Cpl. Kaden Prickett, machine gunner and team leader with Golf Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force-Crisis Response-Central Command, fires a .50 caliber Special Applications Scoped Rifle at a target 1,200 meters away, in the Central Command area of operations, Jan. 6, 2015. Marines and sailors of Golf Company spent time on the range getting acquainted with various weapons systems and cross-training one another in their respective areas of expertise. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Carson A. Gramley/Released).
Fact: The most powerful sniper rifle in the U.S. Military was designed in a garage — and handmade.
The Origins
The story of the M82 begins with Ronnie Barrett. Barrett, a photographer with no formal gunsmith training or experience, is said to have been inspired to design and build the M82 .50 caliber rifle while photographing a river patrol boat similar to the type used by American forces during the Vietnam war. In one of the resulting photographs, a .50 caliber machine gun is prominently silhouetted.
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WNU Editor: I like the part where this sniper rifle was designed in a garage — and handmade.
