Hunting Handbook

What are the main similarities & differences between a hunting rifle and a military (bolt-action) sniper rifle

Let us say a modern bolt action military sniper rifle- such as the L96, used by the British military, and a hunting rifle of sufficient calibre to kill a human. What are the main similarities and differences between the two rifles (note: rifles, not ammunition), apart from the obvious stylistic ones (such as the use of polished wood or brass fittings in a sport rifle). Thanks!

Public Comments

1. the sniper rifle is more accurate
2. Not a lot, really, except that the military weapon has to be "squaddie-proof", or, more politely, "built to withstand the rigours of military use". And the sniper's weapon is often more accurate at long range, far beyond what you'd use for hunting.
3. they are practically the same. Sniper rifles tend to favor a heavier, free-floating bull barrel where as a hunting rifle will have a slimmer and lighter barrel. The actions are identical tho. The Army's M24 .308 rifle is just a dolled up version of the very popular Remington 700 bolt action hunting rifle.
4. sufficient caliber to kill a human? you could kill a guyn with a rock if you have a good enough arm, as far as the rifles go, you can buy the exact same rifle ifn a different caliber, and there isn't much difference between a consumer custom rifle, and a military sniper if you have the right setup, besides, i personally have a rifle that could outshoot a military sniper if the range was under 500 yards, and the same person shot both rifles.
5. The L96 has a thumb hole synthetic stock and is fitted with a variable power Schmidt & Bender scope. A Simrad night sight can also be fitted. A Bipod would be mounted on the fore end and a monopod on the butt of the stock. The military use 7.62mm green spot ball ammunition. The hunting rifle again could be synthetic or wooden stocked. A bipod would no doubt be fitted. Any choice of scope would be fitted and a moderator would also be fitted. The calibre is down to personal choice.
6. Depending on a specific model, the stocks; 1 wood and the other composite as the other person wrote to withstand the elements and rough handling. Barrel length, Barrel thickness, length of bolt action...long or short. May altogether be more "heavy duty" so it could be dropped and still work as expected.
7. Generally more rugged construction is seen in military weapons. Military sniper rifles also often have a bigger kick. They are designed to kill a person at over 5 times the range that hunters shoot deer at. The longest reported kill during the first gulf war was 10 times average deer hunting range. Some sniper rifles (a fifty caliber gun) can also be used to destroy vehicles and other hardware at distances of a mile or so. They can bring down aircraft and punch through concrete blocks. So essentially, a hell of a lot more power than anyone ever needs to bring down bambi.
8. A sniper is a soldier with a specialized duty, sometimes more trained in marksmanship than a regular rifleman, it is not a rifle. In the past, they often used the standard duty issued rifle and ammunition. As they could, they added telescopic optics, then selected the most accurate rifles available, then developed more specialized equipment. Often, this equipment was borrowed from the world of hunters and sportsmen. As recently as the Vietnam era, the so-called "sniper" rifle used by the US and UK was an off the shelf hunting rifle painted green. The basic rifle is not really different. They work the same way. Today, the difference lie in the accessories. Specialized military rifles sometimes have stocks that are suited to firing prone, often with pistol grips or thumbhole style. They can have bipods attached, but many hunters use these also. Scopes are specialized and usually calibrated with a specific ammunition, but their function is not really that different.
9. The main difference is the guy firing the weapon.... The rifles arent that much different..... Just becuase a guy has the same make and model of rifle that a miltary sniper has doesnt make it a sniper rifle.... If you are not in the military or not a police sharpshooter and have the same model rifle they do doesnt mean you have a sniper rifle.......... We have been hearing alot about this lately - especialy on message boards. It tends to be a lot of high school kids asking this question. I think they get the idea a rifle is a "sniper rifle" from world of warcraft or some other video game??? And thats where the confusion sets in........ What makes a rifle a hunting rifle is the hunter behind it -- and what makes a rifle a "snipers rifle" is the guy behind the rifle..... Its the same as saying this ---- lets say you get into the seat of corvette? does that make you a race car driver or the car a race car - Nope! If the same cars on a race track with a proffesional race driver in a race - then its a race car! - - - - - - Hope This Helps!
10. Sniper rifles usually have larger bolt handles and heavier barrels than hunting rifles. Heavier barrels reduce vibration slightly to make the rifle more accurate. Hunting rifles have lighter barrels because hunters don't want to carry all the weight around on an all day hunt. You can make a hunting rifle just as accurate as a sniper rifle by bedding the action and floating the barrel. Bedding means that you "seat" the action in epoxy to reduce vibration. To "float" a barrel, you sand down the barrel groove in the forestock so the barrel does not touch the forestock from the action to the muzzle. The barrel essentially free floats above the forestock. If the barrel touches the forestock, it will cause the barrel to vibrate when the rifle is fired, and that can cause flucuations in bullet flight. As the barrel heats up, the metal expands and touches the forestock in different place with every shot. This causes unpredictable bullet flight and can cause as much as a 6" -. 8" spread at 100 yards.
11. ok the basic sniper rifle used in the us army is a m-24, which is a rem 700 in a .308 cal (7.62 nato). it came in to play in 1988 replacing the m21. the m24 is a suped up 700 it has a bull barrel and the stanard 5 round internal mag. usaly these will be fitted with a adjustable trigger that can be set from 2 pounds to 8 pounds of trigger pull. The stock is made of a composite of Kevlar, graphite and fiberglass synthetic with an aluminum bedding block and adjustable butt plate. they have also started using the m-24 in .300 win mag in iraq this is the basic set up for a "soft target" bolt action sniper rifle. as for the civ model 700 usaly comes ((basing roughly off a wal-mart version of the 700 i saw last time i was in( base model)) comes in a wood stock, set trigger pull(the one i looked at had about 6lbs i belive) and a normal target barrel. this version weights alot less then the m-24. making it more prown to " shakie hand syndrome" the wood finish stalk looks nice in my opion but aluminum bedding block found in the composit stalk makes for a more stable platform. so the biggest diffs are the trigger, barrel and stock i do not have a reffernce for this but i have some not i had made from back when i was piecing my 700 into a m-24 about the barrel so i will finish by listing them and the reffernce i found them at m-24 total weight 12.3 pounds barrel info 24 in. long, 1 twist in 11.5 in., 5 lands & grooves rem 700 (based off the 308 rem 700 sps which is not a base model) total weight 7 1/4 24 in long 1 twist per 10 inch