So FN decided to market to the non-aligned countries, who did not want to commit to Western or Soviet doctrine, which was inevitable when accepting aid. They also could get American and British weapons aid, which was inexpensive or free. The Western European nations had vast stocks of World War II firearms.

FN started looking for customers, but the communist states were not an option (as they were required to buy or build Soviet designs).

Other sources however claim the rifle was trialed with the in 1947, The Netherlands Navy trials did not however lead to a sales contract. Some sources claim pre-production models for demonstration and testing were produced in 1948, making rifle ready for contract orders and mass production. The last production contract of complete rifles was ordered by Indonesia on Decemand delivered by February 19, 1961. Egyptian SAFN with riflescope The contracts for the SAFN 1949 rifle started in 1948 with the first order placed by Venezuela on March 31, 1948, delivered by exactly four months later. The FN-49 found itself in direct competition with a number of more modern rifles such as the and 's own, resulting in limited sales.

An unknown number of FN-49's were produced as, but the small 10 round limited the usefulness of the fully automatic feature. While well regarded for its high build quality and reliability in comparison to the rifles of the time, its marketability was limited, as it was not developed in time for use in but later, as many militaries had already begun the switch to.

The version with produced for Belgium was known as the AFN. It was used by the militaries of Argentina, Belgium, the, Brazil, Egypt, and. It could very well be that the sample shown from the Mauser Central picture may have had the serial numbers added to it.įN Model 1949 Type Place of origin Belgium Service history In service 1949–1982 Used by See Wars Production history Designer Designed 1949 Manufacturer Produced 1949–1961 No. built 176,000 Specifications Weight 4.31 kg (9 lb 8 oz) Length 1116 mm (43.5 in) length 590 mm (23.2 in), tilting bolt Feed system 10-round fixed, 20-round detachable box magazine in Argentine 7.62×51mm NATO conversions Sights / on Belgium The Fabrique Nationale Model 1949 (often referred to as the FN-49, SAFN or AFN) is a available as both a and as a designed by and manufactured. It appears as maybe if the FN Mauser did not originally have any serial numbers on it when 1st built. Other Belgian company manufacturing FN actions in.

Fn Belgian Mauser Serial Numbers