ARSENAL® JSCO, BULGARIA

MG-1M

The 7.62x54mm ARSENAL MG-1M machine guns are powerful automatic weapons, used as armament against enemy troops and firing points. The MG-1M design is specially intended and allows operation of the weapon in heavy climatic conditions, which are typical for the regions of the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Africa.

arsenal-bg.com

Caliber/Bore: 7.62x54mm
Barrel Length: 605mm
FFL Status: For American manufacturer
Type of Links: Integrated via joint springs
Rate of Fire: 650 RPM

ARSENAL® JSCO, BULGARIA

MG-M2

The 7.62x51mm ARSENAL MG-M2 machine gun is a powerful individual automatic weapon designed to be used against enemy troops, light armoured targets and aerial targets by firing in single and automatic fire mode.

arsenal-bg.com

Caliber/Bore: 7.62x51mm
Barrel Length: 545mm
FFL Status: For American manufacturer
Type of Links: Disintegrating metal belt, M13 type
Rate of Fire: 650 RPM

DILLON AERO

M134D 7.62×51 Minigun

The Dillon Aero M134D 7.62×51 Minigun is renowned worldwide for its reliability, speed and accuracy. With low recoil forces, a firing rate of 3,000 rounds per minute (RPM) and an effective range of 1,200m, the M134D’s offensive and defensive capabilities are unmatched in air, land and sea applications.

dillonaero.com

Caliber/Bore: 7.62x51mm
Barrel Length: 18in to 22in
FFL Status: Importer/Exporter
Type of Links: M13
Rate of Fire: Up to 4,000 RPM

DILLON AERO

503D

Dillon Aero introduced the 503D, our new .50-caliber Gatling gun. Weighing 84 pounds, firing 1,500 rounds per minute (RPM) with increased resistance to internal component damage, the 503D has applications on air, sea and land platforms. The 503D is lighter, faster and smarter than other .50-caliber Gatling guns.

dillonaero.com

Caliber/Bore: .50 BMG
Barrel Length:
FFL Status: Importer/Exporter
Type of Links: M9
Rate of Fire: Up to 1,500 RPM

FIGHTLITE INDUSTRIES

MCR® Dual Feed Upper M-LOK® (MCR-060)

The MCR® (Mission Configurable Rifle) belt-fed, upper receiver assembly is designed to interchange with standard AR/M4-type uppers and readily fits any MIL-SPEC lower receiver without permanent modification to the host lower and is rearward-compatible to AR-15/M16 models produced as early as 1963. Once installed, the patented MCR® upper receiver system can be user-configured in seconds without tools to adapt to virtually any mission profile. Standard features include: gas-piston operation for extreme reliability in adverse conditions; a 16.25-inch quick-change (3 seconds) barrel system; and a MIL-STD-1913 co-planar handguard with a rail-interface system for the mounting of optics and modern accessories. Spanning the capability range from the optic-ready carbine to a lightweight support rifle, the MCR® accepts standard box-type AR-15/M16 magazines or M27 linked ammunition.

fightlite.com

Caliber/Bore: 5.56x45mm NATO
Barrel Length: 16.25in quick-change barrel
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: M27 linked ammunition
Rate of Fire: N/A

FN AMERICA

FN® MK 48 MOD 1

The FN® MK 48 MOD 1 brings the extended range and greater penetration of the hard-hitting 7.62x51mm round in a lighter, more compact platform. The light and compact MK 48 MOD 1 incorporates improved receiver pins, a new gas block and a vented handguard with improved heat shield and three MIL-STD-1913 rails. The MK 48 MOD 1’s cold hammer-forged MIL-SPEC barrel has a hard-chromed bore for longer life and improved accuracy and serves as the mounting point for the carry handle. The receiver is formed steel and is equipped with a top-mounted MIL-STD-1913 optical rail. A hydraulic buffer greatly reduces recoil, helping the operator keep more rounds on target. The crossbolt safety and curved trigger help enhance operator control. Includes one spare barrel.

fnamerica.com

Caliber/Bore: 7.62×51 NATO
Barrel Length: 19.75in
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: NATO standard disintegrating link belt-fed
Rate of Fire: 730 RPM

FN HERSTAL

FN MINIMI® 7.62 MK3

The FN MINIMI® 7.62 Light Machine Gun is now of 3rd generation and ensures improved ergonomics and improved mobility.

fnherstal.com

Caliber/Bore: 7.62
Barrel Length: 16.61in
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: N/A
Rate of Fire: 800 RPM

GENERAL DYNAMICS

Lightweight Medium Machine Gun (LWMMG)

The next generation Lightweight Medium Machine Gun (LWMMG) gives warfighters a distinct advantage in both extended and close-in fighting. Eliminating the gap between 7.62mm and .50 caliber weapons, the LWMMG utilizes the highly efficient .338 Norma Magnum cartridge to offer increased accuracy and lethality while extending the battlespace out to an impressive 1,700m. At 1,000m, the LWMMG is capable of defeating Level III body armor and incapacitating soft-skinned vehicles by delivering over 1,900 foot pounds of energy to the target—more than four times the terminal effect of the 7.62mm NATO cartridge.

gd-ots.com

Caliber/Bore: .338
Barrel Length: 24in
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: N/A
Rate of Fire: 500 RPM

HECKLER & KOCH

MG4

The MG4 is a lightweight, compact machine gun of high firepower, with a goal of being carried by one soldier and guarantee full mobility in difficult terrain and also in the urban environment. The MG4 offers the latest technological advances and provides unmatched performance characteristics: Due to its low recoil, the shot is readily controllable, giving high-target precision. Its great combat effectiveness and range, optimal rate of fire and simple handling makes it a weapon unlike any other.

heckler-koch.com

Caliber/Bore: 5.56mmx45
Barrel Length: 450mm
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: N/A
Rate of Fire: 830+120 RPM

HECKLER & KOCH

MG5

As the successor of the MG3, the MG5 opens a new era of universal belt-fed 7.62mmx51 machine guns. The gas-operated MG5 offers an intelligent and contemporary build standard, with numerous technical and ergonomic innovations. The mounting interface of the MG5 is compatible with MG3 mounts and tripods already in service. The universal MG5 can be used by dismounted infantry in the ground role, as well as for air defence or as a vehicle mounted/co axial machine gun.

heckler-koch.com

Caliber/Bore: 7.62mmx51 NATO
Barrel Length: 550mm
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: N/A
Rate of Fire: 680 / 740 / 800 RPM

IWI–ISRAEL WEAPON INDUSTRIES

NEGEV 5.56 LMG

The 5.56x45mm NEGEV is a robust and reliable Light Machine Gun (LMG), deployed by the IDF in Israel and by military entities worldwide. The NEGEV has a powerful target acquisition and accurate performance for the modern battlefield. It is exceptionally lightweight (less than 8kg) and can be operated safely under adverse and extreme environmental conditions.

iwi.net

Caliber/Bore: 5.56x45mm
Barrel Length: 460mm (18in) or 330mm (13in)
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: Fed by belt, assault drum or by NATO magazine
Rate of Fire: 850–1,050 RPM (magazine/belt) / 950–1,050 RPM (belt)–extreme conditions

IWI–ISRAEL WEAPON INDUSTRIES

NEGEV NG-7 LMG

The NEGEV NG-7 is the only 7.62x51mm LMG weighing less than 8kg with a semiautomatic mode enabling its safe use in Close Quarter Battle (CQB). The NG-7 is a powerful LMG with superior features such as precision, accuracy, reliability and enhanced human ergonomics and is battle-proven under adverse and extreme environmental conditions.

iwi.net

Caliber/Bore: 7.62x51mm
Barrel Length: 508mm (20in) or 420mm (16.5in)
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: Fed by belt, assault drum or by NATO magazine
Rate of Fire: 600–750 RPM (position 1 & 2)

OHIO ORDNANCE WORKS, INC. (OOW)

OOW240P (Patrol)

OOW manufactures light (249), medium (240) and heavy (M2) machine guns for customers in 43 countries worldwide. Our newest “Patrol” models of our “240” product line feature reduced weight while allowing more operator customization and greatly increasing the ability to accurately fire these weapons from the shoulder.

oowinc.com

Caliber/Bore: 7.62mm
Barrel Length: 19.5in
FFL Status: Type 10/11 Manufacturer/Importer/Exporter
Type of Links: M13
Rate of Fire: 650–750 RPM

OHIO ORDNANCE WORKS, INC. (OOW)

OOW249P (Patrol)

OOW manufactures light (249), medium (240) and heavy (M2) machine guns and has customers in 43 countries worldwide. Our newest “Patrol” models of our “249” product line feature reduced weight while allowing more operator customization and greatly increasing the ability to accurately fire these weapons from the shoulder.

oowinc.com

Caliber/Bore: 5.56mm
Barrel Length: 13in
FFL Status: Type 10/11 Manufacturer/Importer/Exporter
Type of Links: M27
Rate of Fire: 750–1,000 RPM

SIG SAUER, INC.

MG 338

The SIG SAUER MG 338 machine gun is a belt-fed, lightweight medium machine gun weighing under 20 pounds, chambered in .338 Norma Mag. The MG 338 features a short-stroke, gas-piston system and a proprietary recoil mitigation system, with a free-floating, quick-change barrel; ambidextrous controls; switchable feed tray; charging handle that can be alternated to either side depending on operator preference; and as a modern, multi-caliber, modular system, the new SIG MG 338 is easily convertible to 7.62×51 caliber.

sigsauer.com

Caliber/Bore: .338 Norma Magnum
Barrel Length: 20in
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: Disintegrating metal links
Rate of Fire: N/A

SIG SAUER, INC.

NGSW-AR MG 6.8

The primary objectives set forth by the U.S. Army for the NGSW-AR was a weapon with the firepower and range of a machine gun, coupled with the precision and ergonomics of a rifle. The SIG SAUER NGSW-AR 6.8mm submission is an ultra-light, medium-caliber machine gun with AR ergonomics and is chambered in 6.8mm hybrid ammunition. Features include quick-detach magazines, side opening feed tray, increased available 1913 rail space for night vision and enablers, folding buttstock and a suppressor.

sigsauer.com

Caliber/Bore: 6.8x51mm Hybrid, 7.62×51 NATO
Barrel Length: 16in
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: M13 disintegrating link
Rate of Fire: N/A

ST KINETICS

STK 50

The STK 50 machine gun fires from an open bolt, eliminating “cook-off” of ammunition. It has semi- and fully automatic firing modes, selectable from a push-type selector at the trigger module. Left or right feeding allows quick change-over of ammunition type, and the quick-change barrel with fixed headspace allows the barrel to be changed within seconds without adjustment of headspace. The STK 50 is designed for easy maintenance without the need for special tools.

stengg.com

Caliber/Bore: 12.7mm
Barrel Length: 1,141mm
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: Disintegrating M15A2 link belt
Rate of Fire: 400–600 RPM

S&T MOTIV

K12

S&T Motiv’s K12 7.62mm machine gun is easily converted from aircraft mode to infantry mode. It uses an open-bolt operation, is belt-fed with a quick change barrel and has a gas-operated and rotating bolt locking system for greater reliability. The K12 can be mounted to a bipod, tripod or aircraft. The machine gun has multiple integrated MIL-STD-1913 mounting rails for optics, lights and laser devices and is fully automatic only.

sntmotiv.com/eng

Caliber/Bore: 7.62mmx51 NATO
Barrel Length: 22in
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: N/A
Rate of Fire: 650–950 RPM

U.S. ORDNANCE 

M2A2

The U.S. Ordnance M2A2 machine gun is an air-cooled, belt-fed machine gun that fires from a closed bolt and operates on the short recoil principle with fixed headspace and timing. It is capable of both sustained automatic and accurate single-shot fire. It can be mounted on a vehicle, boat, helicopter or other aircraft. Ammunition may be fed from either the left or right side of the gun, making it suitable for use by both infantry and in armored vehicles. The M2A2 weapon system has been tested to well over 50,000 rounds. Its single-breech lock system allows for field rebuild, eliminating the need for depot-level maintenance during its lifetime and thereby greatly reducing logistical support.

usord.com

Caliber/Bore: 12.7mm
Barrel Length: N/A
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: N/A
Rate of Fire: N/A

ZID (OPEN JOINT STOCK COMPANY “V.A.DEGTYAREV PLANT”)

Pecheneg 6P41

The 7.62mm 6P41 Pecheneg machine gun is intended to engage hostile manpower, fire means and aerial targets. The whole range of rifle cartridges is used to fire from the machine gun. The gas regulator ensures the reliable operation of machine gun automatics in various operating conditions. The high degree of commonality with the PKM machine gun and similar layout of its automatics action ensure the reliability of the Pecheneg machine gun in any operating conditions. The 6P41 Pecheneg incorporates some design novelties aimed to increase the effectiveness of barrel cooling, which has allowed a spare barrel to be eliminated from the machine gun set.

zid.ru/eng

Caliber/Bore: 7.62mm
Barrel Length: N/A
FFL Status: N/A
Type of Links: N/A
Rate of Fire: 600–800 RPM

By Dan Shea

“The secret of steel has always carried with it a mystery. You must learn its riddle, Conan. You must learn its discipline. For no one—no one in this world can you trust. Not men, not women, not beasts. But steel; this you can trust.”—Conan the Barbarian’s father as he points to a sword he’d made.

It’s probable that most English-speaking readers of SADJ have seen John Milius’ adaptation of the Robert E. Howard stories in “Conan the Barbarian.” Entrenched in our modern martial culture, many of us jokingly quote the movie’s lines, because on an elemental level, it speaks truths to fighting men. The Riddle of Steel—it calls us; we philosophize around it, perhaps jokingly, but there is always a truth hidden in the words. At the core, the various answers appear to be contradictory: First, steel is strong and flesh is weak; Second, the opposite—flesh that wields the steel is strong, and steel is nothing without that; Third and perhaps most important, that the will and determination to use the steel in righteous endeavor is the true strength.

In fact, the Riddle of Steel is solved if all three of those are blended into one truth.

In the United States military, we have a group called SOCOM (USSOCOM)—it is comprised of warriors, working for warriors, to enhance their fighting capabilities. At the risk of being trite, this brotherhood is dedicated to using steel in righteous endeavor, and they train hard to have the physical capabilities to wield the steel, and, of course, their weapons are almost always the best that can be found. Started in 1987 to create a unified command for US Army, Navy, Marine and Air Force special operations groups, a significant part of the mission is new equipment.

In the modern fighting arena, in that hardened place that is called “downrange,” increasing distances of engagement as well as armoring of targets are challenging the warriors. There have been many attempts to address this—not all failed, but few are chosen by the warrior leadership. Barrett Firearms has been chosen more than once …

One item of “steel” that has been chosen by SOCOM to be at the forefront for these warriors, is the newly adopted Mk22 Mod 0 “ASR” Advanced Sniper Rifle—the next evolution of Barrett Firearms Manufacturing’s MRAD rifle system. For SOCOM, where the physical strength and the righteous will are, the Mk22 very nicely completes the triad of the Riddle of Steel.

Barrett’s MRAD Concept

To understand the Barrett MRAD (Multi-Role Adaptive Design) rifle requires some background information. You can get the spec sheet story by searching “MRAD” online; our job at SADJ is to help the readers really understand the Mk22 system. Creating an accurate rifle that can interchange calibers is a unique challenge. Easy enough to change out a barrel and bolt, but to do so and maintain true precision accuracy, that is an entirely different matter. There have been many systems with interchangeable barrels, especially in machine guns; but those are area weapons, not point weapons. This has to be made in a man-portable manner as well, so steel is too heavy a choice for the chassis.

“The Riddle of Aluminum” doesn’t sound quite so interesting, but in fact that is where Barrett’s engineers went to create the MRAD/Mk22. There are eight “Thousand” series of aluminum alloys and some oddities; each has a commonality within its group. Pure aluminum is a very soft metal and requires additives (alloy) and treatments to gain strength. What are called the 7000 series aluminums are aluminum/zinc alloys with percentages of other metals that dictate the actual number. When searching for a material to CNC mill the MRAD monolithic receiver, the light weight of alloys and reasonable cost are a quick draw; but out of the hundreds of potential alloys, which one?

Starting after World War II, an alloy used by many in the aircraft industry is 7075 (a Japanese mix). It is an alloy of 90% Aluminum, 5.6% Zinc, 2.5% Magnesium, 1.6% Copper and 0.23% Chromium; some various tiny amounts of other metals are used as well. This lightweight, easily tempered and machined 7075 is ideal for use in firearms, and 6061 (6xxx—Silicon as main additive, not Zinc) and 7075 are alloys favored in the “AR” industry. Almost every written description of an AR will say “7075 T6 Aluminum” as if it was magical transition of knowledge to a reader. Actually, in the 5.56mm AR platforms, the real benefits of 7075 don’t fully show up. However, Barrett’s engineers are smart enough to know those other attributes solve almost every issue the MRAD faced, and in particular, the split collet nature of the barrel clamping. More on that later.

After cold rolling (adding about 4–6 times the strength) we get to the second part of the magical “7075 T6” invocation, the T6, which is the tempering. In the case of Temper 6 the 7075 is heated to 840ºF (450ºC) for approximately 2 hours, solution quenched, and an artificial “ageing” is physically done by resting at 250ºF (120ºC) for 24 hours (yes, this is a heat treatment). Of the many treatments that can be done, this method (called precipitation strengthening) ensures that the precipitates (tiny particles less than 0.001mm in diameter composed of aluminum and the added alloy metals) forming inside grains and on the grain boundaries produce excellent mechanical strength all through the material and add excellent surface-wear resistance. This is where the phenomenal elongation tolerance of 7075 T6 comes in. But that’s not the best thing…

“OK, Dan, so what is this about the split collet and Barrett engineers?” 7075 with a T6 temper has excellent tensile strength (74,000–78,000 psi) and yield strength of 63,000–69,000 psi. This is all great news for the 5.56mm, 6.5mm and 7.62mm AR builds, but it is the elongation tolerance before breaking of up to 11% that caught the Barrett engineers’ eyes. This is the exact right material tolerance (and heat tolerance) for heavier calibers like the Lapua and Norma Magnums.

The icing on that cake is that with changing calibers, using a split-collet-style clamp built into the upper receiver, the material must elongate and clamp, over and over, maintaining its original form on each return. 7075 T6 is ideal for this.

There are many parts to the MRAD as presented by Barrett, but the most critical is maintaining the accuracy in different barrels that are field changeable. The split collet is the key.

Why tighten to exactly 140 inch-pounds (in-lb)? We go back to the Riddle of Aluminum and that 11% maximum flex before breakage on 7075 T6. We don’t want to flex anywhere near that much, but seating a barrel in an accurate rifle must be done precisely in order to lessen barrel harmonics. Accuracy comes from tightly repeatable events in the physics of the rifle. Get rid of variables in barrel harmonics; tighten them up; shoot a tighter group. In discussion with Barrett, they indicated that when tightening up over 90 in-lb on these screws the group stabilized, and at 140 in-lb, the barrel was supported perfectly, the aluminum sides of the collet area were not overstressed, and the steel screws didn’t distort the threads in the aluminum. Thus, 3.5 inches of 360-degree-supported barrel clamped properly to rigidify it with the monolithic receiver results in the ability to have extreme accuracy from a field changeable rifle. This is the real heart of the rifle.

“The MRAD itself is a manually operated bolt-action rifle fed from a 10-round detachable magazine. It is designed to be a rugged, configurable, precision rifle system; the MRAD can quickly be converted to multiple calibers or barrel lengths. With M-LO[K] mounting slots at 3, 6, and 9 o’clock, its handguard offers a rigid, highly adaptable interface for attachment of rails, electro-optics and other accessories.”—Barrett manual description

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Magazines

Longtime readers know this author is a magazine fanatic. Feeding the weapons is often one of the hardest parts of weapon design, particularly in semi- or fully automatic firearms. In the case of a bolt action, it’s not as complex, but it still must be perfect, or you will experience misfeeds. The 10-round MRAD magazine is perfectly designed for presentation and in four basic flavors to properly present cartridges of different length/shoulder location. A properly treated flat spring is used to keep even presentation of the follower, ensuring the cartridge ramps into the chamber without cant.

The first MRAD (now called the Large Breech gun) was in .338 Lapua Magnum, and the magazine has no identification letter and zero ribs on it. After the MRAD was fully developed in different calibers, a system was needed for visual and tactile identification. The Mk22 comes with C- and D-type magazines:

A: .338 Lapua Magnum 6 ribs

B: .300 Win Mag/7mm Rem Mag/.300 PRC 4 ribs

C: .308/6.5 Creedmoor/.260 Rem 3 ribs

D: .338 Norma Magnum and .300 Norma Magnum 6 ribs

The obvious question to end users is whether A and D magazines are interchangeable—no, not reliably. The D magazine is specifically designed to accommodate the shorter shoulder location of the .338 Norma Magnum and .300 Norma Magnum cartridges; you could feed them in the A magazine but probably lose some reliability in feeding. Vice versa, if you had the .338 Lapua Magnum conversion kit for the Mk22, which is after all an MRAD, the A magazine would be needed.

The ASR Award 

Date: 03/11/2019
Issued From: HQ USSOCOM – Tampa, FL
Contract #: H9240319D0002
System: Barrett MRAD Rifle System
This is a 5-year Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract for the Advanced Sniper Rifle and various components identified herein including three barrels in the calibers listed below, spare parts and Barrett AML338 suppressors. No optics are included.
The maximum quantity that shall be purchased is a total of 2,675 units.
The maximum contract value for all orders issued shall not exceed $49,936,299.50.
Calibers: .338 Norma Mag; .300 Norma Mag; 7.62x51mm

Mk22 Mod 0: The Changes from Other Programs

In the first place, the Mk22 does not need the large breech to small breech conversion unit—that was only on the early MRADs in .338 Lapua Magnum to smaller calibers when Barrett added them, and the Mk22 is purpose-designed from the current MRAD, using one homogenous breech for all calibers. The calibers in the Mk22 Mod 0 are the following and no others. There are other USG and DoD groups that add the .300 PRC or 6.5mm Creedmoor kit, but not for ASR. Could you add them? Yes, but it’s not currently authorized in the Mk22.

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The Mk22 rifle uses an M-LOK system as opposed to Barrett’s proprietary system on the MRAD. The Mk22 has the toggle bolt disassembly and a captive bolt pin.

The Mk22 Mod 0 is in the above calibers only, uses the Harris 6- to 9-inch bipod with a cant dial lock and is Coyote in color. The US Navy MRAD is Flat Dark Earth in .300 PRC and also uses the Harris bipod. The Mk22 does not use a monopod, but the bag rider is included. DoD MRAD issues the Accu-Shot monopod and no bag rider. Regarding the cheek piece, the Mk22 has the positive lock with increments, and the DoD MRAD has a friction lock with free adjustment. Several other differences are that the Mk22 safety has pictograms, and the DoD MRAD is S/F red and white; the trigger for Mk22 is fixed as I mentioned, but the DoD MRAD has a fully adjustable trigger that bottoms out at 1.75 pounds; and the Mk22 barrels are fluted stainless steel, DoD MRAD barrels are not fluted and are carbon fiber constructs. There are a lot of small changes and variations between the Mk22 and the DoD MRAD, but that’s not really our subject here.

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In addition to the MRAD and manufacturer markings, the Mk22 Mod 0 has US markings on it for issue model, etc.

USSOCOM Advanced Sniper Rifle Requirements

• Must be convertible to fire 7.62mm NATO, .300 Norma Magnum and .338 Norma Magnum cartridges.
• Must not exceed 17 pounds with an empty magazine but is ideally 13 pounds or less.
• Must not exceed 50 inches when fully extended, but is ideally 40 inches.
• Must not exceed 40 inches when collapsed for transport, but is ideally 36 inches.
• Must perform with at least 1 MOA accuracy for the 7.62 NATO and .300 Norma Magnum at 300 yards. Ideally .5 MOA.
• Must perform with at least 2.5 MOA accuracy for the .338 Norma Magnum at 300 yards. Ideally 1.5 MOA.
• Must have a modular flash or sound suppressor.

Calibers

Recently, the SOF community has tried a variety of calibers. The list is dizzying, and if you imagine the testing that has been done, it has occupied a lot of procurement people and design engineers, as well as end users. Here are just a few.

• 6mm Creedmoor
• 6.5mm Creedmoor
• 6.5mm Grendel
• .260 Remington
• .264 USA
• 6.8mm SPC
• .300 PRC
• .300 Norma Magnum
• .338 Norma Magnum
• .338 Lapua Magnum
• And now, 6mm ARC

Jimmie Sloan—Changing the Course

As the rest of the military/LE community (and this author) were variously adopting .338 Lapua Magnum and .300 Win Mag and finding some issues with these calibers in field use (not reliability, other issues), a parallel development had been going on in Willis, Texas. A very devoted long-range shooter named Mr. Jimmie Sloan was working on some new long-range loads, starting about 2005.

To some, Jimmie comes off more than “a little bit country,” and his down-home euphemisms might camouflage the brilliant mind inside there. Frequently, the most interesting leaps forward in technology come from a genius working in his garage—John Browning’s barn/workshop, Gene Stoner’s designs started in his garage, and heck, Carbine Williams did the M1 Carbine in jail!

Rumor has it, a room full of school-taught mechanical engineers tried to have a bit of fun at Jimmie’s expense, and it didn’t work out the way they expected. I asked Jimmie about it; he said, “I told them I didn’t have the schooling they did, but I had 50 years of experience designing, studying and shooting every day, and that over 8 years I hand-made brass and over 190,000 rounds of what became .338 Norma Magnum and made sure of every level of performance. I then asked them how many of their college degrees concentrated on ballistics, ammunition and firearms design. You could hear the crickets.”

The hard fact is, getting a degree in mechanical engineering is not a key to being able to design firearms—many graduating students find out very quickly that the firearms world is basically OJT. You might have training in metals, materials, even heat engines (that’s what firearms basically are) and ME101, but you need to apprentice all over again to be in firearms/ammunition design. The US education system simply doesn’t have firearms design in the curriculum. You can hope to work with someone who has 50 years’ experience and is willing to share it. You have to get your hands dirty. Besides, as the late Jim Schatz used to say, “Any day at the range beats a day at the office!”

Jimmie’s original designs used 240-grain (gr) MatchKing and 230-gr Berger bullets in the .300 Norma Magnum and 230-gr Berger bullets in the .338 Norma Magnum. The performance was superb, with barrel life in the 3,000-plus rounds. These are all excellent projectiles, and Jimmie designed the cartridges for the performance he wanted. Jimmie worked with General Dynamics on their Medium Machine Gun in .338 Norma Magnum, helping get that program moving.

Rumor also has it that one of the government arsenals changed the .300 projectile to a 215-grain and opened up the chamber, with resulting loss of performance and knocking barrel life down to 700 rounds or so. Jimmie’s reply is the eternal designer’s lament: “I gave you a balanced system; you changed something and then complained about the symptoms.”

In any event, the .300 Norma Magnum adopted now has a 215-grain OTM projectile, but Barrett ensured the chamber is “right,” and they’re getting 3,000-plus rounds life. The Barrett engineers worked with JGS Precision for chamber reamers on the MRAD and Mk22 programs (jgsprecision.com).

We should note here that Jimmie worked with Dave Kiff at Pacific Tool & Gauge (PTG) for much of his chamber design/reamers during the design project (pacifictoolandgauge.com). The headspace gauges this author used in the testing were PTG also. We checked headspace after barrel changes of course, as we got used to the system.

Ammo, Ammo, Ammo!

One of the most helpful ammunition companies in the US regarding law enforcement and special operations cartridges is Black Hills Ammunition (BH ammo) (black-hills.com). Started in 1981, Black Hills is synonymous with quality and reliability. This author has known Black Hills founder Jeff Hoffman for decades and has supplied numerous government contracts with BH ammo. Jeff was an active end user, is still a shooter, knows the needs and has the commitment to the end users. The BH ammo is solid, reliable and extremely accurate, and Jeff’s company worked very hard to come up with the loads needed for many other SOCOM projects as well as the Mk22 system. (Jeff was the 2010 recipient of the GySgt. Carlos Hathcock Award from NDIA Small Arms Committee.)

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Jeff was kind enough to send us a variety of the 7.62x51mm, .300 Norma Magnum and .338 Norma Magnum rounds exactly as used for the ASR program, and that is what we used in our testing. The Black Hills 7.62x51mm is legendary, a superbly accurate 175-grain projectile that is considered even with, if not better than, the military issue M118LR cartridge. In fact, many military and OGA groups use the Black Hills ammo. The .300 Norma Magnum and .338 Norma Magnum supplied to us show the clear results of what SOCOM was looking for during development—see the target section of this article. During development of the Mk22 system, the government awarded a sole-source contract to load reference ammunition to Black Hills. Part of that ammunition contract included a “surrogate” cartridge in .338 Norma loaded with the Sierra 300-grain OTM MatchKing that rifle manufacturers could use in development of the .338 Norma barrel for the system. This was done because of the expense of the AP-loaded cartridge and the close ballistic match between the 300-grain Sierra and the Lapua AP529 projectile. So, in short, there are two different projectiles that have been loaded in .338 Norma: the AP529 and the Sierra 300-grain OTM MatchKing. Only the AP529 is designated as the projectile in XM1162 (.338 Norma Magnum cartridge for the ASR). Many end users want the non-AP round to be adopted also, for use on ranges that can’t accept the AP round.

We also used some of the RUAG 7.62x52mm SWISS P Precision ammunition; longtime readers of SADJ will remember that in 2019 this author tested their palette of 7.62 offerings—seven various tactical rounds that have different jobs, but match point of impact; a truly desirable attribute. Unfortunately, RUAG was not in the competition, but it performed as well as expected.

The ammunition contract to supply the Mk22 Mod 0 “ASR” program did not go to Black Hills; earlier this year it was awarded to Ultra Defense Corp. Ultra Defense, as contract holder, has awarded a subcontract to Capstone Precision Group for manufacturing the cartridges. Capstone will be assembling the cartridges from subcontracted components—Capstone is the US sole distributor for Berger, Lapua, SK and Vihtavuori, among others. The single-year SOCOM agreement is for approximately 1 million rounds of ammunition: 800,000 rounds of .300 Norma Magnum with 215-grain OTM Hybrid Berger projectiles and Lapua-made cases. There will be 200,000 rounds of .338 Norma Magnum and 300-grain AP529 projectiles—both projectiles and cases are from Lapua, a NAMMO company, the AP529 is a NAMMO product and is NOT an OTMHC (Open Tip Match with a Hardened Core) as in numerous publications; it is an Armor Piercing Full Metal Jacket round with Tungsten Carbide Core. Excellent choice, in this author’s opinion, and more importantly the choice of the experts at SOCOM who exhaustively studied and fired tens of thousands of rounds. You can see the results on the targets later in this article. (Ultra Defense is sending SADJ some of the issue ammo for a separate test.)

Optically Speaking

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1. Eyepiece
2. Eyepiece lock ring
3. Power throw lever
4. Power zoom ring
5. ZeroStop™ elevation adjustment
6. Contract-specific UltraMount
7. Contract-specific removable laser platform
8. Capped windage adjustment and battery compartment (Opposite side: Parallax adjustment)
9. Objective/Objective lens

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The days of putting rounds on target with open sights are long in the past. I’m not saying that no one shoots open sights; most shooters have favorite Garands or ‘03s they can ring a gong or cut an impressive group with. The fact is that in military and LE scenarios, accuracy is king, lives are on the line, and high-grade optical sights, opto-electronics and the training to use them are the way to get there. The operator pulling the trigger and the chain of command up-hill have to answer for the accuracy of the shot and where the projectile lands, among other issues in this very complicated world.

The optic for the Mk22 PVPS (Precision Variable Power Scope) was not contracted with Barrett; but this is a system, and the chosen optic is a critical part of it. The Mk22 Optic contract was awarded to Nightforce® (nightforceoptics.com).

I should mention at first, that the Mk22 Mod 0 has a top rail slope of 10 MIL (ECP), and the DoD MRAD has a 20 MOA slope.

In that separate contract, SOCOM chose the Nightforce MIL-SPEC ATACR™ (Advanced TACtical Rifle) in two flavors, both with 34mm tubes and Horus Vision TREMOR3™ reticles in MRADs. The example sent to us for testing was the MIL-SPEC ATACR 7-35×56 F1 with custom mount. The other option SOCOM chose is the MIL-SPEC ATACR 5-25×56 F1. “MIL-SPEC” indicates these scopes are not the commercial version of the ATACR; they must meet the MIL-SPEC.

While this author found shooting at 1,000 meters with the 35x was very helpful, the real end users generally only use the 25x level for engaging and having more field of view; the 35x end is used for observation.

Nightforce is well-known for the rock solid scopes they build—they’re made to go in the field. The reticles chosen for the ASR are First Focal Plane and of course etched on glass; as magnification is used the reticle will also be magnified. (The Second Focal Plane is behind the magnification lenses and stays at one grid size no matter the magnification—useful in some scenarios, but this author prefers FFP, target adjustments at range seem much more precise.) Nightforce optics are also well-known for their light transmission capability. Looking through a Nightforce optic is almost breathtaking in clarity; clearly this was a factor in SOCOM’s choice of the optic. One bit of lore from the end users—highly trained snipers—many have told this author that at extended ranges the Nightforce scopes are decidedly better at seeing deeper “into” shadow areas compared to other scopes, a function of the NF lens treatment. This is very hard to quantify, but many end users swear by this.

The mount chosen is the Nightforce MIL-SPEC UltraMount with the RAP-I Laser Rangefinder attachment bridge; a soft case is supplied. Nightforce supplies a tool kit for the Optic system, with some additional tools not in the ASR kit supplied by Barrett: Torque tools of 100 in-lb and 25 in-lb, as well as a T15 Torx head bit.

Note: The Nightforce MIL-SPEC ATACR described here was also selected for the US DoD MRAD in .300 PRC caliber.

The optic selected for the US Army PSR version of the MRAD was the Leupold Mark 5HD 5-25×56 with MIL Grid 4 Reticle.

Nightforce ATACR 7-35×56 F1 

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Suppression

There are many considerations regarding suppressors for rifles; suppression of noise is not the only one. From the outset, SOCOM knew there would be a compromise on sound reduction for the 7.62 and .300 Norma Magnum calibers if they wanted one suppressor to use on all the calibers and barrels in the Mk22 Mod 0 system. Barrett’s engineers knew this as well; the bore had to accommodate the largest diameter projectile. The alternative would be to carry two suppressors, but for the small decibel reduction gained, the weight gain to the system would not be worth it. Thus, SOCOM chose one suppressor—the AML338. Barrett makes excellent suppressors, the AM series thread onto the outer section of the patented muzzle brake with the DC series being threaded directly to the barrel. Obviously, the AM series won out. The AML338 suppressor is on the Mk22. The DoD MRAD has the AM338. The main difference is that the AML338 has a secondary lock and of course the color; AML338 is Coyote, AM338 is FDE.

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Each of the Mk22 barrel muzzle brakes has an identical diameter threaded outer section, and the muzzle brake is actually designed with being part of the entry chamber of the suppressor in mind.

Where some loss of suppression occurs is that the AML338 has its bore diameter keyed to the .338-inch projectiles, and when the .308- or .300-inch (.300 Norma Magnum projectiles are actually a .308 diameter) projectiles are fired through, there is some blow-by that raises the decibel level. Honestly, to the ear it wasn’t very noticeable when we changed calibers. Then again, all of us who were shooting have high frequency hearing loss so the only way to really quantify it was using a proper meter like a Larson Davis 800B, which we did not have, and Dr. Philip H. “Doc” Dater wasn’t with us.

Barrett manufactures the AML338 suppressor out of a high-strength Titanium alloy. They use modern CNC machining and orbital welders to keep the hoop strength with the lowest amount of material. Precision bore alignment maintains accuracy, reduces point of impact shift and aids in flash reduction.

During our firing, we found that almost all of the groups tightened up when we fired suppressed. This phenomena is frequently observed in well-made, well-matched rifle systems. Doc Dater covers this in the Suppressor Class he teaches at Phoenix Defence, so I’m deferring to him on this:

This tightening up of a group happens the majority of the time as long as there is no misalignment. You also get a 20–50 ft/s velocity increase, not germane to this discussion. There are two factors in play. First is a change in barrel harmonics from the mass of the suppressor (and how tightly it is screwed on). Second (and probably a greater effect) is that on uncorking, the gas has approximately twice the velocity of the projectile and rushes around the bullet which then has to traverse the various shock waves that can cause a little instability. The can shears off this gas in the entrance chamber much in the way muzzle brakes do. The gas loses velocity quickly as it interacts with the air. Look at the three high-speed photos from a 20-inch barreled .223 gun.

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Per Doc Dater: “These were consecutive frames taken at 15,000 fps. The sun was just right so the lower image is a shadowgraph of the direct image above and better shows the shock waves. This series is used in my talk (with about eight other frames) as part of a flash study. The Mach disk is a high pressure, high temperature shock wave that actually ignites the carbon monoxide to make the fireball.”

Range Day 1: Intro to the Mk22

I’ve heard that government users have regularly seen groups in the sub-half minute range. Obviously, no one discusses the specifics of accuracy requirements or testing results other than what is put out publicly. Even if I knew, I would self-censor; we’re talking about national defense. I will say, that our testing confirmed the rumors.

SADJ is a firearms magazine—our writers and almost all of the staff are shooters of various levels and experience. Long-range shooting is a specific skill, and testing a rifle system like the Mk22 Mod 0 requires the person on the trigger to have the skill, not just be a “good shot.” Dennis Powell, a well-known civilian accurate shooter, joined us at the range for 3 of our days, along with long-range shooter Harry Bovie, Chuck Bolding, who is highly respected in training circles, Damon Bolding, a gunsmith at Phoenix Defence, and this author. Dennis was chosen by me to do the record shooting so I could hide my own deficiencies. We fired from bench; I did not want to get down and fire from “Rocking Horse Prone.”

Our chosen range? Boulder Rifle & Pistol Club in the high desert near Boulder City, Nevada. Excellent ranges, good people (brpc1.org).

Our first day at the range was learning the rifle. Before we started, we knew the rifle was coming in from another tester, so we had to bring it all back to zero and learn it from the start. By the end of the morning, we were hitting not-so-impressive groups at 100 yards and ringing the gong at 1,100 yards. Not time for serious shooting yet, time to study.

Range Day 2: Learning the Lessons

We went back to the shop at Phoenix Defence. We got out the manuals and filled in the blanks. This is a rifle, not a complex space station or mega-computer; it is a rifle system, however, and it takes study, trial and error to learn to make all the components perform at top level. This was a very boring day with Lessons Learned and studied out.

Range Day 3: Printing Paper 100

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After digesting the information for another week, it was back to the range. There were many sub-half-minute-of-angle groups, the best being a .300 Norma Magnum Berger 215-grain from a suppressed rifle—this was center to center under 0.3 inches. Very respectable group for Dennis. We now felt ready to take on the longer ranges.

Range Day 4: Long-Range Day

18 August 2020: Today was the day we’d been waiting for—we’d learned the system, and we were reaching out to 1,000-plus yards, for the record.

Conditions Day 4

Shooting times: 07:30-11:30
Pressure Hg: 27.66–27.71
Humidity: 22% down to 14% at 11:30
Wind: 5–8 MPH cross-range R-L
Temp: 96–110˚F
Elevation: 2,450ft

Vortex Razor Spotting Scope

Just as difficult as it is to be a sniper in the field without a spotter, it is the same at the range. Two sets of eyes work together and make the task quicker, and the feedback helps.

Vortex Optics has an excellent reputation; they gather light and give clarity that is at a top level. I’d honestly never looked through a spotting scope compared to this, too often the spotting scope is an afterthought on range day. Once you use the Razor® HD, and if you’re a serious shooter or end user, there’s no question of skimping on this essential tool again.

We had the availability of the Vortex Razor HD 27-60x85mm angled spotting scope with an MRAD reticle eyepiece. The reticle on the Vortex is MRAD, matching the MRAD system in the Mk22 optic. The Vortex has the ability to change to straight spotting with no reticle or to a reticle matching MOA if the optic being used is MOA. This is accomplished with an interchangeable eyepiece. Range can also be calculated easily with either reticle if there is an object of known dimensions in the field of view (vortexoptics.com).

MRAD vs. MOA? Without getting into a street fight like “9mm vs. .45ACP,” let’s keep it simple. SOCOM called for MRAD, and that’s what everyone is using. MOA is “Minute of Angle,” and old guys like your faithful correspondent usually use that. MOA is an angle measurement; in effect, 1 MOA at 100 yards is one inch. Take that to 1,000 yards, 1 MOA is 10 inches. MRAD stands for “Milliradians,” also a unit of measurement of angle. Lord help you if you have a scope in MRAD and other devices in MOA, you’ll be doing lots of unnecessary math in an already complex program such as long-range shooting. Both are based on the 360 degrees of a circle, and the discussed measurement is an arc that is a very small part of that circle when discussing accuracy in shooting. Without doing all the long division, at 1,000 meters, a one MOA click on your scope is 3.5 inches of adjustment on a target; and a one MRAD click on your scope is 3.9 inches. It makes a difference. Thus, if you’re using an MOA optic, make sure you have the MOA reticle eyepiece for your Razor HD spotting scope, and vice versa if you had the MRAD like we did in this test.

Vortex describes the Razor HD as having a “sophisticated triplet apochromatic lens system” and honestly, that’s a bunch of twenty-dollar words that don’t mean much to most people. Here’s basically what is being said: Triplet means there are three pieces of glass lined up; apochromatic means there isn’t any false color, shifting red and blue light to a different plane. Multiple lenses tend to shift colors and that has to be designed out. Thus, Vortex has the “sophisticated” job of getting three lenses to line up perfectly and stay there in long-term, rugged use, while keeping true color to the viewer’s eye—no small task with lens finish and refraction. This costs money, and the Razor HD is an expensive spotting scope, listing out at around $1,900. If you’re a professional, this is short money for what you are getting. Color can make all the difference in identifying targets and non-targets.

We used the Vortex PRO GT tripod to mount the spotting scope. It has a balance weight hook to the center, strong, lightweight legs and a very steady panning head.

The Vortex Razor HD 27-60x85mm spotting scope is under testing with many special operations groups, and we know it is currently with the Scout Sniper Section of Panther Team JMRC Operations Group in Germany.

Tools and Changing Calibers

As all men-at-arms know, you need the kit for your weapons. Tools, cleaning kit, gauges, and in a soldier’s kit, what is there has to be carefully considered regarding need, bulk and, of course, weight. SOCOM specifies the TO&E (Table of Organization & Equipment) it wants. The Fix It Sticks Torque Limiters (store.fixitsticks.com) are gaining in popularity, and SOCOM as well as Barrett and Nightforce call for this product in the inch-pound (in-lb) requirements. With this system, there is no need for carrying a torque wrench, each needed setting has its own torque limiter, preset and marked. These fit into any standard ¼-inch driver, including the Fix It Sticks T-Way T-Handle that is supplied, and any standard ¼-inch bit fits into the receptor end. The torque limiter will spin once the correct torque has been reached (within +/- 6%)—no over-torquing. Torque measurement is not required in removal, so no kit is needed for that (this is a measurement-only tool and not relevant here). I have not seen the Nightforce tool kit, but the Nightforce mount requires at least two things SOCOM did not dictate for Barrett’s contract: 100 in-lb torque limiter and a T15 Torx bit—I’ve no idea if Torx or Torx PLUS. I do know there was room in the Barrett supplied kit, so I added them for our field work.

Speaking of the Torx head screws and bits in the Barrett-issue kit, these are not regular Torx bits; they are Torx PLUS, denoted by the “IP” in front of the size, “IP30” instead of “T30” on a regular Torx. You can strip the star heads out of the bolts if you don’t use the PLUS bits. The lobes of the star points are more square on the PLUS heads, stronger than standard Torx and can handle more torque IF you use the correct bit. As noted by your faithful correspondent over the decades, nothing ruins quality firearms like a large hammer and a small mind.

The Mk22 Mod 0 Tool Kit

• 140-in-lb miniature torque limiter
• 65-in-lb miniature torque limiter
• 45-in-lb miniature torque limiter
• 25-in-lb miniature torque limiter
• 15-in-lb miniature torque limiter
• T-Way T-Handle Wrench
• 8 different bits (IP30 Torx, IP27 Torx, IP25 Torx, 5/32-inch hex, 1/8-inch hex, 5/64-inch hex, 1/16-inch hex) NOTE: The “IP” Torx are Torx PLUS!
• ½-inch socket and ¼-inch bit adapter set
• Deluxe zippered pouch with 3×5-inch Velcro® and MOLLE rigging on reverse
• 3 long Tekton® punches (1/16 inch, 3/32 inch, 1/8 inch) replacement parts 66061, 66063 and 66064

The only deficiency this writer saw in the kit was no “Snap Caps.” I like to train trigger release, and it’s not the healthiest thing for the firing pin to undergo unsupported release. If SOCOM wanted it, they would have specified and Barrett certainly could have provided. However, .300 and .338 Norma Magnum are not cartridges with COTS (Commercial Off-the-Shelf) snap cap availability. I used my standard A-Zone 7.62x51mm, but the .300 and .338 Norma Magnum cartridges have significantly shorter cases than .338 Lapua Magnum, and the bullets are seated deeper as well. The Norma cartridges have less taper, a slightly sharper shoulder and a slightly longer neck—once again, no COTS availability. I contacted the originator of the high-grade snap caps, Eric Kennard, from Harbour Arms. (harbourarms.com), and we discussed at length. I sent him some of the live rounds to work from, and within a few weeks he produced two of each for our use. Perfect. The custom work cost more than the COTS products he sells for almost every sniper/precision caliber, but it’s worth it. As a side note, Harbour Arms is a Disabled-First-Responder-owned company. I forwarded his contact to Barrett and SOCOM; hopefully there’s some support there—it would be nice to see Eric and Cindy get a shot at supplying.

Headspace Gauges

There were no headspace gauges supplied. They’re not needed at the operator level according to doctrine, even with all the barrel changing inherent to the system. I used my Pacific Tool & Gauge headspace gauges, PTG worked with Jimmie Sloan on the chambers, and Barrett used JGS Precision chamber reamers and gauges. It became clear early on that the Barrett MRAD system is virtually perfect. Our confidence in properly installing barrels and bolt heads went up immediately; this is a very reliable system.

Cleaning: The Right Way

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Once the firearm is cleared, the upper receiver can be opened upward by pressing the release lever on the lower (note the silver lug). The bolt can then be removed to the rear, and the rear bolt guide and front bolt guide can be removed.

Bolt Disassembly

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The bolt pin is pushed through—it can only go one way, and it is captured so it won’t come out. When you reach the proper position, the bolt will come out forward. Reassembly is the reverse.

Changing Calibers

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Changing calibers is a simple yet precise operation. The barrels and bolt heads will be engraved with their caliber—match them up. Remove the magazine then the bolt as above, and change out the bolt head to the new caliber.

Unscrew the two barrel screws, but not completely. Remove the old barrel to the front and then slide in the new caliber barrel into the receiver; make sure the index pin at the top seats all the way. Starting with the rear screw, tighten the two barrel screws to 140 in-lb using the torque limiter marked for that and the T30 PLUS (IP30) bits. Be careful not to strip the screw heads. Assemble the firearm and ensure the bolt is properly rotating into position.

Changing Safety

The Mk22 Mod 0 has the same feature as the MRAD regarding the reversible safety selector. This is operator preference regarding safety manipulation. It’s a quick change.

With the upper and lower opened, the selector, in this case on the right, is moved to the halfway position between “safe” and “fire.” It will drop into a detent, enough to be felt. It is then pushed out to the selector side. Place it at the halfway position on the other side of the receiver and insert, then rotate to “safe.”

Forward Handguard

The Mk22 features the same M-LOK systems as the MRAD at 3, 6, and 9 o’clock positions, and some short Picatinny-style rails are supplied. In this case, the Harris 6–9 inch bipod can be seen with the LaRue Tactical® adapter and the rotating cant knob (not lever).

Case & Carry Bag

I’m not sure if the system hard case was chosen by Barrett or SOCOM. In any event, the Pelican™ 1770 is perfect. The system is laid out where all parts can be easily gotten to—this is a full system “Overseas Case” for deploying. Pelican paved the way on heavy-duty rolling hard cases and wasn’t afraid to work with the military. It’s heavy, but it’s not supposed to be dragged around in the field; it’s supposed to protect the equipment and nest it so it’s easy to visually ID a full system and choose needed components. The hard case is for the base camp (sorry, that’s old-speak—for the FOB). The soft case is for the field.

Armageddon™ Gear was chosen for the soft case for the Mk22 Mod 0 as well as the suppressor mirage cover. The stitching and bar-tack work are flawless. This is a very well-made case, and it is thought out for the end user, clearly by end users. The company’s advertising has some braggadocio, and I was skeptical, then I looked this case over carefully. Damn. Will Sonnett (Walter Brennan in “The Guns of Will Sonnet”) used to say “… and I’m better than both of ‘em—no brag, just fact,” referring to his sons and gunfighting. It’s pretty clear that the Mk22 case is based off of Armageddon Gear’s CSASS precision rifle case. To start with, that would be 1000D (Denier) CORDURA® fabric. Denier is the thickness of the textured nylon filaments used in the fabric. 1000D is very, very durable, for heavy duty uses—most soft cases use 500D or less. Armageddon uses a fabric that is solution-dyed which guarantees a homogenous color, and since this is a low-IR signature finish, that will be homogenous also. I spent a couple hours exploring all the ways to use the case, what I could put where, set it up for backpack with the straps and tried it as a drag bag. I carried it slung and used it rocking horse prone to keep the sharp desert pebbles from causing my delicate constitution discomfort. Seriously, this is long-time gear, versatile and well thought out. Excellent choice by SOCOM and Barrett, Armageddon Gear: “No brag, just fact” (armageddongear.com).

In Conclusion

I’ll keep it short and sweet. Barrett’s MRAD as the Mk22 Mod 0 is absolutely deserving of the award they received. We fired a significant amount of ammunition, suppressed and unsuppressed; changed calibers out numerous times and went between 100 and 1,100 yards. All of us were impressed. I don’t remember a discouraging comment, and as all shooters know, put a bunch of us together with a new system, and there will be grumping and carping. None at all with Mk22. SOCOM’s due diligence in testing is clearly optimum; without seeing the inside of their thought process, it’s clear the end results have paid off. From this humble correspondent’s view, the end users and procurement testing personnel at SOCOM have hit a clear home run with the Mk22 Mod 0 selection. I would bet that Barrett Firearms staff are proud of this (Nightforce as well!), and I would expect to see many follow-on contracts for this system by US end users, and especially the overseas SOF community taking advantage of the exhaustive testing done to adopt the Mk22. Bravo!

4 MAX Scout

The 4 Max Scout features an extra wide, drop-point blade and stonewash finish, which is identical to the original 4 Max. It’s crafted from 5mm thick AUS10A steel for strength, toughness and edge holding potential. The handle’s silhouette mirrors the original. Instead of a G10 handle, the 4 Max Scout has one made of Griv-Ex™ with stainless steel liners and a Griv-Ex™ back spacer. Equipped with Andrew Demko’s groundbreaking Tri-Ad® locking mechanism, the 4 Max Scout has passed every one of our grueling shock and impact tests and then gone on to hold 600 pounds of free-hanging weight with no damage!

coldsteel.com

Overall Length: 10in
Closed Length: 6in
Blade Thickness: 4.8mm
Blade Length: 4in
Edge Length: 4in
Edge Configuration: Plain
Handle: Griv-Ex™
Steel: Japanese AUS10A
Weight: 10.2oz
Clip Position: Ambidextrous
Grind: Flat
Lock Type: Tri-Ad® lock
Blade Style: Drop point

COLD STEEL, INC.

SRK®

The SRK® in San Mai® features a tremendously strong clip point blade that’s fine enough for delicate work, yet possesses enough belly for efficient cutting, slashing and skinning strokes as well. At 3/16 of an inch thick, the SRK offers the sturdiest possible point and edge configuration, without sacrificing sharpness. The SRK’s handle sports a single quillon finger guard and a deeply checkered Kray-Ex® grip. If you want a reasonably priced, reliable knife, check out Cold Steel’s SRK.

coldsteel.com

Overall Length: 10.75in
Blade Thickness: 5mm
Blade Length: 6in
Edge Length: 6in
Edge Configuration: Plain
Handle: Kray-Ex™
Steel: Japanese VG10 San Mai®
Weight: 7.8oz
Clip Position: N/A
Grind: Hollow
Blade Style: Clip point
Sheath Material: Secure-Ex™
Mounting Hardware: N/A
Total Weight of Knife and Sheath: 11.1oz

DOUBLESTAR BLADES

Ahab-X

Inspired by the epic characters written in Herman Melville’s novel, Moby Dick, the Ahab-X was built to empower law enforcement officers to hunt down wickedness with all the tenacity of the Captain himself. This everyday carry was designed to be discrete and compact without sacrificing relevance. Elements like the oversized ring and precision thumb break provide the best amount of retention for quick deployment. The Ahab-X’s strong, lightweight construction makes it a great duty belt utility that will be there when you need it.

doublestarusa.com

Overall Length: 5.5in
Blade Thickness: .175in
Blade Length: 3.33in
Edge Length: 3.20in
Edge Configuration: Plain
Handle: .125in Medium-textured G10
Steel: SK5
Weight: 3.8oz
Clip Position: Dynamic and modular clip options
Grind: Flat
Blade Style: Traditional Tanto
Sheath Material: Injection-molded
Mounting Hardware: Button head screw/rubber washers/T-nuts
Total Weight of Knife and Sheath: 4.7oz

DOUBLESTAR BLADES

Lite-Fighter-X

Born from the theater of war and designed by an experienced soldier, Darrin Sirois, the Lite-Fighter-X is a “tactical fighter” ready to take on any mission. A 10-inch Flat grind leads the knife’s edge with a harpoon-style upper spine wedged and optimized for entrance and exit wounds. The deep thumb grooves are precisely placed for a positive, friction-free grip when it matters. The handle is skeletonized to create a well-balanced knife.

doublestarusa.com

Overall Length: 9.5in
Blade Thickness: .194in
Blade Length: 4.56in
Edge Length: 4.88in
Edge Configuration: Plain
Handle: .125in course-textured G10
Steel: Nitro-V
Weight: 8.9oz
Clip Position: Dynamic and modular clip options
Grind: Flat
Blade Style: Straight back with medium belly
Sheath Material: Thermoplastic
Mounting Hardware: Button head screw/rubber washers/T-nuts
Total Weight of Knife and Sheath: 10.6oz

EMERSON KNIVES, INC.

Mini CQC-7BW Flipper

Emerson Knives has now given the flipper treatment to the pocket-friendly version of the acclaimed Emerson CQC-7. Now featuring a flipper tab and a ball-bearing pivot system, the Mini CQC-7BW Flipper glides open with ease and locks with a satisfying click.

emersonknives.com 

Overall Length: 7.2in
Closed Length: 4.2in
Blade Thickness: .125in
Blade Length: 2.9in
Edge Length: 2.9in
Edge Configuration: Plain/serrated, Stonewash/Black finish
Handle: G10
Steel: 154CM
Weight: 4oz
Clip Position: Tip-up carry
Grind: Chisel
Lock Type: Liner lock
Blade Style: Tanto

EMERSON KNIVES, INC.

Mini Sheepdog

A knife is a guardian and protector. When a knife is the tool you need, the Mini Sheepdog will never let you down. For work, for adventure, for emergencies and for protection, the Mini Sheepdog is man’s best friend.

emersonknives.com 

Overall Length: 7.1in
Closed Length: 4.1in
Blade Thickness: .125in
Blade Length: 3.0in
Edge Length: 3.0in
Edge Configuration: Plain/serrated, Stonewash/Black finish
Handle: G10
Steel: 154CM
Weight: 4.8oz
Clip Position: Tip-up carry
Grind: Conventional V
Lock Type: Liner lock
Blade Style: Spear point or Bowie

GERBER

Propel Downrange AO

Developed to serve military and law enforcement, the Propel Downrange AO is a tactical addition you can rely on. Gerber’s premium design offers a stealth black oxide S30V steel blade, a grippy G10 handle and an innovative blade deployment keeping safety front of mind.

gerbergear.com

Overall Length: 8.5in
Closed Length: 5in
Blade Thickness: 0.12in
Blade Length: 3.5in
Edge Length: 3.25in/SE
Edge Configuration: Combination–partially serrated
Handle: Black G10
Steel: Premium S30V
Weight: 5oz
Clip Position: Adjustable three-position
Grind: Flat
Lock Type: Plunge lock and safety switch
Blade Style: Full-size Tanto

GERBER

StrongArm

With a full tang, 420HC steel blade and rubberized diamond-texture grip, the StrongArm is a knife you can rely on. The MOLLE-compatible, multi-mount sheath system offers optimal customization, keeping your knife ever at the ready in combat situations.

gerbergear.com

Overall Length: 9.8in
Blade Thickness: 0.19in
Blade Length: 4.8in
Edge Length: 4.25in/FE; 4.50in/SE
Edge Configuration: Combo edge
Handle: Rubberized diamond-texture grip; glass-filled nylon with rubber overmold
Steel: 420HC
Weight: 7.2oz
Clip Position: None
Grind: Flat
Blade Style: Full tang
Sheath Material: Versatile modular sheath system, MOLLE
Mounting Hardware: Detachable belt hoops for horizontal belt carry
Total Weight of Knife and Sheath: 10.9oz

MEDFORD KNIFE & TOOL

Gentleman Jack Slip Joint

The Gentleman Jack Slip Joint is another first for Medford Knife & Tool and is a new breed of the ubiquitous gentleman’s folder. It’s a titanium slip joint with all the usefulness, elegance and build quality you have come to expect. Launching exclusively in three configurations.

medfordknife.com

Overall Length: 7in
Closed Length: 4in
Blade Thickness: .125in
Blade Width: 3/4in
Handle Thickness: .125in
Blade Length: 3.1in
Edge Length: 2.9in
Edge Configuration: Most acute hand-polished for a face razor sharp keenness
Handle: Titanium
Steel: CPM S35VN
Weight: 2.9oz
Clip Position: N/A
Grind: Drop point
Lock Type: Slip joint
Blade Style: Waterfall nail nick

MEDFORD KNIFE & TOOL

Praetorian Swift FL

The Praetorian Swift FL has a hybrid aluminum handle, titanium spring and MKTech™ SS dual race, 18-bearing pivot frame lock.

medfordknife.com

Overall Length: 7 11/16in
Closed Length: 4 3/8in
Blade Thickness: .150in
Blade Width: 3/4in
Handle Thickness: .190in
Blade Length: 3 3/8in
Edge Length: 3 1/4in
Edge Configuration: Acute hand-polished
Handle: Aluminum and titanium
Steel: CPM S35VN
Weight: 4.5oz
Clip Position: Spring top tip-up
Grind: Tanto or drop point
Lock Type: Frame lock
Blade Style: Fuller groove

SPARTAN BLADES

Damysus

In Greek mythology, Damysus was the fastest of all the giants. This hefty same-named blade is designed to perform as an all-around combat/utility knife. Its straight edge and strong point combined with a full tang and Canvas Micarta® scales ensure the Damysus will perform the most demanding tasks. If tip strength is what you are looking for, consider this knife. Made in collaboration with KA-BAR® Knives.

spartanbladesusa.com

Overall Length: 103/4in
Blade Thickness: 3/16in
Blade Length: 6in
Edge Length: 51/2in
Edge Configuration: Plain
Handle: Black or green CE Canvas Micarta®
Steel: 1095 CRO-VAN
Weight: 9oz
Grind: Flat saber
Blade Style: Drop point
Sheath Material: Injection-molded sheath with active retention thumb lever
Mounting Hardware: MOLLE and TECH-LOK-compatible
Total Weight of Knife and Sheath: 14.7oz

SPARTAN BLADES

Spartan-Harsey Dagger

Designed by prolific knife designer William W. Harsey, Jr., the Spartan-Harsey Dagger was designed to be a combat dagger. Its timeless design is matched only by the use of premium U.S. materials which include: S35VN with excellent vacuum heat treatment with double-deep cryogenic treatment and pressure tempering; full tang construction; and a 3D-contoured Canvas Micarta® handle, textured for excellent grip. These features combined with its beautiful design makes for a knife that will most assuredly become an American classic.

spartanbladesusa.com

Overall Length: 10¾in
Blade Thickness: 3/16in
Blade Length: 6in
Edge Length: 5¼in
Edge Configuration: Plain
Handle: 3D-contoured double Black CE Canvas Micarta®
Steel: CPM S35VN (double deep cryogenic treatment)
Weight: 6.72oz
Grind: Hollow
Blade Style: Double-edged dagger
Sheath Material: Kydex® or leather
Mounting Hardware: MOLLE and TECH-LOK-compatible
Total Weight of Knife and Sheath: 11.456oz

SPYDERCO

Canis™

Designed by special operations veteran and close-combat expert Kelly McCann, the Canis is a no-nonsense folding knife optimized for personal protection. Its dramatic blade profile maximizes cutting power and tip strength and is paired with a high-strength Compression Lock®, carbon fiber/G10 scales and a fully configurable four-position pocket clip.

spyderco.com

Overall Length: 8.12in
Closed Length: 4.73in
Blade Thickness: 0.118in
Blade Length: 3.43in
Edge Length: 3.43in
Edge Configuration: Plain
Handle: Carbon fiber/G10 laminate
Steel: CPM® S30V®
Weight: 4.1oz
Clip Position: Ambidextrous 4-position
Grind: Hollow
Lock Type: Compression lock
Blade Style: Wharncliffe

SPYDERCO

YoJumbo™

A supersized expression of Michael Janich’s acclaimed Yojimbo™ 2, the YoJumbo features a 4-inch, hollow-ground Wharncliffe blade crafted from CPM® S30V® stainless steel. Designed to fit all hand sizes, its ergonomic handle boasts coarse-textured G10 scales, nested stainless steel liners, Spyderco’s patented Compression Lock® and a versatile four-position pocket clip.

spyderco.com

Overall Length: 9.29in
Closed Length: 5.37in
Blade Thickness: 0.145in
Blade Length: 3.98in
Edge Length: 3.98in
Edge Configuration: Plain
Handle: G10
Steel: CPM® S30V®
Weight: 5.3oz
Clip Position: Ambidextrous 4-position
Grind: Hollow
Lock Type: Compression lock
Blade Style: Wharncliffe

SMITH & WESSON

M&P M.A.G.I.C.® Assisted Opening Liner Lock Folding Knife

Smith & Wesson® Large M&P® M.A.G.I.C.® Assisted Opening Liner Lock Folding Knife is made with a black stainless-steel partially serrated clip point blade with ambidextrous thumb plate. Its gun metal blue aluminum handle comes with black rubber inlay, a safety lock, glass breaking tool and a pocket clip.

store.smith-wesson.com

HENSOLDT

IRV 600 A1

The thermal sight attachment IRV 600 A1 is the enhancement of the well-tried IRV 600–developed for assault rifles or light machine guns. The IRV 600 A1 was developed especially for long ranges. It is characterized by its simple operating concept and its central control panel. The infrared attachment is equipped with a video connection for an external monitor. Its additional Picatinny rail offers space for optional accessories. A battery pack allows the user to easily replace the battery without having to use tools.

At a size of 640×480 pixels, the detector offers the highest geometric resolution available on uncooled devices. The IRV 600 A1 can be either used as a clip-on system with 1x magnification or as a stand-alone targeting optic with digital zoom.

hensoldt.net

NATIONAL POLICE AMMUNITION

HELO Premium Defense Hollow Point

National Police Ammunition (NPA), a leader in lead-free ammunition, is pleased to announce the development and the release of their HELO Premium Defense 9mm 115 grain + P solid copper hollow point with proprietary interior skives. Unlike bonded jacketed bullets, the HELO (High Expansion, Law Enforcement, Ordinance) is formed from a solid piece of high-grade virgin copper. At that point, a proprietary cavity is formed with interior skives, the copper bullet is heat-treated to the ideal hardness to allow the projectile to achieve maximum penetration and expansion while retaining 100% of its grain weight through ballistic gel and does not break apart like many copper hollow points on the market. The HELO has a black oxide coating that reduces copper fouling in a firearms barrel. The HELO will penetrate the minimum length of 12 inches into bare gel from a GLOCK 43 sub-compact pocket pistol and will penetrate an average of 15 inches of gel from a full-size defense pistol averaging 1,150 FPS from a 4-inch barrel.

npaammo.com

ACCURACY INTERNATIONAL LTD 

AX MKIII

The Accuracy International (AI) AX MKIII is the latest in a long and distinguished line of combat-proven sniper rifles from AI and has been designed to meet current operational needs in Europe and around the world. The AX MKIII is evolved from the successful AXMC multicaliber rifle, is a variant of the AXSR, is produced for the U.S. market and shares many features.

The rifle as supplied is configured in .338 Lapua Magnum and has multi-caliber conversion kits that are user configurable and mission adaptable.

accuracyinternational.com

FOXFURY LIGHTING SOLUTIONS 

D3060 Drone Light

Foxfury Lighting Solutions announced the arrival of the D3060, the newest addition to its family of drone lights. The D3060 is a small format drone and utility light. Dual LEDs give the D3060 360-degree lighting. There is 30-degree light on the front and a 60-degree light on the top of the unit. Each one has three modes: low, high and strobe. These lights can operate independently or simultaneously depending on the user’s needs. The D3060 weighs 1.3 ounces, so it has a minimal impact on flight time. The D3060 comes with dual lock fasteners as well as a strap insert in the base plate, so you can mount it to most drones in addition to wearing on helmets, clothing, bags, etc. Various mounting options can make the D3060 into a utility, anti-collision or navigation light. The strobe mode meets FAA and global regulations for UAV night flight and anti-collision drone lighting. The D3060’s base plate swivels 360-degrees, allowing it to point in any direction necessary.

foxfury.com

By Oleg Volk

The Mossberg MVP line of rifles was introduced in 2012. As of 2020, this innovative design has become available in .223 Remington, .224 Valkyrie, 6.5mm Creedmoor and .308 Winchester for a total of 17 variants. Available in light configurations for hunting, rugged and railed for defense, and on a chassis for long-range precision, all these rifles have one thing in common: they feed from commonly available and easily loaded detachable double-stack, double-row feed box magazines. The .223 version uses AR-15-compatible magazines, while the 6.5 and .308 versions can use both AR-10 and M1A magazines. M1A magazines even latch with the same motion as AR-10 mags. This approach makes MVP rifles significantly easier to support than brands using proprietary feeding devices. The Mossberg rifles ship with compact 10-rounders, but the availability of larger magazines up to 150-round capacity (in .556) makes clip loading unnecessary. For practical field use, 20-rounders are most handy in all four calibers. AR magazines are helpfully affordable and lightweight. Feeding reliability has been 100% across all three Mossberg MVP rifles I’ve used, and no special effort is required to keep it that way. Running the bolt slower or faster made no difference. The mag release latch and the indentation for it are a bit on the small side for thumbs or gloved fingers but not to the point of being a serious issue. Extended aftermarket release levers are available from Crosshair Precision.

MVP Bolt and Trigger

The bolt is a conventional two-lug design with fluting to resist fouling and environmental dirt. The bolt feels loose once unlocked, but that subjective perception doesn’t affect accuracy. Practical accuracy with a moderate power scope and an average shooter like me hover around 1MOA with 168- and 175-grain match ammunition, around 2MOA with 150-grain hunting soft points and a little looser with various ball cartridges. At least with match ammunition, the marksman was the obvious limiting factor. A very nice 2.8-pound trigger helps to make the most of the theoretical precision available. The trigger may be adjusted more heavily up to 7 pounds by turning an internal screw for use with gloves. The safety is also conventional—a right-side push-lever with the forward position being FIRE and back position being SAFE. The bolt can be cycled with the safety applied.

The MVP bolt has only moderate lateral support when at the rear-most point of its travel, so it wobbles a bit and makes the cycling less smooth than ideal. That and the generally bulky, rounded forms of the stocks make the rifles look and feel unrefined, but that feeling goes away as soon as range time begins. In actual use, MVP ergonomics proved superior to most other bolt actions. The stock shape combines with the thick recoil pad, making recoil very controllable even in the short Thunder Ranch model. The rifles are easy to shoot well, and I found myself going through a lot more ammunition than expected on every range trip.

MVP Barrels

MVP actions come pre-bedded on the same block that holds the magazine well. Barrels are free-floated. All models come with threaded muzzles: 1/2×28 in .223 and .224; 5/8×24 in 6.5 and .308. The stocks have separate studs for the front sling swivels and for bipods. This rifle series basically took all the items from my “must-have” list for modern bolt action and checked them.

The .223 Thunder Ranch model uses a medium, fluted 20-inch barrel. The model set up, which had a LUCID Optics 4-16x scope and a sound suppressor, proved not only accurate in experienced hands but was an effective teaching tool for a brand new shooter. After stepping up from rimfire, our Australian visitor was able to hit pop cans at 75 yards … that’s no small feat for the first day behind the gun. By mere chance, 77-grain match ammunition and 55-grain ball trajectories match up almost exactly at 100 yards, so they can be used for training and range demonstrations fairly inexpensively. True to its Thunder Ranch heritage, the gun is light enough for off-hand deployment and is accurate enough while supported for precision at long range. Thanks to free-floating, the barrel wasn’t deflected by a tight hasty sling. The 75- to 77-grain match ammunition from SIG SAUER and PRIME shot slightly under an inch, and the 69-grain Federal Premium® Gold Match shot around 1.1 inches consistently.

The .308 Thunder Ranch model mounts a shorter, 16-inch fluted barrel equipped with open sights. Meant for such uses as brush hunting and short-range sniping, this rifle handles well at speed and settled down comfortably on a bipod or sandbags. Recoil, while more pronounced than with the .223, is far from distracting. I have not tested this rifle for accuracy quite as extensively, mainly because the other .308, the 20-inch Long Range (LR) model, got all of my attention. The Thunder Ranch gun is amazing inside of 100 yards and is handy and easy to use even with the open sights. The extra 4 inches of barrel length combined with the AMTAC reflex sound suppressor made the longer variant much easier to shoot, with less blast and recoil. While the rifle looks very compact, the full-length barrel and the all-steel sound suppressor add up to a hefty package; though not as easily hand-holdable with my strength level. For distances beyond 100 yards, the LR rifle is a clear win, being both steadier and possessing an adjustable cheek rest for centering the eye behind large-diameter scopes. Inside of 100, which, incidentally, includes the overwhelming majority of police sniping and defensive uses, the Thunder Ranch variant with a low-power scope would be superior.

Testing

The 175-grain High Precision Range (HPR), SIG SAUER, PRIME and Federal Premium match ammunition printed around an inch at 100 yards: my variations from string to string revealed no clear superiority of any one load over the others. The 168-grain Magtech® and 175-grain PPU Match, as well as the 165-grain Federal Fusion® printed in the 1.75MOA to 2MOA. Between the hefty barrel and the braking effect of the sound suppressor, the recoil could be described as mild, to the point where even an inexperienced shooter could try the gun without risk of bruising.

While Mossberg MVPs come in a bewildering variety of configurations, only one of them puzzled me: the .308 Scout. Equipped with a long eye relief scope mounted on an extended rail, it still cannot be loaded with stripper clips due to the Picatinny rail being in the way. It’s also entirely unnecessary with the removable box magazine. The Scout’s extended rail, however, would work very well with a thermal or night vision optic mounted in tandem with a daylight scope.

Value

Depending on the configuration, Mossberg MVP rifles retail from the mid-$500s to about twice that amount. In my experience, their consistent performance as multi-role arms makes them a good value. At range events, they are among the most popular rifles with people who have tried everything on the table.

By Yuri Lyamin

On the eve of the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, a large public exhibition of the defence achievements of the Iranian Armed Forces and military industry was held. This exhibition, titled “Eghtedar 40” (“Power 40”) showcased Iranian-made ballistic missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), armoured fighting vehicles, surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) and other large systems. Small arms and light weapons were also showcased, and one of the most interesting amongst these was a previously unseen Iranian shoulder-fired multipurpose weapon. A launcher, a mock-up of the munition and a video appearing to show testing were all displayed.

It appears that this weapon is still undergoing tests and has not been adopted for service (as of 2019). The configuration of the weapon seems fairly typical, and it is likely similar to other weapons in its class in terms of its physical characteristics. However, it appears that it uses a multipurpose warhead—at least as shown in a video—primarily intended to engage enemy personnel in light cover, light armoured vehicles and structures. This concept is growing in popularity globally; although some examples of these weapons have been around for some time. Other systems using a projectile of this type include the Russian RMG, Chinese DZJ-08 and German MATADOR.

Generally, weapons of this type feature a tandem warhead in order to allow for penetration of structures whilst still conveying a lethal effect within. These warheads differ from tandem HEAT warheads designed to penetrate enhanced vehicle armour, however. Typically, the first stage of a “multipurpose” munition design is a HEAT warhead, designed to penetrate armour or part of a structure. This essentially clears a path for the second warhead. The second stage is generally an HE (high explosive), HE-FRAG or thermobaric design, designed to inflict devastating damage on personnel inside the vehicle or structure. Of course, this tandem design must strike a balance between penetration through the intermediary barrier and damage to people behind the barrier. Such designs are less effective at penetrating armour than advanced tandem HEAT types and produce a reduced destructive effect compared to a large HE-FRAG or thermobaric warhead.

It is quite likely that this new design has emerged in Iran now as a result of the experiences gained during intense urban fighting in Syria. Protracted battles through war-torn cities and towns have, in many cases, posed a steep learning curve for Iranian forces in the country. According to information provided by an Iranian source, this new weapon has a maximum range of 500m and can penetrate approximately 300mm thick intermediary barriers.

Special thanks to an Iranian source.

This article is reproduced courtesy of Armament Research Services (ARES). See armamentresearch.com for further original content.

Houthi Forces Capture Belgian FN Herstal F2000 Rifles in Yemen

By Jonathan Ferguson

In May 2019, a Belgian news outlet, VRT NWS, reported that the Saudi National Guard were using FN Herstal F2000® bullpup self-loading rifles in Yemen. With ongoing combat between the Arab Coalition and Houthi-aligned forces, it was all but inevitable that some of these exotic-looking, polymer-encased weapons would be captured or seized.

The first confirmed sighting of an F2000 in Yemen is believed to date from March 2018, when Houthi forces, fighting in the same border area, were seen recovering an F2000 from a Saudi outpost. The weapon was fitted with the GL1 (also known as the LG1), an under-barrel grenade launcher.

In June 2019, two further examples, both fitted with the GL1 under-barrel grenade launchers, were captured by Houthi forces during a battle with Saudi mechanised infantry on the Saudi/Yemeni border, near Najran. These rifles were displayed on social media alongside more mundane small arms and light weapons, hand grenades, night vision equipment and uniforms bearing National Guard insignia.

The FN Herstal F2000 is a select-fire, self-loading rifle in a bullpup configuration, chambered for the 5.56x45mm cartridge. It was developed by FN Herstal in the late 1990s and marketed from 2001. The rifle makes extensive use of polymer throughout, has ambidextrous operating controls and, unusually, ejects fired cartridge cases forward of the weapon, through an ejection chute parallel to the barrel.

It is not known definitively how many F2000 rifles or GL1 grenade launchers were sold to Saudi Arabia, but some sources have reported that 55,000 were approved for export from Belgium. As of August 2018, both weapons had been removed from the FN website and appear to have followed the U.S. FS2000® variant in being discontinued from the product range. The GL1 has been replaced by the FN40GL® Mk2.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

F2000 Standard

Calibre: 5.56x45mm

Overall length: 690mm

Barrel length: 400mm

Weight: 3.8kg (w/ empty magazine)

Feed device: 30-round detachable box magazine

Muzzle velocity (V0): 900 m/s

Cyclic rate: 850 RPM

LG1 (GL1)

Calibre: 40x46SRmm

Overall length of rifle with LG1: 727mm

Barrel length: 230mm

Weight (empty): 1.2kg

Feed device: None (single-loaded)

Muzzle velocity (V0): 76 m/s

Sources

ARES, Conflict Materiel (CONMAT) Database. Confidential. Perth: Armament Research Services (ARES), 2019.

N.R. Jenzen-Jones, “A Tale of Two Rifles: The Proliferation of F2000 and AK-103 Self-loading Rifles Exported to Libya in 2004–2009.” Perth: Armament Research Services (ARES), 2016. http://armamentresearch.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/ARES-Research-Report-No.-5-A-Tale-of-Two-Rifles.pdf

VRT NWS, “Saudis Using Belgian Weapons in Yemen.” May 8, 2019. https://www.vrt.be/vrtnws/en/2019/05/08/saudis-using-belgian-weapons-in-yemen.

This article is reproduced courtesy of Armament Research Services (ARES). It originally appeared on the Silah Report.

By Alton P. Chiu

Since attending the analytically driven 2-Day Tactical Pistols Skills course (see Small Arms Review, Vol. 23 No. 5, pages 40-45), this author recently had another opportunity to study from Ernest Langdon at his 3-Day Advanced Pistol Skills class. The class tuned-up basic skills and introduced shooting at moving targets, shooting in low light conditions and cognitive exercises.

Second Reading of the Basics

Befitting an advanced class, Langdon reviewed the basics at a fast pace. He still provided generous individual attention and feedback that enabled the author to relearn material missed during the 2-Day Tactical Pistols Skills course.

The author discovered his grip strength was still lacking as he could not effectively mitigate recoil as the day wore on. Langdon also observed that the author’s front sights dipped below rear sights as the slide slammed back into the battery. After confirming the use of standard pressure ammunition, he advised experimenting with a lighter 12.5-pound recoil spring in a Beretta M9A1. After these changes, the author observed better recoil management and virtual elimination of front sight dip.

The author also picked up new tips during this “second reading” of the basics. Drawing from the strong-side holster under an open shirt, Langdon related a tip of sewing a flex cuff along the leading edge of the shirt. This helped cover the garment to clear the holster. He also tuned-up the author’s draw, teaching an aggressive sweep with the blade of the strong hand, then pushing the hand down and forward to gain a good grip before withdrawing the pistol from the holster. Langdon also offered similar tips for students using appendix carry.

During reloads, Langdon taught us to tuck our pistol-holding elbow into our bodies. This created a consistent index point and steadied the pistol which is especially important when executing on-the-move. During discussions for slicing-the-pie, Langdon advised an aggressive lean to take and hold a slice, in contrast to the slow sideways shuffle until a shoulder is observed, then lean-out method. The author appreciated learning different techniques so he could choose an appropriate tool for the job. Reviewing material provided ample opportunities to relearn or recall items missed during the first reading. The author found this well worth the price of admission.

Moving

Moving while engaging a stationary target is first introduced. Students shot while moving in a circle around a barrel, as well in a figure-eight pattern around two barrels, to experience the importance of fundamentals. Instead of mechanically shooting double-taps, Langdon emphasized shooting individual rounds during rapid fire, complete with individual sight pictures and trigger preps. Failure to do this resulted in misses, as the sights shifted due to shooter movement. Navigating the barrels occupied the conscious mind and tested whether fundamentals were so well drilled that they became conditioned responses.

“Moving target,” using a Bianchi Cup-like setup, is unique to the 3-Day curriculum. Full-sized targets moved at a jogging speed with an estimated 8m opening to engage. The author required almost half of that to present pistol, establish a constant lead and break the first shot. From this, he estimated himself too slow to engage a target dashing across a hallway, and a realistic sideways-profile further reduces hit probability.

Culminating experiences combined both target and shooter movement. Advancing and retreating diagonally to a moving target taxed the author’s concentration. He promptly forgot the appropriate lead and only managed to focus on the sight picture. These exercises provided a good “feel” for the problem and were a fun way to test fundamentals.

Low Light

Langdon focused on handheld lights as they are an essential tool for searching and assessment. Although some police and citizenry equip their pistols with weapon-mounted lights (WMLs) for easier shooting, one cannot muzzle sweep every unknown while searching. Thus, handheld lights are a common denominator between the two activities.

When searching, Langdon prefers the FBI technique where the light is held high to one side and forward of the body. This creates separation should a threat shoot the light, as it is often the only thing visible. Also for this reason, light should be used judiciously. With the threat identified, Langdon advocates continual illumination to pin the target. If the light is turned off, the threat is likely to shift position.

Langdon also emphasized the need for WMLs to activate with absolute certainty; indeed, one such failure occurred during class. With the premise of identification using handheld light, the author found no satisfactory method of activating WMLs without discarding the handheld light as he drew and discharged his pistol. As such, the author found handheld techniques useful as both a backup (in case a WML fails) and as a primary technique as the situation dictates.

Since most handheld shooting techniques are essentially one-handed, strong-hand-only skills form the fundamental building blocks. Langdon presented multiple techniques, then encouraged students to try different ones under different lighting conditions to find ones they liked. The author’s experiences are presented below.

The Harries Technique is stable, though it quickly induces fatigue. The SureFire (or Rogers) Technique requires unshrouded tailcaps (e.g., the SureFire Tactician); the author’s trigger finger scraped against his support hand fingers. Angling the light downwards solved this, but it compromised both lighting and recoil management. The Graham Technique proved unworkable in live fire as recoil caused the author’s hands to separate and turn off the light. Significant pressure could overcome that, but it would activate constant-on for “clicky” tailcaps and discomforted knuckles. Neck Index Technique is favored by Langdon as it naturally aligned the light with target, but glare from the pistol or one’s clothing can detract from the sight picture. Although there is self-illumination, it is not as important a concern in shooting as in searching. The author also tried the FBI technique as he figured no reason to reposition the light when transitioning from search to shoot.

To simulate urban lighting with some artificial lights, students shot during twilight without illumination. In this exercise, Langdon mentioned that a line of drifting impacts were not unexpected. Muzzle flash acts as a flashbulb, searing the sight picture into the brain. Thus, one might be convinced of a proper sight picture despite it having drifted.

To practise with handheld lights, targets were illuminated from different directions. Shooting one at a time, each student could evaluate his own equipment and technique. Absent that, the author would never have realized his light was turning off under recoil with the Graham Technique. Langdon gave valuable instruction and freedom for students to experiment.

Cognitive Exercises

Most training courses, formal or otherwise, merely exercise students’ shooting skills. Langdon inserted drills requiring cognitive function to demonstrate how decision-making can slow down the process. Four targets with different shapes and numbers were presented, and students were asked to shoot the appropriate one by associating it with a topic posed. If “middle-aged” was the topic, a student might shoot a target containing the number “40.” Another exercise was the Casino Drill where one must shoot the appropriate number of shots on the appropriate target. These exercises helped the author discover which of his fundamental skills were not yet practised enough to be conditioned responses.

Conclusion

The 3-Day Advanced Pistol Skills class reviewed fundamentals from the 2-Day Tactical Pistol Skills course; this second reading provided the author much needed skill tune-ups as well as a refresher on tips missed the first time. Considerable time dedicated to both shooter and target movement provided valuable skills necessary for real-world scenarios. Combining multiple tasks tested fundamentals and allowed honest self-assessments of one’s capability. Low light instructions afforded generous opportunities to explore different techniques and build a well-reasoned plan.

Ernest Langdon proved to be as personable and accessible as he was during his 2-Day course. The author, being an engineer by trade, found that Langdon’s analytic approach helped with material absorption and helped the author make educated choices in equipment and technique. The author highly recommends this course.

By Jay Bell

Sometimes what appears to be a good idea is not as good as it seems. That appears to be the case in the 40mm training ammunition world. The U.S. Army’s 40mm Day/Night/Thermal (DNT) effort has stalled and then restarted on the high velocity (M918E1) and on low velocity (M781E1) but has not successfully completed the First Article Acceptance Test (FAAT or FAT). These rounds were supposed to be a major leap in technology. They achieved several key requirements of the U.S. government. The Army got rid of a troublesome fuze in high velocity and added night training capability in low velocity in order to train like soldiers fight, at night. The magic material that made all this happen is called “pyrophoric iron.” Pyrophoric iron spontaneously combusts when exposed to air. It turns out that the pyrophoric iron may not be all it was cracked up to be. It has some serious downsides: It causes range fires, and allegedly, at least one round has gone off prematurely, flashing at 3,000 degrees with the gunner inches away.

Going Back

Now, the U.S. Army appears to be going back to decades-old technology to address the training requirements for the 40mm MK19 machine gun and M320/M203 weapons. The training ammunition for these platforms goes back to the later 1960s. The Army recently made an award to go back to the M918:M385 2:1 Mixed Belt configuration in December 2019. There was also a “Sources Sought” notice that came out in November 2019 to re-ramp for the projectiles, which were shelved a few years ago. The main producer had an auction in July 2019, since the DNT rounds appeared to be the path forward.

The Sources Sought announcement officially kicks off the procurement process for a 5-year “Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity” contract to buy these 1960s technology, high-velocity projectiles. The high-velocity and low-velocity images are the old school rounds—a cutaway of the M918 Flash Band smoke and the M781. These images are courtesy of the U.S. government, and the comments are from one of the early Industry meetings highlighting the deficiencies circa 2014. Images of the M918E1 and M781E1 show only the outside of the new rounds. The insides are not available for public consumption. I attempted to get pictures from the Army, however, due to all the issues with the 40mm E1s, they were not letting any more pictures out. However, all of the market intelligence seems to point back to the 2004 Ted Haeselich patent, with chemical glow stick material in the middle of the round contained in a glass ampule (numbered 21/22). This ampule breaks and mixes upon setback to give a “lava” spurt downrange at night upon impact. The #13 item would be the standard orange powder or “signal dye.” This is to signal the impact area of the round.

Original U.S. government program timeline for the DNT program (see 2013).

A Little History

Since the 1990s, the 40mm high-velocity training ammunition option has been less than desired by the U.S. military. The 40mm M918 “flash, bang and smoke” round had multiple issues:

1) It had an expensive fuze that did not always function as desired and especially had problems in soft range conditions—sand, mud, wet, etc.

2) The fuzes did not have a self-destruct feature.

3) Projectiles that did not function are “unexploded ordnance” UXO and could cause injury if kicked or picked up.

4) The M918 was known to cause range fires that would shut down the training activities in some environments.

5) The M918 had a higher hazard storage and transportation class for the round.

The USMC became so fed up with the M918 situation that in the 1990s it stopped buying the Army’s M918 and started buying the MK281 from a small German company called NICO. The MOD 0 version had an orange signal dye like the Army’s low-velocity M781. Ted Haeselich worked at NICO in the 1990s and into the early 2000s. After an extensive adventure to fully type-classify the round, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars, the USMC made large purchases of the MK281. Later when NICO was purchased by German Military giant Rheinmetall, Rheinmetall started a U.S. manufacturing facility, and the orders skyrocketed. The original contracts to Germany were around $30M, and once they had the U.S. final assembly included, the contracts shot up to the $300M range. The story is a legend in the defense community.

Ted Haeselich’s patent with chemical glow stick material in the middle of the round contained in a glass ampule (numbered 21/22).

The MK281

The MK281 was perfectly simple. Basically, it is a high-velocity M781. It had a proprietary propulsion design that threads the projectile to the cartridge. The round must shear metal to fire, which is much more consistent than crimps and adhesives. The results are greater accuracy downrange. Later versions of the round added chemical luminescence aka glow sticks, to give a nighttime impact signature. It did not have a fuze, so there was ZERO chance of a dud. An additional plus is that the chemical luminescence materials are totally safe, ala Halloween glow sticks for kids. It can be eaten by kids on Halloween, and they can still eat all the candy they can handle. To meet the requirement of the DNT, the chemical properties were adjusted to add more heat to the process to be picked up with thermal imaging. The chemicals can be tweaked for colors, brightness, duration of glow and heat output.

The German cartridge design is favored by a lot of military forces around the world. Due to some old conflict over patents, the desire for 100% American-made products and a few other reasons, the MK281 has never seen full acceptance in the U.S. It does have one drawback, the chemical luminescence glows a rather long time. When you are training at night and shoot a large number of rounds, say 50 to 100, the target area will end up glowing so much that it is hard to tell when the last round hit. This phenomenon was coined as washout.

The Army Plan

The U.S. Army’s Project Manager Maneuver Ammunition Systems (PM MAS) started the planning for this next wave of development a long time ago. The 40mm DNT Industry Days date back to the early 2010s. The U.S. Army’s competition to solve its need for an improved M918 would be the M918E1 and in low-velocity M781E1. The M918/M781E1s had several key requirements:

1) No or minimal range fires (M918 only);

2) No fuze to fail and reduce costs (M918 only); and

3) Day, Night and Thermal visibility and/or signal (both rounds–new for M781).

PM MAS would have companies compete for the prize of making the rounds. The winning design would get the initial multi-year development contract and be in the leading position to make the rounds for the next 50 years. The M430 effects are the visual effects from an M430A1 HEDP round at 500m. The Army wanted a similar nighttime effect as seen in night vision.

On to the Competition

Nine companies submitted bid samples for evaluation in both 40mm high-velocity and low-velocity versions. These companies spent millions of combined dollars to get their designs mature enough to withstand the rigors of DOD testing. This field included American Ordnance (AO), Amtec, Chemring Ordnance, Cyalume Technologies, General Dynamics (GD), Rheinmetall, ST Kinetics (Singapore) and Universal Defense. Some did not even make it to the testing phase; some failed out early in testing.

These nine were down-selected to two competitors for high velocity—Amtec and AO Ordnance—and two for low velocity—Amtec and GD. Would the 40mm powerhouse Amtec, continue to dominate the 40mm world? Or would the large businesses with their success in ordnance in AO and general small/medium caliber ammunition expertise allow GD a win? Ultimately, it was AO as the high-velocity winner and GD as the low-velocity winner. The MK281 was in the mix along with several other varieties; however, it did not make the cut.

The competition had several deciding elements. The most important was pyrophoric or chemical luminescence. The best attributes of pyrophoric material were: a high heat output for thermal, bright visual light/explosion for the naked eye and lower hazard for storage and shipping. The best attributes of chemical luminescence were that it was totally inert and had zero risks of range fires. The negatives for pyrophoric was the “potential” for range fires. The downside of the chemical material was that it is difficult to see at 1,200m with the naked eye and the washout effect, as described above. The winning solution ended up being a pyrophoric solution for both rounds, which appears to be a key reason the programs have had so much difficulty.

Magic Material

Pyrophoric materials are processed iron particles that are contained in a glass ampule without air. When the ampule breaks and is exposed to air, it oxidizes quickly—actually, very quickly, which results in a lot of heat and a lot of light. It is technically a flash of light; some people might mistake it for a small explosion. The waste material is iron powder. It can be thrown away without concern about hazardous waste. It’s pretty awesome. The more interesting attribute is that if you break the top of an ampule off, the material will just simmer. You would just notice a color change and a slow process happening. If you turn the ampule over, you get a sparkler light show all the way down to the ground. If you smash it against the ground at 700m per second, you are back to the explosion-like effect.

The downside of pyrophoric material and what caused the program to be placed under a temporary Stop Work order is that the rounds were causing a lot of range fires—there was a safety incidence where the round in the chamber was broken and flashed in the weapon (potentially injuring the gunner)—and other performance issues. The M918E1 has a plastic ogive, and underneath it are some pretty powerful materials. The MK281 also has a plastic ogive; however, if this round breaks in the cycling of the MK19 machine gun, the glow stick material is not going to harm anyone.

Low-Velocity Status

The M781E1 delay issues are a little less well known. GD has not made it through first article testing, where AO is in production and has been awarded option quantities already. Is it the same pyrophoric range fire issues as M918E1, or is it something else? The drop test for pyrophoric could be to blame. The standard M781 could never pass a NATO standard 1M drop test. By the look of the design, I imagine that it would still be a problem. The pyrophoric material would make things interesting if it broke upon impact.

I have always been critical of the U.S. government’s typically painstakingly slow methods and processes. They test, test again and then test some more. Then repeat all those tests in multiple temperature phases. Once you are sure you have it nailed, they have someone else try to repeat the results exactly. It can be quite maddening at times, and you wonder how anything gets done. The 40mm DNT program seemed to be moving at light speed. It was extremely impressive. This current situation has given me a greater appreciation for taking it slow. The U.S. government goes slow when one item has been changed. In this case a little more so.

Pyrophoric materials have been successfully used in other military areas like aircraft countermeasure flares. However, it is still a newer process. The processes and applicant for 40mm had to be developed and built for these programs. Sometimes plans don’t work out at well as one would have hoped. This may be the case with pyrophoric—that it is just a little ahead of its time. There are a lot of people in the industry that think the M918E1 and M781E1 are doomed to failure. They believe the range fires might result in the M918E1 and M781E1 to be shelved, and we will go back to the 1960s designs, at least for a little while, and then either back to chemical luminescence or a newer material.

M918E1 the high-velocity round reducing the UXO hazard for the U.S. government.

The government’s original timeline from a 2013 Industry Day shows the program transitioning to full-rate production over / around 5 years. In reality, it took about 6 years. If they have to go back and re-invent the wheel, it will take another 5 years. These things just take time. This is one case where too new and not enough testing set things back, maybe a decade. Only time will tell.

CS/LS06 “Chang Feng” Submachine Gun

By N.R. Jenzen-Jones

The Chang Feng submachine gun (SMG)—known in its latest iteration as the “CS/LS06”—is in service with Chinese law enforcement and paramilitary personnel, as well as specialised units from other nations. The design is notable for its 50-round helical magazine and is often issued with a suppressor. Development of the Chang Feng SMG began in the mid-1990s by the Chongqing Changfeng Machine Company Ltd., based in the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing.

The weapon was conceived by veteran designer Qing Shangsheng, under the auspices of the Changfeng Military Products Research Institute. In addition to leading the design team for the QSZ-92 pistol, Mr. Qing had previously worked on a number of other small arms projects, including the Type 64 7.62×17mm pistol, Type 67 7.62×17mm suppressed pistol, Type 80 7.62×25mm submachine gun, Type 56-2 self-loading rifle, both 7.62 and 5.45 light machine guns (“squad automatic weapons”), and a variety of sporting pistols, a signal pistol and even a derringer. Prior to working on the CF05, he had already secured a patent for a high-capacity quad-stack, double-feed magazine for the Type 56-2.

Prototypes

According to a 2006 interview with the designer, he initially developed the concept in secrecy between 1993 and 1994 and did not share it with the factory manager until 1996. Four main series of prototypes were then developed. The first prototype used the weapon’s helical magazine to form part of the buttstock, fitted with a removable rubber butt pad. Versions of Prototype I were developed with different burst functions: Prototype I-1 had a two-round burst mechanism, and Prototype I-2 had a three-round burst mechanism. The second prototype’s magazine moved so that it sat above the barrel and introduced the closed-bolt, blow-back operation.

Prototype II was fitted with a telescoping stock. Both Prototypes I and II were chambered for 5.8×21mm.

It was determined that export sales were to be a priority for this weapon, and the weapons were updated to chamber the internationally popular 9×19mm cartridge. At this point, the program adopted the designation “QC-9” for the guns. As well as the new chambering, Prototype III saw experimentation with under-folding buttstock designs. Prototypes III-1 and III-2 have slightly different folding stock configurations. Prototype III-2 also introduced an optics mounting capability.

Prototypes I, II and III were all able to feed from a secondary feed device—a detachable box magazine housed in the pistol grip of the gun. These were QSZ-92 pistol magazines, which are produced in both 5.8×21mm and 9×19mm versions. A separate magazine release, located on the pistol grip, is visible in the first three prototype series. In the first prototype, it was possible to inadvertently introduce a feeding issue with both magazines fully seated. In Prototypes II and III, the box magazine could not be fully seated until all rounds were fired from the helical magazine, tripping a switch.

By Prototype IV, the design had returned to using a telescoping buttstock, and the alternate box magazine feed system was removed. A magazine release button is still seen on the pistol grip of all prototype weapons. In Prototypes II and III, the forward and rear pistol grips are connected via a bridging structure. Prototype IV-1 also has this “bridged” configuration; however, by Prototype IV-2, the furniture design is essentially finalised and is close to the production gun. The prototypes had a cleaning kit stored in the front pistol grip, which was also dropped from production guns. By the last prototypes, the translucent brown helical magazines appear to have been introduced, and translucent white magazines followed in early production guns.

A number of further changes were made as the QC-9 progressed through development. The weapon underwent trials in 2004, and issues with extractor strength, feeding issues, trigger issues, and the fire selector were resolved. The weapon was finally approved for serial production in May 2005. The production version of the weapon, now designated the CF05, was publicly showcased at the first annual China International Exhibition on Police Equipment and Anti-Terrorism Technology and Equipment (CIPATE) on May 10, 2005.

Export Variant

In 2006, the export variant of the weapon was approved, and the designation CS/LS06 was applied. Export versions of the weapon have occasionally been marketed as the Type 06, but CS/LS06 remains the most common name. “CS” likely stands for “China South,” as in “China South Industries Group,” which included Changfeng amongst its subsidiaries. This designation is seen on the title page of an English-language SMG manual from the mid-2000s (China South Industries Corporation’s “Operation & Maintenance Manual of 9mm Light Submachine Gun Type CS/LS06,” state-owned document #236), which was intended for the export version of the gun. It has been suggested by several observers that “CS06” is the designation for the firearm, whilst “LS06” is the designation for the suppressor. Not only is there no evidence to support this claim, “CS/LS” designations are applied to other export submachine guns without suppressors. The Changfeng Machine Company merged with Jian She several years ago, and so the “CF05” designation is unlikely to be used again.

The Chang Feng design is a hammer-fired, blow-back operated submachine gun chambered for 9×19mm, firing from a closed bolt and feeding from a 50-round helical magazine. The design uses a telescoped bolt which wraps around the barrel when in battery. At the end of its rearward travel, the bolt is stopped against the rear of the barrel assembly, rather than the receiver. The polymer receiver features a collapsible stock, and the barrel is threaded to accept a suppressor, which is typically supplied with the gun.

CS/LS06 Features

The CS/LS06 features a combined fire selector/safety, which allows for safe (B), semiautomatic (D) and automatic (L) modes to be selected. The selector can be removed like a “key” to the gun, locking it in the safe position. A three-position aperture sight is marked for 50m (“5”), 100m (“10”) and 150m (“15”) engagement ranges. The stock is extended from the collapsed position simply by pulling it rearward. It is collapsed by pressing in the buttstock latch on the left-hand side of the weapon. Detailed disassembly is quite complex, but a basic field strip can be conducted relatively quickly without tools.

The most notable feature of this weapon is its 50-round helical magazine. Helical magazines, often confused with drum magazines, use a staggered-helix design, which allows for a substantial increase in carrying capacity in a relatively compact form-factor. This results in a cylindrical magazine, which is often (as in this case) mounted above the weapon’s receiver, rather than below it.

Whilst helical magazines have been repeatedly tested in western countries (one early example of an internal helical magazine can be seen in the Evans Repeating Rifle, patented in the late 1860s, for example), they have typically found more favour in China, Russia and their client states. Perhaps the magazines of this type, with which most western readers will be familiar, are those used with the American Calico series of firearms. In fact, Qing expressly stated that the CF05 helical magazine design was influenced by a research trip a colleague took to the United States, where this person observed the Calico designs. Nonetheless, the construction of the magazine is closer to the Russian PP-19 Bizon submachine gun type.

Their inherently complex design makes helical magazines more prone to failure. The Chang Feng SMG manual gives a “failure rate” for the weapon of “equal to or less than 3 ‰,”  or three failures in every 1,000 rounds fired (1 in 334, or thereabouts). This failure rate would be considered unacceptably high by modern western standards, even under the assumption that this probably refers to all stoppages rather than just parts “failures.”

Reloading the magazine is a much more complex operation than that for conventional detachable box magazines. According to the gun manual:

5.2 Cartridge loading: Load required cartridge from loading port of cylinder (as shown in fig. 26, never miss loading), then apply spring force clockwise (as shown in fig. 27). Each turn of cylinder could contain 8 rounds and 50 rounds at maximum. Turns of spring force required is decided according to loading rounds. Turns of applying spring force equals to (X+1;n—rounds of loading cartridge [sic] …

That wording will likely be opaque to most readers, but thankfully the manual also includes a table which makes the process comparatively straightforward. Paraphrased, it indicates:

Table 1

Whilst the export weapons have almost exclusively been seen with opaque black polymer magazines, the manual notes “This gun is equipped with black opaque cylinder; if cartridge indication is required, brown semi-transparent cylinder could be equipped.” The weapon is typically offered for export with Chinese-made accessories, including a laser/light module (LLM; the most common appears to be the LLR-2), optical day sight, grenade launcher and suppressor.

The latest model of the gun features HK-style red and white pictographic safety/selector markings, new furniture textures, a forward-canted front pistol grip and trigger guard, a modified stock design and the model name moulded into the plastic on the left-hand side of the weapon.

The suppressor attaches via a left-hand metric thread on the barrel, located behind the muzzle device. A retaining/indexing pin is located below the muzzle. The SMG manual recommends disassembly and servicing of the suppressor after 150 rounds have been fired. Some limited suppressor testing was undertaken by Dr. Philip H. Dater and Dan Shea, the results of which were published in the Small Arms Defense Journal, “Chinese CS06 LSMG and LS06 Suppressor,” Vol. 3, No. 4.

In Service

The Chang Feng submachine gun has been documented in service with Chinese police and paramilitary forces. It is used by the elite No. 1 Detachment of the Beijing Special Weapons and Tactics Unit, known as the Blue Sword Commando Unit. Other police units around the country have also used the weapon, and it has been documented in a number of high-profile police actions, including protection of the Beijing Olympics and a hostage rescue action in Changchun, the capital of China’s northeast Jilin Province.

The weapon is also issued to components of the People’s Armed Police, including 3rd Group, 13th Detachment of the Beijing General Corps, known as the Snow Leopard Commando Unit. Snow Leopard personnel were observed carrying the weapon during training prior to the Beijing Olympics and in the Sino-Russian “Peace-Mission 2007” joint military exercise. In recent years, Chinese security forces are believed to be moving away from the Chang Feng design and toward new designs which are supposedly capable of firing a broad range of 9×19mm ammunition, from less-lethal to +P+ loads. Nonetheless, those that remain in arsenals are likely to continue to be seen.

A number of export sales have also taken place, with confirmed transfers to Myanmar (Burma), Venezuela and Uganda. In Venezuela, the weapon is used in a close personal protection role by the 509 Special Forces Battalion of the Army, Presidential Honor Guard personnel and members of the Special Unit for Security and Protection of State Personalities (UESPPE).

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Calibre: 9×19mm

Overall Length (buttstock collapsed): 412mm (w/out suppressor); 631mm (w/suppressor)

Overall Length (buttstock extended): 595mm (w/out suppressor); 814mm (w/suppressor)

Barrel Length: 232mm

Weight: 2.2kg (empty w/magazine); 2.9kg (loaded with 50-round magazine)

Sight Radius: 285mm

Rate of Fire: 800 rds/min

Feed Device: 50-round detachable helical magazine

V0: 360 m/s

SOURCES

 ARES CONMAT Database.

China South Industries Corporation, “Operation & Maintenance Manual of 9mm Light Submachine Gun Type CS/LS06,” State-owned document #236. [No date.]

FirearmsWorld. “CS/LS06” 2012. firearmsworld.net/china/smg/cf05/lwsmg.htm.

NORINCO, Small Arms. Sales catalogue. 2012.

Pérez, Pedro, “Chinese ‘Chang Feng’ Submachine Gun in Venezuela.” The Hoplite Magazine. August 19, 2019. armamentresearch.com/chinese-chang-feng-submachine-gun-in-venezuela.

Special thanks to Ellie Chang, Pedro Pérez, Maxim Popenker and Timothy G. Yan.

This article is reproduced courtesy of Armament Research Services (ARES). See www.armamentresearch.com for further original content.

By John Bibby

I have been very interested in long-range shooting for quite some time. Back when I lived in Florida, I decided that my budget could not afford true long-distance shooting. To simulate it on a reduced budget, I bought a precision 24-inch barrel AR and worked with that on the 600-yard range. My thought process was the Berger 77-grain would have the energy to get to 600 yards and would behave similarly to a 6.5 Creedmoor or a .300 Win mag at 1,000 yards. With that rig and my local 600-yard range, I put several hundred rounds down range and routinely shot MOA groups. The practice was fun, but it wasn’t really long-range; there was no way I was going much further and maintain an MOA-sized group with that equipment.

A bit later, I thought I would have the opportunity to exercise further out. To do that on a budget, I bought a Savage 12 Benchrest in 6.5×284. It is a very good and accurate rifle, but my location to shoot dried up just as I started to develop consistency. Shooting that rifle at my local 300-yard range is just a waste of powder and projectiles. When Don Fraley of Advanced Weapons Technology offered for me to take his 1,000-yard class, I jumped at the opportunity.

Don is a very thorough guy, and we went over the equipment I had for the class. My Savage 6.5×284 would work fine, but with over 700 rounds through the barrel already, it wasn’t the best idea for a 200- to 250-round class. It might well give up precision right when I needed it the most. After a bit of discussion, we decided on a new rifle in a relatively new 300 PRC caliber. I inquired with Hornady about projectiles for the project, and they were almost as excited as I was about the project. The 300 PRC was to become my new friend and accomplice in the quest to hit an MOA target consistently at 1,000 yards.

A student (Vernon) with his stock Ruger PRS in 6mm Creedmoor.

Preparing the Rifle

I traveled out to Don’s shop in Kentucky to help (read as “watch”) him build the rifle. That was well worth the drive. I have seen how a factory builds a rifle. What I had never seen, was a fine craftsman hand-tune a precision rifle. Trust me, it is a completely different thing, and the results told the tale as well; but I am jumping ahead. After spending the day seeing the rifle machined and assembled, I had a much better feel for the cost difference between my Savage and a custom rifle. The last thing we did on Day 1 was test-fire the rifle to make sure it went bang.

The next day, Don worked on other things in his shop while I built some handloads using Hornady 225-grain ELD® Match and 230-grain A-TIPs™. After I carefully assembled about 25 rounds, we dashed off to the range to see what powder and bullet seating the new rifle liked. It turned out she liked a stout load of H-1000 at about 10 thousandths off the lands with the A-TIPs. That group was about 0.300 inch. That wasn’t superb, but it got us in the ballpark, and we knew she would shoot better with further testing once I got her Cerakoted.

Dave at ULTerra Camo did a great job. He did the action and the stock in his ULTerra “debris” camo with the stock in a much more subtle pattern. I spent the entire 3 weeks that the rifle was with my Cerakoter attempting to find H-1000. I had no idea thumper powders are a scarce item these days. The powder I needed was not to be found: it simply didn’t exist locally or on the internet. I called Hodgdon®. A slightly embarrassed rep admitted that demand has far outstripped supply. He could get me two pounds of H-1000, but he strongly recommended IMR Enduron® 8133 or Retumbo as being better for the 300 PRC. As a good faith gesture, he sent me three pounds of each.

The Hornady 230-grain A-TIP and IMR Enduron 8133 loved my rifle, and my rifle loved them. When I fine-tuned the jump, I was rewarded with a 0.193-inch, 100-yard group. I am a fairly good shot, but that was the third best group I have ever shot. That became the production load. After the ladder testing, I had enough powder for about 220 rounds. The curriculum suggests 250, so I was cutting it pretty close. Then I knocked over an open powder can as I was attempting to refill my powder measure. Such a waste of good powder, but something tells me that floor sweeping is not part of the precision reloading process. I left for the class with 165 loaded cases and a strong hope that they were enough.

Day 1

Day 1 of the class began with some socializing as we all settled in. Don told us about himself and then each of us gave our own elevator speech as to who we are and why we are at the class. Several people had never shot past 200 yards. A few had significant practice out to 500-plus, and two guys had taken a class for over 1,000 yards. We were then paired with another student for shooter/spotter teams.

We deeply dove into the “how.” About a month prior to the class, each student received a thick binder with specific instructions to familiarize ourselves with the material. Four days is not enough time to teach all the information from a cold start. I and several others did not have a full grasp on some of the concepts on Day 1, but everyone had at least a cursory acquaintance with trajectory, effects of gravity and wind, the Magnus effect, the Coriolis effect and spin drift. We all showed up with ballistic charts for our ammunition.

We spent the morning of Day 1 in a very interactive lecture involving practical ballistics. The topics ranged from bullet form factors to G1 versus G7 ballistic coefficients and drag modeling versus ballistic coefficient computer models. This was broken up with a catered-in lunch. Then off to the range, where we confirmed our 100-yard zero on paper targets and gradually worked our way out to 500 yards. This was done to confirm or adjust the ballistic chart we were working with. I chronographed my loads as part of the latter testing process, so I was fairly confident my model would be accurate. I found the awesome accuracy node at a fairly low velocity (for the caliber) but went with it due to time and powder constraints. My velocity measured roughly 2,650 fps. Of my five-shot test group, the slowest was 2,638 fps and the fastest was 2,663 fps. The extreme spread was 25 fps with high single-digit standard deviation—not spectacular but very acceptable.

With this information, my ballistic chart was pretty close to dead-on for Day 1. We didn’t reach past 500 yards on Day 1. It was more about seeing people shoot and work through dope adjustments while confirming velocity and variance for everyone. We used a LabRadar Chronograph. We even had a scope (well-known brand) give up the ghost on the 20th shot. Don provided a loaner.

Day 2

Day 2 again began with lecture. Don delved deeper into the science behind ballistic calculators. We discussed how bullet velocity affects ballistic coefficient, and how each supersonic shot likely has four different drag coefficients over different speeds. A deeper dive into G1 versus G7 coefficients helped to illuminate when to use which model. There was a spirited discussion on spin drift and the Coriolis effect and determinations on how much they can really affect 1,000-yard shots. We went over the Hornady 4DOF™ drag model calculator for our caliber and projectile as well as local conditions. After another catered lunch, we put our stuffed brains aside and exercised our trigger fingers with practical application.

We all ran a quick series of shots from 100 to 500 yards to confirm our real-world holds and checked them against our newly generated 4DOF drop charts. Out to 500 yards, everyone was very close. Full of confidence, we all failed miserably with our first few 750-yard shots. All but two of us (me included) shot to the right of the targets. Not correcting for the shifting 5 to 7 mph crosswind and a touch of spin drift got us all. The other two over-corrected and shot far left. After a bit of coaching and pointing out the things discussed in class, we all got on target. It took some of us a few more shots and a bit more coaching, but the lessons sunk in with real-world shooting. My bullets were hitting 9/8 MOA low compared to my dope chart. Others had similar issues. But the real-world feedback got us right in the groove and fairly quickly got most of us on the 750-yard steel. The primary steel target was 18×10 inches; the secondary was a 1/3-scale, 10×6-inch IPSC target. The larger target was our goal, but some of us need to overachieve. That IPSC target was tough, but most of us got hits there, too.

The next evolution was to reach even further and ring the 1,000-yard gong. Let me tell you, after making very inconsistent hits on the IPSC target at 750 yards, the 10-inch round at 1,000 still seemed out of reach. I adjusted my dope up the same nine extra clicks it had been low on the 750 and was only about a foot low at 1,000, but I was at least 24 inches wide right. My spotter confirmed my hits on the steel backer behind the gong. After three shots into the same part of the backer were confirmed, one of the instructors helped me figure out the reasons. Dialing in the additional come-up was pretty easy. Figuring the holdover was simplified by having about only a 1 mph wind from the left. On my fourth shot with the new hold, I rang the gong. It was about ¾-inch from the bottom edge, but it was a hit.

Top gong, bottom edge hit. My first hit at 1,000 yards.

The joy of hitting the gong, that an hour previous seemed like a pipe dream, was amazing. The wind picked up and became erratic. That played havoc with my next five rounds. I was within a foot with all but one of them, but close is not a hit. The wind died down, I noticed that and squeezed off the confirmation shot. It took six follow-up shots, but I hit the gong a second time. Due to being a spotter in the first round of shooting, I was the sixth shooter to hit the gong twice and qualify for the certificate. I didn’t care. I hit it twice, on purpose. We finished out the day working on wind. The volume of fire died down a lot as people really got dialed in. All 10 students earned their certificate on Day 2. Two people had a lot of difficulty. Their rifles weren’t truly up to the task, and one of them had a recurring issue with his scope coming loose. First, the ring screws loosened and then the base screws loosened. The instructors were very sharp, spotting the problems before too much ammo was wasted. The good news: both people had back-up rifles that proved to be much more capable and were used on Day 3 to good effect.

Day 3

Day 3 began with more lecture, mainly about troubleshooting the issues encountered at the range. These issues ranged from equipment failures, to confusing spin drift and wind drift, to causes of vertical stringing after a confirmed hold was established. Many of us had experienced wind shift, and that took up a fair amount of the discussion time. We also delved into more on spin drift, Coriolis, Magnus and how they affect the shot. We also discussed when to be concerned with them and how they can mitigate each other to some extent. I confirmed how much you really need to both study and shoot to really get high first-shot hit probability. Up to now, we were shooting to see the effects and adjusting from there. It really gave me pause to think about having to take a shot without a sighter at 1,000 yards.

After another catered lunch and off to the range. None of us were particularly happy with our ability to hit the 1,000-yard gong on demand. I tuned up on the larger 750 target and then switched to the smaller 750. After getting three hits in a row, I felt confident for a first-shot hit at 1,000 yards. No such luck. The wind picked up, and I missed by 18 inches. A reread of the wind and a close to dead-center hit with my follow-up shot. I and many of the others spent the day working to overcome the wind. A few of us intentionally chose to wait for the wind to pick up to take shots. It meant less hits, but it meant more feedback and practice reading. I ended the day with eight more hits on the 1,000-yard gong, with one string of two of three hits. The miss was only off by about an inch, for a three-shot group of just under 8 inches. Solid spotting by my partner and an instructor, as well as helpful suggestions from the instructor, greatly helped that string happen.

We also had a single elimination “Top Shot” contest. Two people missed the 500-yard target, the other eight continued. Three people missed on the IPSC at 750 yards. I was one of them. I rushed the shot. Lesson learned. Two people ended up in a shoot off at the 1,000-yard target. Both either hit or missed for four consecutive rounds before one of the shooters hit, and his competitor missed. It was great fun.

Day 4

Day 4 is normally set aside as a makeup day for those who struggled. We didn’t have any such problems. Instead of a follow-on theoretical class, Don offered to show us his machining process for building AWT rifles. We were all happy to watch the process. He took significantly longer to do each step as he walked us through the what, the why and the how. Several people had very direct and pointed questions, as they had some practical experience with machining. Everyone walked away with a much greater appreciation for the difference in quality and thus cost in such a rifle.

Again a catered lunch was our break before heading to the range. At the range, it was more of a free day, so people worked on their personal marksmanship shortcomings. We also had several alumni of the class show up to shoot with us and help with tackling issues. We took turns behind each other’s guns to see the differences in recoil, optics and feel. I managed to hit the gong with a few other rifles, one in 6.5 Creedmoor and one in 6.5 PRC. I worked on using my reticle to make quick follow-up shots on further or nearer targets, compared to where my scope was dialed. I was very happy with my degree of success.

My shooting partner decided to take a shot at besting my +/- 8-inch group. After a few sighting shots, he settled down for a serious go. Long story short, he and his Fraley 6.5 PRC slammed three shots into just over 2.5 inches with all three shots on the gong. Yes, he has pictures and at least 12 witnesses.

The view from the shooting line on Day 1.

Concluding Thoughts

The tuition of the 4-day course is $1200. Considering I have personally spent almost that in ammunition shooting the 6.5×284 and learned a whole lot less doing so, the class is well worth the expense. The instruction and coaching along the way upped my long-distance game in ways I probably don’t even realize yet. In addition to doing it, I know a lot more about the “why.” I also know what to look for in a precision rifle, scopes, spotting scopes, chronographs and many other components that make up long-range precision. On top of that, Don and his crew were wonderful, super knowledgeable and very able to share that knowledge effectively. For anyone wanting to up their long-distance game, give Don and Advance Weapons Technology a call.