I thought you might like to take a look at this interesting rifle, often termed the "Cadillac" of the basic AK-47 design.
John
Following their “six-day war” against Egypt, Jordan and Syria in 1967, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) leadership decided that they wanted a new, standard made-in-Israel rifle to replace their hodge-podge of weapons systems which had included FALs, AKs, Mauser turn-bolts, M16s and others. They decided on 5.56x45mm (.223 Remington) as the preferred cartridge in order to standardize with the Americans. The weapon they crafted became a modern classic and is regarded even today, more than 40 years later, as one of the better assault rifles.
The consensus among the planners was that the AK-47 was "the lion of the desert" for its ability to withstand adverse conditions including dirt, dust and sand. Accordingly, a number of selective-fire guns similar to that rifle were submitted. Several showed promise, including one by Uziel Gal, the inventor of the UZI submachine gun. However, the one selected as the most promising was submitted by Israel Galili and Yaacov Lior. It was eventually to be known as the Galil rifle, in honor of Galili, the principal designer. The rifle broke no new ground, but was a combination of features from other proven designs, melded to provide the Israelis with a gun optimally suited to their mostly-desert operating environments and perceived needs.
The initial guns were somewhat based on the Finnish Valmet Rk 62, but with some interesting twists. These Valmet-receivered prototypes were tested against the AK-47, M16A1, HK 33, and Stoner 63. There were drop tests, sand tests, mud tests, and many more. Minor changes were made, and the gun was submitted to an 18000-round endurance test. Some more small changes were made, and on Sept. 5, 1971, the Galil was accepted as the new IDF standard rifle. Production started at Israel Military Industries (IMI) and the first widespread issue began in September, 1974.
Although the gun is basically an AK-47, there are important differences. It’s chambered for the 5.56x45mm round rather than the 7.62x39mm. The bolt lugs lock into the receiver rather than a barrel extension. This makes for better heat dispersion and a lessened chance of cartridge “cook-offs” in automatic fire, but the receiver had to be made of thicker machined steel. Primary extraction of the cartridge takes place during bolt rotation, eliminating the need for the massive AK extractor. Case ejection proved robust, with cases tossed forcefully yards away. The firing pin is loaded with a very strong coil spring in order to prevent slam-fires common with the floating AK pin when using sensitive non-military primers.
The rear sight is mounted on the rear of the receiver cover, almost identically to the Valmet Rk 62. It had to be mounted in a stable manner, and accordingly the gun was designed with a very close fit of the receiver cover on the receiver. The purpose of this arrangement was a longer sight radius over the forward-mounted open-sight types found on most AKs.
The tubular stock of the Valmet was replaced. The new folding stock resembled the type used on the FN FAL paratrooper model, but was much more robust. It was made of steel and aluminum and locked up solidly when swung away from the receiver and into position. The operating handle was vertical, projecting up over the top of the receiver cover, enabling its use with either hand.
There were three basic models issued, designated ARM, AR, and SAR. The ARM was intended to serve as a squad automatic rifle. It had an 18.1” barrel (19.2” with flash suppressor), a bipod, a large teakwood handguard and a carrying handle. The current handguard is polymer. The overall length was 38.5”, and with the stock folded it was 29.2”. The bipod for this version incorporated a wire cutter. The handguard retainer was integrated with two bottle openers that hold the bipod in the closed position. I guess bottled beer is considered a necessity in the desert! Often, the bipod was discarded by the ARM’s users to get rid of the extra weight; the magazine serving as a monopod. The AR was the standard infantry rifle, with the same specs as the ARM, but without bipod or carrying handle. It has a high-impact plastic handguard. The SAR was designed primarily for paratroopers and other special units. It had a 13.1” barrel (14.1” with flash suppressor). Overall length was 33.1” with the stock extended, and 24.2” when folded. Like the AR, it had a plastic handguard. Some sniper and micro models of the Galil have also been made. There have been numerous variants of these with minor changes.
Magazines were issued with 3 capacities, 50, 35, and 12 rounds. Flip-up tritium sights were standard issue, modeled after a similar arrangement on the Valmet rifle. The rear tritium sight had two self-luminous dots, while the front one had a single dot. The rear sight employed an L-shaped flip-flop two-leaf peep, much like the early sights on the U.S. M1 carbine. The two sight leaves were calibrated for 300 and 500 meters, marked “3” and “5” for quick range adjustment. The front sight, topped with a non-detachable protective circular hood, was adjustable for windage with two opposing screws. It was also adjustable for height, using the standard UZI sight adjustment tool through a hole in the top of the sight hood. The sight picture presented was a post within a circle-within-a-circle. This made for very quick sight acquisition. The tritium sights were normally flipped down, but could be rotated up easily in seconds for low-light use. The flash suppressor doubled as a grenade launcher, and a disposable grenade sight could be mounted on the front sight assembly.
The AK dust cover/selector on the right side remained, but could also be easily manipulated with a thumb switch on the left side. This was considered a necessity because when closed, the folding stock interfered with the operation of the traditional AK selector lever. Galils equipped with bayonet lugs will accept standard U.S. M16 bayonets.
The gun was not without its faults. As is true of AK designs, there is no last-round hold-open device. The receiver cover is so closely fitted that it usually requires a rubber mallet to take it off and re-seat it. This does not make for easy field stripping or re-assembly. I suspect many users might have tended to neglect cleaning and lubricating the internal components because of this, potentially leading to problems. The trigger pull is the usual mushy AK standard. Because of its thick milled receiver and the partially steel buttstock, the weight was substantial compared to the M16 series. It would not easily accept a scope or other optical sight arrangement, although some were rigged to do so. The stock was not length-adjustable to suit varying physiques, attire and equipment.
All criticism aside, in combat the gun performed magnificently, easily besting other designs for reliability. It has been sold to scores of other nations chambered for both 5.56x45mm and 7.62x51mm.
Eventually, the easy and cheap availability of M16 rifles from America finally saw the Galil being superseded by those rifles, often provided or financed by military aid from the United States. Today, most of the IDF is armed with M16s or M4s, although Galils are still in inventory.
The Galil was probably close to the pinnacle of the basic AK design concept. Semiauto versions, some with American receivers and Israeli parts, can be found here in the U.S. This effective rifle is one of the more interesting Kalashnikov variants and has become a sought-after collector’s item.
(c) 2013 JLM
Thought you might enjoy learning a bit more about it!
John
John
Following their “six-day war” against Egypt, Jordan and Syria in 1967, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) leadership decided that they wanted a new, standard made-in-Israel rifle to replace their hodge-podge of weapons systems which had included FALs, AKs, Mauser turn-bolts, M16s and others. They decided on 5.56x45mm (.223 Remington) as the preferred cartridge in order to standardize with the Americans. The weapon they crafted became a modern classic and is regarded even today, more than 40 years later, as one of the better assault rifles.
The consensus among the planners was that the AK-47 was "the lion of the desert" for its ability to withstand adverse conditions including dirt, dust and sand. Accordingly, a number of selective-fire guns similar to that rifle were submitted. Several showed promise, including one by Uziel Gal, the inventor of the UZI submachine gun. However, the one selected as the most promising was submitted by Israel Galili and Yaacov Lior. It was eventually to be known as the Galil rifle, in honor of Galili, the principal designer. The rifle broke no new ground, but was a combination of features from other proven designs, melded to provide the Israelis with a gun optimally suited to their mostly-desert operating environments and perceived needs.
The initial guns were somewhat based on the Finnish Valmet Rk 62, but with some interesting twists. These Valmet-receivered prototypes were tested against the AK-47, M16A1, HK 33, and Stoner 63. There were drop tests, sand tests, mud tests, and many more. Minor changes were made, and the gun was submitted to an 18000-round endurance test. Some more small changes were made, and on Sept. 5, 1971, the Galil was accepted as the new IDF standard rifle. Production started at Israel Military Industries (IMI) and the first widespread issue began in September, 1974.
Although the gun is basically an AK-47, there are important differences. It’s chambered for the 5.56x45mm round rather than the 7.62x39mm. The bolt lugs lock into the receiver rather than a barrel extension. This makes for better heat dispersion and a lessened chance of cartridge “cook-offs” in automatic fire, but the receiver had to be made of thicker machined steel. Primary extraction of the cartridge takes place during bolt rotation, eliminating the need for the massive AK extractor. Case ejection proved robust, with cases tossed forcefully yards away. The firing pin is loaded with a very strong coil spring in order to prevent slam-fires common with the floating AK pin when using sensitive non-military primers.
The rear sight is mounted on the rear of the receiver cover, almost identically to the Valmet Rk 62. It had to be mounted in a stable manner, and accordingly the gun was designed with a very close fit of the receiver cover on the receiver. The purpose of this arrangement was a longer sight radius over the forward-mounted open-sight types found on most AKs.
The tubular stock of the Valmet was replaced. The new folding stock resembled the type used on the FN FAL paratrooper model, but was much more robust. It was made of steel and aluminum and locked up solidly when swung away from the receiver and into position. The operating handle was vertical, projecting up over the top of the receiver cover, enabling its use with either hand.
There were three basic models issued, designated ARM, AR, and SAR. The ARM was intended to serve as a squad automatic rifle. It had an 18.1” barrel (19.2” with flash suppressor), a bipod, a large teakwood handguard and a carrying handle. The current handguard is polymer. The overall length was 38.5”, and with the stock folded it was 29.2”. The bipod for this version incorporated a wire cutter. The handguard retainer was integrated with two bottle openers that hold the bipod in the closed position. I guess bottled beer is considered a necessity in the desert! Often, the bipod was discarded by the ARM’s users to get rid of the extra weight; the magazine serving as a monopod. The AR was the standard infantry rifle, with the same specs as the ARM, but without bipod or carrying handle. It has a high-impact plastic handguard. The SAR was designed primarily for paratroopers and other special units. It had a 13.1” barrel (14.1” with flash suppressor). Overall length was 33.1” with the stock extended, and 24.2” when folded. Like the AR, it had a plastic handguard. Some sniper and micro models of the Galil have also been made. There have been numerous variants of these with minor changes.
Magazines were issued with 3 capacities, 50, 35, and 12 rounds. Flip-up tritium sights were standard issue, modeled after a similar arrangement on the Valmet rifle. The rear tritium sight had two self-luminous dots, while the front one had a single dot. The rear sight employed an L-shaped flip-flop two-leaf peep, much like the early sights on the U.S. M1 carbine. The two sight leaves were calibrated for 300 and 500 meters, marked “3” and “5” for quick range adjustment. The front sight, topped with a non-detachable protective circular hood, was adjustable for windage with two opposing screws. It was also adjustable for height, using the standard UZI sight adjustment tool through a hole in the top of the sight hood. The sight picture presented was a post within a circle-within-a-circle. This made for very quick sight acquisition. The tritium sights were normally flipped down, but could be rotated up easily in seconds for low-light use. The flash suppressor doubled as a grenade launcher, and a disposable grenade sight could be mounted on the front sight assembly.
The AK dust cover/selector on the right side remained, but could also be easily manipulated with a thumb switch on the left side. This was considered a necessity because when closed, the folding stock interfered with the operation of the traditional AK selector lever. Galils equipped with bayonet lugs will accept standard U.S. M16 bayonets.
The gun was not without its faults. As is true of AK designs, there is no last-round hold-open device. The receiver cover is so closely fitted that it usually requires a rubber mallet to take it off and re-seat it. This does not make for easy field stripping or re-assembly. I suspect many users might have tended to neglect cleaning and lubricating the internal components because of this, potentially leading to problems. The trigger pull is the usual mushy AK standard. Because of its thick milled receiver and the partially steel buttstock, the weight was substantial compared to the M16 series. It would not easily accept a scope or other optical sight arrangement, although some were rigged to do so. The stock was not length-adjustable to suit varying physiques, attire and equipment.
All criticism aside, in combat the gun performed magnificently, easily besting other designs for reliability. It has been sold to scores of other nations chambered for both 5.56x45mm and 7.62x51mm.
Eventually, the easy and cheap availability of M16 rifles from America finally saw the Galil being superseded by those rifles, often provided or financed by military aid from the United States. Today, most of the IDF is armed with M16s or M4s, although Galils are still in inventory.
The Galil was probably close to the pinnacle of the basic AK design concept. Semiauto versions, some with American receivers and Israeli parts, can be found here in the U.S. This effective rifle is one of the more interesting Kalashnikov variants and has become a sought-after collector’s item.
(c) 2013 JLM
Thought you might enjoy learning a bit more about it!
John
Last edited:
I think the South African R4 is a derivative of the Galil.
