#Sass

Today’s Photo Of The Day is a photo from the U.S. Central Command that shows U.S. Marines with 5th Platoon, Charlie Company, Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Team, Central Command (or FASTCENT). As you can see, there are two spotters and snipers with the M110 Semi-Automatic Sniper System, in action during a live-fire range operation. According to the caption, FASTCENT provides expeditionary antiterrorism and security forces to embassies, consulates and other vital national assets throughout the region.

The Smith & Wesson top break revolver represented a major jump in firearms technology when it debuted in 1869.  Faster to load and unload, as well as far easier to reload while riding a horse than most other revolvers of the day, the top-break quickly became popular with lawmen, outlaws, and military forces all around the world.

The US Army’s embattled CSASS program has moved forward slightly with a sources sought notice posted to the Fed Biz Opps website, seeking manufacturers who can make many of the accessories that equip the M110A1 rifle. The notice isn’t itself for a contract, but will help determine which manufacturers are able to provide a second source production capability for CSASS accessories.

At the 2017 Association of the United States Army annual meeting, Oberndorf gunmaker Heckler & Koch had on display the latest configuration of their CSASS winning rifle, the G28E-based M110A1. The rifle is similar to the M110A1 displayed at the 2017 SHOT Show in Las Vegas, but sports a RAL8000 bronze finish (similar to the CSASS prototypes), and folding Troy back up iron sights. The CSASS has also benefited from the latest round of upgrades made to the HK416A5/A7, including a right-side bolt catch and ambidextrous magazine release. Interestingly, compared to the previous CSASS displayed at SHOT, this newest model lacks a forward assist.

Geissele has taken the step from manufacturing accessories, to making the guns themselves: The company released its new VSASS semiautomatic sniper rifle system at the Modern Day Marine 2017 industry demonstration. News of the new rifle was first broken by Soldier Systems Daily, via an article available at this link. The VSASS (which stands for Very-long-range Semi-Automatic Sniper System) is a Stoner-type direct gas impingement system built from the ground up by Geissele, utilizing very few off-the-shelf components. It sports a number of refinements, including an extended length barrel extension, hardened steel cam pin raceway, cobalt alloy cam pin, and other improvements to the operating group. Many internal surfaces are coated in the durable solid lubricant by Nano Composite Coatings, which appears to be owned by Bill Geissele. The VSASS uses SR-25 magazines, as well as Geissele’s SSA-E trigger. It weighs 12.3 pounds unloaded and without optic, according to the Soldier Systems article, with variants chambered for .260 Remington, 6.5 Creedmoor, and 7.62x51mm NATO.

The United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM) is considering a caliber change for their future semiautomatic sniper weapons systems. Although traditionally these medium range precision weapons have been chambered for the 7.62x51mm caliber common to NATO, it seems SOCOM is looking to get a little more out of them by changing over to a new 6.5mm/0.264″ caliber round. The Command is investigating two off-the-shelf options: The 6.5mm Creedmoor (6.5x49mm) and the .260 Remington (6.5x52mm). Both rounds are extremely similar, each being based on the .308 Winchester case (the Creedmoor by way of the all-but-forgotten .30 T/C) necked down. From Military Times:

Note- This article is the second portion of an earlier article that contiues the discussion of the dynamics of being a member of a Marine Scout Sniper platoon. To read that article, please click here.

At the 2017 SHOT Show, Heckler & Koch was proudly displaying their victorious CSASS entrant, now designated the M110A1 by the US Army. The Compact Semi-Automatic Sniper System competition was created to find a lighter weight, more compact sniper weapon system to replace the Knight’s Armament M110 SASS. The H&K rifle that reportedly won the contract was slightly different than the rifle on display at the show, the latter sporting the new Geissele M-LOK handguard which replaced HK’s proprietary “backwards Keymod” negative attachment handguard.

In the first two parts of this article on a new long range infantry rifle paradigm, we painted a picture of what sort of weapons would be needed to maximize the infantry’s long-range capability, in theory allowing them to achieve “overmatch” versus enemy infantry armed with existing .22 and .30 caliber weapons. We created estimates for both the cost and weight of the infantry rifle, and we also examined the problem of training soldiers to maximize their capabilities with the new longer-ranged weapons.

Recent experience in Afghanistan, coupled with concerns about the effectiveness of the M4 Carbine – and perhaps also just a general long-term swing of the pendulum – has spurred many to advocate for a new configuration of infantry weapon centered around long range fire enabled by compact, efficient ammunition firing low-drag projectiles. I am not one of these advocates, and indeed it’s no secret that I find serious flaws with this approach to infantry small arms weapons systems. Still, this idea of having a long-range sharpshooter-centric force does seem to be gaining ground, and therefore I think it would be worthwhile to take some time to go down that rabbit hole and see where it leads. Our eventual goal in this endeavor is to paint a picture of a future infantry force that lives and works with these weapons, and what compromises they have to make to reap the benefits of such powerful long-range weapons.

Henry Repeating Arms began in 1996, their name being an homage to Benjamin T. Henry, who designed the original 1860 lever action repeating rifle.  While they do not have a connection to the original New Haven Arms Company, they do make quality rifles at a quality price, and as their motto says, they are “Made in America or not at all!”  Recently, they were kind enough to send me their Henry Big Boy Silver in .45 Colt.  I was very enthused to receive the rifle for testing, as I have been trying to get into SASS shooting, and my current rifle that fit the requirements for SASS fires rather expensive ammo in comparison to the .45 Colt, and it would be nice to take only one caliber to the matches.

While I have put in many hours of square range time and attended serious training as well, I love shooting sports; they’re fun, informative, and a great way to practice.  One can also make new friends, and sports afford the opportunity to either just have fun or competitively push oneself to better one’s skills with firearms.  The love of shooting sports is a big reason why I am an IDPA RSO (International Defensive Pistol Association Range Safety Officer).  Recently, I wanted to expand my horizons and try a new challenge.  I was attracted to SASS (Single-Action Shooting Society) for a few reasons:  The focus on fun appealed to me, as well as the challenge of using “period correct” firearms, carry, and ammunition management.  Given that I am a “greenhorn” to the sport, I wanted to take an introductory course.   I have seen many people struggle when attending an IDPA match for the first time, and while I try to help them as much as possible, it can be difficult to do in large matches.  I didn’t want to be a boat-anchor at my first SASS match, so an “Introduction to SASS” course appealed to me.  As luck would have it, I would be passing by Coyote Valley Cowboys range in Morgan Hill, CA  on my travels, and they offered such a course.

Kinetic Research Group’s was for me one of the most interesting booths in the whole show. Justin, the CEO of KRG, is a delight to talk to for anyone interested in the details of small arms design. TFB’s Rusty S previously covered some of KRG’s other products, but left it to me to discuss one of their most interesting products: The FOX-42 semiautomatic precision rifle. KRG brought an early FOX-42 non-firing prototype to the SHOT Show last year to gauge interest, and apparently that paid off, since 2016 saw them bringing a fully-functional firing prototype, albeit still sporting some rapid prototyped components.

Following up on a Sources Sought released back in 2012, the US Army is moving forward with a potential acquisition for the next-generation Semi-Auto Sniper System (SASS), the aptly named “Compact-SASS” (CSASS) through a best-value contract. The current SASS is the M110, manufactured by Knights Armament.

Now how cool is this? Six young adults, ages 13-14, have been selected for the inaugural “Young Guns” program. What a great way to involve our next generation of shooters.