View Full Version : Karl Sokol Hi Power Build
Back about five months ago I sent a used pistol to Karl Sokol of Chestnut Mountain Sports. I asked him to complete his $750 Hi Power package with a few additions. The 1st special request was to blue the gun rather than paint it. The other option I wanted was to have an extended safety fabricated as opposed to buying something like the C&S extended safety.
The pistol came back to me yesterday and I wanted to share these pics. Overall, I am pleased with the gun. The work is nice and clean. No frills but rather sensible and practical mods that should yield a pistol suitable for general carry, IDPA, plinking, etc. The trigger is crisp and smooth and measures just a bit over six pounds. Not shocking since we're still running factory FN trigger springs.
I haven't shot the pistol since getting it back but will update as soon as I have some feedback.
Thanks for taking the time to visit my thread. Have a good weekend!
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SeriousStudent
10-25-19, 19:13
Nice. I snagged a 2" Model 64 a few weeks ago, Karl had modified it. I got it used for a thief's price.
I'll have to send ya some pics.
Very nice! That’s how I shaped the hammer spur on my old Argentine, and it never bit me at all.
Spegel stocks?
Spegel stocks?
Navidrex from Brownell's.
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Nice, the hammer is almost like Clark's Meltdown.
Is the front a gold bead?
Nice, the hammer is almost like Clark's Meltdown.
Is the front a gold bead?Yes. Gold bead front and black rear.
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Drifting Fate
10-25-19, 22:01
A beautiful pistol built for serious work. Well done.
With leather from Privateer Leather out of Utah. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20191026/983aba277f79bf76242b8e400d8f34e3.jpg
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Man, that is a beautiful HP....the more I see of them, the more it compels me to pick one up. You have an excellently executed piece!! Thanks for sharing the pics!!
Sweet looking HP.I have one I need to get some work done on.
I am attending a Gabe White class today and tomorrow. Per his sound advice, the class is not a good venue to try out a new pistol. Not having had the chance to run the Sokol gun previously I decided to use my Shadow Systems MR918.
With that said, I did pull the Hi Power out for the last two drills of the day. Drill One was a figure 8 movement drill. We moved around two barrels in a figure 8 pattern and shot partially obstructed targets when we had a clear shot. The other drill was a man-on-man movement drill based on the Metro Drill by Scott Reitz.
Total was about 50 rounds fired. The gun ran perfectly with one exception and shot well. I did have a failure to eject caused by a split case. Shooting inexpensive aluminum cased stuff.
I enjoyed the very brief time with the Sokol gun today and will likely run a few more drills with it tomorrow.
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Class is over and done with. Here are a few final thoughts on the Sokol gun:
I used the MR918 again yesterday and then switched guns at lunch; running the Sokol Hi Power the rest of the day. This included the movement drills, Gabe's 4 body 2 head Bill Drill and the barricade/cover stuff.
The gun continued to split the occasional aluminum case and then fail to eject. Sometimes this meant a stove pipe. In some cases it meant a "double feed." I didn't keep a hard count but I'd say I had five or six of these total. My guess is the chamber might be slightly oversized and aluminum probably doesn't stretch like brass. I had no such occurrences with the other pistol.
The gold bead front sight works pretty well in direct sunlight. Not as good as a fiber optic or a Trijicon HD but good enough to get the job done.
Sokol's thumb safety mod works well and snaps off distinctly. I had no issue with getting the safety off on the draw.
Overall, I am quite pleased with this pistol. It might not be someone's first choice for USPSA but it should work well for most anything else. It looks good, feels good in the hand, and shoots well. I had no real problem switching back and forth between guns and would probably guess I shoot them both about the same. Maybe that means both equally poor I don't know...
In case anyone asks, I received a light pin from Gabe.
My 4 and 2 Bill Drill target for score. Both runs with the .25 second modification for using concealment were about 2.75 seconds.
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A "real deal" P-35; all the stuff you need for a serious carry gun.
I do like the safety, looks similar to how Ted Yost modifies the OEM on his builds.
I also think that Wes Dahl/Privateer produces some excellent holsters. His hand boning and attention to detail has been superior on all of the rigs/belts I've received from him.
Add; feed that thing some decent ammo. It sounds like you may have an overly generous chamber (from the split aluminum cases), I'll wager you'll have zero recurrence of this with brass case ammo.
SmokeJumper
10-28-19, 07:52
Clean nice shooter, perfect carry gun.
Definitely sounds like a over large chamber. For kicks I've reloaded some aluminum cases, they usually split after that. I mistakenly picked up some brass used for 9mm major once. Even after resizing they wouldn't feed into the chamber.
Definitely sounds like a over large chamber. For kicks I've reloaded some aluminum cases, they usually split after that. I mistakenly picked up some brass used for 9mm major once. Even after resizing they wouldn't feed into the chamber.If the gun isn't 100% with aluminum stuff it isn't a deal breaker for me.
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Agreed, aluminum cases are such a small percentage of total cases out there it isn't something to worry about. Curious, how does it run with steel ?
Agreed, aluminum cases are such a small percentage of total cases out there it isn't something to worry about. Curious, how does it run with steel ?Haven't tried steel.
Ideally it should run with everything. If and when it becomes a problem I'll get a new barrel.
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Great pistol! Cool that you ran it in a class!
Here's the crowned muzzle. All cleaned up after the weekend. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20191028/40a6f6b1ba3e1c83371a79603ade0708.jpg
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Great pistol! Cool that you ran it in a class!
Looking back on it I should have done it the other way around. I should have gone with the intent of using the HP as primary and only switching to the MR918 in case I had problems with the Browning. Oh, well...
Fun times, regardless!
notorious_ar15
10-30-19, 19:00
That is a great looking Hi-Power! I would argue still one of the most ergonomic 9mm pistols out there, even after all this time.
Nice looking gun, enjoy your new blaster.
PB
Looks great. I love the stippling. I had a couple 1911s done by Don Willians a few years back. I had him stipple a smooth MSH as I wasn’t sure I would like it. After getting it all back I wish I would have him do the front strap as well. Love the feel. This makes me want to send in one of my Hi Powers for the stippling and reblue.
Edit: Did you have the entire gun de-horned as well? It looks very nicely done. Nothing sharp but not bar-of-soap melted either.
Looks great. I love the stippling. I had a couple 1911s done by Don Willians a few years back. I had him stipple a smooth MSH as I wasn’t sure I would like it. After getting it all back I wish I would have him do the front strap as well. Love the feel. This makes me want to send in one of my Hi Powers for the stippling and reblue.
Edit: Did you have the entire gun de-horned as well? It looks very nicely done. Nothing sharp but not bar-of-soap melted either.
Thanks.
Yes. Part of Karl's Hi Power package includes a dehorn. Nothing drastic and it is really almost unnoticeable. One area I wish he would have done is the front sight. It is fairly sharp along its edges. It might have been nice to have it dehorned just behind the face. Maybe even make it very slightly "T" shaped. If that description makes sense.
Stippling doesn't look as clean as checkering. Done poorly it can look down terrible. But it does work pretty well for giving traction.
Few 'smiths will checker a Hi Power it seems. That's partly because the front strap on some guns is pretty thin. Also I'm told the complex curves of the frame can make checkering a real bugger.
Don Williams reblued a Hungarian gun for me awhile back and it came out very nice. I should have probably had him do a bit more work at that time.
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That is a great looking Hi-Power! I would argue still one of the most ergonomic 9mm pistols out there, even after all this time.It is rather amazing how good the Hi Power feels. Probably the CZ75 is about the only thing coming close.
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If you would like to give out the info., I'd like to ask total cost for work done. Not sure if $750 included your additions.
If you would like to give out the info., I'd like to ask total cost for work done. Not sure if $750 included your additions.
BHP pkg....................750.00
additions
luster blue......................................................25.00
gold bead front...............................................75.00
custom extended thumb safety.......................65.00
thumb safety mod for positive engagement....25.00
repair cross thread of grip screw &
glass bed grip for fit.........................................20.00
replace broken FP stop...................................35.00
sub...................................................................995.00
SHI FEDEX.......................................................50.00
sub..................................................................1045.00
Total into the gun is just a hair under $1500.
Does the safety dig into your thumb? I find that the traditional ambi safety digs into the back of my thumb where the web is and really beats up that spot after a few mags
Does the safety dig into your thumb? I find that the traditional ambi safety digs into the back of my thumb where the web is and really beats up that spot after a few magsThe Sokol safety is more like the C&S safety in size and shape. It doesn't have that sort of fat/thick area on both sides of the safety axle.
Speaking of C&S; they have a new style extended safety. The paddle is a little bigger and lower than their original model. It looks pretty close to the extended safety offered by Novak.
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Awesome custom HP, love the Novak sights. Congrats on your choice of smiths.
Awesome custom HP, love the Novak sights. Congrats on your choice of smiths.As you probably know, Novak makes a rear for the Browning that looks sort of like 1911 rear but has a smaller base. I'm sure it works fine but the 1911 rear looks better in my opinion.
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