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Hungarian FEG SA 85M
urie
Member Posts: 7 ✭
I purchased a Hungarian FEG SA 85M Thumbhole Rifle, can someone tell me what year it is Model # SA-85M, Article # GA9501, Serial # 12500. Thanks.
Comments
imported 1991-1998
I believe it would date to the 1987-89 time frame. If it has the Kassnar Imports name on it?
When the first president Bush, banned the import of assault rifles in the late 80's. Many of these rifles were held up by the feds in custom warehouses. Until there evil features could be removed. Thumbhole stocks were fitted. Bayonet lugs and muzzle brakes were removed. Before they could be legally released for sale to the importers, (Kassnar).
The gun was imported by KBI of Harrisburgh,Pa. It is stamped KBI on the rifle.
The Kassnar family of Harrisburg PA, have been importing and selling firearms since the early 1980's. They have done business under many names over the years. Charles Daly, Cassie, K.B.I. etc.etc.
As I recall the Hungarian AK saga, the first imports, which had all of the nasty military features, were imported by Kassnar back in 1987: 5000 in total, of which 4,000 were under folders and 1,000 were fixed wood (now very hard to find). There were also several thousand Hungarian HiPower clones imported at the same time. The problem was that we were still waging the Cold War and firearms imports from Hungary were prohibited. All of these pre ban Hungarian AKs were imported due to administrative error: Some genius at the Treasure Department didn't knw the difference between Hungary and (the former) Yugoslavia, whose AKs were importable (by American Arms and Mitchell Arms). All firearms imports from Hungary ceased.
In 1989 Poppa Bush issued his ban on military style automatic rifles, which put an end to all AK imports. Mitchell Arms had a large number of rifles in bond and in order to get them out of US Customs, developed the thumbhole buttstock. Mitchell's brainchild was successful and was then copied by just about everyone else in the industry (think MAK90).
By 1991 the Cold War was essentially over. Kassnar reinvented themselves as KBI and began importing a compliant Hungarian AK. Tens of thousands were imported until 1998 when the Clinton administration barred the importation of AK-type rifles which could accept a double stack magazine. Some importers simply sold their AKs with special single stack magazines while a few, such as Century Arms opened up the magazine well to accommodate the standard AK pattern mag.
In the meantime, FEG, the manufacturer in Hungary, was falling on hardy times and began to gradually reduce their production of firearms. By 1998 they were only producing handguns and air guns, which meant the close of Hungarian AK importation. By 2005 FEG was completely out of the firearms business and has focused on producing heaters and air conditioners.
I have a few SA-85M rifles. They were like a blank slate and once the thumbhole stock was tossed into the trash, the rifles could be configured into a variety of AK-types. The quality is excellent.
Here is one that I configured as an East German clone (I haven't seen that brown plastic furniture offered for sale in years: