Well I found out why this happened. I just got off the phone with Kelly @ ORF. She told me the ORF receivers on Century guns after ser # 1666 have been wallowed out to fit the AR-15 mag adapters & Orlite mags. The 1st rifle was above that # but mine was not. I'm still happy & will use real Israeli mags. She also said the ORF marked receivers after # 600 have the same changes. Hope this info helps some people out. GARY N4KVE
I just recently bought a Century Arms Galil in 5.56, which looks like the AR model, with black synthetic stocks, and no bipods. It feels significantly heavier than my AR-15 with M4 barrels. Feels heavier at the front, too.
It has no tritium sights anymore, but there are indentations where tritium would have been placed before.
It came with two metal mags - one has been reconditioned, and the other is very well-used and greasy. Both metal mags easily fits in the CA Galil. I bought Orlite mags, and these won't fit the Galil. By simply trimming under the front tongue of the Orlite Galil, front and round off the sides, the Orlite Galil went in with a nice solid tight fit. Next, I tried both the metal and Orlite mags at the range for reliability, both types of mags work without a hitch. The CA Galil was fired 100 times, and there was not a single problem with it. The gun shot about two inches high and two inches to the left. I ordered front sight adjusters, and waiting for those to arrive so I can go back to the range, sight the gun, and test for accuracy. Next time, I will shoot different types of ammo from varying distances. I will also try to learn to take digital pictures so that I can share with you the CA Galil. For the 5.56 Galil, I have two metal mags and 12 Orlites.
The Orlites are slightly longer than the metal mags by about 1/2 of an inch, but it is much lighter.
I also have a Galil AR .308 Action Arms IMI Galil which I bought four years ago. It came with only two magazines, and I had to pay over $100 each for two more mags. I have not found any more .308 mags. The shinier finish of my IMI .308 looks so much better than the parkerized look of the CA 5.56 Galil.
I noted that the buttstock of the .308 had a softer rubber pad, while the 5.56 Galil's buttstock was metal. Both have the same length barrels
So far, I'm pleased that the CA Galil 5.56 shoot reliably. I just need to test out the accuracy next time of its U.S. made barrel. I will try and compare that with the .308 Galil with original barrel, for accuracy.
For now, I would recommend the Century Arms Galil, from my experience with the gun. When I have a little more cash, I will get it finished to match the Galil .308. But for the size of the magazines, the two guns look almost identical. I wish I have an original 5.56 Galil, but the Century Arms will do.
I thought, since this is not an original barrel, I can get it shortened to just the legal limit, and have a slighly handier 5.56 Galil. But I read somewhere that the bullet fragmentation of the 5.56 Galil is more likely to occur in barrel longer than 16 inches...preferably 20 inches. So, I will leave the barrel lenght as is.
If anybody has any questions, feel free to ask. I just joined this forum. I'm glad to find this Galil forum. There does not seem to be as many people who are very avid fans of the Galil. Could be the ridiculously high price. I just sacrificed owning a lot of guns, in trying to afford these two Galils.
Oh yes, I paid about $960 for the Century Arms Galil. The .308 Galil I bought years ago for $1200. I cannot find another .308 Galil IMI at that price now. Good "investment", but since I will never sell it, it feels more like an "expensive hobby." In a way that most of you understand, I just enjoy the pleasure of owning these two Galils...pride of ownership, and American sentiment. These guns also represent that I still live in a country where I have the freedom to buy and own these now almost historical firearms. Without the Second Amendment, all our other freedoms are temporal.
I enjoyed reading everybody's posts in this Galil forum. I hope to have a chance to exchange ideas and Galil experiences with you.
The serial number of my Century Arms 5.56 AR Galil is in the mid 600's. And it did not fit the Orlite magazine. I had to do some careful filing. Once I got the hang of it, I fixed the rest of the Orlite magazines rather quickly. Actually because the Orlite magazines were slowly trimmed, they feel more like they were custom-fit for the gun, than the metal mags. I think I will enjy owning these Orlite mags...light and gives the gun a cleaner look.
The stock of my .308 IMI Galil is blacker and shinier than the Century Arms. Although the slightly rougher feel of the Century Arms 5.56 Galil provides a less slippery grip.
I like them both. As soon as I catch up with the digital age, I will share some pictures. The least I can do for those of you who have generously shared pictures of your Galil.
The mid-300 serial number 'RFG' receiver I haev with my AZEX built kit galil does allow the oralite and the 12rnd dummy mag fit just fine. The mags lock in VERY tightly, though I was having some feeding issues with the 12rnd dummy round mag. not sure if that is related to it's original purpose or not, haven't had the oralite mags out to the range just quite yet.
could you post some pics of the orlite mags that you filed?
Last edited by Click Click Boom; 07-01-2007 at 08:56 PM.
I recently saw some surplus Galil bipods but the mount appears to need a horizontally oriented rod device on the bottom of the bayonet mount, which the Century rifles appear to be missing. Can their mount be changed out or revised? Otherwise it will be a bit of machining to come up with a makeshift alternate. Also, how about bayonets? And a fresh set of tritium sights would be nice!
I recently saw some surplus Galil bipods but the mount appears to need a horizontally oriented rod device on the bottom of the bayonet mount, which the Century rifles appear to be missing. Can their mount be changed out or revised? Otherwise it will be a bit of machining to come up with a makeshift alternate. Also, how about bayonets? And a fresh set of tritium sights would be nice!
takes an ARM specific gas block with the lugs on the bottom to accomodate the bipod. Century sorted those out and is or will be offering the ARM version as a complete rifle. You can find the ARM gas block from a couple of sources and simply swap it out
Originally Posted by galilian
There are AR's and ARM's. Each one has a different type of gas block.
AR's do not have bipods whereas ARM's do have bipods.
You need an ARM gas block in order to use a bipod.
Here you go.
http://rapidfire.targetweb.net/cgi-b...m=on&ppinc=big
Well I've had my Century Galil for 4 months now & haven't been able to find any mags that fit yet. Just the 2 that came with the gun. My rifle does not have the word "GOLANI" on it. Just Century Galil. At the Ft. Lauderdale fun show today, I hooked up with my smith because I asked him to bring in a box of Galil mags. I was going to try them until I found some that fit. Well he pulled out 2 BRAND NEW Israeli mags with the 2 Hebrew letters on the bottom & they work great. Seems that's all that will work on my Rifle. I don't know how they differ from mags from other countries but they do. So the tip is if your Century Galil is fussy with mags, get the real deal. They work great. GARY N4KVE
Thanks Gary. Looks like I'm OK with serial GAL017xx. I was getting depressed as I ordered a bunch of Orlites and a mag adapter.
Now if only they can fix the extraction problem.
As some know, I had to send the above rifle back to Century for repair. They replaced my rifle with a new one with a later serial number. Orlites do fit, but they are very tight. The problem seems to be the slot in the forward edge of the mag well. The lip on the orlites is just a tad too small. A little filing makes the orlites fit, but they are still tight.
In order to make the mag adapter for M16 mags fit, I had to mill the receiver as shown in this thread.
As I understand it, the new receivers are made by ORF (although mine has Hebrew markings). I bought my mag adapter from ORF. You would think ORF's mag adapters would fit their own receiver, wouldn't you?
Hey Tod. The way I understand it from reading the different threads, ORF built the receivers from plans from full auto receivers. These were for military use where they had plenty of real Galil mags. The semi receivers had slightly larger openings & Americans wanted adaptors to use AR-15 mags in the semi galils imported here. The mag adaptors were meant to fit the semi receivers, but not the auto receivers. That's what I understand from all I've read on the different nets. Any smith who can confirm pls speak up. Shoot that thing & get back. After I read you got a replacement Galil, I again checked the 2 lugs & bolt head. Both lugs are definately making contact. One question if I may ask. On the gun you just got back from Century, what is the size of the gap on the left side between the receiver & bolt carrier. The carrier touches the receiver on the right side by the cocking handle, but not the left side. You'll have to remove the cover to see the gap on the left side. Please let me know. Thanks GARY N4KVE
I'm going to test fire tomorrow. I'll report, and take photos of the receiver.
Have you test fired your replacement Galil yet? Inquiring minds want to know if the newer model is better. GARY N4KVE
Weather and the flu have postposed tesing. I'm hoping to go tomorrow (Friday) AM.
Sorry to hear you're under the weather. This weekend, rain is predicted here, so I'll be shooting mine again. Although it has worked fine in the past, & been right on target, I'll give it a good workout just to be sure. The fact that it only accepts Israeli mags is not enough to send it back to Century, because everything else works fine. Let us know how your replacement works. Also when you can, I'd like to see the left side where the bolt carrier almost meets the receiver. Mine meets the right side by the cocking handle but I want to see the gap on the left side. Thanks again & hope you feel better. GARY N4KVE
Here's some photos of the new rifle. The most noticeable difference was the addition of Hebrew letters on the receiver. I apologize for the poor photos.
The replacement actually looks better than the original. It also has a different flash hider
Note the Hebrew lettering
Left side showing the bolt carrier/receiver mating
The new bolt
Modes necessary to make the mag adapter fit. I milled out the front of the receiver with a 1/4 end mill. Everything happy now
Not let's hope it shoots.
Thanks for the photos. My gap is about the same. Have fun at the range today. Hope it shoots fine. GARY N4KVE
Range report posted here:
http://www.uzitalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30316
All is great.
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