HK91 vs. FAL

You gotta pay to play. But fortunately not all at once. I would get the HK first then the FAL later. But that is what I'm doing. I have never shot an FAL but I have read a lot about them the mags are cheap and available on both rifles and the ammo for the most part is too. But the deciding factor for me getting my CETME G3 is the slapping down of the charging handle. Just like the MP5! But I never knew what a pain it was to unlock the handle until later.

And about the plasma rifle being NFA item. No at first but even though its not a firearm it would get added later with a antigun congress. Just like the streetsweeper is.

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Originally Posted by Tor Larson

Hope these helped. If the world was coming to an end and you needed a gun that would never break, never need parts, and never need cleaning then the HK91 would be it. The rest of the time? I'd take an FAL hands down. Next up? an M1a.

Tor

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Great input Tor! I have had a little experience getting to try out both rifles (enough to understand exactly what your criticisms of the 91 system are). Our views are almost identical on the two, except that I think I would put my preference on the 91 overall.
I'm not sure why you mentioned the hk mount scarring the reciever badly though, as it is very firm and I didn't see that. Biggest complaint for me was definately the flip charging handle as you mentioned. Not easy to use and despite supposed ergonomics, I don't like a charging handle on the left side anyway.
Accuracy of each types I tried was very good/excellent, but was done with iron sights on each. I found the hk sights far superior for sight picture and much more solid. I was pleased with the results of shooting each, though I would have to give the fal the nod for offhand because of the narrower, more comfortable handguard. For prone the hk was the king.
As far as brass on the 91 goes, I guess that is the price one must be willing to pay for losing the gas system. FWIW neither of the two fals cycled perfectly. One could be adjusted to work properly, while the other could not. Obviously the 91 just worked.
On the 91 recoil comment, I noticed that too. Recoil was harsher than the fal. I attributed it to the fact that the rifle did not have a muzzle attachment on at the time. With brake installed, are you saying that recoil is still harsh? The hk, definately felt much more "mechanical" during operation, but it did not affect shooting results.
Of note, the hk had the williams trigger job done I was told. It was fairly light with very crisp release. I would characterize it as target grade. The two fals had standard triggers, I believe and they were not bad either. I have heard about the stock 91 triggers being very heavy.
Did see the weapons after use and did not notice any major fouling on either type. I guess one thing I don't know is how often one would have to clean the rollers and how difficult it is to do.
I will probably stick with my bolt rifles, but definately found these two rifle designs very interesting and a great experience to use.

Now about the m1a...?

I have both a CETME and a FAL. I'd say the differences have been pretty well laid out in here for both. I like the CETME well enough, for a blaster. It's actually fairly accurate if you can get over the trigger. It does do a number on brass, though, so if you reload I'd use something surplus that you wouldn't want to. The FAL is just a sweet gun, nice ergonomics, better trigger than a G3/CETME/91, and the folding stock on a FAL is much better than the collapsible unit on a G3. I admit I like my FAL wayyyy better than my CETME. One point the G3 types have right now - ultra cheap magazines.

Now, M1A? That's a whole 'nother animal! IMHO, it outclasses either the G3 types or the FAL, higher quality, better trigger (or can be made so), better scope mounting ability, etc etc. I like them well enough that I have two, and I'm considering a third. [Twist]

I have had both, dumped the 91 for a fal, then got another fal, and want to buy a 3rd heavy bbl for long range work. All fals are dsa. Long story short, as quoted before, go run a 3 gun match with both, and think about which one will go home with you with giving u a black and blue eye. My 91 always bucked so bad that it would hit me in the right eye socket. Fal mags are just as cheap as 91's, parts are abundant for both platforms...i just like mine to say fal on em...

Having shot military Fal's in 82 and 89 I got in on the ground floor of building them when it cost all of $300. I liked the G-3's but were never comfortable with them. Tried to buy a Cetme a few years ago just to have one but it fell through.

So having a bunch of Fals and kinda liking the Cetme I did this.

That one is new Jerry. I remember you starting it just never saw the completed rifle. I like it.