British Browning L9A1 Pistol Rarity

[slabsides52]

Let me admit up front I am not very High Power knowledgeable, having focused most of my collecting research and $$ on military 1911's.  I picked up a like new or unissued Belgian made L9A1 which I understand was the British issue hand gun until replaced by the Glock 17 several years ago.  How rare are these in civilian hands?  Any info or suggestions as to where to search would be greatly apprenticed.  

[abninftr]

L9A1s, along with Canadian made Inglis High Powers, were British issue until earlier this century. Finding one in civilian hands is not common. The UK is a signatory to the UN arms convention (treaty). Basically, this means that surplus arms are destroyed. This brings us to the question: is the pistol authentic? The markings, if you have pictures, will tell a story.

[CXM]

It would nice to see some pix... a Brit issue HP would be quite unusual to see...

THanks

Chuck

[slabsides52]

I am trying to post pictures, but having no luck. I am not a computer whiz, can someone give me some basic instructions on how to add attachments or how paste a picture in a reply? Thanks.

[abninftr]

Pick the blue "REPLY" button.  NOT "QUICK REPLY". Pick the "Add Attachment" button at the right side of the reply box.  Now pick the "add file" button.  Browse and select the picture you want to add.

N.B. You may need to resize the photo to meet the file size requirements.

[ibmikey]

As indicated above a British issue HP would be a real treat to see, I cannot imagine how it would have moved from British hands to the public given their attitude toward anything other than a nerf ball shooter.

[slabsides52]

"Unable to upload file P1010002.JPEG.



Error: This forum has exceeded its attachment space limit. Your file cannot be uploaded."

This is the message I get when I try  to add a picture as an attachment.  The picture is a JPEG file and size is 600 size of the picture is 602 KB.  Any other suggestions? 

[slabsides52]

Hopefully, following is a link to a few images of what I think is my Browning L9A1.

  photos.app.goo.gl/kL8ad4kdyX4FqpHT6

Let me know what you think.

Thanks.

[CXM]

You have a really nice HP there that is quite rare... it would really be interesting to know how it got to the U.S.

It is possible it was secreted in some cargo and returned from the gulf wars or the 'Stans...'

In any case you have a really nice HP there that is a real rare gem...

V/r

Chuck

[abninftr]

There are a few things about your pistol that are curious to me. First, I've never seen an L9A1 of that vintage in Australian or British service with a civilian as well as military serial number (S/N) anywhere on the pistol. Your pistol has one on the slide at least. Second, the finish and grips look too new for a 1985 pistol. Third, the slide texture appears rough, especially for a foreign government contract pistol where there is risk of it being rejected by the buyer's inspectors. Lastly, the 'FN 1985' stamping on the slide doesn't look right to me. I have several of the FN made mags I was issued When I was in the Army that somehow decided to go 'walkabout' about the same time I got out. There are visible and significant differences between the marking on your slide and those on my mags. Trust me, I had to dig them out of my extra (read back-up) kit to confirm the point.

I'm not saying that your L9A1 is a forgery. I'm only saying I personally have some questions.

[slabsides52]

Thank you for your comments, as I mentioned earlier, my main area of interest is 1911 military pistols. 

The pistol is in unissued, NIB condition.  The finish is a rough, not smooth finish.  Could this have been a contract overrun, or a limited edition by FN?  By the way, I have not found any import marks on the pistol.  I have seen many "copies" or replica US GI 1911's, they are fairly easy to identify with a carful inspection.  This pistol does not look like it has been refinished into a military model to my eye.    

It came from an estate sale, so the history is lost.  

[ibmikey]

The barrel should be marked 9mm NATO and the number looks odd the way it is stamped. I too am confused with a civilian (245) serial on a military issue slide, does it also have the commercial serial on the face of the grip? You definitely have a pistol with a lot of questions and few answers.

[slabsides52]

I will have to dig it out of the safe and see if the SN is also on the the grip. Thanks.

[slabsides52]

Well, I finally dug the subject pistol out of the safe, sorry for the delay, then spent the better part of two afternoons on the phone with FN Customer Service, FN's military sales department, and Browning Customer Service. FN's military sales Customer Service finally came through for me, I appreciate their efforts.The final email reply from the FN Historian in Belgium confirmed it is an unusual pistol, and I quote his email:

"The L9A1 designation on the FN High-Power was in use as the official sidearm in the British Army, meaning that the gun was not supposed to be handed to any civilian."
"Having a NATO SN means that the gun was definitely used in a military corps. Having a commercial SN is harder to explain if the first pistol “life” was military. Maybe when the first owner retired from the army he was able to purchase his own firearm back and have it converted into a “commercial” handgun (I guess a high-ranking officer would be able to do that compared to any private…). I remember having head similar stories where people were able to “redirect” some military material. It would be way more difficult to do that now !"

I guess I'll never know, as I bought this at a small gun shop I passed in my work travels about ten years ago. They specialized in black rifles, tupperware pistols, silencers and such. This one was in the used counter way in the back. No box or other info, said they bought it in a package deal at an estate sale several months prior. Just goes to show, even a blind squirrel can find a good acorn once in a while.