CAI Galil Q?s

[Click Click Boom]

Ok, I did a quick search and didnt find much.

I know Century has spotty build quaility but, I was wondering what the general view of there Galil Builds were? Are they real Galil rifles or just .223 AK'S with Galil stock ect.Are the IMI parts Kits with the required US made parts? My second question; If you get a gaili with some minor problems is it still a good platform to have a good smith go thru the rifle and make it into something nice?

 

[jlbraun]

They're built on real Galil recievers. I think they were being built by Ohio Rapid Fire rather than the normal troupe of monkeys they use.

 

[Click Click Boom]

Im thinng of picking one up for $900 OTD. I should just save up and buy a IMI Galil for the average going rate of $2700. But $900 sounds better.

 

[trbon8r]

Yes they are real Galils.......sort of. They are built on a U.S. made Ohio Rapid Fire milled receiver. There are no original IMI receivers to be had, and if you did find one the price would be prohibitive. Ohio Rapid Fire is the only game in town if you want a true milled receiver Galil. Either that, or pay the big bucks for an original IMI Galil.

I have one of the ORF Galil receivers I sent to AZEX to be built up on my Galil kit. I would recommend buying a receiver, and parts kit, and having AZEX or another good smith with Galil experience do the build. The extra 300 bucks you spend will get you attention to detail and a nicer rifle than you will get buying something slammed together by the Century apes.

 

[jlbraun]

Century Galil, real Galil reciever, $900:


Red Jacket Firearms "Galil", Saiga reciever with Galil parts, $1049:

I would look seriously at the Saiga-reciever one, rather than trust the Century monkeys.

 

[Click Click Boom]

I am looking for as close to ther eal thing as I can get. The century kits use IMI Surplus parts kits, is this correct?

 

[trbon8r]

Yes, the Century kits use surplus IMI parts. The condition varies from ok to abysmal.

 

[Click Click Boom]

I went to go look at a couple of CIA Galil's that a local gun shop had on hand. One was a low SN gun,a little over #300 the other was around #1050. The more recent manufactured one looked better but the the action wasn't very smooth and the magazine seated loose. I ran some dummy rounds thru it and it failed to chamber 7 of 10 with one mag and 2 of 10 with the other mag. The early production guns action was smoother and the mag fit in snugly with no play but was inseted and removed with no problem. It chambered and ejected all 10 dummy rounds several times with no problem. He wants $850 and tax for the low SN example. He is holding the rifle for me until tommorow. It seems like a pretty good roll of the dice on that example. The dealer told that he has had to retun one of his 12 CIA Galils that was in the low 900s for SN. The finish was a little beat on the low SN gun but it seemed to be assembled much better. This appears to be a good price.
Should a bite?

 

[MIL-DOT]

i asked the same question here a few months ago, not realizing that CAI was century. i turned and ran...and have been running ever since!
another point i don't think has been mentioned, i believe they are built on US made NON chrome-lined barrels.another minus, at least for me.

 

[Click Click Boom]

I understand. But for $850 I didnt think it would have a chrome lined barrel. . I know Century doesnt have a good reputation but they seem to be really harshly reviewed on this site. The way I am looking at this purchase is for 850 bucks even if I have to have a smith go over the gun I wont be any worse off then if I bought a ORF gun. And from what I have heard they are hit or miss as well. If I want I can re barrel the gun later.

 

[trbon8r]

Take a chance if you want, it's your money.

I'm not sure how much luck you will have finding a quality smith that will want to take care of Century's screw ups. I don't understand why you would spend $850 on a rifle with spotty quality control, and then budget in more money to unscrew the thing. Why not just pay $1200 and get your build done right by a good smith?

 

[geojap]

I know Century doesnt have a good reputation but they seem to be really harshly reviewed on this site.

Those are the words of someone who has not ordered from Century a lot. I have and their CAI-made rifles are truly awful. The worst, really. Go ahead and get you some notches on your belt so you can find out from your own experience then.

They are great ammo and accessory dealers, however.

 

[MudPuppy]

I like mine, I've put a few hundred rounds through it with no issues at all. Not sure about the barrel, but chrome lining is not so important to me (I don't see much corrosive 5.56).

Red Jacket firearms may be very nice indeed, but they're stamped--the CAI galils are milled.

It'd likely be safer to get an ORF or AZEX, but I rolled the dice and am happy so far.

 

[Prince Yamato]

I think people exaggerate the CAI quality problem. Look, it's clear the firearms are not manufactured by individual gunsmiths. They're most likely made by a group of people working assembly line style. So yea, you do get variances in assembly. I had a problem with a WASR-2 I ordered from them. A little sanding and it works fine. It's not like if you buy the Galil from them that it'll blow up in your face. It just means you might need to fine tune it yourself.

 

[Joe Demko]

I bought a Century Yugo UF, too. It's worked beautifully with nary a problem since the day I bought it. It's also pretty nicely made for an AK. Century doesn't enjoy a good reputation, it's true, but the one thing I bought from them proved to be a-ok.