Semiauto FG-42 at the Range: 1st and 2nd Patterns 

Ian out there, living the dream.

As an owner of a Type II FG42 in .308 from Rick, they are very nice. Kinda picky on ammo, but they're incredibly well made and shoot incredulously soft. I've shot M1 Carbines with snappier recoil than my FG Also, shooting the FG indoors is a ton of fun because it throws 2ft fireballs and sounds like an anti aircraft cannon.

You can actually see the brass slamming against that deflector. Definitely good that those are included on the examples you were shooting. I wouldn't want one of those cases flung out with that much force in my face, either. I'm a lefty, too. Your shooting videos are significantly more useful to me than many others.

The FG-42 is the Ferrari F40 of firearms. Simply timeless and lightning caught in a bottle as well. Just perfection.

A G43 reproduction would be pretty nice. Anyone else?

What a nice piece of hardware. Still looks like it belongs in the field even in 2023.

Sometimes I'm surprised that the creators of Star Wars didn't use the fg42 rifle to serve as a blaster by the of the rebellion or the empire,because its futuristic look fits the Universe.

I would have loved watching him do a 2 gun with the FG and the artillery luger from the last givaway!

Anyone remember going up against the germans armed with these in the Band Of Brothers games? Getting your hands on one with a scope in the later missions was a game changer. great vid as always

Ian, you've done it again. Thanks for letting us live vicariously through your amazing experiences! Hope you had fun mate, sure looked like you did!

*Gun deprived Europeans cry when we see this*

Loved the line "The question we are here to answer is which is better one to have? And we are going to have to do some more shooting before making up our mind on that" Do we Ian really :) your commitment to force yourself to fire epic guns to do this testing is commendable :)

Love you Ian! Out there doing God's work giving us all this beautiful FG42 content!

It pains me that I live in a state where I wouldn't be able to acquire one of these. The FG42 is handily the most fascinating WWII-era firearm and ever since Ian's first video on them years ago it's been one of my grail guns.

Find someone who looks at you the way that Ian looks at an FG-42.

Stunning machine! And a great video.greetings from Italy.

I love learning about guns and seeing them but don't own any. Im left handed though so I deeply appreciate Ian's info on left handed struggles and quirks.

Another example of fine German engineering 😊

You can also get the SMG FG-42 in 7.62 NATO. Which is a bit easier to get a hold of than 8mm.

Knows which is better within two shots, but “better do some more shooting before we decide” 😂 Ian’s a smart guy.

I'm sure the second pattern is the better shooter, but there's just something about the lines of the first pattern that I love. It's definitely a gun with its flaws, but the only thing that annoys the hell out of me is the spike bayonet. It's just wild to think someone thought it was a good enough idea that it ended up on the gun.

The midpup sideloader design is such a nice aesthetic. I wish it were used more.

Did the cameraman got hit in the balls by a piece of bras or why is he saying autsch at 3:30 mark ? XD

My theory is that the grip of the first pattern had this shape because it was supposed to be a paratrooper rifle and because of that they wanted to make the grip as small as possible.

Competitions like this make me very sad that I live in the UK....

That pu is amazing I have one myself and I'm a big person but from looks alone despite that I chose the first pattern good luck to whoever wins that, beautiful pieces

How much is there of a difference between shooting that FG42 and G3? Are the guns the same weight/handling? Is the kick from the cartridge higher?

What a HOSS of a Rifle. 8mm Mauser in a small version of an anti-aircraft cannon! Love it! 😂👍

I think if I had one of those FGs I’d have to get an FFL and SOT just so that I could transfer one to full auto like god intended

The first thing that came to mind was how funny would it be to put a block in the magazine to limit it to 5 rounds and use this for hunting! Imagine the looks you would get in camp!

It's smooth, way ahead of its time, the cool factor of owning one must be awesome.

I'm envisioning myself hunting deer with this. I love that vision.

One of the guys in my living history company had one of the second models we used to display. I got my hands on it quite a few times, it felt very well built.

Ian looked so happy in the thumbnail, i had to click haha Im glad youre enjoying your FG42s

I fon't think Himmler's idea of the perfect German had any left handed people. Such deviation was not encouraged.

I put a substantial deposit down when Estes Adams first announced this project which was absconded with. Not the first or the last time that I've been screwed on clones of historical military rifles. Hopefully, a win will set Karma right. Here's hoping!

This gun is unmatched, considering light weight combined with the full power cartridge.

I do love the fg-42 what a cool rifle

1st pattern is just so much sexier

i cut a small piece of 5/16 rubber fuel line maybe 1 inch long. left a uncut piece at top then split it down . i then fitted it to the case deflector so it would not damage the brass . the uncut top holds it to the defector

make a video about biathlon-sportsrifles, please, they are crazy, for example the german gdr (sozialist) one!

I notice that you used your Left hand...Is the FG-42 Made for right hand use.????

Who knew the Germans were the first to create a CA compliant grip in the 1st pattern FG-42? 🤣

1st pattern is just so slim and sexy with elegant lines to my eye. The 2nd pattern looks beefier but it’s also a beautiful gun. I’d take the 1st pattern in a lighter cartridge lol

Its terrible for left handers you say? Its like the Nazis weren’t a fan of people who broke the mold or something

holy moley! that brass is rocketing out of the ejection port! very happy for the deflector i bet!

80 years later the design and mechanics are still space age

IF YOU WANT AN RP46 SMG IS TAKING PRE ORDERS ON THE BELT FEED ADAPTER

These FG repros are the only rifles I've ever heard with that audible click when the trigger resets.

Mr beast style thumbnails work 😂

"This fg-42 is mine" What a subtle flex to drop

Totally haven’t used some of this man’s quotes on my Classwork for my Gunsmithing Degree 😂

As an Illinois resident, it makes me sad I'm currently forbidden from owning one of these... They are beautiful semi-auto reproductions.

4:16 The spinner had not a chance!

"blessed"... The trite term I loathe so much.

You are a lucky man ...... to have shot so many epic & historical guns

God both of these are absolutely gorgeous rifles but I'd have to go with the 2nd pattern. If only it was legal in England :(

The first pattern looks like a Star Wars gun. So cool.

I would love it if they could make this in 5.45x39 or 5.56.

as an aussie I am greatly jealous that i cannot take part in the giveaway. Congrats to whoever gets it and big shoutout to Ian and the team who made that possible. Another quality video with information, facts and hands on experience, no cheesy explosions and fake voices edit ok so that first pattern gun in the standing pose visually looks awesome (though i bet my clunky big hands would fail to fit that insane grip), and why has not one used that for a "star wars blaster"?

Have you had the chance to fire a full auto version? I bet they were a handful but they were meant to fill a light machinegun role also.

They look like they would be a beast in full auto.

We actually got a glance downrange this time ... Very nice report Ian.

No Ameli at the range?? :(

What a great weapon, I love the FG 42 and want to own one when I can get out of NY. Have fun with it 👍

Ian you look like a total badass!!!

RTCW nerds all here like 😮

Ian, could you do a video about the best weapon designers according to your own opinion. I think you have the best balance around. Thanks!

Gotta admit!!! It looks very Sci-Fi!!!! The Nazis were ahead of their time w/ Weaponry and technology!!!!!:):)

Wow, you can really se that receiver recoiling back into the butt. Beautiful weapon. In any version.

That’s a very elegant weapon system

Those look amazing ❤ great video as always

Ian, you describe yourself as left-handed. You are definitely left EYE dominant, but do you write with your left hand? Just wondering... I am right eye dominant so shoot from my Right shoulder, even though I write ✍️ with my Left hand. Maybe I'll see you at SHOT again.

Getting those Hell Let Loose vibes in this video.

As seen on the movie Aliens. The Luftwaffee Light or Aluminum bullet. Sounds like it would fragment a bit a 100 meters. But not used of course! If it had been it would have been far more controllable on full auto than the standard 8m. So there was an STG round but the Luftwaffee already had their own. One might recall that Mann of Great Caliber FM Goering established the GESTAPO who are watching you even now. So dum dumps or hollow point bullets would not have been an issue for civilian use. Answer- the lighter of the two with aluminum rounds. I'm not sure how far they had gotten with duplex and triplex ammunition. Thus the 10 rounder more practical. It was the idea then to have a 1001 meter rifle. That seems to have found it's way into the new M-7. Nice Butt!

cucked west-germany: BEHOLD :D my modified G3 sniper rifle based german reich: _*sighs and puts hand on his shoulder_ you did well kiddo, you did well

So eventually will the FG be available for purchase? Do we know when?

I Just bought a reproduction FG 42 II from SSD in Germany. Very good quality and you can buy a reproduction STG 44 from them too. Unfortunatley it is Not so easy to find a Shooting Range in Germany like it is in the US.

Tried 3x to enter, thought it was free to enter? But 😮you need me to buy a $56 coffea cup?where are the rules posted? I know what raffles are, I’ve never had to buy a coffea cup to win a gun before. I’d sure like to win this, I bought a FG-9 (I could afford it) let me suggest if you ever do a show “ weapons we’d all like to forget” make the FG-9 the first show of the series!

Amazing toy. And amazing how work, time and ressources Nazi Germany put in very limited use and ultra specialized weapons during WW2...

Hey Ian, I'm not sure if you'd ever subject yourself to this or not, but would/could you please do a review on the FG-9 (an FG42 chambered in 9mm) made by Global Defense

Thank you for the info about the grips, if I ever get the chance I'll pass on even picking up a first pattern. There was a guy bragging how big his hands were in the lunch room, someone said go check out Jim's. He did, his only comment was a very quiet "Jesus Christ". Last time I ever heard anything about his hands. Jim Y

As a fellow left-handed shooter I know all too well the pain of having brass bounce off your face

Think you could just have the type 1 but ask Rick to put a type 2 grip on it? lol That's the only thing that I prefer about the type 2 in terms of looks, and MAYBE the bipod. I know it wouldn't be an accurate repo but I think it'd be nice enough to justify.

Do you find any advantages between the fg42 Bren LMG and the BAR and their respective position of the magazine?Have a good one Mr.GJ.

So they reproduce a nearly 80 year old weapon, but modify magazines? What is it about mags that they can't be reproduced easily, to a casual observer, me 😊, they seem like the simple part. Thanks for the content.

I know it doesn't really come through accurately on RU-vid, but these guns sound so good!

I appreciate your work but am fairly destitute. If I had the meañs I would truly be glad to havva sit-d9wn with you. Mae is necessary,

Having two FG 42's out to play with is like having a double date with two gorgeous Euro blondes. . . 😂 👍

Yeah booooy!!! That looks like so much fun, wish I was there.👍Thanks for such a great review. 🤙🤙

the Type 1's grip angle reminds me of the Thorsden stock on my cali compliant AR

Always amazes me how Ian can shoot left-hand so easily. I'm born lefty (can't do almost anything with right hand) and always find it better to shoot and operate from "normal" position.

Being as I'm in California, I am not going to enter because I don't want ti to be bastardized by the anti liberty rules of this state. Just commenting fir the algorithm and to wish the winner happy shooting.

Ian's pure joy in the thumbnail pic is one of the most wholesome things I'm likely to see today. He looks like the old Ha! Ha! Guy meme.

That’s a genuine happy smile 👍🏻👍🏻. I feel that way firing my K11

All that knowledge and you created the WWSD gun? Really goes to the saying: If you can’t do, teach.

Would be nice to see a modern light scaled down iteration of the FG42 in .223.

I remember how you used to struggle with spinners, now you spin them offhand with irons with 8mm Mauser, that's insane.

Comparing the second with a modern Ar 10. Which is your veredict about shooting?

I am told the SMG guns FG42s are not reliable. Anyone can verify?