Springfield SA-35 (Kinda looks like a High-power)
- Thread starter Rob228
- Start date
Friend of mine just got one and I had a chance to examine it today. Fit is EXCELLENT, no tooling or machine marks visible anywhere (did not do a strip of the gun). Grips are good, well checkered wood. Sights are large and easily visible, rear is drift for windage with a locking setscrew. Front has a white dot.
Trigger was good, not target light weight, moderately heavy but good for a service pistol. Other than the usual semi auto take up slack, there was no creep or noticeable over travel, no stacking, just a clean break.
Safety has the larger "flat" lever, much better to my way of thinking than the original Hi Power one. Only one lever so easier for right handers than left.
NO MAGAZINE DISCONNECT and the magazine drops free easily.
One visual change I did notice is the hammer. It has the round "ring" (or rowel) style hammer, and the round part is slightly higher on the hammer than what is found on the other Hi Powers with that kind of hammer. I was told this change was deliberate, to further reduce the possibility of hammer bite.
Personally, I've never been bitten by the regular spur hammer and also see no need for any "whale tail" frame extension, either. IF you need one of those, your hands (and the way you grip the gun) must be different from mine.
The shop where my friend got his is selling them at straight retail. They are not jacking up the price one penny.
The finish on the one I handled is a dull blue. My friend said it was "brushed blue".. Not the bright blue of commercial Brownings, and NOT a parkerized finish. Gun was still unfired when I examined it, but I expect it to work just fine. If I were in the market for another 9mm pistol, I think you could do a lot worse than the SA-35.
Trigger was good, not target light weight, moderately heavy but good for a service pistol. Other than the usual semi auto take up slack, there was no creep or noticeable over travel, no stacking, just a clean break.
Safety has the larger "flat" lever, much better to my way of thinking than the original Hi Power one. Only one lever so easier for right handers than left.
NO MAGAZINE DISCONNECT and the magazine drops free easily.
One visual change I did notice is the hammer. It has the round "ring" (or rowel) style hammer, and the round part is slightly higher on the hammer than what is found on the other Hi Powers with that kind of hammer. I was told this change was deliberate, to further reduce the possibility of hammer bite.
Personally, I've never been bitten by the regular spur hammer and also see no need for any "whale tail" frame extension, either. IF you need one of those, your hands (and the way you grip the gun) must be different from mine.
The shop where my friend got his is selling them at straight retail. They are not jacking up the price one penny.
The finish on the one I handled is a dull blue. My friend said it was "brushed blue".. Not the bright blue of commercial Brownings, and NOT a parkerized finish. Gun was still unfired when I examined it, but I expect it to work just fine. If I were in the market for another 9mm pistol, I think you could do a lot worse than the SA-35.
FN made a good copy of the Browning BAR squad gun with a few modifications in the 1930s (7.9mm, pistol grip).
My dad brought one back from France in 1945. It apparently had been captured from the Belgians when the Germans overran the Low Countries at the beginning of WW2. Then it was recaptured by US forces sometime after the Normandy invasion.
It was donated by my family to the Texas Military Museum at Camp Mabry in Austin about 15 years ago. I do not think it has ever been put on display, but last we checked it is still in their vault inventory.
It looked just like this one....
My dad brought one back from France in 1945. It apparently had been captured from the Belgians when the Germans overran the Low Countries at the beginning of WW2. Then it was recaptured by US forces sometime after the Normandy invasion.
It was donated by my family to the Texas Military Museum at Camp Mabry in Austin about 15 years ago. I do not think it has ever been put on display, but last we checked it is still in their vault inventory.
It looked just like this one....
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Some guns "travel" a lot during wars. Some time back there was a thread here about a Dutch Luger.
Made in Germany under a pre-war contract it was delivered before the Nazi invasion of Holland in 1940, and had been sent to the Dutch East Indies.
There, it was captured by the Japanese in 41. It was captured from the Japanese in the Philippines, in 45, and came to the US in the hands of a returning GI.
back in topic, the SA-35 I saw was a fine gun, appearing both well made and well finished. It corrects the few flaws in the original Hi-Power design, and I think it is a fine service class gun. Good Luck getting your hands on one at a decent price until the supply and demand become more balanced, though.
Made in Germany under a pre-war contract it was delivered before the Nazi invasion of Holland in 1940, and had been sent to the Dutch East Indies.
There, it was captured by the Japanese in 41. It was captured from the Japanese in the Philippines, in 45, and came to the US in the hands of a returning GI.
back in topic, the SA-35 I saw was a fine gun, appearing both well made and well finished. It corrects the few flaws in the original Hi-Power design, and I think it is a fine service class gun. Good Luck getting your hands on one at a decent price until the supply and demand become more balanced, though.
stinkeypete
New member
I am an old fart. I am attracted by the idea of a High Power that doesn’t bite your hand and has an okay trigger at a not-collectible price. I am repelled by the modern finish, I would pay hundreds more for a real blued finish.
But then if I was going to buy a 9mm, I would prefer a semi-custom CZ.
Ford Mustangs should be black or blue in color. Camaros should be yellow. Challengers should be orange. Scotch should be drunk from an old broken coffee cup without water or ice, a nice glass is okay I guess. 1911 pattern guns should be in .45 or .38 super (if you must.)
So, my only objection is the ugly finish on a classic. Mechanical improvements don’t bother me.
But then if I was going to buy a 9mm, I would prefer a semi-custom CZ.
Ford Mustangs should be black or blue in color. Camaros should be yellow. Challengers should be orange. Scotch should be drunk from an old broken coffee cup without water or ice, a nice glass is okay I guess. 1911 pattern guns should be in .45 or .38 super (if you must.)
So, my only objection is the ugly finish on a classic. Mechanical improvements don’t bother me.
Steve in Allentown
New member
Unfortunately, it has had some teething issues. Hopefully, Springfield will get it sorted out quickly.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uXqddz8qhw&t=1323s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uXqddz8qhw&t=1323s
Aguila Blanca
Staff
Duplicate threads merged
Production teething troubles can, and often do happen to any new gun, including new production of established designs.
I do, however, have doubts about any review that does testing after using the words "we replaced...."
In the linked video the guy puts FN parts into the SA-35 and then comments on the fit and function.
I don't see that as a fair evaluation of the gun in production. IF you change parts, including springs, then you are NOT testing the gun the factory produced, you are testing a gun you tinkered with, and I don't see that as being particularly applicable to anything BUT the gun you tinkered with.
Friend of mine has one (currently unfired) I've handled it, it looks great. The shop he uses has sold over 20 so far, and NONE of the customers has come back and reported any negatives. Just the opposite in fact. Several have said how happy they are with their guns, both how well they work and the price. (the shop owner sells them for retail price, which makes the guy who does their internet sales unhappy, because he could get about double that off web buyers and the shop owner won't let him have any to do that with)
SO, 20+ (and counting) happy customers of SA-35s from one gunshop and people I know, against Utube and Internet reports from people I don't know, SOME of which, at least have modified the guns...hmmmm
As far as I can find out, currently. "problems" with the SA-35 are on the Internet, and not in the "old boy net" of gun dealers and owners.
And, this shop isn't "covering" for anyone. For comparison, in the past year, they've had 8 of the new Colt Pythons. 3 (three) of the 8 had to be send back to Colt, because they were actually non-functional. Literally, those brand new Colts DID NOT WORK.
Somehow, I'm not seeing people remark on that on the Internet....
I do, however, have doubts about any review that does testing after using the words "we replaced...."
In the linked video the guy puts FN parts into the SA-35 and then comments on the fit and function.
I don't see that as a fair evaluation of the gun in production. IF you change parts, including springs, then you are NOT testing the gun the factory produced, you are testing a gun you tinkered with, and I don't see that as being particularly applicable to anything BUT the gun you tinkered with.
Friend of mine has one (currently unfired) I've handled it, it looks great. The shop he uses has sold over 20 so far, and NONE of the customers has come back and reported any negatives. Just the opposite in fact. Several have said how happy they are with their guns, both how well they work and the price. (the shop owner sells them for retail price, which makes the guy who does their internet sales unhappy, because he could get about double that off web buyers and the shop owner won't let him have any to do that with)
SO, 20+ (and counting) happy customers of SA-35s from one gunshop and people I know, against Utube and Internet reports from people I don't know, SOME of which, at least have modified the guns...hmmmm
As far as I can find out, currently. "problems" with the SA-35 are on the Internet, and not in the "old boy net" of gun dealers and owners.
And, this shop isn't "covering" for anyone. For comparison, in the past year, they've had 8 of the new Colt Pythons. 3 (three) of the 8 had to be send back to Colt, because they were actually non-functional. Literally, those brand new Colts DID NOT WORK.
Somehow, I'm not seeing people remark on that on the Internet....
Production teething troubles can, and often do happen to any new gun, including new production of established designs.
I do, however, have doubts about any review that does testing after using the words "we replaced...."
In the linked video the guy puts FN parts into the SA-35 and then comments on the fit and function.
I don't see that as a fair evaluation of the gun in production. IF you change parts, including springs, then you are NOT testing the gun the factory produced, you are testing a gun you tinkered with, and I don't see that as being particularly applicable to anything BUT the gun you tinkered with.
Friend of mine has one (currently unfired) I've handled it, it looks great. The shop he uses has sold over 20 so far, and NONE of the customers has come back and reported any negatives. Just the opposite in fact. Several have said how happy they are with their guns, both how well they work and the price. (the shop owner sells them for retail price, which makes the guy who does their internet sales unhappy, because he could get about double that off web buyers and the shop owner won't let him have any to do that with)
SO, 20+ (and counting) happy customers of SA-35s from one gunshop and people I know, against Utube and Internet reports from people I don't know, SOME of which, at least have modified the guns...hmmmm
As far as I can find out, currently. "problems" with the SA-35 are on the Internet, and not in the "old boy net" of gun dealers and owners.
And, this shop isn't "covering" for anyone. For comparison, in the past year, they've had 8 of the new Colt Pythons. 3 (three) of the 8 had to be send back to Colt, because they were actually non-functional. Literally, those brand new Colts DID NOT WORK.
Somehow, I'm not seeing people remark on that on the Internet....
I’ve read a number of reports online on the new Colt Pythons not working. A local shop got one and the cylinder wouldn’t even release. They posted about it online too. My general impression from online reports was that they weren’t worth trying.
I’ve discussed this in previous threads, but it’s very difficult to gauge how common a problem with a firearm actually is. People with negative experiences are for more motivated to post and discuss those issues (to some extent to find resolutions) than those with positive experiences. It’s also hard to keep these reports in context with the sheer number of firearms that are produced by certain manufacturers. On the other side of the coin, I know people that shoot a box of ammunition through certain pistols in a given year. With lower round counts you might not encounter some of the issues that can occur.
This one reviewer had multiple SA-35s with issues.
https://youtu.be/-1fNG57ZtFQ
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Any one look at the cheaper (still has mag disconnect, but ambi safety, 15rd mags and multi finishes) Girsan MC P35 or the more expensive (no mag disconnect, ambi safety/slide lock, 509 style takedown, 17rd mags and multi finishes) FN High Power?
Never really wanted a HP, but kinda have a new interest, and now there are 3 new options.
https://freerangeamerican.us/browning-hi-power-reborn/
Never really wanted a HP, but kinda have a new interest, and now there are 3 new options.
https://freerangeamerican.us/browning-hi-power-reborn/
Aguila Blanca
Staff
The Girsan is not exactly new. Both Girsan and Tisas (both Turkish companies) have been making Hi-Powers for several years.
jetinteriorguy
New member
I’m sticking with my good old FEG for now. Shoots great, Uber reliable, as accurate as any 9mm in the safe, and the bluing isn’t even too bad. I did remove the mag disconnect and it has a pretty darn nice trigger as is. Maybe about the time all the beta testers have the bugs worked out and the price comes down to normal I’ll add the SA35 to the family.
Jim Watson
New member
Because they are not the same thing.
The SA is a fairly close copy of a FN Browning, the FN USA is an all new gun that just looks somewhat like a Browning.
The SA is a fairly close copy of a FN Browning, the FN USA is an all new gun that just looks somewhat like a Browning.