The "Browning Bite"

Pyroxene · Post by **Pyroxene** » Fri Mar 26, 2004 12:00 am

If you plan on getting a Browning Hi Power, beware of the Browning Bite.

It happens when the hammer comes back and pinches the webbing on the shooter's hand. The gun bites on my hand but I don't mind.

If you have big hands, it could be a problem. For some shooters, it's not. I believe the problem can be corrected. Talk to you gunsmith.

I read a review in a gun magazine the other day about a new pistol coming out. It had the ring hammer and the article reported the exact same thing. Shooters complaining about the hammer pinching them in the hand. Proving that those who don't know their history are doomed to repeat it.

Pyro.

binkmeisterRick · Post by **binkmeisterRick** » Fri Mar 26, 2004 8:26 am

OW! That bite HURTS!

My brother-in-law has a Browning and it's a sweet gun, but they're not kidding when they call it a bite!

RonC · Post by **RonC** » Fri Mar 26, 2004 10:05 am

Pyro, it hasn't been a problem for me, as I was "blessed" with a small hand!

I have seen it many times, though, with others.

zohar · Post by **zohar** » Fri Mar 26, 2004 4:49 pm

I've had it happen (freakishly huge hands syndrome). That's why I like the beavertail grip safety on my 1911. Saves the web of my hand a lot.

IndianaCollins · Post by **IndianaCollins** » Sat Mar 27, 2004 8:38 am

My hands aren't that big, but I've had the "berretta"-bite before. I remember the first time I handled a Berretta 96(my brother-in-law's), I grabbed it by the top of the slide and racked it, resulting in having my pinky finger caught in the action, and had two little cuts on my finger like this ()

Pyroxene · Post by **Pyroxene** » Sat Mar 27, 2004 12:27 pm

One note: A good pair of #1123s or #1130s fixes this problem.

Post by **Michaelson** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 11:41 am

That's why I'm a wheel gun man myself. I've been bitten to many times by semi-autos to get past that and embrace them as a side arm. Regards. Michaelson

thePawn · Post by **thePawn** » Sat Apr 10, 2004 4:36 pm

Ouch that hurts.

Bufflehead Jones · Post by **Bufflehead Jones** » Sun Apr 11, 2004 5:27 am

Michaelson wrote:That's why I'm a wheel gun man myself. I've been bitten to many times by semi-autos to get past that and embrace them as a side arm. Regards. Michaelson

I used to carry a wheelgun, eventually had to go with a semi-auto for the increased firepower. I have carried a Berretta 92FS on a daily basis, since Berretta became the U.S. Military firearm, however many years ago that was. With proper training and trying to be careful, knock on wood, I have never been bitten by the Berretta. I have pretty large hands, not fat, but large with long fingers. However, accidents do happen and when they do, it can be ugly. I guess that's why they call them accidents, if you meant to do it, they would call them intentionals.

Peacock's Eye · Post by **Peacock's Eye** » Mon Apr 12, 2004 9:59 am

I've yet to be bitten by a semi-auto--my hands are medium-sized and don't seem to get in the way.

Scandinavia Jones · Post by **Scandinavia Jones** » Wed Apr 14, 2004 5:31 pm

Anyone here ever fired the broomhandle Mauser? Heard they were known to deliver deep, nasty bites too...

/SJ

Pyroxene · Post by **Pyroxene** » Wed Apr 14, 2004 5:33 pm

Scandinavia Jones wrote:Anyone here ever fired the broomhandle Mauser? Heard they were known to deliver deep, nasty bites too...

/SJ

I think RonC has. We were talking about it the other day at lunch. He didn't mention a bite. Good question.

RonC · Post by **RonC** » Wed Apr 14, 2004 5:37 pm

Yes, I have fired a Broomhandle Mauser quite a bit. I never had a problem with it "biting" me...but then neither does the Browning, so I'm probably not a good judge of that. It will take someone with larger hands than I to fire one and let you know.

Ron

Thefumegator · Post by **Thefumegator** » Thu May 06, 2004 11:49 am

I've got 2 Hi Powers -- A Browning with a spur hammer and a FEG clone with a ring hammer. The spur hammer has never bitten me, but the ring hammer will bite me HARD when doing drawing exercises.

About 3 days ago, I replaced the hammer with a spur hammer that I got from ebay. No more biting. Of course, the spur hammer may still bite people with huge hands... it depends on the person, but it is generally recognized as "less bloodthirsty" compared to the ring-type hammers.

For those of you that don't want to change the hammer, there are a couple of options.

1) Don't grip the pistol so high. This is naturally what you want to do when you draw (which is why I got bit), but practice gripping so that the web of your hand stays below the grip tang.

2) Pyro is right: some good WL gloves will eliminate the problem, but some have dexterity issues (like trouble operating the safety or mag release).

3) There is a product that can be found here: www.comkydex.com that will take care of that problem as well. It is a kydex (polymer) beavertail that fits underneath the grips. It has some good reports on www.fnhipower.com and is much less expensive than having a gunsmith put a real beavertail on your HP.

Wes

Pyroxene · Post by **Pyroxene** » Thu May 06, 2004 6:42 pm

Yea. And Tip Burns told me of a fourth fix when I got the gun. Maybe I can get him to chime in.

Pyro

Thefumegator · Post by **Thefumegator** » Fri May 07, 2004 12:38 am

What fix was that?

:

Oh, I've heard you can put duct tape on the web of your hand, too... So I guess there are plenty of other ways that I didn't think of.

Wes

Forrestal · Post by **Forrestal** » Mon May 17, 2004 11:30 pm

I’m considering buying a Walther PPK/S. I’ve heard similar stories about “bite”. Anyone have any experience with this?
Regards,
Forrestal

schwammy · Post by **schwammy** » Mon May 17, 2004 11:59 pm

My grandfather was a tanker in WWII and he brought home a Walther PPK with Nazi markings on it. His was the only one I've ever seen that had flat-bottomed magazines rather than the ones with the extended grip on the bottom. I made the mistake of showing my cousin the gun once when we were kids, and later when Grandpa died, my cousin asked for the Walther and got it. No good deed goes unpunished.

I don't remember a bite, but then I don't have big hands.

Solent MKIII · Post by **Solent MKIII** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 4:08 am

Scandinavia Jones wrote:Anyone here ever fired the broomhandle Mauser? Heard they were known to deliver
deep, nasty bites too...

Oh, yeah. Those suckers can chomp ya' pretty good if you're not careful.
I've fired a bolo broomhandle ( shorter barrel and smaller grip ) and that
thing nipped me several times before I moved my hand down lower on the
grip ( having large hands doesn't help, either ) There's no stop for the web
of your hand on the back of these pistols and the hammer comes down
pretty far as the slide goes back into battery. If you're ever gonna buy a
broomhandle, pick up the standard model - the larger grip is a little easier
to get a good grasp on.

Very neat gun to shoot - you just gotta grip 'em right! :junior:

carebear · Post by **carebear** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 12:41 pm

Forrestal wrote:I’m considering buying a Walther PPK/S. I’ve heard similar stories about “bite”. Anyone have any experience with this?
Regards,
Forrestal

The Walthers are better known for slide bite than hammer bite.

A lot of folk's hands rise up high enough that the sharp edges of the slide cut into the web of the thumb as it cycles. You get parallel cuts that allow you to measure common household objects in units of "Walther slide width".

Terryhimself · Post by **Terryhimself** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 1:04 pm

The current new U.S. Made PPk has an extended tang on the frame which eliminates the slide or hammer bite. Walther (S&W) has managed to do this without making the pistol overly large. It still conceals well.
When I first sarted carrying and shooting 1911s back in the early 1970s, it was accepted that you were going to end up with a red mark in the web of your hand by the thumb. This was caused by the long spur and short tang..It was worn as a sign of honor.
Later when the extended tang was made available, just about everyone went to them and soon the red spot was gone.
As far as slide bite, the worst I ever had was from a Beretta 950 in .25A.C.P. which would leave two perfect blood grooves between the thumb and index finger. Needless to say I did not keep this one for long.

cooncatbob · Post by **cooncatbob** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 5:24 pm

A Walther P-38's hammer will bite you if your holds too high.

hocfutue · Post by **hocfutue** » Thu Jun 12, 2008 1:08 am

Never had Browning bite, but whoo boy, I know all about M1 thumb. If you don't follow the proper drill when releasing the bolt on the Garand rifle, your thumb can get mashed between the bolt and the breech, with great speed, force, and profanity.[/code]

dr. tyree · Post by **dr. tyree** » Thu Jun 12, 2008 2:45 pm

1911's can take a bite out you as well. Yet another reason I love wheelguns.

TheMechanic · Post by **TheMechanic** » Thu Jun 12, 2008 10:05 pm

I had a 1911 A-1 that use to bite me all the time. I found that just putting a bandaid on my hand before I went shooting solved the problem. That or gloves of course.

I now have a Kimber with a beavertail grip safety. Problem solved.

The "Browning Bite"

The "Browning Bite"

PPK Bite