SgtJim
12-21-2010, 06:36 PM
XM2010 Kits Arrive In Time For The Holidays
December 20, 2010:
The U.S. Army has delivered, to troops in Afghanistan, 250 upgrade kits for their M24 bolt-action sniper rifles.
These kits converts the M24s to the more powerful XM2010 sniper rifle.
9404
This main changed is allowing 7.62mm M24 rifles to fire the .300 Winchester magnum (7.62x67).
This is a more powerful round than the NATO 7.62x51 round currently used in the M24.
The conversion kit includes a new receiver and barrel, a new scope, a new flash suppressor and a folding buttstock.
The XM2010 weighs 8.5 kg (18.7 pounds) and is 1.33 meters (52.2 inches) with the flash suppressor.
The conversion of all 3,600 M24s will take five years and will cost about $7,800 per rifle.
9405
Last year, the army ordered 38.4 million rounds of .300 Winchester magnum ammunition for its newly modified M24 sniper rifles,
as well as similar SOCOMs Mk13 models. The new ammo costs about $1.30 per round.
The .300 Winchester magnum ammo is ordered in minimum lots of 56,160 rounds (117 boxes of 480 rounds each).
The entire 38.4 million rounds will last a while.
All this is in response to requests from snipers for a longer range weapon, but not one as bulky and heavy as the 13.6 kg
(30 pound) .50 caliber/12.7mm rifle (which is good to about 2,000 meters). It was felt that the .300 Winchester Magnum
gave the snipers all the additional range they needed, without requiring a much heavier rifle. SOCOM has been using this approach since the early 1990s.
9407
9406
The calls were loudest from snipers operating in Afghanistan,
where U.S. Army and Marine Corps shooters wanted a sniper rifle that can consistently get kills out to 1,800 meters.
The current 7.62mm round was good only to about 800 meters. The .300 Winchester magnum is
a more powerful, but not much larger, round than the current 7.62mm one.
An improved version of the magnum round is expected to extend that range another 200 meters or so.
There was another option, and that was to replace the barrel and receiver of the M24 sniper rifles
to handle the .338 (8.6mm) Lapua Magnum round. Thus you still have a 7-9 kg sniper rifle, but with
a round that can hit effectively out to 1,600 meters or more. British snipers in Iraq, and especially Afghanistan,
have found the Lapua Magnum round does the job at twice the range of the standard 7.62x51mm round.
The 8.6mm round entered use in the early 1990s, and became increasingly popular with police and military snipers.
Dutch snipers have used this round in Afghanistan with much success, and have a decade of experience with
these larger caliber rifles. British snipers in Afghanistan are also using the new round, having converted many of their 7.62mm sniper rifles.
Recognizing the popularity of the 8.6mm round, Barrett, the pioneer in 12.7mm sniper rifles, came out with a 15.5
pound version of its rifle, chambered for the 8.6mm. But the U.S. preferred the lighter .300 Winchester magnum solution.
9408
picture and infos from strategypage.com
December 20, 2010:
The U.S. Army has delivered, to troops in Afghanistan, 250 upgrade kits for their M24 bolt-action sniper rifles.
These kits converts the M24s to the more powerful XM2010 sniper rifle.
9404
This main changed is allowing 7.62mm M24 rifles to fire the .300 Winchester magnum (7.62x67).
This is a more powerful round than the NATO 7.62x51 round currently used in the M24.
The conversion kit includes a new receiver and barrel, a new scope, a new flash suppressor and a folding buttstock.
The XM2010 weighs 8.5 kg (18.7 pounds) and is 1.33 meters (52.2 inches) with the flash suppressor.
The conversion of all 3,600 M24s will take five years and will cost about $7,800 per rifle.
9405
Last year, the army ordered 38.4 million rounds of .300 Winchester magnum ammunition for its newly modified M24 sniper rifles,
as well as similar SOCOMs Mk13 models. The new ammo costs about $1.30 per round.
The .300 Winchester magnum ammo is ordered in minimum lots of 56,160 rounds (117 boxes of 480 rounds each).
The entire 38.4 million rounds will last a while.
All this is in response to requests from snipers for a longer range weapon, but not one as bulky and heavy as the 13.6 kg
(30 pound) .50 caliber/12.7mm rifle (which is good to about 2,000 meters). It was felt that the .300 Winchester Magnum
gave the snipers all the additional range they needed, without requiring a much heavier rifle. SOCOM has been using this approach since the early 1990s.
9407
9406
The calls were loudest from snipers operating in Afghanistan,
where U.S. Army and Marine Corps shooters wanted a sniper rifle that can consistently get kills out to 1,800 meters.
The current 7.62mm round was good only to about 800 meters. The .300 Winchester magnum is
a more powerful, but not much larger, round than the current 7.62mm one.
An improved version of the magnum round is expected to extend that range another 200 meters or so.
There was another option, and that was to replace the barrel and receiver of the M24 sniper rifles
to handle the .338 (8.6mm) Lapua Magnum round. Thus you still have a 7-9 kg sniper rifle, but with
a round that can hit effectively out to 1,600 meters or more. British snipers in Iraq, and especially Afghanistan,
have found the Lapua Magnum round does the job at twice the range of the standard 7.62x51mm round.
The 8.6mm round entered use in the early 1990s, and became increasingly popular with police and military snipers.
Dutch snipers have used this round in Afghanistan with much success, and have a decade of experience with
these larger caliber rifles. British snipers in Afghanistan are also using the new round, having converted many of their 7.62mm sniper rifles.
Recognizing the popularity of the 8.6mm round, Barrett, the pioneer in 12.7mm sniper rifles, came out with a 15.5
pound version of its rifle, chambered for the 8.6mm. But the U.S. preferred the lighter .300 Winchester magnum solution.
9408
picture and infos from strategypage.com