found that the extractor looks, as close as I can tell, just like the Mk III. It didn't seem unduly worn. What I did find is that I could pinch the extractor "open" with my thumb and forefinger, whereas on the Mk III, it took the full effort of both hands to open the extractor. I'm guessing the extractor spring is shot. I've already ordered a new one and recoil spring (it seemed a bit limp as well) from Brownells and I'll have them fitted and ready to go next week. I'll update this post after I do.
It doesn't have a magazine disconnect - which is a plus in my book.
Also, I was shooting the 115 gr. Precision Bullets moly coated truncated cone over a fairly light charge of Red Dot and had zero problems with feeding out of several different magazines.
As you can see, it's worn and has some dings, but it was a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to tinkering with and refinishing this gun eventually.
Enjoy!
I've got some pics of the magazine that came with it, but it just looks like a slightly worn standard Hi Power magazine. If you really want to see them, let me know.