Posted on 10/08/2010 10:07:43 PM PDT by ErnstStavroBlofeld
The U.S. Army has ordered 3,600 upgrade kits for its M24 bolt-action sniper rifles, which will convert them to the M24E1. This will turn the existing 7.62mm M24 rifles into ones capable of firing the .300 Winchester magnum (7.62x67) round. 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 conversion will take five years and will cost about $7,800 per rifle. Last year, the army ordered 38.4 million rounds of .300 Winchester magnum ammunition for its newly modified M-24 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). Thus the army is modifying existing M24 rifles to fire the more powerful .300 Winchester Magnum round. It was felt that this 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.
(Excerpt) Read more at strategypage.com ...
How is replacing the receiver, barrel, stock, and scope a “conversion”?
You pretty much have a brand new rifle at that point.
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
How much is a brand new rifle? It isn’t $8,000>
I guess you get to keep the old action
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I think you right. I remembering seeing the same rifle when doing the background.
That's what I thought at first, but considering all the bells and whistles, and the price of high quality scopes, that may not be that bad.
I don’t get it?
Why not buy a whole new rifle matched to the bedding and stock and be done with it?
Seems like it would be less work.
And why does it cost $7,800 per box of parts and pieces?
Pretty sure a match rifle would cost only $2 or $3 grand, less scope, calculator, etc.
Plus the annual leather bound Christmas edition.
It ain't how much firepower you've got, it's how much lead you can put on the target. A buck thirty for every jihadi sounds like a pretty good bargain to me.
I gots to me me one of these!
You could sit on my porch in Orlando and plunk squirrels in Georgia
“How much is a brand new rifle? It isn’t $8,000>”
Heck, a Barrett .50cal isn’t $7,800.00.
The Model 99 Bolt Action is only $4410.00
Retail price list reflects U.S. commercial sales.
http://barrett.net/pdfs/Price-List.pdf
Safety range needed - 5 miles. LOL
This is a great move! The 300 Win Mag is an awesome round!
Given the amount they are ordering, there could be a shortage of whatever particular brand they are going to use.
Looks sweet. Im getting a tingle up my leg thinking what this baby will do.
As far as the BATF is concerned, as soon as you make or buy a new receiver, you have a new rifle.
>I don’t get it?
Why not buy a whole new rifle<
......................
what happens to the old rifles?
melt them down?
sell to civilians?
nope,
0bama does not want the contrversy
I doubt they’re going to be able to keep a .30 cal pill supersonic out to 1,800 meters. 1,400... maybe. 1,500... with new bullet development, perhaps.
Plus the internally illuminated globe and the black velvet portriat of the Kennedy brothers and MLK !
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