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Handy · September 1, 2002, 03:21 PM

These comparisons are interesting, but do fall victim to what weapons the writer had access to. There are so many parts guns and half baked clones out there:

Most Cetmes Americans have tried are parts guns with recoil brakes. No kidding, they shoot soft. So do Fals with breaks.

G3 sights are not great accuracy sights, like the M1A, but they are easier to acquire.

The G3 and the Fal have more combat experience than the other two combined. The Fal's minor combat picadillos are well discussed. On the other hand, you don't hear much at all about the G3 in the field, because not much goes wrong with it. It's issued and liked from the artic circle through the Sahara to the jungles of Africa, Asia and South America. They tend to function well even if poorly maintained and are often rumored to be close to the AK in reliability. When they do finally jam, only the chamber has to be cleaned to return to function. They are can also be fired fast or full auto better than the M1A (without E2 stock).

I've had two Springfield Greek G3 rifles. 1 MOA accurate and shoots well in hot or cold, dirty or clean. You may have to spend $40 bucks on a Williams trigger job, though. OH NO!

The cheap G3 mags are still readily available.

My take:

Factory G3 (German, Greak, Portuguese): best all arounder for accuracy and reliability, out of the box. Clumsy, but proven. Claw mounts expensive, but do return to zero. Recoil can be lessened with different buffers. Clones a bad idea - see Fal.

AR10/SR25: can be the most accurate for the money. Expensive mags in either case. AR design doesn't lend itself to optics backed up with fixed sights. Dirty.

M1A: best mix of accuracy, cost, ergonomics and sights for Hi-Power type shooting. Some scope mounts problematic. Accuracy a result of fine tuning and money spent, rather than built in like the AR and G3.

Fal: best cheap clone. As long as the parts are close to spec, you'll get a decent battle rifle for half as much as anything else. A good start if it's got to be .308 and less than $1000. Least accurate, but not bad at all. Tuned DSA guns can be 1MOA.

Of the above list, only the FAL and G3 are often seen in the US in factory issued format. The M1A is an M14 copy with cast parts and there aren't too many original Armalite's around outside of Sudan. The modern AR10 is a reengineered copy that uses different mags and the SR25 is an improvement designed primarily for accuracy, not battle. Careful what you're comparing.

September 1, 2002, 03:21 PM	#8
Handy Junior member Join Date: August 31, 2001 Posts: 8,785	These comparisons are interesting, but do fall victim to what weapons the writer had access to. There are so many parts guns and half baked clones out there: Most Cetmes Americans have tried are parts guns with recoil brakes. No kidding, they shoot soft. So do Fals with breaks. G3 sights are not great accuracy sights, like the M1A, but they are easier to acquire. The G3 and the Fal have more combat experience than the other two combined. The Fal's minor combat picadillos are well discussed. On the other hand, you don't hear much at all about the G3 in the field, because not much goes wrong with it. It's issued and liked from the artic circle through the Sahara to the jungles of Africa, Asia and South America. They tend to function well even if poorly maintained and are often rumored to be close to the AK in reliability. When they do finally jam, only the chamber has to be cleaned to return to function. They are can also be fired fast or full auto better than the M1A (without E2 stock). I've had two Springfield Greek G3 rifles. 1 MOA accurate and shoots well in hot or cold, dirty or clean. You may have to spend $40 bucks on a Williams trigger job, though. OH NO! The cheap G3 mags are still readily available. My take: Factory G3 (German, Greak, Portuguese): best all arounder for accuracy and reliability, out of the box. Clumsy, but proven. Claw mounts expensive, but do return to zero. Recoil can be lessened with different buffers. Clones a bad idea - see Fal. AR10/SR25: can be the most accurate for the money. Expensive mags in either case. AR design doesn't lend itself to optics backed up with fixed sights. Dirty. M1A: best mix of accuracy, cost, ergonomics and sights for Hi-Power type shooting. Some scope mounts problematic. Accuracy a result of fine tuning and money spent, rather than built in like the AR and G3. Fal: best cheap clone. As long as the parts are close to spec, you'll get a decent battle rifle for half as much as anything else. A good start if it's got to be .308 and less than $1000. Least accurate, but not bad at all. Tuned DSA guns can be 1MOA. Of the above list, only the FAL and G3 are often seen in the US in factory issued format. The M1A is an M14 copy with cast parts and there aren't too many original Armalite's around outside of Sudan. The modern AR10 is a reengineered copy that uses different mags and the SR25 is an improvement designed primarily for accuracy, not battle. Careful what you're comparing.