FN CAL: Short-Lived Predecessor to the FNC
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- Опубліковано 3 січ 2019
- / forgottenweapons
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The CAL (Carabine Automatique Leger; Light Automatic Carbine) was FN's first attempt to produce a 5.56mm rifle as a counterpart to the 7.62mm FAL. While light and handy, the CAL was a relatively complex and expensive design, and failed to garner many sales. About 12,000 were made in total before FN pulled the gun in favor of the FN FNC, which would prove to be much more successful.
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What surprised me is why someone didn't just scale down the FAL. You would think they would have wanted to make a selling point of the carbine that it was a known system of excellent service with the added perks of lower weight and all. Why they felt compelled to make this new bolt system that did everything to complicate the process instead of simplifying it is fascinating.
Iirc, on the FNC video Ian mentioned that the FAL uses a roller (I don't honestly remember which part has rollers on it) and that it makes it hard to downsize that particular part for using 5.56.
I think Brazil did scale down the FAL. They switched to a rotating bolt though. IMBEL MD-97 and IA2
There’s also this video Ian made … ua-cam.com/video/IM136ze48_Y/v-deo.html
Actually, the IMBEL MD series came first
Now we want a video on the Swedish AK5c!
*please
*we'd like..
Snälla vapen-jesus, ge oss din predikan på AK5-C!
dear weapon gods in weapon heaven please bring the swedish ak5c to the weapon jesus
Sir Gun Jesus, if it would not in any way inconvenience you, we the people of the gun world who are not worthy of such mechanical wonders, would be most pleased if you were to present to us a most sought after presentation of the Swedish AK5-C.
🎵The bolt is connected to the... Cam pin!
The cam pin's connected to the... Firing pin!
The firing pin's connected to the... Cross pin!🎵
Brandon W. ....and the cross pin has rolled away. Another advantage to the AR-15 cotter pin is that it does not roll.
Dem pins, Dem pins gonna...roll away, Dem pins, Dem pins gonna...roll away, Dem pins, Dem pins gonna...roll away all the way to the floor
The red thing's connected to my wristwatch....uh-oh......
Now hear the word of the Gun Lord.
Im signing this in Dr Nick's voice.....
Father in law is a soldier in the Belgian military. They had this one for a few months before they just gave em back their old bolt actions before switching to the FNC. Still used today!
"The special thing about it is the fire control group"
*doesn't show the fire control group*
Ian I am disappoint
He do be disappoint
Hmm...
This looks like an FAL and a Dawewoo K1 had a child...
And that child was raised by the AR-15 uncle...
True
Tis a very shiny gun
@@dragonstormdipro1013 Upotte!!!
And then emigrated to sweden of all places
This is..... somehow really accurate idk how though... weird
There is no military rifle on this earth more beautiful or elegant than the FN CAL.
Heard a story (from T. Mark Graham) of a guy who bought a CAL, yes, a CAL at a gunshow for $1200. The seller thought it was just a FAL in 223. There are a few semi CALs here in the US.
If only we could get a mud test on that sealed charging handle track...
Yeah I wonder what will happen. Will it work nicely or failes miserably?
This rubber type identical with sig sg 550. Maybe ian can test sg550, this rifle is more available
I really like the FNC and it is cool to see the CAL. It is sort of like a lost brother to the FAL and FNC but I am sure it is not any less fun than the other two. I like the other beauty the G3 too and it's 5.56 brothers (or 9mm, looking at the MP5). Then again I could go on with the SIGs and other cool stuff. Thank you Ian!
I used to have an FNC w/ fixed stock. It was kinda near, but not really as good all the way around as the ar15....
I can kinda see why they didn't do so well.....
@@cs-rj8ru what do you mean the FNC didn’t do well? it was adopted by belgium, sweden, indonesia, as well as many other smaller powers. their goal was to make a cheap and easy to produce/maintain for countries with smaller militaries not as capable of making rifles in their own and it did quite well at that.
don't forget the AR70, those euro rifles were very aesthetic
Ha, the burst thing, we almost never used it in the service. So the first time I was on the range and got one round when I fired on burst I thought my rifle was broken. Nobody had told us about that.
Wondering what other rifles/smg's that have same problem with burst not resetting..besides M4. Only knew fnc and mp5 with burst mode that resets everytime u let go of the trigger
The only time we ever used burst was when we drew too much ammo for the range and had to do a big spendex and shoot it all because turning it back in was such a big hassle.
could listen to hours of the background history you are providing..hope you have a great new year and best wishes from zurich :)
I really appreciate the amount of thoughtfulness you put into your research & presentation. I also just watched your video on the Barrett light fifty. Always enlightening. Thank you.
Always wanted to see the CAL on Forgotten Weapons. Thanks Gun Jesus! Hope to see the FNC next. ;)
Reminds me of the Sig550, especially with that rubber-sealed cocking handle groove, and cocking handle connecting the bolt carrier with the recoil spring.
It looks like a pretty good rifle. Indonesia is one of the countries who uses the FN FNC but makes it locally as the Pindad SS1.
FN is quality personified.
@Mr. Van Dyck Hello, glad to see that you are aware of words, as you know all Capital Letters in the name is a person/corporation.
Corporations are dead as are persons with their names in all caps. Just look at your legal documents, your name is in all caps/same as all the folks in the cemetery.
Another great video as always. Great job. Looking forward to the next one as usual.
Revisit the FNC, please. I need to see it in 1080p. Maybe you get to fire it this time around, too!
well your wish came through
The way that trigger guard pivots is clever, there's that big nub still under the trigger to prevent your other fingers or the material of the glove over the top getting caught behind the trigger
I don't know why, but I'm really drawn to the rifles by FN! Appreciate the video, Ian, you're on a roll!
That things clean af
I do not agree on the criticism of the rubber flaps. Firstly, if it has not deteriorated on a gun from 1967, pretty safe to say the material is stable. Secondly, the same idea is used on the Stgw 90 / SIG 550 and after a decade of personal use, I cannot see any issue with these rubber flaps nor do I know of any widespread problems. Depending on the design, they do not move much and are thus under little stress. It is actually a really good design.
I'm not sure. That CAL looks to be in pretty good condition. Was probably stored in conditions that wouldn't really stress or wear the rubber out. Mind if I ask what the conditions are like where you used the 90 and 550? I'm a little skeptical because I've seen rubber dry out before.
I think rubber drying out is definitely an overwrought issue, all you have to do is smear a little gun oil on those lips when you clean, and that will lock in the moisture and they will stay supple for a very long time.
It's definitely an issue that can happen. If you work on cars you will see dry rot. Tires as example will dry rot even if they sit in a wearhouse.
yeah I like the flap gasket, too. If they work and you are in muddy/wet/dusty conditions where you really need them, you could just replace it. If they actually get worn out, and you aren't in dirty conditions you could just ignore it.
I bet they wear more when the gun cycles while its hot or very cold, (vs sitting on a shelf) but like you say it looks like they used The Good Rubber for that one. (maybe silicone, it's got that glossy wobbly look in the vid, and it would make sense for the temperature)
(what can I say, I always thought the condom-on-the-barrel thing was a smart idea, and they should have given soldiers a whole load of them in olive drab for rifle protection (so the clever soldiers could also use them on their "guns", instead of the other way round :O)
@@duffelpuffelmcduff1181 I agree I think its likely the IMT squired this straight from the factory and has been well treated and stored in a nice climate controlled environment since the late sixties hardly comparable to service conditions.
Very cool gun to play with, we have an available Pre-Sample that we had the new guy disassembled along with the video. Thank you McCollum for the video.
What a handsome firearm
‘Access with mittens’ is my new favourite phrase.
Ha! SIG totally stole that idea of a rubber surround for the charging handle opening.
Anybody else a little disappointed he doesn't show the fire control of that thing?
Real shame this rifle never took off, thanks again mr McCollum
Disagree, this failure forced them to make the FNC, which is better by far (IMO)
Looks well thought out, nice gun, thanks.
Thank you , Ian .
That thing is in beautiful shape.
40+ years that rubber still looks good to me
Finally a video for CAL.
At circa 0:29 it was indicated that "Carabine Automatique Légère" referred to Military Automatic Carbine. As "Légère" loosely translates as light, in French this means "Light Automatic Carbine".
Hi ian you doing a great job with showing us all thous unique guns!
It will be awesome if you manage to put your hands on a DSHK heavy machine gun! Keep up the good work man!
Oh wow, that's an incredibly sexy rifle. I've always loved the FNC, it's one of my favourites, and its older sibling does not disappoint. :O
Thanks Ian!
I've always loved FN's weapons.
This is a great looking gun.
Very nice video man
Good stuff, what a handsome rifle.
He should call his videos "Breakfast With Ian." I enjoying an omelet with toast, OJ and coffee while watching this.
That is a very smart looking rifle.
Firing pin retaining pin like on the L85 - I remember that the tip of a bootlace worked fairly well to get those out :P
That bolt reminds me of the MG34 bolt. Interupted threads and may explain why it was not successful. Anyway happy new year Ian.
I must say I have not heard much about this particular weapon in any literature I recieved while doing ROTC in Thailand. All we got serious info was on the M16 and the HK33.
*Correction.*
I've found a couple of picture of the piston. The shape of pistons head suggests that it is a long stroke gun. There are rings cut around it for better gas "sealing".
It has very interesting bolt that give proper primary extraction during unlocking. Definately should be mentioned.
Maybe you should make a video on the FN Browning pistol(s).
My favorite Gun.... Absolutely beautiful.
Thank you
Funny to see how the outside is pretty much a FNC only to open it and see the changes that were made to make the FNC soldier proof. Wich the FNC is. Nice vid as allways!
Looks like this thing might ace the mud test.
As I'm watching this I'm thinking damn this would be an awesome candidate for the in range mud test 😂😂😂
Well that explains the so far unexplained presence of CALs in my neck of the woods. :)
Early morning crew who up?
Me
nope i'm sleep-watching this
I'm in the UK, it was released just after midday over here!
Ssssh!! We're trying to sleep here.
I'm curious about what that odd longitudinal vane on the left side does. Looks like something relevant to the ejection, perhaps.
Anyone know what that finish was? Looked like it had been dipped in black paint. I can't imagine that from FN. Was it just extra oil for preservation?
Ian always brings the goods.....
Feels Mitten Man
Based on looks alone, it looks awesome.
I doubt it will be possible for you to get your hands on one of the rifles but do you have plans to make a video talking about the new French felin famas rifles and the equipment that goes with them?
If you'd like to see a more in depth breakdown of exactly how it works, it's an available model in the game Gunstruction. I personally recommend it
Super interesting rifle!
In 2003, I was offered one for sale in Iraq. While testing it prior to the purchase, the CAL suffered from several stoppages, especially in the three round mode. I remembered then that back when I was in the Belgian military, we were told that we would receive the CAL. But after several delays, we learned that the CAL went through more rigorous tests and was diagnosed as suffering from a conceptual “flaw”. We were not given detailed explanation, only that too many stoppages rendered the rifle obsolete. I had forgotten it all until I led a US Task Order in Iraq and was offered a CAL for US$1,200. I declined it, and instead bought 17 HK MP5 for my crew and I.
it’s such a nice shooter!
The transition from Stock to Receiver reminds so of a H&K G3
You should do a mud test. Really want to see how well does that dirt control system work.
Heard a old timer in the Army talk about these, it was some secret squirrel kinda stuff.
Can’t wait for a video on the FNC
I think he did one two or three years ago
FNC video from Ian followed directly afterwards by a video from LAV of the same rifle.
I have one but i dont have a magzine for it .does enybody no were i can find one it does not take a standard ar 15 mag
How was the gas/recoil spring system disassembled?
Wonder if you could get that pin out of the bolt carrier with a pen refill or a toothpick?
Is this used in the documentary about Thailand called the Last Executioner? It kind of looked like an FAL that was clamped on a stand, but I think it looked more like this one...
I am wondering how many burst-fire guns can automatically reset after an incomplete burst.
Maybe Japanese Type-89 has the same mechanism as FN CAL?
If CAL has short-stroke piston, where is its return spring? Is the piston pushed back by the bolt carrier?
Looks kinda futuristic, neat
I had the side folding stock version which is alot more rare than fixed stock
Do you think the magazine on this is better than the AR type as designed?
You should have shown the piston and recoil spring. Like how does having a recoil spring on a short stroke gas piston even work?
Releasing videos at 5:15am?? Thank you!
For a rare rifle it was a bit short video. But anyhow, awesome stuff. :)
Thats a sleek looking piece of deathbringing metal.
So many wanting a video on the AK5c when we all know the one true AK5 is the original version.
Did this/FNC come before or after the daewoo?
They look very similar
The Royal Oman Police purchased an unknown quantity of CAL's during the late 70's.
like the gun with the straight 30-rds mag installed
Ohhhhh yesssss.
Gun Jesus back with modern combat rifles!
You don't show us the gas piston and the trigger system ??
I didn't know that is how burst fire works. All I know is that no matter how long you click your mouse you got the full extent of the burst! I had no idea that you could cancel the burst early.
Its like a Sig a type 89 and a galil all fused together it looks so weird but cool
Will you do a video on AK5C and D anytime soon?
Why did you not video the FCG? We where waiting to see how FN handled the burst reset!
I was hoping we could see the resetting ratchet for the burst setting 🎻🎻🎻
Ian, no shots of the fire control internals? :(
I know it's a big ask but any chance you can do a side by side comparison of the CAL and the FNC?
That firing pin retaining pin in the bolt seems like an issue which is easily resolved. That can't be the whole story... The gun looks for all intents and purposes like it handles like an M16, for the end user.
It is a rare thing for me to say, "I want one", when these obscure rifles come up. But yeah I want one. Haha
The firing pin was probably made from non-thoriated tungsten electrodes that TIG welders got tired of using.