My new rifle... an STG58 FAL
Sunday, June 19, 2005
My DS Arms STG58 FAL
I have recently purchased another firearm... an STG58. This is the Austrian version of the Light Automatic Rifle known as the FAL (Fusil Automatique Leger). This rifle was developed in Belgium by Fabrique Nationale and, in its various iterations, has served as the main battle rifle for over 90 countries. It has been put to use by Britain, Canada, South Africa, Portugal, Australia, West Germany, Turkey, Brazil and Israel to name a few. This rifle was almost adopted by the USA to replace the M1 Garand. It did well in the trials, but the M14 (a rifle based on the M1) was adopted instead.
It is a very robust piece of hardware, built to withstand a variety of harsh battlefield conditions. It fires the 7.62mm X 51mm NATO (.308 Winchester) rifle round. A double stacked 20 round magazine is standard, although 30 round, 10 round (shown in the photo above) and 5 round magazines are available. The action is known as a "tilting breechblock" and operates by way of a gas piston driven by gas pressure tapped off from the barrel. The amount of gas that enters this system is easily adjustable by way of a gas regulator "dial" located near the front sight. This is a key feature of the rifle, allowing for efficient recoil management as you can set it to push the piston just hard enough to cycle the weapon, minimizing wear on the weapon and lessening the recoil experienced by the shooter. The system also provides a way to adjust the rifle's performance for a variety of ammo and levels of weapon cleanliness.
I have liked FALs for long time. I remember being much younger and watching war movies with my Dad. Once in a while, an FAL would pop-up on the screen. The aggressive look of the weapon always prompted me to ask, "Hey... what kind of rifle is that?" I had always envisioned a "real rifle" as part of my firearms collection. I am not too crazy about the AR-15, though I may own one some day for historical reasons. They do have their place, but I wanted something that fired a bigger round than a .223 (5.56mm X 45mm NATO). A .30 cal was better in my mind. No AK or SKS for me though. The only other rifle that impresses me (other than the FAL) is the Hechler Koch G3/91 style rifles. Seeing an ad for a JLD Enterprises PTR-91 got me started on the road to buying an FAL. In researching that rifle, I came to the conclusion that the FAL was the better choice. That's fine, since I had been a fan of the FAL before I even knew what an HK was.
I finally decided to go with a DS Arms built STG58. The company builds this rifle from used surplus military parts and adds in their own receiver and some other new parts to comply with the US import regulations. Like many gun laws, these regulations were/are a total farce and have led to a number of perfectly legal workarounds so people like me can own these semi-auto rifles. I was a bit nervous about spending $900 on a rifle equipped with military surplus parts, but the next rifle in their lineup, the SA58, was $1400! I could not justify spending an extra $500 for a new barrel and a few more new parts. The majority of the SA58 is made up of the same quality (military surplus) parts that you'd find in an STG58 anyway. Metal is metal... who cares if someone carried a hunk of metal around before I did.
Some stuff about this rifle... It is semi-automatic obviously. It is finished in a rough dark grey-olive colored phosphate finish. The stock and pistol grip are a shiny black polymer. The foregrip is an Austrian style made of pebbly textured black polymer, not metal like the original. You burn your hands less with plastic. I will replace this with a Belgian style fiberglass reinforced polymer handguard because I like the look of that one better. The rifle also has a folding bi-pod that's pretty neat. The front sight is adjustable for "elevation" and the rear peep sight can be moved along a ramp into different notches that correspond with different distances. The rear sight can also be adjusted left or right to change horizontal point of impact (windage). There is a carry handle integral to the Type I receiver. It shipped with a 10 round magazine, though all FAL mags are "pre-ban" because just about all FAL mags you can find were manufactured way before 1994. I guess DSA was playing it safe as New York is one of the least gun-friendly states (lucky me). Oh yeah, I also had to buy a gun lock in order to leave the store with the rifle. I guess I can add that to my collection of locks. The rifle also came with a US made fully legal Austrian style long muzzle break (not a flash diverter). This has been silver soldered onto the threaded barrel.
This weapon disassembles super easy. On this style of FAL, there is a take-down lever oriented vertically near the stock attachment point under the rear sight assembly. Push this lever, and the gun breaks open on a hinge very similar to the way some shotgun open for loading. You can then pull out the bolt carrier and bolt assembly by way of an attached rod referred to as the "rat tail". Once this is out, you can slide out the top dust cover. The bolt comes out of the bolt carrier easily and you can remove the firing pin without any special tools. Just ahead of the gas adjustment dial is the gas plug knob which, when rotated 3/4 of a turn, will allow access to the gas piston and piston spring. Once removed you can get into the channel that the piston rides in and clean it. I've read quite strict advice that no lubrication of any type should enter the gas chamber as it may dangerously increase the pressures there. Some people suggest very slight coatings of lube to keep the parts from rusting in storage. On my initial inspection disassembly, I compromised and wiped down the piston rod with Flitz metal polish which removes oxidation on metal and leaves a light coating of oxidation inhibitor. The abrasiveness of Flitz is negligible in my opinion.
So there it is, my first real rifle. I can't wait to fire this thing! I will post a range report when I finally go. Check out the photos below.
It is a very robust piece of hardware, built to withstand a variety of harsh battlefield conditions. It fires the 7.62mm X 51mm NATO (.308 Winchester) rifle round. A double stacked 20 round magazine is standard, although 30 round, 10 round (shown in the photo above) and 5 round magazines are available. The action is known as a "tilting breechblock" and operates by way of a gas piston driven by gas pressure tapped off from the barrel. The amount of gas that enters this system is easily adjustable by way of a gas regulator "dial" located near the front sight. This is a key feature of the rifle, allowing for efficient recoil management as you can set it to push the piston just hard enough to cycle the weapon, minimizing wear on the weapon and lessening the recoil experienced by the shooter. The system also provides a way to adjust the rifle's performance for a variety of ammo and levels of weapon cleanliness.
I have liked FALs for long time. I remember being much younger and watching war movies with my Dad. Once in a while, an FAL would pop-up on the screen. The aggressive look of the weapon always prompted me to ask, "Hey... what kind of rifle is that?" I had always envisioned a "real rifle" as part of my firearms collection. I am not too crazy about the AR-15, though I may own one some day for historical reasons. They do have their place, but I wanted something that fired a bigger round than a .223 (5.56mm X 45mm NATO). A .30 cal was better in my mind. No AK or SKS for me though. The only other rifle that impresses me (other than the FAL) is the Hechler Koch G3/91 style rifles. Seeing an ad for a JLD Enterprises PTR-91 got me started on the road to buying an FAL. In researching that rifle, I came to the conclusion that the FAL was the better choice. That's fine, since I had been a fan of the FAL before I even knew what an HK was.
I finally decided to go with a DS Arms built STG58. The company builds this rifle from used surplus military parts and adds in their own receiver and some other new parts to comply with the US import regulations. Like many gun laws, these regulations were/are a total farce and have led to a number of perfectly legal workarounds so people like me can own these semi-auto rifles. I was a bit nervous about spending $900 on a rifle equipped with military surplus parts, but the next rifle in their lineup, the SA58, was $1400! I could not justify spending an extra $500 for a new barrel and a few more new parts. The majority of the SA58 is made up of the same quality (military surplus) parts that you'd find in an STG58 anyway. Metal is metal... who cares if someone carried a hunk of metal around before I did.
Some stuff about this rifle... It is semi-automatic obviously. It is finished in a rough dark grey-olive colored phosphate finish. The stock and pistol grip are a shiny black polymer. The foregrip is an Austrian style made of pebbly textured black polymer, not metal like the original. You burn your hands less with plastic. I will replace this with a Belgian style fiberglass reinforced polymer handguard because I like the look of that one better. The rifle also has a folding bi-pod that's pretty neat. The front sight is adjustable for "elevation" and the rear peep sight can be moved along a ramp into different notches that correspond with different distances. The rear sight can also be adjusted left or right to change horizontal point of impact (windage). There is a carry handle integral to the Type I receiver. It shipped with a 10 round magazine, though all FAL mags are "pre-ban" because just about all FAL mags you can find were manufactured way before 1994. I guess DSA was playing it safe as New York is one of the least gun-friendly states (lucky me). Oh yeah, I also had to buy a gun lock in order to leave the store with the rifle. I guess I can add that to my collection of locks. The rifle also came with a US made fully legal Austrian style long muzzle break (not a flash diverter). This has been silver soldered onto the threaded barrel.
This weapon disassembles super easy. On this style of FAL, there is a take-down lever oriented vertically near the stock attachment point under the rear sight assembly. Push this lever, and the gun breaks open on a hinge very similar to the way some shotgun open for loading. You can then pull out the bolt carrier and bolt assembly by way of an attached rod referred to as the "rat tail". Once this is out, you can slide out the top dust cover. The bolt comes out of the bolt carrier easily and you can remove the firing pin without any special tools. Just ahead of the gas adjustment dial is the gas plug knob which, when rotated 3/4 of a turn, will allow access to the gas piston and piston spring. Once removed you can get into the channel that the piston rides in and clean it. I've read quite strict advice that no lubrication of any type should enter the gas chamber as it may dangerously increase the pressures there. Some people suggest very slight coatings of lube to keep the parts from rusting in storage. On my initial inspection disassembly, I compromised and wiped down the piston rod with Flitz metal polish which removes oxidation on metal and leaves a light coating of oxidation inhibitor. The abrasiveness of Flitz is negligible in my opinion.
So there it is, my first real rifle. I can't wait to fire this thing! I will post a range report when I finally go. Check out the photos below.
Sunday, June 12, 2005
Dream Theater's 8th Album... Octavarium
Dream Theater is one of my favorite bands and they've just released their 8th studio album called Octavarium. This is a "local" band in a way as most of the members are from Long Island. They play progressive metal, a style of music that is a cut above other forms of metal in my opinion. Typically, progressive metal bands feature virtuoso players who are incredibly knowledgeable about music theory and song writing. Their sound and musical arrangements are usually very complex and they can pull off the sound quite well on stage. Usually, prog bands sound just like their albums while playing live, unless they choose to embellish or stylize their songs. Synthesizers are usually part of the mix in prog bands.
This band is home to one of my favorite drummers - a man who can give Neil Peart of Rush a run for his money. His name is Mike Portnoy and he's from Long Beach, Long Island. The band's guitarist, John Petrucci, is another one of my favorite musicians and hails from King's Park, Long Island.
Unfortunately, I am not too excited about this release. I don't know... they just seem to be coasting a bit now. I may need to give it several listens to get into it though. All I know is I didn't listen to it on the way to work the morning after I bought it. I've always liked Dream Theater for the Music, not really the vocals. It seems that the vocals and keyboard are given the more control of the songs on this album. They may be trying something different... or I am just mistaken. Overall, I'm just not really impressed with this album when compared to other things they've done. Don't get me wrong... these guys are more impressive on a bad day than any act you hear on the radio. They just seem to be putting out stuff recently that is not on par with their earlier stuff as far as complexity and high-level playing. It's just unimpressive as far as the Dream Theater music scale is concerned... they have set the bar pretty high for themselves though.
My feelings on this release are especially disappointing seeing as I have pretty much written off the music of Steve Vai and Joe Satriani, two of my favorite virtuoso guitarists. They seem to have fallen victim to the "just lay down a rhythm track and jam over it" approach to song writing. I expect better from them. I was hoping this Dream Theater album would restore my faith in my musical heroes.
Anyway, the album art is pretty cool and features symbolic imagery focusing on the number 5 (number of band members) and 8 (8th album... Octivarium... you get it). Back to the music now... I think most of it will grow on me... but several of the songs will leave me saying, "What's up with this?" for a while. Let's go song by song:
Track 01 - Root of all Evil: This song is one of the cooler songs on the album. It contains some riffs from their previous release, Train of Thought and follows the aggressive feel of that album. I wouldn't be surprised if this is a leftover from the time when they were writing/recording Train of Thought. I like listening to it... it has a good groove. The guitar solo is a little low in the mix... the keyboard solo is stressed more. There's a cool moment of keyboard interaction in there for a few seconds. 4 of 5
Track 02 - The Answer Lies Within: This is a ballad that reminds me of some parts of Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence. Mostly piano, background guitar and even some orchestral stringed instruments. Not to sound harsh, but I usually skip this one. 1 of 5
Track 03 - These Walls: I like this one. The heavy parts sound a lot like the style of Linkin Park. No rap, scratching records, or monotone screaming blonde haired dude though (good thing). There's a 6/8 - 5/8 time thing going on in this one. The drums during the quiet vocal parts feature a lot of cymbal and hi-hat work by Portnoy making the section a lot more interesting. This song is more radio friendly than most of their stuff. Maybe I'll actually hear it on the radio some time soon? 4 of 5
Track 04 - I Walk Beside You: This is one of those encouraging feel-good ballads that belongs on a movie soundtrack. It's pretty quiet in the verse. Portnoy fills this in nicely with some cool drumming. It's okay I guess, but a little too "Wind Beneath My Wings" for me. Some sections remind me of Rush's Presto album for some reason. 3 of 5
Track 05 - Panic Attack: This song is a 5/8 time metal monster. It's kind of odd, but it reminds me of a song my friend Walter wrote for acoustic guitar. They ripped off my boy's riff! I always think of that when I hear this song. There's some good keyboard - guitar stuff in here and some nicely fitting Petrucci finger acrobatics. The occasional high pitched vocals in this one that don't seem to fit. I really like this one in spite of that though. Good solid Dream Theater head banging song. 5 of 5
Track 06 - Never Enough: This song is kind of weird, but I like it somehow. It's hard to describe this one, it seems to mix musical styles. This one is very "progressive" in my opinion... just... different. It has a lot of cool parts that I like to hear. The changes are arranged very well and everything fits. The drums are really cool in this one. I like this one too. 5 of 5
Track 07 - Sacrificed Sons: This song is the albums political activist song. Because of that it's along the lines of "The Great Debate" and "In The Name of God" and deals with terrorism. It's a little eerie sounding and there's an odd time jam in the middle that's cool I guess. 3 of 5
Track 08 - Octivarium: This song is the epic of the album, clocking in at 24 minutes. It has a very Pink Floyd-ish beginning that lasts nearly 4 minutes before heavy guitars kick in. They are then replaced by an acoustic guitar and a flute section. Then the vocals come in. Awesome drums, subdued guitars and piano This song also reminds me of parts of Six Degrees. This song is kind of slow, but I can foresee it growing on me. It has a lot of cool things going on musically. I like the keyboard solo. I'd have to say that this is classic prog. It may not be my favorite as far as their epics go, but I have to give them credit for it. It is has some cool ideas. Cool guitar-keyboard interaction. 5 of 5
In writing this review, I listened to the each song very carefully while typing my thoughts. It's better than I gave it credit for when I started this according to my number ratings. On my initial listen I was disappointed, but this album may grow on me. Still, I don't find myself saying, "Man, I want to hear (insert any song here)." There's some things I don't like about it, but overall I guess the DT guys can be proud of themselves. It's not good for bands to keep doing the same thing all the time I guess. You can read some other reviews of the CD here.
I've just found out that John Petrucci's solo album, Suspended Animation, has been released I am looking forward to hearing that. I have heard most of the songs on it performed live during the G3 Tour he was a part of. This was over 3 years ago and he announced at the show that these songs would be featured on his new solo album. I've been waiting for a long time John! That's okay... Eric Johnson made me wait a long time for his "new" album too. It comes out Tuesday and I can't wait.
All right... all right! I'll give Octavarium another chance!
This band is home to one of my favorite drummers - a man who can give Neil Peart of Rush a run for his money. His name is Mike Portnoy and he's from Long Beach, Long Island. The band's guitarist, John Petrucci, is another one of my favorite musicians and hails from King's Park, Long Island.
Unfortunately, I am not too excited about this release. I don't know... they just seem to be coasting a bit now. I may need to give it several listens to get into it though. All I know is I didn't listen to it on the way to work the morning after I bought it. I've always liked Dream Theater for the Music, not really the vocals. It seems that the vocals and keyboard are given the more control of the songs on this album. They may be trying something different... or I am just mistaken. Overall, I'm just not really impressed with this album when compared to other things they've done. Don't get me wrong... these guys are more impressive on a bad day than any act you hear on the radio. They just seem to be putting out stuff recently that is not on par with their earlier stuff as far as complexity and high-level playing. It's just unimpressive as far as the Dream Theater music scale is concerned... they have set the bar pretty high for themselves though.
My feelings on this release are especially disappointing seeing as I have pretty much written off the music of Steve Vai and Joe Satriani, two of my favorite virtuoso guitarists. They seem to have fallen victim to the "just lay down a rhythm track and jam over it" approach to song writing. I expect better from them. I was hoping this Dream Theater album would restore my faith in my musical heroes.
Anyway, the album art is pretty cool and features symbolic imagery focusing on the number 5 (number of band members) and 8 (8th album... Octivarium... you get it). Back to the music now... I think most of it will grow on me... but several of the songs will leave me saying, "What's up with this?" for a while. Let's go song by song:
Track 01 - Root of all Evil: This song is one of the cooler songs on the album. It contains some riffs from their previous release, Train of Thought and follows the aggressive feel of that album. I wouldn't be surprised if this is a leftover from the time when they were writing/recording Train of Thought. I like listening to it... it has a good groove. The guitar solo is a little low in the mix... the keyboard solo is stressed more. There's a cool moment of keyboard interaction in there for a few seconds. 4 of 5
Track 02 - The Answer Lies Within: This is a ballad that reminds me of some parts of Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence. Mostly piano, background guitar and even some orchestral stringed instruments. Not to sound harsh, but I usually skip this one. 1 of 5
Track 03 - These Walls: I like this one. The heavy parts sound a lot like the style of Linkin Park. No rap, scratching records, or monotone screaming blonde haired dude though (good thing). There's a 6/8 - 5/8 time thing going on in this one. The drums during the quiet vocal parts feature a lot of cymbal and hi-hat work by Portnoy making the section a lot more interesting. This song is more radio friendly than most of their stuff. Maybe I'll actually hear it on the radio some time soon? 4 of 5
Track 04 - I Walk Beside You: This is one of those encouraging feel-good ballads that belongs on a movie soundtrack. It's pretty quiet in the verse. Portnoy fills this in nicely with some cool drumming. It's okay I guess, but a little too "Wind Beneath My Wings" for me. Some sections remind me of Rush's Presto album for some reason. 3 of 5
Track 05 - Panic Attack: This song is a 5/8 time metal monster. It's kind of odd, but it reminds me of a song my friend Walter wrote for acoustic guitar. They ripped off my boy's riff! I always think of that when I hear this song. There's some good keyboard - guitar stuff in here and some nicely fitting Petrucci finger acrobatics. The occasional high pitched vocals in this one that don't seem to fit. I really like this one in spite of that though. Good solid Dream Theater head banging song. 5 of 5
Track 06 - Never Enough: This song is kind of weird, but I like it somehow. It's hard to describe this one, it seems to mix musical styles. This one is very "progressive" in my opinion... just... different. It has a lot of cool parts that I like to hear. The changes are arranged very well and everything fits. The drums are really cool in this one. I like this one too. 5 of 5
Track 07 - Sacrificed Sons: This song is the albums political activist song. Because of that it's along the lines of "The Great Debate" and "In The Name of God" and deals with terrorism. It's a little eerie sounding and there's an odd time jam in the middle that's cool I guess. 3 of 5
Track 08 - Octivarium: This song is the epic of the album, clocking in at 24 minutes. It has a very Pink Floyd-ish beginning that lasts nearly 4 minutes before heavy guitars kick in. They are then replaced by an acoustic guitar and a flute section. Then the vocals come in. Awesome drums, subdued guitars and piano This song also reminds me of parts of Six Degrees. This song is kind of slow, but I can foresee it growing on me. It has a lot of cool things going on musically. I like the keyboard solo. I'd have to say that this is classic prog. It may not be my favorite as far as their epics go, but I have to give them credit for it. It is has some cool ideas. Cool guitar-keyboard interaction. 5 of 5
In writing this review, I listened to the each song very carefully while typing my thoughts. It's better than I gave it credit for when I started this according to my number ratings. On my initial listen I was disappointed, but this album may grow on me. Still, I don't find myself saying, "Man, I want to hear (insert any song here)." There's some things I don't like about it, but overall I guess the DT guys can be proud of themselves. It's not good for bands to keep doing the same thing all the time I guess. You can read some other reviews of the CD here.
I've just found out that John Petrucci's solo album, Suspended Animation, has been released I am looking forward to hearing that. I have heard most of the songs on it performed live during the G3 Tour he was a part of. This was over 3 years ago and he announced at the show that these songs would be featured on his new solo album. I've been waiting for a long time John! That's okay... Eric Johnson made me wait a long time for his "new" album too. It comes out Tuesday and I can't wait.
All right... all right! I'll give Octavarium another chance!
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