Care, Feeding, and Maintenance of La Grande Puissance (aka Hi-Power)

[Ed L]

Great post, MattyD380. I think you stumbled on something.

The "Suspect" follower is on the right, here--with the more prominent clefts in the sides:

To my untrained eye, it seems like the follower on the "good" mag would be more stable and less prone to cantilevering forward/nose diving. But... then again... I'm in marketing.

This motivated me to pull apart apart some Browning Hi power Mags that I have. I have some that are marked Browning and some that are from Mec-Gar. The ones from Browning that came in a Browning package look like your good mags with the extensions that run deeper into the mag tube. They also have the witness holes on the back. The Mec-gar mags have the followers similar to you "Suspect" mag that has smaller extensions that two cone-like projections on the bottom.

Here is a picture of the Mec-gar mag next to the Browning mag. The first Mag in the picture is a Mec-gar mag; the second is a Browning mag. The Browning Mag's follower is much higher and puts the round in a better feeding position. I remember someone telling me that Mec-gar makes Browning Mags and they are the same thing. They clearly are not the same thing.



I have used Mec-gar mags and Browning Mags with my Hi power. Both seem to work, but I don't have more than 400-500 rounds through my Hipower, and it is one made by Nighthawk when they briefly did a run of Hi Powers, so it might run a bit better.

[Bruce Cartwright]

MattyD380:

Is there a source for the "good" followers you show in your thread? I have seen several varieties of followers over the years. The latest MecGar 15 round magazines basically are a cap that sits on top of the magazine spring. They have been reliable so far, but I wonder if the "good" style you depicted might not be better in terms of functional reliability over the long haul. I ask because I have been running HiPowers a bunch lately. Thanks!

Bruce

[Flamingo]

I went through my BHP magazines this morning. I have a total of 6 different types. Other than the base pad on the KRD magazines the main differences is in the witness holes and a slight variation to the pin that retains the base plate.

Magazine 1 "KRD" research on this magazine shows it to be Argentinian.





Magazine 2 Factory Browning Magazine







Magazine 3 Unknown Magazine

There are no witness holes and the only markings are "Made in Italy" on the left side. Maybe a earlier Mecgar? The pin that holds the base plate on is flush with the baseplate.



Magazine 4

Mecgar 13 round magazine




Magazine 5

Mecgar 15 round magazine

[MattyD380]

Thanks for all the info and comparisons, guys. Really appreciate it. I feel like we're learning something.

I did a little research and here's my overall take...

I think the follower type with the two cones/posts is actually more of the norm for "factory/OEM/etc." Hi Power mags. I wanna say that may have been the original design, dating back to the '50s and '60s, but I can't be sure. I think the follower type with the 4 legs/"skirt" (what I referred to as the "good" follower) was made for a decade or so beginning at some point in the 1980s into the 1990s. Those mags have zig-zag witness holes on the back and have the NATO Luger markings, like this one:



Stephen Camp sheds some light on this, here: https://hipowersandhandguns.com/mec-...015%20shot.htm

He also confirms that the 15-rounders are, indeed, just kinda "caps" with far less stability than either of the 13-round varieties.

While Camp says he hasn't seen a marked difference in reliability between the "cone type" 13-rounder and "4-leg/skirt type" 13-rounders, I can see a dramatic difference in how much the follower pitches down when I push on the front of it with a punch. The 4-leg one moves straight down the tube, while the 2-cone one pitches forward.

I also tested my Mec-Gar 15-rounder and it has about the same tendency to pitch forward as the "cone-type" 13 rounder, but waaaay more tendency to pitch backward if you push on the back of the follower.

Net...

To me, the 4-leg/skirt type mag just seems like a better design: it's more stable and it holds the rounds at a higher angle. I think the switch to the "cone type" mag contributed to the kerchunky feeding sensation I was feeling this last range trip... which I'd never felt before with the 4-leg mag. I definitely feel that same kinda kerchunk with the 15-rounders, as well. But, they also have the tendency to lock the slide back prematurely, so I never used them a whole lot--though I'd never had a failure to feed with those.

So...

The only way I can think of to ensure you're buying 4-leggers is to look for that NATO/Luger marking and the zig-zag holes on the back. I honestly don't think Mec-Gar makes this kind anymore, so you're probably limited to used ones. Which sucks.

But... also interesting...

That Argentine mag that @Flamingo posted has a metal follower with two ends that run a bit deeper along the back and the front. Maybe those offer the same stability as the 4-leggers?

[Flamingo]

A generous member here lent me his SME to try out. I wore it for about two weeks and I loved it. I am clearing blackberries and saplings from a couple of acres and I wore it the whole time. I spent hours each day cutting the saplings with small saw and dragging them to the trailer to take to the yard waste/recycle station at the dump (they make compost). It was comfortable enough that I did not notice I was carrying.

I am on the list for one now.



I reluctantly sent it back! I just wanted to publicly say thanks!

[MattyD380]

I finally got a BDA-9 / HP-DA:



I’ve been wanting one of these for a while. Stumbled upon an overlooked listing and managed snag it for a decent price. Kinda completes the trio…



Haven’t shot it yet, but it exudes proverbial brick-shithouse quality and feels very solid and composed in the hand. Points very well—feels like a BHP in that respect, but the grip is bigger and more hand filling. But not in a bad way. SA trigger feels nice and the DA is surprisingly less heavy than you’d (well, I’d) expect. The slide and barrel seem very “Hi Power” whereas the rest of the gun has been reimagined to house DA/SA innards. It definitely feels like it’s cut from the same cloth as my MKIII BHP… whereas the BDM feels like a different animal altogether. Which it is. However…

BDM mags fit in the BDA (BDA mag on left, BDM on right)



The followers are a bit different, but they lock back and seem to feed fine. Anyone have a BDA9? Any experience using BDM mags in it?

Also interesting, the BDA-9 mags fit and seem to feed fine in my BHP, but not the other way around.

[OlongJohnson]

Lanbo's has MecGar mags back in stock:

https://lanbosarmory.com/index.php?m...ducts_id=12136

[DDTSGM]

Thanks, great price. Three enroute.

[Suvorov]

I finally got a BDA-9 / HP-DA:




The followers are a bit different, but they lock back and seem to feed fine. Anyone have a BDA9? Any experience using BDM mags in it?

Also interesting, the BDA-9 mags fit and seem to feed fine in my BHP, but not the other way around.

Congrats on finding one of the moon rocks!

I know I have posted pictures of my HP-DA/BDA9 on this forum many times but no one seemed to take any interest. It was my "dream gun" in the early 90s as I saw it as the modern HiPower that was as cool as all my friends "Wonder Nines." Browning kept promising them and they never arrived until the BDM came out and the BDA9 disappeared from marketing. When FN finally imported a few (my understanding is around 500) in the early 2000s they didn't even show up on my radar. It wasn't until one day I was working at the range and a Russian guy was shooting one. I told him I'd buy it on the spot. To this day it is the only one I have ever seen in person.

Over the years I've tried to gather as much information on this pistol as I can. From what I gather the BDA9 has had 2 generations. One from the days of the M9 trials that resulted in the Finns procuring it as the 9mm Pistol 80 and the 2nd Generation, a simplified one, that came out in the late 90s or so which is what you and I have. The 1st Generation of them had the metal decocker lever as well as some additional fire control components which the 2nd generation of them has the plastic decocker levers and well as simplified lock work. When I got mine it came with a wax paper instruction sheet but no manual. I wrote FN and they had a manual to send to me but nothing else and upon further inquiry they explained that they knew basically nothing about the pistol. Let me know if you are interested in any of the manuals and other data I have collected for your blog and I'd be happy to photocopy them for you.

BDM magazines will work in the BDA9 as long as you remove the tab at the back of the base plates which was designed to allow you to change the firing mode on the BDM (really a silly idea that someone would want to change firing modes in the field under enough duress that they needed to have a mechanism for doing so on a magazine). Likewise the BDA9 magazines will work in BOTH your BDM and HiPowers. A while back CDNN was selling both 15 and 10 round BDA9 magazines and blow out prices. Sadly, as a resident of the GODLESS state of Commiefornia I was never able to get my hands on the full capacity magazines and the 15 round BDM magazines were unobtainium from the beginning.

In fact, near as I can tell the BDA9 served as the basic platform for the development of the BDM. The mouse trap hammer spring, magazine release, grip, and many other features of the BDA9 seemed to transfer over to the BDM in addition to the magazine.

One thing about your BDA9 - the finish will scratch if you look at it funny. They seem to be Parkerized with the cheapest of black spray paint possible sprayed over.

[Joe in PNG]

Got a SFS on mine. I'll try it out next week, and see how well it works.