Ok, I’ll admit that I was so wrapped up in wondering what it would be like to fire the M82A1 that I may have forgotten to take into consideration little details like, oh, muzzle blast.
And what would happen to anything I left on the shooting table I was shooting from.
The good news is, Otterbox protective cases did a fine job protecting my phone as it, my targets, a few boxes of ammo, a full Nalgene bottle, and an iced coffee were suddenly accelerated to near-c velocity.
Lesson learned: clear off the shooting bench.
Recoil was not as bad as I thought it was going to be but, great googlymoogly, plan on being in the eye of the hurricane as everything around you and the gun becomes a blur. And double up on ear pro.
Do you have any idea what it feels like to try and sight in a rifle when every time you pull the trigger it’s around $4?
I sorely need to reload for this beast but I can see the bottleneck will be….no surprise….primers.
Also, there will be a second Barrett, an M99, at some point. One Barrett for busting up things, and one Barrett for more precise shooting.
And, yes, it was a show stopper at the range.
As I read the post I was thinking of the seen in the Guns Of Navarone where the gun crew with their white hoods covered their ears and the blow back almost pushed them over. Well it may not have been that bad. Lol
Sounds like you had a good day.
Best regards,
Roadie
I made this for CZ in shop class:
https://i.imgur.com/NyYrQCR.png
Truth.
Like firing a full-auto, total strangers at the range will put down their guns and wander over to watch.
Everybody loves you at the range, but no one will sit beside you.
The model 99 is a tack-driver and very quick to reload. You can seat the bullets a little farther out to eliminate that ‘jump’ before they engage the rifling, greatly improving accuracy.
Was up in Wyoming shooting rats one year and we kept hearing a huge boom every little bit. Finally drove two valleys over to see 3 guys doings the same with a Barrett, it was fun to watch them use weed sprayers to soak the ground behind and around the shooter to stop the dust. That V shaped compensator raised all kinds of dust. I can’t imagine shooting it under a roof at the range. Enjoy the new thunder toy!
I wish I’d thought about using a weed sprayer.
First time I fired the M82, I staked down a tarp in front and under the (prone) shooting position but not well enough, evidently. Muzzle blast was enough to lift the tarp and during subsequent rapid fire, put holes in it.
I’ve transitioned to Harbor freight moving blankets.
Thanks for the tip.
Shot the 82A1 a few times OCONUS, After that , went back to the M24 & M110 in .308 and the 338 Lapua with a smile and song…
Easier to shoot, carry and less painful to body and ears. If it needs more shooting than the 308 and If the 338 still wont do it then the AT4 or Javelin will:)
They are definitely fun.
You see why the advice on a previous post was to put a tarp on the ground in front!
I’ve never fired one from a bench, only prone.
Definitely double hearing protection. When the .50 cal Barretts and McMillans are being used for ammo testing at Lake City, they are remotely fired inside a concrete walled room with a heavy steel door using a pull rope. Even then, it is required for anyone in that area to wear double hearing protection.
I used to get to observe that while waiting to test M781 40mm practice grenades in another bay of the same building back from from 2004 to 2013 when I was QA for MAST Technology, who made the M781 rounds. It was even more fun to watch and feel the 20mm Vulcan being tested, especially when shooting tracer at night. It would rattle your innards for quite a distance.
No video or pics?
That is illegal (federal felony) to do on the LCAAP property without written permission from the Army commander of the plant or his superiors. I had permission to video some of our testing for the 40mm rounds, but not for anything else. The XM1110 rounds shot at night were the main thing we were allowed to video. MAST was the subcontractor for that contract with the Marines, but did the actual R&D and manufacture.
M781 rounds just make an orange poof when they hit. M1110 also does that during the day, but glows upon impact at night. Same technology as glow sticks. No potential for unexploded projectiles, unlike the conventional night training rounds which are essentially a low power flash bang. Also better environmentally.
I think I almost envy you and your Barrett ;-). Never shot a .50, but did put a couple of rounds through a Solothurn 20mm once – big fun! And, hey, $4 aint what it used to be!
Customer took delivery of a Barrett from me and invited me to his house to test fire it.
Put a couple of old water heaters on a hillside (he owned a plumbing supply business) and set up the Barrett on a picnic table in his driveway. One of his work trucks and trailers was *right next to* the picnic table.
Muzzle blast stripped the paint off the side of the trailer!
We also used sections of railroad track for targets. I had gotten a screaming deal ($1.35/rd) on API-T ammo and it went completely through the railroad track with absolutely no difficulty.
goddamn finger of God right there; you sit in the middle of a 2-mile circle and anything you can see, you can hit and there is -almost- nothing that won’t stop a zippy little .50BMG API-T round.
If you ever have a chance to use some MK 211 Raufoss rounds, they make the API rounds look like .308 ball when it comes to penetration and fireworks. Used to be available at fun shows for $10 per, now they are $150+ if you can find them.
$4/round for 50! Count yourself lucky. Up here in Canada we’re lucky to find it for $10/round. Or we were. Now that they’ve prohibited 50 caliber rifles, ammunition is unobtanium.
Heck even cheap American Eagle 338 Lapua is $7/round. Handloading for the larger calibers is definitely the only way to go.
Also, open your mouth when pulling the trigger…helps equalize the pressure.
I was wondering whether I should keep my jaw open so my teeth were apart, or clench my teeth together, or just wear a mouthguard.
If’n you get you one of those spiffy new whole-mouth mouthguards with breathing holes, you can do all of that at the same time!
+10 pts for getting a shooting iron that requires not just eye and double ear pro, but also breathing apparatus.
“I call her Vera.” – Jayne Cobb
It’s not to help with recoil, it’s for protection from the concussion generated by the muzzle blast. Just open your mouth a little and don’t clench your teeth. You’ll feel the blast in your sinus cavity if you keep your mouth closed in my experience.
If your thinking about your mouth you aren’t doing your basics-Breath,Relax,Aim,Slow Steady Squeeze.
Barrett is a hoot to shoot. Every single person I have ever seen shoot one has a huge grin on their face afterwards. You do NOT want to spot from beside one, though. Loading with surplus propellant and projectiles you can shoot for less than $2 a round, excluding brass costs…
Saw a “firepower” demo show back in the mid 90’s (associated with a SOF 3 gun match near Vegas) and most all the long guns had a suppressor for some of the shooting. There was a girl shooting a tripod mounted Ma Deuce with a rather large one, and her target was a 55 gal drum maybe 200yds distant. From ~50 feet to the side, the loudest noise was the clatter of the action while shooting bursts, and the thwack of hits on the drum. That’s not an exaggeration. Unit was offset for sight usage., more than 6″ dia, and maybe as long as the barrel. She went thru a full belt, and the noise level didn’t change. She had fun with that gun!
So, “big badda boom”?
If I come into money, I’ve got my eyes on one of these:
https://serbu.com/bfg-50a/
Kurt
That was my first choice, but I cant find any.
You might want to consider Ferret rifles out of Fl.,can get a match quality upper for about half the price of a Barret and are upgradeable. No more Knob Creek Show but the reloading components were available but prices at last show were high