India's FAL: The 1A1 Inch/Metric Hybrid
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For political reasons, India decided to adopt the 7.62mm NATO cartridge when it needed to replace its No1 MkIII SMLE bolt action rifles with a modern self-loader. They chose the FN FAL as the rifle to adopt, but wanted a license to produce it domestically at the Ishapore rifle factory. FN insisted on the Indians buying Belgian tools as part of the agreement, which India was unwilling to do. So instead, Ishapore used the samples it had of both British L1A1 and Belgian FAL rifles to produce its own reverse-engineered drawings.
The resulting plans use a mixture of British ("inch") and Belgian ("metric") parts, and are not interchangeable with either standard pattern. As a result, the Indian 1A1 rifle is a clone of the FAL that is not actually parts compatible with the FAL. That did not prevent Ishapore from producing hundreds of thousands of them, with production apparently ending only in 2012.
Thanks to Sellier & Bellot for giving me access to this 1A1 example to film for you!
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The Indian 1A1 FN's are not uncommon here in Canada. When I bought mine it cost a whopping $125 from International Firearms out of Montreal, and came complete with authentic Indian sand and dirt.
Cana-India
If memory serves they were only for available for about 6 months before the government banned their sale (though people who'd already bought one were allowed to keep them).
_complete with authentic Indian sand and dirt_
Much like some of the Indian surplus ammunition then.
Australia (Lithgow) LA1 also not metric. Different thread pattern on screws which is not really "tooling up" for an FN, just grab a few drills and taps from local hardware store (when tools were high grade steel and not "that stuff") and for who knows why, the flash hider, and otherwise almost identical to the British L1A1 version of FAL (upper receiver lightening).
And Now The Canadian Government Confiscated it from You, Right???....
It’s got that “last ditch rifle” level of machining.
My thoughts exactly. It looks like a 1941 Izzy M91/30.
If you are that interested in Indian military history ( particularly the one post Independence ) , Just look at the case of FV433 Abbot bought by Indian army & how they stripped the Abbot of it's most important user friendly components just so that they could buy it cheap . The article is there in Tanks Encyclopedia
They used to be hyper-socialist when this was made, so it was manufactured by state-run factories with a monopoly that primarily functioned as a Jobs Program for the poor, lax committee made "quality" standards and no private enterprises in the game to compete against and a captive buyer/market.
Also that was the 50s & 60s & the time when India still hasn't gotten rid of old economic practices & was borderline socialist ( & heck poor as well )
@@ThunderingTosspot doesn't matter what system they have back thenx it still sucks for them even in 2025
In the early 90's, I was a gunsmith at Century International Arms (CIA LOL) when they were headquartered in Montreal. We had hundreds of these Ishpahore FALs which were brought in for the American market. However, the Clinton assault weapon ban was in effect at that time, so we could not simply ship complete rifles across the border. What we had to do was completely disassemble the rifles, which included removing the barrel assembly from the receiver. (Even though we had a proper barrel removal press, these barrels were extremely difficult to remove without damaging either the barrel or the receiver, We used to joke about the "bloody big Indian" who screwed the damn thing in during manufacture.) The collected parts, minus the upper receiver, would then be shipped to Century in Albany NY as a "kit" where it would be married up with a U.S. manufactured receiver thereby avoiding the ban on non-US made "assault rifles." I was intimately familiar with the Canadian C1A1 due to having carried one for eight years in The Royal Canadian Regiment and so was able to note the differences in manufacturing quality, The Ishpahores were what can be best described as "rough". Machine marks all over the place, painted rather than parkerized, sloppy tolerances, dings and dents due to softer steel usage. I can only surmise that after the "kit" was attached to a US-made receiver, that the rifle was now in better shape than it was when it first rolled off the assembly line.
we likely know each other lol.
It was just somthing to arm the grunts and no matter how much the army disliked the quality they still had to go with it
@ if India had done it right, they would have had a fine rifle. Our C1's were great, even towards the end.
@@therabbitcanadait's still a good rifle.
Has done it's job.
It's not a licence manufacturing & against the circumstances ichapore did what it can.
Aesthetics are luxury which we couldn't afford back then.
nostalgia, i got a chance to shoot it during my National Cadet Corps(NCC) days, NCC is the couterpart for your American High School/university ROTC programme.
Fun Fact : Indian hosted Armalite company people durong the late 50s and early 60s-to evaluate AR-15. The Indian ARmy infantry board rejected it due to the fact that the rifle was not compatiable with their ceremonial rifle drill ! it took nearly 4 decades to finally adpot a 5.56mm rifle
Old school military habits die hard.
@ it is said, the most difficult part in the army is change. Col Chauhan, a retired Indian Army said combat was never the main focus in developing an indegenuous rifle. The Aussies, Kiwis and the Brits just change their drill when adopting a bullpup rifle, we Indians still rely on the old drill
Sir this is the exact same requirement that's put forward for the new in trials Ugram rifle, and i quote 'The handguard should conform to the existing drill standards.' I myself nearly flipped out after reading that. Like, during combat is the soldier gonna give a crap about drill standards? This is the same thing that along with other factors, ruined INSAS.
@ and also 5.56mm was very new to a 3rd world country like India back in the day. Also it was during the Cold War, the Defence Minister Menon was a very anti-US
@ like i said ergonomics and combat was never the main focus
Nice review. I live just 30 Kms away from this Ishapore Arsenal factory. It's a suburb of Kolkata city now. They now produce ammunition and and sporting rifles and also Ghatak Rifle. A modernised version of AKM 7.62×39mm assault rifle and also pistols for civilians
It looks like it was made using hand files and angle grinders... I'm honestly impressed.
We were actually using Machining tools from 1850s😅
Man, thanks for presenting another battle rifle from my country. Yes, Indian Armed Forces still carry this old timer and it still kicks. You made my day Ian, thanks a lot.
Police and crpf carry this rifle now and also use in training
Used by CRPF is very low quantity and by vdg ( village defence guards). The armed forces do not use this, this was phased put long ago
Still used by local Home Guards though and the NCC
@@Nangsansun ncc ones are non operational
@@karandullet380 who said so? There are both. The DPs are non- functional for Drill Practice only, and the functional ones are used for firing practice. You don't expect NCC cadets to carry them everywhere like the paramilitary jawans do, did you?
I am from India. Getting a gun license is extremely difficult here. I am fortunate enough to get license and was able to buy an RFI Pistol named Ashani. What we often observe is that many of Indian guns lack in metallurgy. Sadly there is no way to confirm if its a thing with civilian firearms only or same for military products too. RFI also makes a .30-06 rifle which is a copy of Sauer 202, I own this too but have shot just a few rounds from it. In India a single round of .3006 costs anywhere from 250 to 600 rupees, and right now 1 dollar is approx 87 rupees, to keep things in perspective. Indian gun laws have made it difficult for law abiding citizens to defend themselves but have normalised illegal firearms across the country. We have to deposit our firearms during elections, imagine that. Maybe you can highlight the importance of protecting 2A in USA by showing state of Indian civil defence and how draconian anti gun laws can get.
Why is India so against arms from other nations being sold to civilians? I can understand their desire to keep the numbers of gun licenses low, but once one attains a license it would seem logical that they should be allowed to buy based on quality. Is it still a class-system where people under the ruling class are required to only buy from Indian conglomerates?
@@workingguy-OU812 its nothing like that, its simply a political thing. Most politician dont want armed citizens, especially in a country like India where politicians keep a lot of people around them for protection and showing their power.
It's a shitty situation. At this point, I almost believe that being a gun enthusiast and being born in India, is like some sort of punishment for misdeeds in past life.
Still, it ain't a hopeless picture either - despite having the shittiest gun laws possible, shooting sports is becoming increasingly popular here, both for air gun and firearm category. Ain't got IPSC or IDPA here but we have ISSF / NRAI events. Guess we'll just take that.
@@workingguy-OU812 depends . because people here misuse things more than they put on for intended use . also it's a taboo from the past to not give weapons to civilians . That is changing slowly in J&K , Himachal , Punjab & Manipur tho
@@workingguy-OU812thats the result of british raj, it was a way to curb rebellion and then our bureaucrats continued it with limited licence issuals only
Ah yes this thing. We see this, the IOF's version of the Browning Hi Power and the Insas being used by police a lot.
Also recently some private companies have started making their versions of the TT33 And M1911 pistols for the civilian market.
One of them is a pretty interesting concept - a 1911 chambered in 7.62 tokarev. Please look into it if you get the opportunity
The interesting thing is that I had always assumed that the pointless 8mm maximum caliber was for both rifles and pistols, but now every Indian civilian gun company seems to have a 1911 in .45 ACP, but still only rifles in .30-06 and .315 (8x50R Mannlicher). I was thinking that if there's any place outside the US that rifle cartridges like .350 Legend, .400 Legend, and .450 Bushmaster make sense, it's probably India: plenty of power for medium-to-big game, but less chance of accidentally hitting something you shouldn't half a mile away.
@@jic1India does have a caliber restriction law, but that restriction has nothing to do with bullet diameter. We simply can not have military/police service calibers.
Eg - 9mm Luger, .38 smith and wesson (not .38 special) and .455 webley (even tho it is probably retired by now) are prohibited calibers. Meanwhile, everything else is legal for civvie ownership. Hence why the pvt companies coming out with .45 acp 1911s.
Now as for rifles - rule is same. Service calibers not allowed
However - Hunting is completely illegal here. So any rifle sold here is sold for 2 things - 1. Target sports. 2. Self defense.
Now the 8mm steyr / .315 bore has been super popular here since ever. .30 06 is also kinda popular. Other calibers like .223, .308 or 6mm creedmor havent entered here yet
The only rifle sports popular here are 10 mtr air rifle or 50 meter rimfire rifle. There is 300 mtr big bore but it aint popular here coz there arent many ranges you can go and practice this.
I remember when a ton of Indian Hi-Powers got imported into the US. A little rough and basic, but seemed to work just fine.
Here's hoping the quality of Indian made weapons goes up
Privatization happened very late and Indian companies have very little experience
There is one company, Syndicate Innovation / keihberg, who introduced a compact 1911, built using imported components, and proof tested using fiocchi +p+ ammo.
No surprises here that this example is super high quality. Maybe this could be done in more areas, until the companies gain enough experience and equipment to make kick ass weapons by themselves
Also - .315 sucks. From what I have read, it makes a 6 inchy group at 200 yards. You could take it to like a center fire free rifle match, if such an event exists, but you'll get humiliated at the match - your score would likely be so low, you'll have to pay a fine (+taxes) to the rifle association who organized said .match
Whoever saved this firearm in this great condition, thank you for redeeming it.
Do not redeem!!!
Why did you redeeem?!
“SAR DO NOT REDEEM IT!!!”
DO NOT REDEEM CARD!!!
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
I'll add my thanks to S & B, and all the manufacturers that open their Reference Collections for Ian and crew to review.
Rarely have i seen such crude surfaces on a weapon that's not made during wartimes...
It was wartime, sorta ...
1965
And then 1971
India has not just seen wars in 1962, 65, 71 and 99 but ongoing counter insurgency and Maoist operations. Even police and CAPF forces use the SLR rifle.
If it works…it works..
Very similar to engine blocks and a lot of casting one would think there would be a "Finish" as to craft and care..... "Getter out the door with a free Slushy to Go!"
Some of the "dubious" surface grade looks more like "casual" surface finishing; Suncorite applied with a scrubbing brush..
That front sight is their way of getting away from the L1A1 pattern with its fiddly lock screw. Post and locking collar that require "special' tools, to prevent Evin and his buddies fooling with the sights.
Me and other "Heeresbergführer" of the Gebirgsjäger had the Opportunity to train with some Indian Mountain Troops forever ago, great Soldiers in the Mountains, surprised us and i don't mean that in an insulting Way.
And yeah hope Ian gets his Hands on more Indian Firearms!
Prost & Cheers from the Snow-Covered Berchtesgaden in the Bavarian Alps
Our mountain troops are made up of Gorkhas as well as people from the Himalayan belt from Ladakh to North East who grow up in the mountains, tough as nails.
The quality of the personnel in the Indian army is very good. There’s a lot of people in India relative to the size of the army and the army is a pretty good career path relative to the other opportunities in India, so the military entrance exams are super competitive and the Indian military can afford to pick out the best applicants and it really shows.
@@Archer89201 not just Gurkhas but also the Kumoan, Mahar, Madras, Sikh, JAKLI, Dogra etc each infantry unit contributes to Corps and are trained HAWS
@@rajasekhe i mentioned the Himalayan belt that includes all the Kumaon , Garwhal and other mountain/hill people
Tbf to the Indians, theyre basically cousins with the Nepalese Gurkhas - that mountain experience mustve rubbed on some of em lol
This rifle won two wars for India. 1965 and 1971 war against Pakistan. It also helped defeat China in a brief deadly one day battle in 1967 near Sikkim where the Chinese attack was effectively defeated by use of this Indian rifle and few hundred Chinese were killed in one day.
I think it was artillery that carried the 1967 battle, wasn't it?
@@Q966aZxEWzmKLc8zBfMB Arti has always been a huge part of Indian forces in all the wars, and even in "peace times". Shelling exchange on the Indo-Pak border is a norm.
65 war victory is claimed by both sides and honestly it's a 50/50 thing. Pakistan failed to seize IOK and India failed to score her main objective of taking Sialkot & Lahore.
So yeah, both actually won defensively not offensively !
About 71 .... I think actual doer was Mukhni Bani group & winners too. India just marched in to sign a surrender pact.
Most Indians don't know their own history so it's best not taken from randoms that claim to be
@@nimomemre6550 couple of correction bruv:
1) "65 was a Pakistani infiltration into Indian territory. When Defenders deter attackers without any land gain in war, that's considered a win, hence India won. Sialkot and Lahore are Pakistani cities and India has enough land as is so India doesn't need more, thus they never were a real objective.
2) I do agree that Mukti Bahini did most in then West Pakistan, but it wasn't as simple as "March in and get the Surrender declaration signed". Lots of planning went into it to make it as seamless as it does now. We know because of declassified documents from both India and Bangladesh.
Additional to the 1st point, that's why India is considered to have won the 1999 war as well, but 1947 is considered a draw because UN was pulled into it.
If it uses the same system as the L1A1 for use with winter gloves on, after removing the trigger guard section the actual trigger guard folds down and is inserted into that hollow section in the pistol grip and the plate screwed back into position.
"Is Indian FAL metric or inch?"
"Yes (and Indian)"
Chicken tikka masala FAL....🤣🤣🤣
@TheNocturnalEvil do you know how india weighs the chicken meat?
On rare occasions we have Ishipore FAL's(FN's to us)popping up in South Africa. Cheers.
Everyone called it an Fn back then! Or SLR!
The SADF had a full auto version, the R1!
A nice capable rifle! Also was obtainable in a folding stock an a shortened barrel! Which was for their paratroopers/parras/parabats/ bat's, which was used by many units! It wasn't to uncontrollable in full auto! As long as your a competent squeezer 😂 an not a spray n prey type🤙
@@Art-c4t Yup ,i have one as we speak. Certainly my favourite in my safe but then i may be biased, Ha.
@@edwardhawkey5714 which one they're all nice rifles! Still relevant today! Very capable!
@@edwardhawkey5714 Do some vids on it! It's easily done on a phone!👌👍🤙
@@Art-c4t I have a Sanitised R1 full length that came back into SA, in full original Rhodesian Camo.
Thank you for doing this video. Your ability to bring weapons from across the world is amazing. Keep up the good work. Love from India
I love the little details on this rifle that are Enfield inspired. Front sight hood, buttstock plate and trap, I think it's probably the same black paint.
Looks just like the crappy paint on my Ishy 2A. I think it may be the same buttplate too.
I used this rifle on firing drill during my police recruitment, pretty reliable I must say.
Ian, that front part of the pistolgrip dissasembly - if you fold the upper curved metal part backwards over itself, it should fit inside of the wooden pistolgrip, allowing it to be screwed back together. This simply removes the area that would get in the way when wearing arctic gloves. Dangerous as not protecting the trigger, but functional with well-trained arctic troops.
That blocky pistol grip though 😬
Run it through a belt sander, guys 🤷🏻♂️
Perhaps they thought the Belgians wouldn't recognize it!
@@jeffreyoldham55 I'm not sure what the Belgians were more insulted by: The blatant patent infringement or the finish of these rifles.
Older INSAS had lots of complaints. From approx 2010 onwards they were corrected and the number of complaints have reduced.
India purchased Romanian PMmd90 not Russian. Now the main battle rifle will be AK203 along with SigSAUER 716i for the hilly regions.
2:10 Fun fact, the PM had no idea about this, so when FN was pissed and the PM heard about it, they basically worked out a deal where India bought some weapons from FN and they agreed to let it go.
no wonder modern Prime Minister bodyguard(SPGS) used mostly FN firearms, FN2000, FN Five Seven, FN SCAR, P90s etc
"no idea" sure lol. You indians are basically like (if not worse than) the Chinese when it comes to respecting intellectual property
I think the magazines were bought from the FN as a part of the agreement.
As a G1SA FN FAL owner, I approve this message
Hi Ian. I have watched many of your videos and have learned a lot. I'm not sure if you have described the removable trigger guard correctly. I am ex British Army and have used L1A1 SLRs in the past. If the Indian version is the same as the inch pattern then there is no special trigger. You simply fold the guard behind the pistol grip insert and screw it back on with the trigger guard now tucked away safely inside the grip giving you access to the normal trigger with mitts on. If the RFI vesion is different to the L1A1 then I apologise and stand corrected. All the best,
Mark. W. (UK).
It's same as the british
Bro I am Indian this probably the only the second Indian Firearm he has done after the India pattern Lee Enfield, please do more Indian guns Like the INSAS( I know it is bad) I am a big fan of you and have been following this channel for years.
(edit) well they kind of made improvements on the INSAS design with INSAS 1B and the EXCALIBUR which are supposed to be better( well its the OFB saying that so you cannot trust them). Indian small arms procurement in general is very confusing on a lot of levels , even the Indian Army for many years were not sure which firearms system or cartridge to standardize on, after the INSAS , sometimes they are buying Sig 716is , sometimes they are buying Romanian Pm90s , some units in the Indian Army still use the Vz-58. Some people argue that the INSAS uses 5.56 cartridge which lacks stopping power, the same people later come out and say that the Israeli Tavor and the M4 are excellent firearms( logic has left the chat). In Indian defence procurement there is a very big import lobby which basically opposes against procurement of any indigenously made firearms especially small arms. The only promising small arm that is being inducted for Rank and File soldiers is the Ak-203 , the Sig 716is that they adopted and bought earlier , they found out pretty quick that it dose not work very well with Indian 7.62 NATO cartridge as it is loaded hotter, hence there were cracks developing in the receiver. This pretty much sums up Indian small arms procurement and development in the last 10 years.
I would love to cover the INSAS, but I have not yet found one to film.
@@ForgottenWeapons Insas is not exported to United States. It is being exported to Nepal and Bhutan
The best bet you have for that is getting in touch with someone in the MoD or Home Ministry, RFI or private companies like SSS Defence
He did another one . some maharaja gun or something like that .
@@ForgottenWeapons As an Indian, please save us the embarrassment and don't make a video about the INSAS.
Bit weird that INSAS didn't show up yet on forgotten weapons, i can hardly think of more fitting candidate.
I'm sure the possibility that its VERY difficult to get a hold of outside of India has eluded you as well.
indian army tries their best to hide their embarrassment, its near impossible to even get a look at it without joining the military
There' a slight difference between forgotten weapons and should-be-forgotten weapons
Nice seeing a video on the Indian FAL, and by Ian no less!
0:58 "Type 56: The Story of China's Army" would disagree with you (at least partially). The CCP was all in on the SKS.
well I mean the other channel’s conclusion was that the type 56 AK was a large reason why china won the conflict, but the CCP decided to mythologize the SKS instead, because the myth fit their doctrine better (and their doctrine fit their industrial capacity better). so there’s no real disagreement analysis. China used the type 56 a lot in this conflict, even if they doctrinally preferred the SKS. and both weapons have their troops a superior volume of fire regardless
During my time in India (as a pilot) one time as I exited the terminal at Vijayawada I met a guy with an Indian SLR. He gave me it, I gave him the mag and quickly stripped and assembled it.He seemed happy enough.
In the 80s, I was an army cadet in australia.... i had a range day with an option of firing a vietnam era triangular grip M16 or an SLR.... I chose the M16, a decision i regret to this day.
I remember the ka-chung sound of the spring in the stock and no recoil, i was amazed how light it was. The SLR remains my unicorn gun, perhaps some day.
Someone should sponsor an ishapore arsenal trip for Ian to show us the weird and wonderful small arms from india.
Please lord no.. it's an embarrassment itself.. I have been inside the factory.. trust me, brotha, it's not worth it.. and I live in Ishapore
@@rajbiswas9077 Does it still look like a Victorian-era factory or what's so terrible about it?
@no1DdC it looks like a Russian Gulag with a bunch of old lathe machines, and the outdoor firing range looks like a 50m Archery range.. very bad working condition.. and almost 50% are lazy and unprofessional
@@rajbiswas9077 thats all of our indian gun culture for you, even pakistani craftsmen make better guns on the street (see vice's documentary)
I've been fixating on these for a while now! I'd love to see you get your hands on a 1C
a wonderful weapon but not the same as the original Belgian one ...it is heavier and has a terrific recoil ...we chose the Carbine and Israeli Uzi back then ....3 para SF Indian army retired ...splendid post my lad
The thing about mixing a metric pattern with an inch-pattern makes me think of the usual joke we have in Europe about the British finally deciding to put an end on their driving on the wrong side of the road: week 1 we’ll have lorries and busses driving on the right side instead of the left; and week 2 we’ll have all the other vehicles join in the move.
The British drive on the right side of the road, ie the left. The Europeans, on the other hand, drive on the wrong side of the road, ie the right side.
Perhaps one day, those poor Europeans (and Americans) will learn to drive on the right side of the road, ie the left.
🇬🇧 Wrong side of the road eh?!
If you visit the UK or Ireland feel invited to drive on whichever side you please ... That's the quickest way to find out which side is the Right one. 🤨
@causewaykayak - you forget Japan, in addition to having a rather weak sense of humour.
CORRECT. No sense of humour.
Japan is not part of either the UK or Ireland. (The very pleasant and useful Common Travel Area).
Given that the first ever traffic direction was on London Bridge…who is it who’s driving on the ‘wrong’ side? :)
Ian has done so many videos and covered so many firearms that he keeps having to go more and more obscure and I love it 😂
Ian : "I would love to get my hands on one." Me: Cool content from India!
I've been watching your videos for a few years Ian and they're brilliant! Concise and insightful
FALs in wood furniture always goes so hard imo
It was a bit large and heavy for the average Indian soldier.. saying that, they managed to use bren guns.. so perhaps it was really an individual thing...
The problem arise not with performance but with the change in the type of warfare Indian army faced .
They went from a Conventional style fighting doctrine of the 50s-60s-70s to facing a more Asymetrix , unhinged & unpredictable warfare against proxies , terrorists , separatists & even special forces who were armed with fully automatic / select fire intermediate cartridges ( AK-47 / type-56 in particular ) & were heavily located in either cities or thick jungles . The 1A1 SLR proved too much of an overkill with heavy recoil & bulky stature ( large barrel & non folding buttstock ) while the STENs & Sterlings 9 X 19 mm proved inadequate against the AK-47s & M-16s used by Enemies , both in Range & penetration + devastation effect
BREN are still used by the Indian Army n Central Armed Police. BREN are common sight at any entry Security Guard Room.
@juleshales8881
I guess these replaced the berthier
@@janwitts2688 Yes sir , it was manufactured till the end 90s or mid 2000s . BREN were being gradually replaced by INSAS LMG . As of now only sentry points of Air Bases and military establishments plus road patrolling party has these guns mounted on Trucks n Armored Cars. These LMG were widely used by the Special Forces also in various cross border n Sri Lankan ops
@@juleshales8881 INSAS LMG & Bren Both are getting replaced by NEGEV NG5 & NG7 ( NG-5 in 5.56 x 45mm & NG-7 in 7.62 x 51mm ) . Also OFB this time came up with an indigenious MAG-58 inspired GPMG chambered in 7.62 x 51mm & slightly lighter than the MAG-58 ( because of Lighter alloy )
I thank Mr. McCollum and the entire crew of Forgotten Weapons for showcasing the pride of our armoury to the world.
Awesome video.. deep deep nostalgia.. how I loved this weapon..
Happy and surprised to see it outside the country. Sometimes I see police carry but it is now reduced to ceremonial roles or in specific region given to the civil militias. You can see this rifle in action on funker530.
Fascinating as usual, thank you!
At approximately 5:27 you start to talk about the "Arctic Trigger" and that is not how it is done.. The trigger guard of the rifle can be concealed inside the pistol grip to enable the firer to wear mittens. You do this by 1) remove the small panel in the front of the pistol grip by removing the screw 2) rotate the trigger guard back behind the panel 3) replace the panel and tighten the screw.
This was the weapon of issue during my training days.Used to fire without a single jam unlike Insas.Mine was a 1968 wooden one just like this one with an uncommon black finish.We also had a 2012 model one presumably from the last production line.Weapon was fine shoots straight parts wont broke down and wont jam.
During my 1977 NCC stint in India, I got to use Enfield. 303 rifle. It is still my cherished memory.
Couple of things. The front sight ears are inch pattern but the actual sight is metric
There is no additional winter trigger, it is the same as the C1A1. The trigger guard rotates to the rear of the cover plate, inserted into the space inside the pistol grip and then the cover plate is screwed back into place.
Im from india state police still use these and no one knows REAL name FN FAL but have there on name SLR(self loading rilfe)
The FAL if you redeemed:
the FAL if you brakes the cycle of rebirth
its lubed with poo
Except for payment.
DO NOT REDEEM!!
@@crswro1690 That's how revolt of 1857 began against british
Issues I've seen with the INSAS:
>sights that lose zero every time you disassemble the rifle for cleaning
>plastic furniture that breaks easily, especially when cold, and a handguard that is almost guaranteed to break when disassembling the rifle for cleaning
>plastic magazines that shatter when dropped, especially when cold, and melt when the gun is used for sustained automatic fire
>gun spits gas and occasionally metal shards broken off the bolt in the user's face
>metallurgy sucks, bolts sometimes crack or spall, barrels warp
>3-round burst likes to break and become full-auto
>markings that look scratched into the metal with a nail or similar object, then smeared with white enamel
>jams worse than Lone Star giving Dark Helmet the raspberry
They managed to make an AK that doesn't work.
Issues I've seen with surplus Indian 7.62x51mm ammo:
>factory-sealed ammo cans that are rusted on the inside
>plastic-sealed 10-round stripper clips with only 8 or 9 rounds on them
>factory-sealed ammo cans full of dirt, sand, straw, or what is presumably cow manure
>factory-sealed cases that are heavily tarnished
>split necks on cases
>bullets inserted too shallow, too deep, or even at a fucking angle
>irregularly-shaped primer pockets
>primer holes that don't go all the way through the brass
>mixed ball and stick gun powder
>rounds with dirt, concrete dust, or pebbles used to make the rest of the weight for missing gun powder
>dented brass
>rounds with no gun powder
>rounds filled to capacity with gun powder
I'm not at all surprised that their Arjun tank has issues like gun barrels exploding when fired, transmissions that fragment like a grenade while shifting gear, thermal sights that don't work in normal Indian temperature ranges, etc. Their QC is barely above that of some subSaharan Africans trying to copy a Khyber Pass gun by hammering a cast iron skillet into the right shape.
When I visited India in 2019, a member of airport security was carring one.
I have one. It’s an interesting rifle and a nice little detour in the Fal story. It shoots nice
Thanks Ian, a friend had one of these before the law was changed in the UK. It would fire three shots then fail. That was caused by machine marks on the slide. He kept the gun for about 3 months, then the gas ring split apart, and he took it back to the gun shop. The old Litts Gun Shop on Malpas Road. Newport. Thanks again.
"for a full hand winter trigger" well that got me laughing my ass off! Thanks Ian for the lols.
BTW you fold the trigger guard into the handle and screw it down and that is your "winter trigger" so you can use the FAL with any mitt or glove. Also the foregrips the 3 hole was for summer and 2 hole or no hole was for winter, depending on nation and obviously India saw no value in making 3 holes when they got same performance and cooling with 2.
HolySHit , how did you get that
most of us Indians cant own a firearm , it is a good suprise to see ForgottenWeapons do a detailed video on these
Please do more Indian Firearms
He clearly says at the beginning of the video he is at Sellier & Bellot in the Czech Republic.
Love from india 🇮🇳
Somewhere on TH-cam is a video of an Indian policeman doing a basic field strip of his Indian FN/SLR
BLINDFOLDED.
By God or your favourite deity, that man was super fast and accurate, which showed the amount of practice that he had put into his performance.
I must confess that if I was to compete with talent yet humble man, I would have the performance speed of Slowpoke Rodriguez against Speedy Gonzalez. Well, in my defence, it is years since I last handled an Australian Army L1A1 SLR, and while I think that the drills are still buried in my brain, they would be very rusty. They would emerge fairly quickly once I placed my hands on an SLR again.
I actually find it quite amazing just how well certain aspects of my training are still accessible after some 37 years since I first learned them.
Mark from Melbourne Australia
Century arms imported hybrid L1A1s and where a pain on the but to fix and make working. Traded that in and replaced it with a imbel reciver with Israel furniture.
I was in the CAF, loved the FAL.
Speaking of Indian firearms....Can you do a video on the INSAS? That would be one I'd love to get ahold of if they ever bring in parts kits when they retire them from service.
Loved my L1A1 SLR Aussie when in service
I have heard you mention the term 'Technical Package' before now and it has gotten me intrigued. What exactly IS a Technical Package? Obviously it has something to do with the manufacturing of the gun but what does this entail?
Is it just the Technical Drawings together with a list of the tolerances for the parts and the materials used or is there more involved?
As someone who is not a Firearms expert or even shoots guns but who has a layman's interest I am interested by terms you use like Technical Package.
Having just started working in the industrial/manufacturing sector, I think you can assume it contains a lot of specifications about parts, their drawings, the details of the materials used for their manufacturing as well... Everything that you need to know about the gun and its "ecosystem" basically
@@Adrian-qk2fn specifications of every part of the rifle in detailed blueprints and license
@@Bazzooka1518so basically a parts sheet?
Indian is great
I would like to see your take on INSAS. I'm currently in Munitions India Ltd. We have an INSAS in our Armoury but someone took away all the magazines.
Most likely the mags cracked
Its a flaw with transparent mags which somehow army demanded despite knowing the issues with it
Big fan from India.
i fired this weapon in my basic training and this think are very accured
Had _Threads_ been more of a military focused movie, this rifle would have been a very good stand-in for FALs manufactured by half-blind machinists and children after the apocalypse.
What coating of finished does it have? It looks awful
we really want a INSAS review ........
hell yeah we do
As a longtime Indian viewer, I love this video, keep it up Ian if you do make videos on this
ah brings back memories from a previous job where there were both inch and metric on drawings at the same time
LOVE that high quality polish
The Indian kits you could find in the late 80s especially from some sources in Canada. The rumor was the barrels were only good for a few thousand rounds and often well worn as kits but still an interesting variant.
As an Indian, I suggest if you want to take a look at insas then try to acquire it from the countries insas was exported to as it is the only way to get a hold of the weapon because now those countries has either ditched or replaced the weapon way early due to its shortcomings. I have held the gun in several army fairs and by my experience i can tell it's combination of ak internals, with hk g3 charging handle, fal like upper with side mounting rails like in ak systems for optic and heavy as fal and g3 like translucent magazines.
Actually impressed. Super hard to recreate the wheel.
I owned a standard/English pattern made in the 80s. Somehow I ended up with a few metric mags which could kinda sorta work once in a while. The gun worked flawlessly with the correct mags and is one of the most enjoyable self loading rifles I ever owned. The machinining on this Indian copy is a far cry from the Belgian model. But I suppose if it worked they did not mind to much.
You've had a number of videos on Ishapore Enfield rifles but I'd given up hope on you ever doing one on Ishapore's FALs. Maybe someday you'll also do the INSAS(Their FNC/AK copy).
Ian, it was quite a pleasant surprise to observe an Indian firearm today. I can suggest that you contact Indian manufacturers/OFBs for a visit. That would be a great way to introduce Indian manufacturers to the US market.
Last year I was in Bodh Gaya, India. I was walking around thee Mahabodhi temple and a young Indian woman soldier walks past me carrying a FAL 1A1 that was almost as big as her.
SLR is still remembered fondly in the Indian Army. Indian Peacekeeping Force (IPKF) intervention in Srilanka 1987-90 was when SLRs shortcomings became apparent. Fighting in Jungle and urban CQBs in srilanka, SLR was unwieldy and cumbersome, whereas their enemy, the LTTE used Kalashnikovs in hit and run attacks. That’s when the first emergency purchase of Bulgarian AKs happened. From then on, AKs were favoured in counterinsurgency ops. Indian Special Forces at that time favoured Yugoslavian vz.58…Units started to convert to 5.56mm INSAS just before the Kargil war. Curiously INSAS has some features of SLR in it along with AK elements…
What sort of metal finish does this 1A1 have? It almost reminds me of the black-lacquer paint finish that the early-pattern MAS-36 and MAS-49 rifles had.
Hey man, I'd love to see a full unbiased review about the INSAS(including shooting vids), especially the 1B version as most of the issues about thr INSAS that people read around were from the 1A variant. 1B is still being used in many places including Indian Army, Border Security Forces and other non border armed forces.
You might find an INSAS rifle outside India if you have or know someone who has contacts/connections in Nepal or Oman. I think they purchased a decent number.
1C was the fully automatic version, it looks different from the 1A with shortend handguard. Somewhere I read that it was done so that these can be used from the firing ports on the BMP.
Its still in use in state Indian Police . Very reliable and got punch in it
Indian rear sights have a push button to release the slider for changing range whereas the British ones only have a spring detent
Beautiful patina
I wonder why India just didn't buy license to manufacture the FN FNCs as a replacement of the 1A1s instead of trying to developing something completely new which resulted in the unreliable INSAS rifles?
1 & 1A for sure ( ones with Orange Handguards )
Not the 1B , 1B1 & Excalibur ( one with Black polymer handguards & folding stocks )
Also 1C is the latest version that has the milled receiver instead of stamped sheet receiver
The first batch of INSAS that were tested had a very solid track record, the design itself has no problem. It's mainly issues like corruption and negligence during manufacture process that led to subpar quality control. Also there were videos of indian soldiers directly dumping cold waters into the rifle in order to quickly cool them after training...and one video of them steaming it for whatever reason. Needless to say a combination of bad manufacture and maintance practice made it bad.
Also Indian OFB did copy the AK ( search for Ghatak & Trichy assault rifle ) , but it is too late move ( should have done in the 60s or 70s itself , heck even in the 80s ) ?
What too much curry does to a mfer
Probably the same reason that they didn't license the FALs: FN required Ishapore to buy tooling from them, and they didn't want to. Also, never underestimate the lure of an 'indigenous' design, especially for a country that still hasn't been independent for all that long.
Indian here, it's still used in police forces and reserve troops, and pro govt militias. It's nicknamed "haathimaar" or "elephant killer". Talked with a personnel and he says that the you need to pull the trigger really hard to shoot. It's like squeezing a lemon.
The 1A1 is a fantastic gun to look at, after all it is the reverse-engineered exact copy of the L1A1 Self-Loading Rifle which is by itself a licensed copy of the FAL. This gun also fits the phrase "Fine, I'll do it myself."
This is what the
guards carry at the national war memorial in India. I have a picture of one of them looking at me like he was going to come kick my butt. I apologize to anyone from India that I cannot remember the proper name of
the memorial. My
memory isn’t as
good as it was.
We never seem to have made or fielded winter trigger extensions....ordnance armourer manuals make no mention of them either.
As far as instruction goes, the front strap on the grip is unscrewed, the trigger guard folded and stowed into the grip and the whole thing screwed back on, leaving the bare trigger to be operated by a golved hand.
When I was in High School, we had a cadet Corps in the school .. and I occasionally had a FN C1A1 in my locker (minus the breach block) for rifle team drill practice in the gymnasium :)
This particular was made at Rifle Factory Ishapore under Ordinance Factory Govt of India .The factory is situated near Kolkata in India at the bank of mighty Ganges river . The factory now produces barrel of Tank n Field gun , Ammunition of INSAS automatic Rifle ,Service Pistol , 12 Bore Gun and Revolver . This rifle is still used by state Armed Police and Cadets Corps . Earlier DSC ie Defense Security Corps , an arm for providing security to Airbases , Strategic facility including Ordinance factory had this rifle . But i guess as of now the DSC deployed in Airbases are converted to more modern rifle like INSAS .
Hope one day Ian can cover a British army issue SLR, we've gotten so close with the trials FALs and the Aussie, Canadian and Indian versions.
I can't put my finger on it, to me it looks like any other FAL, only cooler, more imposing, something...
I hope someday Ian get's his hands on a Portuguese made G-3 and makes one of these wonderful videos of it🤞
He won't need the extra hands for it🤣
Great video
I would love to see a video on the 2A, 2A1.