Semiauto FAMAS F1 Rifle
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- čas přidán 8. 08. 2016
- / forgottenweapons
The French FAMAS was one of the first bullpup rifles to be adopted and built in large numbers by a military power. It was adopted by France in 1978 at right about the same time as the Steyr AUG was being adopted by the Austrian military. Bullpup rifles offered a short overall length without sacrificing barrel length, an advantage that seemed quite valuable for troops who were to spend significant amounts of time in vehicles, where space is at a premium. In French service, the FAMAS was also made the formal replacement for both the MAS-49/56 rifle and the MAT-49 submachine gun, thanks to its compact nature.
The FAMAS is interesting mechanically, as it is one of very few production delayed-blowback rifle designs (the other common one being the CETME/HK series). The FAMAS uses a lever-delaying system, which allows a very simple bolt and action mechanism. The F1 model (adopted by the French Army and still in use today, making up the bulk of FAMAS production) has a 1:12" twist to its rifling, effectively limiting it to 55 grain projectiles - and it also requires steel-cased ammunition to run reliably. The G2 variant (adopted in 1995 by the French Navy) changed to a 1:9" twist, introduced a full-hand trigger guard, and also uses NATO standard AR15 magazines instead of the proprietary 25-round magazine of the F1.
In the late 1980s a small number of semiauto FAMAS rifles were made by St Etienne and imported into the US by Century. Most people say 100-125 rifles, although serial number suggest this may have actually been 225-250 rifles. Regardless, they are quite scarce and expensive today.
Only a bloody Frenchman would make a rifle with three round burst, but has a magazine capacity that isn't divisible by three.
does this guy live in rock island auction house?
One of the things I really enjoy about Ian is he doesn't pretend to "know everything" about the firearm. He does say I don't know, when he doesn't know.
You forgot to mention another major adopter of the FAMAS, the Genome Army
The bayonet on a bullpup never looks right to me.
No jokes on French army's surrender, my faith in humanity is restored :)
ridicule high fire rate
I'm not much of a gun nut but man, something about the general bulpup design gets me. It's so sleek and looks so futuristic. I'm not sure how practical it is, but damn does it look awesome.
Love watching Ian. He's the Bob Ross of firearms hostory.
The early to mid 1980's was a great period for firearms and collectors per se. When I was in college, my mother got me a FAMAS for my 25th birthday. She knew I wanted one so bad, but as a college student I was rich in knowledge and very poor financially. I was quite lucky, since roughly 250 to 300 were subsequently imported. I believe my Mom paid roughly $1,050.00. I had an idea these would be collectible, hence I rarely fired it. I figured my FMAS was worth approximately $5k. I saw that the example in the video sold for $21,850.00. I never imagined this bullpup would go for that much. I have a pretty extensive collection. I've been collective/buying since circa 1982. I also have two FN-FNC. When I got one to fire a lot...still one of my favorite rifles to shoot. And shortly after that purchase, I bought another one...which has been fired only 200 rounds. During the 80's got a HK 93&94 and a bunch of other stuff. It's an addiction I can live with.
I'm going to answer a question that's everybody keeps asking: why are the French not making magazines that hold a multiple of 3 rounds ?
Forgetten Weapons video on a Russian/american/german rifle: 10min long
I learnt more about the famas in this video than I did in over 3 and half years of being issued with it! But then again I did all my basic training without understanding a single word of French.
I remember the FAMAS being my favorite weapon in Counter-Strike when I was younger because of the burst fire. Finding out it was a crutch for noobs both in game and in real life is somehow both cutting and reassuring.
When you mentioned the EM2 I went on google to look up what it looks like (never seen one) and of course the first photo is you holding one.
Memories... I remember not thinking much of it when I got #83991 handed to me at Saint-Cyr, mostly because of all the plastic parts. And then we went to the shooting range, prone position, five rounds, 100, 200, 300 meters... looking at the result I turned to full respect for my rifle.
Once you get all the plastic off that gun really is tiny and so "simple"-looking.
Ancien Fusilier Marin, j'ai eu plaisir à utiliser cet arme formidable. Vive la France! 🇨🇵
Thank's for taking an unbiased look at the FAMAS as this truly was a marvel of engineering for the time and while bullpup has its cons the FAMAS is exceptionally well balanced and actually quickly grows on you !
I was always curious about this gun, ever since I saw it in MGS1.