The hipster gun before the CZ-75 stole the throne both mechanically and in sales. There’s this annoying reverence with Hi-Power owners and acting like this gun is something super special, even more so than fudds do with the M1911. You will never see a dirty/rusty Browning Hi-Power, NEVER. You’ll always see them draped in soft lighting, with hand cut wood grips and shadows specifically placed to make this thing look like something more than it is.
This isn’t some fancy shit, this is a gun first used to cave in German skulls on Sword Beach.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I really like the Hi-Power as it is. It’s a fundamental stepping stone that would lead to dozens of modern pistol designs from across the globe from the S&W 39 to the CZ-75. But, the problem is almost all of those competitors and offshoots are FAR cheaper than the Hi-Power because everyone acts like this is hot shit even when it’s a 70 year old design by now. That’s why it’s been replaced in the channels of hipster-dom by the CZ-75, cause at least you can buy a nice and new CZ for under a grand.
(Yes I know there’s technically cheaper used ones plus Israeli surplus, but google the prices that Browning were trying to sell these things at.)
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