Frag Out! Magazine
Issue link: https://fragout.uberflip.com/i/693549
www.fragoutmag.com During the production run some small developmental steps were taken, leading to the current pro- duction M96C with a new, non-folding telescoping stock, ergonomic pistol grip, aluminum quad- 1913 rail handguard and an overhead optics or red dot sight 1913 rail, spanned between the rear sight base and the rear trunnion post. Beryl M762 So far the Polish Army is purchasing still more Beryl M96Cs and agonizingly slowly commits itself to field test the radically new MSBS rifles. Meanwhile the FB Łucznik-radom is trying to find ex- port orders by re-chambering the Beryl to other intermediate rounds, taking advantage of the rifle's legacy (Beryl is a Westernized variant of the 5.45 mm Tantal rifle, Polish indigenous AK-74 look-alike based on AKM to avoid pricey license). Thus the first export variant was retrograded to the true AK legacy by replacing the NATO round with the Russian 5.45 mm × 39, being in fact almost the M96A (basic production variant) with an AKM FCG: eliminating the separate fire-selector and reverting to the safety / selector lever, while abolishing the 3-round burst-fire mechanism. That rifle, designated the Beryl M545 was created for the Vietnamese rifle tender, when they were looking for a new rifle to replace their aging AKs. The next variant, Beryl M762, dug into AK legacy even further, reverting to the original 7.62 mm x 39 ammunition of the AKM. This was also an export version, intended for the Third World markets, where true AKM/AKMSs are still the staple diet. So far 1500 of these were sold, all to Nigeria, where they are used by the federal Special Forces, fighting the Boko-Haram Islamic militants – apparently with enough success to warrant next batches being contemplated, numbering a total of 5-6,000.