M24 Sniper Weapon System
The M24 Sniper Weapon System or M24 is the military and police version of the Remington Model 700 rifle, M24 being the model name assigned by the United States Army after adoption as their standard sniper rifle in 1988. The M24 is referred to as a "weapon system" because it consists of not only a rifle, but also a detachable telescopic sight and other accessories.
The M24 SWS has the "long action" bolt version of the Remington 700 receiver but is chambered for the 7.62×51mm NATO "short action" cartridge that has an overall length of. The "long action" allows the rifle to be re-configured for dimensionally larger cartridges up to in overall length.
The M24 originally came tapped for the Leupold Ultra M3A 10×42mm fixed-power scope, which came with a circle-shaped mil-dot glass-etched reticle. This was later replaced in 1998 by the Leupold Mk 4 LR/T M1 10×40mm fixed-power scope with an elongated-shaped mil-dot wire reticle. The rifle also comes with a detachable Harris 9–13" 1A2-LM or Harris 9–13" 1A2-L bipod unit.
The M24 SWS was to be replaced with the M110 Semi-Automatic Sniper System, a contract awarded to Knight's Armament Company. However, the Army still continued to acquire M24s from Remington until February 2010 and upgraded to the A2 and M24E1 standard in many cases, continuing to serve. The Army chose to upgrade all its M24 rifles in the arsenals to the M2010 Enhanced Sniper Rifle, with the final M24 being converted in April 2014.
Specifications
Barrel: Made of 416R stainless steel. The bore twist is 1-turn-in-11.25 inches and the rifling is five radial lands and grooves with a right-hand twist. Because of the odd number of lands, none of the lands are 180° apart, i.e. in direct opposition. This results in less bullet deformation, which produces more consistent point of impact. In 5-R rifling, the "side" of the land is cut at a 65° angle, rather than 90° in conventional rifling. This results in less barrel fouling, and more consistent point of impact, compared to conventional rifling when relatively high numbers of rounds are fired between cleaning, as might be expected in military applications.Stock: H-S Precision PST-024, the model with the fixed cheek piece, adjustable LOP and hinged floorplate. The stock secures the action via an aluminum bedding block to keep it rigid. The barrel is free floating. A twin-strut extension that pulls out of the butt allows a adjustment to length-of-pull, as well as allowing for the weapon to fit inside the M-1950 Weapon Container for Airborne Operations. This is effected by a thick wheel on a central grooved pillar for adjusting the length and a thin locking ring behind it locks the thick wheel in place. The stock is primarily made from a polymer foam reinforced with fiberglass, carbon fiber, and Kevlar to reduce weight and then painted with a heavy duty polane paint. They were rigorously tested before being approved by Remington and the military.
Accuracy: According to MIL-R-71126, 3.15.7 Targeting and Accuracy, The rifle shall achieve the dispersion set forth below when fired from a Government approved machine rest. The average mean radius shall be less than or equal to the values stated below. The minimum rate of fire for conducting this test shall be three rounds per minute.
Range / Average Mean Radius — Mean Radius expresses the average distance of all the shots from the center of the shot group. AMR averages the MR of several shot groups.
- : 1.3 inches
- : 1.4 inches
- : 1.9 inches
The actual rifle requirements for accuracy were.35 MOA from a machine rest and according to Major John Mende, this accuracy had to be maintained to 10,000 rounds. He stated, "Interesting side note was there was a 10,000 round requirement for the barrel to maintain the original accuracy. In fact after some 10,000 round tests we discovered the accuracy improved. A few barrels were tested past 20,000 and accuracy never went below the original accuracy requirement."
Maximum effective range is given as, but record shots have been made with the M24 at over. Meanwhile, the standard optical sight has a maximum elevation adjustment of.
M24 variants
XM24A1
An experimental variant re-chambered for the.300 Winchester Magnum round. It was not adopted by the US Army due to concerns that operators would not be able to acquire the special ammo. Also, the available.300 Winchester Magnum ammo that was procured sometimes misfired due to incompletely-burned propellant in the longer cartridge. Redick Arms Development further researched this concept, which eventually grew into the RAD M91A1 and M91A2. These rifles were adopted by the US Navy SEALs.M24A2
has developed an improved version of the M24 rifle, known as the M24A2. The A2 model features a detachable 5-round magazine, top-mounted and adjustable side-mounted Picatinny rails, barrel modifications designed to accommodate a sound suppressor, and an improved H-S Precision PST-026 stock with adjustable cheek height and length of pull. Existing M24s can also be converted into M24A2s, which replaces the stock and adds the new detachable magazine feed. The conversion requires a re-barreling of the weapon so it can take the OPS silencer.M24A3
Remington developed the M24A3 SWS, a variant of the M24 chambered for the.338 Lapua Magnum round and feeding from a 5-round detachable box magazine. It comes tapped for the Leupold Mk 4 M1LR/T 8.5–25×50mm Variable Power day scope. It can also use detachable front and rear Back-Up Iron Sights in an emergency.U.S. Army 2009 solicitation for an M24 reconfiguration
The U.S. Army put out a solicitation in May 2009 for reconfiguring M24 Sniper Weapon Systems currently available in Army inventory consisting of a:- Rebarreling/rechambering the SWS's barrel optimized to accommodate Mk 248 .300 Winchester Magnum ammunition.
- Replacement of existing weaver rails with a MIL-STD-1913 rail capable of accommodating both a day optic and in-line forward mounted, AN/PVS-26 image intensified night vision device.
- Reconfiguring the stock with a stock that incorporates a detachable box magazine, adjustable comb and length of pull.
- Addition of a detachable sound suppressor as well as any necessary barrel modifications required for a sound suppressor interface.
- Replacement of the existing day optic sight and rings with an Army specified variable power day optic and compatible rings.
2010 M24E1 Enhanced Sniper Rifle reconfiguration competition
In September 2010, the United States Army's Joint Munitions and Lethality Contracting Center awarded Remington a Firm Fixed Price Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity contract for the upgrade of up to 3,600 M24 Sniper Weapon Systems currently fielded to the Army pending type classification as the M24E1 Enhanced Sniper Rifle. Later, the Enhanced Sniper Rifle was classified as the XM2010. The major configuration change for this system is the conversion from 7.62×51mm NATO to dimensionally larger.300 Winchester Magnum ammunition exploiting the M24's "long action" bolt to provide additional precision and range.The M24E1/XM2010 is considered a "total conversion upgrade", by which the barrel, stock, magazines, muzzle brake, suppressor, and even the optics will be changed. Besides the rechambering and rebarreling with a 610 mm long, 254 mm twist rate hammer-forged barrel the main reconfiguration changes compared to 7.62×51mm NATO chambered M24 rifles are:
- Fitting a new chassis assembly, which maximizes the amount of physical adjustments for the sniper to provide a better user customized fit. The chassis has a folding buttstock that shortens the system for easier transport and better concealment during movement and accommodates the mounting of accessories via removable MIL-STD-1913 Picatinny Rails.
- Fitting a 5-round detachable box magazine.
- Fitting a quick-attachable/detachable Advanced Armament Corp. sound suppressor with muzzle brake.
- Fitting a Leupold Mark 4 6.5–20×50mm ER/T M5 Front Focal variable power telescopic sight featuring a 30 mm tube diameter, first focal plane Horus Vision H-37 grid system range estimation reticle and Bullet Drop Compensation.
- Applying advanced corrosion resistant coatings throughout the system.
Based on the results and feedback from troops, the U.S. Army decided in May 2011 to replace its entire fleet of M24s, ordering a total of 2,558 M2010 Enhanced Sniper Rifles. By September 2012, the Army had fielded more than 1,400 systems as part of an urgent material release. The M2010 achieved Type Classification-Standard in July 2013 and Full Materiel Release in September 2013, supporting procurement for the balance of the Army requirement. On April 25, 2014, the 2,558th M2010 Enhanced Sniper Rifle was completed.