The Anzio 20mm rifle
is an American
anti-materiel rifle
An anti-materiel rifle (AMR) is a rifle designed for use against military equipment, structures, and other hardware (materiel). Anti-materiel rifles are chambered in significantly larger calibers than conventional rifles and are employed to elimin ...
designed and marketed by Anzio Iron Works. It is the first American anti-materiel rifle designed and mass-produced for public sale with a bore diameter in excess of .50 caliber in over 80 years. The rifles are available in three calibers, with the rifle's predominant chambering being the 20mm Vulcan caliber.
Features
Other notable features include an optional three-round detachable
box magazine
A magazine is an ammunition storage and feeding device for a repeating firearm, either integral within the gun (internal/fixed magazine) or externally attached (detachable magazine). The magazine functions by holding several cartridges withi ...
, a barrel, and threaded muzzle to accept either a
muzzle brake
A muzzle brake or recoil compensator is a device connected to, or a feature integral 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 recoil and unwanted ...
or
suppressor
A silencer, also known as a sound suppressor, suppressor, or sound moderator, is a muzzle device that reduces the acoustic intensity
Sound intensity, also known as acoustic intensity, is defined as the power carried by sound waves per unit ...
.
Performance
At approximately of kinetic energy, the 20mm round, as fired out of the Anzio rifle, has nearly four times the energy of the .50 BMG cartridge fired out of a comparable rifle, which is around of kinetic energy. The
.600 Nitro Express
The .600 Nitro Express is a large bore Nitro Express rifle cartridge developed by W.J. Jeffery & Co for the purpose of hunting large game such as elephant.
Design
The .600 Nitro Express is a slightly tapered walled, rimmed, centerfire rifl ...
, the second most powerful African big game rifle cartridge, has around of kinetic energy. This makes a 20mm Anzio rifle 5.85 times as powerful as a rifle chambered in .600 Nitro Express.
The Anzio 20/50 has approximately of kinetic energy with an bullet. It does this by taking the .50 BMG projectile, which already is relatively large and travels extremely fast, and increases the already supersonic bullet to over 1.3 times its normal flight velocity, creating more kinetic energy without the need for a larger and heavier projectile. Though its kinetic energy is significantly lower than the 20mm round, it is almost as effective due to its smaller surface area, meaning that it has less material to punch through, making it easier to penetrate, but the lighter bullet makes transferring energy over longer distances and into targets less efficient.
Operator
* : The
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...
purchased two 20mm rifles from Anzio in 2009.
See also
*
Denel NTW-20
The NTW-20 is a South African anti-materiel rifle, developed by Denel Mechem in the 1990s. It is intended for deployment against targets including parked aircraft, telecommunication masts, power lines, missile sites, radar installations, refine ...
*
Solothurn S-18/1000
The Solothurn S18-1000 20 mm was a Swiss anti-tank rifle used during the Second World War. It was a variant of the earlier S-18/100 with modifications for a higher muzzle velocity, as well as a larger cartridge size. The more powerful am ...
*
Lahti L-39
The Lahti L-39 is a Finnish 20 mm anti-tank rifle used during the Second World War. It had excellent accuracy, penetration and range, but its size made transportation difficult. It was nicknamed "Norsupyssy" ("Elephant Gun"), and as tanks d ...
*
Istiglal AMR
The Istiglal IST-14.5 anti-materiel rifle (also known as the Istiglal) is a recoil-operated, semi-automatic anti-materiel sniper rifle produced by Telemexanika zavodu, subsidiary of the Ministry of Defence Industry of Azerbaijan.
History
Altho ...
*
Metallic RT-20
References
{{Reflist
External links
Anzioironworks
Bolt-action rifles
14.5×114mm sniper rifles
20mm sniper rifles
Sniper rifles of the United States
Anti-materiel rifles