View Full Version : FAMAS for sale on Gunbroker
Larry Vickers
11-17-14, 18:04
Heads up for serious black rifle collectors ; one of the hardest to find variants is listed on Gunbroker - semi auto FAMAS F1
Sorry my attempts to post a link have failed but just search FAMAS and it will come up
As of today 6 days left on the auction
These come up VERY rarely so if you want one I would highly recommend getting your $$ together for this one
I have had mine for several years now but trust me when I tell you it took a LONG time to find one to buy
Just an FYI
Here's the link.
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=453013723
Why could this not have come up till after teh first of the year.
Larry Vickers
11-18-14, 06:15
Why could this not have come up till after teh first of the year.
Well said
Could someone buy this for me for Christmas?;)
Drooling over the estate's Galils too. Bit what rotten photos of the FAMAS. All the full side shots are dark blobs. Not the item to save a few bucks with an amateur photographer.
A real bugle for sale, don't see that often! Anyone know roughly how many came into the US and what retail price was when they came in? These have always fascinated me.
My pants just got tight..
Moose-Knuckle
11-19-14, 16:19
Anyone know roughly how many came into the US and what retail price was when they came in?
I was curious about this myself.
A real bugle for sale, don't see that often! Anyone know roughly how many came into the US and what retail price was when they came in? These have always fascinated me.
My google search turned up:
100-120 Imported in the late 80's for $995
Damn that's nice. Any guesses on final price? $25k-ish?
My google search turned up:
100-120 Imported in the late 80's for $995
Thanks for the info. I was just a kid then so I'm not sure, but that must have been a really expensive rifle back then. I can't believe more collectors didn't pick one up. I guess pre-internet it was a lot harder to keep up with the market unless you had a REALLY good LGS.
I'd like to hear from someone that was collecting back then what they thought and what the market thought of the bugle. I wonder how many people even knew about it when it was being imported?
Damn that's nice. Any guesses on final price? $25k-ish?
In the past they have gone for about 13 grand.
Damn that's nice. Any guesses on final price? $25k-ish?
In the past they have gone for about 13 grand.
Larry Vickers
11-20-14, 06:58
In the past they have gone for about 13 grand.
Yes the last one I remember for sale was $13,000 at West Coast Armory
From what I can tell they pop up about every two years or so
I paid $8,000 for mine awhile ago ( at least ten years ago )
FYI - spares and mags are not that hard to find
Buddy Hinton the owner of Sturmgewehr.com is a big FAMAS fan and is a great source for spares
He has helped me out in the past
The guns have a shitty trigger but actually balance well and are soft shooters
As my buddy Hackathorn would say 'it's one of those guns that grows on you - like a fungus !'
If I saw one of these at the range I'd probably pay $100 to run a couple mags through it!
Anyone know if it would be possible to get parts kits and make a US receiver to offer an affordable version for us odd ball collectors? I'm guessing if it could be done it would've been done a long time ago.
KalashniKEV
11-21-14, 10:50
Anyone know if it would be possible to get parts kits and make a US receiver to offer an affordable version for us odd ball collectors?
Anything is possible, but France would likely FMS the guns to their allies in Africa before they would parts kit them and approve an export.
There is always hope from a cash strapped country that fielded the rifle though:
Users
Argentina: Used by a few units of the amphibious and tactical divers of the Argentinian navy.
Djibouti
France: Used by the French Armed Forces since 1979, with over 700,000 rifles purchased. Also used by several law enforcement agencies such as the Gendarmerie Nationale.
Gabon
Indonesia: Komando Pasukan Katak (KOPASKA) tactical diver group and Komando Pasukan Khusus (Kopassus) special forces group.
Lebanon
Papua New Guinea
Philippines: Used by the Philippine National Police and Special Action Force.
Senegal
Serbia: Used by the police special forces unit PTJ (Counter-Terrorist Unit), and formerly used by JSO (Special Operations Unit).
Tunisia: Used by the Tunisian Presidential Guard.
United Arab Emirates
Vanuatu
Ned Christiansen
11-21-14, 11:29
Had one on order from as I recall, Century, for $1100. Didn't happen in the end.
Have been in contact with a guy in France who was pushing a refurb / product improvement program for the fleet. When the French steel-cased ammo ran out they had problems with slamfires-- out of battery. The design is way less resistant to this than the Stoner design.
The program is out the window, pretty sure.
Sometimes in the 1990s I ran into someone at a range with a semiauto Famas and I put a mag or two through it. We definitely were firing brass cased ammo. I'm wondering if the ones imported to the US were good to go with brass cased ammo or required steel cased ammo like the French Mil version.
Had one on order from as I recall, Century, for $1100. Didn't happen in the end.
Have been in contact with a guy in France who was pushing a refurb / product improvement program for the fleet. When the French steel-cased ammo ran out they had problems with slamfires-- out of battery. The design is way less resistant to this than the Stoner design.
The program is out the window, pretty sure.
Say, what's the whole deal with the steel case thing and it running out? I never understood that.
Sold for $14030! Incredible! http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=453013723
Surprisingly, the F1 is a very simple design and would be easy to manufacturer. The most costly item to make would be the furniture. Injection mold tooling would probably cost upwards to 200k. Everything else is simple and straight forward. It would be a fun project.
Eric
Anyone know if it would be possible to get parts kits and make a US receiver to offer an affordable version for us odd ball collectors? I'm guessing if it could be done it would've been done a long time ago.
Larry Vickers
11-24-14, 12:46
Over 14k - new record for a FAMAS as far as I know
I should get a kickback as I'm sure my postings raised awareness and the selling price !!! ;-)
alvincullumyork
11-25-14, 10:40
What makes the Famas so desirable?
I may ride a little fast and someday it may catch up and bite me in the ass but maybe not if I give it just a little more gas.
Availability: less than 200 were imported before the 89' Assault Weapon Ban. At best, one my come up for sale, every year or two.
Rarity: nothing else like it on the market, especially with it's unique styling and operating system.
I guess it all comes down to supply and demand.
Eric
What makes the Famas so desirable?
Ned Christiansen
11-25-14, 12:53
I've told my French Connection that we need to buy all or part of the decommissioned fleet of FAMAS, break them down into parts kits, send the receivers to le heape de scrappe, get them over here and have someone manufacture new, semi receivers. Put 'em back together and sell them. I think someone could make a few bucks on that.
Ned,
Funny you say that, I was just talking to Jeff Cahill of Tangodown about that toady. If all the components could be brought in, minus the receiver and barrel. it would be an easy project. That barrel and receiver are pretty much straight forward; in design and machining. The G2 configuration would be more accepted by the US market, especially with it's STANAG magwell.
Eric
I've told my French Connection that we need to buy all or part of the decommissioned fleet of FAMAS, break them down into parts kits, send the receivers to le heape de scrappe, get them over here and have someone manufacture new, semi receivers. Put 'em back together and sell them. I think someone could make a few bucks on that.
Ned Christiansen
11-25-14, 14:08
Rojocorsa, I don't know why the French-made ammo had steel cases..... maybe related to the fluted chamber....? I don't see it as related to that ammo's ability to resist slam-fires, other than, I presume in development it was learned that slam-fires could occur and worse, before the bolt tilted into battery, so they made ammo with extra-hard primers. My impression was that when a new ammo source was selected, everyone involved in that original trouble shooting phase was long gone from the picture. In other words, there was apparently no institutional memory of that particular problem. No doubt it was documented, I think they just failed to check for that kind of thing. That's my impression only, extrapolated from conversations with my guy in France. The new ammo came from a reputable source and was an existing product but simply was not compatible with the FAMAS. I don't know that this is an indictment of the FAMAS design, sure never heard of this problem before but the ones in the US are a very small sample and I would guess are not shot a whole lot-- not to mention they might not be identical to the military ones in the relevant areas.
ESK, sounds like a great side project for Jeff! I'd say "you push it here, I'll push it in France" but I don't think my contact has any juice in that area and I probably don't have that kinda of juice with him.... and anyway I think his connection to the whole thing is expired by a few years. And not sure the barrels would be so easy-- they are fluted and not straight in from the back. My guy sent me some casts and casting them was nigh impossible because the flutes would lock the casts in. Guess they must have been done by EDM orbiting....? I mean it might work to let them come all the way out the back of the chamber but I have to think they tried that. Might work with no flutes but.... I have to think they tried that. Bet there's a warehouse full of new barrels somewhere......
ESK I know you from 2C, right? It just clicked. Email me and tell me what yer up to these days.
Moose-Knuckle
11-25-14, 15:32
Since we are discussing the FAMAS, does French SOF use it or do they go for a Stoner varient? I have seen a lot of pics over the years of Legionnaires with the FAMAS but always wondered if the French 1er Régiment de Parachutistes D'infanterie de Marine (their direct action Tier 1 guys) took a page from the UK/Aussie/Kiwi SAS and adopted the Colt Canada C8 or the HK 416.
Ned,
Is the fluting different then a HK33? I guess this is something I have to investigate. With modern manufacturing, anything could be performed, with minimal effort. Worst case scenario, one could always Electro Chemical Etch the flutes into the chamber. Seriously, I think this would be a great project. I need to check into decommissioned parts availability.
Ned, we’ve chatted before. I was once with Vltor, now with Bravo Company.
Thanks,
Eric Kincel
ESK, sounds like a great side project for Jeff! I'd say "you push it here, I'll push it in France" but I don't think my contact has any juice in that area and I probably don't have that kinda of juice with him.... and anyway I think his connection to the whole thing is expired by a few years. And not sure the barrels would be so easy-- they are fluted and not straight in from the back. My guy sent me some casts and casting them was nigh impossible because the flutes would lock the casts in. Guess they must have been done by EDM orbiting....? I mean it might work to let them come all the way out the back of the chamber but I have to think they tried that. Might work with no flutes but.... I have to think they tried that. Bet there's a warehouse full of new barrels somewhere......
ESK I know you from 2C, right? It just clicked. Email me and tell me what yer up to these days.
Ned Christiansen
11-25-14, 17:03
OK, I thought you might be another Eric "K" I know.
I'm in for one..... my guess is it would be a long-term kung-fu fight in a vat of cold bureaucratic molasses extending from Paris to the East Coast to get this done but then it does get done all the time with other surplus. I don't know anything as to their decommissioning intentions or timeline.
Since we are discussing the FAMAS, does French SOF use it or do they go for a Stoner varient? I have seen a lot of pics over the years of Legionnaires with the FAMAS but always wondered if the French 1er Régiment de Parachutistes D'infanterie de Marine (their direct action Tier 1 guys) took a page from the UK/Aussie/Kiwi SAS and adopted the Colt Canada C8 or the HK 416.
Im pretty sure they go for an AR pattern. (I've seem to notice that in all the countries that have bull-pups as standard issue, their SOF seems to prefer a traditional layout ((M4, Diemaco M4, LMTs, HK416s, SCARs, etc)).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modern_equipment_of_the_French_Army#Weapons
In this list, it will mention if an item is used by French SOF.
USMC_Anglico
11-26-14, 07:50
Since we are discussing the FAMAS, does French SOF use it or do they go for a Stoner varient? I have seen a lot of pics over the years of Legionnaires with the FAMAS but always wondered if the French 1er Régiment de Parachutistes D'infanterie de Marine (their direct action Tier 1 guys) took a page from the UK/Aussie/Kiwi SAS and adopted the Colt Canada C8 or the HK 416.
The French SF I worked with in Astan used M4's (IIRC they were HK). The FAMAS is not very user friendly, with the top cocking handle sandwiched between the receiver and the upper sight/handle. I've fired every French small arm used, including their pistol, GL, FAMAS and sniper rifle. Not impressed by any of it. Every time I put my hands on a bullpup (SA80, FAMAS & AUG) I thank the lord for my M4.
14K for a FAMAS blows my mind.......unless you were paying ME to use it.
That rifle says "Century Arms" on it..Obviously they imported it.
It would be amusing to put it on a table at a gun show with a $2000 price tag on it just to see folks notice that "century arms" on it and walk away..
Moose-Knuckle
12-02-14, 02:34
Im pretty sure they go for an AR pattern. (I've seem to notice that in all the countries that have bull-pups as standard issue, their SOF seems to prefer a traditional layout ((M4, Diemaco M4, LMTs, HK416s, SCARs, etc)).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modern_equipment_of_the_French_Army#Weapons
In this list, it will mention if an item is used by French SOF.
The French SF I worked with in Astan used M4's (IIRC they were HK). The FAMAS is not very user friendly, with the top cocking handle sandwiched between the receiver and the upper sight/handle. I've fired every French small arm used, including their pistol, GL, FAMAS and sniper rifle. Not impressed by any of it. Every time I put my hands on a bullpup (SA80, FAMAS & AUG) I thank the lord for my M4.
14K for a FAMAS blows my mind.......unless you were paying ME to use it.
Thanks gents, I figured they probably went with a Stoner platform.
teutonicpolymer
12-06-14, 14:15
I'd buy the shit out of a parts kit semi-auto FAMAS if it was reasonably priced
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