Over the last 15 or so years, the sniper rifle in both concept and rifle has changed.It was not until the Vietnam War where a semiautomatic sniper rifle based on the M14 rifle was introduced. However, it did not perform as well as the bolt action counterpart and required a full time gunsmith to keep it working. So the semiautomatic rifle was in limited use with the standard still being the bolt action sniper rifle.

However, in the late 1950s a rifle was designed by Eugene M. Stoner at ArmaLite, Inc. called the AR-10. ArmaLite was a division of Fairchild Engine and Aircraft located in Hollywood, California. This revolutionary rifle was truly “Tomorrow’s Rifle Today,” that was more true than anyone knew back then. Although it never had a chance to compete head-on with the M14 for the next U.S. infantry rifle due to Army politics, as well as the deep rooted thought of a rifle having to be made from steel and wood, the AR-10 did get noticed. During its limited testing it was known to be the most accurate auto loading rifle made as said by the testers from Ordnance Corps. Limited numbers of AR-10 rifles were manufactured in the Netherlands by Artillerie-Inrichtingen. They were manufactured for Dutch Army trials as well as sold in limited numbers to some other countries including, Sudan, Cuba, Italy, Guatemala and Portugal. As predicted, the M14 was adopted and the AR-10 was tossed in the Ordnance Corps scrap heap. The requirement came down to scale the AR-10 down to a .22 caliber and the AR-15 was born. The rights were sold for the AR-15 as well as the AR-10 to Colt’s Patent Firearms Manufacturing Company. Colt went on to produce the AR-15 but ignored the AR-10 design. That was left for other companies to capitalize on. To trace the AR-10 lineage to today’s most advanced sniper rifle we must skip ahead nearly 30 or so years ahead to 1991.

In November of 1991, a Mission Needs Statement was drafted for an Enhanced Sniper Support Team Weapon (SSTW). This was written by Lt. Col. David Lutz while serving as the Program Manager for Infantry Weapons at MARCORSYSCOM at Quantico, VA. This documentation was an effort to restart a cancelled Designated Marksman Weapon program (DMR) based on the M14 which could not be made to do all the things needed in a logistically supportable package acceptable to the Fleet Marine Forces. Its requirement document was weak because it totally lacked objectivity in doing a mission analysis or seeking other viable solutions. At the time, the current SSTW was the M16A2 rifle. This weapon supported the M40A1 sniper rifle in the two man scout sniper team. The M16A2 SSTW was used to engage close-up targets and provide rapid fire suppressive fire if needed. Some noted deficiencies were the M16A2’s poor interface with the soldier when having optics mounted, including night vision. The current issue M855 ball ammunition did not meet the accuracy specifications of a SSTW.

The enhanced SSTW would fill the role of a 0 to 600 meter intermediate range sniper rifle. It would have ammunition interchangeability with the M40A1 7.62x51mm sniper rifle and it would have the ability to mount a sound suppressor. Optics would be mounted in-line with the shooter’s eyes for a comfortable mount. This rifle will also have to overcome current problems with the unit, direct, general, and depot support problems (availability and maintainability) long associated with the hand-built and Marine Corps customized M40A1.

Lt. Col. Lutz recalls that he knew of (5 each) Dutch NATO AR-10s that were in a bunker at Picatinny Arsenal from when he was stationed there during 1980-83. So he had one of his successors, USMC Liaison Officer Maj. Dody Knootz, pick out one that shot the best and “temporary loan” it to them at Quantico. Several modifications were made with the most significant being the carrying handle cut off and a weaver rail attached to the upper receiver. The AR-10 had some of the improved M16A2 components added to it including the pistol grip and handguards. All this was to make it look like and use A2 service rifle parts and training. Additionally, they removed the AR-10’s faux muzzle, which incorporated a grenade launching spigot, exposed its skinny barrel and threaded muzzle. Lutz recalls sending the upper to Phil Seberger to have a suppressor made & fitted to it.

As recalled by Lutz, as a concept demonstrator it was a success. “When my general came out to fire it he brought with him his Australian Army Liaison Officer, a full colonel. My general was reluctant to fire the weapon as I presented it to him, and handed if off to the Australian Colonel. Offhand, the Colonel hit a steel gong at 100 yards with 20 of 20 shots (suppressed). When he handed the rifle back to my general, he said “General, this is the finest rifle I have ever fired.” When the General handed the rifle back to me, he said “Dave, you have a program.” I guess the rest is history…” Though the concept was sound, the Marines or big army were not ready for a semiautomatic sniper rifle, at least not yet. So the AR-10 lay dormant once again until the early 1990s. Even though the original DMR program failed, the STSW maintained life in the requirement and allowed Rifle Team Equipment builders at Quantico to produce more prototype M14 based variants as “interim measures.” This eventually took on a “life of its own,” and an M14 based program eventually found traction as the M39 Enhanced Marksman Rifle (EMR). However, the M39 is one of the weapons being replaced by the Marines recent purchase of M110s. The M110 was inherently able to meet the STSW requirement for mounting of Night Vision without lose of zero, sound suppressor integration, M16 ordnance maintenance and training commonality, supply system commonality and cross-service weapon commonality.

The name Eugene Stoner, although not as well known as Browning, is just as significant in the history of the gun. Stoner’s design is the longest service rifle in U.S. military history. During Stoner’s ArmaLite days his goal was to develop 7.62x51mm weapons. He was very fond of his direct gas system. After the M14 was selected, the future was only in the smaller caliber round so Stoner went on to develop other rifles to fire the 5.56mm cartridge including the AR-18 and the Stoner weapon series. He never quite forgot his AR-10. In the early 1990s, Stoner went to work with C. Reed Knight, Jr., the president of Knight’s Armament Company. The union spawned the rebirth of the AR-10. This would be the SR-25 (Stoner Rifle-25 (15+10)). This rifle would be an AR-10 but would take on the advancements of the M16A2 rifle and maintain 60% parts compatibility.

Released in the early 1990s, the SR-25 Match Rifle was equipped with a 24-inch Remington 5R match grade barrel – the same barrel blanks used on the M24 sniper rifle. The heavy barrel was free floating with a fiberglass handguard. The rifle was equipped with a flat top upper receiver with the Mil-Std 1913 rail and the receivers were made from aluminum extrusions. The rifle was equipped with a 2-stage match grade trigger. The bolt carrier group kept with the original AR-10 in that it was chrome plated and it also sported the captive firing pin retainer pin. These were not mass produced rifles. The uppers and lowers were mated together and had matching serial numbers to identify them. They were specifically designed around the 168gr OTM Match cartridge. Using this factory load, the ogive of the bullet set right on the rifling. This is something match shooters want to accomplish due to not wanting the bullet to “jump” into the rifling thus maintaining control of the projectile right from the moment of chambering. The original rifles used the standard “waffle” pattern 20-round magazine and later a steel magazine that looked more like an M16 20-round magazine in appearance. The SR-25 was sold initially through commercial channels that funded R&D. Every SR-25 was test fired at the factory and provided with a target. Knight guaranteed that this rifle would fire 1 MOA or under with factory ammunition. Gene Stoner would work with Knight up until his death in 1997.

The SR-25 quickly gained its reputation for precision accuracy and reliability and its versatility and benefits were appreciated right away by the special operation forces. SOCOM liked the idea of having a semiautomatic rifle that held 20 rounds of ammunition and rivaled the M24 and M40A1 bolt action rifles. They also liked that you could engage multiple targets in less than half the time they could with a manual bolt action rifle.

After more than 40 years, the AR-10 would have its day. In May of 2000, the U.S. Navy and SOCOM adopted the SR-25 as their new Mk 11 Mod 0. This would be follow by another contract in 2007 for 9.9 million dollars with the need from the Global War On Terrorism. The Mk11 had some departures from the original design. Designed to meet the SOCCOM requirement, the rifle was designed to fire the M118 and M118LR match grade 7.62x51mm NATO ammunition. The Remington barrel was replaced with an Obermeyer barrel and was shortened to 20 inches and equipped with a mount for a quick detachable sound suppressor also developed by Knight’s Armament Company. The 11.35-inch Rail Accessory System free floating handguard provided quad Mil-Std 1913 rails enabling attachment of any given number of accessories including night vision, lasers, tactical lights and bipods. The standard M16A2 stock and pistol grip are used for parts commonality. A flip up front sight was added to the gas block as well as KAC’s fully adjustable back-up iron sight was added. The rifle was equipped with 20-round magazines, a Leupold Vari-X mil dot scope with detachable rings and a Harris bipod. The Mk11 weighs 15.3 pounds unloaded and has an overall length of 45.4 inches. The Mk11 would see action with U.S. Special Operations troops all over the world. The weight of the complete Mk11 Mod 0 with the Leupold 3.5×10 scope & SIMRAD adapter, bipod adapter with LM type S Bipod is 13.7 pounds.

Enter the M110 SASS (Semi Automatic Sniper System)

The success of the Mk11 was undeniable and spread to the other branches of the military – the sniper units in particular. Seeing the benefits in September of 2005, Knight’s won the contract for the M110 SASS rifle. The M110 was to replace the M24 bolt action sniper rifles in the U.S. Army. The M110 trials had many submissions including ArmaLite, Remington and DPMS Panther Arms. It would not be until April of 2008 that the M110 would see its first combat action with U.S. Army snipers from Task Force Fury in Afghanistan. During the early M110 period, the Marines purchased 180 XM110 variants they designated Mk11 Mod 1 and then in 2010 ordered 803 M110 rifles.

The M110 has many similarities to the Mk11 Mod 0, however with many enhancements. . The stock on the M110 is adjustable for length with a dial on the rear allowing for the length to be increased or decreased as desired. The stock has one moveable sling swivel mount on the bottom rear plus two QD mounts on the front of the stock on each side. The receiver is manufactured from an aluminum forging and incorporates fully ambidextrous selector lever, bolt catch and magazine release. A button right above the magazine catch on the right side of the receiver is the ambi-bolt release. This allows the right handed shooter to release the bolt without his hand ever leaving the pistol grip. On the left side of the receiver under the bolt catch is a button to release the magazine for a left handed shooter. The trigger is Knight’s 2-stage match trigger, which is exceptional for a sniper rifle.

The upper receiver utilizes the new URX (Upper Receiver Extending) free floating rail with an integral folding front sight. This saves space and makes for a dependable back-up sight. The bottom of the handguard is removable for cleaning. Quad Mil-Std 1913 rails allow attachment of any accessory imaginable. The top rail is continuous for adding thermal, night vision and scopes. The handguard comes with three KAC rail protectors that allow the rifle to be shot in a normal shooting position. It is also equipped with a Harris Type S bipod. The 20 inch Obermeyer heavy barrel has 5R grooves with a 1 turn in 11 inch twist that optimizes the 168 and 175gr match bullets of the M118 and M118LR ammunition. The M110 barrel has an A2-style compensator attached to the end. The pinned-on gas block has a Mil-Std 1913 rail on top of it. The M110 is a self-regulated direct gas operated rifle. The upper receiver is manufactured from a forging and now has an integrated fired cartridge case deflector. Early rifles, due to the upper being made from an extrusion, had the fired cartridge case deflector attached to the rail as a separate piece.

The bolt carrier group follows in the tradition of the original AR-10 in that it is chrome plated making for ease of cleaning. The bolt carrier has a captive firing pin retainer pin that prevents it from being lost during cleaning. The bolt utilizes a 1-piece gas ring that is much more durable than the standard 3-ring set. The extractor and, in particular the spring, have been enhanced since the inception of the rifle.

The M110 is packed with four 20-round and four 10-round magazines and pouches. The M110 can also use the Magpul LMag as well.

The optic used is the Leupold 3.5×10 Illuminated Reticle SASS scope with .5 MOA elevation clicks and 30mm SASS mount manufactured by Knight’s. The shooter can adjust the brightness of the reticle to suit the lighting conditions he faces. The scope is provided with lens covers.

The SASS also is equipped with a Knight’s Armament Company sound suppressor. The suppressor interfaces with two vertical slots cut on both sides of the gas block. There is an alignment pin on the underside of the gas block that prevents improper installation. The suppressor has a decibel reduction of -28dB.

Additional accessories include an operator’s repair parts kit that includes scope ring cap screws, bolt rings, extractor assembly, spring, pin and buffer, cam pin and firing pin. Am optics cleaning kit is provided and a torque wrench for the scope mounts. A complete cleaning system is provided as well. This includes an Otis DMR/M14 7.62 cleaning kit, Dewey rod and bore guide, multiple brushes, rod ends, pipe cleaners and swabs. Cleaning patches a bore snake and CLP is provided as well. A sling is provided as well. All this is provided in a large Hardigg box that is hermetically sealed with a pressure release valve.

The ammunition used in this test and evaluation firing was the M110 Silver State Armory (SSA) M118LR ammunition. There were 200 rounds fired with the barrel being cleaned every 10 rounds. The range was 100 meters and the rifle shot consistently sub-MOA. The best group was 5 rounds in a 1/2 inch group. The average was 3/4 inches. This is accuracy of a match bolt action rifle. Silver State Armory ammunition is match grade and they manufacture their own brass cartridge cases and blend their own powders to the particular load. Additional rounds of the 168gr OTM ammunition were fired with the same results as the M118LR.

It this shooter’s opinion there is no bolt action rifle out there that can beat the M110 on accuracy, speed and firepower. A sniper with a M110 can easily engage the same number of targets in less than half the time a well trained sniper can with a bolt action rifle. The suppressor makes it that much better: less noise, less invitation to reveal your position and no affect on accuracy. As expected, no malfunctions of any sort were encountered with the M110.

The M110 has a weight of 12.82 pounds equipped with iron sights, bipod adapter and scope. With M118LR ammunition the muzzle velocity is 2,571 feet per second. The overall length of the M110 is 40.5 inches with the stock at its shortest setting. The sound suppressor only adds 1.62 pounds to the rifle. The maximum effective range is 875 yards and is subjective to the skill of the shooter.

It is most unfortunate Gene Stoner did not live to see his AR-10 finally get into the U.S. inventory and equip the most elite snipers this world has ever known. He was way ahead of everyone in the late 1950s; they just did not have the vision to see it. Gene Stoner’s legacy has been the defense of this country and allies for nearly 50 years and being one of the most brilliant weapons designers of all time. Thanks to Reed Knight, Stoners vision was realized, produced and reintroduced to the U.S. military. Combining the genius of Gene Stoner with Knight’s technical and manufacturing abilities of KAC, the AR-10 will be with us for another 50 years.

When one hears the name Knight’s Armament Company (KAC) and/or their president’s name, C. Reed Knight, Jr., one automatically thinks of world class quality and ingenuity. The out of the box thinking has made KAC a defense contractor to be reckoned with; one that is known to supply our most elite special operations forces. The downside is that if you are not military, you waited a long time to get any of KAC’s high end weapons. When the company started out with its development of the renowned SR-25, development was funded through commercial sales. KAC has never mass produced any small arm as attention to detail and strict quality control prohibit this. Every SR-25 that leaves the factory is provided with a test target showing it fired less than 1 MOA prior to it leaving the factory. When news of a new 5.56mm rifle that KAC was introducing was released, it was anticipated that this weapon was going to be in a class all its own. Reed Knight was not just going to come out with a standard black rifle with his name on it – the rifle would be in a class by itself: and we were not disappointed.

As of this writing, the market is awash with black rifles. Nearly every major manufacturer has their own derivative of the black rifle with most M4-type clones with standard features. Relatively few of these weapons are combat grade weapons. Most are made specifically to cater to the commercial market where price is a concern amongst others. However, for those who stand ready to make combat reliable weapons, severe attention to detail, stringent quality control and relentless pursuit of ways to improve the weapon systems are constantly sought. Few manufacturers truly step up to the plate to build combat reliable weapon systems. The cost and facility needed to accomplish such a task are cost prohibitive for many manufacturers.

The SR-15 E3 is very unique in the world of black rifles from muzzle to stock. When designed, the concept was taking the best and making it better. Prior to release, KAC looked at existing weapon systems and looked at the critiques and took them into consideration. They examined the accessories operators were buying to make their weapons more effective and built many of them into their new rifle. With KAC’s involvement with Special Operations soldiers they understood the needs of the operators.

Starting with the barrel, the 16 inch barrel is chrome plated and hammer forged. Many within the SOCOM community feel that hammer forged barrels have longer service life than conventional button cut rifled barrels. They have the Mil-Spec 1/7 inch twist so the barrel will handle any projectile up to 80 grains that could be fed to it. The barrel is free floating in the KAC URX (Upper Receiver Extending) handguard. The URX has quad Mil-Std 1913 rails with a removable lower handguard. The lower handguard is retained by a plunger that is located at the bottom rear of the rail and can be depressed with a bullet tip or suitable tool. The lower handguard is secured (tightened) by two screws, one on each side of the rail. The two screws must be removed before depressing the plunger to remove to lower handguard. There are five integrated sling swivel mounds located on the URX. Two on the front side rails, two on the back side rails and one on the front of the bottom handguard. There are also numerous points that a KAC Sling Swivel Stud Assembly can be installed. Additionally integrated into the URX is a folding front sight. This Integrated Micro-Adjustable Folding Front Sight can be adjusted by hand by a dial. Neither bullet tip nor front sight adjustment tool is needed. The front sight is actuated by pushing inward on a button on the left side of the sight. The front sight post is very unique as well being extremely narrow and round. This is extremely beneficial and will increase accuracy by having a more precise aiming point. The sight is protected by “rabbit ears” to prevent damage. When folded, it has stop notches so optics or accessories can be attached over it.

The SR-15 E3 is provided with a 600 meter adjustable folding rear sight. This is one of the few Back-Up Iron Sights (BUIS) that are adjustable for windage as well as elevation. Of course, any BUIS can be used. Also provided with the rifle for examination was the new line of Micro Sight assemblies. The first is the 600 meter fully adjustable micro sight assembly (KAC part number 25650). This is a smaller and more compact version of the standard one (KAC part number 98474). The other is the 300 meter micro sight assembly (KAC part number 25475). This is a smaller and more compact version of the standard adjustable for windage only (KAC part number 97082). The micro sight assemblies were introduced at the 2009 SHOT Show.

The gas system has been altered from the conventional M4 carbine by utilizing a mid-length gas system. The gas port is placed in between the carbine and rifle gas tube lengths. This gives more dwell time (bolt remains closed longer allowing residual pressure to drop, which allows the cartridge case to contract more before extraction) thus increasing extraction reliability and durability. The URX used on the SR-15 E3 is specifically designed to accommodate the mid-length gas system.

The bolt carrier is a standard M16/M4 carrier with a well staked carrier key. Knights usually fully chrome plates the entire bolt and bolt carrier as their trademark. The SR-15 bolt carrier only had standard chrome plating on the inside of the bolt carrier and carrier key. The outside of the bolt carrier for the SR-15 is the standard Mil-Spec manganese phosphate finish.

The bolt on the other hand is all new. Knight’s were of the mindset to build an improved carbine and to do so would require actual improvements to correct deficiencies. This means the priority is on reliability and durability, not interchangeability. The multi-lug improved E3 bolt is just that. USSOCOM had complained of bolt breakage as the bolts would wear out and more than often they would break at the cam pin slot. Knight’s realized that the only way to increase that strength was to have more material in that area; so that is exactly what they did, by decreasing the diameter of the cam pin allowing more material on the bolt. There is a reduction in the diameter of the firing pin that was the result of creating a solid material recess for the dual extractor springs that astride the firing pin hole. What this adds up to is significant increase in service life of the bolt. Another issue addressed by SOCOM was failures to extract. This was mainly due to worn out extractor springs or lack of use of the newer generation gold springs. The solution was to add a rubber O-ring around the extractor spring assembly. Knight’s took an entire new approach. Rather than band-aid the problem, they created a completely new ejector. The extractor has a “lobster tail” configuration and utilizes two extractor springs instead of one – similar to Karl Lewis’ enhanced bolt. These differ by another major design change by Knights. They moved the location of the extractor pivot pin from the rear quarter to the center. Combine the two extractor springs with the leverage of having the pivot point in the middle you have a major increase in extractor force. A dirt groove was added right behind the extractor claw as well to give dirt a place to go rater than on the extractor claw. Additionally, the locking lug geometry has been changed. The corner edges from the lugs have been rounded off to increase the cross sectional area of the lugs, which increases the strength of the lugs. The bolt lugs are a common failure area of the conventional square lug bolt lugs.

The lower receiver has all been reworked as well. There are and have never been any “stock” weapons to come out of Reed’s factory. Starting at the rear, the LMT SOPMOD stock is used along with a 6-position receiver extension. The stock has a triangular cheek weld along with two removable battery compartments that are water resistant. Also, there are two Integrated Sling Swivel Mounts for the right and left side and a removable rubber buttpad. The lower receiver also has two Integrated Sling Swivel Mounds on the receiver right behind the rear takedown pin. This is a KAC innovation and has not been done in a lower receiver before. These points are preferred by those who like the one-point slings. Moving forward is the KAC ambidextrous selector lever that is not just for south paws as depending on your tactical position you may be holding the rifle in your left hand. Another major innovation by Knight’s is the ambidextrous bolt and magazine catch. The bolt catch is integrated into the lower receiver and is located just above and behind the magazine release button on the right side of the receiver. This enables a right handed shooter to be able to actuate and close the bolt with his trigger finger. Both the magazine and bolt release can be actuated by the trigger finger. The ambidextrous magazine release button is integrated into the lower receiver and is located on the left side right in front of the trigger guard. The ambidextrous magazine release button is easily actuated by the left handed shooters trigger finger. The trigger guard has been redesigned to accommodate a gloved trigger finger and is of Knight’s own design. Like the standard trigger guard, it can be hinged down by depressing the detent. The trigger itself is not stock either and is KAC’s proprietary two-stage trigger. The trigger breaks at 4-1/2 pounds and may be adjusted for as little or more creep and desired.

The sample rifle came with three KAC rail protectors, a vertical pistol grip and one Mil-Spec Okay Industry magazine was provided. That magazine was not stock either and was equipped with a new KAC magazine follower. The follower is identified by its white color and KAC written on the end. This is an anti-tilt follower, which is another reliability enhancement.

The fit and finish of the rifle was superb as what one comes to expect from Reed Knight. It weighed in at a light 6.75 pounds unloaded and measured at 33 inches in length with the stock closed and 36.25 inches with the stock fully extended. The lightweight was extremely surprising considering the enhancements from the basic design. The whole package came in a large black polymer case.

In testing the rifle a few things were added. There was only one thing left this author could think of to enhance the reliability of this rifle even more than KAC already has: that was to feed it with Magpul PMags. Based on this author’s experience, it is the finest magazine made for the black rifle. The PMags with the MagLevel (window) were used. The chosen optic was the Aimpoint CompM4 and 3X magnifier.

The ammunition used in test firing the SR-15 E3 was provided by Silver State Armory (SSA). SSA recently moved into a larger state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Packwood, Washington. SSA is known for producing high quality match grade tactical and target ammunition and is also one of the few American companies that produce various armor piercing ammunition for law enforcement/military use. The particular ammunition used for this test was 300 rounds of their 5.56mm M193 Ball. This ammunition is actually 5.56mm and loaded in cartridge cases manufactured by Silver State Armory. Accuracy testing was done with Silver State Armory 5.56mm 77gr Sierra OTM (SSAA10075-77Sierra).

When one takes a Knight’s Armament Company weapon to the range, the bar is raised. High expectations are present and when firing the SR-15, there was no disappointment. The rifle was tested on a brisk winter upstate New York afternoon with a chilling 12º F. There were no malfunctions of any kind during testing. In all, more than 500 rounds were fired. The SR-15 shot continuous 1 MOA groups at 100 yards with both Silver State Armory 77 grain OTM and 55 grain FMJ ammunition. The Aimpoint CompM4 with the 3x magnifier worked out extremely well for this distance. Dialing the intensity of the dot down so it did not overpower the size of the bull’s-eye made all the difference. The rifle may serve well as a fighting carbine or a short range containment rifle. It has the reliability and the accuracy to accomplish both tasks.

Knight’s has put out a world class black rifle, one which sets a new standard as to where the black rifle can go and how much more can be done with this timeless design. After more than 40 years this family of weapons continues to evolve. With the talk of a new service weapon it really leads one to ask, “Why?” Properly made black rifles are light, accurate, reliable, user friendly, modular, adaptable and most of all, proven. Knight’s not to long ago was awarded the contract for the U.S. Army M110 sniper rifle system. This moved sniper rifles to another level in the U.S. armed forces. Traditional thinking of having to have a bolt action rifle for it to be accurate had been challenged. The M110 gives every bit of accuracy of the bolt action rifle with the semi-auto firepower allowing up to 50% decrease in engagement time over the current bolt action rifle. KAC is on the cutting edge of black rifle technology and will for sure be a company to follow to see the future of the black rifle.

By Christopher R. Bartocci

In the late 1950s a new rifle was developed that would change the entire concept of the battle rifle. Although the U.S. Ordnance Corps had no vision to see it, history was in the making. Eugene M. Stoner while working for ArmaLite, a division of the Fairchild Engine and Aircraft of Hollywood, California, developed the AR-10. Taking his experience in the aircraft industry he replaced traditional wood stocks with new synthetic materials and changed from a traditional steel receiver to lightweight aircraft aluminum considerably decreasing the weight of the weapon. Another innovation was the use of a direct gas system instead of the traditional piston operating system. His design was very radical for that time. With the M14 nearly already adopted, the 7.62x51mm AR-10 was submitted to compete. As expected, the M14 was adopted but the AR-10 was noticed for being abnormally accurate for an auto-loading rifle. From there the AR-10 was cast into the bottomless scrap heap of the not invented here weapons of the U.S. Ordnance Corps. Although a request from the Air Force would have the AR-10 scaled down to .22 caliber and the birth of the AR-15 would go on to revolutionize the battle rifle and have a more then 50 year legacy of the longest serving U.S. rifle in history, the AR-10 lay dormant. That was until Gene Stoner teamed up with C. Reed Knight Jr. of Knight’s Armament Company (KAC) and went back to work on his AR-10 that he never had quite given up on. However, there had been several improvements to the M16 series and he would carry many of them over to his updated AR-10 and developed the SR-25. The acronym stood for Stoner Rifle and added the 10 from the AR-10 with the 15 from AR-15.

Introduced in the early 1990s the SR-25 shared 60% parts compatibility with the current issue M16A2. Funding for the SR-25 development came through commercial sales. As first introduced, the rifle had a 24 inch Remington 5R rifled barrel. At that time, KAC was the only company Remington would sell these precision barrel blanks to. The Match rifle was designed specifically to fire factory 168 grain open tip match ammunition. With this ammunition Knight guaranteed that every rifle that left his Vero Beach facility would fire at or less than one inch at 100 yards and he was willing to prove it by sending the target with every rifle. The original rifles used AR-10 magazines but Stoner would redesign the magazine and improve it giving it a more familiar M16 look. The rifle used the newly introduced integral rail flat top upper receiver so optics could be mounted in line with the shooters eye. The bolt carrier group would retain the original chrome plating and this would go on to be a KAC trademark. The upper and lower receivers were serialized and fitted for precision fit and the SR-25 had a free floated barrel using a carbon fiber handguard. The rifles were not mass produced and when one thinks of Knight’s Armament Company a standard is set for the finest weapons in the world where state-of-the-art meets old world craftsmanship. Stoner continued to improve his design until his death in 1997. Unfortunately, Stoner never saw his new rifle to be finally accepted by the U.S. military as the Mk11 Mod 0 sniper rifle, which would equip the most elite soldiers and sailors the world would ever know.

The Mk11 had some departures from the original design to meet the SOCCOM requirement. The rifle was designed to fire the M118 and M118LR match grade 7.62x51mm NATO ammunition and the Obermeyer barrel was shortened to 20 inches and equipped with a mount for a quick detachable sound suppressor also developed by Knight’s Armament Company. The 11.35 inch Rail Accessory System free floating handguard provided quad Mil-Std-1913 rails enabling attachment of any given number of accessories including night vision, lasers, tactical lights and bipods. The standard M16A2 stock and pistol grip are used for parts commonality. A flip up front sight was added to the gas block as well as KAC’s fully adjustable back up iron sight was also added. The rifle was equipped with 20-round magazines, a Leupold Vari-X mil dot scope with detachable rings and a Harris bipod. The Mk11 weighs 15.3 pounds unloaded and has an overall length of 45.4 inches long. The Mk11 would see action with U.S. Special Operations troops all over the world.

Knight’s Armament Company is first and foremost a defense contractor so commercial weapons were rare and due to the manufacturing process and quality they are very expensive. However, some did trickle down to the commercial market. In 2009, KAC introduced a new rifle, the SR-25 Enhanced Match Rifle. This rifle is a commercial version of the MK11 with the addition of the new URX free floating handguard that was designed for use on the M110 SASS (Semi Automatic Sniper System), which is replacing the M24 Remington sniper rifle in the U.S. Army.

The 20 inch barrel is the same as the one used on the Mk11. Through the evolution of the SR-25, the upper receiver was originally made from an aluminum extrusion; now the current rifles use forgings. The fired cartridge case deflector is now integral in the receiver rather than attached to the rail. Keeping with the tradition of the AR-10 and Gene Stoners expertise, no forward assist was added to the SR-25 family of weapons. The URX (Upper Receiver Extending) handguard as noted previously is a complete free floating handguard with a built-in folding front sight. When folded it acts as additional rail. The gas block has a section of rail on top of it as well as the mounting bracket for the QD sound suppressor. The rifle was supplied with three rail protectors enabling the rifle to be held and shot without a bipod. The upper receiver was also equipped with the KAC fully adjustable folding back up sight.

The bolt carrier group has gone through changes over the years. KAC has improved upon the chroming process and one of the finest features of the bolt carrier is the captive firing pin retainer pin. The carrier uses the standard M16 carrier key. The bolt has remained very similar to the original design with the major enhancement being to the extractor and ejector.

The lower receiver has most certainly gone through evolutionary changes. The area to the rear of the magazine release was machined down similar to the standard M16 making the button easier to actuate. The original SR-25 used a plastic spring guide, whereas the new rifle has an actual buffer. The standard M16A2 buttstock is used. Added to the left side of the receiver is an ambidextrous magazine release that can be reached by the trigger finger of a left-handed shooter. The trigger is the KAC designed two stage trigger which has an excellent crisp pull. The first stage is 3 pounds and the second breaks at around two pounds. The bolt catch has been redesigned from the original design. Originally it was a standard M16 bolt catch but with heavy use it proved not to be strong enough the take the weight and halt the 7.62mm bolt. KAC developed a stronger bolt catch.

The SR-25 Enhanced Match Rifle weighs 10.4 pounds with an overall length of 39.5 inches. The barrel is 20 inches long. Using GI issue M118LR (175 grain) match ammunition produces a muzzle velocity of 2,560 feet per second. The rifle is supplied with a 20-round magazine and an operator’s manual as well as a safety lock.

The test and evaluation rifle provided was just what I would have expected from Reed Knight. A precision rifle held to the highest craftsmanship and modern manufacturing standards. The rifle was not provided with an optic. Everybody has a different idea of what the best optic is and KAC lets that be up to the customer. Some additional magazines were procured and the rifle was tested with the new Magpul LMag and the C-Products 20-round steel magazines.

The ammunition used for testing was provided by Silver State Armory. Function testing was done with Silver State Armory M80 Ball (SSA10084-150FMJ). Accuracy testing was done with two different Silver State Armory loads. First was the 168 grain Sierra open tip match (SSA10084-OTM) and the second was the 175 grain Sierra open tip match (SSA10084-M118LR). The cartridge cases are manufactured by Silver State Armory to match specifications and their powder blends are proprietary and chosen for the particular load. Silver State Armory is known for their manufacturing of match quality ammunition in 5.56mm, 7.62mm, 6.8mm Rem SPC and a few others. They specialize in military calibers.

The barrel of the rifle was cleaned every 20 rounds with no malfunctions in 140 rounds that were fired. Targets were fired at 100 yards and both the 168 and 175 grain match rounds produced groups that averaged .45 to .75 inches – just as guaranteed by KAC and the target they provided. With the low round count I would expect the rifle to shoot even better if the barrel was broken in. The M110 will be with the U.S. military for quite some time.

“It really goes back about twelve or thirteen years when Gene Stoner – rest his soul – and Reed Knight, my boss, got together and Reed gave Mr. Stoner an engineering and production facility for him to fulfill some of his dreams. And one of his dreams was a rifle like the SR-25. Soon after building the first SR-25 some of our special forces took them to Somalia and that’s where the SR-25 started to make its combat reputation. Soon after that the barrel was shortened from 24 inches to 20 inches and other things were changed and improved and that’s where the MK 11 comes from. That became the MK 11 Mod 0 in the year 2000. Now, five or six years later you’ve got the XM110 so there’s a clear sequence.” David A. Lutz, VP for Military Operations, Knight’s Armament Company

The fast-paced urban combat environment that quickly evolved in the Global War on Terror created shooting challenges that weren’t being satisfactorily met by the Army’s standard issue bolt action M24 Sniper Weapon System or by the limited-issue accurized M16 variants and reworked M14s. So many snipers were reporting dissatisfaction and their need was so urgent that the Army’s Program Executive Office Soldier fast-tracked a solution as authorized under the Soldier Enhancement Program. A formal Presolicitation Notice for what was soon designated as the XM110 SASS was posted on 17 Nov 2004:

“The US Army ARDEC…has a requirement for a 7.62mm semi-automatic sniper system (SASS) capable of delivering precision fire primarily on anti-personnel targets out to 1000 meters…. The offeror shall submit five (5) bid samples at no cost or obligation to the government…. The first fifteen (15) of the thirty (30) SASSs will be delivered with spare parts 30 days after contract award.” Solicitation Number W15QKN-05-R-0433

The actual solicitation followed barely two weeks later, nearly a hundred pages of highly detailed requirements in which the Army invited all comers to submit a definition-stretching COTS/NDI (Commercial-off-the-Shelf/Non-Developmental Item) for a comprehensive evaluation. Five manufacturers bravely entered the arena but when the slugfest ended Knight’s was the winner announced on 28 September 2005. Their modified MK 11 Mod 0 has earned a five year contract and recent statements by program officials indicate the Army intends to buy and deploy thousands of complete systems as fast as Knight’s formidable manufacturing facility can turn them out.

A few months after the award announcement, when the runner-up’s formal protest had been dismissed after lengthy review by the General Accounting Office, the government bureaucracy’s innumerable administrative details had been worked out, and the production process was smoothly underway, Knight’s invited SAR in for an exclusive tour of its impressive new headquarters and enormous manufacturing complex on Florida’s “Space Coast” in Titusville.

While there we got the opportunity to conduct an in-depth interview with a key player in the fast and furious process that resulted in this tremendous victory for snipers in the Army, as well as significant product improvements that are already beginning to benefit those in other branches of the US Armed Forces.

David A. Lutz, a retired Marine Lieutenant Colonel with a well-deserved reputation for straight shooting in every sense of the word, is Knight’s Vice President for Military Operations. He was instrumental in development of the Stoner-Knight SR-25 into a military sniper system that has achieved tremendous success with Navy SEALs, Army Rangers and other elements of US Special Operations Command. Lutz worked closely with retired Navy Lieutenant Commander Michael Warner, who skippered Knight’s winning team in the SASS competition as Program Manager.

What follows are key excerpts from more than two hours of in-depth discussion, giving a fascinating look from the contractor’s perspective at the complex process that has led to selection of the Army’s newest sniper rifle.

SAR:The Army’s solicitation ran to nearly a hundred pages for an end-item system that was supposed to be pulled almost literally off the ready rack. Comments?

Lutz: ‘Non-Developmental Item’ is supposed to be the short cut to fielding the 90 percent solution to the guy in the field immediately. It seems to me that the generals know what NDI is, they know that’s what’s needed because it supports the troops they command. But once the program gets launched the bureaucracy below the general officer level is the same as it was twenty or thirty years ago.

There were things on nearly every page that you had to do; whether it was produce a gun or produce a piece of paper or produce a plan. If I can make a comment here, unless you’re a pretty good size company and have some pretty extensive depth of skill sets, you’re not going to be able to address these ‘NDI’ solicitations that require such boilerplate.

SAR: How did the Army’s experience with the M24 system influence the initial solicitation and subsequent modifications?

Lutz: As originally conceived – I think by the Army Sniper community – it was supposed to be a total package to include a night scope, a new spotting scope. So they put everything they wanted into it. They even made reference to a ‘sniper support kit’ that would have all these bells and whistles that you’d see – let’s say – at the S.H.O.T. show. A spirit level on the scope so you could make sure you’re not canted. A little wind direction velocity meter that you might see at Camp Perry.

Well, when the solicitation came out for this XM110 some of those extra things, so to speak, were not included in the solicitation. I think the Army wisely pared down that list.

What they were really interested in was a rifle. Part of the requirement was for that rifle to have what’s now the standard Picatinny Rail. We put such a rail system in the year 2000 on the MK11 Mod 0 so the real estate of the rail could be out front of the daytime zeroed sniper optic and could accept an attachable night sight that would not require the sniper to remove his day scope and possibly lose his zero.

SAR: You’ve shown us in side-by-side comparison that Knight’s winning XM110 is essentially the same as the SR-25 and the MK 11 Mod 0. Same upper and lower receiver, bolt mechanism, direct gas tube system, match grade Obermeyer barrel, and so forth. But significant modifications had to be made in secondary areas. Take us through those changes in the rifle from muzzle to buttstock, starting with the Army’s requirement for a separate flash suppressor and a sound suppressor.

Lutz: The MK 11 Mod 0 does not have, never did have, a flash suppressor. When the Navy SEALs need flash suppression they install the sound suppressor that comes with the system. Our sound suppressor I guess in a way is the world’s best flash suppressor as well because it masks all the flash.

A flash suppressor was not a COTS item (for the SR-25) so we had a very short period of time to adapt the MK 11 barrel which we use in the SASS but we thread it and we install a flash suppressor we designed – a very basic flash suppressor – to meet that Army requirement.

That in turn had an effect on the sound suppressor we manufacture for the MK 11. The flash suppressor makes the MK 11 barrel an inch and a half longer and it also increases the diameter at the muzzle so a new sound suppressor had to be designed and manufactured for the Army SASS. Now the working part of the suppressor – the baffle stack that’s in front of the muzzle – is identical so you get the same noise attenuation but it’s an inch and a half longer at the rear because of the impact the flash suppressor had on it.

The way the suppressor attaches to the rifle is identical. There’s two points of contact, one at the muzzle and the primary one back on the gas block where there’s a drop latch which secures it. And right behind the gas block we’ve got the rail system.

SAR: Any changes there?

Lutz: The URX – Upper Receiver Extending – rail system for the SASS is new and in fact better in some ways than the MK 11. Instead of there being some sort of slip nut between the receiver and the rail system as a means to attach and secure it, in URX form the rail system screws directly onto the upper receiver and then as the barrel nut is torqued the upper receiver and the rail become one piece. It’s much more rigid, you have the timing across the top of the rail precise with the MIL-SPEC as opposed to the MK 11. So it’s better in several respects.

Also unique to the URX is that the bottom rail is detachable by the operator. This allows the operator to take that lower rail off and clean debris, dirt, mud from around the outside of the barrel.

We developed the URX, ironically, for a completely different SR-25 requested by a certain part of the military that already had MK 11s. If possible it should be just as accurate but something that was lighter weight, easier to carry that they could use for patrolling, reconnaissance missions and perhaps even close quarters battle. So we developed the SR-25 Battle Rifle with a fourteen and a half inch barrel and a telescopic buttstock. In an effort to take as much weight out of it as we could, we developed this URX forend.

All we had to do for the SASS is make that Battle Rifle’s URX forend long enough for the twenty inch barrel SASS rifle. That was pretty easy for us to do.

We put our standard MK 11 folding rear sight on the gun. It had to have backup iron sights adjustable from two hundred to six hundred meters. But they wanted the front sight to be integral to the rail, so the SASS – as opposed to the MK 11 which has an accessory, a true clamp mounted flip front sight – so we very quickly came up with a design to make the front sight integral to the URX rail.

SAR: The Army wanted an ambidextrous selector but didn’t specify an adjustable trigger mechanism.

Lutz: The requirement asked for an ambidextrous selector and we make one of those – we’ve made it for the SR-25 for awhile so that was pretty easy to do.

Though the Army didn’t ask for an infinitely adjustable trigger, it’s common for snipers who are used to bolt action rifles to have a trigger that is adjustable in eighteen different directions. We use a very simple, reliable two-stage trigger. They’re all set here in the factory at four and a half pounds and that’s as much as they need. I know that some precision shooters like a lighter trigger pull but I think most of that experience is based on single stage trigger use.

With a two stage trigger you have an initial take up of about an eighth of an inch, in actuality uses up about a pound and a half of that four and a half pounds. So for your final squeeze your brain’s forgotten about the one and a half pounds you took up the first stage with so as you squeeze the trigger it really just feels like three pounds. It’s something you have to try and I’ve found when most marksmen actually try the trigger they think it’s fine. And when you think about the fact it’s not going to fall out of adjustment or an operator will find out subsequently it is very difficult to change those adjustments. Making it more ‘fail safe’ is the way to go.

SAR: Stock length and cheek weld are also important to precision shooting.

Lutz: The MK 11 did not have an adjustable buttstock and it was required by the Army that the buttstock be adjustable for length. In order to start off at the shortest distance possible, instead of using a standard M16A2 rifle stock that the MK 11 uses, we went back to the Vietnam-era M16A1 stock which gave us a five eighths inch shorter overall package. Our adjustable buttstock extends from that for about two and a half inches so you’ve got quite a bit of length adjustment.

Now it was desired by the Army that the stock also have an adjustable cheekpiece and it have adjustments for cant and what’s called castoff. Because those things were ‘desired’ – not required – and because we didn’t really have time to adequately address them in a sound engineering design we didn’t do any of that, we just did the required length adjustment.

Our XM110 is an M16 based design that Mr. Stoner made in what he called a ‘straight line design’ with the stock already at the proper height for a scope if you have the right height scope mount, about an inch and a half. So the contrivance of an adjustable cheek piece is really not necessary with this style rifle as long as you have the correct height ring.

And also because of the feature of the M16’s charging handle that’s right on top of the stock when retracted. There can’t be any raised portion in that four or five inches right behind it.

Our charging handle, by the way, is based on Dave Dunlap’s “Gas Buster” design that we pay a royalty to PRI (Precision Reflex Inc.) for permission to use. It has a number of important benefits, particularly operator comfort when the sound suppressor is attached.

SAR: Is the system’s day scope an “off-the-shelf” Leupold?

Lutz: One of the hardest nuts to crack was trying to meet all of their required capabilities for the scope and then to address some of their desirable features. One of the things they obviously wanted was a variable power scope that had one half of a minute of angle (MOA) adjustments in elevation, but also had the characteristics of what most people call a ballistic cam, or an elevation knob graduated in meters. In this case it had to be graduated from 100 meters to 1,000 meters.

Now there are lots of scopes graduated in meters; particularly the Leopold Tactical Series with what they call the M3 turret. But those clicks – increments on the knob – are all one MOA. To get half MOA clicks you have to accept a knob that rotates 360 degrees twice so it becomes a two turn system. Now the way Leupold engineered this, once the rifle and scope are zeroed, you can rotate the elevation knob about two and a half total turns.

The Army also required the whole rifle to be a desert tan dark earth color. Leupold didn’t make a scope that color at the time. They went right to work and now the current scopes are all hard anodized dark earth. This is defined in the Mil-Spec narrative as ‘darker than a cardboard box but not as dark as chocolate.’

The scope also had to have an illuminated reticle. Fortunately, one of the newer lines of the Leupold Tactical Series scopes are their three and a half to ten power variable with the TMR, Tactical Milling Reticle. It’s illuminated for low-light shooting, powered by the same battery that’s in the Army’s M68 Close Combat Optic – what you and I call an Aimpoint.

We had a lot of options for the scope mount when the solicitation came out but we wanted to improve our return to zero capability and make it simpler. So instead of using a pair of parallel split rings and all those parts and pieces, we came up with a new one piece scope mount that as a product improvement has potential to become a quick detachable design.

The two half inch nuts and two clamps are standard format types of scope attachment means that (snipers) use their half inch T handle 65 inch pound torque wrench that’s included in our tool kit. But the way the mount’s designed, you can take the two nuts and the two clamps off, put a single clamp on that side with two wing nuts. By virtue of the torque you can get from the wing nut and the longer one piece clamp you can get the same return to zero without resorting to the wrench technique. So we’ve got plans for that mount beyond the SASS.

SAR: The rifle we just photographed on your range is remarkably uniform in ‘Flat Dark Earth’ color from end to end despite the differences in what’s underneath – steel suppressor, aluminum receiver, synthetic stock, etc. How is this done?

Lutz: One of the challenges to make the rifle this brown color is that we’ve been working for several years trying to get the right dye mix to anodize different aluminum parts this ‘dark earth’ color. Sometimes you’d come up with a perfect color, other times you come up with a color that was too much of a gold tone. And if it wasn’t a gold tone when it was freshly done, as soon as you’d put the gun together and had some oil on it this oil made the light tan anodization look gold.

So once the rifle is all put together we mask off some areas and paint – bake on paint – a dark earth MIL-SPEC color to the whole gun. That’s how to deliver the gun in a nice uniform appearance. You also get quite a bit more corrosion resistance because you’re painting right on top of pristine anodization, or in the case of the barrel, pristine mag phosphate.

SAR: The system comes complete with two hard cases full of accessories, tools and equipment. Any particular challenges to pulling all these together?

Lutz: The Army SASS required a system case that had enough room in it for everything that was listed in the solicitation to include a drag bag. Of course it had to have the rifle and there was an assortment of ten and twenty round magazines, cleaning kit, sling, scope covers, laser anti-reflection filter, plus spare parts. Basically the whole nine yards.

We knew what that sniper community already had, particularly as far as a kit goes that supports the M24. We emulated with our XM110 candidate as much as we could what they were used to seeing, even to include the M1907 leather sling which has been in the Army for a long time.

Hardigg, in Massachusetts, put a lot of effort into both of the system’s hard side cases. Although the Army solicitation referred to the SASS as ‘Non Developmental,’ there was not a rifle on the planet that met all the criteria they required, much less desired. Likewise with the system case and the second case that fits inside that is used to protect the day scope if and when the sniper needs to take it off.

The scope case had to pass a cold weather drop test at 65 degrees below zero, a drop test from five feet onto a steel plate that was on top of a concrete slab. There was not an ‘NDI’ case that would pass that drop test and also be small enough to also fit in the system case without taking up way too much space. Hardigg really worked hard to make one at minimum size that would pass all these tests.

We submitted our five SASS samples on time in March last year and at that time Reed Knight, the owner of the company, directed that we build another forty more. That was because the solicitation required that if you won and received the award, then you had to quickly deliver fifteen rifles – I believe it was 30 days after award. To get ahead of that curve we went ahead and built forty.

SAR: Give us a quick version of where this program is right now (Feb 2006) as far as Knight’s is concerned.

Lutz: What I’ll call real First Article Testing is being done now up at ATC (Army Test Center, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland) on the fifteen rifles we were required to deliver right after the announcement that we had won. I think really what they’re doing is they’re verifying the barrel life and accuracy and reliability they obviously captured from testing the first five that they used as a selection criteria. About two weeks ago they were at the 3,500 round barrel life point.

Personally, I’m gearing up to deliver training at the end of the month, both operator and maintainer. It’s a contract deliverable that we train their new equipment trainers. So we’ll train them for a week here at Knight’s and I guess they go back to Fort Benning (GA) and practice on each other for a couple of weeks. They also take the handout material and electronic material I give them here and they translate it into the Army boilerplate. Then, they go up to Fort Drum (NY) – probably in May.

SAR: 10th Mountain Division?

Lutz: Yes, they’ll do the Operational Test. Soldiers – snipers – have already tested some of the first five. And also George Niewenhous (ATC) doesn’t have all fifteen of the rifles. Two of the fifteen went to Fort Benning, so the Sniper School has two as we speak.

We know the rifle works and I’ve seen pictures of it being drug thru the mud and through obstacles in part of the testing they did for the first five. It’s been through some hurdles already. But the Operational Test is much more than just testing the rifle. It’s going to test the training program, what they call the ‘POI’ (Program of Instruction) that Fort Benning is going to develop, obviously with some help from us.

They’re going to come up with a way to train the trainers, then take ‘em up to Fort Drum and work with soldiers and armorers who aren’t trained on this particular rifle. The Army will evaluate how effective the training is, the handout material, the amount of hours they need to train on whatever. Does the technical manual adequately show them how to change a gas tube, how to change an extractor? The amount of ammunition; how many rounds are needed for someone to qualify. Those are all parts of an operational test that go beyond whether or not your rifle shoots.

SAR: After that?

Lutz: When that’s finished we expect to get what we call ‘L-Rip’ – Limited Rate Production authorization. By sort of reading between the lines we think that’s going to be somewhere between two hundred and three hundred systems. The first ones are going to end up being delivered in December (2006) because by their schedule December is when the First Unit Equipped is going to be designated. I’ve already heard that the 10th Mountain is real excited about these rifles and they’ve asked permission to take the rifles with them when they deploy.

(Note: Subsequent Army announcements indicate the intent to buy 4,492 systems. SAR has learned that Knight’s is refurbishing the Army’s Operational Test rifles and elements of the 10th Mountain recently deployed to Afghanistan will be the first to receive them as an “urgent need requirement.”)

SAR: Any feedback from the folks who have been testing the XM110 that you can talk about?

Lutz: They apparently have a really good accuracy test stand up at Aberdeen. ATC shoots in a tunnel with no wind, no mirage, no humidity, no mosquitoes biting you like here. The five guns that we sent up for the initial tests all shot under .8 MOA (minute of angle) from the stand.

SAR: Have improvements to the MK 11 in Knight’s XM110 caught the eye of the Navy and Marine Corps?

Lutz: Very soon after the Army selected the SR-25 based XM110, the Marine Corps ordered 180 MK 11s on the current contract we have with the Navy and SOCOM. It’s a MK 11 but they want it with the SASS threaded barrel, the SASS flash suppressor, which also means they get the SASS sound suppressor, and URX type forend, as opposed to the MK 11 forend. And they want it black because they feel it will blend in with the rest of the troops that all have black guns so the snipers won’t stand out so much.

We’ve had joint service meetings where it appears as if the Navy is planning for subsequent MK 11 buys with several of the same things the Marine Corps adopted or wanted, but painted like the Army’s.

SAR: The M110 SASS is semiauto only and has a ‘legal length’ barrel. What plans does Knight’s have to offer the M110 SASS to law enforcement as well as competition shooters in the civilian world?

Lutz: We’ve got our hands full right now with deliveries to the military.

SAR: Any final thoughts on the process?

Lutz: The government would help themselves if they could release some of the specifics as early as possible so we could either develop the things we need to develop, link together those different things that are commercially available, all under one house.

I think the user would have been better served if somehow we would have been allowed to submit the MK 11 Mod 0 – we’ve produced over a thousand of them – as it is. That would have been a true NDI.

(Editor’s Note: Persistent misinformation about the Army’s SASS selection process deserves authoritative rebuttal. The General Accounting Office’s findings on the protest filed by the runner-up system’s proponent may be found at www.gao.gov/decisions/bidpro/297374.pdf)

Visit Knight’s Armament Company on the web at www.knightarmco.comSR-XM110 Rifle System Characteristics Military Description: Knight’s Armament Company’s SR-XM110 is a precision, medium weight, detachable magazine fed, gas operated, semi-automatic, free-floating barrel sniper rifle system, optimized to fire the M118 Long Range ammunition.

Each SR-XM110 SASS delivered contains the following components:

• 7.62x51mm NATO SR-XM110 Rifle
• MIL-STD 1913 Picatinny Rail forend with four rails parallel to the bore with the top rail surface on-line with that of the upper receiver. The design of this forend allows the rifle barrel to be free-floated for enhanced accuracy.
• Back Up Iron Sights front and rear, either integral to the rifle or installed on the MIL-STD 1913 Rail.
• Collapsible Bipod that is adjustable and Operator removable if desired.
• SR-XM110 Magazines: four 20-round magazines and four 10-round magazines.
• Leather Carrying Sling. This sling is also designed to support the rifle in various shooting positions as an aid to marksmanship.
• 3.5×10 Variable Power Day Optic Rifle Scope mounted on a one-piece return to zero MIL-STD 1913 Picatinny Rail scope mount. An Operator removable Laser Filter Unit, Anti-Reflection Device and flip-open dust covers may also be provided.
• A Sound Suppressor that provides very effective acoustic, flash and blast suppression.
• A Flash Suppressor that minimizes muzzle flash when the sound suppressor is not used.
• Protective (hard) Carrying Case for the complete weapon system, as well as a sub-component hard scope carrying case.
• Soft Weapon Carrying Case (aka: Drag Bag. Optional item dependent on individual contract requirements) and a Soft Rifle Scope Carrying Case with padded Scope Cover Insert.
• Cleaning Kit with coated bore rod and guide plus required brushes and jags. Also a pocket-sized field cleaning kit with flexible rod.
• Deployment Kit containing Operator Level tools not provided in the Cleaning Kit, Scope Cleaning Kit, Spare battery for Day Scope Illuminated Reticle, Carrying Case with Field/Operator Spare Parts.
• Operator and Armorer Maintenance Manuals.
• A modified Army M240B 7.62mm Machine Gun Blank Firing Adapter can also be provided.

Badger Ordnance
6302 N. Park Ave.
Gladstone, MO 64118
(816)455-3704
www.badgerord.com