You’ve heard the term sniper rifle, and you know it connotes a rifle that is used by the military for long-range and extreme long-range shooting disciplines. 

But where does the term come from? 

Unpacking the Term “Sniper Rifle”

To understand the term sniper rifle, we need to go back a long way. Way back, to the marsh hunting days where old-school waterfowlers would still-hunt the marshes in search of a small bird called a snipe. 

And first, before you pipe up with anything, yes, a snipe is a real animal. The expression “snipe hunt” does not come from the fact that snipe don’t exist but from the circumstances about which you are going to read right now. 

Snipe are close relatives of another upland bird, a woodcock. In fact, from a distance, they are almost indistinguishable. 

These small shorebirds are nearly invisible in the mud and against the reeds near which they live. They have a noxious habit of hunkering down and shutting their eyes until you nearly get on top of them, at which point they will explode into a low, fast, corkscrewing flight. 

Snipe, like woodcock, tend to flush explosively and fly low before coming down again. And, snipe, particularly, love to spiral and corkscrew as they fly. This presents the hunter with only a very limited window of opportunity to execute a shot. 

This, coupled with the fact that these birds (woodcock and snipe both) are very small, makes them even harder to hit. 

Hence a sniper is an experienced and accurate shot capable of hitting a small, elusive target. 

The interesting thing to note here, however, is that snipe were always hunted, as they are today, not with a rifle, but with a fowling piece, or as we would say in modern parlance, a shotgun. 

Nonetheless, the term “sniper” for “sharpshooter” or “excellent marksman” stuck and was translated to rifles. Today we have sniper rifles that signify that they are not only manufactured to extreme tolerances and capable of sub-MOA accuracy, but that the operators are skilled as well.

Explore Proven Extreme Long-Range (ELR) Sniper Rifle Platforms

Naming conventions aside, modern sniper rifles are called sniper rifles largely because they have been adopted by the military and have been issued to snipers, who are highly trained sharpshooters effective at engaging man-sized targets more than a mile away.

Many modern platforms, such as the McMillan Tac-338, ArmaLite AR-50, Accuracy International AXSR, and CheyTac M200 Intervention sniper rifle, all meet the criteria to be considered sniper rifles and are effective at engaging targets at extreme ranges.

Some, like the M200 Intervention, have actually been designed around special cartridges such as the .375 and .408 CheyTac rounds that were expressly developed for extreme long-range rifle shooting.

Cartridges like these are made with “Balanced Flight Projectiles” that offer remarkable stability at extreme ranges, high ballistic coefficients, and high muzzle velocities, giving them the ability to stay supersonic to the target, delivering an unrivalled degree of accuracy. 

If you are here not because you are interested in etymology but because you are interested in adding a real sniper rifle to your collection and getting into extreme long-range competition shooting, visit B&B Firearms. 

They carry the platforms listed here (as well as others from McMillan, Victrix Armaments, Cadex, Barrett, Gunwerks and more) and offer interest-free purchasing plans. Visit their website or get in touch with them directly for more information. 

For More information About cadex chassis and intervention sniper rifle Please Visit: B&B Firearms LLC.