FFV 890

Last updated • 5 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
FFV 890
FFV 890 C.jpg
FFV 890C
Type Assault rifle
Place of originSweden
Service history
Used by Swedish Armed Forces (trials only)
Swedish Police Authority
Production history
Designer Israel Military Industries
Försvarets fabriksverk
Designed1974–1980
Manufacturer Israel Military Industries
Försvarets fabriksverk
Produced1975–1980
No. built<1000
VariantsFFV 890 (Galil ARM)
FFV 890 (Galil SAR)
FFV 890C
Specifications
Mass3.5 kg (7.7 lb) empty (FFV 890C)
Length860 mm (34 in) stock extended
625 mm (24.6 in) stock folded
Barrel  length348 mm (13.7 in)

Cartridge 5.56×45mm NATO
Action Gas-operated, rotating bolt
Rate of fire 650 rounds/min
Muzzle velocity 860 m/s [1]
Feed system35-round detachable double stack IMI Galil-type box magazine
SightsTwo-setting rear aperture sight with flip up open night sight, forward hooded post with flip up night sight post.

The FFV 890 was a Swedish assault rifle manufactured and designed by Försvarets Fabriksverk. The FFV 890 was based on the IMI Galil through a manufacturing licence, which in turn was based on the Finnish Valmet RK 62 and ultimately the Soviet AK-47. The FFV 890 was designed between 1975 and 1980, and its final iteration, FFV 890C, competed in the Swedish Armed Forces trials for the new 5.56×45mm NATO assault rifle, where it ended up as a runner-up to the FN FNC, which was then chosen as the Ak 5. [2] The FFV 890C was never widely adopted by any service, though some rifles were used by the Swedish police. [2]

Contents

History

The FFV 890 was initially based on the ARM variant of the IMI Galil, and the earliest rifles were indeed just plain Galil ARMs manufactured by Israel Military Industries (nowadays Israel Weapon Industries) in Israel. [2] Over the course of the development FFV decided to move to the Galil SAR as a base design, and after some IMI manufactured FFV 890 rifles FFV started licence manufacturing in the Eskilstuna Carl Gustafs Stads Gevärsfaktori for the FFV 890C. It is unclear whether complete rifles ever had all of their parts manufactured by FFV. [2] Both IMI and the Finnish state firearms company Valmet (Valmet firearms division was later merged to Sako) participated in the production of parts and assisting FFV in the production of the 890. [3] The chief firearms designer of Valmet, Timo Hyytinen, described working with FFV as easy and unproblematic, but that the Swedish Armed Forces had resentment towards cooperation with Valmet. [3]

FFV entered the FFV 890 into the Swedish Armed Forces trials for the new 5.56 mm assault rifle. The initial trials took place in 1974-1976, with the FFV 890 (both the ARM and SAR) competing against the Heckler & Koch HK33, FN FNC, FN CAL, Colt M16A1, Steyr AUG, Beretta AR70, ArmaLite AR-18, SIG SG 540 and Stoner 63. [2] [4] The FFV 890 and FN FNC turned out superior over the other competitors, especially in regard to reliability in winter conditions, which led to the disqualification of the other competitors (although FN CAL was disqualified due to production being shut down). [2] [4]

Between 1975 and 1979 FFV dropped the ARM variant and continued development with only the SAR variant. This development finally led to the FFV 890C, which was different to the Galil SAR in some aspects: it had a shorter gas system (shorter gas tube and piston), two-piece clamshell front handguard similar to FN FNC and Valmet RK 62 76, redesigned and larger magazine release lever, larger right side selector, larger trigger guard, shorter barrel (348 mm [5] ), case deflector attached to the receiver cover, OD green paint, rubber recoil buffer and Swedish-based markings for the selector positions. [2]

After some trials, the Swedish Armed Forces requested some changes to the FFV 890C. FFV incorporated the following changes: horizontally oriented charging handle (similar to the AK) instead of the vertically oriented charging handle of the Galil, return to the standard Galil trigger guard and magazine release lever, additional notch to the right side selector lever, additional cross bar safety similar to the FN MAG, and the rear sight was changed to similar to the rear sight in the FN Minimi. The stock was also painted green. [2]

After the 1979-1980 trials in the 11th Infantry Regiment at Växjö, the military and soldiers having participated in the trials described the FFV 890C as superior to the FN FNC, [2] [4] but the FN FNC was described as better in the official documents; [2] [4] officially neither rifle passed the trials. [4] The FNC was cheaper and employed more modern manufacturing methods over the 890C, [4] namely stamping instead of milling. FFV attempted to convert the manufacturing process of the 890C to stamped receivers similar to the AKM, but was unsuccessful in doing so. [2] There were political difficulties between Israel and Sweden at the time, with the Swedish government not having high regard for Israel, which may also have played part in the decision. The adoption of an initially Soviet design would possibly also have been problematic to the neutral non-alignment policy of Sweden at the time. [2] The Swedish Armed Forces were also unwilling towards any deeper cooperation with the Finnish state company Valmet, which was assisting FFV in the production of the parts of the 890C, and they sought a solution which wouldn't have included cooperation with Valmet. [3]
The FMV (Swedish Defence Materiel Administration) officially declared the FN FNC as the winner after the trials had ended. [2]

Over the course of the development of the FFV 890C, less than 1000 rifles were manufactured. [2] [5]

FFV later sold all of the blueprints and development work to Valmet, [5] which presumably incorporated some features into its rifle development. [2]

Design

Gas operation with a long-stroke piston, a system found in FFV 890. Gas OPR.gif
Gas operation with a long-stroke piston, a system found in FFV 890.

The FFV 890 is based on the Kalashnikov gas operation with a long-stroke piston, and a rotating bolt which locks to the receiver, to which (the receiver) the barrel is threaded in as in the IMI Galil and Valmet RK 62. The main control interface is very similar to that of the Galil and RK 62, with some minor differences, which vary between the initial and later FFV 890C versions.

Compared to the Galil and RK 62, the FFV 890C also has some unique features. The rifle is painted in OD green, and mounts a green clamshell front handguard. Some later versions incorporating features requested by the Swedish Armed Forces have such unique features as a cross bar safety, Ak 4 trigger groups, selectors and such. [2] The rifle also lacks any bayonet mount.

The sights are identical to the Galil SAR, a two position rear aperture sight with trajectory for 300 and 500 metres, an open flip-up night sight and full circle hooded front sight with a flip up night sight post. [5]

The rifle has a 22 mm flash hider which can be used to fire rifle grenades. [5]

Variants

FFV 890 (Galil SAR) showing the brass plate affixed by FFV. FFV 890C 001-2.jpg
FFV 890 (Galil SAR) showing the brass plate affixed by FFV.

Users

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">IMI Galil</span> Family of Israeli automatic rifles

The IMI 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 FN FAL is a battle rifle designed in Belgium in 1953 by Dieudonné Saive and manufactured by FN Herstal.

The SS1 is the standard assault rifle of the Indonesian armed forces and Indonesian National Police. It is based on the FN FNC rifle but modified in order to meet ergonomic and tropical environment needs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RK 62</span> Finnish assault rifle

The RK 62, officially 7.62 RK 62 and commercially M62, is an assault rifle manufactured by Valmet and Sako. It is the standard issue infantry weapon of the Finnish Defence Forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heckler & Koch G3</span> German battle rifle

The Heckler & Koch G3 is a select-fire battle rifle chambered in 7.62×51mm NATO developed in the 1950s by the German firearms manufacturer Heckler & Koch, in collaboration with the Spanish state-owned firearms manufacturer CETME. The G3 was the service rifle of the German Bundeswehr until it was replaced by the Heckler & Koch G36 in the 1990s, and was adopted into service with numerous other countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vektor R4</span> Assault rifle

The Vektor R4 is a South African 5.56×45mm assault rifle. It entered service as the standard service rifle of the South African Defence Force (SADF) in 1980. In South African service, the R4 replaced the R1, a variant of the 7.62×51mm FN FAL. It was produced by Lyttelton Engineering Works, now Denel Land Systems.

The Ak 5 is a license-built Swedish version of the Belgian FN FNC assault rifle, with certain modifications, mostly to adapt the weapon to the partially subarctic Swedish climate. The Ak 5 is the current service rifle of the Swedish Armed Forces, adopted in 1986, partially replacing the Ak 4, a license-built version of the Heckler & Koch G3.

The INSAS, or Indian Small Arms System, is a family of infantry arms consisting of an assault rifle and a light machine gun (LMG). These weapons were developed in India by the Armament Research and Development Establishment and manufactured by the Ordnance Factories Board at its various factories. It was the standard infantry weapon of the Indian Armed Forces for almost three decades.

The APS-95 was an assault rifle manufactured in Croatia by Končar-Arma d.o.o since 1995 and offered for export up to at least 2007. The manufacturing company, a subsidiary of the Croatian ARMA-GRUPA Corporation, has been manufacturing the ERO and Mini-ERO submachine guns since the mid-1990s.

The RK 95 TP, officially 7.62 RK 95 TP and commercially known as the M95, is a 7.62×39mm Finnish assault rifle adopted in relatively small numbers by the Finnish Defence Forces in the 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beretta AR70/90</span> Assault rifle

The Beretta AR70/90 is a gas operated assault rifle chambered for the 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridge, and is the standard issue service rifle of the Italian Armed Forces. The weapon is also designed to be fitted with a rifle grenade, and has grenade sights. The AR series comes in many variants such as the AR90, with a wire folding stock, for use by paratroopers.

The FN FNC is a 5.56×45mm NATO assault rifle developed by the Belgian arms manufacturer FN Herstal and introduced in the late 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kalashnikov rifle</span> Russian automatic rifle family

Kalashnikov rifles, also known as the AK platform, AK rifles or simply the AK, are a family of selective fire assault rifles based on Mikhail Kalashnikov's original design. They are officially known in Russian as avtomat Kalashnikova, and informally as "kalash" in Russian. They were originally manufactured in the Soviet Union, first by Izhmash and later by Kalashnikov Concern. Rifles similar to the Kalashnikov and its Soviet variants were later produced in many countries friendly to the Soviet Bloc, with rifles based on its design such as the Galil ACE and the INSAS also being produced. The Kalashnikov is one of the most widely used firearms in the world, with an estimated 72 million rifles in global circulation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lewis Machine & Tool Company</span> American firearms manufacturer

Lewis Machine & Tool Company (LMT) is an American armaments company founded by Karl Lewis, in 1980. It manufactures weapon systems, including a variant of the M4 carbine and the M203 grenade launcher. Its products are used by the military forces of the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Estonia and the United States. It formerly produced forged FN FAL receivers for Illinois-based DS Arms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">IWI Galil ACE</span> Series of assault and battle rifles

The IWI Galil ACE, also marketed as IWI ACE, is a series of assault rifles and battle rifles originally developed and manufactured by Israel Weapon Industries (IWI). It is produced in three different calibres: 5.56×45mm NATO, 7.62×39mm and 7.62×51mm NATO.

The Ak 4 is a license-built Swedish version of the West German Heckler & Koch G3 battle rifle. It was adopted as the service rifle of the Swedish Armed Forces in 1965, replacing the bolt-action m/96 Mauser.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Valmet Sniper M86</span> Finnish sniper rifle

The Valmet Sniper M86 is a Finnish sniper rifle designed by the former Finnish state firearms company Valmet. The rifle was Valmet's first and only proper sniper rifle, and after the merger with Sako in 1986, its development work was the basis for the Sako TRG sniper rifles. The rifle was produced only in small numbers in 1987 due to the merger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RK 71</span> Finnish assault rifle RK 71

The RK 71, commercially M71, is a Finnish assault rifle designed and manufactured by Valmet. It is based on the RK 62, which in turn is based on the Soviet AK-47. Finnish Defence Forces tested the 7.62 RK 71 between 1971 and 1973 as a possible replacement of the RK 62, but logistics issues prevented its larger adoption by FDF. The rifle was also exported to Qatar.

The STV is a family of Vietnamese-made service assault rifles and submachine guns.

The Sako M23 is a Finnish family of assault and battle rifles designed by Sako in cooperation with the Finnish Defence Forces and manufactured by Sako. The Swedish Armed Forces also participated in the development program for the M23.

References

  1. Westwood, David (2005). Rifles: An Illustrated History of Their Impact. ABC-CLIO. p. 399. ISBN   978-1-85109-401-1.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Cane, Seth. "FFV-890C: The Swedish Service Rifle That Never Was". forgottenweapons.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2018. Retrieved 23 August 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 Hyytinen, Timo (2001). Asesuunnittelua Suomessa (in Finnish). Arma Fennica Oy. p. 70. ISBN   978-951-97543-3-8.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Swedish military assault rifles 1945 - 1990, Ak4 and Ak 5". gotavapen.se. Göta Vapenhistoriska Sällskap. Archived from the original on 16 February 2019. Retrieved 23 August 2019.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "Automatkarbin FFV 890C". digitaltmuseum.se (in Swedish). KulturIT. Archived from the original on 10 July 2019. Retrieved 23 August 2019.