Weapons of Choice: Barrett M82

M82

The M82 designated by the US military as M107 is a recoil-operated, semi-automatic sniper rifle produced by Barrett Firearms Manufacturing Company in the United States. It has a heavy-duty SASR (Special Application Scope) and is considered a light fifty despite its .50 BMG (12.7x99mm NATO) chambering. It is produced in two models, the original M82A1 and M82A3 as well as a “bullpup” model M82A2 that is no longer manufactured. It is an anti-material as well as long-range anti-personnel weapon, able to rip through vehicles like butter.

It was first used by the US Army during Operation Desert Storm in 1991. The heavy barrel is fluted to improve heat dissipation as well as save weight and is fitted with a large reactive muzzle brake. The M82A1 has mounts for scope with folding backup iron sights. The military version is equipped with a Leopold Mark 4 telescopic sight. The M82A1M and the USMC M82A3 rifles have long Picatinny rails to mount special optics like night vision equipment. Every model comes with a folding carrying handle and folding bipod. The bipod on the USMC M82A3 is detachable and is also fitted with a detachable rear monopad under the butt. The buttpad is fitted with a soft recoil pad to further reduce recoil.

USMC M82A3 (M107)

The M82A1 and M82A3 rifles are designed to be mounted on M3 or M122 infantry tripods normally used for machine guns or on special vehicle mounts. The M82A1 can be fitted with a carry sling if desired, but military personnel carry the beast by its folding carrying handle because a sling is too uncomfortable. Usually the rifle is carried in its special soft or hard case.

The difference between the M82A2 and the original M82A1 is that the pistol grip and trigger was moved ahead of the magazine and the buttpad placed below the receiver, just behind the magazine. An additional forward grip was also added below the receiver and the scope mounted further forward.

US Army: M82A1

The maximum effective range of the M107 is 2,000 yards (1,829 meters) and the variant model M107 has an effective range of 7,450 yards or 4,000 meters. The .50-caliber round was used because of its long-range capability and its vehicle piercing capability.

.50 BMG Armor Piercing

The Model 82A1 Was the first (and only) semi-automatic .50-caliber rifle available, used by military and civilians alike with its high-grade chrome-plated chamber and ejector for reliability and to work under all types of conditions. The muzzle brake, dual barrel springs, and long mainspring help reduce the extreme kick when firing a .50 BMG round.

The regular carrying case holds the rifle with upper and lower receiver disassembled, but it can be assembled and ready to fire in less than one minute. The scope stays mounted on the upper receiver when transporting in the case in order to maintain the scope's zero. The optic rail has a 27 MOA taper to ensure the scope's elevation travel.

As of this writing, 5,000 M107 rifles are used by US military personnel in Afghanistan and other US military actions. I could find no data whether any law enforcement agencies have these powerful rifles.

The rifle, when purchased comes with one 10-round magazines, dual barrel springs, chrome chamber, magazines and carrying case that retails about $9,000. Also available in .416-Barrett caliber.While the cost is prohibitive for personal use, if I owned this rifle I would use it for hunting big game across the vast open prairies of the western states and Alaska - and insure it!

SPECIFICATIONS

The barrel is 29-inches long with an overall length of 57-inches. It weighs 30.9 lbs and has a manual thumb lever safety. M1913 Optics rail is 18.125-inches, magazine capacity is 10-rounds.

Daylight Reticule Image

The Leopold Mark 4 3.5-10x40mm M2 Illuminated Reticule [image above] is a tactical quality scope with a travel revolution of 10 mil (1/3-MOA per click dial adjustment) and comes with its own manual. It comes with a locking windage and elevation adjustment dial. The M5A2 model has an auto-locking push button on the adjustment dial and a dial revolution counter. Selected scopes have a special BDC, bullet drop compensation dials for rapid distance indication. The manual explains about variable power scopes and its calibrations.

An experimental model has been developed called OSW (Objective Sniper Weapon) that is fitted with a shorter 25mm caliber and fires high-explosive shells developed for the Objective Crew Served Weapon (OCSW) automatic grenade launcher. XM109.

Illuminated Reticule

While the OSW showed an increased effective range, the recoil was too hard to bear. The weapon is known as the Barrett Payload Rifle and has been designated as

The M107CQ is suitable for use in helicopters, force protection watercraft, tactical scout land vehicles, and urban combat in close quarter battles. In October 2010, Barrett unofficially reported that the production of the M107 had ceased and as of January 2011 the company announced its M107A1 for commercial sale.

The following video was produced by Barrett Mfg …

The next video is a US Army sniper at Outpost Mace in Afghanistan using a Barrett M107 …