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An anti-material rifle (AMR) is a rifle designed to penetrate against light armored Military equipment instead of other combatants(anti-personal).

Description:

A sniper using a Barrett M82 anti-material rifle.

Anti-Material Rifles are for use against military equipment instead of against soldier or antipersonal. What makes a rifle an anti-material rifle is the type/size of ammunition that is fired. As of the Saint Petersburg Declaration of 1868, the use of explosive rounds were deemed to inhuman to use on people, this means that explosive round cannot be used on infantry but can be on any material. The size of the bullet also plays a factor in the definition. A standard rifle fires a .30 caliber 5.56mm or a 7.62mm round as for anti-material rifles fire a .50 caliber BMG round which is built to tear apart vehicles. Due to the large size, weight and kick of this gun most rifles such as the Barrett M99 have to be fired from a prone positon or from a bipod so that the person firing the weapon does not end up with a possible injury. Two to three man sniper teams are required when using this rifle as for the size as well as the possible range this weapon has. For example, the range of a standard sniper rifle firing a 7.62x51mm NATO round travels a distance of about 800 meters as for the Barrett’s effective range is greater than 1500 having scored a target at 2500 meters. Another factor that makes a rifle and anti-material rifle is the speed at which a bullet travels. The reason for this this is that speed play the biggest factor in a bullet when penetrating the target. A standard sniper rifle fires a bullet at around 790 meters per second or 2590 feet per second as a Barrett firing .50 BMG has a velocity of 853 meters per second or 2799 feet per second at its effective range.

History:

Anti-Material Rifles have been being used dating back to World War I. They have also found to been used in wars such as World War II, Cold War, Operation Desert Storm and any other current conflicts.

World War I:

British officers with a captured German anti-tank gun in Bapaume, France, during World War I. This photograph of British officers with a German anti-tank gun is evidence of how quickly military technology had to evolve during World War I.

The history of anti-material rifles dates all the way back to use in World War 1. Anti-Tank rifles played a big part of world war 1, once the British developed the Mark 1 tank it struck fear into the Germans as it could roll over 9ft ditches with ease and just destroy the battlefield. As a counter the German first had the idea of inventing the “Direct Fire Mortars” which were just mortar faced at low angles pointing towards the tanks. Finally the Germans came up with the T-Gewhr Anti-Tank rifle which can be credited with being the first anti material rifle. The rifle was designed to counter the thick armor of the British tanks, the rifle weighed 41 pounds when loaded and fired a 13.2-mm round and had and effective range of about 500 meters. This weapon had a two man team one designed to load and the other to fire the weapon although they often switched off. The kick of this weapon was so powerful it was known to break collar bones and dislocate shoulders. The weapon fired an armor piercing round known as a “K bullet” which were about three times the size of a regular bullet.

World War II:

During World War II the use of anti-material guns were very helpful. The British Boys .55 caliber antitank rifle was a big step up from the usual 20mm ammunition used by infantry. Another rifle used was an anti-material machine gun designed by the Finnish, it was designed to fire a 13.2mm cartridge and a 20mm cartridge there was debate over which did a better job at piercing armor. Some believed that the smaller cartridge travelled faster and could penetrate deeper into the armor and some believed that the bigger the bullet the more impact and force it would have on the armor. The weapon weighed an incredible 109 pounds and had an 88 inch barrel it carried the nick name the elephant gun.

Cold War:

During the Korean War the Barrett M82 rifle was produced. It was a US Military service rifle and was chambered to fire a .50 Browning 12.7x99 mm bullet. This weapon was made available to Sweden forces during the end of the Cold War. The reason for this is that the Swedish Military forces were openly against the Soviet Union same as the United States Forces. Sweden offered a strategic location to plan for soviet attacks as they were directly next to the Soviet Union. Many Nordic forces were targeted by the US for the sale of these guns as the Cold War brought much tension.

Desert Storm:

The M82 rifle also saw action in the 1990's in places such as Operation Desert Shield and also Operation Desert Storm. The US Military purchased 250 of the M82A1 variant of anti-material rifle. As the US Marine Corps purchased around 125 of that rifle per the orders of the US Air Force. During this time these weapons were used with rounds such as armor piercing incendiary rounds (API) which were effective against things such as buildings, trucks, and parked aircraft. The purpose of this round was to penetrate non armored vehicles and to burst into flames on impact.

Modern Day:

This is the CheyTac Intervention

As anti-material guns were used during World War I and World War II to penetrate the armor of tanks in the modern era the armor of things such as tanks is too powerful for a .50 BMG bullet to penetrate it. Modern day rifles are used to penetrate light armor vehicles or things such as concrete barricades, buildings and as well as being used to take out unexploded ordinance. One of the most popular anti-material rifles today is the Barrett M107, not only for its military use but also being one of the most popular weapons available to civilians. The reason for this is because of the design of the weapon. It is made with a built in suppressor ready muzzle break, a thermal cheek pad, and a hand grip mounted on the inside of the rail. This rifle fires a .50 BMG caliber bullet with a weight of 28.7 pounds and a barrel length of 29 inches. Many other popular anti-material rifles include the Zastava M93 Black arrow, McMillan Tac-50, Gepard GM6 Lynx, AMSD OM 50 Nemesis, Accuracy International AS50, Mechem NTW-20, Istiglal IST-14.5, WKW Wilk and the CheyTac Intervention M-200.

References

1. ^"M107 .50 Caliber Long Range Sniper Rifle (LRSR)", By Gary W. Cooke.
2. ^“Barrett M82 Anti-Tank / Anti-Material Rifle (AMR).”, By JR, Potts.
3. ^"The Top 10 Anti-Material Sniper Rifles In The World?", By Koushiro Izumio.
4. ^"Mauser Model 1918 T-Gewehr Anti-Tank Rifle (ATR)."
5. ^"WW1 Anti-Tank Rifles."
6. ^"WW2 Anti-Tank Rifles (1939-1945).", By JR,Potts and Dan Alex.
7. ^"WWII Weapons: The PTRS and PTRD Russian Anti-Tank Rifles.", By Robert Cashner.
8. ^"Barrett M82 Anti-Tank / Anti-Material Rifle (AMR).", By JR Potts.
9. ^"Barrett M107 Heavy Caliber Anti-Material / Anti-Personnel Sniper Rifle.", By Dan Alex.
10. ^"M107A1 A WHOLE NEW LEGEND."