Like any red-blooded American, I love John Moses Browning’s Hi-Power design. Last year I was quite excited to see variants from Girsan, Springfield Armory, and FN. This year the Hi-Power is still very much on people’s minds, and Girsan is delivering a rather novel design in the form of a compact model. The MCP35 PI trims about an inch off the barrel to make the pistol more compact and easier to carry if you so choose.

The PI in the name stands for Private Investigator, and it seems to be based on the Argentinian FM Detective model. That gun was known as the M90 and was a relatively rare model.

Girsan is making that Detective model a little more affordable and much easier to find. The Girsan Hi-Powers are Turkish guns and have traditionally been sold at a budget-friendly price. The MCP35 PI is no different, with an MSRP of $630.

Girsan MCP35 PI

The MCP35 PI features a 3.88-inch barrel, a 15-round magazine, and a full-sized frame. The gun weighs 1.6 pounds and is 6.25 inches long. It’s not quite the most compact or carry-ready gun, but it’s a decent trim job from the full-sized Hi-Power.

Optics? Yes Please

While range day only featured a standard model, the floor of SHOT Show revealed an optics-ready model. It seemingly comes with a rather cheap-looking red dot. I would toss it pretty quickly, and hopefully, it has a common footprint. I tried to find out what that footprint is, but due to some language differences, that isn’t really clear.

At the range, the gun proved to be very easy to shoot with low recoil and little muzzle rise. The gun is trigger-bite-free, which is a problem for some when shooting Hi-Powers. Sadly the Girsan preserves the Hi-Power magazine safety and the lack of drop-free magazines.

Personally, I wouldn’t make this a carry gun, but it allows me to experience a rare model of the Hi-Power without paying through the nose for it. We’ll work on getting one for a full review (and find out what kind of optic cut that really is).

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37 COMMENTS

  1. At the risk of pissing debbie off, no real risk because I don’t care, I will not support the turks gun industry.

    • they didn’t make many hipower compacts.
      they should. the standard barrel is a bit pokey for iwb.

      • They did: for a while in the ’80s they produced a shortened barrel and slide that you just slid onto your existing High Power frame. Very rarely they come up for sale: last time I saw one it was in the early 2000’s on gunbroker.

  4. quote————It’s not quite the most compact or carry-ready gun, but it’s a decent trim job from the full-sized Hi-Power.———quote

    Bullshit. You obviously hate High Powers. Compare its size to a Glock 17 or even Glock 19.

    quote———–Personally, I wouldn’t make this a carry gun,——-quote

    Again it’s obvious you cannot see past your hatred of High Powers as it would make a very good carry gun. It’s actually much safer to carry than a Glock because it can be carried hammer down or hammer cocked with the safety on.

    Yes it’s heavier than modern junk plasticky guns but that is the price you would pay for buying a quality gun and not one made of junk plastic.

    For once a gunmaker got their head out of their ass and has come up with a winner. I predict this gun will sell as fast as hot cakes to a starving person. This is the first new gun that has got my interest in a long, long, time. Its worth every penny of it.

    So do not buy one retardo because your stupidity means it gives me more of a chance to find one to buy and buy one I will if I can even find one for sale. People will be tearing the doors off of gun shops to buy one.

    I WANT ONE, I WANT ONE, I WANT ONE.

        • Jethro (JWM) as usual you are too damn cheap and stingy to see a good deal even when it is given to you on a silver platter. The guns you have admitted to owning are always the low end budget priced guns that are a dime a dozen. I am sure your relatives will laugh all the way to the bank and go on a spending spree with your money when you kick off which at your age is not long in coming.

          Strange that a cheap skate like you would not snap up this quality gun at such a reasonable price, but you never were known for having much grey matter between your ears.

          If I had limited my firearms purchases to “Made in America” I would have had a very small gun collection. You have deprived yourself of some of the finest made weapons in the world by not buying some well known foreign made handguns. But this is way over your head.

        • Poor, poor dacian. Hasn’t a clue. Not just about me but about all of life in general. Benelli m2 is low end?

          And you still claim you’re a gun owner? What a laugh.
          Keep being a Fascist, dacian, you were made for it.

        • to Jethro JWM

          If you do own a Benelli (highly doubtful) you never bought one new , your too damn cheap and stingy for that. Rather its some beat up piece of abused junk that had a bent barrel and busted up stock you bought at flea market because you thought you got a deal.

          And what is your excuse now if you actually did buy a foreign made shotgun but will not buy a Turkish made pistol. Your brains are scrambled as well as giving us your usual rectum gas.

          You never cease to make a complete fool of yourself whenever you make a post.

        • dacian. Of course you would recommend a pistol from a Fascist state like Turkey. You are a Fascist.

    • I think this is an actual 9mm Hi Power clone, Dacian. Wouldn’t you more likely be looking for an airsoft version?

  6. Lion Heart, Walther, FN and Staccato have recently dropped some nice guns. I’ll give my money to those companies before Turkey.

  8. “Personally, I wouldn’t make this a carry gun”

    I would. Hi Powers are some of the easiest to conceal handguns on the planet.

      • You are correct Possum. I currently own 6 high powers and removed the mag safeties from all of them and yes the mags drop free.

        Is no big deal to drive out the trigger pin and the mag safety pin to remove the mag safety. It also drops the trigger pull by about at least 1 lb.

        I might add this company is known for high quality work and as far as I know the frame is still being made of a forging not a casting. The hammer looks to be forged as well.

        If one wants a tricked out modern updated high power decked out target model gun here is a picture and article on it and an accuracy photo proving how accurate a gun these High Power clones really are.

        https://blog.cheaperthandirt.com/girsan-mc-p35-match-ops-a-great-shooting-9mm/

  11. Jesus man, take a breath. It’s gonna be ok. You don’t have to shoot polymer pistols, and hell, I’d be willing to bet Girsan might even sell one of to even you.

  12. I’d like to see one of these. It’s not gonna be a carry gun for me just an enjoyment gun.

    • Matt these are really nice well-made weapons. Fits well in your hand and extremely accurate right out of the box. I sell a lot of these guns and have never had anyone not like it.

  13. Hmm, I thought the red-blooded Americans were 1911 guys or magnum revolver fans. Hi-Power is more for a proper European gentleman.

  14. Does it really matter where it is made?
    Some countries put out high quality firearms that have nothing to do with their government, politics, or whatever.
    I can appreciate the work and craftsmanship of a gun smith whom takes pride in his work. And I would not mind paying the price for quality.
    To this pistol, can I say anything about the quality based off a few pics on the interwebs?
    Of course not!
    Would I compare a American made Toyota Corolla base model to a Corvette? And use the price point alone as a determining factor for quality, or performance?
    Of course not!
    If I want a handgun that gets the job done, reliably, at a low price point, I will buy one.
    If I want a handgun with a bit more finesse e.g. Kimber, Wilson Combat, Dan Wesson, and I am willing to pay the price, that is my prerogative.

    To each their own.

    • I agree, with a few exceptions (wouldn’t get anything from a short list of countries). And then you have U.S. companies like S&W, who aren’t really the most pro freedom corporations.

    • “craftsmanship of a gunmsmith”
      Those days are long gone all gunms are made on a robot machine now. Some polishing and minor fitting is still done by hand but the majority is Made By Robot.

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