The Bars (russian: Барс, lit=

Snow leopard The snow leopard (''Panthera uncia''), also known as the ounce, is a Felidae, felid in the genus ''Panthera'' native to the mountain ranges of Central Asia, Central and South Asia. It is listed as Vulnerable species, Vulnerable on the IUCN Red ...

) is a Soviet and

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

bolt-action hunting rifle.

History

"Bars" was designed in early 1960s. In May 1965, the price of one standard rifle was between 120 and 140

roubles The ruble (American English) or rouble (Commonwealth English) (; rus, рубль, p=rublʲ) is the currency unit of Belarus and Russia. Historically, it was the currency of the Russian Empire and of the Soviet Union. , currencies named ''rub ...

.Отечественные ружья // журнал «Охота и охотничье хозяйство», № 5, 1965. стр.25 In 1967, "Bars" was awarded the golden medal of the

Leipzig Trade Fair The Leipzig Trade Fair (german: Leipziger Messe) is a major trade fair, which traces its roots back for nearly a millennium. After the Second World War, Leipzig fell within the territory of East Germany, whereupon the Leipzig Trade Fair became o ...

and Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant began its serial production in large numbers. In 1993, Kazan Optical-Mechanical Plant began production of

night-vision device A night-vision device (NVD), also known as a night optical/observation device (NOD), night-vision goggle (NVG), is an optoelectronic device that allows visualization of images in low levels of light, improving the user's night vision. The devi ...

for "Bars", "Los-4" and "Los-7" hunting rifles. In 2000s,

Zagorsk Optical-Mechanical Plant Zagorsk Optical-Mechanical Plant (russian: Загорский оптико-механический завод) is a company based in Sergiyev Posad, Russia. It is part of Shvabe Holding of Rostec. The Zagorsk Optical-Mechanical Plant is a produc ...

began production of PKO-2 (ПКО-2)

reflector sight A reflector sight or reflex sight is an optical sight that allows the user to look through a partially reflecting glass element and see an illuminated projection of an aiming point or some other image superimposed on the field of view. These sig ...

for "Bars-4" hunting rifles. In 2017,

Kalashnikov Concern JSC Kalashnikov Concern (), known until 2013 as the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant (), is a Russian defense manufacturing concern and joint-stock company headquartered in the city of Izhevsk in the Republic of Udmurtia as well as the capital ...

announced its intention to replace the production of "Bars" hunting rifles and previous models of "Los" hunting rifles with a new model (Baikal 145 "Los"). In June 2018, the start of its production was announced and production of "Bars" hunting rifles was discontinued.

Design

The

barrel A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container with a bulging center, longer than it is wide. They are traditionally made of wooden staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. The word vat is often used for large containers for liquids, ...

chrome-plated Chrome plating (less commonly chromium plating) is a technique of electroplating a thin layer of chromium onto a metal object. A chrome-plated item is called ''chrome''. The chromed layer can be decorative, provide corrosion resistance, ease o ...

. The "Bars" has staggered column detachable box magazine. It has manual safety switch All variants of "Bars" rifles have iron sights and they were equipped with scope base for optical sight. * PO-4×34 (ПО-4×34) and TO-4 scopes were standard optical sights, although custom aftermarket variants are known. "Bars-223" was equipped with PO-4×24 (ПО-4×24) scope made by

Novosibirsk Instrument-Building Plant Novosibirsk Instrument-Building Plant (russian: Новосибирский приборостроительный завод) is a company based in Novosibirsk, Russia. Since 2014, it has been a part of the Shvabe Holding. The Novosibirsk Instr ...

Variants

* "Bars-1" (''КО-5,6–60 «Барс-1»'') – first model, 5.6×39mm. Its barrel has six groovesОтечественное охотничье оружие. «Барс-1» // журнал «Охота и охотничье хозяйство», № 9, 1982. стр.23 * "Bars-4" (''«Барс-4»'') – second model, 5.6×39mm and

7.62×39mm The 7.62×39mm (aka 7.62 Soviet, formerly .30 Russian Short) round is a rimless bottlenecked intermediate cartridge of Soviet origin. The cartridge is widely used due to the worldwide proliferation of Russian SKS and AK-47 pattern rifles, as ...

, since 1985 * "Bars-4-1" (''«Барс-4-1»'') – since 1990s, 5.6×39mm and

* "Bars-223" (''«Барс-223»'') – "Bars-4-1" chambered in

.223 Remington The .223 Remington (designated as the 223 Remington by the SAAMI and 223 Rem by the CIP) is a rimless, bottlenecked rifle cartridge. It was developed in 1957 by Remington Arms and Fairchild Industries for the U.S. Continental Army Command ...

, it was designed in early 2000s, in 2001 – 2002 small number were made, in January 2003 its serial production was announced.ОАО "Концерн "ИЖМАШ"" начинает выпуск карабина "Барс-4-1" под патрон .223 Rem // журнал "Мастер-ружьё", № 2 (71), февраль 2003. стр.5

Users

* – was allowed as civilian hunting weapon * - is allowed as civilian hunting weapon * * - is allowed as civilian hunting weapon * – is allowed as civilian hunting weapon * – is allowed as civilian hunting weapon * - the import was allowed"''ANNEX A. Firearms Permitted to Be Imported into the United States from the Russian Federation ... BARS-4 Bolt Action Carbine''"AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION ON EXPORTS OF FIREARMS AND AMMUNITION FROM THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION TO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
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References

{{Reflist

Sources

* Охотничий карабин "Барс-1" // Спортивно-охотничье оружие и патроны. Бухарест, "Внешторгиздат", 1965. стр.44-45 * Е. В. Кудрявцев. Охота (краткий справочник). 3-е изд., доп. М., Агропромиздат, 1985. стр.17 * Карабин малокалиберный магазинный "Барс" // Охотничье и спортивное оружие, патроны. М., Внешторгиздат, 1989. * журнал «Оружие», № 2, 1997. * Виктор Рон. Ижевский "Барс" // журнал "Оружие", № 5, 2017. стр.63–64 – ISSN 1728-9203 Bolt-action rifles of the Soviet Union Bolt-action rifles of Russia 5.6×39mm firearms 7.62×39mm bolt-action rifles Izhevsk machine-building plant products Hunting rifles