Girsan MC P35 Ops Part 2

I decided to answer the question of how much the extended tang means for performance shooting, first. I settled on 1 shot from the holster for 10 reps with each, Girsan and the Mk. II Browning. I worked the drill from 10 yards on an 8″ steel plate.

I started with the Girsan with no warm up draws. I wanted to handicap the red dot, even though I generally shoot iron sights just as fast. I would liked to have shot it with irons but the vestigial rear sight on the Holosun 507K leads to a lot of high shots on other guns for me.

Having not drawn a Hi Power from a holster since I last strapped one on for Steve’s funeral, the first draw with the Girsan was a might slow from the Davis Leather Omega. For me the best way to draw a standard Hi Power is to drive the web of my hand down onto the middle of the backstrap and slide under/ into the tang. A little hammer bite is certainly acceptable but the pinch between hammer and tang is bad enough for me to not get the second shot off when on the range.

The average for the Girsan was 1.319 seconds for one hit from the holster. You may notice that I did 11 reps because I can’t count. I only averaged the first 10. The average for the Mk. II was 1.512. The monster number was the rep after I got a significant pinch on the web of my hand. The next draw, I made the same mistake but fixed my grip before I fired the shot.

For many, their hand type or their grip method may make this a non-factor. For me, the lack of tang is the primary reason I have never carried the Hi Power seriously. The cost of having multiple guns welded up was cost prohibitive in my mind when comparing longevity to the 1911s I carried for most of my career.

I followed the draw test with a few groups shot from 25 yards with the 3 guns. I managed to keep all but a couple in the black but I wanted to leave you with some eye candy. The best group I shot was with Steve’s Number 2 Hi Power. It has a really nice trigger that contributed to the group.

I finished the range session doing steel engagements with the Girsan from 12-45 yards. This required nearly 90 degree transitions from one target area to another. Though I most often shoot Glocks now, due to the job, I find the dot/ sights just appear on the Hi Power. The guns just point where they are supposed to, for me. I found no difference in the index of the gun between extended tang and the classic model. If you have the same grip issues I do and have been hesitating to get into welded up guns, I would say that the tang is worthwhile.

I fired 168 rounds in total through the Girsan in this range session, bringing the round count on the gun to 233 rounds with no failures. I will continue this test as I get time. The next thing I hope to do is shoot some rested groups and get some chronograph data with various ammunition. After that is done, I have a can of mixed old carry ammunition that is begging to be run through the gun to see if it has any trouble feeding various hollow points. This should be fun!