.50 Caliber Weapons

[jepuskar]

I have heard on this board, as well as other discussion boards, that .50 caliber weapons are banned from warfare. For the last 18 days I have seen my far share of .50 caliber weapons..and thats just on CNN.

Some of you really need to get your act together!

 

[Mo2vation]

http://www.dailybulletin.com/Stories/0,1413,203~21482~1178311,00.html#

I heard about this, this afternoon from a friend and gun nut.

Hunting elephants with a handgun, I guess.

K

 

[Dryglove]

Why would .50 cal weapons be banned from warfare? It was a standard crew served weapon along with the m-60.Now that .50 cal sniper rifle is one mean sucker.......i need one

 

[norcaldiver]

Yes and no.

No you can't open up on people with a .50 cal machine gun.
(You can however shoot at equipment, meaning that helmet they're wearing or that LBE or canteen they have is fair game, wink wink.)
Along with the M249 saw and M60 machine gun they are primarily for cover fire and suppressive fire, not for targeting individual people.

There is a 50cal sniper rifle, but it's not in use AS MUCH these days it weighs like 30+ lbs. Most snipers have an M40 (mine) or M24 which are both 7.62mm rounds. THey weigh about half that, but still have almost a 1 k kill zone.

 

[Dryglove]

norcaldiver once bubbled...
Yes you can't open up on people with a .50 cal machine gun.
(You can however shoot at equipment, meaning that helmet they're wearing or that LBE or canteen they have is fair game, wink wink.)

That was the same thing they told us when i was in.As long as they were wearing some sort of equipment you had the green light if they were a threat.

They showed a special ops team the other day with a barrett .50 cal sniper rifle.I agree it would be one heavy sucker and wouldnt want to lug it around.I was a .60 gunner for a while and hated lugging that sucker around, but it has amazing fire power and would rather have it when crap hits the fan than a m-16 or a SAW.

 

[luvdiving]

I'd also heard that .50 cal (1/2 inch) machine guns were only to be used on vehicles and equipment, but...

Not only is the .50 cal machine gun a mainstay of the military crew served weapons, but now the Army (at least) has a .50 cal sniper rifle.

The .50 cal sniper rifle is used on personnel and (from an EOD standpoint) ordnance disruption.:boom:

 

[cdtgray]

It is a misconception that the .50 cal is illegal to use against troops, nor does a soldier need to justify the use of a .50 cal weapon by saying that they are shooting at an individual's equipment. Prohibitions on weapons tend to stick with what would cause excessive suffering, i.e. glass bullets (fragments would be nearly impossible to find in tissue). The reason weapons like the M2 are not usually used on troops is because they work far better against vehicles, bunkers, etc.

 

[bwerb]

Mo2vation once bubbled...
http://www.dailybulletin.com/Stories/0,1413,203~21482~1178311,00.html#

I heard about this, this afternoon from a friend and gun nut.

Hunting elephants with a handgun, I guess.

K

Did you see this line in the same article:

Among the other new guns being introduced by Smith & Wesson is the industry's lightest-ever .44 Magnum, which has a 4-inch barrel, scandium frame, titanium cylinder and weighs in at 1 pound, 10 ounces.

"We see this as an opportunity for backpackers," Cuny said. "A light firearm of this caliber, in fact provides protection against bears and other big things."

You betcha...whenever I'm out backpacking in the woods trying to get away from it all, my main concern is that I get the best tenting sites...this definitely ups the odds in my favor...I don't have to worry about how early I get-up anymore.

Just what I need...some yahoo who's never been camping before taking pot shots at the "bear" taking a leak in the woods at 3:00...or should I say "bare"...

 

[clive francis]

lal7176 once bubbled...
Why would .50 cal weapons be banned from warfare? It was a standard crew served weapon along with the m-60.Now that .50 cal sniper rifle is one mean sucker.......i need one

is that the barrat .50 with the 3ft barrel and diamond flash arrester on the end?

wicked rifle.

isn't the dessert eagle a .50 calibre?

why on earth would you need a .50 pistol?

 

[clive francis]

norcaldiver once bubbled...
There is a 50cal sniper rifle, but it's not in use AS MUCH these days it weighs like 30+ lbs. Most snipers have an M40 (mine) or M24 which are both 7.62mm rounds. THey weigh about half that, but still have almost a 1 k kill zone.

i heard that the british army used to bore the SLR (which i think was 7.62mm) out to take the .303" round, and that was one hell of a sniper rifle!