Skill Set: Hi Power Trigger Job
The BHSS trigger group performs great, looks good and is an affordable option for upgrading your Hi Power’s trigger — plus, it fits the Hi Power clones as well.
When it comes to pistols, there’s no debating that the FN/Browning Hi Power is one of the greats. It’s an old design – 1935 – but the first “high-capacity” double-stack magazine-fed pistol and was fielded by both sides during WWII. It became one of the most extensively used military pistols ever. For a military pistol it doesn’t need a lot of modifications for concealed carry. About the only complaint heard about Hi Powers is their triggers. Fair, but far from Browning’s work on the 1911 and lacking compared to today’s defensive weapons. However, BH Spring Solutions has solved this issue.
I’ve been working on a couple of Hi Powers, but when on the subject of tuning the trigger pretty much everyone said the same thing: “Leave it to the experts.” This I understand, but you have to start somewhere. It was even difficult to find any material to study about tuning the trigger on the Browning. I discovered BHSS while researching the Tisas Regent BR9, a Turkish Hi Power clone and a gun I highly recommend. A couple years back BHSS released their “Advanced Trigger Sub Assembly” for Hi Powers. This trigger group cures a lot of Hi Power trigger maladies.
The BHSS sub-trigger group comes with a new trigger, trigger lever and four trigger springs. I also added the optional magazine ejection spring, and a new trigger pin.
They reshaped the trigger, creating a new geometry that repositions the face of the trigger. This amounts to reducing some of the pivot and flattening the arc when pressing and resetting the trigger. The face is also wider, engaging with more surface area of the finger. The trigger pawl lever reduces metal-to-metal contact with frame when engaging the sear lever. There are four trigger return springs, allowing you to accurately tune the trigger’s weight. (There are two kit options – a “Tactical/Target” version, and a “Target” only option.) An additional spring can be added to assist with magazine ejection, another weak part of the Hi Power.
One thing some people may have a problem with is that the BHSS trigger does not permit use of the magazine disconnect, which prevents the pistol from being fired unless there’s a mag locked in place. There’re arguments on both side of this one.
I installed mine in a late 70’s Hi Power, which has served as my “test monkey” for several years. The factory trigger was squishy with a very faint reset. I can work with a little mush in the break, but for defensive work I have to have that “positive” reset. As mentioned, the kit comes with four trigger return springs. I have #2 in right now, which produces a consistent 6 lb., 2 oz. weight. I’ll experiment with #3 and #4, which will lighten up the weight slightly. The pistol now ejects mags better than any of my other semi-auto pistols.
Installation requires watching BHSS’s video, which contains detailed info on trigger work. As with all work of this type, it’s not a quick simple installation — especially the first time it’s done. And yes, there is fitting required; it’s not a “plug’n play.” But if you have some fundamental skills and a few hours, it’s a good project. And any guns you do after this will go quicker. For those who aren’t so inclined, installation by a qualified gunsmith shouldn’t cost that much. Regardless of which route you take, after an initial investment of $124 – they’re on sale right now – you’ve got a Hi Power with a great trigger. For those who own Hi Powers and related clones but have been hesitant to have the trigger tuned, the BHSS trigger group is a great option to investigate.
Tiger McKee is director of Shootrite Firearms Academy. He is the author of The Book of Two Guns, AR-15 Skills and Drills, has a regular column in American Handgunner and makes some cool knives and custom revolvers. Visit Shootrite’s Facebook page for other details.
Smithville Police Department tapped to try device aimed at stopping accidental shootings.
SMITHVILLE — Smithville Police Chief Howard Funk didn’t know what to expect when he responded to an internet ad from a company requesting information from law enforcement officers and other tactical personnel.
“I thought it was just a company looking for some specific information from people that use firearms like firearms instructors, police and tactical team members,” Funk said. “I met the guidelines so I replied to the information request. It didn’t say what it was in reference to and I didn’t expect to get a response back.”
Not only did he get a response, Funk and his department got the opportunity recently to try a new safety device for Glock pistols.
“This product has been in the design phase for years. We just got our patent back,” said Mark Howe of BHSpringSolutions LLC, the company behind the safety device. “Now we are figuring out where the need is greatest; the obvious choice is law enforcement.”
When the company wanted to talk to him and his officers about the new device, Funk, who was familiar with BHSpringSolutions, felt the device warranted a closer look and invited Howe out to the department shooting range to demonstrate the product when it became available. Smithville is the first department in the world to test the device by BHSpringSolutions.
The devices were provided free of charge to the department.
“It is a very simple installation,” said Funk, who is a Glock certified Armorer. “As work goes on a pistol, it doesn’t require any modification of parts. It is a two-minute process to switch back if we decide we do not like them.”
The message that the company behind the design of a safety mechanism for Glock pistols wants to send is crystal clear.
“We want to stop people that don’t need to be shot from being shot,” said Howe. “Just go on YouTube and search ‘Glock — accidental discharge — police’ and you will be watching videos for a long time.
“Every time there has been an unintentional discharge of a weapon, it has been caused by a human,” Howe added. “You can’t take humans out of the equation. Unless you find a way to stop humans from erring, these are the safety margins that safeguard us.”
Unintentional firings of Glock handguns are a result of the passive safety design that the pistols are known for, Howe explained. The passive safety mechanism on a Glock handgun is located on the trigger of the weapon. There is a plunger located on the trigger, when that plunger is depressed, the trigger can be pulled and fired.
The safety is disengaged as a routine pull on the trigger to fire the weapon is made.
Accidental firings can occur when something, such as a jacket drawstring, gets lodged in the trigger area of a Glock’s safe action trigger and allows the trigger to be depressed. One video on YouTube by PhoenixTacSolutions describes a negligent firing scenario that took place in a gun shop by a police chief when he attempted to re-holster his weapon.
According to the speaker in the video, the drawstring of the chief’s jacket got caught between the trigger guard and the trigger and as he attempted to holster the weapon. The plastic drawstring clasp depressed the safety, allowing the trigger to be pulled as the weapon was sliding into the holster.
Once the safety device is affixed to the back of the weapon, it provides several benefits and leaves no diminished performance. All handling functions remain in place.
Benefits include:
■ Defeating accidental discharge associated with clothing and drawstrings;
■ Reduced risk to user and public;
■ Eliminating the need for the Glock trigger-activating lever to double as a safety;
■ Safety can be moved to the on-fire position slowly and silently;
■ Fast, easy shooting-hand thumb manipulation;
■ Low-profile, no-snag design;
■ Lightweight and sturdy;
■ Visual confirmation of setting;
■ Feeling of confirmation when holstered;
■ All handling of Glocks can be performed when device is on-safe;
■ System modifies disassembly for cleaning no longer requires the trigger to be pulled;
■ Extractor spring key included for safe modified disassembly;
■ Slows down a perpetrator in a gun-grab scenario from using the Glock; and
■ Fast-lockable with padlock that enhances child safety.
Reporter Dan Starcher can be reached at 330-287-1626 or dstarcher@the-daily-record.com. He is @danstarcher on Twitter.
Unintentional Firearm Discharges – Stopped With The Tactical Safety System for Glock (TSSG) from BHSpringSolutions.com & RDIH
Nov 07, 2017, 07:35 ET
INDIANAPOLIS, Nov. 7, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — According to the United States CDC, there are 500-600 deaths annually because of “Accidental/Unintended Discharge of a firearm”. Nobody actually knows how many Unintended Discharges are happening that result in non-fatal injury. It has happened frequently enough to spawn terminology like “Glock-leg”, because of the numbers of police officers who have taken a bullet in the leg because the trigger was manipulated by something and the gun fired unintentionally.
The Solution:
The Tactical Safety System for Glock (TSSG)
How does the system work?
3-Specific Ways
First: A “Drop-In” positive trigger disabling device (Manual Safety) mounts in seconds on the back of the Glock pistol’s slide. When in the “On Safe” position, all functions (except shooting) can be performed…. loading, unloading, and all handling of the weapon, can be performed with the Safety On. There is never a need for the Trigger to be enabled except when the weapon is being fired.
Second: The Mounted Device is fast lockable with a combination padlock (included in system) – adding an important layer of Child Protection that is fast, easy and effective.
Third: The TSSG includes a Tool used to quickly and easily disassemble the Glock for cleaning without ever pulling the trigger. (Normal disassembly requires trigger to be pulled)
How NEW is the TSSG?
The TSSG achieved “Patent Pending” status in the U.S. and Europe in mid-2017, and wasn’t available prior to that time. The TSSG was invented by Leon Hubert (RDIH), a designer of Firearms and Modifications for the past 59 years in Belgium.
Where is the TSSG already in use?
So far in 2017, a Police Department in Ohio has added the TSSG to its departments Glock service pistols. TSSG reviews have been published on YouTube. BHSpringSolutions.com began delivering purchased TSSGs to buyers through its website in September 2017.
BHSpringSolutions LLC has interviewed multiple police officers who have “taken a bullet” due to an Unintended Discharge of a Glock pistol and these officers have confirmed that the TSSG would have prevented them from being shot and they call the TSSG “necessary”.
Something unexpected happened when BHSpringSolutions introduced the TSSG to several Officers/Sheriffs/Armorers. Since the problem of Unintended Discharges has been a persistent problem in Law Enforcement, BHSpringSolutions expected the Manual Safety part of the system to be of highest appeal, and value to them – and it is, for sure. Once the system was understood, the first favorable comments were about the layer of Child Protection the TSSG provides – clearly demonstrating that the safety of others is their priority. That says a lot! BHSpringSolutions wants to thank every selfless police officer who reacted this way when introduced to the TSSG.
How has the TSSG been tested?
Thousands of rounds of live fire testing, and tens of thousands of manipulations of the TSSG.
Torture testing and drop testing of the Device on a Glock Pistol – including a Drop Tests exceeding the U.S. Army’s “Drop Test” Protocols. The TSSG passed all tests and remained serviceable. One Glock pistol used in this testing has been dropped 28 times on concrete, at every possible angle. The TSSG passed the tests and the Glock pistol remained serviceable.
Where to learn more about and/or buy the TSSG?
BHSpringSolutions LLC is the Exclusive Distributor of the TSSG in the United States. The TSSG is available at BHSpringSolutions.com, eBay and Amazon (less than $70). Free TSSG Video Tutorials and Reviews are available at BHSpringSolutions.com.
