X95 or T97 Gen3?

I've owned both. My experience with them:


Gen 3 T97:
Overall impression:
Smaller, slimmer, just felt more compact in the hands.
Reliability:
100% (note: this was a Gen3. My older Gen1 was NOT comparably reliable)
Ergonomics:
Safety: absolutely sucks, but this can be remedied with a T97.ca replacement lower. If I had kept my gun, I would have gone this route.
Magazine release: location is not great, but with the Gen 2 / Gen 3 ambi mag release, it's much better than the old Gen 1, which was terrible.
Charging handle: fine.
Optic mounting: fine.
Accessory mounting: mlok compatibility, so fine.


X95:
Overall impression:
Felt bigger overall - thicker, more bulky. Still, it's a compact gun.
Reliability:
100%
Ergonomics:
Safety: perfect AR-style
Magazine release: perfect AR-style
Charging handle: fine.
Optic mounting: fine.
Accessory mounting: concealed picatinny rails, so fine.

I sold my T97 simply because the X95 had better ergonomics. Even with the T97.ca replacement lower, the mag release on the X95 was far more intuitive. Is the T97 a decent gun? Sure. Is an X95 better? Yes. Is an X95 worth double the price? Well, that's subjective. I'd say probably not. That being said, I still chose the X95 over the T97. Using it was more familiar, more intuitive, and closer to what I had been trained on.
 
It flings the brass it does dent the case but does not damage the rim nor shoulder, so other then looks won't hurt the brass is what I was told by my buddy who has a progressive loader.
 
I thought I saw people mention drilling a smaller hole in the "off position" of the adjustable gas block, to reduce the gas? No idea what size hole is being drilled, but it sounded like a reasonable work around for the over-gassed nature of the t97.

The latest vendor prices for the x95s are making them unobtainable. Closing in on $3k. Inflation is really hitting things hard.
 
Unholysavage said:
I thought I saw people mention drilling a smaller hole in the "off position" of the adjustable gas block, to reduce the gas? No idea what size hole is being drilled, but it sounded like a reasonable work around for the over-gassed nature of the t97.

The latest vendor prices for the x95s are making them unobtainable. Closing in on $3k. Inflation is really hitting things hard.
Click to expand...

All the X95's from vendors were just all on sale cheaper than they have been in over a year.
 
Unholysavage said:
I thought I saw people mention drilling a smaller hole in the "off position" of the adjustable gas block, to reduce the gas? No idea what size hole is being drilled, but it sounded like a reasonable work around for the over-gassed nature of the t97.
Click to expand...

Before you go and make permanent mods to your rifle which may or may not work because you have no idea how many fractions of a millimeter to drill, there is an alternative. Buy a cheap AK recoil spring from brownells, snip off 4-6 coils, and use it in place of the factory spring.
 
Jarvy said:
Before you go and make permanent mods to your rifle which may or may not work because you have no idea how many fractions of a millimeter to drill, there is an alternative. Buy a cheap AK recoil spring from brownells, snip off 4-6 coils, and use it in place of the factory spring.
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What does this do? I'd imagine the stiffer spring slows the action down a bit?

Is there a link to the modification?
 
Tyler said:
What does this do? I'd imagine the stiffer spring slows the action down a bit?

Is there a link to the modification?
Click to expand...

The T97 springs are fairly weak, while the AK ones are stouter. There's no link to the modification because I just did it myself. Throw the spring in, then clip coils off one end until it doesn't take undo effort to rack the bolt fully rear. (6 coils in my case)
 
I have both. Captain obvious here the safety and mag release are more ergonomic with the x95. Accuracy and reliability are about the same. I like the T-97 as it is cheaper and I do not worry about it getting scratched up. The Tavor is arguably better but I tend to baby my precious.
 
Unholysavage said:
I thought I saw people mention drilling a smaller hole in the "off position" of the adjustable gas block, to reduce the gas? No idea what size hole is being drilled, but it sounded like a reasonable work around for the over-gassed nature of the t97.

The latest vendor prices for the x95s are making them unobtainable. Closing in on $3k. Inflation is really hitting things hard.
Click to expand...

3k is nothing. People who bought first generation Tavors in Canada paid more.
 
I had a Gen 1 T97….awkward controls, POS trigger, but the iron sights were right on for the prescibed distances….Meh..let it go.
Bought an X95….haven’t looked back.
Thought I should give the Gen 3 T97 a whirl, but when the very accommodating guy behind the counter, and myself, couldn’t get even aluminum GI mags to fit, never mind PMags, of which I have a metric **it ton, I thanked him for his time, and will now purchase a second X95.
Remember kids….when it really counts….one is none, two is one.
 
Ebola said:
3k is nothing. People who bought first generation Tavors in Canada paid more.
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I'm talking about the x95, and the stagflation that we are currently experiencing.
2 years ago the regular price on them was $2550-2600. Up until recently its been listed at most shops for $2700. Now vendors are advertising them for $2900. Most people's wages aren't going up to match inflation (stagflation), hence my comment.
 
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Unholysavage said:
I'm talking about the x95, and the stagflation that we are currently experiencing.
2 years ago the regular price on them was $2550-2600. Up until recently its been listed at most shops for $2700. Now vendors are advertising them for $2900. Most people's wages aren't going up to match inflation (stagflation), hence my comment.
Click to expand...


They were just on sale for $2500 last week from almost every vendor.
 
medvedqc said:
that is your opinion, pla is using that platform.

when i was in the army and used the famas we never used the safety ... always set up for 3 burst shot ... it is harder for muscle memory and the mag release but doable.
i still do not think t97 is 1/3 of what the tavor is ... in the use.
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The famas I believe is what originally influenced the design of the T97 quite a lot., thence the position of the selector/safety.
 
The trigger on the x95 is way better than any OEM AR trigger I've ever pulled. The reset is predictable. It's a great stock trigger.
 
rhino62 said:
The famas I believe is what originally influenced the design of the T97 quite a lot., thence the position of the selector/safety.
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i do not know what design they stole or if they came on their own with their design but the famas, the croat thing, the t97 and tavor whatever version share in common to be compact the rest belongs to the training you re willing to do.

never heard a military guy saying that tool sucks give me another one lol ... you do learn to use what you re given and you train to be efficient ... how lucky we are and i do not know for how long we can purchase those and shooting to have fun and even hunting.
 
If you can afford the X95, buy the X95. The T97 Gen 3 is still a solid gun, but like I said, if you can afford the X95, get the X95.

Better controls, and replacement parts are fairly easy to come by, where as I don't think I've ever seen a gun dealer with replacement T97 parts, which is why some people buy two, given their relatively cheap cost (one for use, and one for parts)

I have a Gen 1 with the FTU, and about 15k rounds through it. No issues so far. It's actually more accurate than my Tavor21.
 
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