the m24 reloads a lil faster if you dont empty the whole mag....
breaking down the bolt action sniper rifles:
Max damage on
every bolt action rifle is 100 damage up to 10 meters before dropping off.
The base damage (or minimum damage) at range for the M24, SV98, and GOL is 50 damage, and the distance where this occurs is somewhere around 64 meters. So when we consider the head-shot multiplier for these three rifles is 3.25x (that would mean a headshot at ranges 64+ meters would do 162.5 damage), you'll kill anyone with a head-shot regardless of range or armor, no magnum ammo needed.
The M95 is a bit different with its base damage which is 55 as opposed to 50, and the drop off to that base damage occurs at the same rate and distances. Its headshot multiplier is only 2.3, but still, 55 x 2.3 = 126.5, still more than enough to kill a 100% healthy enemy who is wearing body armor, and again, this is without using magnum ammo
Now when we consider that magnum ammo increases all bullet damage by 25%, that would mean the max damage is increased to 125 damage up to 10 meters before dropping off to its new base damages of 62.5 (for the M24/SV98/GOL) and 68.75. Any engagements within that range would only make a difference on armored players, because that is obviously overkill, however the bonus comes when the damage starts to drop off.
Since the drop off in damage is linear from 10 meters (max damage) to ~36meters, that means the effective one-shot (anywhere, not just the head) kill range for your average target (since most players won't be wearing armor) extends out to roughly 20 meters. The M95's one-shot kill range is a meter or two larger, but basically insignificant.
So thus far the damages of all the bolt actions are almost identical? So how are they different? Is it the hip spread? No, they're all identical when firing from the hip (relatively inaccurate with a value of 7.0 still or moving, compare that to the LMGs @ 2.5 when still and 4.0 when moving).
What about recoil? Well the M24, GOL, and M95 are all indentical with AMPs of 0.25 and KICKS of 30.0, while the SV98 has an AMP of 2.0 and KICK of 30.0. These numbers are relatively meaningless though as recoil really only matters for automatic weapons, these bolt actions will have just about perfect precision when scoped in. So again, we still have 4 virtually identical weapons...
What about reload times? This is where we finally start to see some significant variation in weapon handling: (ADD is the time it takes for the ammo count to change, and TIME is the time it takes for the reload animation to complete)
M24: ADD 2.8 seconds, TIME 5.0 seconds
SV98: ADD 2.55 seconds, TIME 4.8 seconds
GOL: ADD 3.2 seconds, TIME 4.8 seconds
M95: ADD 4.623 seconds, TIME 6.9 seconds
So while the first 3 bolt actions are virtually identical, we see that the M95 has a significantly slower reload time. This makes it less ideal for use as an offensive weapon where the reload time when in hot enemy territory could be the difference in life or death. On the flip side the SV98 is the fastest reloading (particularly if you know how to circumvent the reload animation) which makes it better for use as an offensive assault type sniper weapon.
Next up is rate of fire:
M24 = 36 rounds per minute
SV98 = 37 rounds per minute
GOL = 33 rounds per minute
M95 = 26 rounds per minute
Again we can start to see some differentiation. Much like with reload time, the faster ROF on the SV98 tilts it more towards an offensive weapon whereas the slower reload time of the M95 is more of a defensive weapon.
The last differences are the most obvious when looked for: magazine/ammo capacity and scope sights:
the M24, GOL, and M95 all have 5 rounds per mag with a base reserve of 20 rounds. The SV98 has a magazine of 10 rounds with a base reserve of 20 rounds. Again the SV98 differentiates itself as more of a closer quarters/offense oriented weapon with its superior mag size requiring less reloading in the heat of action.
Then there are the scopes:
The M24 has a relatively typical crosshair with markings that might help in making judgments for bullet drop.
The SV98 has a triangle type crosshair which will probably be looked upon by most as inferior for long distance/marksman shooting. Again we see this weapon begging to have the red dot or 4x scope put on it for closer quarters action.
The GOL has the cleanest / most simple and standard crosshair. No markings on it at all. Whats the advantage? The GOL does not move at all when standing still and scoped in - all the other bolt action snipers will have some "breathing" movement to them requiring compensation.
The M95's crosshair is similar to the M24.
So where does this ultimately leave us? Well at the end of the day, all the bolt action rifles can be played with almost identically and interchangeably with each one having a slight specialty.
Summary:
M24 - the jack of all trades, this bolty is not the worst at any one aspect but its not the best at anything either. If you're not 100% sure about how you're going to end up sniping, this is the weapon to choose.
SV98 - the clear-cut close quarters sniper. The double sized mag, the faster reload time, fastest ROF, and the default sights that encourage use of RDS or 4xACOG all add up to one mean instagibbing machine.
GOL - slower reload times and ROFs plus stable-as-a-rock aiming make this rifle the long distance king.
M95 - thus far this rifle has had stats that make it sound almost completely inferior to all the other bolt actions except for its insignificantly better base damage. So why choose this rifle? For its ability to damage light vehicles, particularly UAVs (which it can take out with just one shot) and helicopters.