1/1/11
NO 7 JUNGLE CARBINE
ENFIELD NO 5 JUNGLE CARBINE
When British and Commonwealth Jungle fighters needed a fast handling carbine for extreme conditions, they created the “Jungle Carbine”. Developed in 1944, the No. 5 was based on the sturdy and accurate No. 4 action, and chambered for the venerable .303 cartridge. Each No. 5 starts out as a hand selected No. 4 Enfield barreled action. It is cleaned, inspected and refurbished, then mated to a new modern manufactured stock. A flash hider with bayonet lug is added to recreate the original dimensions. This improves accuracy and eliminates the fabled “wandering zero”, so they outperform even the originals. The No. 5 Jungle Carbine’s lightweight, rugged construction, and fast handling have made it a favorite of collectors, guides and sportsmen worldwide for over 50 years. Peep rear sight. Will accept all No. 4 Enfield “no-gunsmithing” type mounts. Weight - 7 3/4lbs, Bbl Length - 20”, OAL - 40” Cal - .303 British.
4/14/10
TOP TEN SNIPER ALL TIMES
1. Carlos Hathcock
Even though he doesn't hold the records for most confirmed kills or longest shot, the legend of Carlos Hathcock endures. He's the Elvis of snipers, the Yeager; he's Yoda.
The highest award the Marines give for marksmanship is named after Hathcock; so is a shooting range at Camp LeJeune, N.C. In Washington, D.C. a Marine Corps library was dedicated in his honor. And a Virginia Civil Air Patrol unit decided to name themselves after Hathcock.
Hathcock, sometimes called White Feather because of the feather he wore in his hat, joined the Marines at 17. It didn't take the Corps long to realize that the dirt-poor kid from Arkansas was a gifted shot. He qualified as an expert rifleman while still in boot camp and began to win prestigious shooting competitions almost right away. But the military had more in mind for Hathcock than just winning cups; he was sent to Vietnam in 1966.
Hathcock volunteered for so many missions during his two tours of duty, that, according to the Los Angeles Times, his commanding officers had to restrict him to quarters to make him rest.
"It was the stalk that I enjoyed," he once told the Washington Post. "Pitting yourself against another human being. There was no second place in Vietnam -- second place was a body bag. Everybody was scared and those that weren't are liars. But you can let that work for you. It makes you more alert, keener, and that's how it got for me. It made me be the best."
And he was the best. Hathcock had 93 confirmed kills during his two tours of duty; the actual count may be higher. Hathcock's unconfirmed kills are believed to be in the 100s. Nevertheless, his confirmed tally was so high that North Vietnam once put a bounty of $30,000 on his head.
In the end, no bounty or enemy sniper could take down Carlos Hathcock. He died in 1999, at age 57, felled after a battle with multiple sclerosis.(Taken from military channel)
2. Simo Häyä
Finn Simo Häyä may be one of the most successful snipers ever. But don't feel too bad if you're never heard of him. Almost unknown outside his home country, Häyä used his skills during a war that most American school kids never study.
When the Russians invaded Finland during the 1939-40 Winter War, Häyä hid himself in the snow and killed more than 500 Russians in a short three-month period. He was known as the "White Death."
He took his shots the old-fashioned way, without laser sights or .50-caliber ammo. All Häyä had were his senses and an iron-sighted, bolt-action standard rifle.
In the end Finland lost the Winter War, but it was no real victory for Russia. The Finns lost 22,830 men compared to 126,875 Russians, who had an invading force 1.5 million strong.
As one Red Army general recalled, "We gained 22,000 square miles of territory. Just enough to bury our dead."(Taken from military channel)
3. Adelbert F. Waldron III
Try searching for the United States' top sniper and you get a couple of names. Carlos Hathcock; a legend, but he doesn't have the most confirmed kills. Charles Benjamin "Chuck" Mawhinney; a talented sniper no doubt, but he's not top gun either.
The real deal? Staff Sgt. Adelbert F. Waldron III. He's the one of the most successful U.S. snipers ever, with 109 confirmed kills.
A passage from Inside the Crosshairs: Snipers in Vietnam, by Col. Michael Lee Lanning, describes just how good a shot Waldron was: "One afternoon he was riding along the Mekong River on a Tango boat when an enemy sniper on shore pecked away at the boat. While everyone else on board strained to find the antagonist, who was firing from the shoreline over 900 meters away, Sergeant Waldron took up his sniper rifle and picked off the Vietcong out of the top of a coconut tree with one shot (this from a moving platform). Such was the capability of our best sniper."
Waldron is one of the few people who have been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross twice, once each for separate actions in 1969.
He died in 1995 and is buried in California.(Taken from military channel)
4. Francis Pegahmagabow
The exploits and accomplishments of World War I sniper Francis Pegahmagabow read like something out of a comic book or summer blockbuster movie.
Pegahmagabow, an Ojibwa warrior who fought with the Canadians in battles like those at Mount Sorrel, Passchendaele and The Scarpe, is credited with 378 kills as a sniper.
As if that wasn't enough, he was also awarded medals for running messages through heavy enemy fire, for directing a crucial relief effort when his commanding officer was incapacitated and for running through enemy fire to get more ammo when his unit was running low.
The Toronto Star suggests that Pegahmagabow applied the skills he honed during his childhood on the Shawanaga reserve on Georgian Bay to the war, but historian Tim Cook has another theory why Pegahmagabow and other native Canadians joined the war effort and fought so hard overseas. "They felt that their sacrifice (would) earn them a right to perhaps push for more rights in society," Cook said.
Not so for Pegahmagabow. Though he was a hero among his fellow soldiers in Europe, he was virtually forgotten once he returned home to Canada.(Taken from military channel)
5. Lyudmila Pavlichenko
When Russian sniper Lyudmila Pavlichenko was interviewed by Time magazine in 1942, she derided the American media.
"One reporter even criticized the length of the skirt of my uniform, saying that in America women wear shorter skirts and besides my uniform made me look fat, " she said.
The length of skirt probably didn't matter to the 309 Nazi soldiers Pavlichenko is credited with killing, or to the many Russians she inspired with her bravery and skill.
According to the Financial Times, Pavlichenko was born July 12, 1916, in southern Ukraine and she was a tomboy from the start. Forget playing with dolls, Pavlichenko wanted to hunt sparrows with a catapult; of course she was better at it than most of the boys her age.
When Germany declared war on Russia in 1941, Pavlichenko wanted to fight. But once she got to the front, it wasn't as easy as she thought it would be.
"I knew my task was to shoot human beings," she recalled in a Russian paper. "In theory that was fine, but I knew that the real thing would be completely different." She was right.
Even though Pavlichenko could see the enemy from where she was crouched during her first day on the battlefield, she couldn't bring herself to fire.
But that all changed when a German shot a young Russian soldier set up near Pavlichenko. "He was such a nice, happy boy," she said. "And he was killed just next to me. After that, nothing could stop me."
(Taken from military channel)
6. Vasily Zaytsev
Several of the snipers in our top 10 have been portrayed in movies, or had characters based on them, but none more famously than Vasily Zaytsev, whose record was the basis of the 2001 movie Enemy at the Gates.
You know you've made your mark on history when a famously good-looking actor, like Jude Law, plays you in the movie about your life.
Too bad the duel at the center of the movie was fiction.
Scholars and hobbyists alike have tried to puzzle out whether the duel between the ace Russian sniper and an equally regarded German rifleman ever took place. Records are spotty and conventional wisdom is that the Russian press invented the duel as a propaganda tool. They needn't have bothered.
Zaytsev's record speaks for itself: 149 confirmed kills, with an unconfirmed tally that may be as high as 400.
(Taken from military channel)
It's not out of line to say that the United States owes its independence to a sniper.
No, really. Here's how the history played out.
The Battle of Saratoga was a turning point in the Revolutionary War. And one of the major turning points in the battle was when sniper Timothy Murphy shot and killed Gen. Simon Fraser of the British army on Oct. 7, 1777.
Murphy, a rifleman in Morgan's Kentucky Riflemen, hit Gen. Fraser at a distance of about 500 yards using one of the famous long-barreled Kentucky rifles.
The United States owes its independence to yet another sniper -- not because of a well-placed shot, but because of a shot not taken.
During the Battle of Brandywine, only a few months before Murphy killed Fraser, Capt. Patrick Ferguson, had a tall, distinguished American officer in his iron rifle sights. The officer had his back to Ferguson, and the sniper thought it would be ungentlemanly to take the shot.
Only later did Ferguson learn that George Washington had been on the battlefield that day.(Taken from military channel)
Not even his wife knew that Chuck Mawhinney (not pictured here) was one of the U.S. Marine Corps' top snipers in Vietnam, before a buddy wrote a book highlighting Mawhinney's service.
The book,Dear Mom: A Sniper's Vietnam, brought to light Mawhinney's record of 103 confirmed kills in Vietnam, with 213 more unconfirmed. It's a gruesome record, one that Mawhinney was not in a hurry to claim, figuring that no one would be interested.
Mawhinney left Vietnam in 1969, after 16 months as a sniper, when a chaplain thought Mawhinney might have been suffering from combat fatigue. After a short stint as a rifle instructor at Camp Pendleton, Mawhinney left the Marines and returned home to rural Oregon.
"I just did what I was trained to do," he told The Standard. "I was in-country a long time in a very hot area. I didn't do anything special." Yeah, right. Thanks, Chuck. You're still on the top ten list. (Taken from military channel)
An angry viewer once berated us for not highlighting the achievements of the Canadian military. Shame on us. But the sniper who comes in at No. 9 would have earned his spot even if not for the viewer mail.
Canadian Cpl. Rob Furlong (not pictured here) is responsible for the farthest sniper kill ever recorded. He took out a man in an al-Qaeda mortar nest from 2,430 meters away. That's just over 1.5 miles.
Not bad for a Canadian, eh? (Taken from military channel)
After pirates failed to seize his ship, Maersk Alabama captain Richard Phillips gave himself over to the hijackers in order to ensure the safety of his crew.
For days the pirates kept Captain Phillips in a lifeboat as they attempted to negotiate with the U.S. Navy. But eventually the lifeboat ran out of gas and the pirates agreed to let the U.S. Navy attach a tow line from theUSS Bainbridge to the lifeboat.
It was a fatal mistake.
The move allowed three Navy SEAL snipers to take position on the fantail of the USS Bainbridge - just 75 feet away from the pirates.
Seasick and agitated, the pirates became more aggressive. Commanders on the scene worried that the Captain Phillip's life was inimminent danger and gave the snipers the go ahead: Kill the pirates to save the captain's life.
The seals had to choreograph simultaneous shots to take down the three pirates without killing the captain. The snipers were perched aboard a ship moving in the ocean …their targets werein a bobbing lifeboat and there was only one chance to get it right.
The snipers locked onto the heads of two pirates in the cab window. But they were unsure of the third pirate's position. The third sniper waits for a visual.
Once he gets it, they can all fire. Then, an opportunity: Seasick, the third pirate pokes his head out of the lifeboat window.
The third seal communicates - target acquired. All three snipers take their shots.(Taken from military channel)
3/30/10
H&K MSG90
The MSG90 was developed as a cost effective alternative to the PSG-1, it has the same operating system and trigger. It features an adjustable stock, but not as fancy as the PSG-1 and it weighs 3 pounds less.
H&K MSG90 (Germany)
| CALIBER: | 7.62 x 51mm NATO (.308 Win) Semi-automatic rifle. |
| MAGAZINE: | 5- and 20- round magazines |
| BARREL: | 60cm Cold forged, quenched and tempered barrel. |
| HEAVY SYSTEM OF OPERATIONS: | Recoil operated blowback bolt system. Firing from closed bolt. |
| OVERALL LENGTH: | 115cm |
| WEIGHT W/O MAGAZINE AND BIPOD: | 3,9kg |
| WEIGHT OF BIPOD: | ? |
| PRICE: | Less than the H&K Psg1 |
| SCOPE: | Can be equipped with different kinds of Day- and Night sights. |
| STOCK: | Butt stock with lengthwise adjustable buttcap and vertically adjustable cheekpiece.Handguard with T way for fixing a firing sling or mounting a bipod. |
SIG SAUER 3000
Made in Switzerland, the SSG 3000 is a extremely well made rifle. It is modular in design, and the stock is of laminated wood and ventilated. The bolt has six lugs and locks into the barrel. There is a rail under the forearm to take accessories. The rifle comes standard with a Hendsoldt scope, but the rings are standard so that can be switched out. Sig has an extremely good reputation for high quality, very accurate weapons.
| Caliber : | 7.62 x 51mm (.308 win) |
| Overall Length : | 118cm |
| Barrel Length : | 610cm |
| Weight (w/o scope) : | 5.4kg |
| Weight (w/ Hendsoldt 1.5-6x42mm) : | 6.2kg |
| Mag. Capacity : | 5 |
SIG SAUER 550
Made in Switzerland, the SG 550 is one of the few 5.56mm sniper rifles in the world. Developed from the SG 550 assault rifle, accuracy is improved by the addition of a sensitive double-pull trigger, and also a heavy barrel. A bipod is standard as is a fully adjustable stock. According to some military snipers the accuracy should be as good as the HK MSG-90 or PSG-1.
Personally I find this rifle very nice, a soft futuristic design. And it looks like it´s very accurate, and that adjustable cheek-piece seems to be outstanding in comfort and precision.
| Caliber : | 5.56 x 45mm (.223) |
| Operation : | Semi-Auto, Gas Operated |
| Overall Length (Stock Extended) : | 113cm |
| Overall Length (Stock Folded) : | 90,5cm |
| Barrel Length : | 65cm |
| Weight (w/o scope) : | 5.4kg |
| Weight (w/ Hendsoldt 1.5-6x42mm) : | 6.2kg |
| Mag. Capacity : | 20 or 30 round box |
H&K PSG-1 (Germany)
This is the weapon shown in the movie "SNIPER" with Tom Berenger.
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L96A1 (ACCURACY INTERNATIONAL AW .308) (BRITISH)
The L96A1 is the British Army designation of the standard AWC PM. The L96A1 won a British Army competition by a slight margin over the Parker-Hale M85 to become the standard sniper rifle for the British Army. The PM utilizes an aluminum frame over which is placed a high impact plastic stock. An adjustable Parker Hale Bi-Pod is fitted as standard. An upgraded version, the AW, features many minor improvements, including an easier bolt action, frost proof mechanism, muzzle brake and a 10x42 hensoldt telescopic sight. The AW is imported to the US by Accuracy International, and is for sale to the public.
Other Models in use: PM Counter-Terrorist Rifle, PM Covert Sniper Rifle, and the PM Super Magnum Sniper Rifle
Note the difference between the buttstocks.
Other Models in use: PM Counter-Terrorist Rifle, PM Covert Sniper Rifle, and the PM Super Magnum Sniper Rifle
| CALIBER: | 7,62 NATO (.308 WIN) |
| OPERATION: | Bolt action |
| LENGTH: | 115 cm |
| WEIGHT: | 6,5 kg |
| BARREL LENGTH: | 60 cm |
| MAGAZINE: | 10 or 12 rounds |
| MAXIMUM EFFECTIVE RANGE: | 800 meters |
3/12/10
HAROLD MARSHALL
| Harold Marshall | |
|---|---|
 Ken Bell Photo (PAC) | |
| Allegiance | Canadian Army |
| Years of service | Second World War |
| Rank | Sergeant |
| Unit | The Calgary Highlanders |
| Battles/wars | Battle of Normandy Battle of the Scheldt |
| Awards | 1939-1945 Star 1939-45 War Medal Defence Medal Canadian Volunteer Service Medal with Clasp France-Germany Star |
Harold A. Marshall was a Canadian scout and sniper sergeant who served in theSecond World War with the Calgary Highlanders' Scout and Sniper Platoon.
On 30 January 1942 the Hamilton Spectator mentioned him in an article about ongoing training simulations the Highlanders were engaged in at an undisclosed location in England.
He was wounded on 15 December 1944.
The well-known photograph shown here was taken by Army photographer Ken Bell of the Canadian Army Film and Photo Unit near Fort Brasschaat in Belgium in September 1944. He is carrying a Lee-Enfield No. 4 Mk 1 (T) and wears a modified version of theDenison smock. Other equipment includes a No. 36M grenade and a camouflage face veil worn as a head covering. The handle of a Kukri can be seen above his belt at his left side.
In 1973, he was profiled again for Bell's commemorative book Not in Vain, which showed him as a curling enthusiast back in Calgary.
JOSEPH ARTHUR GREGORY
Corporal Joseph Arthur Gregory was a Canadian sniper during both the First and Second World Wars. He concealed his age and joined the army at 15. He told friends he developed his later talent for sniping as a boy when he hunted in Saskatchewan. He had the use of a camera during his action in World War I and had a large collection of photographs documenting the horror he witnessed.
After his service as a sniper in France during the First World War, Gregory settled in Calgary, Alberta with his wife and worked as a labourer. Upon the outbreak of the Second World War, he re-enlisted with the newly-formed South Saskatchewan Regiment on 7 September 1939 inWeyburn, Saskatchewan.
Credited with several kills, he participated in the Dieppe Raid, where he lost an eye to a ricocheted bullet.[1] His actions earned him the Military Medal "in recognition of gallant and distinguished services in the combined attack on Dieppe". Attached to the Battalion Headquarters, Gregory had been deployed four times to find enemy snipers shooting into the headquarters.
He became a cause celebre after his return to Canada and was employed in Canadian Army recruiting.
In the mid 1950's he worked at the RCAF base at Tofino BC and remained in the Tofino area for the rest of his life. He died sometime between the late 1950's and early 1960's. At Tofino he was an avid duck hunter and fly fisherman and taught many people these skills. He was a kind and gentle man and was well liked by everyone who knew him.
SULO KOLKKA
Sulo Kolkka (dates of birth and death sometimes reported December 20, 1904 - August 21, 1988) is most likely a fictional character, who is said to have been a Finnish sniper during World War II, with over 400 confirmed kills.
According to some stories, Kolkka was born in Säkkijärvi, South Karelia and died in Kangasala. Kolkka is often reported to have killed over 400Red army soldiers and officers during 105 days of the Winter War. As such he would be the second deadliest sniper of the Finnish army in World War II, after Simo Häyhä.
His name is not mentioned in Finnish Defence Forces archives, newspapers or magazines of the era. His name is hard to find even in post-war fictional war literature, and there exist no photographs of him. When compared to legendary real-life sniper Häyhä, whose name was used excessively for promotional purposes, it is reasonable to presume that there was no sniper named Sulo Kolkka. In addition, Häyhä's actions and Kolkka's described deeds during the war carry a great resemblance.
However, there was a nationally fairly well-known war correspondent, Sulo "Simeoni" Kolkka, who sometimes reported of Simo Häyhä's deeds to other domestic and foreign war correspondents. It has been assumed, that a foreign journalist mixed the names of the sniper and the reporter, thus giving birth to a legend without a base in reality. Kolkka becomes another legendary sniper apocryphal.
SIMO HAYHA
| Simo Häyhä | |
|---|---|
| December 17, 1905 – April 1, 2002 (aged 96) | |
 Simo Häyhä in 1940 with his jaw deformed from an enemy bullet. | |
| Nickname | White Death |
| Place of birth | Rautjärvi, Finland |
| Place of death | Hamina, Finland |
| Allegiance |  Finland |
| Years of service | 1939–1940 |
| Rank | Second Lieutenant |
| Unit | Infantry Regiment 34 |
| Battles/wars | Winter War |
| Awards | 1st Class Medal of Liberty |
Simo Häyhä (December 17, 1905 – April 1, 2002), nicknamed "White Death" (Russian: Белая смерть, Belaya Smert; Finnish: Valkoinen Kuolema; Swedish: den Vita Döden) by the Red Army, was a Finnish marksman. Using a standard iron-sighted, bolt action rifle in the Winter War, he has the highest recorded number (505) of confirmed kills in any major war.
EARLY LIFE, WORLD WAR II SERVICE
Häyhä was born in the municipality of Rautjärvi near the present-day border of Finland and Russia, and started his military service in 1925. Before entering combat, Häyhä was a farmer and a hunter. His farmhouse was reportedly full of trophies for marksmanship.It was during the Winter War (1939–1940), between Finland and the Soviet Union, that he began his duty as a sniper and fought for the Finnish Armyagainst the Red Army.
In temperatures between −40 and −20 degrees Celsius, dressed completely in white camouflage, Häyhä was credited with 505 confirmed kills of Soviet soldiers,- 542 if unconfirmed deaths are included.The unofficial Finnish frontline figure from the battlefield of Kollaa places the number of Häyhä's sniper kills over 800.A daily account of the kills at Kollaa was conducted for the Finnish snipers. Besides his sniper kills, Häyhä was also credited with over two hundred kills with a Suomi KP/-31submachine gun, thus bringing his credited kills to at least 705.Remarkably, all of Häyhä's kills were accomplished in fewer than 100 days.
Häyhä used a Finnish variant, M/28, of the Soviet Mosin-Nagant rifle (known as "Pystykorva" rifle, meaning "spitz"), because it suited his small frame (5 ft 3 in/1.60 m). He preferred to use iron sightsrather than telescopic sights to present a smaller target (the sniper must raise his head higher when using a telescopic sight), to prevent visibility risks (a telescopic sight's glass can fog up easily), and aid concealment (sunlight glare in telescopic sight lenses can reveal a sniper's position). Another tactic used by Häyhä was to compact the snow in front of him so that the shot wouldn't disturb the snow, thus revealing his position. He also kept snow in his mouth so that when breathing he wouldn't reveal his position.
The Soviets tried several ploys to get rid of him, including counter snipers and artillery strikes. On March 6 1940, Häyhä was shot in the jaw during combat by a Russian soldier. The bullet tumbled upon impact and left his head. He was picked up by fellow soldiers who said "half his head was missing". He regained consciousness on March 13, the day peace was declared. Shortly after the war, Häyhä was promoted straight from corporal to second lieutenant by Field Marshal Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim. No one else has ever gained rank in such a quick fashion in Finland's military history.
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