It was a warm and sunny Sunday morning…bright, not a cloud in the sky. Your typical day in Phoenix. RickD and I decided to test the accuracy of milsurp ammo in our FALs. This seemed a perfect day to do it.
The temperature started in the low 70's at about 08:00 and got to the low 90's by the end of the shooting day, around 14:00. Winds were non-existent in the morning, but started gusting around 11:30-12:00 hard enough to raise "crime scene tape" streamers to about a 45 degree angle. However, since the wind was consistently from our 6:00 o'clock position, this wasn't a concern. All shooting was done at 100 yards at Ben Avery Shooting range, for those who know it.
The first set of tests were conducted using Rick's Argentine FAL with a 20" barrel (or is it 21"?) and a Leupold Vari-X II 2-7x33 compact scope on a DSA mount and ARS trigger job (about 4-5 pounds). The second set was from my AzExArms StG 58 built on an Imbel Gear Logo receiver, no trigger job (about 9 pounds). All shooting was done in 3 shot strings, two strings per ammo "brand" on two different targets. Shooting was done from a sandbag on top of a 50-cal ammo can under the forearm and a sandbag/handhold for the rear.
The shooting strings were shot within about 2 minutes for 3 shots, with a 25 minute break between the strings (the range is on a timer for patching/pulling targets). Only 3 rounds were loaded in the magazine at a time. TimW did all the shooting for this test.
Finally, since we have found that sometimes the dealers don't know what the ammo is they are selling, I have listed them by Headstamp and what we think it is. For example, one local Phoenix dealer is selling FNM ammo as "Spanish", when FNM is of Portuguese manufacture. If we are incorrect as to the designation, we would appreciate corrections.
Set 1 - RickD's Argentine FAL w/ Leupold 2-7x33 compact scope, ARS trigger job
Headstamp String 1 String 2
F-78-39 - Portuguese 1-3/8" n/a
HO/HD - sold as both Port and Malaysian 0-3/4 1-3/4
RG (Radway Green, UK) 2-1/2 2-1/2
FNM 80-11 - Portuguese 0-1/2 0-1/2
Cavim 91 - Venezuela 3-1/2 3
Set 2 - Tim's AzExArms StG-58, open sights, no trigger job
Headstamp
String 1 String 2
F-78-39 - Portuguese n/a n/a
HO/HD - sold as both Port and Malaysian 3-1/2 4
RG (Radway Green, UK) 3 2-1/4
FNM 80-11 - Portuguese 3-3/8 2-3/4
Cavim 91 - Venezuela 3-1/2 3-3/4
I did not record the shots RickD made with his FAL using Winchester and Federal match ammo, however they were all sub-MOA in the area of about 0-3/4". Very impresive.
There you have it. Hope this helps.
Oh, for those in Phoenix who want a chuckle, Bear Arms is selling the FNM ammo, calling it "Spanish" and charging about $4.50 per 20 rounds....
TimW
Phoenix
The temperature started in the low 70's at about 08:00 and got to the low 90's by the end of the shooting day, around 14:00. Winds were non-existent in the morning, but started gusting around 11:30-12:00 hard enough to raise "crime scene tape" streamers to about a 45 degree angle. However, since the wind was consistently from our 6:00 o'clock position, this wasn't a concern. All shooting was done at 100 yards at Ben Avery Shooting range, for those who know it.
The first set of tests were conducted using Rick's Argentine FAL with a 20" barrel (or is it 21"?) and a Leupold Vari-X II 2-7x33 compact scope on a DSA mount and ARS trigger job (about 4-5 pounds). The second set was from my AzExArms StG 58 built on an Imbel Gear Logo receiver, no trigger job (about 9 pounds). All shooting was done in 3 shot strings, two strings per ammo "brand" on two different targets. Shooting was done from a sandbag on top of a 50-cal ammo can under the forearm and a sandbag/handhold for the rear.
The shooting strings were shot within about 2 minutes for 3 shots, with a 25 minute break between the strings (the range is on a timer for patching/pulling targets). Only 3 rounds were loaded in the magazine at a time. TimW did all the shooting for this test.
Finally, since we have found that sometimes the dealers don't know what the ammo is they are selling, I have listed them by Headstamp and what we think it is. For example, one local Phoenix dealer is selling FNM ammo as "Spanish", when FNM is of Portuguese manufacture. If we are incorrect as to the designation, we would appreciate corrections.
Set 1 - RickD's Argentine FAL w/ Leupold 2-7x33 compact scope, ARS trigger job
Headstamp String 1 String 2
F-78-39 - Portuguese 1-3/8" n/a
HO/HD - sold as both Port and Malaysian 0-3/4 1-3/4
RG (Radway Green, UK) 2-1/2 2-1/2
FNM 80-11 - Portuguese 0-1/2 0-1/2
Cavim 91 - Venezuela 3-1/2 3
Set 2 - Tim's AzExArms StG-58, open sights, no trigger job
Headstamp
String 1 String 2
F-78-39 - Portuguese n/a n/a
HO/HD - sold as both Port and Malaysian 3-1/2 4
RG (Radway Green, UK) 3 2-1/4
FNM 80-11 - Portuguese 3-3/8 2-3/4
Cavim 91 - Venezuela 3-1/2 3-3/4
I did not record the shots RickD made with his FAL using Winchester and Federal match ammo, however they were all sub-MOA in the area of about 0-3/4". Very impresive.
There you have it. Hope this helps.
Oh, for those in Phoenix who want a chuckle, Bear Arms is selling the FNM ammo, calling it "Spanish" and charging about $4.50 per 20 rounds....
TimW
Phoenix
