Thoughts On The Tavor X95

Recently I was asked by a friend about the Tavor X95. He knew I owned one and wanted to get my thoughts on it for a primary SHTF gun. I figured I would post my opinion and my experience with it here in case anyone was wondering about or contemplating this rifle.

This rifle, like many other rifles will be compared to the AR platform, and I'll be making comparisons myself, so let me get this out of the way. People want to know if XYZ gun is better than the AR. Better can be very subjective because people have different wants and needs and look at things differently, so I do my best to point out differences and let the person figure it out. Now, if someone were to ask me if the X95 is worth the premium over a mid level AR, I would say no, probably not. I feel the AR is probably the best bang for buck in defensive rifles. Consequently, if someone were to ask me if I thought top teir ARs are worth the premium, I would also say no. Are they better guns? Yes, but in my opinion the costs *may* not justify the increase in performance.

Now that that is out of the way....
The X95 has some key benefits to it over the AR and other conventional rifles. Compactness and balance. The X95 is just a hair shorter than a 10.5 inch AR Sbr with the stock completely collapsed. Considering it's very uncomfortable to shoot an AR with the stock all the way collapsed, in real world use, it's a fair amount more compact than a 10.5" AR . The main benefit here is that it makes the rifle far easier to use indoors or in more confined spaces like inside a vehicle all while being able to retain bullet velocity, something that you will loose a lot of with a 10" AR. This allows you to use the X95 effectively to far longer ranges than the 10 inch gun, while being able to use it in the same roll as as the 10 inch gun.

The rearward weight bias also helps this rifle balance in your arms. The x95 is actually heavier than it appears, but the weight seems to "dissappear" when held in the shooting position. Having the weight behind your grip makes it easier to hold the rifle up for longer periods of time and also allows easier use of the rifle 1 handed. This is very useful if you needed to open doors with the gun pointed forward, (similar to how one might open a door with a pistol) or if you were injured and lost the use of an arm, or if you needed to drag your buddy while shooting, and other similar situations.

Shooting the x95: shooting the x95 after using conventional rifles for your entire life takes a little getting used to. Not a bad thing, just a little different. There's not a long mass out in front of you anymore, so the muzzle swings very quickly. If you shoot off of bags, remember to pull them in closer so you don't destroy them with muzzle blast like I have done! Lol. The trigger seems to be about on par as a normal AR trigger, which means it's just OK. luckily, just like the AR and other rifles, there are aftermarket triggers that improve things quite a bit. I find shooting off of bags is a bit more difficult, while standing, sitting, and kneeling is a lot easier than with other rifles, with prone being a toss up.

If you read on the internet about the X95, you will probably have heard that the rifle isn't accurate. To be honest, I haven't tried to shoot for tight groupings with a rifle in a long time. After I get them zeroed, I shoot my steel plate. It's a 66 percent ipsc target, which slightly smaller than my mid section. If it dings, I'm happy with it. The internet may be right, and it seems that most reports have the rifle shooting between 2-3MOA. There were a lot of people upset with those numbers. Of course I want a rifle to be as accurate as possible, however that isn't make or break for me in a defensive rifle. My opinion is that it will mostly matter on the shooting range having fun more than in the real world. With that said, my accuracy experience has been pretty good with it. From the standing and sitting positions, I can ding the plate almost every time @ 100 yards. When I miss, I know it was something I did, and I know it as soon as I let the round loose. The furthest I usually shoot the x95 at is 250 yards, as any further and the target gets pretty hard to see unless I paint it a very bright color and the lighting is right. On top of that, I'm using a 4 MOA red dot on it, and at further distances the dot seems to cover most of the target. I have made hits out to 500 yards (however the target was a bit bigger than my 66 percent, although I don't know the exact dimensions) however the hits were sporadic. I believe I would have been able to hit a lot better with a magnified optic, so I'm not sure how much I can blame the gun. My AR with the same optic shooting at the same target that day did about the same. This is of little consequence to me, as I think that the 5.56 round is a 300 yard cartridge for effective use, and it seems to be able to ding them every time as long as I do my part.

The downsides to the rifle in my experience and/or opinion are:

Shooting it left handed if it's set up for right (or vice versa) can be challenging. It's not impossible, however you need to be cognizant of where your chin is as it is very possible to take hot brass to your face if you don't. However, doing a normal shoulder bump this is a non issue. I can't seem to get my face far enough forward to impede ejection.
The scope rail is to low. Most optics and mounts are designed to be used on AR rifles and rifles of similar rail heights. This puts them slightly low for comfortable use. It can be worked around, however it being a couple of MM higher would have been nice. There are products on the market that can remedy this, however it is another expense that may have to be taken into consideration.
The system is pretty closed off. Breaking the gun down for normal maintenance isn't to bad, however if you need to get down into the chamber area to clear a malfunction or something it could be a chore.
The stock isn't adjustable. Compared to the m4 this is a hindrance. I like to be able to adjust my length of pull for if I'm wearing a t-shirt, heavy jacket, body armor etc.
The rifle should have had a dust cover.
It is somewhat awkward to lock the bolt to the rear.
You can not really use drum mags with it.

This is about all I could think of. In my overall opinion, I think it's a great rifle and I'm very glad I bought mine. It fills the role it was meant to very well. Hopefully someone will find this useful lol. If anyone has any questions please feel free...