I have used the Accuracy Int‘l AWF in 7.62 x 51mm NATO, and its bigger brother, the AW .50 (12.7 x 99mm).
The AWF (All Weather Folding) was adopted by the ADF in late 1998, hence called the SR98, the AW (Arctic Weather)has been around for over 2 1/2 yrs.
Both these rifles are used by the Australian Army, and have been ‘proven‘ in the latest theatres in the ME.
The AWF is heavier than the PH M82, but works well, and is maintenance friendly, but ADF regs state the bbl must be changed at 5,000 rds.
Finnish Lapua 7.62mm NATO match ammo is used, and was part of the pack from AI in the UK. Also a suppressor is kitted out for each AWF, and using sub-sonic ball, its ‘whispering death‘.
The AW is heavy too, and the recoil aint all that bad. Its the only 12.7mm rifle I have shot, so cant compare.
As of recent the CF was still using the weapons mentioned in the above post, but who knows if they are trialing the AI family.
Now comparing the M82 PH to the AWF is like going from VW Beetle to Corvette. I have used and worked on both.
I cant compare the Mac Bros .50, but if one can get a confirmed kill over 2,200 metres, it must be alright.
The ADF dumped the PH for many reasons. We had mod‘d them replacing the PH bbls with Tobler bbls out of Robertson, NSW, south west of Sydney.
Stainless steel w/o any iron sights, The ZF 69 optics were still used, but upgrade with a different mount. Also all parts were serialised using the last 3 of the ARN, to stop the snipers form transplating them to oterh wpns. Other things were bedded in using resins to prevent more unauthorised disassembly.
Why do I know all this? Because I was directly involved in inmplementing the mods on re-builds out of DNSDC Wksps in late 1995.
The problem with the PH made bbls was a lack of consistancy in manufacture, we were led to believe (and told) that the bbls were made at some ‘feeder‘ factory, not located in the UK (Europe or the Philippines), and the quality was not up to par. We had cut some bbls in half to confirm, and the lands and grooves were of poor quality, of which had been identified using bbl bore scopes. We could not even get a decent group at 25m. So the bbls were destroyed, but a qty of M82‘s is still held in inventory along with other misc sniping kit, such as the HK and the Stoner SR25.
It took weeks to put out just 6 rifles, with them having to be ‘run in‘, etc.
Not long after this the SOI started evaluating the AI family, with many different rifles trialed.
So, the PH M82 ‘A1‘ programme was dumped with less than 30 rifles made. It is unknown if the A1‘s were saved or destroyed, but both types may be encountered in the system.
Cheers,
Wes
