The C14 Timberwolf MRSWS (Medium Range Sniper Weapon System) is a

bolt-action Bolt action is a type of manual Action (firearms), firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the bolt (firearms), turn-bolt via a cocking handle, bolt handle, most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the firearm (a ...

sniper rifle A sniper rifle is a high-precision, long range shooting, long-range rifle. Requirements include high accuracy, reliability, mobility, concealment, and optics, for anti-personnel weapon, anti-personnel, anti-materiel rifle, anti-materiel and sur ...

built by the Canadian arms company PGW Defence Technologies Inc. In 2005 they won the contract to supply the Canadian Forces Land Command with the C14 Timberwolf MRSWS for $4.5 million.Canadian Forces Award Canadian Sniper Rifle Contract
Canadian Forces News release NR–05.040 - May 26, 2005 (Accessed Feb. 5, 2009) The

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...

version of the rifle, which is being used to replace the C3A1 sniper rifle, started as a civilian precision sport rifle. The military rifle, however, has several modifications to make it better suited for

use, and many accessories are available. The official military designation for the rifle is C14 Timberwolf Medium Range Sniper Weapon System (MRSWS).

History

The Timberwolf rifle was originally developed as a civilian long range hunting and sport shooting rifle for super magnum cartridges by the Canadian company Prairie Gun Works, now PGW Defence Technologies Inc. The civilian Timberwolf rifle is offered in several chamberings, up to the .408 Cheyenne Tactical cartridge and the .416 PGW cartridge, a wildcat cartridge based on the .408 Cheyenne Tactical. These rifle cartridges are dimensionally larger and are more powerful when compared to the .338 Lapua Magnum cartridge used in the C14 Timberwolf used by the Canadian military. During the 1990s the Canadian Armed Forces formulated a requirement for a sniper rifle that could fulfill an

anti-personnel An anti-personnel weapon is a weapon primarily used to maim or kill infantry and other personnel not behind armor, as opposed to attacking structures or vehicles, or hunting game. The development of defensive fortification and combat vehicles gav ...

role up to 1,200 m (1,312 yd). This long-range anti-personnel rifle would replace the aging C3A1 bolt-action rifle which fired the smaller

7.62×51mm NATO The 7.62×51mm NATO (official NATO nomenclature 7.62 NATO) is a rimless, straight walled, bottlenecked, centerfire rifle cartridge. It is a standard for small arms among NATO countries. First developed in the 1950s, the cartridge had first be ...

cartridge which had been in service since the 1950s. In 2001 during trials for new sniper rifles at CFB Gagetown, the C14 Timberwolf MRSWS was picked to become the new designated anti-personnel sniper rifle for the Canadian Forces. The C14 Timberwolf MRSWS went into production for the Canadian Forces Land Command in 2005. Since the introduction of the C14 Timberwolf MRSWS, the C3A1 rifle has been slowly removed from active service. The C14 Timberwolf MRSWS is now the main sniper rifle in the Canadian Armed Forces arsenal. It is highly rated by snipers, who like the rifle itself as well as the additional effective range and penetration the .338 Lapua Magnum offers over the C3A1's 7.62×51mm NATO cartridge. The C14 Timberwolf's accuracy potential is stated by its manufacturer as sub 0.75 MOA with proper ammunition. The Canadian Forces accuracy standard was evaluated by hit probability with a requirement of hitting a chest sized target at 1,200 m (1,312 yd) 90% of the time. PGW Defence Technologies Inc. averaged over 95% on this standard and every weapon delivered under the Canadian Armed Forces contract was evaluated for accuracy and witnessed by DND officials.

Design details

The C14 Timberwolf MRSWS rifle is chambered for the .338 Lapua Magnum rifle cartridge. The rifle achieves a maximum muzzle velocity of 838 m/s (2750 ft/s) with 19.44 g (300 gr) Sierra Matchking very-low-drag bullet loads. Such loads are much more powerful compared to the

cartridge used in the C3A1 rifle which typically fires 11.3 g (175 gr) bullets at 790 m/s (2580 ft/s).

Operating mechanism

The Timberwolf action is a manually operated stainless steel

bolt action Bolt action is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the turn-bolt via a bolt handle, most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the firearm (as most users are right-handed). The majority of b ...

with a right-hand side bolt and ejection port. The bolt is a rotary bolt with dual front locking lugs plus one locking lug at the rear. It requires a 90-degree bolt rotation. the bolt is partly helically fluted which reduces weight and stops bolt debris jams. A double plunger ejector and hook type extractor are used to remove fired cartridge cases. This helps create a very smooth action which is very reliable. The extra locking lug at the rear assists in preventing the bolt from becoming jammed when chambering another round. Though not used by the Canadian military, the manufacturer offers a

titanium Titanium is a chemical element; it has symbol Ti and atomic number 22. Found in nature only as an oxide, it can be reduced to produce a lustrous transition metal with a silver color, low density, and high strength, resistant to corrosion in ...

receiver as an alternative for the stainless steel used in the C14 receiver. The use of titanium reduces the weight of the Timberwolf bolt-action. The single stage trigger is adjustable for weight, creep, and over-travel.

Barrel

The

barrel A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container with a bulging center, longer than it is wide. They are traditionally made of wooden stave (wood), staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. The word vat is often used for large containers ...

for the MRSWS is a modified, heavy free floating Krieger made barrel. It comes in 660 mm (26 in) standard but a 737 mm (29 in) custom barrel is fitted to the civilian precision hunting rifle variant, however this can be used on the military version as well. The 338 Lapua Magnum barrels are supplied with a 254 mm (1 in 10 inch) twist rate optimized to stabilize long, heavy very-low-drag bullets like the Sierra HPBT MatchKing and Lapua Scenar .338-calibre 19.44 gram (300 grain) bullets. The barrels are cryogenic stress relieved and partly helically fluted which reduces weight whilst maintaining most of the structural strength and contains a detachable proprietary stainless steel

muzzle brake A muzzle brake or recoil compensator is a device connected to, or a feature integral (ported barrel) to the construction of, the muzzle or barrel of a firearm or cannon that is intended to redirect a portion of propellant gases to counter re ...

that reduces the recoil.

Safety

The safety is a three-position type safety featuring a middle "field strip" position.

Feeding

It has a five-round detachable box magazine which is positioned just ahead of the

trigger guard A trigger guard is a protective loop surrounding the trigger (firearms), trigger of a firearm designed to prevent unwanted contact with the trigger, which may cause an accidental discharge. Other devices that use a trigger-like actuator mechanism, ...

Sights

The rifle has no default

iron sights Iron sights are a system of physical alignment markers used as a sighting device to assist the accurate aiming of ranged weapons such as firearms, airguns, crossbows, and bows, or less commonly as a primitive finder sight for optical telescop ...

but it is instead fitted with a length of integral

picatinny rail The 1913 rail (MIL-STD-1913 rail) is an American rail integration system designed by Richard Swan that provides a mounting platform for firearm accessories. It forms part of the NATO standard STANAG 2324 rail. It was originally used for mount ...

with a 25 MOA forward slope on which an optical sight can be mounted. It also contains two small lengths of MIL-STD-1913 or Picatinny rail at the forefront of the stock. The Canadian Forces originally used a Leupold Mark 4 16x40mm LR/T M1 Riflescope and later Schmidt & Bender PMII telescopic sights as standard, but other day

telescopic sight A telescopic sight, commonly called a scope informally, is an optical sighting device based on a refracting telescope. It is equipped with some form of a referencing pattern – known as a ''reticle'' – mounted in a focally appropriate p ...

s and night sights can be fitted. Simrad night sights are mounted by custom scope ring sets and UNS or MUNS night sights are mounted via a PGWDTI proprietary mount. Tactical lights and lasers can be fitted to the two front lengths of MIL-STD-1913 rail.

Stock

The stock is a McMillan A5 composite stock which has an adjustable saddle cheekpiece and spacer plates to regulate the length of pull to tailor the stock for the individual shooter. It is an upgraded version from the M40A3 McMillan A3 type stock. The stock is made from high strength fibre glass with a PGWDTI-Titanium Cantilever Monoblock bedding block which provides both added comfort and strength.

Accessories

The gun can accept the customary accessories for sniper weapons systems like;

s and other optical sights, MIL-STD-1913 rails (Picatinny rails) to mount optical sights and other accessories,

bipod A bipod is a V-shaped portable attachment that helps support and steady a device, usually a weapon such as a long gun or a mortar. The term comes from the Latin prefix and Greek root , meaning "two" and "foot" respectively. Bipods are design ...

s, muzzle brakes/flash-hiders and silencers (sound suppressors) and (carrying) slings. Further it can be delivered with cleaning kits and soft and heavy-duty transit cases and various maintenance tools.

Users

* : Used by Canadian Forces. * : Used by the SAS.Neville, page 18. * : Used by the Royal Saudi Land Force. * : Used by the Ukrainian Ground Forces and the

Ukrainian Marine Corps The Ukrainian Marine Corps (, ), also known simply as the Ukrainian Marines (), is the Marines, maritime land force service branch of the Armed Forces of Ukraine since 2023, responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations. From ...

- delivered by Canadian government in early 2022 during

Russian Invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

Bibliography

References

External links

PGW Defence Technology Inc. company website
{{Canadian Forces Land Force Command .338 Lapua Magnum rifles Sniper rifles Bolt-action rifles of Canada Military equipment introduced in the 2000s Sniper rifles of Canada