Edmond, and anyone else that might know...

What are the reports back on how well the French Army rifle is doing in the sand?

The FA MAS first saw service in Chad during Operation Manta in 1983 and then in many other operations in desertic areas. Prior to its adoption, it had been tested in conditions that had taken out of the competition both the M16 and the H&K 33.
One of the test was shooting the rifles after sand was powerfully blown, then under a shower and again blown with sand, finally dropped into a tank full of mud and fired again.
Some other tests made it very frosty.
A batch of H&K 33 (written HK 33 F on the receiver) had been manufactured by MAS and tested in real operational use, the FA MAS had a much superior accuracy to the H&K and to any other contemporary rifle.
Its reliability under adverse conditions can only be equalled by the AK family.

I'd take an AK 74 first and a FA MAS second. In urban use and for mechanized troops, the FA MAS has really a lot of advantages.

Only drawback is that the French never knew how to market their small arms..

3 rounds bursts, 200 meters :-)

Thanks for the info.

That is one of the few Military Rifles I have not fired.

If it is more accurate than a 33 that is saying something.

We used H&K 33k's {German Made} as work guns for several years. They were very accurate.

I have used at the same time for a very long time and many thousands of rounds the FA MAS, the SIG 90, HK 33, AR 15 / M 16 family, Steyr AUG, Valmet, Galil, various AKs.
The two most accurate were the Delta H Bar AR 15 , not really an assault rifle anymore, then the SIG 90 that probably sets the standard for accuracy. As a "normal" assault rifle and once accustomized to its peculiar trigger weight the FA MAS was the most accurate with US M 193 / French F1 ammo / commercial 55 grains ammo and reloaded 52 grains ammo.

Edmond

I can also say I have shot and used the Steyr AUG quite a bit. I used one for a work gun for a few years on special occasions. It was one of the most accurate field rifles I have ever fired.

It was very quick and highly accurate in actual use.

I even killed 2 deer with it.

Not same version than yours, I got problem in the beginning to press the right way to get controlled burst.

Being able to get single fire on auto mode from almost everything except FA MAS with its 1000+ RPM rate, I had to forget everything.

Edmond I agree.

I test fired a few full auto AUG's.

I can definately see how even for a trained guy with a "good" trigger finger, it would be hard to only fire a single shot under stress.

I much prefer a selector "switch" for single shots vs full auto.

I will also say I do NOT like a 3 shot burst feature.

First time I shot a M16 A2, it made "Bang!Bang!" .....Bang!...Bang! Bang! .....Bang.

You appreciate the 3rds burst on the FA MAS, it is so stable that @200 m all three are in the prone machine gunner silhouette target.