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That would be century built FAL.

I have one. One of the problems is there are so many variations from year to year. No one can really say what it is. If it has an Imbel receiver instead of a century built receiver atleast you will have a good base to build off of if something terrible goes wrong.

I bought my R1A1 Imbel 3 years ago... I knew little about the gun but it was half as much as a DSA and was right there in front of me.

Unfortunately there was something wrong with the barrel and we could not get it to headspace correctly with the locking shoulder

I had to buy a new barrel and upgraded a bunch of other parts while I was at it. In total I spent another $500 on the gun(including the new barrel) once the gunsmithing was all done. It's ugly as it has not been refinished yet, but it was pretty much everything I wanted in a FAL. I have not shot any groups with it yet, but accuracy is pretty decent and I am happy with it.

Of course, I did have close to $1200 into it and a lot more headache then just buying a DSA and waiting the 3-4 months it would have took to get it.

The last FAL I bought was a SAR 48 Sprindgfield w/ an 18 inch barrel. A smith looked it all over before I bought it and it's WAY sweeter then my IMBEL. I only paid $1150 for my SAR48... :s0155:

I would steer clear of century built receicer guns for sure though.

And who knows, you may get a great shooting gun that needs no work. I was an uneducated buyer at the time...
 
The bit above about there being so many variations is totally true.

I have one built on one of the ever-so-dreaded Hesse receivers - bought it from a smith who'd done a whole lot of work to it and it runs great, no problems to speak of with it... apparently it wasn't so reliable straight from century for the original owner though.

Some, probably the majority, do run fine straight from the century, but they put out a lot of lemons. That seems to be the consensus on the boards.

Imbel receiver is the best bet for reliability probably. $600 is a good price these days, a decent price even last year. If it's a century / hesse receiver and it hasn't been worked on at all it's kind of a gamble... See if you can get it checked over or shoot it first.. if it runs jump on it.

** I am NOT an expert on the FAL platform by any means... **
 
Guys thanks for the input. I just found out that the FAL I was considering had the barrel cut down to 16", has a Hesse receiver. I think I am going to pass on this one.
 
You never know it might be fine, but I'd be almost be a little suspicious of someone trying to get rid of a rifle at a price that almost seems too good given the current market. Perhaps a wise choice passing on it.
 
Well I bought it for $400.00 so I couldnt pass it up, but if it is junk as you say, it will go right on gunbroker. I am a HK-91/M-14 guy, but couldnt pass this up!:s0155:

I will pull it out and check the receiver make. Thanks for the heads up. Some lucky person on gunbroker will probably get it!
 
I wouldn't call it junk... I am just not a fan of Hesse or Century Receivers (poor QC and even poorer customer service) Some of those receivers run pretty good and make for a good truck gun.

Can you email me pics of it?

Alot of the Century Guns are Imbel receivers that are stamped "C.I.A." and/or "Century" and do not have the Gear Logo on the right side and have been accused of Century Made receivers which are not the case.

SF-
 

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