Gold IWI Tavor Rifles Spotted With The Thailand King's Guard
The Thailand King’s Guard was recently seen sporting a gold colored Tavor rifle. Curiously, there appears to be only two photo thus far posted on Reddit, 9gag and Bron Milmag’s Facebook page. The first photo below is blurry and appears to come from a screen capture from television footage, while the second image is much clearer from Bron Milmag. It’s a possibility that the Tavor was decorated specifically for the wedding that just took place, in which King Vajiralongkorn married his Deputy Commander of the King’s Own Bodyguard Regiment. You can read more about that event HERE. The timing of the wedding and these two photos suggest that a gold Tavor is not a common sight in Thailand, or… anywhere else.
I’m not one for “blinged out” guns, but I admit the rifle nicely matches the gold trim of the guard’s uniform. To me, it begs the question of how this Tavor came to be Goldfinger material, or a modern prop for The Man With The Golden Gun? Gold colored spray paint was the first thing that came to my mind. I’ve never used that color of spray before, but the color throughout the whole rifle seem to be quite even, despite the rifle being comprised of several different materials . The magazine and optic were also generously covered.
The Tavor rifle itself is well established in Thailand, being the standard issue rifle of the Royal Army for the last ten years or more. The army has more than 30,000 IWI Tavor rifles in service.
Do any of our readers have any other suggestions as to how the rifle’s polymer stock and steel parts could’ve been gilded with gold? To any TFB readers in Thailand, are gold colored Tavors a typical sight when one is close enough to the king, or are you surprised to see this sight as well?
Doug has been a firearms enthusiast since age 16 after getting to shoot with a friend. Since then he's taken many others out to the range for their first time. He is a husband, father, grandfather, police officer, outdoorsman, artist and a student of history. Doug has been a TFB reader from the start and is happy to be a contributor of content. Doug can be reached at battleshipgrey61 AT gmail.com, or battleshipgrey61 on Instagram.
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Just noticed the dust covers are set for left handed operation. Or are the dust cover installed on both sides and these guns are just for show?
Where are the rhinestones?