Indians For Guns

Anyone have these or used one in the past? Opinions on quality, reliability, build, accuracy, etc.?

I'm being offered the 1910 and also the 1922 (10/22) models. I don't like the looks of the 1910 model as it looks exactly like the Ashani so why pay the few extra lacs? But there's no good pistol in a decent price range I have found so far. The 10/22 model I saw looks beautiful, fits perfectly in the hand due to the extended grip, seems like it will be fun to shoot and there are 2 extra rounds in the magazine. A wee bit too long for pocket carry but in jeans it would be ok as the hammer is concealed and the safety is very low profile, no chance of snagging. And inside the pant it would be a dream I think.

So opinions please and what's the going price these days for very good condition pieces, both the 1910 and 10/22 models?

Cheers, AMK

amk

Unless you know its date of manufacture why go for 30 year old "phoren" gun when you have its close clone Ashani available?

Cheers

Can't find a used Ashani here. And if I had to choose between the 1910 and Ashani I would've gone for the Ashani. I regret giving up the used one I saw last month. It went for around 130k.

But have you seen the 1922 (10/22) model? It looks beautiful due to the longer barrel & grips, has better sights, fits perfectly in the hand (also due to the extended grip).

AMK

amk wrote:And inside the pant it would be a dream I think.
Cheers, AMK

Sure...

My father owns one, I look after it and keep it in tip top shape.

I'm not particularly fond of pocket pistols, as such, though there is nothing bad I can say about its build and quality. The Ashani is on a totally different tangent- it only looks similar. Not to talk about quality. The Ashani is a pirated Colt M1903 with a slide roughly based on the FN 1910.

That being said, spending about 70K on an Ashani is more sensible than several Lakhs on a nice-ish import that does the same thing.

As regards your question on its characteristics,

- It's a pocket pistol so don't expect it to do what its not designed to do...i.e Tack driver. Be warned - it is not very accurate unless the 1910/22 is a post-1969 model. Stuff of the 70's had more sporty sights and of course loaded chamber indicators...and some cosmetic changes.
- The 1910 is very concealable- with the rudimentary sights buried in a channel, there is nothing that snags. The 1922 as you mentioned is larger and was designed with an an eye for the military market then. It is not impossible to conceal it- If a Colt 1911 can be made to hide pretty well, so can a slimmer FN1922.
- Neither the FN1910 or 1922 have hammers - Both are direct pin fired.
- A weak point- the firing pin also doubles as the ejector so that is quite a lot for a small thing to do. Expect broken firing pins with frequent to heavy use- particularly if you happen to use hot foreign ammo.
- I've never suffered a malfunction with mine other than that caused by faulty ammunition. To be objective- I haven't fired it too much either. But for a design to remain in production from 1910 to the 70's speaks a bit about its reliability and quality.
- With regards to going price....hey this is India. Expect any of the absurd quotations that color market of late...

Hope this helps you to decide.

regards,
cc

Olly wrote:

amk wrote:And inside the pant it would be a dream I think.
Cheers, AMK

Sure...

Oye!!!

Thanks CC. I'm not after super duper accuracy, just something to serve my carry needs. I read they're striker fired, may be that's why the uncocked trigger pull seems different/clicky. The extractor/firing pin relationship sounds strange, any idea why did they do that?

Is this better than the Colt pocket hammerless and others in a similar price range; Llama, Astra, etc.?

I don't know why but I'm strangely drawn to the 1922 long version, it looks amazingly sexy and FN being known for their high quality standards and this being in production until the early 80s is very tempting.

AMK

amk wrote:The extractor/firing pin relationship sounds strange, any idea why did they do that?

Not extractor but ejector. The extractor of the 1910/22 is a conventional claw type.
As to why...I guess its just a design quirk. John Browning may have been trying to minimize the number of parts and cuts that went into making the slide. Perhaps he was just making an exposition of the ingenuity of lock-makers art....

Is this better than the Colt pocket hammerless and others in a similar price range; Llama, Astra, etc.?

The Colt Pocket Hammerless is a superb gun if it can be had in good condition. Really cant say which is better- it boils down to preference. Llama and Astra are good, robust guns while exhibiting marginally lower (though by no means poor) quality.

I've come across many Llamas and Astras- Llamas almost by default are miniaturized 1911's both in .32 and .380. The .32 versions are obviously more common. An uncle of mine has a 380 version and its very well made. Astras with their peculiar 'water-pistol' design are unmistakable and also very finely made and supremely robust. The most common Ive come across in the country is the Astra Falcon .32.

All are decent. Your preference. If you like the 1922 and you are able to get a decent one at a civil price- by all means go ahead.

regards,
cc

CC: I've always had a sneaking suspicion that the Ashani is a rip-off of the French MAB - itself a relative of the Colt Pocket Pistol.
I recall a snatch of a conversation, many years ago, of some of some OF types discussing an Indian made "Peter" pistol. Maybe they were discussing Charles Petter - the designer of the MAB.Any thoughts ??

Ashok

lazybones wrote:CC: I've always had a sneaking suspicion that the Ashani is a rip-off of the French MAB - itself a relative of the Colt Pocket Pistol.
I recall a snatch of a conversation, many years ago, of some of some OF types discussing an Indian made "Peter" pistol. Maybe they were discussing Charles Petter - the designer of the MAB.Any thoughts ??

Ashok

Hey Ashok! ...been a while eh?

Charles Petter - Swiss. Quite a prolific designer who sold his designs to a number of manufacturers in different countries.

By the way, how come MAB? Do you mean MAB Model B/C? Well to me it hardly looks like it. Just compare pics of the two side by side... Also the MAB looks to me more like a rip off of the FN1922- (striker/pin fired). The Ashani is a clone of the 1903 concealed hammer.

Who knows you may have heard right anyway... our cheap-skate scientists must've waited for some of his patents or designs to expire and gone ahead botched up the design further.

regards,
cc

Hi CC:
Long time buddy. I was thinking along the lines of the MAB Model D. It has a pedigree going back to the Browning M 1910/Colt/FN etc. Browning's designs really got around You're right - a side by side external comparison isn't very illuminating. let me dig a bit deeper.

Ashok