need info i hope im not being a pest

[datruth]

just left a gun store and was told that they could order me a stg58 Austrian fn-fal carbine length from dsa for 1200 new, from DSA now are dsa worth me laying down 1200 dollars for this rifle, can i expect hell and back reliability as my MAIN, go to, shtf, range and anything else rifle within reason maybe hunting in a pinch i was considering a cetme originally but the dsa fal will require me to save a lil longer, give me you all imput,thanks god bless

[WildBillCody]

They have a good Rep, but I think a little over priced, I'm not a big fan of the FAL, too heavy for me, I had a STG-58 that I built, nice rifle but I wouldn't want to tote it around very long, the carbine might be better.

[Woodman in MO]

I don't think you need to spend $1200 to get a reliable, go to rifle. DSA's are nice, but you can, I think, get a solid all purpose rifle for a lot cheaper.

DSA rifles are very nice and top of the line FAL's though.

[7.62-chunker]

I picked up my 2 fals at local pawn shops, they are both Century's, both had problems so they went to Sledgehammer {Randy Kline} over in Mansfield Tx, Now I am happy to say they run fine on South African ammo, on the back side of this is that I have to turn the gas to a setting of 1 to fire Argentina ammo.

[datruth]

by all means i would like to get a reliable . go to rifle (fal) from one of the locations you all may know of

[M1 Tanker]

There was a time STG58 kits (NEW Rifles minus receivers) were $350.00. You figure another $150 in US parts and $400 for a DSA receiver your at $900 and you have bought any tools yet.

For me, $1200 is too steep for a FAL, but if you really want one, I have seen several rifles, built on an STG8 kit for sale on FALFiles.com lately. They aren't cheap, but they aren't $1200 either.

[Otis61]

I'm guessing that you don't want to try to build one. Because thats when you have the greatest control over almost every aspect of the gun. Including cost. And with the help of these guys its not too hard.

Ive only done one. So don't listen to me, but I;v only done one and I'm hooked. Now I've got 7 more parts kits of several types of guns (including FALs) with no intention of stopping. Try an easy one first. See if you like it. For me its a blast.

[Otis61]

There is an article in this weeks shotgun news called "HOME BUILDING an FAL: yes you can". Check it out. It answers a lote of qwestions you might have.

[Grasshopper]

I didn't get this months issue. I'll be buying 3 tomorrow, thanks.

[Seattlefungus]

Tools you really should own/have access to for Building a FAL.

FAL Receiver Wrench
Locking Shoulder size pins (Set for determine the locking shoulder for the rifle you are building, which sets the head space.)
Gas nut Wrench.
Butt stock tool. The FAL but stock is unlike any other rifle.
Go & No Go head space Gages.
Bolt tool for extractor work.
Barrel Vise.All but the barrel vise is unique to the FAL and some are different between Inch and Metric pattern. (Receriver Wrench).
There are 3 different types of FAL reveivers. 2 Metric and One inch.

[Perro]

a bit of clarification

3 metric receivers - type 1, 2, and 3
2 inch receivers - aussie pattern, and english pattern
1 israeli receiver - different in the thread pitch

i feel 1200 for a quality FAL is well worth it.
i have been burned buying home built FALS. I bought one recently that closed on a field gauge and i had to buy a new locking shoulder and drive it in. Buying a home built FAL can sometimes be just as dangerous as buying a home built cetme, ak, or any other kind of gun. not everyone is talented enough to build FALs - ive seen some bad examples - the DSA doesnt seem that bad if you look at it in that light. It is also professionaly built, and youll be able to sell it easier later on in my opinion. Sometimes saving money buying something someone else built ends up costing you more money in the long run.

building your own requires about $300.00 worth of tooling to do it right and make your life easy - you can get away with cheaper home built stuff that is notorious for messing your parts up, but if you want it dont right, its gonna cost you 3 benjys in tools

and the shotgun news article on building FALs - i had to laugh at this one, and ridicule the guy a bit.
this guy talks about grinding his own locking shoulders with a surface grinder - that is not information i would put out to the public. you are talking about .006 inch or two human hairs difference between safe headspace and dangerous headspace - i can see some bubba fire up his peanut grinder, dremmel tool, or bench grinder and think he can accomplish the same thing. locking shoulders are CHEAP

second, he talks about being cheap so he shows photos of these rusty old tools cut out with a dremmel tool that are bound to mangle metal (i know from experiance)

instead of threading his barrel for a flash hider (and he has a lathe) he shortened the barrel , and turned the flash hider to press fit to the barrel and he soldered it on - that makes zero sense to me - NONE
you wont get that kind of quality if you buy a DSA, no sirree!!


that is not what i would consider a professionally built FAL but who am i to say anything

ive built a couple, and from my experiance, nothing beats the correct tooling to do this right. The first time you file on a wrench to fit the barrel flats, and you try to twist the barrel down and the wrench spreads and you round off your barrel flats on a pristine new barrel you will cry!!


my opinions only
i say the DSA is worth 1200.00 just for the piece of mind that you KNOW its built correctly. it also will retain its resale value better i believe.

[M1 Tanker]

I had to dig to find it, but here is a good tutorial. http://www.cruffler.com/trivia-April01.html

I agree with Perro, grinding your own locking shoulders is stupid and a good way to get hurt. There is no way your going to grind it perfectly flat across that surface. The guy that wrote that article was pretty bubba about it.

Also, this is the example where you need the right tools for the job. I bought used tools from someone here a few years ago and they have worked out nicely. Do NOT put a wrench on your barrel flats or clamp them in a vise.

I still don't a DSA STG58 clone is worth $1200.00.

[Otis61]

I agree with Tanker. A DSA worth $1200.00 ? Crazy!
And as for the article,the guy did say it was a presision surface grinder and don't try it at home. What I like about those guys is that they bring up the posibility of building guns to people that would never think about it.
I've been looking at shotgun news for 20 years, and never once thought that I even might be able to build one of those kits that I saw everywhere in there. I always thought those kit ads were for big companys, or professionals that made it thier small buisiness. One year ago I saw in there another article called "BUILD YOUR OWN AK? YES YOU CAN!". And thats when I started doing research, and found the first forum.

I think its good to have lots of info. Even if it might be unorthadox.

[Seattlefungus]

Yeah Pero, I know I over simplified the receivers, but I've also seen three different Israeli models. all different barrel threading and some SA variations and New Zealand too. But You nailed it in the head about the right tools. Also the Gun Plummers guide for the FAL covers most variants and is a great resourse for the FAL Builder. Availible at Airizona Response and GunThings. IMHO, worth the money. Covers tools, model variation and work-arounds for common problems. All I use is DSA receivers for my builds. Gotta say, watch for Enterprise too, spotty work...

[cetme]

I'd go get a DSA all the DSA rifles I've seen have been top drawer.

[Player]

DSA rifles sure are nice, but they act like they own the world and you're their money slave

i hate those 3,4,5 month waits they love to flaunder out

i've heard that the customer service is crap too

[esninak]

why not a Saiga .308 for a backup/hunting/shtf gun. way cheaper, much lighter, and you know the action is bulletproof. just my .02