Hunting with FN/FAL

[TeachMe]

Just thought I'd check with all you experts --

I have looked at getting a FN/FAL, but also need a good deer rifle. DS Arms sells 5 round magazines, so what would you think of using the FN/FAL as a hunting rifle (5 round magazine, possibly a scope on a see-thru mount)? Any major problems I should recognize? Thanks for any help.

Edit - This question also applies to G3 variants (may be heavier than FN/FAL).

 

[newfalguy101]

As long as your state allows em I say go for it.

One caveat however.

You will NOT get the same kind of accuracy out a FAL that you will get from a bolt gun.

Generally speaking a FAL is good for 2-2 1/2 inches at 100 yards, long as you can live with that you will get along great.


Have fun

I guess I really need to clarify that the accuracy numbers I gave are for good milsurp ball ammo, good handloads or factory ammo may very well shoot better.

 

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

Shooting good ammunition from a bench or the bipod, my DSA FAL gets about 1.5 moa. How many hunters honestly need to shoot better than 1.5 moa? In fact, how many people can honestly claim to consistently shoot better than 1.5 moa under field conditions?

As long as you can shoot it well, a FAL is more than accurate enough for all practical purposes.

The weight of the rifle might be a problem, though. FALs are HEAVY, and their balance is usually pretty bad, too. I doubt this would make or break a hunt, but it's something to consider.

Other than the weight, I can't think of a reason a FAL wouldn't work for hunting. But I'm not a hunter, so I could be wrong.

 

[Preacherman]

I've taken more than a few antelope, wildebeest, etc. in Africa with the FAL. It works just fine. However, make sure that yours feeds hunting ammo - softpoint or other expanding bullet. Military ball is pretty much useless for hunting, as it just pokes a knitting-needle-size hole right through the target, which immediately takes off running and may not stop for half-a-mile or more. Tiring follow-up, that...

 

[ny32182]

My DSA SA-58 can do under 2" as well with the right ammo. I don't hunt, but wouldn't see a reason not to use it. It balances better than most of my other rifles.

 

[mattw]

FAL is good for 2-2 1/2 inches at 100 yards

I do that with my M1A using iron sights. I haven't tried it with a scope yet. I have decided that the M1A is my new deer rifle, scope or not

 

[Sylvilagus Aquaticus]

I'll mark this thread for later. I'm going on a hog hunt in E. TX in October or so and I plan to take the FAL. Probably going to load up some 150 grain SP. for the trip.

I think it'll do just fine. Yours should, too, as long as you're comfortable with it and know the capabilities of both your FAL and yourself. Remeber to get in some range time with your chosen hunting ammo before taking to the field.

Reards,
Rabbit.

 

[swingset]

It'll work fine for hunting, but it's a heavy pig.

If you're going to be on foot for long, you won't think it's such a neat idea but it will not fail you, that's for sure.

 

[artherd]

Heavy, but a .308 is a .308 when you hit something with it.

Check feeding and accuracy with your hunting load.

If everything feels good, take it!

 

[m39fan]

As noted, FAL accuracy varies WIDELY depending on the rifle and ammo. A friend's DSA (match barrel, etc) regularly shoots under an inch with Federal Match ammo. He built it just to target shoot with (and drive M14/M1A shooters nuts! ). His production DSA (built with a NEW Steyr kit) shoots very slightly more than 1" with the same ammo. My Century FrankenFal (L1A1 actually) shoots 1.5" with Black Hills but doesn't do that well with Federal. Surplus is 1.75"-2.25" depending on make and lot.

Short answer? If you're stalking you might not care for the weight but hunting from a stand? No worries! Accuracy shouldn't be an issue. Get a BUNCH of ammo different gr. weights and brands and have fun seeing which YOUR rifle does best with. Hey, look at it this way, lot's of guys go out with SKS's and come back with Venison. Your FAL is EASILY the equal of that (no disrepect of SKS's intended!).

Have fun and give us an update!

Take Care,
Mike

 

[JShirley]

I've taken an HK 91 into a deer stand with me.

Once.

The FN-FAL and variants are MUCH better balanced. I've taken a deer with a PSS with 14.5X scope, and believe me, virtually any FN-FAL is going to weigh less and have better balance than that.

Short answer: it will work, but may not be as enjoyable as using a lighter bolt gun.

John

 

[enfield]

My FAL shoots 1 1/4" at 100 yds with surplus ammo and iron sights. I wouldn't be afraid to take it hunting.

 

[MartinS]

It was made to hunt game a lot more dangerous than deer. And they do handle lovely.

 

[Rembrandt]

My son used my FAL hunting Antelope in Wyoming, a little heavy but managable.

 

[redneck2]

Hey...if "The Red Dawn" invasion thing happens during your hunt, you'll be good to go

 

[Rembrandt]

Should always be prepared for the unexpected, never know when you'll be swarmed by herds of charging Antelope....(thank goodness for high cap magazines) heehee....

 

[Onmilo]

' You will not get the same accuracy out of an FN/FAL that you will out of a good bolt action rifle.'

True dat but most of the deer I have killed have been 'done in' with a .30/30 Winchester or a 12 guage shotgun, talk about 'inaccurate weapons!

I have been hunting with an M1A and three AR-15 rifles for several years with more than satisfactory results.
One never knows when one may be attacked by a herd of deranged deer or a pack of drug crazed coyotes!!

If you have an FN and want to hunt with it and all is legal in your state, go for it.

 

[Stevie-Ray]

Rembrandt,
What scope mount is being used in that pic?

I need one for my SAR-48.

 

[Rembrandt]

Scope mount is home made, machined from aluminum with the original Kimber quick detach rings and bases, Swarovski scope. (Dave Talley rings are similar). Had a fellow make this for me some years ago, couldn't find anything on the market I liked. It allows me to remove the scope quickly and switch to open sights without taking off the bolt shroud.

 

[Stevie-Ray]

Interesting. Oh well, I guess it's DSA.

 

[BusMaster007]

With a solid scope mount, I can hardly imagine a better test for the Battle Rifle than hunting.
Go for it.

 

[Rred]

I know it is an old thread but thought this worth mentioning:
The FN-FAL is not a .308 Winchester. Although DSA does make them in .308, the actual military chamber is for 7.62 x 51 NATO
Which is a larger chamber and in military automatic weapons, usually cut even more generously to allow for dirt.
That means you can fire .308 ammunition in an FAL, but it will be a loose fit in the chamber, making it less accurate. From the numbers below you can see that a NATO cartridge can be almost 5 mils longer than a 308, and the minimum length fo a NATO cartridge is 1/2 mil longer than the MAXIMUM for a .308. This means that if you have set up an FAL for zero headspace (for accuracy) with a 308 chamber or 308 cart in mind...you may have a slamfire as soon as the bolt closes on the longer NATO round! Way to ruin your day. (And if you are not headspacing your rifle, you're not even trying to get the best accuracy from it.)

Cartridge- MIN head-to-shoulder MAX
.308W------1.624--------1.634
7.62NATO---1.6345-------1.6395
7.62NM-----1.630--------1.6315

The NATO round is spec'd at 54,000CUP pressure, also 5% higher than a 308W which is spec'd at 52,000CUP. Which means the NATO rounds are also almost intermediate between a 308 and a 30-06, especially if you are hand loading and you load them a bit hot.

These things very much affect accuracy. I can tell you that an FAL, or even a well-made AK47, can fire 2 moa right out of the box. But if you take a NECO firelapping kit and polish in the barrel of a new FAL (or any rifle) just military grade, not a DSA custom job, the stock FAL can shoot sub-1 moa all day long if you can. And having the adjustable gas knob, so you can match up to your ammunition, also is part of that.

Is an FAL a good deer rifle? Well, there are lighter guns. And more accurate guns. And if you are handloading, and have the gas mechanism turned off, the FAL is pretty much a bolt action rifle, no longer semiautomatic. The game warden is going to give you a nasty look for having it at all...but if you understand the rifle and how to optimize it, the odds are it can shoot better than the fellow using it.

 

[Z-Michigan]

Zombie thread! Die zombie!

Anyhoo, most all of the .308 manufacturers will tell you that all commonly encountered-in-the-US 7.62x51mm ammunition is made within the dimensions of SAAMI spec .308 Winchester, and you can reasonably infer that most US-made 7.62x51mm chambers are going to be on the tight side, unless there is a belt feed on the gun that the barrel is intended for.

Also, the supposed pressure difference is an artifact of how the pressure is measured under each test regime.

I am highly skeptical of any claim that a "NECO firelapping kit" will turn a common FAL into a sub-MOA precision instrument. I'll believe it when I see independent results from testing of a statistically significant sample.

 

[Rred]

Z-M,
"I am highly skeptical of any claim that a "NECO firelapping kit" will turn a common FAL into a sub-MOA precision instrument. "
I don't work for them. I have seen two FNs, bought from the same lot and built with the same new military barrels, side by side. Mine firelapped, my friend's not. Doesn't matter who shoots which rifle, the groups from mine are twice as tight as the groups from his.
Years ago "Precision Shooting" magazine reviewed NECOs products and the concept of using moly on your bullets, and their bench results showed the same thing: It works.
It won't turn a swine's ear into a silk purse, but if you start with a good barrel, the firelapping and continued use of moly on the bullets makes an easily visible difference in group size.

"most US-made 7.62x51mm chambers" What US rifles are cut for a NATO round, other than military weapons? Which generally are cut toward the maximum dimensions, again to prevent dirt and grit from causing problems? Regardless of auto fire or belt fire, a military chamber is not normally machined with the intention of sniper accuracy unless it is a sniper rifle.

After all, the entire concept of 3-round semiautomatic fire is because the Army "knows" the average soldier is a lousy shot, and a small burst of three sloppy rounds is the official answer to accuracy for the average GI.

 

[Maverick223]

I really shouldn't feed this necro-thread...but it deserves to be said that the .308Win is EXACTLY the same as the 7.62x51mmNATO cartridge. The pressure is the same (though different units of measure were used, the case is the same dimensions, and the projectiles the same specifications (obviously different designs are used, but the specs. are identical). Military chambers are sometimes cut for a bit more clearance, but that will not effect the interchangeability of the cartridges (that's right use can use 7.62NATO in your bolt gun as well as .308Win. in your FAL with no deleterious effects).

I don't know anything about the NECO firelapping kits, but it does make sense that it might help a mil-spec or worn [but still usable] bbl...that said I wouldn't let one close to any of my rifles with a match or even good factory bbl, as I am not deluded into believing that I am better than Jack Krieger at polishing the bore.