The Modular Sniper Rifle, or MSR, is a
bolt-action
Bolt-action is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the bolt via a bolt handle, which is most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the weapon (as most users are right-handed).
Most bolt-action ...
sniper rifle
A sniper rifle is a high-precision, long-range rifle. Requirements include accuracy, reliability, mobility, concealment and optics for anti-personnel, anti-materiel and surveillance uses of the military sniper. The modern sniper rifle is a por ...
developed and produced by
Remington Arms
Remington Arms Company, LLC was an American manufacturer of firearms and ammunition, now broken into two companies, each bearing the Remington name. The firearms manufacturer is ''Remington Arms''. The ammunition business is called ''Remingto ...
for the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
. It was introduced in 2009, and was designed to meet specific United States Army and USSOCOM
Precision Sniper Rifle
The Precision Sniper Rifle (PSR) was a program by United States Special Operations Command to replace all bolt-action sniper rifles in use by United States special operations snipers with a single bolt-action rifle chambered for a large caliber ...
requirements.
[ The MSR initially won the PSR competition, and was called the Remington Mk 21 Precision Sniper Rifle in U.S. military service.][U.S. Army looks to new sniper ammunition](_blank)
- Military1.com, 20 August 2014 However, it was then decided that the Mk 21 did not conform to SOCOM requirements at the time in 2018, and the program was re-competed with the Barrett MRAD
The Barrett MRAD (Multi-role Adaptive Design) is a bolt-action sniper rifle designed by Barrett to meet the requirements of the SOCOM PSR. The MRAD is based on the Barrett 98B and includes a number of modifications and improvements. The Barre ...
selected in 2019 as the Mk 22 Advanced Sniper Rifle solution.
History
On 7 March 2013, MSR was declared the winner of the Precision Sniper Rifle
The Precision Sniper Rifle (PSR) was a program by United States Special Operations Command to replace all bolt-action sniper rifles in use by United States special operations snipers with a single bolt-action rifle chambered for a large caliber ...
competition. Remington announced that the MSR had won on March 8, and it was publicly confirmed on March 9. This was followed by a $79.7 million contract for 5,150 rifles with suppressors, along with 4,696,800 rounds of ammunition to be supplied over the next ten years. The contract was awarded on 12 September 2013. Remington Defense produces the sniper rifles and utilizes two other companies for other system components, with Barnes Bullets for ammunition and Advanced Armament Corporation
Advanced Armament Corporation (AAC) is an American company that develops and manufactures firearms, firearm suppressors, muzzle devices and related accessories.
History
Kevin Brittingham founded Advanced Armament Corporation in 1994 to manufactur ...
for muzzle brakes and suppressors; all three companies are subsidiaries of Freedom Group Incorporated.
In 2015, the U.S. Army was considering the PSR to replace both the .300 Winchester Magnum
The .300 Winchester Magnum (also known as .300 Win Mag or .300 WM) (7.62×67mmB, 7.62x66BR) is a belted, bottlenecked magnum rifle cartridge that was introduced by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company in 1963. The .300 Winchester Magnum is a m ...
M2010 Enhanced Sniper Rifle
The M2010 Enhanced Sniper Rifle (ESR), formerly known as the XM2010 and M24 Reconfigured Sniper Weapon System, is a sniper rifle developed by PEO Soldier for the United States Army. It is derived from and replaced the M24 Sniper Weapon System, an ...
and the .50 BMG M107 Long Range Sniper Rifle for regular snipers, although no decision has been made. The U.S. Marine Corps was also considering the Mk 21 to replace their M40A5 sniper rifle, but is unlikely to adopt the Mk 21 due to the higher cost of the system, particularly the ammunition, as compared to the 7.62mm NATO M40A5.
Design
The Remington MSR is a manually operated bolt-action weapon with a rotary locking bolt. To facilitate caliber change, the bolt is equipped with removable bolt heads, with bolt faces matched for appropriate calibers. Bolt heads have three radial locking lugs. The MSR rifle is built upon an aluminum alloy "chassis", which hosts a compact receiver, adjustable trigger unit, pistol grip, and fully adjustable side-folding buttstock. The quick-change barrels are free-floated inside the tubular handguard which is provided with a number of user-installable Picatinny type accessory rails. The top of the receiver also is fitted with a monolithic Picatinny rail used to install sighting equipment (telescope sights or night vision sights). Additional equipment includes a detachable folding bipod and a quick-detachable suppressor which installs over the specially designed muzzle brake.
The model that won the PSR competition is a modified version of the original MSR. It can be chambered in 7.62×51mm NATO, .300 Winchester Magnum
The .300 Winchester Magnum (also known as .300 Win Mag or .300 WM) (7.62×67mmB, 7.62x66BR) is a belted, bottlenecked magnum rifle cartridge that was introduced by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company in 1963. The .300 Winchester Magnum is a m ...
, and .338 Lapua Magnum
The .338 Lapua Magnum (8.6×70 mm or 8.58×70 mm) is a rimless, bottlenecked, centerfire rifle cartridge. It was developed during the 1980s as a high-powered, long-range cartridge for military snipers. It was used in the War in Afghanistan and ...
. It is reported to have 0.7 MOA average accuracy at with both Barnes and ATK .338 Lapua Magnum ammunition.
Changes to the PSR version include:
* Reinforced AAC muzzle brake for Titan QD suppressor
* Chromoly steel .338 barrel with 1:9.5 twist, 5R rifling, and Melonite (ferritic nitrocarburized) finish
* One piece handguard with 20 MOA top rail
* Barrel nut accessible without removing the handguard
* X-treme trigger
* Light weight, removable buttstock with throw lever adjustments instead of ratcheting adjustments
On 14 August 2014, the Army announced it was seeking sources to produce .338 Lapua armor-piercing (AP) ammunition for use in the Mk 21 PSR to effectively engage targets out to . The main objective is for the rifle to defeat level IV body armor at 400 meters, whether suppressed or unsuppressed, in temperature ranges of . Other minimum requirements include a projectile velocity of or more at , of kinetic energy at , and the ability to defeat both of rolled homogeneous armor
Rolled homogeneous armour (RHA) is a type of vehicle armour made of a single steel composition hot-rolled to improve its material characteristics, as opposed to layered or cemented armour. Its first common application was in tanks. After World ...
(RHA) and of cast iron at .
Users
* : Algerian Special Forces.
* : Special Operations Command (Brazil)
The Brazilian Special Operations Command ( pt, Comando de Operações Especiais - C Op Esp) is a part of the Brazilian Army Commands, specifically the Land Army Command. Headquartered in Central Brazil, in Goiânia, C OP ESP is positioned under t ...
.
* : Colombian Special Forces.
* : French Army
The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed For ...
* : "Metzada" take-over unit of the Israel Prison Service
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
.
* : Italian Armed Forces
The Italian Armed Forces ( it, Forze armate italiane, ) encompass the Italian Army, the Italian Navy and the Italian Air Force. A fourth branch of the armed forces, known as the Carabinieri, take on the role as the nation's military police and ar ...
* : Special Forces of México against drug trafficking.
* : Used by Underwater Offence (Turkish Armed Forces)
The Underwater Offence ( tr, Su Altı Taarruz), or SAT, is the special operations forces unit of the Turkish Navy. Turkish Navy's first and only navy commando unit consisting of highly skilled soldiers selected from among the officers and petty of ...
, Gendarmerie General Command
The Gendarmerie General Command ( tr, Jandarma Genel Komutanlığı) is the national Gendarmerie force of the Republic of Turkey. It is a service branch of the Turkish Ministry of Interior responsible for the maintenance of the public order in a ...
and Special Forces Command (Turkey)
, image = Özel_Kuvvetler_Komutanlığı_Brövesi.png
, caption = Shoulder patch of the Special Forces Command
, dates = 1992–present
, country =
, ...
.
* : USSOCOM
The United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM or SOCOM) is the unified combatant command charged with overseeing the various special operations component commands of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force of the United States Ar ...
, first winner of the Precision Sniper Rifle
The Precision Sniper Rifle (PSR) was a program by United States Special Operations Command to replace all bolt-action sniper rifles in use by United States special operations snipers with a single bolt-action rifle chambered for a large caliber ...
competition, later excluded due to non-compliance
See also
* Precision Sniper Rifle
The Precision Sniper Rifle (PSR) was a program by United States Special Operations Command to replace all bolt-action sniper rifles in use by United States special operations snipers with a single bolt-action rifle chambered for a large caliber ...
References
.338 firearms
Sniper rifles of the United States
Remington Arms firearms
Bolt-action rifles of the United States
Modular firearms
Military equipment introduced in the 2000s
{{ModernUSInfWeaponsNav