So I ended up sending my SA-35 in for warranty work after swapping the extractor did not solve the failure to extract. I got it back today and they replaced the barrel, extractor and the extractor spring. I can't shoot it for a couple of days due to a hand injury that is going to keep me off the range for a bit. The barrel was definitely swapped out and has a different date code on it. Extractor looks normal and will eject rounds without an issue when cycled by hand but that it not much of a tell. It does not look like they did anything to the extractor channel but I did not pull the extractor.
I shipped them the gun in the original box which they did not return. They just sent the pistol back in the nylon pouch. I am a little pissed off about that. On the invoice it listed all the black box and the lock but they did not ship them back. I will have to follow up with them and see if I can get one sent to me. Total turn time back to me was 7 weeks door to door after being told 2-4 weeks. I believe they did not have a replacement barrel and had to wait for parts.
On a positive note I spoke with one of my go to BHP smiths Don Williams of The Action Works today. He recently got sent a Tisas BHP and then a SA -35 for custom work. He said that there are a lot of similarities between the pistol but there are some differences. He thinks that the SA-35 might made from raw forgings from Tisas but that they are being milled in the US by SA. There are enough changes to the end product to lead him to believe the milling is being done in 2 different places. Here is a paraphrasing of his comments.
The sights on these guns has been a point of comparison. Don measured the sight cuts.
-The rear sight dovetails on both are identical at 10.75 MM wide and cut at 60 degrees. The fronts vary a bit: the Tisas front measured 7 MM wide at the bottom of the dovetail and the dovetail is 3.3 MM deep. The Springer is the same width, but the dovetail is 2.3 MM deep. The sight dovetails on both guns are in the same location both front and rear. The Tisas is 3.3 MM deep on the rear The SA35 has a stepped cut like the Novak, and the shorter (rear) depth is 2MM.
-The barrels are different. The Tisas has a different profile and is a right hand twist while the SA-35 is a left hand twist like the original FN.
-The slides have a different profile. Both seem to be good high quality forgings with no visible machining marks,. The differences are the slide on the Tisas back end is much more blunt and has less forward curve than the classic HP. The SA35 follows the classic shape. The rest of the slide seems to be the same.
-The frames have a few differences as well. The back end of the frame where it curves down and back from the frame rails is very pointed on the Turkish gun. The SA35 appears more classic in that the frame comes to a small radius before it curves down and forward as the classic FN/Browning guns. Around the trigger guard where it meets the frame on the bottom, the shape is subtly different in its machining. The SA35 is classic HP in shape around the area, whereas the Tisas is machined slightly different. The Turkish variant has left more metal on the "swell" on the front of the magwell where it meets the front of the frame and doesn't extend as far down as has been normal. Lastly, the SA's frame has a "relief" cut on the top of the frame on the right side behind the grip. I have no idea of its purpose, but it's there, perhaps for some reason integral to the machining operation.
He said both gun seem well made and he see no reason why FN or other aftermarket parts will not work. There were less frame dimension changes on the SA-35 then on the older FEG clones. The only part which might not swap as a drop in is the safety due to the size of the hole on the right side of the pistol. He said that with a little work any sights can be installed on either pistol by a true smith. There are limited direct replacements. Tru Glow has a set of night sights which are supposed to be drop in. Other than that you will need to cut/modify the dovetail to get new sights installed. People like Novak and Heine are saying that they can't do it but it is not that they can't do it they don't want to do it because it is outside of SOP.
I am still contemplating what to do with this pistol. I am not sure it will stick around. I am 100% sure I am not going to use it as a base gun for custom work. For that I am going to stick to FN guns for now.
I shipped them the gun in the original box which they did not return. They just sent the pistol back in the nylon pouch. I am a little pissed off about that. On the invoice it listed all the black box and the lock but they did not ship them back. I will have to follow up with them and see if I can get one sent to me. Total turn time back to me was 7 weeks door to door after being told 2-4 weeks. I believe they did not have a replacement barrel and had to wait for parts.
On a positive note I spoke with one of my go to BHP smiths Don Williams of The Action Works today. He recently got sent a Tisas BHP and then a SA -35 for custom work. He said that there are a lot of similarities between the pistol but there are some differences. He thinks that the SA-35 might made from raw forgings from Tisas but that they are being milled in the US by SA. There are enough changes to the end product to lead him to believe the milling is being done in 2 different places. Here is a paraphrasing of his comments.
The sights on these guns has been a point of comparison. Don measured the sight cuts.
-The rear sight dovetails on both are identical at 10.75 MM wide and cut at 60 degrees. The fronts vary a bit: the Tisas front measured 7 MM wide at the bottom of the dovetail and the dovetail is 3.3 MM deep. The Springer is the same width, but the dovetail is 2.3 MM deep. The sight dovetails on both guns are in the same location both front and rear. The Tisas is 3.3 MM deep on the rear The SA35 has a stepped cut like the Novak, and the shorter (rear) depth is 2MM.
-The barrels are different. The Tisas has a different profile and is a right hand twist while the SA-35 is a left hand twist like the original FN.
-The slides have a different profile. Both seem to be good high quality forgings with no visible machining marks,. The differences are the slide on the Tisas back end is much more blunt and has less forward curve than the classic HP. The SA35 follows the classic shape. The rest of the slide seems to be the same.
-The frames have a few differences as well. The back end of the frame where it curves down and back from the frame rails is very pointed on the Turkish gun. The SA35 appears more classic in that the frame comes to a small radius before it curves down and forward as the classic FN/Browning guns. Around the trigger guard where it meets the frame on the bottom, the shape is subtly different in its machining. The SA35 is classic HP in shape around the area, whereas the Tisas is machined slightly different. The Turkish variant has left more metal on the "swell" on the front of the magwell where it meets the front of the frame and doesn't extend as far down as has been normal. Lastly, the SA's frame has a "relief" cut on the top of the frame on the right side behind the grip. I have no idea of its purpose, but it's there, perhaps for some reason integral to the machining operation.
He said both gun seem well made and he see no reason why FN or other aftermarket parts will not work. There were less frame dimension changes on the SA-35 then on the older FEG clones. The only part which might not swap as a drop in is the safety due to the size of the hole on the right side of the pistol. He said that with a little work any sights can be installed on either pistol by a true smith. There are limited direct replacements. Tru Glow has a set of night sights which are supposed to be drop in. Other than that you will need to cut/modify the dovetail to get new sights installed. People like Novak and Heine are saying that they can't do it but it is not that they can't do it they don't want to do it because it is outside of SOP.
I am still contemplating what to do with this pistol. I am not sure it will stick around. I am 100% sure I am not going to use it as a base gun for custom work. For that I am going to stick to FN guns for now.
