Considering getting rid of the FALs

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  • gunz4me

    Target Shooter
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    7   0   0
    Sep 14, 2006
    842
    18
    Lafayette
    I hope someone can talk some sense into me because lately I have been thinking long and hard about getting rid of my FAL collection. About the only time I break them out is when I go to the WMA, and now I can't stand shooting them at Sherburne since they put those stupid baffles up. I was thinking of using the proceeds from the FALs to fund some more NFA goodies.

    Can anyone sway me one way or another on this particular issue?

    Here is a photo of the collection in question:


    Edit, from top to bottom that is
    A Century built G1 that actually works; a Coonan arms Argentine build from a local gunsmith; a Springfield SAR48; and an Austrian STG58 built by the same gunsmith who built the Argentine FAL.
     
    Last edited:

    Tx_oil

    Tx_oil
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    9   0   0
    May 21, 2009
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    Youngsville
    No one should be without FAL(s). Maybe sell the Century build, but keep the STG58, the Imbel SAR 48 and the Argy, for Christ's sake!
     

    noob

    enthusiast
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    41   0   0
    Mar 18, 2008
    4,284
    48
    New Orleans
    interests in FAL's have dropped severely..... you should liquidate them.... fire sale



    waiting on your classified posts.
     

    gunz4me

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    Sep 14, 2006
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    Lafayette
    I guess I could hang on to them until the next gun ban hysteria strikes. I recently turned down a $1,100 offer on the Argentine FAL because that is the nicest one that I own and would probably be the last to go. The only two that I would consider putting on the chopping block are the G1 and the SAR48, with the SAR48 being the tougher one to give up.

    I have a couple of other family members trying to snag some other items in my collection that I rarely shoot. One uncle wants my milled Norinco SKS and a cousin really wants my Norinco NHM-91. I have a harder time letting go of those because I rarely see them pop up for sale.

    Back to the Argentine FAL, it doesn't have the proper front sight base. Aren't they supposed to be open ear? The only reason I ask is due to the fact that it came without a front sight post locking plate, and I ordered the Argentine locking spring from DSA only to realize that it won't work with my FSB.
     
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    Tx_oil

    Tx_oil
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    9   0   0
    May 21, 2009
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    Youngsville
    I have an Argy kit built on an Argy receiver, and it has closed ear front sights, as well as the para type rear sights. Mine was one of the Sarco kits.
     

    falshooter

    Well-Known Member
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    28   0   0
    May 5, 2013
    713
    63
    Ponchatoula/Hammond
    The market is soft right now for FALs. - Keep them until the next gun scare.-
    The SAR48 will have the highest resale value. Next would be the StG, the Coonan/Argy and last would be the Century G1.

    You should keep one . I would keep the StG with the Imbel receiver.
     

    RRB

    Member
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    Nov 30, 2011
    16
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    Lafayette
    What are the motivations for selling the FALs? You did mention that you are not shooting them enough. Would you replace them with something else? Do you need the money? The storage space?

    If you have totally lost interest in FALs then I would suggest unloading them when the market demand is best, and in the order of the best deals you can get for each individual rifle. Allegedly, the market is currently "soft" on FALs. You could probably part out the Stg for more than you can get for it as a complete rifle. From what I can tell from the photo, it looks like it is built on a gear logo Imbel receiver. The Imbel (if I see it correctly), the Stg kit, and the 922(r) compliance parts all sold separately could bring you the best return on your investment, depending on what you have invested in the complete build.

    Selling the Argy/Coonan might also bring better bucks separated into parts than the assembled rifle might bring as a whole.

    The SAR-48 should be the easiest to sell and hopefully for the most return on investment (depending upon what you paid for it). But SAR-48s have long been considered undervalued "sleepers" on the FAL market: they often have as good or better fit and finish as the Type III Belgians, but invariably command a lower price.

    Like you, I think of dumping some of mine from time to time. The three criteria that mean the most to me in deciding what to keep and what to get rid of are: 1) collector value and eventual return on investment, 2) practical accuracy, and 3) novelty/practicality. That equates in my situation to keeping the pre-bans, the PARA, and the one or two others that may be most accurate.

    If I were you, I would be tempted to keep, first and foremost, the SAR and the Stg. Whatever you decide to do, the best to you. You do have a nice looking family of FALs!
     
    Last edited:

    gunz4me

    Target Shooter
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    Sep 14, 2006
    842
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    Lafayette
    I just don't shoot them enough. The sad thing is I really don't need the money. In fact, I acquired my last two FALs from a family member who needed money. He's too proud to "borrow" money and therefore must give something in return for the cash. Had he not needed the cash, the STG and Argentine wouldn't be in the picture... Literally.

    The thing is, I used to have a soft spot for the FAL back when Enterprise Arms had the kits for stupid cheap. Unfortunately, I was in college at the time and couldn't devote the funds to a kit, receiver, and 922(r) parts which were fairly non-existent. Later on, when I was better off financially, I picked up the Century R1A1 G1 rifle as an impulse buy. A few months later, the SAR went up for sale by a police officer who was initially denied the ability to use it as his duty weapon. Not long after I purchased it, someone signed off on his request, but he already had an AR-10. I even picked up all his surplus ammo because the AR-10 would only cycle properly with domestic ammo.

    As I stated, I was kicking around the idea of dumping them, but, a couple of collectors in the family have first dibs on anything that I decide to get rid of. I'll also wait for the market to recover before I let go of any of them.
     

    mudflat

    New Member
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    0   0   0
    Jun 27, 2015
    2
    1
    Glasgow, Montana
    You know you'll regret it, so don't do it. Once they're gone, that's it they're gone.

    I hope someone can talk some sense into me because lately I have been thinking long and hard about getting rid of my FAL collection. About the only time I break them out is when I go to the WMA, and now I can't stand shooting them at Sherburne since they put those stupid baffles up. I was thinking of using the proceeds from the FALs to fund some more NFA goodies.

    Can anyone sway me one way or another on this particular issue?

    Here is a photo of the collection in question:


    Edit, from top to bottom that is
    A Century built G1 that actually works; a Coonan arms Argentine build from a local gunsmith; a Springfield SAR48; and an Austrian STG58 built by the same gunsmith who built the Argentine FAL.
    Don't! I have two plus an FN 49. I'lll never lose them, never!
     

    gunz4me

    Target Shooter
    Rating - 100%
    7   0   0
    Sep 14, 2006
    842
    18
    Lafayette
    As of today, I am happy to report that I am almost out of the .308 game completely. The last two FALS are spoken for, along with all the magazines and ammunition. Maybe I made a mistake, maybe not. I don't care for shooting these rifles at the indoor range, and I don't care for shooting them at Sherburne since the installation of the blast baffles. Oh well, I'm moving on to more modern and quiet rifles. :D
     

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