TFB Review: Springfield Armory SA-35

Welcome back to another TFB review. A few weeks ago I looked at FN’s updated and modernized take on the legendary High Power. If you happened to miss that review, be sure to click the link here to check it out. This week, we are taking a look at the more classic Hi-Power style pistol we all know from the pages of history. Springfield Armory came out with the SA-35 back in 2021 and this is one of the most faithful reproductions of the Browning Hi-Powers on the market today. After spending a couple of months with the SA-35, I can confidently give you some points on the pistol. Let’s take a closer look at the new Springfield Armory SA-35.

Springfield Armory @ TFB:

Springfield Armory Debuts Limited-Edition M1A 50th Anniversary Rifle Springfield Armory Model 2020 Waypoint in NEW Long-Action Cartridges All Gas, No Brakes! NEW Springfield Armory Hellcat Pro Comp OSP 9mm

Specs

The Springfield SA-35 is an almost identical reproduction of the classic Browning Hi-Powers that was famous for being a reliable and effective sidearm in conflicts around the mid to late-20th century. Just like the original, the SA-35 is a single-action semi-automatic full-size pistol with a full metal frame. The barrel is a 4.7” forged barrel that’s polished at the action and chamber. The rest of the handgun has a nicely done blue matte finish that matches the classic Hi-Power look with a set of checkered walnut grips. When it comes to sights on the SA-35, Springfield went with a white dot front sight as well as a serrated tactical rack rear sight.

The contrast allows for easy sight alignment and keeps the sights simple as well. Springfield says the SA-35 has a factory-tuned trigger with a trigger pull of right around 5 lbs on the trigger scale. The overall weight of the SA-35 is 31.5 oz empty with an empty magazine inserted. One benefit of updated spring technology is the fact we can now have 15 rounds instead of the traditional 13 rounds Hi Powers have had in the past and the SA-35 comes standard with one 15-round magazine from the factory. The SA-35 has been shipping for a while and is available in stores now with an MSRP of $799.99.

Out of the original Browning Hi-Power and FN High Power, The SA-35 has the nicest trigger by a considerable amount. The reset is short with an audible click making fast follow-up shots almost effortless. When it comes to recoil impulses, the SA-35 has a relatively low bore axis which makes recoil seem to be more straight back than muzzle flip. Since the gun sits lower in the hand, the recoil mitigation seems to be easier than other pistols on the market. Combine that with a short single-action trigger and you have a very easily controllable pistol to shoot. I do wish it had some sort of extended beavertail to allow for a higher grip but it’s a minor drawback to an otherwise great shooting pistol. I took the SA-35 on roughly 6 range trips and every time I found myself going back and wanting to shoot more out of it. It may not be the most modern gun in the world but it’s certainly a fun gun to shoot.

Accuracy and Reliability

When it comes to accuracy with the SA-35, I took a few different ammo types out to give it a fair shakedown. The first ammo I used was Federal American Eagle 115gr with some Blazer 124gr and a few rounds of HST Federal self-defense in 124gr as well to see how it grouped. With the range ammo, the SA-35 had an average group size of 1.95” at 20 yards on a bench rest with Federal 115gr ammo. The 124gr ammunition had an average group of 2.35” at the same distance. When I tested the HST ammo, the average group was slightly less at 1.85” which is fairly consistent with other tests I’ve run but still very accurate with my group testing. This is a rather good grouping from a pistol that can usually be found in stores between $650-700; For that price point, I think this is a very acceptable group size and frankly, I was very happy with the SA-35s performance.

In terms of reliability, out of the 675 rounds I didn’t have a stoppage or malfunction of any kind. I didn’t really clean the gun before testing and just disassembled it to put a light coating of lubricant on it but other than that, the gun was taken out of the box and tested. The original Hi Power was known to be extremely reliable so I’m not surprised with the results. The one thing I wish Springfield Armory would change was shipping the SA-35 with just one magazine. It may not be a huge deal to most but it seems a bit of a cheap move to only include one magazine. As soon as I saw it only came with one magazine, I hopped on Brownells and grabbed a few more but it would have been nice to have two magazines right out of the box.