The Firearm Blog

Aside from the questionable name of SOCOM being applied to air rifles, I really like the styling of these new rifles. Three models will eventually be available but only the Socom Extreme is currently available to be purchased.

The SOCOM EXTREME was created for an all new level in long distance air gun shooting and hunting.

Gamo took their famous 1250 powerplant and re-tuned the beast to deliver a stunning velocity of over 1650 fps using the new PBA Platinum .177 ammo. The powerplant was matched to a precision steel, composite jacketed bull barrel which also helps reduce the larger cocking force. The precision barreled action is mated to a newly designed tactical, light weight composite stock. This specially engineered stock has a long tapered sure grip forend which leads back to pistol grip with palm swell for quick steady mounting. The buttstock features an ergonomically shaped cheekpiece which works for right and left handed shooters. Each SOCOM EXTREME air rifle is fitted with a special 3-9x50 Scope with red, green and blue illuminated glass etched reticle securely anchored by the Gamo solid one-piece mount. The composite stock reduces gun weight to a manageable 9 lbs compared to a heavier wood stock air rifle.

MSRP $399.95

SOCOM EXTREME

The SOCOM TACTICAL is the ultimate air rifle for high performance flexibility for day or night shooting. The Tactical composite stock has a custom molded forepiece and palm swell grip area for maximum control. The fully adjustable tactical comb has a raised cheekpiece and allows for an instant sight picture adjustment using the optical or the included fiber optic fixed sights. The receiver is topped with a precision 3-9x40 AR Scope anchored by a solid Gamo one-piece rail mount. The scope is fitted with a powerful, fully adjustable precision laser and light which quickly readies the SOCOM TACTICAL for night operations. The 26" barrel is made of precision rifled steel and is shrouded in a fully composite jacketed fluted polymer bull barrel. The barrel on the SOCOM TACTICAL is also fitted with the Gamo ND52, Noise Dampening Technology muzzle dampner. Combined with outstanding velocity at nearly 1300 fps with new PBA Platinum .177 ammo. The Tactical is fully capable of handling any backyard varmint incursions 52% quieter than a standard spring air rifle.

MSRP $329.95

SOCOM TACTICAL

The SOCOM CARBINE is specially configured to offer quick mounting and target acquisition. Its Gamo power plant is tuned to deliver a sizzling velocity of nearly 1300 fps with the new PBA Platinum ammo through a short, composite jacketed, precision rifled .177 cal steel barrel. The 3-9x40 precision AR scope is securely anchored to the receiver by the solid, one-piece Gamo mount. The long eye relief and brilliantly clear optic work in tandem with the special all-weather composite stock with sure-grip forend, palm swell pistol grip and adjustable comb with cheekpiece. The shooter can instantly adjust the stock for his or her comfort.

MSRP $329.95

SOCOM CARBINE

The US Military is looking for a system to replace the existing bolt-action SOF Sniper Systems M40, M24 and MK13 which are all based on Remington 700 actions.

Marine’s M40A3 Sniper rifle.

One of the key requirements for this system that differentiates it from the existing 7.62×51mm NATO and .300 Win. Mag. sniper systems is that it needs to reach out to 1500 meters with MOA accuracy. Armed forces around the world have long recognized the need for a system that can reach out further than the 7.62mm NATO but is lighter than .50 BMG rifles. Many have adopted the .338 Lapua Magnum chambered rifles to fill this niche. The .338 Lapua Magnum was originally a US Military project but it lost traction and the .300 Win. Mag. is currently used for longer range shooting. The .300 Win. Mag. lacks downrange energy and the lighter projectiles mean greater wind drift at long range (1000 – 2000 yards).

The current Precision Sniper Rifle, as at March 2009, are as follows.

1) The system shall be chambered to safely fire factory produced “non-wildcat” Small Arms Ammunition Manufacturing Institute (SAAMI) or Commercial European standard (CIP) ammunition.

This eliminates some of the fancy odd-ball caliber long range cartridges such as the .408 Cheyenne Tactical (CheyTac). The most obvious choice is the before mentioned .338 Lapua Magnum. The cartridge has been around for a while and manufactures know how to get the most our of the cartridge. Another alternative is the .338 Norma Magnum which is only coming into production this year. It is similar in length to the .338 Lapua but has a slightly shorter and fatter case so it can use heavier and longer bullets which have a higher ballistic co-efficient.

.338 Lapua vs. .338 Norma Mag. Photo from Wikipedia.

2) The action can be either manually or gas operated and available in left and right hand versions.

I think most, or all, entries will be bolt-action rifles. They are easier to make accurate, lighter and more reliable than autoloading rifles. The advantage of a semi-auto is of course rate of fire, but this is not a requirement for this weapons system.

3) With primary day optic and ammunition the system shall provide 1.0 MOA from 300 to 1500 meters (in 300 meter increments) when fired from the shoulder or an accuracy fixture in nominal conditions. This is further defined as 1 MOA Extreme Vertical Spread for all shots in a 10 round group at the stated distances.

1500 meters = 1640 yards.

The rifle is fired from a rest and 80% of the fifty 10 round groups need to be 1 MOA. Note that the MOA is measured only for the vertical spread which eliminates the effects of wind on the measured accuracy. 1 MOA spread is over 10 round groups is much harder than getting 1 MOA for a standard 3 round group!

4) Mean Rounds Between Failures (MRBF) shall be 1000 rounds.

5) The system shall have an overall length no greater than 52″ in full configuration / extended excluding suppressor with a single component no greater in length than 40″.

6) The system shall weigh no more than 18 lbs with a 12:00 MilStd 1913 rail and a loaded magazine with 5 rounds.

7) The system shall be capable of operator breakdown into major components in less than two minutes.

The barrel also needs to be able to be swapped out by the operator within 20 minutes.

8 ) The system will assemble from the major component breakdown in less than two minutes by the operator.

9) The system will assemble from breakdown with no change in weapon zero.

10) The system will have an integral MilStd 1913 rail at the 12:00 position, the rail will be capable of maintaining bore sight alignment and weapon zero while conducting routine firing combined with combat movement and operational training drills.

These are all pretty standard requirements. One other test than will be performed will be drop tests with loaded rifles. The rifles are expected to be able to be dropped 1.5 meters at various angles without firing the chambered cartridge.

Overall they seem very sensible requirements. It will be interesting to see how this competition progresses.

fluwoebers, who must be in one of the SOCOM units, has written a must-read review of the FN SCAR, both light (5.56mm) and heavy (7.62mm) models.

Reciprocating Charging Handle
I remembered to keep my thumb down most of the time, but while practicing switching back and forth between strong hand and week hand, the charging handle caught me.
My thumb slowed it down enough that it caused a FTF.
It was not painful enough with 5.56 to learn my lesson.
I did it again with 7.62. That hurt.

…

“Softness/Brittleness” of plastic
The polymer is very dense.
It is a little on the soft side, so it is not likely to crack very easily.
It is not so soft though that it bends or deforms easily.
It feels like a pretty good balance in strength and rigidity.

…

Bottom Line:
The SCAR is a good system. I’m not ready to give up my M4.
As the SCAR evolves over the next couple years, it will be a top-of-the line rifle.
I’m not convinced that it is worth the cost to purchase and train on a completely new system.

I highly recommend reading the whole review. It is very comprehensive.

Big thank you to Jay for emailing me the link to the review.