[Gregster]

Hi-Point guns are aesthetically ugly and laden with some pretty serious image problems.

Their handguns have become associated with gang-bangers for the simple fact that they are simple to operate and cheaper than dirt (retail price starts around $185, brand-new) and widely available, making them the perfect gun to empty in the general direction of an opposing gang and then chuck over a fence when the po-pos arrive and give chase. Every guy I've known who owned a Hi-Point was a gangsta wanna-be or someone who decided they *HAD* to have gun to have a gun.

Their even uglier pistol-caliber carbines became infamous when one was pried from the cod, dead hands of one of the Columbine kiddies after their rampage. That incident had the curious effect of creating a sort of odd interest which hurt their image in the market place while boosting their sales.

That said: they are simple, blowback-operated, and even though I doubt I'd ever buy one (sorry-- I'm a bit of a snob about what guns I own) and sure as hell wouldn't want to be found carrying one by a cop (they seem to scream "trouble!" the way butterfly knives do) every article I've read in every reputable gun mag has given them good marks (albeit grudgingly) for their reliability and accuracy.