In the July 2000 issue, we tested the U.S.-made DSA, Inc.

вЂњshortyвЂќ version of the FAL, which at the time was listed at $1,495. We have long wondered if you could buy a functional FAL for less money, and decided to find out.ДЇirst, understand that we cannot fire enough rounds in our limited tests to find every little flaw with a semiautomatic rifle. 45 auto, we consider that the firing of 1,000 rounds with zero malfunctions is a good first step in evaluating the reliability of a semiauto rifle. However, when you get to 500 rounds, or even 200 with zero problems, youвЂ™ve got a pretty good idea the rifle is a good вЂun. If it fails time and again for reasons unrelated to ammunition, youвЂ™ve got a problem child on your hands, and any problems will generally show up pretty soon in the evaluation of a given rifle. One of our test shooters had a British L1A1 FAL, built around an early Entreprise receiver many years ago, and it performed perfectly with both types of magazines (inch and metric) and with a great variety of ammunition types. It was not a tack driver, but served its owner well until he upgraded, and sold the old rifle. The best FAL (not a match rifle) any of our shooters have personally tested would print 1.5-inch groups, with good ammo and a scope, at 200 yards.

The worst would put вЂem all into about 4 inches at 100 yards. This, then, gives you some background on what good versions of the FAL may be expected to do. The current test trio offered us an updated look at some of the currently available FALs. Two of them - one with full-length barrel, the other with carbine-length - came from the same supplier, Century Arms International. Both actions were labeled вЂњR1A1 Sporter,вЂќ though one rifle was inch and the other, metric. The third rifle came from Imbel in Brazil, and it had a full-length barrel. All three FALs had pistol-grip stocks and ventilated forends, detachable 20-round magazines, and synthetic butt stocks. All were finished in flat black Parkerizing or something that looked like it. All three had muzzle brakes, sling swivels, windage-adjustable aperture rear sights mounted on a ramp for battle-range adjustments, and wing-protected, elevation-adjustable front sights. The FAL design in all its configurations is fully discussed in an excellent three-part book entitled The FAL Rifle by Blake Stevens and Jean E. van Rutten, published by Collector Grade Publications, Inc., Cobourg, Ontario, Canada. Our вЂњClassic EditionвЂќ reference copy was published in 1993, and we highly recommend it to serious students of the FAL. The FAL is a gas-operated rifle featuring an adjustable gas bleed to control the force of operation, so it can be set for different types of ammunition. Reloaders may want to set it so the rifle drops empties just barely clear of the rifle. The gas plug can also be rotated to a position where the bolt must be hand-cycled for each shot, which is handy for training and for a few other purposes. The rifle has its bolt contained within a carrier. The rifle opens easily like a break-open shotgun to permit easy access to the workings, and to allow breech-end cleaning of the barrel. The barrel and chamber are usually chrome-plated, which can be verified by inspection at the breech.

The action is covered with a stamped sheet-metal piece that may be withdrawn by sliding it off the back of the action when the rifle is broken open. The rifle may be fired with the cover removed. This cover can be replaced with a variety of options, such as the mount for the outstanding L2A2 scope that the British soldiers liked so much. Some of the mounts and options are very scarce. Opening the FAL for cleaning requires cocking the unloaded rifle, and then pushing on a lever located behind the safety, to break open the action.

Century arms l1a1 vs fal