What caliber would a marine sniper use?

Answer 1

Sniper units in the U.S. Marine Corps use rifles chambered for 7,62 NATO (.308 Winchester) for standard ranges (inside 1000 yards) and, for special applications and ultra-long ranges(1000 yds+) they have several weapons, including the Barrett semi-auto rifle chambered for the .50BMG (Browning Machine Gun) cartridge.
By the way, one of the greatest snipers in ANY history, Marine Corps or otherwise, Gysgt Carlos Hathcock used a .50 Browning machine gun mounted with a 4-12X Leupold scope in Viet Nam to make 1000 yd+ kills on commies on the Ho Chi Minh Trail, clean across the Cambodia-Laos border! Just read his biography for the story of a REAL Sniper and Marine! ! ! Any comment about the use of a .50 against personnel being a "war crime" is pure B.S.! ! !

Answer 2

The use an array of calibers 308, 30-06, 300 win mag and the 50 BMG.
But last year the received a new version of the 338 mag to add to this collection.

No one caliber can handle all situations, that is why so many are available to them.

Our boys in Afghanistan have found out the Big 50 BMG has such a distinctive muzzle blast that when used to take out one rebel mortar team the other rebel mortar teems zeroed in on the location of the muzzle blast from the 50 BMG and rained on there parade.
The sniper teams needed a weapon that could deliver a lot of nock down at 1000 to 1500 yards with out making them an easy target,
The 300 mag was not up for that challenge due to wind drift and small projectile.
What the were given was the new prototype 338 mag sniper rife shooting a 250 grain FMG.
Last I read was it was doing well with plenty of nock down at the range requested and was not so apt at giving away their location as bad as the 50 BMG was.

Answer 3

The .50 BMG used in the Barrett is not officially sanctione as a sniper rifle yet no doubt they are often used in that roll. The most common is the 7.62 NATO round commonly know as the .308 Winchester. However there has been increasng demand for something with more range so the superior optics and rifles can be used to full advantage. The .338LUPA is finding favor with both the Army and the Marines. Dakota Arms in Spearfish South Dakota custom makes a number of these arms for the military.

Answer 4

"Bound" >"Any use of the .50 BMG on a human would constitute a war crime"

I assume you mean the Geneva Conventions of 1949. I would like to know which article that would be. Since the US has used the Browning .50 caliber machine gun in Korea, Vietnam and in the Gulf as an anti personnel weapon...

The US military manuals on these weapons (M107 - Barrett 82A1) state that they are, anti-material & anti-personnel(counter sniper) rifles capable of killing light armor vehicles out to 2000 meters>and state they excel in counter sniper fire beyond 1000 meters. I somehow doubt that the Army/Marines would state this in their manuals if it was against the Geneva Conventions.

Later: So, you're saying the Hague convention of 1907 "to employ arms, projectiles or material "calculated" to cause unnecessary suffering" - outlawed a round that hadn't even been conceived yet? The Browning .30 caliber machine gun wasn't adopted until 1917 and John Browning had not even began to work on the .50 BMG at that time. The M2 .50 BMG didn't see service until 1921...In other words there was no such round as the .50 BMG until many years after 1907 and it would be an INCREDIBLE stretch for anyone(even a lawyer) to say a .50 caliber bullet causes more "unnecessary suffering" than a .30 caliber one.

"Brutalize me" Well boo hoo. you accuse those who use the .50 BMG of committing "War Crimes", we set the record straight, and, we are picking on you, talk about the pot calling the kettle black. Obviously you are dead wrong on this subject. The .50 BMG has been used as an anti-personnel weapon since 1921. All you have to do is come up with one time that a soldier has been "convicted" of a "war crime" solely for his use of that round on an enemy soldier.

Again, I will state that I doubt the US military would include in manuals(M107 , Barrett 82A1) that the .50 BMG is an excellent counter sniper rifle and then document troops using the weapons in that way if it was a war crime.

Answer 5

Accuracy: The sniper's goal is to hit his human target with a precision summed up in the phrase, "One shot, one kill." Police snipers need the capability to hit the junction of the brain and brain stem at extended distances. Hitting and destroying this point at the back of the human head with a single bullet causes the person to instantly and completely collapse without reflex. Snipers call this spot "the apricot."
Range: Sniper rifles can be used with great accuracy against targets at much longer distances than ordinary hunting or sporting rifles. The longest confirmed sniper kill of the Gulf War was reported to have been made by a Barrett Model 82A1 sniper rifle at a range of 1,800 meters—nearly 2,000 yards, or almost 10 times a deer hunter's maximum effective range. Numerous engagements with large, 50 caliber guns during the war took place at 1,600 meters (about 1,750 yards). From the West Front of the U.S. Capitol, this range would allow accurate firing as far as the Smithsonian Metro station on the Mall.

Power: The most destructive rounds fired by sniper rifles are 50 caliber—the largest round of ammunition generally available to civilians. The extraordinary power and range of the 50 caliber "heavies" create a whole new order of threat that is a source of concern for domestic law enforcement authorities. These rounds can knock down aircraft—including helicopters—and punch through concrete block, armored vehicles, and other standard materials relied upon for executive protection.

Answer 6

Most of them use a .308 that is a modified Remington Model 700.
Some use a .300 Winchester Magnum, also on a Remington frame, and a few use the .50 caliber. One of my cousins sent me a video of Marine snipers in Afghanistan shooting muslim terrorists. The 50 cal sometimes blasted them up to about 40 feet in the air and body parts went everywhere. In one head shot the terrorist's turban unwound and instantly went from dirty white to red. Making muslims meet Jesus...what a surprize it must be for them!

Answer 7

The 7.62x51 NATO is the most common sniper caliber followed by the old .30-06 Springfield and the relatively new .338 Lapua.

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Answer 8

It depend on your definition of a Marine sniper

A Marine(0300) designated marksman would probably use a M16A2/A4 with an optical sight to enguage enemies.

Optionally a Marine DMR would use an M14 with adjustible telescope as a designated marksman rifle.

A specific Marine Sniper would use an M40A1/A3 or Barrett M82/M107 as a primary sniper/anti-material rifle

Answer 9

.308 is number one for US military snipers. The 50 cal BMG is a very popular weapon much like the Lamborghini is a popular car. There are a lot more 308s out there than 50 cals. A 308 is much more comfortable to shoot as well.

Answer 10

Sorry Terry, but your statement is more than a bit misleading.

The Browning A-Bolt in .300 Winchester Magnum (for you non gun people, that is much more powerful than a .308) that I use will shoot 1/4 inch groups at 100 yards. Now, given that a man's chest is about an 18 inch circle, I can engage man-sized targets with thearetical hit rate of 100% out to further than people can see, even with the top of the line Leupold scope that is on it.

Militaries don't want to spend any more than they have to on these rifles- they will make them accurate, but they can't afford to make them as accurate as a Browning (or Kimber) equipped with a BOSS system. It just doesn't happen. The Barrett will likely shoot AS well as the .300, but a .308 will likely not shoot quite as well.

Quality hunting firearms are better sniper rifles than rifles that the military issues AS sniper rifles.

Marine snipers will use either a .308 or a .50BMG.

And using a .50BMG on people is not a war crime. The US Armed forces has documented its soldiers making exceptional shots on enemy forces (PEOPLE) with .50BMG's. The US would not record its own soldiers committing war crimes.