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Hi-Standard Supermatic .22 Pistol

13K views 14 replies 12 participants last post by  Lyman1903 
#1 ·
I'm familiar with the Ruger Mark 2 Government type .22 pistols but know nothing about Hi Standards line of .22 pistols. Are Supermatics comparable to the Rugers? When were these pistols made? This one appears to be of high quality with a movable weight, ported barrel and fine adjustable sights. Very light trigger. I've shot about 50 rounds of Remington standard velocity .22lr thru it without problems. Its not for sale but what kind of value is correct for this gun? I appreciate all replies....

 
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#2 ·
They were being sold back in the 50's and 60's when I owned a couple of them. I thought they were the finest target pistols ever and I've never been able to get the same
accuracy out of anything else. I rarely see them offered for sale, so hard for me to put a value on them - hopefully someone else has a better handle on that.
 
#3 ·
Rugers are not even in the same league with the Supermatic-one of the best taget .22 pistols made by anyone. High Standard OWNED world championships and records for target shooting fo a few decades there, and although a little fussy on ammo, they are great pistols. I bought a lower end High Standard GB, more of a plinker than a target pistol, for $450 a few weeks ago and I think I stole it. I have seen Supermatics going for close to a thousand depending on condition and what barrels come with it. The barrels are interchangeable and hard to find. There is a new High Standard company in Texas selling some different guns and doing repairs on the old ones.

They sold for a bit less than the equivalent S&W in their day, and they made very good shotguns and .22 revolvers as well.

mark
 
#13 ·
I bought a lower end High Standard GB, more of a plinker than a target pistol, for $450 a few weeks ago and I think I stole it.
I think I screwed up as I sold one a few months ago and only asked $150 for it!!!! No wonder the guy literately jump on it when I told him the price. Bad on my part.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Data supra on value seems to track what i see H-Ss go for. The company made a considerable variety (in the sense of different models) over the years. Just when your was made - not sure. Might be able to come up with a range of years by poking sources a bit.

Compared to Rugers, the H-S guns are not as rugged, the top-end target models (and yours is one of those) are on the average more accurate out of the box, and they had a valid reputation. You have a fine gun, significantly more expensive when new that ANY Ruger. Also more delicate thn any Ruger, and harder to find parts for... Stick to standard velocity ammo, and experiment to find a brand and lot it likes and you will receive good results. It is worth using hig-end target ammunition in it.

High Standards operated out of Hamden from 1951-1976. Yours appears to be a Supermatic (Second Model) as it is marked S-101. Made between 1954 and 1957 pr Blue book entry. Value these days (Older High Stadards have increased of late) upper three, maybe into lower four figure range I would say.

You have a very nice gun, take care of it and use it with pleasure.
 
#6 ·
shot better than the older 22 colts...

I had the bull fluted barrel military match citation 107 I believe it was called?

keep cutting my hand on rear sights fixed to frame not slide...

41- 22's smiths out shot it ($800 +) , and my 1963 and 1967 browning medalist ($ 900 +) out shot them all.....

so I sold all but the best medalist..in fitted case

back on topic....seen the one I had go 800+ in 98 %.....

yours older rare-er?....over $1000...to right collector....in trade much more.. condition is the key

I sold hammer model 50's GB not military the next later model 6 years back 96 % blue $ 425..
 
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#8 ·
I recommend ordering a spring set from Wolff, then hunt down an experienced gunsmith to replace the recoil spring. It is captive in the slide and is very tricky to replace. As mentioned, use only standard velocity .22 LR. I'm intrigued by the report about good luck with Remington .22 standard velocity. I gave up on Remington after experiencing an average of 7 misfires per box.
 
#10 ·
Clyde's right about the HS quality and lack of durability compared to the Ruger .22 They are a lot more complex, so more prone to breakage and expensive to make. Ruger, primarily a production engineer, invented a very good quality product that was more rugged and a lot cheaper to make. Neither HS nor Colt could compete in the marketplace. But Rugers do need work, like a tighter chambered barrel, to compete with a high grade HS.

That Remington ammo problem was probably due to the HS tight tolerances. It'd likely work OK in a looser chambered gun, or a batch sized a touch tighter.

BTW, be careful on the mags. They do not necessarily fit from model to model even if they look the same.
 
#11 ·
... That Remington ammo problem was probably due to the HS tight tolerances. It'd likely work OK in a looser chambered gun, or a batch sized a touch tighter.
The Remington misfired, i.e. bad primer. The firing pin is fine and I have all new springs; CCI standard velocity ammo works perfectly in mine.
BTW, be careful on the mags. They do not necessarily fit from model to model even if they look the same.
I have two new production HS mags with red plastic floorplates and they work fine. An equally new HS mag with alloy floorplate falls out of the magazine well after one or two shots. BTW I keep an old credit card in my pistol case. To decock the pistol I close the slide on the credit card and pull the trigger. Dry firing is a no-no with the HS.
 
#12 ·
Over the years I have owned 6 High Standard target pistols including a M101 Duramatic, a Supermatic M103, Sport King converted to a GB Target model, a Supermatic M101, a HD Military model, and a M107 Military Supermatic. Currently I am down to just one that was a gift from my uncle: a HS Military Supermatic M107 Military model. I used to concentrate on these pistols but I barely made a dent in what you can collect if you solely focus on their .22 target pistols.

Hands down one of the best and most accurate pistol platforms that you will ever own. You can't touch their quality of manufacturing compared to a Ruger or other modern pistol. If I had one gripe about these pistols, it is that they are extremely magazine finicky! The Supermatic M101 set I purchased from a Kansas farmer back in 2004. It came with 3 barrels, 2 weights, 6 magazines, and 2 sets of grips. Out of those 6 mags I could only get 2 of them to work 100%. You have to tune the magazines to the guns or you will have issues. I ended up selling the mags and barrels off to fund other purchases.

My uncle purchased my HS back in 1961 brand new. This was the pistol that I learned how to handgun hunt tree rats and other critters with. It will put all 10 shots in the size of a dime on an Ransom Rest. In my hands I can normally do nickle to quarter sized groups if I am on my game. It has the same grip frame angle as my 1911's and that makes it a great trainer. I have won quite a few beer matches with my buddies over the years with this pistol.

Before any Ruger fans get on to me I have a heavy barreled 12" stainless Ruger Mk II (silhouette model) that shoots small groups in my hands. But the High Standard still outshoots it every time.

Here's a few pics of some that I have owned.









Bottom line: I highly recommend the High Standard pistol platform to anyone that is looking for the pinnacle of American small bore target pistols. The value of these pistols will only go up in the future, and lets face it everyone & their mothers have a Ruger .22 pistol!
 
#14 · (Edited)
Yep, you slipped up, Bill. But presumably you priced based on what you had in it, so while you missed out on some dollars, presumably you didn't actually come out behind.

A Clark accuracy job including their trigger will put a Ruger into form that will be capable of getting better groups than almost any shooter can hold, but it does take some after-market betterments to match an out-of-the-box H-S. But - if they still make H-S, it would cost more than a new Ruger with a Clark work-over... man ought to get something for what he pays, eh?
 
#15 ·
Yep, you slipped up, Bill. But presumably you priced based on what you had in it, so while you missed out on some dollars, presumably you didn't actually come out behind.

A Calk accuracy job including their trigger will put a Ruger into form that will be capable of getting better groups than almost any shooter can hold, but it does take some after-market betterments to match an out-of-the-box H-S. But - if they still make H-S, it would cost more than a new Ruger with a Clark work-over... man ought to get something for what he pays, eh?
high standard was bought/made/ not sure what by Mitchell's in Texas IIRC,

they still have a high standard website listing 22 pistols, distributed by lipsey's but lipsey's does not have them on their site,,,


must be gone now, (just an AR and 1911 showing, )
 
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