FN FAL (Mexican License Production)
- Category
- Battle Rifle
- Barrel
- 533 mm
- Weight, empty
- 4.31 kg
- Introduced
- 1968
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Mexican FN FAL is the SEDENA-produced licensed variant of the Belgian FN FAL battle rifle, manufactured in Mexico under agreement with FN Herstal. Mexico was one of more than nine countries to undertake domestic FAL production alongside Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, India, Nigeria, South Africa, and Venezuela. Mexican-produced FALs largely followed the FN 50.00 fixed-stock metric pattern with selective-fire capability and 20-round detachable box magazines, and were issued primarily to the Mexican Army, Naval Infantry, and select federal law enforcement units during the late Cold War era. The platform was progressively replaced by the H&K G3 - Mexico's other licensed battle rifle - and ultimately by the H&K HK33 and FX-05 Xiuhcoatl in front-line infantry service from the 1990s onward, though FALs remained in second-line and reserve service well into the 2000s.
Mexico's adoption of the FAL in 1968 came at a time when Mexico was hosting the Olympic Games and modernizing its military to project regional stature; the FAL replaced a mixed inventory of WWII-era M1 Garands and Mausers and put Mexican infantry on equal footing with NATO-standard armies for the first time.
Mexican FAL production specifications are not widely published; rifles are believed to follow the FN 50.00 standard pattern with metric-pattern parts compatibility. Mexico also acquired DSA-built upper receivers in the 2000s for refurbishment of legacy FAL inventory, with receivers stamped 'Mexico'. The G3 ultimately superseded the FAL as Mexico's primary 7.62 NATO battle rifle.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional (SEDENA)
- Category
- Battle Rifle
- Country
- Mexico
- Status
- Out of production
- Produced
- 1968 to 1990
- Variant of
- Licensed production
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 533 mm
- Overall length
- 1090 mm
- Sight radius
- 553 mm
- Weight, empty
- 4.31 kg
- Weight, loaded
- 4.97 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Gas operated short stroke
- Firing mechanism
- Hammer fired
- Trigger
- Single stage
- Capacity
- 20
- Magazine
- Detachable box
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Frame
- Steel
- Barrel
- Steel
- Stock
- Wood
- Finish
- Phosphate
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 838 m/s
- Muzzle energy
- 3360 J
- Effective range
- 600 m
- Maximum range
- 3000 m
- Rate of fire
- 700 rpm
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Metric pattern receiver
Tilting breechblock
Adjustable gas regulator
Select fire
Wooden furniture
Fixed stock
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty weightAmong 86 7.62x51mm NATO battle rifles | 4.31 kg | 4.30 kg | Heavier than about 60% |
| Overall lengthAmong 85 7.62x51mm NATO battle rifles | 1090 mm | 1025 mm | Longer than about 70% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 87 7.62x51mm NATO battle rifles | 533 mm | 458 mm | Longer than about 80% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 87 7.62x51mm NATO battle rifles | 20 | 20 | Near the median |
Answers
Questions about the FN FAL (Mexican License Production)
How much does the FN FAL (Mexican License Production) weigh?
The FN FAL (Mexican License Production) weighs 4.31 kg (9.50 lb) empty and 4.97 kg (10.96 lb) loaded.
What caliber is the FN FAL (Mexican License Production)?
The FN FAL (Mexican License Production) is chambered in 7.62x51mm NATO.
How many rounds does the FN FAL (Mexican License Production) hold?
The FN FAL (Mexican License Production) holds 20 rounds, fed from a detachable box magazine.
How long is the FN FAL (Mexican License Production)?
The FN FAL (Mexican License Production) is 1090 mm (42.9 in) long overall, with a 533 mm (21.0 in) barrel.
Who makes the FN FAL (Mexican License Production)?
The FN FAL (Mexican License Production) is made by Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional (SEDENA) (Mexico). It was designed by Dieudonné Saive.
When was the FN FAL (Mexican License Production) introduced?
The FN FAL (Mexican License Production) was introduced in 1968 and discontinued in 1990.
How does the FN FAL (Mexican License Production) operate?
The FN FAL (Mexican License Production) uses a gas operated short stroke action, and its firing mechanism is hammer fired.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
In service
- Mexican Army (Ejército Mexicano)
- 1968
- Mexican Naval Infantry (Infantería de Marina)
- Mexico
- Mexican Federal Police (Policía Federal)
- Mexico
Provenance
Confidence in this record
72%
Stockists
Where to buy
Offers link straight to the shop. GunSpec never takes the order.
No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/fn-fal-mexican' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "fn-fal-mexican", "name": "FN FAL (Mexican License Production)", "manufacturer": { "id": "sedena", "name": "Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional (SEDENA)", "countryCode": "MX", "foundedYear": 1937, "website": "https://www.gob.mx/sedena", "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-05-04 12:38:54", "updatedAt": "2026-05-04 12:38:54", "version": "c5383e42c04dd7779ab364ee7f84590ed7fe85b43531432c5b542ca8ad5819cc" }, "category": { "id": "battle-rifle", "name": "Battle Rifle", "description": "Selective-fire rifles chambered in full-power cartridges" }, "country_of_origin": "MX", "year_introduced": 1968, "barrel_length_mm": 533, "weight_empty_g": 4310, "action_type": "gas_operated_short_stroke"}