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Posted: 12/28/2004 7:42:14 PM EDT
Im pretty new to FAL's so go easy on me  www.aimsurplus.com/acatalog/New__FAL_R1A1__308_Rifles_with_Muzzle_Break.html seems pretty cheap for a FAL but was wondering the quality of CIA FAL's. |
| The cheap CAI recievers come from a cast and are deminsionally out of spec. Harlan at FAC or gunsnstuff.com can tell you more about these recievers I think. I built on one of the Inch recievers and yes I had to do a lot of fitting but the gun has shot very well once I put it together. Keep in mind all metals are cast that we use its just a matter of process used in making it. The FAL from AIM I don't know anything about I build my own FAL's, if I were you I spend a little more and a DSA gun from FAC, or a reputable builder on the FALFILES.COM there you ask this question and find a wealth of information. |
| Another person I have heard good things about is Todd at Ohio Rapid Fire (ORF) look at thier FAL's ORF prices are good with a good product and really good customer support. Harlan at FAC has always contacted me personally when I have had problems or questions, they have get my thumbs up. |
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got one about 2 months ago, been back to the angry beavers twice, still isnt right. the do try to fix them. i have to give that to them. Also Aim will make it right the offered to take mine back for a exchange. it would have ent another transfer fee and i didnt want to have to put my dealer thru it so i got a RMa # from Century. it would not feed. still doesnt, well thats not all true i have 30 fal mags out of that 30 mags 15 of them are brand new. out of that 15 it feeds from 5. yes 5 all new mags with no rime or reason of why it feeds from them. i replaed the springs, gas piston got rid of the 2 piece century for a tapco. so right know its with Dukenukem. we have a new mag catch ordred seems like one of there fixes the ground the mag catch, they ground it to short. so we will rpelace that and see what happens. on the side note the receiver rails are in spec. its the mag well that the messed up on to tight and the mag shelf in the front of the receiver is to high, thus having to grind the mag catch so mags well lock in. they have new barrels and a all matching kit. and look very nice. the us parts include the receiver,pistol grip,stock handguards, gas piston. and barrel. so you do have a good FCG. Ronald |
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I've had one for about 4 years , I probably have only fired maybe 200 rnds out of it so far but have not had any problems with it to date ! fingers crossed I'm going to send it off to Coyote Gulch Armory and let Mark do some stuff to it after the first of the tear , He will give it a check up and shorten the bbl a little ... maybe convert to a para too! |
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I'll try to help out a little bit - based on what's already been posted... 1st, the original question: Although AIM is a good outfit to do busines with, those FALs are not a very good value - when you consider for less than $100 more, you *could* have a well build, quality rifle built by Ohio Rapid Fire... Todd Grove is one of THE premier FAL 'smiths in the country, and they truly back up EVERY gun they sell... Century's FALs can be hit or miss - you might get a good one right out of the box - and you might not... They DO try to make things right, but I'd probably fix one myself before sending it back to them... Usually, it shouldn't be too difficult to get a Century FAL to run properly - the FAL is very easy to work on, IMO... Harlan at FAC is one of the good guys, to be sure - but I've heard numerous reports from reputable sources that some of FAC's staff isn't the best to deal with - only sharing what I've heard, I have no 1st hand knowledge on that subject... As for cast receivers: DSA and Imbel are the only ones offering forged receivers to my knowledge - while those of Dan Coonan, Century, Entreprise, and Hesse are all investment cast.. That's not necessarily a bad thing, as Rugers are all investment cast - and their revolvers are widely recognized as being some of the strongest ever made... I prefer Dan Coonan receivers, as I believe them to provide the easiest builds, and haven't had any problems with them - also, they are a US part - as are all the aforementioned, except the Imbels, which are imported... As for Centurys being demensionally incorrect - my experience has been that an experienced builder should have no problem doing a build on a Century - but it'll likely be a bit more work than on a Coonan or a DSA... The DSAs are top shelf, but also cost big $$$... Hope this helps, - georgestrings |
I'll second the recommendation of Mark from Coyote Gulch. Great guy, does an incredible park job, and I'd trust him with about anything. All work he's ever done for me has been better than I expected. |
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RMDYE, The feed problems you are having sound very fixable and the lack of operation doesn't sound like a problem with the reciever. Feed rails, are they baby but smooth, if not make them that way. next check your recoil tube, make sure it is shinny as glass, do not put oil in there it can cause a hydrolic effect and retard the chambering of rounds into battery. get a file and hit the carrier rails make sure the bolt and carrier slide very easy through the operation. make sure your top cover is not hitting the carrier as it moves in normal operation. lastly do the same as the first thing I stated to all your mags, I don't think you are having a mag problem I could be wrong. If you grind on your mags then you are making your weapon mag specific, I would not do this you will not be able to use just any mag, and in a bad situation you may wish you had not done that. Get a dremel tool with some cutting wheels and slowly reduce the front mag catch inside the mag well, some people have had to do this I did not on mine. Make sure the gas piston falls freely striaght back and not to one side or the other, some Centry recievers gas piston hole on the reciever is to far to the right demisoinally. Last there is a thread on the FALFILES about filing the feed lips on the reciever slightly to get the rounds to pop up out of the mag faster, which may help your situation. I may have forgot a few things but I have built one century reciever (inch) L1A1 carbine and I like the Century recievers for what they are. I have put 300 rnds through mine with no problem when it had a Styer barrel in it, it now has a shortened Inch. I have also, built many FAL's besides this one I speak of, butthose have been on Imbel and DC recievers. |
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From another post, but applies: I picked up a L1A1 for a little over $400 about a year ago. I did not have $800 or a grand to put into a rifle, but I always wanted a FAL. It was a CAI and I did need a lot of tweaking to get it right. I don’t know how to find old posts in the archives, but this is the problem I had: 1. "Rat tail" on carrier was hitting the side of the lower receiver, and had to be opened up. 2. The machining on the sides of the receiver was wavy...the carrier snaked forward as it hit the protruding metal on the sides. I took some sand paper and smoothed out the humps, but there was still places where the milling machine went too deep. 3. The barrel was hand tight. I sent it back and they re-barreled it. 4. No metric mags in my weapon. Metric mags sit a little too low and the shell was jammed into the casing and would not feed. I polished the UNI-ramp and did not remove any metal...still no go. 5. I could not get a scope cover to line up correctly. I had to fit the scope cover because the receiver had a bump on the topside where the cover rested, and it still did not square up? 6. Various filing and polishing SOOOO.....other than the scope issue it shot great. The messing with it was not a big issue for me. I am not going into combat and I enjoy playing around with it. Rifle and a few thousand rounds and still come in less then a more expensive FAL. I did sell it and picked up a DSA STG58 kit and an Imbel receiver and built up a very fine rifle, but I do not like snobs who immediately trash rifles that some brothers can only afford.If you have the cash get a DSA, but if you want one on a budget look over the CAI very close like you would a CETME. Be prepared to "mess" with it. Hope it helps. |
| My brother bought gunplumbers book, barrel vise, receiver wrench and a buttstock tool. I bought headspace gauges and some sanding discs. I put it together using the combination of our tools in one afternoon at work with the barrel vise strapped to the bumper of my truck for the main part. There may even be some people in your area who would loan you tools and look over your shoulder while you did it. I would volunteer but Florida is a long way from TX. I am not going to say that you will end up with a cheaper rifle but you will probably end up with a better one you built. Some great info can be found at Fal Files |
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I've built 2 myself. A G1 on an Imbel and a STG58 on a DSA type 2. You don't need to buy vidios manuals. Its very strait forward. If you can replace the waterpump in your car you can build a fal. The best thing to do is for you and a buddie or two go in on the tools. Thats what I did and it cost me a mear $25-30 each. Any questions? Bob |
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