.50 Cal BMGs

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mugs

Lifer
Apr 29, 2003
48,920
46
91
Originally posted by: Chaoticpenguin666
I am going to be making some videos when I actually have the rifle. If conditions are right, I shall post them here if anyone is interested. Probably just videos of me sighting the rifle, but my roommate wishes to see what a .50 cal does to a full propane bottle 500 yards away from us. Either it will explode, or there will just be a giant hole through the middle. Either way, things of the sort will be recorded.

I assume you're going to build a fire near that propane tank? It won't ignite just from being shot.
 

SuperjetMatt

Senior member
Nov 16, 2007
406
0
0
Originally posted by: mugs
Originally posted by: Chaoticpenguin666
I am going to be making some videos when I actually have the rifle. If conditions are right, I shall post them here if anyone is interested. Probably just videos of me sighting the rifle, but my roommate wishes to see what a .50 cal does to a full propane bottle 500 yards away from us. Either it will explode, or there will just be a giant hole through the middle. Either way, things of the sort will be recorded.

I assume you're going to build a fire near that propane tank? It won't ignite just from being shot.

You can shoot it with a regular round, then follow up with a tracer.
Works great.
 

canadageek

Senior member
Dec 28, 2004
619
0
0
Originally posted by: SuperjetMatt
Originally posted by: mugs
Originally posted by: Chaoticpenguin666
I am going to be making some videos when I actually have the rifle. If conditions are right, I shall post them here if anyone is interested. Probably just videos of me sighting the rifle, but my roommate wishes to see what a .50 cal does to a full propane bottle 500 yards away from us. Either it will explode, or there will just be a giant hole through the middle. Either way, things of the sort will be recorded.

I assume you're going to build a fire near that propane tank? It won't ignite just from being shot.

You can shoot it with a regular round, then follow up with a tracer.
Works great.

or put a flare somewhere in the vicinity.
 

adairusmc

Diamond Member
Jul 24, 2006
7,095
78
91
Originally posted by: Aquaman
Originally posted by: zerocool84
Originally posted by: ivan2
what about the AWP, that is badass. couple it with a desert eagle.

Yea you can kill everyone with one shot.

Correction......... it kills everyone with one shot except Chuck Norris.

Cheers,
Aquaman

You would only get one shot, because the desert eagle is an unreliable piece of shit in real life that is not even remotely worth owning.

Real men who want a .50cal handgun buy the .500 S&W. Those with brains forget about the .500 and go with the .460 S&W
 

canadageek

Senior member
Dec 28, 2004
619
0
0
Originally posted by: adairusmc
Originally posted by: Aquaman
Originally posted by: zerocool84
Originally posted by: ivan2
what about the AWP, that is badass. couple it with a desert eagle.

Yea you can kill everyone with one shot.

Correction......... it kills everyone with one shot except Chuck Norris.

Cheers,
Aquaman

You would only get one shot, because the desert eagle is an unreliable piece of shit in real life that is not even remotely worth owning.

Real men who want a .50cal handgun buy the .500 S&W. Those with brains forget about the .500 and go with the .460 S&W

this man speaks the truth.

if you want a decent gun, buy a 1911. waaaay sexier!
 

Raduque

Lifer
Aug 22, 2004
13,140
138
106
I don't know anything about Serbu vs Armallite, or pricing on .50 rounds. All I know is I want the vids of you popping things with that .50 rifle ASAP.
 

BuckNaked

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
4,211
0
76
I would pass on the Barret, at least the M82A1... When the Army selected the M82, they were looking at it from the perspective of it being able to defeat light armor, vehicles, and other material or objects rather than as a precision sniper system. The M82 trades off some of the long range accuracy for the ability to follow up quickly with additional rounds.

As for Barretts, I would consider the 99 or the 95 as a good choice to look into, but more expensive than the AR50 or Serbu. Both the AR50 and the Serbu have good reputations and I will send you a PM with contact info for someone at Armalite who might be able to help you. The McMillan is another excellent rifle to consider, but again at a higher price point.

Gunbroker or other sources might be an alternative source as well. They are out there if you search around.

I am not going to try and talk you out of a .50, but you might want to at least give some consideration to the.338 Lapua before spending the money, but it really depends on how you intend to use it. I am looking at the Barret 98 Bravo. I think the .338 LM is an excellent round and has some strong points to consider vs. the .50...

 

BuckNaked

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
4,211
0
76
Originally posted by: mugs
Originally posted by: Chaoticpenguin666
I am going to be making some videos when I actually have the rifle. If conditions are right, I shall post them here if anyone is interested. Probably just videos of me sighting the rifle, but my roommate wishes to see what a .50 cal does to a full propane bottle 500 yards away from us. Either it will explode, or there will just be a giant hole through the middle. Either way, things of the sort will be recorded.

I assume you're going to build a fire near that propane tank? It won't ignite just from being shot.

Use an Incendiary, API, APIT or Raufoss Mk.211 round....
 

JulesMaximus

No Lifer
Jul 3, 2003
74,580
982
126
Originally posted by: Chaoticpenguin666
I am going to be making some videos when I actually have the rifle. If conditions are right, I shall post them here if anyone is interested. Probably just videos of me sighting the rifle, but my roommate wishes to see what a .50 cal does to a full propane bottle 500 yards away from us. Either it will explode, or there will just be a giant hole through the middle. Either way, things of the sort will be recorded.

Put a lit flare on either side of it first.
 

xSauronx

Lifer
Jul 14, 2000
19,582
4
81
Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
Originally posted by: Chaoticpenguin666
I am going to be making some videos when I actually have the rifle. If conditions are right, I shall post them here if anyone is interested. Probably just videos of me sighting the rifle, but my roommate wishes to see what a .50 cal does to a full propane bottle 500 yards away from us. Either it will explode, or there will just be a giant hole through the middle. Either way, things of the sort will be recorded.

Put a lit flare on either side of it first.

eh...it shouldnt take a .50 to blow through a propane bottle. arent they pretty thin? seems like any decent rifle round would just go right through it, and you dont need to be 500 yards away to be safe, i wouldnt think. seems like a lot of money to spend to just make a long shot with a larger hole but, if you have it to blow, then whatever
 

ebaycj

Diamond Member
Mar 9, 2002
5,418
0
0
Originally posted by: Chaoticpenguin666
I am in the market for a .50 caliber rifle. I was hoping for an M107 Barrett, but after seeing the price tag, I refuse to purchase a gun that is double the price of my car. The Armalite AR50 on the other hand, is more in the price range I can afford ($3400). A Serbu is also a good choice for pricing and reliability (according to sources), so I would like more opinions on this matter.

So I ask you this, what is your opinions on .50 cals? Brands vs brands? Ammo? Everything. I wish to know all I can before Monday when I get paid again because there is an Armalite BMG sitting at a pawn shop and I wish to put it on layaway, but it costs $909 of my non-refundable dollars to do so and I would like to be as informed as possible before blowing my entire paycheck on something I might regret buying (Vulcan anyone?).

If your paycheck is $909, you shouldn't be buying a $3400 .50 caliber rifle that you will never use.
 

sdifox

No Lifer
Sep 30, 2005
100,245
17,895
126
Originally posted by: Chaoticpenguin666
The Barrett M107 semi-auto magazine-fed is $11,000 whereas the Armalite AR50 is only $3,400. I could buy a Vulcan which has been nicknamed "The pipebomb" due to it's faulty mechanics for only $1,300, but I would like to survive shooting this weapon.

So an Armalite AR50 and Serbu ($2,691.99) are both within my price range.

Then your decision is simple. Buy both Serbu and AR50 and you still have money left over for spare barrels :)
 

StageLeft

No Lifer
Sep 29, 2000
70,150
5
0
Prolly best to go to a forums about guns where knowledge on them is voluminous, because here you'll have a lot of people asking you why you need to spend thousands on a .50.

Like me. Seriously, why? I can understand wanting something accurate to beyond 600 yards as you mentioned earlier, but am very interested in what the "multitude of other reasons" are.
 
Feb 10, 2000
30,029
67
91
I gotta say I find it hard to understand what possible purpose any civilian could have for a .50 cal, and if you can't really afford one I don't see why you're even interested.
 

canadageek

Senior member
Dec 28, 2004
619
0
0
because it's the magical 5-0 caliber. people go nuts for anything that has a calibre with a 5 in front of it, even if it is shit *cough*.50AE*cough*

sure, they're impractical, but its like buying a 20 foot long caddy with a 500 cubic inch motor. Its big as fuck and that makes it awesome.
 

Stg-Flame

Diamond Member
Mar 10, 2007
3,683
631
126
Originally posted by: BuckNaked
I would pass on the Barret, at least the M82A1... When the Army selected the M82, they were looking at it from the perspective of it being able to defeat light armor, vehicles, and other material or objects rather than as a precision sniper system. The M82 trades off some of the long range accuracy for the ability to follow up quickly with additional rounds.

As for Barretts, I would consider the 99 or the 95 as a good choice to look into, but more expensive than the AR50 or Serbu. Both the AR50 and the Serbu have good reputations and I will send you a PM with contact info for someone at Armalite who might be able to help you. The McMillan is another excellent rifle to consider, but again at a higher price point.

Gunbroker or other sources might be an alternative source as well. They are out there if you search around.

I am not going to try and talk you out of a .50, but you might want to at least give some consideration to the.338 Lapua before spending the money, but it really depends on how you intend to use it. I am looking at the Barret 98 Bravo. I think the .338 LM is an excellent round and has some strong points to consider vs. the .50...

Thanks a lot for the contact information. I am patiently awaiting a response from Armalite.

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
What on earth for?

My reasons are my own.

Originally posted by: ebaycj
If your paycheck is $909, you shouldn't be buying a $3400 .50 caliber rifle that you will never use.

Hmm. I seem to recall living in a country where I can do what I want with the money I make. Odd how that seems to work out.

Originally posted by: KillerCharlie
Putting something on layaway is an indication you can't afford it.

It's an indication for most people, but not for me. I have reasons to put it on layaway for now.

Originally posted by: sdifox
Originally posted by: Chaoticpenguin666
The Barrett M107 semi-auto magazine-fed is $11,000 whereas the Armalite AR50 is only $3,400. I could buy a Vulcan which has been nicknamed "The pipebomb" due to it's faulty mechanics for only $1,300, but I would like to survive shooting this weapon.

So an Armalite AR50 and Serbu ($2,691.99) are both within my price range.

Then your decision is simple. Buy both Serbu and AR50 and you still have money left over for spare barrels :)

Negative. If I had money for two .50 cals, I would settle for the Serbu BFG-50A for $6,500 instead of the single shot Armalite AR-50.

Originally posted by: canadageek
because it's the magical 5-0 caliber. people go nuts for anything that has a calibre with a 5 in front of it, even if it is shit *cough*.50AE*cough*

sure, they're impractical, but its like buying a 20 foot long caddy with a 500 cubic inch motor. Its big as fuck and that makes it awesome.

You seem rather sarcastic to this entire thread which leads me to believe that you have no girlfriend (judging from previous posts). You have no job to supply money. And you have no money in which to buy expensive and fun things such as I. Granted, not everyone finds expensive things fun, but there are four expensive items I have found extreme entertainment in: my girlfriend, my car, my computer, and my future .50 BMG.

Lastly, I finally found a dealer in my area that can get me a factory-shipped Armalite AR-50 for only $2,995. Coupled with the fees, it brings it to a grand total of $3,351.88. Going to be coming with a case and a bi-pod. So I appreciate all of the information and I would still love to hear some more input as it seems quite a few Anandtech users are avid gun enthusiasts.

Also, not to try and stray the thread, but I have been in the market for a Gerber Mk. II BA9 Armorhide knife for a few weeks and I am unable to find anyone who can order one for me. Anyone have any input on this as well? I just bought a new Buck 110 flaying knife (surgically sharpened :)) and a SOG STE combat knife. The only other knife I am interested in now is the Gerber. Hopefully something turns up.
 

BoberFett

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
37,562
9
81
Interesting.

My neighbor just flagged me down as I was pulling into the driveway so I could stop by and see his new toy. A brand new Barrett 82A1. First time I've ever seen one up close and personal. He put it together and handed it to me. Holy crap that thing weighs a ton. He said his setup with a Leupold scope and a full mag was 32lbs. And good god those 50 BMG rounds are huge.

I didn't have my camera with so I don't have any pictures, but I may go shooting with him in a couple weekends. I'll shoot a few rounds and report back.