Hi-Point is sometimes the butt of a few jokes, but you have to admire its special breed of American bold. There’s a place in my heart for any gun maker that’s willing to embrace the budget-friendly market, raise it up as its mission, and legit slap the slogan “The American Dream Still Exists” on its products. 

As a company that is budget oriented, the fact that Hi-Point still rolls its guns out of an American factory and promises a lifetime replacement for its work is admirable. But after taking the 995TS carbine to the range alongside some guns that cost – ahem – 10x as much, I was pleasantly surprised by how this budget 9mm pistol-caliber carbine performed.


Table of Contents

995TS Intro
Specs & Features
Accuracy & Reliability
500-Round Review
Pros & Cons
Conclusion

995TS Carbine Intro
 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
At its core, the Hi-Point 995TS carbine is a basic blowback design inside a fairly bare-bones package. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


Feel free to slap anyone who tries to convince you the 995TS is just as good as any other pistol-caliber carbine. This is a pretty bare-bones gun, and that’s fine. The ergonomics make that instantly clear, as does the fact that you need to screw in the charging handle when you open the box. So, if you’ve held more than one carbine in your life, the 995-series guns will likely not impress you.
 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
The large bolt cycles back with the pressure of the fired round, extracts the empty case, and then a small recoil spring returns it to load another round. The mass of the bolt and the weight of the gun make it light recoiling. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)



The action is a very basic blow-back system. But that’s actually part of the appeal for me. The 995-series guns use a simple system that relies on a chunky, brick-like bolt to eat the recoil and chamber a new round. A relatively small spring returns the bolt to battery after firing. It’s a system with proven reliability in many guns.

Simple is as simple does, and there’s nothing really wrong with that. The end product is a very basic carbine that will give you accurate hits even in offhand and somewhat-tactical shooting out past 50 yards from our testing.
 

Specs & Features

 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
From its price, size, sights, and plentiful Pic rail, there's a lot to like about the gun. But there are plenty of areas where you can see how Hi-Point shaved off expenses. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


On paper, the 995TS has some nice things going for it and some obvious downsides. The capacity isn’t the best at a standard loadout of 10+1, but there are some non-proprietary mags that can bump that up to 20+1. While the firepower is lacking, both mags have performed just fine for us with the exception of one issue. 

As mentioned, the gun is a simple blowback design. But it hosts features that are even simpler. The safety is what appears to be a slim metal piece simply bent to shape. The rear sight is also thin metal with a windage/elevation-adjustable plastic rear peep.
 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
I'm a fan of rear peep sights, and the 995TS was no exception. The sights are budget but functioned well with a few notes I'll make later on maintaining them. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


Interestingly, the front sight is also adjustable for elevation with a front screw but is otherwise just two blocks of metal locked onto the barrel with screws and a cut in the Picatinny frame. The gun is also held together with screws and bolts all over the frame. That frame is a combination of a polymer skeleton and a thick metal receiver. Then there is the external bolt hold-open, which doesn’t exist. 
 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
Finding threads on a gun in this price range was nice, though adding something like a suppressor could cost more than the gun. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


That said, the gun does come with a standard threaded barrel at 1/2 x 28 TPI. I found the sight adjustments easy to get the gun on target and fairly quick while shooting drills. There’s also Picatinny rail under the foregrip, extended out under the front of the barrel, and over the receiver. Plus, the rear sight is removable, so optics are an option. While 9mm is not particularly hard recoiling in a gun like this, the rear buttstock has a spring-loaded recoil pad.
 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
There is a generous amount of Picatinny rail to play with, and you can remove the rear sight to mount an optic. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


Here are some basic specs to give you an idea of how it measures up :

Length: 31 inches
Barrel Length: 16.5 inches
Sight Radius: 17.25 inches
Weight: 6.56 pounds
Trigger Pull: ~8 pounds
Capacity: 10+1 
 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
That slick pistol grip was just a constant issue for me, and that's definitely something I would modify (on the cheap) if this gun was mine. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


Getting a predictable trigger pull was actually quite hard, but I can’t say I noticed it on the range much. However, I absolutely noticed the pistol grip. As the sweat started to run, it felt incredibly slick in my hands, and the magazine release is hard to reach on what is a fat grip even for my relatively large hands. If this was my gun, I would either add grip tape or spray to the pistol grip.

 

Shooting: Accuracy, Reliability, Tactical Testing

 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
The single-stack 10-round magazine is a bit lean in the capacity department, but it proved reliable. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


I tested this gun both off a rest, with offhand shooting, and barricade drills. With some quick groups at 50 yards, I was hitting 2-inch groups on irons. Not amazing, but functional. I will say that the 10-round mags empty fast, and reloads are slow with the thick grip and hard-to-reach mag release. The 20-round mag helped, but controlling the grip was fairly hard. 

Overall, the gun felt quite wieldy and pointed nicely for a budget item. The length and weight felt good. My biggest gripe, other than near-zero texture on the pistol grip, was that dang springy recoil pad. I noticed it shifted my sight picture when I pulled the gun into my shoulder. 
 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
While blocky, the gun actually balances rearward nicely. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)
Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
The spring recoil pad is a bit extra for the amount of actual recoil, and it can impact your sight picture if you flex it while aiming. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


The highlight for me was the sights. Sure, you could add an optic, but I wanted to run it as it came from the factory. I was honestly very pleased with how it shot. It’s not a nail driver off a rest, but at 50 yards and shooting from multiple unconventional positions, I had very little issue ringing 3, 5, 8, and 10-inch steel targets. I’m hardly as limber as I once was, but even jamming the gun at low angles through narrow slots ended in hits.
 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
The plastic trigger works, but it's hardly a clean or predictable break. 


I had several ARs and even a Steyr Aug on that range with me that day. All three felt better in the hand and while shooting. All three also had optics mounted and were already zeroed. And all three cost at least 5x or more than the Hi-Point. But my hit rate with the 995TS was almost exactly the same as those guns, and it was more compact behind barricades than the ARs. The weight is also back toward the pistol grip, which makes moving around easy even with one hand.

Reliability was almost 100 percent. The factory 10-round magazine had no issues to note, and the bolt locked back on the last round for all the mags I tested. The only issue happened after we hit 500 rounds with no cleaning. 

With the gun good and dirty, I slapped in the 20-round aftermarket magazine and let off 18 rounds before I had a failure to feed. On inspection, I noticed that the last two rounds were a mix of brass and steel-cased ammo – leftovers – so that may have caused some odd friction in that magazine. 
 

500-Round Review
 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
The manual safety and the magazine release are simple and they work, but man are they hard to manipulate while doing drills. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


I did not clean this gun when it arrived, and I have cleaned it yet. I am now past the 500-round mark and closer to 650. With the exception of the one malfunction on the aftermarket magazine, the gun continues to lock back on the last round and feed everything I give it. At this point, I have shot more than 100 rounds of 115-grain brass-cased ball ammo from Federal, Winchester, Sellier & Bellot, and Fiocchi, plus 100 rounds of steel-cased Wolf.
 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
With the factory magazine, the gun ran everything I fed it. While we had one small hiccup with the aftermarket 20-round mag, it as still only one out of 500+ rounds and possibly not really the mag or gun's fault entirely. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


As for wear and tear, I have noticed a few things. The very simple barrel finish and the chunky polymer frame show no signs of wear. The same is true for the butt pad and the metal receiver. Overall, all the functioning parts also seem to be doing fine. 
 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
Still, after a variety of range trips over a few months, the gun was free of any noticeable damage other than some minor marring from my use of a multitool to adjust the rear sight. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


That said, the front sight started to have an issue. There are two screws at the base that lock it onto the barrel, and they started to walk themselves out to the point I noticed the sight shifting with pressure. The same was true for the bolt handle. A couple of twists put them right back into place, but those are two areas I would either tighten regularly or Loctite.
 

There are a lot of screws on this gun, so paying attention to any that get loose is worth your time. Of note, the two areas I found after 500+ rounds were the bottom screws on the front sight and the charging handle. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


Crude field adjustments to the rear sights have also left a little bit of marring to the plastic internal base. It’s cosmetic but noticeable. Beyond that, the gun has run great for what it is.
 

Pros & Cons
 

Hi-Point 995TS Carbine
If reliability and hitting your target matter to you, the 995TS came through for me there. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


I think it’s important to keep a gun in context when you judge it. A budget-friendly Hi-Point pistol-caliber carbine isn’t going to compete with a Taran Tactical TR-9 that costs 10x more. It’s like judging raw apples against a custom-ordered apple pie, and I don’t think it serves much of a purpose. 
 

You can't just expect CZ quality at Hi-Point prices, but it is fair to note that things like the safety and magazine release are hard to use and the texture on the pistol grip is greatly lacking. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)


It’s more useful to judge the gun on its purpose, and the 995TS is meant to be a budget-man’s reliable PCC that gets the job done plinking and – maybe – could be pressed into self-defense or even some limited moderate tactical work/training if required.

Since I’ve already covered a lot of the pros and cons, I’ll sum up my judgments here. 

Pros:

  • Accurately hits targets even in tougher shooting situations
  • Runs reliably after more than 500 rounds with no cleaning
  • Very affordable compared to most other PCC options
  • Compact size makes it easy to maneuver
  • Sights are easy to use and accurate
  • Plenty of Pic rail for any extras

Cons:

  • 10+1 is a fairly low capacity for a PCC
  • I really wish it came with extra mags
  • Screws can come loose over time
  • Pistol grip is terribly slippery without modification
  • Safety and magazine release are harder to use


Conclusion

For what it is, the 995TS shot accurately and reliably at 50 yards on even sub-5-inch targets with just iron sites in some rough shooting situations. I was thoroughly impressed with the performance and long-term reliability, and I have zero issues banging it around at the price. 

The ergonomics are lacking, but there are ways to improve that. So, if you want a budget banger that can ring steel for fun, I think it’s a great option. I would not go to war with it, but it could get the job done for home defense as well. 

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