FN FAL...Good deal or not?

ironmike · January 29, 2000, 08:42 PM

I just bought an FN FAL with an Argentine upper and barrel, and a British lower. All the upper #'s matched, and the manufacturer is "FMAP 'DM'-Rosario". The lower parts all had the "broad arrow" proofmark on them. The stock is a matte finished composite with a pebble grain on it. There are no scratches, dings etc on the rifle, and the upper has a matte blue finish, and the lower has a semi matte painted type of finish that seems even and well applied. It was originally bought in 1986, and has a threaded FN muzzle brake on it, so I assume it is a preban. Can anyone comment on this rifle? I paid $975 for it. Any comments would be appreciated.
Mike

[This message has been edited by ironmike (edited January 29, 2000).]

Destructo6 · January 29, 2000, 09:05 PM

Really you should cut and paste-post this over at the FALFiles discussion board. You'll probably have a fairly accurate reply within half an hour. I might be able to help you with some minor function problems in general, but I must plead ignorance on specific models.

Here's the link to the FALFiles board:

http://www.fnfal.com/falfiles/wwwboard/

bergie · January 29, 2000, 09:28 PM

ironmike,
If it was originally bought in 86, it is a preban. If the guns shoots decent, and functions reliably then for a preban it should be worth it. I'm not an expert on the FAL by any means, but I have been thinking about getting one for a while now, and been doing some research. The lower, if Brit would be an "inch pattern" while the Argentine upper would be "metric". Some of the guns that have been assembled like this were problematic, it depended a lot on who put them together, and how much effort they put into it. What type of mags does your rifle take? Some of the mixed guns had their inch lowers machined to take metric mags and some were not. Metric mags are much cheaper, but the machining was not always done with the utmost care, and resulted in a sloppy fit that held neither as well as the originals.
Don't want to put a damper on anything, far from it. As I said up front, I'm no expert on them, but it is preban, if it shoots, looks good, and YOU like it, then you got a good deal.
From what I have found out, most places now, you would be in a crapshoot trying to buy a CAI partsgun probably on a Hesse reciever that may or may not function for $750. Or you could pay $1500 or more for a DSA. Or you could spend $250-475 for a reciever, $150-300 for a parts kit, another $150? on U.S. parts to make it legal to assemble, assemble yourself or have a smith do it and refinish for another $200-400.
I would say you got a pretty fair price.
Bergie

fal308 · January 29, 2000, 10:58 PM

I think you got a pretty good deal on it. The Argie FAL was a pretty good weapon. IIRC they were built on equipment originally from FN. They were licensed by FN to build FALs so the upper is not a reverse engineered part. The British lower mated to it tends to make me think that it could be a parts gun though some FMAPs were imported if I remember. Even though it may be a parts gun it is still legal as it's a pre-86 weapon.

ironmike · January 30, 2000, 06:54 AM

Thanks for the info guys. The rifle takes metric style mags. I'm taking it to the range later this morning for a function and accuracy test, so we'll see.
Mike

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January 29, 2000, 08:42 PM	#1
ironmike Member Join Date: January 23, 2000 Posts: 15	I just bought an FN FAL with an Argentine upper and barrel, and a British lower. All the upper #'s matched, and the manufacturer is "FMAP 'DM'-Rosario". The lower parts all had the "broad arrow" proofmark on them. The stock is a matte finished composite with a pebble grain on it. There are no scratches, dings etc on the rifle, and the upper has a matte blue finish, and the lower has a semi matte painted type of finish that seems even and well applied. It was originally bought in 1986, and has a threaded FN muzzle brake on it, so I assume it is a preban. Can anyone comment on this rifle? I paid $975 for it. Any comments would be appreciated. Mike [This message has been edited by ironmike (edited January 29, 2000).]

January 29, 2000, 09:05 PM	#2
Destructo6 Senior Member Join Date: March 18, 1999 Location: Nogales, AZ USA Posts: 4,000	Really you should cut and paste-post this over at the FALFiles discussion board. You'll probably have a fairly accurate reply within half an hour. I might be able to help you with some minor function problems in general, but I must plead ignorance on specific models. Here's the link to the FALFiles board: http://www.fnfal.com/falfiles/wwwboard/

January 29, 2000, 09:28 PM	#3
bergie Senior Member Join Date: April 19, 1999 Posts: 567	ironmike, If it was originally bought in 86, it is a preban. If the guns shoots decent, and functions reliably then for a preban it should be worth it. I'm not an expert on the FAL by any means, but I have been thinking about getting one for a while now, and been doing some research. The lower, if Brit would be an "inch pattern" while the Argentine upper would be "metric". Some of the guns that have been assembled like this were problematic, it depended a lot on who put them together, and how much effort they put into it. What type of mags does your rifle take? Some of the mixed guns had their inch lowers machined to take metric mags and some were not. Metric mags are much cheaper, but the machining was not always done with the utmost care, and resulted in a sloppy fit that held neither as well as the originals. Don't want to put a damper on anything, far from it. As I said up front, I'm no expert on them, but it is preban, if it shoots, looks good, and YOU like it, then you got a good deal. From what I have found out, most places now, you would be in a crapshoot trying to buy a CAI partsgun probably on a Hesse reciever that may or may not function for $750. Or you could pay $1500 or more for a DSA. Or you could spend $250-475 for a reciever, $150-300 for a parts kit, another $150? on U.S. parts to make it legal to assemble, assemble yourself or have a smith do it and refinish for another $200-400. I would say you got a pretty fair price. Bergie

January 29, 2000, 10:58 PM	#4
fal308 Staff Alumnus Join Date: October 12, 1998 Location: Missouri Posts: 1,992	I think you got a pretty good deal on it. The Argie FAL was a pretty good weapon. IIRC they were built on equipment originally from FN. They were licensed by FN to build FALs so the upper is not a reverse engineered part. The British lower mated to it tends to make me think that it could be a parts gun though some FMAPs were imported if I remember. Even though it may be a parts gun it is still legal as it's a pre-86 weapon.

January 30, 2000, 06:54 AM	#5
ironmike Member Join Date: January 23, 2000 Posts: 15	Thanks for the info guys. The rifle takes metric style mags. I'm taking it to the range later this morning for a function and accuracy test, so we'll see. Mike