The Firearm Blog

This poster features the Accuracy International AS50 .50 BMG rifle.

It makes a great wallpaper for your desktop. Click the image to enlarge it.

Here is a video of the rifle from ‘Future Weapons’ with some nice slow motion shots

I am going to try and feature one poster per week on this blog.

The Orlando Sentinel is reporting that the Orange County Sheriff’s Office has bought 14 Alexander Arms .50 Beowulf AR-15 rifles.

The article is obviously written by someone with no clue about firearms. For example “…the new semiautomatic, .45-caliber Heckler & Koch machine pistols.”. I can’t be sure that the journalist understood the real reason why the Sheriff bought the .50 Beowulf rifles.

The journalist claims that the rifles are for ridding the expressway of cows and exotic animals, who sometimes escape from the local theme parks, such as elephant and lion.

I do not think killing cows would be money well spent on these expensive rifles. Surely a .308 will dispatch a cow just as fast and at a longer range. They are sure to have tactical rifles in their arsenal.

(Disclaimer: I have never hunted exotic dangerous game … the following is just my uninformed opinion)

If they were really worried about dangerous game a few .375 H&H rifles would be more effective.

According to Alexander Arms and Cartridges of the World 11th edition this is how the .375 H&H and the .50 Beowulf compare

The .375 H&H also offers much greater penetration due to the smaller caliber.

I do not think the Sheriff is really planning on using his new AR-15 rifles on elephants or lions! It is most likely for use against people and vehicles.

From Alexander Arms:

The external ballistics of the Beowulf® cartridge are well suited to urban environments where the shorter range template allows for more flexible application and the large projectile energy delivered by the ammunition can disable both motor vehicles and assailants with body armor. Windscreen glass does not affect the trajectory of the bullet nor does automotive body panels.

The .50 Beowulf AR is defiantly a very nice rifle Here is a video of is being shot:

The Associated Press is reporting that an injured whale was recovered yesterday after being shot with a .50 caliber firearm. It is important to remember that the Associated Press have demonstrated little understanding of firearms in the past.

They have claimed that the whale was shot with a “.50-caliber machine gun”. I would be impressed if they can tell the difference between a .50BMG rifle (if it was in fact .50BMG and not another .50 caliber cartridge) and a .50BMG machine gun. Or if they even know the difference between a machine gun and a rifle.

However, I do find it interesting that the Makah Tribe, who are legally allowed to hunt whales, use .50 caliber rifles. I guess they may be used when a harpoon has not killed a whale and they are not able to take another shot with the it.

More here.

UPDATE: Some tribesman are being held by the Coast Guard, but not charged, over the incident. More here.