Cost of affordable but durable 50 cal. for civilian use.

mdvaden

mdvaden

Active member
I was shopping for rifles today - looking really, for next spring. I plan to get a .223 and a 7mm Rem. mag.

Maybe next year or following, I'd like to get a 50 cal. for a fun gun to take to the gun club range out here.

At a Portland firearms shop today, I saw a 50 cal. weapon from about 1932 - apparently used by Brits - so I was told. The shop employee said it was a .55 before, but converted to a .50 barrel to meet civilian limitations.

They wanted $9000 for the weapon. It had a short stand - bipod of sorts - with 2 holes, apparently for driving stakes to hold it in place. Apparently, much of the cost on this one was due to collectability - although it was in fine condition.

This thing was not exactly what I'd call a typical rifle. It had what looked like a 8 - 10 shot magazine on the top, and was fitted with a rifle opticle scope. Shooter lays down, and it looks like the left hand reaches under the armpit to hold an extra handle underneath.

Anyway, this thing must weight 60 pounds.

Have you seen any .50 weapons that are styled more like a hunting or sniper rifle style at, say, one third that weight? i think the caliber is .50 BMG

If so, do you know the cost? And what do the rounds cost to practice with?
 
Did it have a Monopod? Might be a Boys Anti-Tank Rifle. They were actually manufactured in Canada for the British and Common Wealth Troops as an anti-tank Weapon during WW2 the original caliber was .55.

They were Also issued to USMC Raider Bn's during WW2. 2ND Raiders used a Boys shot down a taxiing Japanese sea plane during the Makin Island Raid in 1942.
 
Funny it's not in my Janes Guns Recognition handbook.
I have two versions, one from 2002 and one from 1996.
Then again the '96 version left out the M-60!
 
the_13th_redneck said:
Funny it's not in my Janes Guns Recognition handbook.
I have two versions, one from 2002 and one from 1996.
Then again the '96 version left out the M-60!
Click to expand...


The Boys is pretty obscure. It was never great for it's intended purpose and I believe was taken out of USMC service after the New Britian Campaign.

My question is what do you hunt with a .50 BMG round?

Check Barretts website for civilian versions 4500.00 per base weapons.
 
An Elephant. lol.
Seriously I think people only get it so that they have a .50 cal and for no other real purpose. I find it very hard to believe any civilian needs a .50. I think home defense is a pretty weak argument and hunting... unless you have Elephants where you live that are OKed for hunting... :P
 
Did it have a Monopod? Might be a Boys Anti-Tank Rifle. They were actually manufactured in Canada for the British and Common Wealth Troops as an anti-tank Weapon during WW2 the original caliber was .55.
Click to expand...

The salesman did say it had been intended for tanks.

It's a bit old, but it was beautiful looking weapon for it's age.

Yes, it did have a monopod with a horizontal bar on the ground rather than a bipod or tripod.

THE 13th REDNECK IS RIGHT...

No hunting. I'd like one purely for a big caliber fun gun.

We have one gun range here - Tri County Gun Club, which would be an appropriate place to take one of those.

Yeah, it's no hunting round. If my memory is still intact - can't those rounds penetrate about 6" to 9" of concrete?
 
Insane - Maybe :lol:

Fun - probably :D :rambo:

If what I heard about the ammo is true, maybe it's not too insane. I heard rumor that the rounds can be acquired to $2 to $3 - that would be nice. I have not verified that yet.

But I pay about $1 per round for my 7 mm mag.

And I saw a box of Weatherby mag. the other day for $90 for a box of 20 - that's near $5 a round. (I don't shoot Weatherby)

So if a .50 is a few buck a round - the real extra expense should be the gun itself.
 
Sounds like a fun project... :lol:

I've seen 50. BALL ammo for $2 and up..
Do a google search for "50. ammo cost", or something like that...
 
http://world.guns.ru/sniper/sn01-e.htm
tons of sniper rifles there, but you won't find anything "light." The Marines and Army have a new .50 that can be broken down and carried in pretty small pieces. You might want to Google that, can't remember the name. But .50cal rounds can cost you a pretty penny to fire. A friend of mine has some exotic ammo and that costs him about $50 a round.
 
i just found out a friend of mine is getting the blue prints for a 50 BFG. he's planning to build one himself. his only worry at the moment is cost of ammo, which is going to be a lot more than shooting his 308.
 
i would put money down that it is a boys aswell... Not only did they Canadian and British troops use it, but I read that the Marine Raiders used it early in the war for places like the Makin raid etc...
 
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