Pistol shooters mourned when, in 2018, Browning announced that it would discontinue its line of Hi-Power pistols. The tears stopped flowing in very short order when folks at European American Armory (EAA) picked up the Hi-Power design. Shortly thereafter, the Browning High Power became the EAA Girsan High-Power MCP35, which boasted modernized features and improved ergonomics based on the classic John Browning design. Now, EAA/Girsan has launched the most feature-rich version of that pistol, the EAA Girsan MCP35 PI OPS.
This isn't your granddaddy's Hi-Power. First, you'll note that its dimensions have shrunk just a bit, which vastly increases its ease of carry. It has a 3.88” barrel instead of the 4.6” barrel of the original. Of course, the slide has been shortened up, too, providing a compact profile designed to be carried easily. There's no reduction in comfort, though: The extended beavertail helps protect your hand from “hammer bite” leading to less injury and more comfortable shooting.
Another feature that will excite shooters is that this pistol has a removeable cover plate atop the slide that reveals a milled slide cut for Shield RMSc-pattern red-dot sights. If you're not a reflex-sight kind of person, worry not; the gun's cover plate already has a decent set of open rear sights. There's also a three-slot Picatinny rail for other accessories like weapon lights.
Our American Rifleman range testers noted that, "Despite its compact size, the Girsan MCP35 PI Ops was an incredibly comfortable shooter on the range. Part of this is due to the gun’s weight, since it’s still an all-steel design that weighs in at just over 25 ozs. Too, despite the shortening of the slide and barrel, it’s still a full-size frame, which enabled us to get a full, comfortable firing grip. That full-size grip also allowed us to enjoy the 15-round magazine capacity, thanks to the Mec-Gar magazine that ships with this pistol."
Check out this great video for more information about the MCP35 PI OPS, and to see why it made NRA's Gun of the Week! MSRP $721; eaacorp.com.
