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Walther WA 2000

Last Updated on Tuesday, 21 July 2009 15:55 Written by Administrator Thursday, 02 July 2009 16:29

The Walther WA 2000 is a semiautomatic sniper rifle designed by Carl Walther GmbH Sportwaffen. The rifle was originally designed to be used as a target rifle. However, the rifle became very popular as a sniper rifle.

The WA 2000 used a bullpup design. This design was used because it would help in reducing the overall length of the rifle and yet retain the long barrel length needed to ensure accuracy and range of the bullet. In addition, the rifle also comes with the PV4 aiming optics which allows night vision.

The rifle was designed to use the .300 Winchester Magnum round. The calibre was chosen because of its long range and high accuracy. The rifle fires from a closed-bolt and used seven locking lugs. It feeds from a 6-round detachable box magazine.

The Walther WA 2000 was an experimental weapon. In total, only 176 rifles were manufactured. These included versions chambered for the 7.62x51mm NATO and the 7.5x55mm Swiss cartridges in addition to the .300 Winchester. Production of the rifle was completely stopped in 1988 due to high manufacturing costs.

Of the 176 units manufactured, 15 were exported to the United States. Today, the WA 2000 is a rare weapon. Because of its rarity, it can fetch up to $80,000 in the open market.

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