Tavor First Impressions

[RSJ]

I picked up a Tavor a while back and have been too busy to shoot it until this week. Overall I am pretty happy with it thus far.


Price: 1700 + Tax
Caliber: 5.56 (/.223)
Magazine: Standard AR-15 mags (I broke mine in with 20/30/40 rd mags

I only took it out to 10/25/50/100 yards. I would like to get to a range where I can get to 200-300 with it.

PROS:
Recoil was pretty good. I'd say its 25% less than my other AR's.

Feel, this is where the gun shines. Although the gun is short, it is perfect for me. When put up to the shoulder, my hands feel normal, despite the bullpup design. The gun feels complete, firm, and like it could easily take being dropped, kicked, thrown, and picked back up without issue. The charging handle is ambi, as well as the ejection port (side can switch for you lefties).

Rails: Standard top picitanny rail. There is also a side rail for flashlights, smaller red dots, or anything else. I believe the angel is 45 degrees.

Accuracy: It shot pretty well, unfortunately I was just breaking it in, so it took a bit to get my optic sighted in. I believe I was getting near MOA @ 100 by the time I finished, but I do KNOW it was comparable to other 16in ARs.

CONS:
Trigger is a bit heavy. I've read online people are getting anywhere from 7-10lb pulls out of the box. I was able to get double-taps off reasonably fast, but I think an aftermarket trigger (currently 3-4 companies making them @ $250-350, and 3.5-6lbs) is a must.

Foregrip: As you can see from the picture, the front handguard DOES NOT have a rail attachment. I enjoy running a short, magpul grip on my rifles, so I'll probably by replacing the handguards. I guess this is a con, but then again, MOST out of the box rifles either come with plastic handguards, or cheap rails.

Bolt release. This is only a "con" because I'm used to releasing the bolt for a new mag on the lefthand side of a gun, somewhere near the middle. On the tavor, the bolt release is right inline with the magazine. This means you have to hold the gun with your dominant (right) hand, and being your other hand back TO the mag, to get it loaded after a reload. This will take some getting used to.



I'd give this gun a solid 8-8.5/10 for my time with it so far.
I have had ZERO FTF/FTE etc. I do not shoot steel cased ammo through my rifles, so I can only say XM193 works great! It shot great! It will take a bit of time to get used to over the standard AR-15 platform.

If anyone has questions, I'll be more than happy to answer them.

[RSJ]

Also, here is a sample picture of the side rails. Note that the charging handle CAN switch sides with the rail.

[rielpeter]

I own a TAVOR and couldn’t be happier. What a great rifle.

[Beiruty]

Too much money with a trigger issue, If Bullpup is not an issue, I would pick the new ARX100 or SIG556xi. If you want a bullpup get the Styer Aug.

[MechAg94]

For me, the trigger is NOT an issue. It is heavy, but it breaks cleanly and is easy to shoot. The only time the trigger weight comes into play is when trying to shoot bench rest groups. For someone who has gotten used to having Gisselle triggers on all my AR's, it takes some getting used to. The trigger is sort of like a K31 trigger just heavier.

About the only negative to me is some of the levers/buttons or whatever like the safe/fire selector and mag release are plastic and almost feel like they will break off, even though they probably are just as good as if they were metal. No problems at all, just something I am getting used to after all the aluminum doodads on a typical AR.

[MechAg94]

I would also add that it came with a 20% off coupon to get a Meprolight sight for it. No batteries. I got the X reticle and the X fits ont he black of an NRA 100 yard target. Maybe not a sight for shooting groups, but I think it will work well as a "battle" sight or shooting hogs.

[The Marshal]

Buying Bullpups and then wanting a 3# trigger is something that makes me chuckle. They are not competition rifles. They are meant for CQB, shooting man-sized targets.
I would love to join either of you two at the range, and I will bring my FS2000 for comparison.
I have a simple Bushnell RDS on my rifle, and fast target shooting it easy. I have a Meprolight on my AR; I like it a lot.

[The Marshal]

On the Tavor, does the magazine drop free, and does the bolt hold open on last shot?

[RSJ]

On the Tavor, does the magazine drop free, and does the bolt hold open on last shot?

Not in the conventional sense, It is somewhat similar to the AK. there is a release in front of the magazine. in one easy motion the release is lifted and the mag comes out "almost " drop free.

Yes, the bolt holds open. The bolt release is right behind the mag, making the entire process easy and located together.

[RSJ]

Too much money with a trigger issue, If Bullpup is not an issue, I would pick the new ARX100 or SIG556xi. If you want a bullpup get the Styer Aug.

Got rid of my Sig556, and chose to keep the Tavor.

[MechAg94]

Too much money with a trigger issue, If Bullpup is not an issue, I would pick the new ARX100 or SIG556xi. If you want a bullpup get the Styer Aug.

Got rid of my Sig556, and chose to keep the Tavor.

Similar here. I am going to drop down to just a match barreled AR and maybe a National Match. Just need to wait for the market to turn around in the future.

[The Annoyed Man]

Being left-handed, I like the Tavor because of its true ambidexterity. Because of its tiny size, I like the Tvor as a "truck gun" in a tennis racket case. I've held one at a gun show, and it felt fine.....just never fired one.

Having mounted a Trijicon 4x32BAC ACOG on my AR, I've become a BIG believer in battery-free illuminated reticles. The Tvor I handled at the gun show had a mepro sight mounted on it, and it seemed like a pretty nice unit........and it is a battery-free reticle. Trijicon has a non-magnified battery-free sight similar to the Mepro, but just because I own a Trijicon optic doesn't mean I'm a Trijicon snob. The Trijicon unit is really nice, but Mepro sight seems just as good at first glance. I only mention Trijicon because it is a good standard against which to compare other similar products.

The main thing standing between me and a Tvor is price. Don't get me wrong, I think its a pretty good piece of kit. I just don't think it is worth $1,700 of my dollars right now. Someone else's mileage may vary. They've got a great idea, and it may simply be that price is being dictated by availability, but I think its intrinsic (to me) value is probably $500-$600 or more less than what they seem to be going for.

I'm not knocking it at all. I think most high-end AR15s are overpriced too for what they are.

[RSJ]

Anyone have the 9mm kit for the tavor?

[The Annoyed Man]

If anyone has questions, I'll be more than happy to answer them.

Yeah.... if I can get you out to a range with a 275 yard backstop, can I shoot your Tvor?

[psijac]

The x95 variant looks great. It's even shorter and the mag release button is in the right place. I'd love to see a tavor in .300 blackout

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