Austrian FAL, Proper bayonet presentation

[osprey]

About 15 years ago I acquired a nice FAL with Built on an Imbel receiver with an all matching # Austrian parts kit. It also came with some interesting items like a leather period correct mag holder with cleaning kit in one side and a soldiers name inside the top cover. It also came with a frog sticker in a sheath that fits the Austrian style flash hider/barbed wire cutter muzzle device. This leads me to my question. The bayonet slides on and is kept from sliding off by a simple spring loaded interference mechanism on the bayonet that engages the recessed rings on the muzzle device. It can be indexed so the slots in the bayonet Mount line up with the slots in the muzzle device but there is not anything to keep it from rotating. I don't think a rotating bayonet is how it was intended. Any FAL experts out there know how the proper mount is supposed to work? @Boboclown ?

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[Boboclown]

The STG-58 never had a bayonet made for it. A tubular bayonet will fit, but the Austrians never made a bayonet for their FALs.

 

[osprey]

So what you are saying is the bayonet I have sorta fits but was not really designed to work with this flash hider? Why the fark did they make the muzzle device so gawdaweful long then?

 

[Boboclown]

It was designed to stabilize a a long rifle grenade.

 

[Boboclown]

Basically, the stoll device is a grenade launcher like any other one, but they made it long for the longer rifle grenades and to keep it stable as its being fired. Their rifle grenades were longer than the rest of NATO's.

The Austrians don't really care much for bayonets. Even the bayonet/bayonet lug for the Steyr AUG is for export, and not their own troops. Or at least that's the way it was originally, no idea if they still do the no bayonet thing.

 

[osprey]

Might have to engineer me a way to fix that mother forker on there without permanant mods to the rifle. It does fit pretty good other than rotating. Thanks Bobo I figured you would have an answer for me.

 

[Boboclown]

That bayonet was made for a flash hider like this: DS Arms - DSA FAL SA58 Belgian Combo Device Titanium Flashider - 9/16x24

But I'd suggest trying to find a Brazilian one instead.

 

[osprey]

Du hast recht! I dug out this parts kit and it has that muzzle device. Lo and behold the bayonet fits perfect. As long as these muzzle devices are not pinned or welded on I should be able to swap as I believe the threads are 9/16-24 LH on both.

 

[Boboclown]

I'd just build that kit up and use the bayonet on that instead of switching. Can't hurt to have two rifles.

I'd also get bipod cut handguards too.

 

[osprey]

I intend to some day. I have researched tooling up to do it but I already have too many hobbies. Do you build your own Bobo and what kind of investment in tools is required?

 

[Boboclown]

I don't build my own yet. You'll need a barrel vise block, a vise, receiver wrench, headspace gauges, and some pin gauges to determine what locking shoulder to use for proper headspace.

 

[Boboclown]

You can make your own barrel vise block though. Drill a hole into a block of wood, make it smaller than the diameter if the barrel, then cut it in half.

 

[powermad]

FAL muzzle threads are left hand.
Imbel Flash hiders are notoriously tight, wood blocks may not do it.
180 deg past hand tight is not uncommon. All the ones I had the muzzle was deformed from "timing" the FH.

I had mine in an aluminum barrel vise and had it locked down in a 60 ton press to get them off.
Easiest way to remove them after securing the barrel is to get a 1/2" fine thread bolt and nut.
Run the nut down the bolt all the way and thread the bolt into the flash hider. The FH is threaded 1/2" fine for the Blank Firing Adapter.
With the bolt threaded into the FH tighten the nut against the FH and give her Hell.

Imbel also times the barrel this way, no shaving till it's at 10 O-clock hand tight and then torque it down.
Just crank it down till timed. Pretty sure they use Silverback Gorilla's high on PCP to torque them up.
I just use a cut off wheel and cut a groove on the receiver stub where the barrel threads are till the threads just started to show. Use a chisel and whack the groove to split the stub. The barrel can now be removed by hand.

All of my FAL tools were bought from folks on the FAL files.
The barrel shaver I made myself by gluing various grit disks to CD's.
Using the stub as a backer just keep spinning disks till the barrel times at about 10 O-clock or so. Takes forever but it's cleaner than a black marker and small file.

Built about 10 during the fun FAL days. Excellent condition Imbels with 95% finish left for $75. Premo STG kits for $150 or so. Once you had the tools a nice FAL only set you back $450 or so to build.
Now you're lucky to get a battered Imbel kit for $450.
Should have seen the writing on the wall and never sold the kits I had stashed away or at least kept one.


My first one.


Then I put a South African Para lower on it.


STG I helped build. Built on a DSA receiver.


Good times

 

[Heyjoe]

Pretty sure they use Silverback Gorilla's high on PCP to torque them

This cracks me up!

 

[Ura-Ki]

I'd just build that kit up and use the bayonet on that instead of switching. Can't hurt to have two rifles.

I'd also get bipod cut handguards too.

If your intrested, I would swap you a brand new set of bipod cut hand guards for your non bipods! I'm prolly going to swap all Mine over to the pebble grain stuff any way, and possabley the rubberized pistol grip ( FN SAW 249)
The FAL is a super easy build to do, I can loan ya the receiver wrench and a vice insert barrel clamp that uses lead to clamp your barrel! I may also have a pair of sight alignment rods that make barrel timing a snap! I can usually assemble a FAL in less the 2 hours if I have all the parts on hand a set of barrel shims ( just in case) and bolt lug shoulders!

 

[Boboclown]

If your intrested, I would swap you a brand new set of bipod cut hand guards for your non bipods! I'm prolly going to swap all Mine over to the pebble grain stuff any way, and possabley the rubberized pistol grip ( FN SAW 249)
The FAL is a super easy build to do, I can loan ya the receiver wrench and a vice insert barrel clamp that uses lead to clamp your barrel! I may also have a pair of sight alignment rods that make barrel timing a snap! I can usually assemble a FAL in less the 2 hours if I have all the parts on hand a set of barrel shims ( just in case) and bolt lug shoulders!

Never heard of barrel shims being used on metric pattern barrels.

I'm keeping my non-bipod cut handguard for my paratrooper build.

 

[Ura-Ki]

Never heard of barrel shims being used on metric pattern barrels.

I'm keeping my non-bipod cut handguard for my paratrooper build.

I don't know what kit he has, ether metric or inch, so to cover my bases, I would bring shims along!

 

[Boboclown]

I don't know what kit he has, ether metric or inch, so to cover my bases, I would bring shims along!

That muzzle device and bipod cut? Almost always gonna be metric.

Typically when an inch pattern FAL has a bipod its like this:


But there's always that oddball in there somewhere I guess.

 

[Ura-Ki]

Ya never know, I have run into so called "Kits' that have been scabbed together with all sorts of parts! It's kind of common now days with all the good kits dried up!

 

[turq]

From those glory days I kept an Israeli HB gas block; no internal plug.MMAO.