This Egyptian Hakim rifle is in very good condition. The rifle is chambered in 8mm Mauser (7.97x57mm Mauser) and was manufactured in 1966 by Ministry of Military Production, Factory 54 (Maadi). The stock is in good condition with normal dings and scratches. The finish is excellent showing minor wear with most wear at the left side butt stock. The stock has no cracks or splits.

The metal finish shows wear with finish loss that is relatively minor. The barrel is good with minor finish loss. The bore is fair with substantial fouling.  No rust is evident in the bore however pitting may be present underneath the fouling build up.  Rifling shows wear but is distinctive. The receiver is very good and the action strong as is famous for the Hakim. The bolt is good and the bolt face shows only minor wear. All hardware is present including, screws, sling mounts, and shell deflector.  The shell deflector/charging handle has a foam rubber cover that was added some time later.  This cover helps protect brass when ejecting.

All parts function mechanically as they should. This rifle has not been test fired by us.

The Hakim Rifle is an Egyptian manufactured gas operated semi-automatic rifle chambered in 8mm Mauser (7.97x57mm Mauser). Its development began following the end of WWII as Egypt found itself, like the rest of the world, turning to auto-loading rifles as the way of the future. The political landscape changed dramatically in Egypt post WWII as the British rule would end, the new King would be ousted in a coup in 1952, and the Republic of Egypt would be established. The Egyptians wanted a new rifle that would be Egyptian made and chambered in 8mm Mauser as the country had massive stockpiles of the ammunition left behind by the Germans after the war.

To meet these requirements Egypt would choose to license a Swedish rifle design; the Automatgevär M42 (aka the AG-42 or Ljungman). The AG-42 was designed by Erik Eklund for Sweden in the mid-1940s as the war raged through Europe. It has a unique design and is a direct gas-impingement auto-loading rifle. Why Egypt was so interested in this design is unclear, but they chose to license from Sweden not only the design but the machinery, tooling, and engineering to manufacture in Egypt.

Though the Hakim is a licensed copy of a Swedish design there were a few changes that had to be made to suit Egypt’s needs. First the caliber was changed from the 6.5×55mm Swede of the AG-42 to the 8mm Mauser that was abundant in Egypt. Second, to compensate for the more powerful caliber a large permanent muzzle brake was added. Third, they added an adjustable gas control valve to the direct impingement gas tube. This would allow the rifle to be tuned to the ammunition used as much of the surplus was of varying quality and power. Lastly, they would add a shell deflector to throw spent cases forward as well as grooves into the dust cover to improve charging the rifle.

With the needed changes in place the Hakims began production in the mid-1950s but use as a service rifle was rather limited. Egypt already had FN-49s acquired while the Hakim was in development as well as VZ.52s from Czechoslovakia and SKS rifles from Russia. As a result the Hakim would find its way to other regional conflicts but its use in Egypt was short. Best estimates put the number of Hakims made between 60-80,000 rifles total. It would be replaced by the Rasheed rifle in 1960 which itself would be quickly replaced by the Egyptian licensed AK-47, the Maadi.

Crescent Moon & 3 Stars – on front of grip (appears as faint circle) and in front of trigger guard and at rear receiver

Arabic numbers on front left receiver – translates to 1966 over 46616 (original serial number)

Arabic writing on left side lower receiver

HAKIM 7.9mm MADE IN EGYPT – import mark, right side lower receiver

Arabic Numbers – 46616 on butt plate