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Sniper Rifles

Pakistani Elite Force using AR10:
2302-pakistan-police.jpg
 
Vidhwansak
Type Anti-materiel rifle
Place of origin India
Service history
In service 2007 -
Used by See Users
Production history
Designer Ordnance Factory Tiruchirappalli
Designed 2005
Manufacturer Ordnance Factory Tiruchirappalli
Produced February 2007[1]
Specifications (12.7 mm variant)
Weight 25 kg
Length 1.7 m
Barrel length 1.1 m
Crew 2

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Calibre 14.5x114mm, 12.7x108mm, 20x82mm
Barrels 8 Grooved, 1.1 m length, Quick Change type, 8 Grooved, 1.22 m Length, Quick Change type
Action Manual Bolt Action, recoiling barrel
Muzzle velocity 1,080 m/s
Effective range 1,800 m
Maximum range 2,000 m
Feed system Magazine
Sights 8X42 Power Telescopic sight with Parallax adjustment

Vidhwansak (Sanskrit:"The Destroyer")[2] is an Indian multi-caliber anti-materiel rifle (AMR) or large-caliber sniper rifle manufactured by Ordnance Factory Tiruchirappalli. It can be used in the anti-materiel role for destroying enemy bunkers, lightly armoured vehicles, radar systems, communication equipment, parked aircraft, fuel storage facilities, etc. It is also effective in long range sniping, counter sniping and ordnance disposal roles.[3]

It is being sold at the cost of Rs 10 lakh (about $20,000) as of 2011.


[edit] DevelopmentDenel was earlier contracted to supply various weapon systems for the Indian Armed Forces, including Anti-materiel rifles and Self-propelled howitzers. However, following allegations that it had paid kickbacks to secure a deal for anti-materiel rifles, Denel was black-listed by the government.

As a result Ordnance Factory Tiruchirapalli (OFT) in association with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) began developing an indigenous antimateriel rifle capable of similar role. Despite heavy visual and technical similarities to the Denel NTW-20 the guns have different calibers except for the 14.5 x 114 mm, ranges and price points. The development of Vidhwansak was completed in November 2005.[5] After all-terrain and all-weather trials, the user trials began in March 2006.[3]

Production began in February 2007. After trials, the Border Security Force ordered 100 Vidhwansaks for use in the border areas.[6] These were supplied by October 2008.[7] The rifle has also been offered to the Indian Army and the National Security Guards.[1][3] However, the Indian Army chose not to bring the Vidhwansak into use as it did not meet the weight requirements.[8]

The Vidhwansak is comparable to the NTW-20 in terms of caliber, size and performance. The Vidhwansak, which costs Rs 10 lakh (USD 20,000) is much cheaper than comparable foreign alternatives such as the Denel NTW-20 AMR, which costs Rs 23 lakhs (USD 45,000). It also supports multiple calibers and fires 12.7mm, 14.5mm and 20mm rounds compared to dual calibers supported by the NTW-20.

[edit] FeaturesVidhwansak is a manually operated, rotating bolt action rifle. The barrel along with the receiver recoil inside the chassis frame against a damping system. The rifle is fed from a detachable box magazine, that is inserted from the left side. The rifle can be quickly disassembled and carried in two man-portable packs, each weighing about 12 to 15 kg.[3] A muzzle brake is fitted on the end of the barrel which absorbs an estimated 50%-60% of recoil. This is further supplemented by a buffered slide in the receiver. Vidhwansak is equipped with an 8X magnification, long eye relief telescopic sight with parallax adjustment. A 12X ballistic scope can also be attached.

The rifle has an effective range of 1,800 m (1,300 m for the 20 mm version),[3] while shots can be achieved even up to 2,000 m. The rifle is magazine fed, and reloaded through manual bolt action.

[edit] VariantsVidhwansak AMR is one of few firearms to support 3 calibers with quick interchangeability (without completely disassembling and reworking the weapon). The Vidhwansak can be easily converted between the three calibers - 12.7 mm, 14.5 mm and 20 mm, by replacing the barrel, bolt, magazine and scope, which takes about 1 minute in the field, without the need for any specialized tools.

SpecificationsThe following are current specifications of the Vidhwansak AMR:[3][9]

Ammunition 12.7x108mm 14.5x114mm 20x 82mm
Weight 25 kg 29 kg 26 kg
Overall Length 1.7 m 2.015 m 1.795 m
Barrel 8 Grooved, 1.1 m length, Quick Change type 8 Grooved, 1.22 m Length, Quick Change type 8 Grooved, 1 m Length, Quick Change Type
Pitch of Rifle 1: 390 mm 1 : 420 mm 1 : 560 mm
Sights 8 X 42 power telescopic sight with parallax adjustment
Muzzle Velocity 845 m/s 1,080 m/s 720 m/s
Range 1,800 m 2,300 m 1,300 m

Users India: Border Security Force (more than 400 in service).
http://www.google.co.in/url?sa=t&rc...nIDoDg&usg=AFQjCNEK7GuMZ11AJteb6v0421mdBwzPrg
vidhwansak - Google Search
 
M82A1 M82A2 M82A3 (USA)

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Caliber: .50 BMG (12.7 x 99mm)
Operation: Short Recoil, Semi-Automatic
Overall Length: 1448 mm
Barrel Length: 737 mm
Feed Device: 10 Round Detachable Box Magazine
Sights: 10X Telescopic
Weight: 12.9 kg empty
Muzzle Velocity: 854 m/s (M33 Ball)
Max Effective Range: 1800 meters
Expected accuracy: 1.5 - 2.0 MOA or better



The Barrett Firearms company was founded by the Ronnie Barrett for a single purpose of building semi-automatic rifles chambered for powerful .50BMG ammunition, originally developed for and used in Browning M2HB heavy machine guns. Barrett began his work in early 1980s and first working rifles were available in 1982, hence the designation M82. Barrett continued to develop his rifle through 1980s, and developed improved M82A1 rifle by 1986. The first real success was the purchase of about 100 M82A1 rifles by the Sweden Army in 1989. Major success followed in 1990 - 1991, when US Military purchased numbers of the M82A1 during the operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm in Kuwait and Iraq. About 125 rifles were initially bought by US Marine Corps, orders from US Army and Air Force followed soon. The M82A1 isknown for US Military as the SASR - "Special Applications Scoped Rifle",and it was and still is used as an anti-materiel weapon and EOD (explosive ordnance disposal) tool. The long effective range along with high energy and availability of highly effective ammunition such as API and Raufoss M213 allows for effective operations against targets like radar cabins, trucks, parked aircrafts and soon. M82 also can be used to defeat enemy snipers or criminals from stand off range or when targets are behind the cover, but the anti-personnel work is not a major application for Barrett M82 (or any other .50BMG rifle, for that matter).

Further development led to the M82A2 bull-pup rifle (1987), which was designed to be fired from the shoulder, but did not succeed, and was soon dropped from production. The M82A2 was obviously designed as a cheap anti-helicopter weapon,suitable for use against highly mobile targets when fired from the shoulder. The latest derivative of the M82 family is the M82A1M rifle, adopted by USMC as the M82A3 SASR and bought in significant numbers. This rifle differs from M82A1 in that it have a full length Picatinny rail that allows a hugevariety of scopes and sighting devices to be mounted on the rifle. Other changes are addition of the rear monopod, slightly lightened mechanism and detachablebipod and muzzle brake. The Barrett M82 rifles were bought by various military and police countries from at least 30 countries, such as Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece,Italy, Mexico, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, UK, USA and others. The M82 also is widely used for civilian .50 caliber long range shooting competitions, being fired accurately out to 1000 yards (911 meters) and evenfurther.

As a side note I must point out that the Barrett M82A1 rifle was recently(2002) used as a platform for experimental OSW (Objective Sniper Weapon)prototype. The M82A1 rifle was fitted with shorter barrel of 25mm caliber, and fired low-velocity high explosive shells developed for 25mm OCSW automatic grenade launcher. The experimental OSW showed an increased effectiveness against various targets but the recoil was beyond the human limitations.

The M82 is a recoil operated, short barrel stroke, semi-automatic firearm.When gun is fired, barrel initially recoils for a short distance (about an inch- 25 mm) being securely locked by the rotating bolt. After the short travel a post on the bolt, engaged in the curved cam track in the receiver, turns bolt to unlock it from the barrel. As soon as the bolt unlocks, the accelerator arm strikes it back,transferring some part of the recoil energy of the barrel to the bolt to achieve the reliable cycling. Then barrel is stopped and the bolt continues back, to extract and eject a spent case. On its return stroke bolt strips the fresh cartridge from the box magazine and feeds it into the chamber and finally locks itself to the barrel. The striker also is cocked on the return stroke of the bolt. The gun is fed from the large detachable box magazines, that hold 10 rounds.

The receiver is made from two parts (upper and lower), stamped from sheet steel and connected by cross-pins. Heavy barrel is fluted to improve heat dissipation and save weight, and fitted with large and effective reactive muzzlebrake. On the earlier models the muzzle brakes were of round cross-section,latter M82 rifles are equipped with two chamber brakes of rectangular cross-section. M82A1 rifles are fitted with scope mount and a folding backup iron sights. M82 rifles are often equipped with Leupold M series 10X telescope sights. The M82A1M (USMC M82A3) rifles have long Picatinny accessory rail mounted on the top of the receiver, that can accept wide variety of scopes, day or night. Every M82 rifle is equipped with folding carrying handle and with a folding bipod (both are detachable on M82A3). M82A3 also fitted with the detachable rear monopod under the butt. The buttpad is fitted with soft recoil pad to further decrease the felt recoil. M82A1 and M82A3 rifles could be mounted on the M3 or M122 infantry tripods (originally intended for machine guns) or on vehicles using special Barrett soft-mount. M82A1 can be fitted with carry sling but according to those who carried it in the field, M82 is way too uncomfortable to be carried on sling due to excessive length and heavy weight. It is usually carried in special carry soft or hard case.

The M82A2 differed from M82A1 mostly in that the pistol grip along with trigger had been placed ahead of the magazine, and the buttpad has been placed below the receiver, just after the magazine. Additional forward grip was added below the receiver, and the scope mount has been moved forward too.
 
Lee Enfield No.4 Rifle
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I noticed no one put the Lee Enfield No.4 rifle into this thread. I think it really deserves a mention as a historical sniper rifle. Even though the .308 was better then the .303, the No.4 was used extensively in sniper elements for many years within the common wealth.

Canadian Sniper with No.4 Mk1:
kormendyandmarshall2.jpg
 
Since we are in WWII era of late, here is another integral WWII rifle, the Karbiner 98k:

Type Bolt-action rifle

Designed 1935
Manufacturer Mauser (augmented by several other makers)
Produced 1935–1945
Number built 14,643,260[2][3]
Variants G40k
Specifications
Weight 3.7 kg (8.2 lb) - 4.1 kg (9.0 lb)
Length 1,110 mm (43.70 in)
Barrel length 600 mm (23.62 in)
Cartridge 7.92×57mm Mauser
Action Bolt-action
Muzzle velocity 760 m/s (2,493 ft/s)
Effective range 500 m (550 yd) with iron sights
800+ m (875+ yd) with telescopic sight
Feed system 5-round stripper clip, internal magazine
Sights Iron sights or telescopic sight.

puska-marusen-kar-98k.jpg


Now a rifle because which is associated with perhaps the most famous sniper in history, Vassily Zaytsev and his Mosin-Nagant:

Type Bolt-action rifle
Place of origin Russian Empire
Soviet Union

Designer Captain Sergei Mosin, Léon Nagant.[1]
Designed 1891
Manufacturer Tula, Izhevsk, Sestroryetsk, Manufacture Nationale d'Armes de Châtellerault, Remington, New England Westinghouse, many others
Produced 1891–present
Number built approx 37,000,000 (Russia/Soviet Union)
Variants see Variants
Specifications
Weight 4 kg (8.8 lb) (M91/30)
3.4 kg (7.5 lb) (M38)
4.1 kg (9.0 lb) (M44)
Length 1,232 mm (48.5 in) (M91/30)
1,013 mm (39.9 in) (carbines)
Barrel length 730 mm (29 in) (M91/30)
514 mm (20.2 in) (carbines)
Cartridge 7.62×54mmR
7.62×53mmR (Finnish variants only)
7.92×57mm Mauser (Polish variants)
Action Bolt-action
Muzzle velocity Light ball, ~ 865 m/s (2,838 ft/s) rifle
~ 800 m/s (2,625 ft/s) carbine.
Effective range 500 m (550 yards), 800+ m (with optics)
Feed system 5-round non-detachable magazine, loaded individually or with five-round stripper clips.
Sights Rear: ladder, graduated from 100 m to 2,000 m (M91/30) and from 100 m to 2,000 m (M38 and M44); Front: hooded fixed post (drift adjustable)

798px-Kiikarikiv%C3%A4%C3%A4ri_76.jpg


Vassily's rifle:

Zajcev_rifle.jpg
 
Well.....thank for sharing useful info.
I dont have much knowledge about snipers .....but would be interested to know the following :-

1. How do snipers train .
2. What factors are taken into account while using a sniping rifle ..e.g terrain, windspeed, humidity etc .
 
The Baker Rifle
baker.jpg

In service 1801–1837 (British Army)
Used by United Kingdom and Coalition allies,
United States
Wars Napoleonic Wars,
War of 1812,
American Indian Wars,
Texas Revolution

This rifle was made famous by British solider and marksman Thomas Plunkett who shot the retreating general's aids at a recorded distance of over 500 meters.

Well.....thank for sharing useful info.
I dont have much knowledge about snipers .....but would be interested to know the following :-

1. How do snipers train .
2. What factors are taken into account while using a sniping rifle ..e.g terrain, windspeed, humidity etc .

Youtube The Ultimate Sniper Major John L. Plaster
 
Dragunov sniper rifle:

Place of origin Soviet Union
Designer Yevgeny Dragunov
Designed 1958–1963
Manufacturer Izhmash, Ordnance Factories Organisation, Norinco

Weight 4.30 kg (9.48 lb) (with scope and unloaded magazine),4.68 kg (10.3 lb) (SVDS), 4.40 kg (9.7 lb) (SVU), 5.02 kg, (11.1 lb) (SWD-M)
Length 1,225 mm (48.2 in) (SVD), 1,135 mm (44.7 in) stock extended / 815 mm (32.1 in) stock folded (SVDS), 900 mm (35.4 in) (SVU) ,1,125 mm (44.3 in) (SWD-M)
Barrel length 620 mm (24.4 in) (SVD, SWD-M), 565 mm (22.2 in) (SVDS), 600 mm (23.6 in) (SVU)
Cartridge 7.62×54mmR, 5.45×39mm (Assault Rifle variant)
Action Gas-operated, rotating bolt
Muzzle velocity 830 m/s (2,723 ft/s) (SVD), 810 m/s (2,657.5 ft/s) (SVDS), 800 m/s (2,624.7 ft/s) (SVU)
Effective range 800 m
Maximum range 1,300 m with scope, 1,200 m with iron sights
Feed system 10-round detachable box magazine
Sights PSO-1 telescopic sight and iron sights with an adjustable rear notch sight

Svd_1_russian.jpg


800px-SVD_Dragunov.jpg


800px-Pso-1onsvd.jpg
@nuclearpak Brilliant work on the sniper rifle info pool.... @Aeronaut is it possible to make this thread sticky.

Few things I would like to mention about the SVD and it's revolutionary design.

Optics: PSO-1 optics were considered way ahead of it's time and it's initial variant even sported a rudimentary infrared sensor which was later removed from the scope.

Side mounted optics brings a big advantage to the game, It can hold the zero even if the scope is removed and remounted.

Dragunov SVD although might resemble like a streched AK 47, similarities end at looks. It's a completely different rifle.

Dragonuv clone: the PSL-54C, Romak III

PSL_rifle.jpg


Although the PSL looks exactly like the SVD it is actually closely developed from the RPK light machine gun. Although it looks very much like the SVD not a single part is interchangeble. Not even the magazine. The optics on this rifle is not the PSO-1 but the LPS 4x6° TIP2 telescopic sight made by IOR, but is quite similar to the PSO-1


Other Clones

Zastava M91


Sniper_Zastava_M91.jpg



Zastava M76

Zastava-M76-Full.jpg


Chambered in 7.92 x 57mm Mauser

Medved Hunting carbine

izh-medved-3.gif

also chambered in 9x53mm caliber
 
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