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The Barrett M82 (standardized by the U.S. military as the M107) is a
recoil-operated Recoil operation is an operating mechanism used to implement locked breech, autoloading firearms. Recoil operated firearms use the energy of recoil to cycle the action, as opposed to gas operation or blowback operation using the pressure of the ...
, semi-automatic
anti-materiel rifle An anti-materiel rifle (AMR) is a rifle designed for use against military equipment, structures, and other hardware ( materiel). Anti-materiel rifles are chambered in significantly larger calibers than conventional rifles and are employed to elim ...
developed by the American company
Barrett Firearms Manufacturing Barrett Firearms Manufacturing is an American manufacturer of firearms and ammunition located in Christiana, Tennessee. It was founded in 1982 by Ronnie G. Barrett for the purpose of building semi-automatic rifles chambered for the .50 BMG (12 ...
. Also called the Light Fifty (due to its chambering of the .50 BMG 12.7×99mm NATO cartridge), the weapon is classified in three variants: the original M82A1 (and M82A3) models, the
bullpup A bullpup firearm is one with its firing grip located in front of the breech of the weapon, instead of behind it. This creates a weapon with a shorter overall length for a given barrel length, and one that is often lighter, more compact, conc ...
M82A2 model, and the Barrett M107A1, with an attached muzzle brake (designed to accept a suppressor, and made out of titanium instead of steel). The M82A2 is no longer manufactured, though the XM500 can be seen as its successor. Despite being designated as an anti-materiel rifle, the M82 can also be deployed as an anti-personnel system.


Overview

Barrett Firearms Manufacturing Barrett Firearms Manufacturing is an American manufacturer of firearms and ammunition located in Christiana, Tennessee. It was founded in 1982 by Ronnie G. Barrett for the purpose of building semi-automatic rifles chambered for the .50 BMG (12 ...
was founded by
Ronnie Barrett Ronnie G. Barrett (born 1954) is the CEO and founder of Barrett Firearms Manufacturing of Christiana, Tennessee, board member of the National Rifle Association, and the designer of the Barrett M82. Life and career Barrett was born in Murfreesb ...
for the sole purpose of building semi-automatic rifles chambered for the powerful 12.7×99mm NATO (.50 BMG) ammunition, originally developed for and used in M2 Browning machine guns. The weapon was first sold to the
Swedish Army The Swedish Army ( sv, svenska armén) is the land force of the Swedish Armed Forces. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1521, when the men of Dalarna chose 16 young able men as body guards for the insurgent nobleman Gustav Vas ...
in 1989. In 1990, the United States armed forces purchased the M82A1 during operations
Desert Shield The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases ...
and
Desert Storm The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
in Kuwait and Iraq. About 125 rifles were initially bought by the United States Marine Corps, and orders from the
Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
and
Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...
soon followed. The M82A1 is known by the U.S. military as the SASR—"Special Applications Scoped Rifle", and it was and still is used as an
anti-materiel rifle An anti-materiel rifle (AMR) is a rifle designed for use against military equipment, structures, and other hardware ( materiel). Anti-materiel rifles are chambered in significantly larger calibers than conventional rifles and are employed to elim ...
and
explosive ordnance disposal Bomb disposal is an explosives engineering profession using the process by which hazardous explosive devices are rendered safe. ''Bomb disposal'' is an all-encompassing term to describe the separate, but interrelated functions in the milita ...
tool. In 2006, Barrett completed development of the XM500, which has a bullpup configuration similar to the M82A2. Barrett M82 rifles were bought by various military and police forces from at least 30 countries, such as Belgium, Chile, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Indonesia, Italy, Jamaica, Mexico, the Netherlands, and others. The Barrett M82A1 rifle was used in 2002 as a platform for the experimental OSW (Objective Sniper Weapon) prototype. This weapon was fitted with a shorter barrel, and fired 25 mm high-explosive shells developed for the 25×59 mm
OCSW The OCSW (''Objective Crew Served Weapon'') was a U.S. Military arms program started in the 1980s that led to a hybrid smaller prototype automatic autocannon developed by General Dynamics Armament Systems. It led to the XM312 and XM307 designs. As ...
(Objective Crew Served Weapon) automatic grenade launcher. The experimental OSW showed an increased effectiveness against various targets, but the recoil was beyond human limitations. This weapon, also known as the Barrett "Payload Rifle", has now been designated the XM109.


Use by the Provisional IRA

The Provisional IRA smuggled a number of M82s into Ireland from the United States in the 1980s, apparently made and sold by a gunsmith and former Barrett Firearms employee in Texas. One of the M82s was shipped from Chicago to Dublin in pieces, where it was re-assembled. The IRA equipped two sniper teams with the light-fifties, later reinforced with a couple of M90s bought in the United States from an arms dealer in 1995. The IRA snipers killed five soldiers and a
constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...
with .50 rifles from 1992 to 1997. The snipers usually fired on their targets from a distance of less than 300 metres, despite the 1,800 metres effective range of the weapons.


Use by Mexican drug cartels

In 2021, Barrett and nine other U.S. gun manufacturers were named in a lawsuit brought by the Mexican government in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, seeking $10 billion in damages. The Mexican government claimed that the Barrett M82 is one of the weapons of choice for drug cartels. According to Romain Le Cour Grandmaison, an expert interviewed by Reuters, the M82 has disrupted the balance of power between criminals and poorly-equipped police forces.


Variants

*M82: 12.7×99mm Barrett M82 semi-automatic rifle. *M82A1: 12.7×99mm Barrett M82A1 semi-automatic rifle. Improved variant including redesigned muzzle brake. *M82A1A: 12.7×99mm Barrett M82A1 semi-automatic rifle variant. Optimized for use with the
Raufoss Mk 211 The Raufoss Mk 211 is a .50 BMG (12.7×99mm NATO) multi-purpose anti-materiel high-explosive incendiary/armor-piercing ammunition projectile produced by Nammo under the model name ''NM140 MP''. It is commonly referred to as ''multipurpose'' or ''R ...
.50 caliber round. *M82A1M: 12.7×99mm Barrett M82A1 semi-automatic rifle variant. Improved variant including lengthened accessory rail. Includes rear grip and monopod socket. *M82A2: 12.7×99mm Barrett M82A2 semi-automatic bullpup rifle. Bullpup configured variant made to compensate for recoil by being shoulder-mounted. *M82A3: 12.7×99mm Barrett M82A3 semi-automatic rifle. New production rifles built to M82A1M specifications, featuring lengthened accessory rail which is usually, but not always, raised higher up than the M82A1M/M107. Unlike the M82A1M/M107, it does not include a rear grip and monopod socket. *XM107/M107: Initially used to designate 12.7×99mm
Barrett M95 The Barrett M95 is a bolt-action rifle chambered in .50 BMG (12.7×99mm), and manufactured by Barrett Firearms Company. It has been adopted by a number of militaries around the world. Overview The M95 is an improved version of the earlier Barre ...
bolt-action rifle. Designation changed to apply to a product improved M82A1M variant. Includes lengthened accessory rail, rear grip, and monopod socket.


M82 to M107

The XM107 was originally intended to be a
bolt-action Bolt-action is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the bolt via a bolt handle, which is most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the weapon (as most users are right-handed). Most bolt-action ...
sniper rifle, and the rifle
Barrett M95 The Barrett M95 is a bolt-action rifle chambered in .50 BMG (12.7×99mm), and manufactured by Barrett Firearms Company. It has been adopted by a number of militaries around the world. Overview The M95 is an improved version of the earlier Barre ...
was originally selected by the U.S. Army in a competition between such weapons. However, under the trials, the decision was made that the U.S. Army did not, in fact, require such a weapon. Then the Army decided on the Barrett M82, a semi-automatic rifle. In summer 2002, the M82 finally emerged from its Army trial phase and was approved for "full materiel release", meaning it was officially adopted as the Long Range Sniper Rifle, Caliber .50, M107. The M107 uses a
Leupold Leupold & Stevens, Inc. is an American manufacturer of telescopic sights, red dot sights, binoculars, rangefinders, spotting scopes, and eyewear located in Beaverton, Oregon, United States. The company, started in 1907, is on its fifth generatio ...
4.5–14×50 Mark 4 scope. The Barrett M107 is a .50 caliber, shoulder-fired, semi-automatic sniper rifle. Like its predecessors, the rifle is said to have manageable recoil for a weapon of its size owing to the barrel assembly that itself absorbs force, moving inward toward the receiver against large springs with every shot. Additionally, the weapon's weight and large muzzle brake also assist in recoil reduction. Various changes were made to the original M82A1 to create the M107, with new features such as a lengthened accessory rail, rear grip, and monopod socket. Barrett has recently been asked to develop a lightweight version of the M107 under the Anti-Materiel Sniper Rifle Congressional Program and has already come up with a scheme to build important component parts such as the receiver frame and muzzle brake out of lighter-weight materials. The Barrett M107, like previous members of the M82 line, is also referred to as the Barrett "Light Fifty". The designation has in many instances supplanted earlier ones, with the M107 being voted one of 2005's top 10 military inventions by the U.S. Army. The U.S. Army and Marine Corps plan to field another Barrett rifle, the Mk22 MRAD, in 2021 to replace the M107. The Mk22 is a bolt-action multi-caliber rifle that is powerful enough to replace the M107 when chambered in
.338 Norma Magnum The .338 Norma Magnum is a cartridge first introduced in 2008 and came into production in 2009, designed by Norma of Sweden. Design history The .338 Norma Magnum was originally developed as a long-range sport shooting wildcat cartridge by the A ...
.


Technical description

The M82 is a short-recoil semi-automatic firearm. When the gun is fired, the barrel initially recoils for a short distance (about ), while being securely locked by the rotating bolt. After the short travel, the lower part of the accelerator arm, held by the receiver upper part, is already hinged in the bolt carrier and the middle portion strikes it back to the barrel by a rod placed in the bolt carrier, transferring part of the recoil energy of the barrel to the bolt to achieve reliable cycling and unlock it from the barrel. The bolt is unlocked by turning in the curved cam track in the bolt carrier. Then the barrel is stopped by the combined effect of the accelerator, buffer spring, and the muzzle brake and the bolt continues back, to extract and eject a spent case. On its return stroke, the bolt strips the fresh cartridge from the box magazine and feeds it into the chamber and finally locks itself to the barrel. The striker is also cocked on the return stroke of the bolt. The gun is fed from a large, detachable box magazine holding up to ten rounds, although a rare twelve-round magazine was developed for use during Operation Desert Storm in 1991. The receiver is made from two parts (upper and lower), stamped from sheet steel and connected by cross-pins. The heavy barrel is fluted to improve heat dissipation and save weight, and fitted with a large and effective reactive muzzle brake. The muzzle brakes on the earlier models had a round cross-section; later M82 rifles are equipped with two-chamber brakes of rectangular cross-section. M82A1 rifles are fitted with scope mount and folding backup iron sights, should the glass scope break. The U.S. military M82 rifles are often equipped with Leupold Mark 4 telescopic sights. The M82A1M (USMC M82A3) rifles have long Picatinny accessory rails mounted and US Optics telescopic sights. Every M82 rifle is equipped with a folding carrying handle and a folding bipod (both are detachable on the M82A3). The M82A3 is also fitted with a detachable rear monopod under the butt. The buttpad is fitted with a soft
recoil pad A recoil pad is a piece of rubber, foam, leather, or other soft material usually attached to the buttstock of a rifle or shotgun. Recoil pads may also be worn around the shoulder with straps, placing the soft material between the buttstock and the ...
to further decrease the felt recoil. M82A1 and M82A3 rifles could be mounted on the M3 or M122 infantry tripods (originally intended for machine guns) or on vehicles using the special Barrett soft-mount. The M82A1 can be fitted with a carry sling, but according to those who carried it in the field, the M82 is too uncomfortable to be carried on a sling due to its excessive length and weight. It is usually carried in a special carry soft or hard case. The M82A2 differed from M82A1 mostly in its configuration; the pistol grip along with trigger was placed ahead of the magazine, and the buttpad placed below the receiver, just after the magazine. An additional forward grip was added below the receiver, and the scope mount was moved forward. The maximum effective range of the M107 is . The maximum range of this weapon (specifically the M107 variant) is , as quoted in the owner's manual. Fifty-caliber (and larger) rounds have the potential to travel great distances if fired in an
artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, ...
-like fashion (with a high angle, which creates an indirect-fire situation), necessitating the observance of extensive safety margins when firing on a range.


Users

* :
Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (CA), who ...
. * : Used by
Austrian Army The Austrian Armed Forces (german: Bundesheer, lit=Federal Army) are the combined military forces of the Republic of Austria. The military consists of 22,050 active-duty personnel and 125,600 reservists. The military budget is 0.74% of nat ...
SF Jagdkommando. * * * * * * : Used by
JTF2 Joint Task Force 2 (JTF 2; french: links=no, Deuxième Force opérationnelle interarmées, FOI 2) is an elite special operations force of the Canadian Armed Forces, serving under the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command. JTF 2 is known to wo ...
operatives in small numbers. * * * * * : Used by Thunderbolt Forces, Unit 999, Egyptian navy special forces brigades and Black Cobra Unit * * * : Used by GIGN (before PGM Hécate II) * : Used by the
army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
including special forces. * : The M107 is used and designated ''G82'' in the
German Army The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwa ...
and the M107A1 is used under the designation ''G82A1''. * * : The M107 is used by Mumbai Police Force One Commandos. Indian special forces use the M107A1. * : The M82A1 Is Used By Komando Pasukan Khusus. * : Used by the IDF Combat Engineering Corps * * * * * : Lithuanian Armed Forces. * : Malaysian Special Operations Force. * * * : M107A1 to be introduced in 2018 * * * * :
Armed Forces of the Philippines The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) ( fil, Sandatahang Lakas ng Pilipinas) are the military forces of the Philippines. It consists of three main service branches; the Army, the Air Force, and the Navy (including the Marine Corps). The ...
, Philippine National Police * :
Portuguese Army The Portuguese Army ( pt, Exército Português) is the land component of the Armed Forces of Portugal and is also its largest branch. It is charged with the defence of Portugal, in co-operation with other branches of the Armed Forces. With it ...
also uses
Barrett M95 The Barrett M95 is a bolt-action rifle chambered in .50 BMG (12.7×99mm), and manufactured by Barrett Firearms Company. It has been adopted by a number of militaries around the world. Overview The M95 is an improved version of the earlier Barre ...
and Barrett M107A1 variants. * * : Used by Special Forces. * * : Used by the Special Forces. * : Used by Special Forces * : used by 5th Special Operations Regiment * : Used by
Special Police Unit The Special Police Units (abbreviation: SPU; ) are the police tactical units of the Chinese People's Armed Police (PAP) at the provincial and municipal levels. There is at least one of such unit in each Chinese province to offer their services ...
* * : Used as ''AG 90 C''. * * * * : In December 2017, the United States Department of State approved a license for the $41.5 million commercial sale of .50 caliber Barrett M107A1 sniper rifles and ammunition for use by the Ukrainian Ground Forces. In June 2022, Sweden announced the supply of an undisclosed number of AG 90s to Ukraine. * * * *


Non-state users

* Moro Islamic Liberation Front: Clones made from captured Barrett M82s. * Provisional IRA


Awards and recognition

On February 26, 2016, the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sov ...
of Tennessee named the Barrett Model M82 as its official state rifle.


See also

* * * * *
List of crew-served weapons of the U.S. Armed Forces This list contains weapons that are classified as crew-served, as the term is used in the United States military. While the general understanding is that crew-served weapons require more than one person to operate them, there are important except ...
*
List of individual weapons of the U.S. Armed Forces This is a list of weapons served individually by the United States armed forces. While the general understanding is that crew-served weapons require more than one person to operate them, there are important exceptions in the case of both squad a ...
* * , a Russian counterpart *
QBU-10 The QBU-10 or Type 10 sniper rifle is a semi-automatic anti-materiel rifle designed and manufactured by Norinco. First introduced in 2010, it has since seen use by the People's Liberation Army Ground Force, People's Liberation Army Navy, and M ...
*


References


External links


Barrett's page on the M82A1

M82A1 Operators Manual

PEO Soldier M107 fact sheet



M107A1 Sales Sheet


* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20141224185827/http://www.snipercentral.com/m82.htm The Barrett M82 from Mel's SniperCentral
Modern Firearms

M82 Info from Armedforces-int.com
{{USAF Weapons .416 Barrett firearms .50 BMG sniper rifles Products introduced in 1982 Barrett firearms Cold War firearms of the United States Rifles of the Cold War Sniper rifles of the United States United States Marine Corps equipment Anti-materiel rifles Semi-automatic rifles of the United States Weapons and ammunition introduced in 1982