Sniper Rifles: Bolt Action Vs. Semi Auto

M1karava

M1karava

Active member
Bolt Action Vs Semi Auto, which is better for a sniper rifle platform. Many prefer bolt actions for their long rifles. But now with more reliable technology coming out would you swap old school accuracy and reliability for more lead down the range?

Many police agencys and branches of the military across the globe are know putting semi-auto rifles in service for their marksmen. What are your opinions and what do you personally prefer?
 
Bolt Action!

You will probably not notice it, but in the fractions of a second before the bullet leaves the barrel of a semi-auto the bolt is already moving backward causing the gun to move in your hands and so does the barrel. This throws the barrel out of alignment with the target to some degree and then it´s not certain you hit the target.
 
The old British Bren Gun was gas operated and on single shot was deadly in the right hands to over a thousand yards.
 
I think that a bolt action is the choice because of psychology: the sniper can shoot only once. Failing is not an option.
Not the same with a semi-auto.
 
LeEnfield said:
If this is the case why have many of the new .5 sniper rifles are self loading
Click to expand...

Actually if you look at many of the newer .50 sniper rifles they're mainly bolt action with exceptions such as the Barret M107 or the AS50. There many more new bolt action .50cal such as the: Tac-50, Barret M95 and M99, AW50, BA-50, AR-50, DSR-50 and etc.
 
Well, actually there's sniper rifles and there's sniper rifles..

Most of the autoloaders are meant for a different task than actually sniping.
The SVD Dragunov was intended as an infantry support rifle cooperating with the machinegunner, what you guys on the other side of the pond would call a designated marksman.

The big 50 Barret serves as a kind of anti-vehicle device in most outfits, capable of engaging enemy personell on longer distance, but rarely used as a snipers rifle due to the blast from the muzzle-brake being a dead giveaway of the snipers position.

And the snipers, most of them seem to prefer some kind of bolt-action rifle.
 
In the end of the day with snipers rifles I think it comes down to each persons preference. The bullet shooting out of the barrel on a semi-auto could give you away as well as the movement of doing a bolt action could as well.
 
Bolt action is much preferable,as far as my knowledge goes.Barrett.50 cal or L115A3 like high performance sniper rifles,for an instance,are bolt actions.

The later one did a good job in middle east.Provided,I have a good hope for M110 SASS,too.
 
The present generation sniper rifles pretty much overcome the shortcomings of the older semis.
Some of them, including the G 43s were actually sharpshooter pieces rather than dedicated sniper rifles.
With bolt actions you run the risk of easier detection from working the action to having to waste time re acquiring the target.
"One shot one kill" is kind of a mythological concept.
Nobody never misses-nobody.
An acquaintance, retired SF and professional shooter trains snipers under contract.
Guys come to the school believing the one shot deal.
In practice, when they inevitably miss a shot, they tend to get bewildered.
Training teaches them to overcome that and to automatically set up for a subsequent shot.
 
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