SAKO TRG 42 Sniper rifle

[Zarvan]

The Finnish SAKO TRG 42 is one of the best sniper rifles in the world



.300 Winchester Magnum .338 Lapua Magnum
Country of origin Finland
Entered service ? ?
Caliber .300 Winchester Magnum .338 Lapua Magnum
Weight (unloaded, without scope) 5.3 kg 5.3 kg
Length 1 200 mm 1 200 mm
Barrel length 690 mm 690 mm
Muzzle velocity ~ 850 m/s ~ 930 m/s
Magazine capacity 7 rounds 5 rounds
Range of effective fire 1 100 m 1 500 m


The SAKO TRG 42 is a Finnish long-range sniper rifle. It is one of the best sniper rifles in the world. It is an improved production version of the previous SAKO TRG 41. Improvements of the TRG 42 over the previous TRG 41 include a new stock design. Also this weapon was designed to handle more powerful cartridges with a maximum length of 95 mm. In 1999 the SAKO TGR 42 replaced in production the previous TRG 41. This sniper rifle is in service with at least 14 countries from all over the world, including the Finnish Defense Forces. It is mainly used by army units and special forces. Also there are some law enforcement users.

The SAKO TRG 42 is a manually-operated, bolt-action weapon. This sniper rifle is available chambered for .300 Winchester Magnum (7.62x67 mm) and .338 Lapua Magnum (8.6x70 mm) cartridges. Both versions come with a 690 mm (27") barrels. Performance of this rifle is comparable to British Accuracy International Arctic Warfare Magnum and Swiss Brugger & Thomet APR308 and APR338 The SAKO company also produces a less powerful TRG 22 sniper rifle, chambered for .308 Winchester cartridge, which is a standard NATO round.

The .300 Winchester Magnum cartridge was originally designed as a hunting ammunition. It has a flatter trajectory and significantly increased muzzle velocity, wind resistance and supersonic range than the standard NATO .308 Winchester (7.62x51 mm) cartridge. As a result it has significantly longer effective range. The SAKO TRG 42 rifle chambered for this ammunition has an effective range of 1 100 meters.

Another .338 Lapua Magnum cartridge is much more powerful. It was specially designed for military use as long-range sniping ammunition. Its effective range is comparable with that of .50 BMG (12.7x99 mm) cartridge, though the .338 Lapua Magnum develops significantly less kinetic energy and penetration. It outperforms the .300 Winchester Magnum version. The SAKO TRG 42 rifle, chambered for this ammunition, has an effective range of 1 500 meters. In some cases the .338 Lapua Magnum round can reportedly penetrate armored glass. Finnish Defense Forces' designation of this sniper rifle is 8.6 TKIV 2000.

The SAKO TRG series rifles can be easily recognized by their nearly vertical pistol grips. This sniper rifle comes with a black or green stock. The stock is fully adjustable. There is a version of this weapon with a folding stock.

This sniper rifle comes with a Picatinny-type scope rail. Various scopes or night sights can be used. There are no back up iron sights for emergency use.

A muzzle brake is proposed as an option. This sniper rifle can mount a sound suppressor.



Variants



There is a more compact version of this weapon with a folding stock. It is available with a shorter 510 mm (20") barrel. Overall length of the weapon is 1 020 mm. Also this weapon is slightly lighter. Unloaded and without scope it weights 5.1 kg. This sniper rifle is in service with Denmark, and, possibly, some other countries.

Beretta TRG 42 Sniper is a rebadged version, of the SAKO TRG-42 with a shorter barrel and folding stock. This weapon also had an integrated rail system. It was imported by Beretta to the United States. This weapon was proposed for the US Army to meet their .338 caliber Precision Sniper Rifle requirement.

SAKO TRG M10 is a modular and multi-caliber sniper rifle. This weapon was unveiled in 2011. It was specially developed for military and law enforcement use. It does not share receiver with the SAKO TRG series weapons. However by changing bolts, barrels, magazines and fore ends the caliber can be switched between .308 Winchester, .300 Winchester Magnum and .338 Lapua Magnum chamberings. This weapon can be easily reconfigured by the shooter in the field. The TRG M10 is in service with Australian special forces. This sniper rifle was also ordered by Poland.

http://www.military-today.com/firearms/sako_trg_42.htm