I've had both M82 and M99. Recoil on the 99 is worse but weight and muzzle brake do a lot to tame it. And since this is turning into a .50 BMG picture thread:
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Has anyone any Stories about firing a Barrett ?
- Thread starter MilDot1960
- Start date
Don't fire that Puppy when turning at speed or it will turn that Buggy on it's side. Lol.
Shot my buddies 82 quite a few times. Enough to know I dont need to own one.
Was at Knob Creek 4 or 5 years ago with a different buddy. He was REALLY looking hard at the bolt action, single shot 50bmg that you pin onto an AR15 lower. I said "wait till we go to John's tomorrow to shoot his Barrett semi and then if you STILL want a bolt action, single shot, you can buy it when we come back for the night shoot." Suffice to say he did NOT buy the single shot 50bmg upper for the AR...
The same buddy who owns the 82 was shooting it off the tailgate of his truck and blew the tail light out. I still dont think the tail light is fixed...just a farm truck.
Was at Knob Creek 4 or 5 years ago with a different buddy. He was REALLY looking hard at the bolt action, single shot 50bmg that you pin onto an AR15 lower. I said "wait till we go to John's tomorrow to shoot his Barrett semi and then if you STILL want a bolt action, single shot, you can buy it when we come back for the night shoot." Suffice to say he did NOT buy the single shot 50bmg upper for the AR...
The same buddy who owns the 82 was shooting it off the tailgate of his truck and blew the tail light out. I still dont think the tail light is fixed...just a farm truck.
Aw comon MilI have never shot a Braked 308 mine were always Naked, "Not Me" The Muzzle. Lol
Ok You got me, when the sun comes out tomorrow I will give it a Go, But if it is Snowing I'm wearing Cloths,Aw comon Mil
Thats what i had, but Jeez its a lot of money. Honestly I wouldnt recommend buying one. Everybody I know buys them sells them after a short while. Its expensive to shoot and does really wear you don after a bit.
Yeah I can believe that too, It seems like a good Idea but common sense tells me to go and pay to use one for the day and get it out of my system,
It's hard to imagine that a shouldered rifle can take out large trucks and the like, I have seen what they can do to a concrete wall and what was hiding behind it, It's like no safe place to hide.
It's hard to imagine that a shouldered rifle can take out large trucks and the like, I have seen what they can do to a concrete wall and what was hiding behind it, It's like no safe place to hide.
/Thats what I thought but I just dont need to take out that many trucks. It would be nice to fuck up some idiot criminal who thought he was safe behind a wall.
"Ranger Owner Protection System!" That's good, I'll have to remember that. Never shot off the Ranger just stuck it up there for pics.
Like so many other things in life, the only thing better than one is two-or four. My three best friends and I did a private armorer's course and training with our M-82s and Jon Weiler from Professional Marksmen a few years ago. Great times
Agree. They're definitely cool but the novelty wears off fast and then all you see is a pile of $$ taking up space in the safe. I went from 82 to 99 and finally to Serbu but ended up selling all after just a few shots each. That said, any 50 showing up in the PX does still catch my eye.
where did you do yours? I did mine with Jon out at the Whittington Center. Damn nice guy and very professional.
Aw comon Mil
Sorry Maggot, Deals off Mate, It's Snowing here, Laying in that cold Snow buck Naked is going to destroy my Rep,
John.
When I had the itch for an 82 my LGS owner offered me one of his personal rifles for $7500, which was a very fair price at the time. It was tempting but that was before I'd lost my mind in the PX here and it just seemed extravagant.
I lucked into a Bushmaster BA50 online at a ridiculously good price and went with it instead. It's a pretty slick rifle and I'd personally place it second to the 82/107 in terms of functionality at way less than half the current pricing on Barretts. It uses Barrett magazines and has a left side bolt with right side ejection which makes it "fast" if you want it to be. For me personally, I can't see accurately being able to rapid fire a 50, so semi-auto is pointless. Even if you're a shooting god and can maintain position and eyes on target through recoil, you're still waiting on the dust cloud to settle. If a guy is that good and that dedicated to a rapid second shot then he can cycle the bolt during recoil and be back up on target in pretty comparable time.
Now I look at the rifle/scope/chassis setups in the safe and a $7500 Barrett wouldn't have been all that extravagant after all. Once the pricing started hitting $10k that's a totally different proposition. I'd rather have something Class III for that money.
If someone is considering a 50BMG purchase, the BA 50 is worth a look. I don't shoot mine often, but it gets me a ton of invites to private land and hunting clubs so guys can play with it. I'd guess that I've shot less than 50% of the rounds through mine
And I need all the help I can get in that area
Shouldnt have to pay over 3K for a good used one, hopefully less. Ammo on the other hand tends to start at $2.00 per round and go up rapidly from there, unless like Sirh you load your own. Even then you only get 1, maximum 2 re loads per caseing.
I ended up asking at every gunshop I went to if they had any 50bmg ammo. Most didn't, some did, and a few made pretty good deals to buy their whole stock on hand. Ended up with a bunch of ball, ap, API, for around a $1/rd. The most I paid was for HSM loaded with 750gr amax at about $3/rd.
Definitely pays to shop around and ask when you don't see it.
Take a look at the Bushmaster BA50 I referenced above. I got mine with an SWFA on it for somewhere around $3k several years ago. If it looks a little funny at first I've found that removing that enormous rail on the handguard really improves its lines.
Sorry Maggot, just saw your reply. We did it twice at ranches up in Montana. Whittington backcountry is great too! We competed a couple of times in Jon's Survival Trials. I bet you had a great time!
I have shot the M82 many times. Its a purpose rifle. Not really originally designed for an all day range toy. I was also a mount captain years ago during my Naval service on the M2. I loved that weapon more than our Bushmaster Mk242 25mm.
Im taking delivery on a Barrett M99 this Friday. Of course Ill post up some pics here, or the bolt action section.
Im taking delivery on a Barrett M99 this Friday. Of course Ill post up some pics here, or the bolt action section.
I'm guessing we're talking about the .50BMGs? Been there done that. .50 cal doesn't impress me in the least. Unless you've had the privilage like I have of firing a Ma Duece with a belt of tracers at night and seeing the bullets hit the ground and fly up in the air.
Recoil is meh.
I swear a 300RUM has more.
Barretts are cool until you have to carry one of the 2 broken down parts and lose the best of 3 rock paper scissors competition to decide on who carries the loaded mags.
With that said, Ive wanted one for a while to fill my 20mm itch Ill probably never get to.
I swear a 300RUM has more.
Barretts are cool until you have to carry one of the 2 broken down parts and lose the best of 3 rock paper scissors competition to decide on who carries the loaded mags.
With that said, Ive wanted one for a while to fill my 20mm itch Ill probably never get to.
Well alls I knows is you gotta keep your mouth open when you fire it or your eardrums will blow out! (Where did I hear that? Funny as shit.) Oh, and it'll rip your arm off if the round passes within a foot of it at supersonic speeds!
Seriously though, the ideal position is to be next to and BEHIND it, not simply next to it. It aids significantly in spotting IME anyway. That brake, that round, yeah, fuck that. Loud isn't the word to describe it. You FEEL it, and personally, I can't stand to be next to 'em. M2HB isn't nearly as loud, FWIW.
Seriously though, the ideal position is to be next to and BEHIND it, not simply next to it. It aids significantly in spotting IME anyway. That brake, that round, yeah, fuck that. Loud isn't the word to describe it. You FEEL it, and personally, I can't stand to be next to 'em. M2HB isn't nearly as loud, FWIW.
You reminded me of that video of the hunter (Jim Shockey?) that shoots a deer with a Barrett. Range was about 100yds and he claims that the bullet missed the head and sucks the eyeballs out. But he actually shot it in the eye
I guess I missed this thread while I was on the road last month. Here's a few of my thoughts, I have put thousands upon thousands of rounds through the things...
First, shooting a .50 BMG is never something to be taken lightly. You have to have a serious downrange area available for it, as they will ricochet and keep going for more than a few miles. If I remember right, the SDZ was ballpark 9000m, don't quote me on that though. Several years back, there was a person struck by a stray .50 ricochet at Talledega Speedway infield that was shot several miles away. A 760gr ball round exiting at 2700fps MV is the real Honey Badger, it really don't give a fuck about the impact berm you built on your 30ac with your personal CAT D4, they go right on over it to the neighbors next county over. Think more mountain side or large Nebraska cornfield where you own it all, firing at a negative angle even better. I'd be really concerned with any body of water that wasn't carrying the title "Ocean/Sea". Then again, I'm an old school USMC "Range Nazi" who takes that sort of thing very seriously. Safety is always paramount, and the BMG is in a class of its own when it comes to kenitic energy.
The M82A1's recoil is definitely the push spoken about above. The recoiling barrel design rolls the force into your shoulder much differently than anything else you have likely shot. Impact wise, I agree with the 3" Mag description but it's definitely not that either because of the way it has a longer buildup to max force. Despite this longer recoil pattern, you cannot just rest it into your shoulder like other types of weapons, you have to get into it more like a machine gun. First time I shot it, I didn't put enough of myself into it and my shoulder was sore as fuck for weeks afterwards because I treated it like an M40 instead of an M60 (we didn't have the 240s yet then). Pushing yourself into the gun will steady it up far better and prevent injury. The M99 Barretts are more like the shotgun recoil, great recoil pad but definitely like when I put a heavy 3 1/2" 12ga load at geese, still better than a Desert Tech .338 though because it at least has heft to it. While on the subject, I'll say that I won't touch another DT HTI again, there are so many better options than that, as the bull pup design hammers the magazine into your non-firing hand if you are bracing the rear of the stock/monopod.
I despise the triggers on the 82s, if you keep applying the pressure back like you do on an AR they will jam the gun, instead you have to have it released before the full cycle of operation forcing you to more slap the trigger, furthering the inaccuracy of the system. The mags are shit, don't even bother loading the full 10 ever, and it will absolutely shred your BMG brass and leave more shavings in your chamber than Bristol Speedway has marbles. We would typically get around 150 rounds before having to pull the gun and clean it, really sucks when you only have two guns, are doing aerial platform training for VBSS ops, and have limited flight time available. We used a witches brew of lubricant, part Breakfree, part ATF, part Hoppes, that worked best to keep the guns talking, at least better than anything else we had available in the 90s. The pilot of the CH46 we were on was quick to come over the ICS with "Holy fuck is that thing loud" when we were shooting out the front right door of his bird, he being right in line with the left side fo the muzzle blast and his window open. We warned him, he didn't listen, but we let them all get some ground time with the gun and couple cans of ammo to make it up to the pilots having to listen to it and the crew chiefs having to clean the powder blast marks off either side of the door all week long.
As for spotting for them, there's only two good options: Directly over and behind with you on a tripod, or at least 5m to either side. I would hate .50cal days while working as an instructor, would leave the range slightly nauseous at the end of the day. It's not the mild concussion one would get after a full day of shooting recoilless rockets, I really was hating life one day I put over 100 RPG rounds downrange, but it's definitely still a nauseous feeling.
I've had a lot of fun over the years with them, absolutely recommend it for anyone to try at least once in their life if the opportunity arises, but on a personal level I think of them far more novelty than practical for any usage off battlefield. You'll never see me putting my own money into one, but I've certainly had my fill as well.
First, shooting a .50 BMG is never something to be taken lightly. You have to have a serious downrange area available for it, as they will ricochet and keep going for more than a few miles. If I remember right, the SDZ was ballpark 9000m, don't quote me on that though. Several years back, there was a person struck by a stray .50 ricochet at Talledega Speedway infield that was shot several miles away. A 760gr ball round exiting at 2700fps MV is the real Honey Badger, it really don't give a fuck about the impact berm you built on your 30ac with your personal CAT D4, they go right on over it to the neighbors next county over. Think more mountain side or large Nebraska cornfield where you own it all, firing at a negative angle even better. I'd be really concerned with any body of water that wasn't carrying the title "Ocean/Sea". Then again, I'm an old school USMC "Range Nazi" who takes that sort of thing very seriously. Safety is always paramount, and the BMG is in a class of its own when it comes to kenitic energy.
The M82A1's recoil is definitely the push spoken about above. The recoiling barrel design rolls the force into your shoulder much differently than anything else you have likely shot. Impact wise, I agree with the 3" Mag description but it's definitely not that either because of the way it has a longer buildup to max force. Despite this longer recoil pattern, you cannot just rest it into your shoulder like other types of weapons, you have to get into it more like a machine gun. First time I shot it, I didn't put enough of myself into it and my shoulder was sore as fuck for weeks afterwards because I treated it like an M40 instead of an M60 (we didn't have the 240s yet then). Pushing yourself into the gun will steady it up far better and prevent injury. The M99 Barretts are more like the shotgun recoil, great recoil pad but definitely like when I put a heavy 3 1/2" 12ga load at geese, still better than a Desert Tech .338 though because it at least has heft to it. While on the subject, I'll say that I won't touch another DT HTI again, there are so many better options than that, as the bull pup design hammers the magazine into your non-firing hand if you are bracing the rear of the stock/monopod.
I despise the triggers on the 82s, if you keep applying the pressure back like you do on an AR they will jam the gun, instead you have to have it released before the full cycle of operation forcing you to more slap the trigger, furthering the inaccuracy of the system. The mags are shit, don't even bother loading the full 10 ever, and it will absolutely shred your BMG brass and leave more shavings in your chamber than Bristol Speedway has marbles. We would typically get around 150 rounds before having to pull the gun and clean it, really sucks when you only have two guns, are doing aerial platform training for VBSS ops, and have limited flight time available. We used a witches brew of lubricant, part Breakfree, part ATF, part Hoppes, that worked best to keep the guns talking, at least better than anything else we had available in the 90s. The pilot of the CH46 we were on was quick to come over the ICS with "Holy fuck is that thing loud" when we were shooting out the front right door of his bird, he being right in line with the left side fo the muzzle blast and his window open. We warned him, he didn't listen, but we let them all get some ground time with the gun and couple cans of ammo to make it up to the pilots having to listen to it and the crew chiefs having to clean the powder blast marks off either side of the door all week long.
As for spotting for them, there's only two good options: Directly over and behind with you on a tripod, or at least 5m to either side. I would hate .50cal days while working as an instructor, would leave the range slightly nauseous at the end of the day. It's not the mild concussion one would get after a full day of shooting recoilless rockets, I really was hating life one day I put over 100 RPG rounds downrange, but it's definitely still a nauseous feeling.
I've had a lot of fun over the years with them, absolutely recommend it for anyone to try at least once in their life if the opportunity arises, but on a personal level I think of them far more novelty than practical for any usage off battlefield. You'll never see me putting my own money into one, but I've certainly had my fill as well.
Shooting the 82a1 is a blast. Hah. Yeah set it on a bench at my friends range. First shot. Didnt realize how close we were to a rain down spout. Boom. Blew that damned thing off the 4by4 post it was connected to. So ok. Lets move the bench. Now every shot we took was followed by about 5 car alarms going off with every trigger pull. I gotta find that video. Great stuff. Kinda like gets as much attention when i fire my s&w 460 vxr indoors. Freaks them all the hell out.
I have a few hundred rounds through a Barrett. The recoil is similar to a 12ga with slug, but with a longer impulse time, as there's a lot of movement with the barrel sliding rearward and the action cycling. After shooting a few mags the concussion gives you a sensation between your eyes like you're just getting over a sinus infection. If you're the spotter it's best to be directly behind the shooter to avoid the side porting muzzle brake. And contrary to popular belief the shockwave of a 50 BMG bullet will not kill you. We would zero them on paper targets and the bullets just leave nice little holes. If there really was a death dealing shockwave it would stand to reason that a paper target would be shredded by the bullet passing through it. We would also shoot them with target pullers in the pits, and the bullet passing over your head at 5 or 6 feet sounded identical to any other supersonic bullet.
Had an 82 years ago, and I don't think I shot 30 rds through it. I was shooting some bulk ammo and the cases were getting stuck in the chamber as the extractor either ripped or slipped off the rim. Had to bang the empty cases out with a cleaning rod. Other than that, no the recoil is not that bad, but even directly behind it, it felt like I was getting hit in the face with a wiffelball bat
A lot depends on the rifle you want to get. One older Gentleman recently trying out 2 different rifles of mine, found he preferred the .50 over the .338 as in his opinion there was not as much recoil.
You could get something like an AR-50 which is very accurate and very soft shooting (Enormous noise and blast wave not withstanding) and be pretty happy on the mid $2k range in price.
If you have a place to shoot it, it's a lot of fun. You will probably however find that you put less than 10 to 20 rounds downrange in any given day as probably around the 10 mark you'll be feeling like you are good for the day.
Unless you have access in like the desert, don't scratch the itch. Way expensive, and there is nothing practical the 50 can do that smaller shit can't besides deliver a ton of energy down range in my opinion. I was young and dumb and got this rifle when I lived in long island of all places. Good thing I had all that power shooting 100 yards at the Huntington Range (RIP) and 200 at Calverton.
Fair enough, I have access to a few ranches here in Texas where I could stretch 1400 a few times a year. But yeah, I'll probably just find a buddy with one. Last I checked there was no season for sedans down here. Interesting story though, one of my professors bought a .458 after his some elephants got out of the drive through exotic park a few miles from here. He said it's one hell of a deterrent. Not one damn elephant had the balls to each his peaches. Lol.
Heres my M99
The recoil isn't bad, but its like someone blowing up a small container of tannerite in front of me every trigger pull. The other 50s Ive shot didn't have this new (fanned) brake. So it is very effective at reducing recoil, but feels like tannerite going off in front of my muzzle. The pressure coming back is insane.
The recoil isn't bad, but its like someone blowing up a small container of tannerite in front of me every trigger pull. The other 50s Ive shot didn't have this new (fanned) brake. So it is very effective at reducing recoil, but feels like tannerite going off in front of my muzzle. The pressure coming back is insane.
I haven't seen any Barrett pics posted lately ... anyway, I came across some old M82, M107, and proto pics for those interested.
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I’ve always been impressed with the accuracy and the recoil of the 82. I’ve got 2 82 stories that come to mind:
Wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t done it, but I repeated hit a 10 inch target at just under a 1000yds with an 82 using some aluminum tipped ammo from an ammo company that was developing new a new round.
We were stupid enough to shoot an 82 in an indoor range.
blew the a door to the range open. We only shot 1 round..
Wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t done it, but I repeated hit a 10 inch target at just under a 1000yds with an 82 using some aluminum tipped ammo from an ammo company that was developing new a new round.
We were stupid enough to shoot an 82 in an indoor range.
blew the a door to the range open. We only shot 1 round..
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This is from the last time that I shot a Barrett. NRA Whittintong Center. Ended up having to close my eyes anytime a shot went off due to the sand blast getting past my safety glasses
I have shot quite a few m99s and m107s never felt the recoil was unmanageable. A suppressor really cuts down on muzzle blast but does increase recoil a bit.
Put about 50 rounds through this on back in February.
Put about 50 rounds through this on back in February.
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