IWI Galil
The IWI Galil is a family of Israeli-made automatic rifles chambered for the 5.56×45mm NATO and 7.62×51mm NATO cartridges. Originally designed by Yisrael Galili and Yakov Lior in the late 1960s, the Galil was first produced by the state-owned Israel Military Industries and is now exported by the privatized Israel Weapon Industries.
The first Galil rifle was manufactured using RK 62 receivers. Moreover, the Galil design is largely based on the Finnish rifle RK 62.
The Israeli Army initially deployed the 5.56×45mm NATO Galil in three basic configurations; the automatic rifle machine-gun, the automatic rifle, and the short automatic rifle. A modernised, redesigned version of the Galil is produced since 2008, known as the Galil ACE.
History
The Belgian FN FAL battle rifle had initially been adopted by the Israeli Defense Forces in the late 1950s. The FAL had its limitations, a common complaint being that the abundant local sand and dust exposure would cause weapon malfunction. Overall, however, the FN FAL was considered long and bulky. Its length and malfunctions became such consistent issues that during the 1973 Yom Kippur War some soldiers began arming themselves with the much smaller Uzi.File:Flickr - Israel Defense Forces - Militant in Possession of Explosives and Multiple Guns.jpg|thumb|left|Comparison of the Hungarian AMD-65, the American M16A1 with A2 handguard and the Israeli Galil ARM
During the Six-Day War the Israelis captured thousands of primarily Egyptian AK-47s. This rifle was proven reliable and controllable. The required maintenance was low enough that conscripted troops had less stringent regulations on the weapon's care.
When the IDF began the process of procuring a new, automatic rifle, the AK-47 was considered, but the difficulty of procurement limited its viability. Hence the IDF specifically sought a weapon that would offer the same benefits as AK-47, such as low maintenance requirements, but would also have the accuracy of the M16 and FN FAL. The would-be standard weapon was originally named the Balashnikov, after the weapon's designer Yisrael Galili, whose last name was coincidentally similar to Kalashnikov before he changed it to the more Hebrew sounding Galili. Several weapons were tendered to the Israeli Army, in response to its specifications for a standard-issue assault rifle. These included the M16A1 and Stoner 63 from the US, and the HK33. An indigenous design was offered by Uziel Gal, creator of the Uzi submachine gun. This was found complex and unreliable.
The successful design was offered by Yisrael Galili and Yakov Lior, based on the 7.62×39mm Valmet RK 62, an AK-47 derivative from Finland. At the time, the US was replacing European countries as Israel's main partner and weapons supplier. Hence, Galil's rifle was chambered for the US 5.56×45mm round. Tests conducted from the end of the 1960s to the early 1970s led to Galili's rifle emerging as the winner. However, issuance of the Galil was delayed by the sudden onset of the Yom Kippur War in 1973.
The Israeli army first used the 5.56×45mm NATO caliber Galil in three basic configurations:
- The Automatic Rifle Machine-gun with bi-pod, wire-cutter and carrying handle; would become the standard service rifle issued to front line infantry troops. Also the version that famously features a bottle opener in the front hand-guard.
- The Automatic Rifle with no bi-pod, wire-cutter or carrying handle. Issued to support troops and military police units.
- The Short Automatic Rifle with shortened barrel. Issued to vehicle crews, army staff and specialty troops.
By 2000, both the Galil ARM and AR variants were phased out from standard issue and replaced by M4 and M16 variants. The Galil SAR was kept in use by some rear-line services, including the Knesset Guard and the Artillery and Armored Corps, until around 2004.
For a short time, the Galil was licensed by NWM De Kruithoorn N.V. for sales to a NATO country.
Currently they are only manufactured in Colombia by Indumil, alongside the Galil Ace and the Galil Córdova, the latter of which was designed by Indumil.
400 Galil rifles were purchased through the Antiguan government for the Medelin cartel.
Design details
Operating mechanism
The Galil series of rifles are selective fire weapons operated by a Kalashnikov-pattern gas-driven long-stroke piston system with no regulator. The weapon is locked with a rotary bolt with two locking lugs that lock into recesses milled into the receiver.When fired, a portion of the propellant gases are evacuated into the gas cylinder through a port, drilled at a 30° angle in the barrel, and a channel in the gas block. The high-pressure gases drive the piston rod rearward. During this rearward movement, a cam slot machined into the bolt carrier engages a cam pin on the bolt and rotates the bolt, unlocking the action. The arrangement of parts on the bolt carrier assembly provides for a degree of free travel, allowing gas pressure in the barrel to drop to a safe level before unlocking. To the immediate rear of the chrome-plated piston head is a notched ring which provides a reduced bearing surface and alleviates excess gas build-up. As the bolt carrier travels back, it compresses the return spring guided in a hollowed section of the bolt carrier and the return energy contained in the spring drives the moving assembly back forward, stripping a new round from the magazine and locking the action. The cocking handle is attached to the bolt carrier on the right side of the receiver and reciprocates with each shot; the handle is bent upwards allowing for operation with the left hand while the shooting hand remains on the pistol grip.
The ejection of spent cases from the Galil is sometimes a violent action. Cases can be dented by the ejector and be thrown as much as 40 ft away from the rifle in some cases, depending on position.
Features
The Galil is hammer-fired and has a trigger mechanism patterned after the trigger used in the American M1 Garand. The rifle's fire selector switch has three positions: S-A-R. The standard AK-47 style selector is retained on the right face of the receiver, and a dual thumb-selector is present on the left face above the pistol grip for easier manipulation. Pushing the left-selector to the rear position "R", provides semi-automatic fire. Pushing it to the middle position "A" produces fully automatic fire. Pushing the lever fully forward to "S" will activate the safety. Some models use a reverse-linkage RAS mechanism that performs the opposite action; pushing forward sets the rifle to Repetition or Automatic, and pulling rearward engages the safety,The Galil prototypes used a stamped and riveted sheet metal steel receiver, but due to the higher operating pressures of the 5.56×45mm cartridge, this solution was discarded and the designers turned to a heavy milled forging. As a testament to its heritage, early prototypes were fabricated using Valmet Rk 62 receivers manufactured in Finland. All exterior metal surfaces are phosphated for corrosion resistance and then coated with a black enamel. The machined solid steel billet action avoided cracking problems the AK-series had with steel stamped sheet actions, but this made the Galil heavier.
The Gas-Block, handguard retainers and folding-stock mechanism components are cast pieces that are finish-machined and accordingly fitted. The sighting arrangements are also entirely cast and machined for greater durability. The only stamped components on the Galil are the magazine-catch, trigger guard, dust cover and the magazines.
The weapon is fitted with a high-impact plastic handguard and pistol grip and a side-folding tubular steel skeleton stock. The rifle can be used with a sound suppressor. The weapon features a bottle opener in the front handguard and wire cutter built into the bipod. The bottle opener feature was included to prevent damage to magazines being used to open bottles, due to the large civilian reservist components of the IDF. Use of magazines to open bottles was a common source of magazine lip damage with Uzi submachine guns. Wire cutters were included to reduce the time necessary for IDF troops to cut down wire fences common to rural areas in Israel.