Sniper Rifles of 1942 - WW2 Special

Even the best sniper needed a reliable and accurate rifle. During the Second World War, all warring nations fielded designated sniper and marksman rifles, but different manufacturers had different ideas, from optical sights to breech-loading mechanisms, to gas-piston systems. Some preferred traditional bolt-action, others favored the new semi-automatic approach.
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Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Director: Astrid Deinhard
Producers: Astrid Deinhard and Spartacus Olsson
Executive Producers: Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
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Written by: Markus Linke, Indy Neidell
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A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.

[@WorldWarTwo]

A lot of WW2 weaponry is found fascinating by many. This is not without reason, much of it is an impressive feat of design and engineering. That being said, we make these videos to understand why and how these weapons were developed, and their place in history. We do not do this to celebrate this hardware, as these are ultimately death machines. Join the TimeGhost Army: bit.ly/HARDWARE_019_PI Read our code of conduct before commenting: community.timeghost.tv/t/rules-of-conduct/4518

[@chriscary4074]

so when you start listing off rifles the first one you say is the Mauser 98, then show commission 88's XD 1:05

[@yourstruly4817]

But you gotta admit if violence, war, suffering etc wouldn't be so fascinating, this channel wouldn't be so big and you may as well create a channel about seven years of peace

[@jamesbinns8528]

I met a volunteer at the Ozark Military Museum , in Fayetteville Arkansas. He claimed to have used the Springfield 1903 in the Pacific to snipe Japanese officers. He and his team used bamboo for silencers. The volunteer, whom I'll call Mr. E., for I've forgotten his name, was from Winslow Arkansas, and like many men of his time, and many Arkies today, was an outdoorsman. Mr. E' s other job was being delivered by PT boat to islands where downed airmen were believed to be, find them and get them out. He worked with a small team.

[@trapdoorspringfieldmodel1888]

Weapons of war can just as easily be weapons of peace, and vice versa. The modern jet airplane, the Saturn V rocket, and radio astronomy are a few examples of human endeavor that made use of knowledge or equipment that was utilized in the horror of the Second World War.

[@jamestruter6382]

Shit I do😂

[@Krustenkaese92]

"I'm Indy Neidell. This is a World War II special on ... _some_ sniper rifles ... 🤷‍♂️" I love and appreciate the self-awareness 😄

[@WorldWarTwo]

We could make a three hour episode and still miss some I'm sure 😛

[@jerryw6699]

@@WorldWarTwo You crammed a lot of interesting info into this, I was surprised that you found time to mention the M70, Which, of course, is a copy of the 03 springfield, which is a copy of the German Mauser.

[@Beowulf_DW]

My grandfather’s M1903 still works, despite a bit of improper storage towards the end of his life. Still a good looking gun, though.

[@TomOostenrijk]

There´s really not much that can make a bolt action completely inoperable though.

[@bbb462cid]

Rugged rifle

[@MrNicoJac]

What counts as proper and improper storage?

[@mattiasmengoni]

@@MrNicoJac the environment it sits in, like humid and dusty makes for improper storage. Also it should be regularly cleaned and tested to count as proper storage.

Granddad gave me his M1903A4 with the original Unertl scope. A true beauty and I care for it as best I can.

[@hscollier]

I am a grizzly, old, retired veteran but I enjoy the whole range of TimeGhost videos so much I watch most of them twice. Even being on a fixed income I am proud to be a member of the TimeGhost Army.

[@WorldWarTwo]

Thanks so much, our community makes this whole thing possible

[@burtcokain2702]

@@tuckerpascal8839 dafaq?

[@traviscosby1016]

@@tuckerpascal8839 wtf are you on about?

[@Thechezbailey]

Tik is a super focused history channel that does deep dives on various battles and topics related to WW2, whereas this channel is more of a broad survey. This channel is much more accessible, but if you're obsessed with, say, Operation Crusader, or the Seige of Stalingrad, Tik's channel goes into extreme detail.

[@hscollier]

@@Thechezbailey TIK seems very biased towards the British view of history. Some of his stuff is exceptional, but not a fan.

[@gunman47]

Always love a video on firearms history, being a follower of Forgotten Weapons's Ian Mccollum and Royal Amouries's Jonathan Ferguson myself. I just hope this time round, this video won't get redacted later like the earlier video on Weapons of Guadalcanal, which I remembered a few months back. Fingers crossed!

[@WorldWarTwo]

Glad you're enjoying it! We are also hoping this episode won't have similar issues 😛

[@visassess8607]

Damn, I'm sad I missed that weapons at Guadalcanal video

[@jerrysmooth24]

youtube gets finicky about weapons customization so talking about scopes and stocks often put gun youtubers in trouble

[@ble688]

I suggest c&rsenal, indepth weapons of WW I

[@sizor3ds]

I have three channel recommendations for you. If you like seeing historical firearms and their depiction in film, Johnny Johnson has a great series of historical gun in the movies. If you like seeing the history of firearms being portrayed and depicted in video games, Ahoy has an amazing series called Iconic Arms. C&R Arsenal is also great if you’re into long form history of ww1 era firearms with a really great series comparing the machine guns of the Great War

[@claykalmar8131]

Another thing to note, that I think Forgotten Weapons has mentioned before, is that most militaries didn't have "sniper" versions of standard rifles, or separate sniper rifles. Most of the time, as the rifles were being given a quick QAQC check after production, the ones found to be the most accurate were put aside to be fitted with optics and issued out to the soldiers deemed deemed as marksmen. This goes hand in hand with other comments about how "accurate" and "reliable" meant something different back then compared to now, as per the differences in manufacturing, science, supply chains, and expectations. Just good context to keep in mind.

[@MrNicoJac]

Side note: If we found ourselves in another war that required equipping _millions_ of men, I'd _fully_ expect our standards for 'accurate' and 'reliable' to drop like a rock, in order to meet production requirements 😅

[@LordVader1094]

@@MrNicoJac You're not wrong lol

[@briannicholas2757]

@@MrNicoJac sadly you are so correct. Instead of raising the bar, the USA has been steadily lowering it since the advent of The Great Society in the 60s. And the saddest of all is our loss of a manufacturing base. From the glory days of WWII era mass production of very high quality goods of every type, designed and built to last for many years, we've descended to cheaply made junk from China, and when it quickly breaks we just go buy more of the same. In a future war, we obviously can't have the Chinese build our military equipment since they will be most likely the ones we are fighting.

[@davep5227]

You are mostly certainly correct sir!! Battalion Scout Snipers used just such a weapon.

[@francesconicoletti2547]

The other thing to remember though is that the standard military rifles of the time were built for long range marksmanship to begin with. They had sights that were routinely marked out to 1500 or 2000 meters. If a normal soldier could hit a man sized target at those ranges is another question. Taking the best rife in a batch and handing it to someone good at marksmanship will get you far. Once militaries adopted rifles with maximum effective ranges of 400 meters then a separate sniper rifle becomes necessary .

[@Lucia-mn8zy]

Small error on the M91/30. 91/30s weren't manufactured with a round receiver until around 1935-1936 and retained the "Hex" receiver until that point.

[@timnavarrette3274]

Finnish Ones are fantastic,great shooters

[@drewisaac9884]

The idea behind the 1.5x optic was also focused on rate of fire. The scope was mounted where the iron sights would be forward of the breach. This allowed the German soldier to be more accurate than the average infantry soldier and still be able to use their stripper clips for reloading. Traditional scopes were mounted directly above the ejection port making it impossible to reload via stripper clip so they had to be loaded one at a time. Soviet sniper rifles had the same issue but soviet doctron focused less on speed. Self loading rifles like the M1 could not be loaded without a mannlicher style clip so mounting a scope directly above the ejection port was impossible. Designers would solve the problem by mounting the scope offset of the barrel.

[@mikepette4422]

good points and most videos don't discuss this because its over looked or they didnt do their deep research

[@nickdanger3802]

1.5x is most useful in low light situations, particularly dusk and dawn.

[@WorldWarTwo]

Love comments like this. Thanks for that tidbit of info Drew.

[@thegoldencaulk2742]

It's important to contextualize "accuracy," as back then the standard was a lot different than it is now. Modern snipers are capable of putting multiple rounds within the same inch or less at 100 meters, while WW2 snipers struggled to put their rounds within a 4 inch radius at the same distance under the best possible conditions. Sniping in that era was very ad-hoc for most nations. Only the Russians and British got close to what might be considered a formal sniping program, with both extensive marksman training for troops, and manufacturing techniques to accurize the rifles themselves. It should come as no surprise then that they achieved the best results in this particular field.

[@David_T]

A lot of focus is on the rifles and scopes, but cartridges with consistent loads and ballistics is also key.

[@ln7929]

This is from forgotten weapons further backs this up when the British replace their ww2 lee enfield mk4 sniper with the l96 kzbin.info/www/bejne/m2Gsp6KBrNt4mNU

[@alecjones4135]

Very good point. These rifles were the same rifles as the regular infantry used but selected off the assembly line.

[@MrPh30]

And the bedding of the stock,freefloating barrel, scopemount and action screws that hold everything together also.

[@Fuzzy_nutstein]

A bigger problem was the optics of the day. With a modern scope I get 2 inch groups with my k98 all day at 100 meters. The 7.92x57 (8mm mauser) is more accurate than people give it credit.

[@dadStinks]

Ok, time to join the Army…this time the Time Ghost Army!!! Supporting these folks makes sense since they’re a HUGE part of my life. 😬

[@WorldWarTwo]

Glad you enjoy enough to help us out! Our TIme Ghost Army keeps us going and helps make all of these special episodes possible

[@dadStinks]

My Uncle fought with the third Marines in Bougainville, Guam & Iwo Jima. Very proud of his service.

[@TheWozWizard]

The rifle shown at 11:08 IS NOT A M1903A4! It is a USMC M1903A1 Rifle with an Unertl 8X Sniper Telescope.

[@michigangeezer3950]

If this channel covers the Vietnam war people will be impressed with Carlos Hathcock and that scoped Ma Deuce.

[@denaldouglas8293]

Also known more properly as the M1941 Springfield, and arguably the best sniper rifle used by any country in the war.

[@beefyoso]

I was gonna say.... my A4 don't look like that.

[@Bayrunner87]

I believe that is in fact a picture of Carlos Hathcock, one of the USMC’s deadliest snipers.

[@CrossOfBayonne]

The Marine Springfield still saw use in the Korean War too

[@kirkstinson7316]

"The use of prisms, lenses, and belled scopes made it so the sharp shooter could see far beyond the average rifleman" The White Death: hold my Jallu. Ok I admit he wasn't an "average" rifleman but he did ,it use a scope. One of WWIIs best snipers and he used iron sights

[@glypnir]

Looking at the troubles with other countries semi autos helps me understand why Patton was so impressed with the Garand.

[@Thechezbailey]

*DING!*

[@michigangeezer3950]

Having owned several Mosins, it's pretty impressive to use the "Garbage Rod" successfully as a sniper rifle. My son has a Dragoon rifle now, but even with a pristine bore and properly sized bullets it's "minute of barn door" accurate.

[@stephencarran7650]

Sorry to hear you got the duds but my two 91/30’s shoot MOA at 100yds.

[@simplymadness8849]

@@stephencarran7650 Acceptable accuracy standards for M91/30s was like 6 inches at 100 yards. 4 inches for sniper rifles. MOA groups are pretty exceptional.

[@improvisedsurvival5967]

@@stephencarran7650 mine was ex sniper. I cleaned all the copper out of the bore and it’s really accurate.

[@shimarinlogistics6616]

1:08 The rifles shown here aren't the Gewehr 1898, but the older Gewehr 1888 rifles. 6:43 The rifles shown here aren't the Kar98k, but the Czechoslovakian Vz.24 rifles.

[@MrNicoJac]

What are the differences? :) (like, how did you recognize they were wrong?)

[@JohnnyLouisXIX]

@@MrNicoJac Gewehr 88s have single stack magazines that protuberate to the underside of the rifle, Vz 24s have straight bolt handles, underside sling swivels, finger grooves, and different iron sights than the k98k among other details.

[@stephencarran7650]

I think the top handguard is the real giveaway.

[@filipeamaral216]

The anime profile makes me believe you instantly.

[@shimarinlogistics6616]

@@filipeamaral216 So you wanna tell me how I'm wrong with my identification of those firearms, smartass?

[@perihelion7798]

A humble suggestion, if I may: Ian McCullough has a channel called 'Forgotten Weapons'. He is a walking encyclopedia of small arms knowledge. He has written books, and is a very charismatic and entertaining presenter. Perhaps, like you have done with the armor videos, you could get Ian to do some WWII small arms presentations for your great channel. Just a thought...

[@MarvinCZ]

There were plans for some cooperation (with InRange TV which Ian was a part of at the time) but they fell through due to same organization issues and possibly other disagreements. (And it's Ian McCollum)

[@perihelion7798]

@@MarvinCZ Thanks for the info, and the correction of Ian's last name. I was typing way too fast on that one!

[@philipsutcliffe1610]

Ian MacCollum

[@MarvinCZ]

@@philipsutcliffe1610 No, Ian McCollum.

[@perihelion7798]

@@philipsutcliffe1610 Yeah...you're the second guy that corrected my error. Made that comment too quickly, and botched Ian's name. I do appreciate the correction.

[@Buffaloc]

I am a Finland enthusiast. Thanks for another episode with tons of good information.

[@WorldWarTwo]

@Bill C Thanks for watching, glad you enjoyed it.

[@moors710]

I have my father's mod 98 Mauser from a captured crate of rifles while this fighter group was transferring from one airfield in North Africa to another. The pilots in the fighter group each got one of these rifles.

[@moors710]

I still shoot it.

[@t5ruxlee210]

Special production lines which only made ammunition for sniper rifles and worked to much more exacting standards were also part of the effort to achieve improved accuracy at long ranges in WW2. The long range Whitworth Rifle with hexagonal projectile was used in very small numbers by both sides in the Civil War. While the occasional Union general fell to a Southern sniper equipped with one, that rifle's main application was to harass Union artillery crews, thus forcing them to retreat back beyond its range.

[@Isplodethings]

We still have the Chieftain providing his expertise on vehicles used. Back when the great war was still raging I regularly watched that channel and we had C&Arsenal providing expertise on the small arms back then. It's a real shame we don't have a designated small arms expert talking about small arms like we have for the vehicles. I think the reason was that everyone is busy with other things if I remember correctly.

[@BleedingUranium]

Bringing in Ian from ForgottenWeapons would be a perfect fit, if he's not busy as you mentioned.

[@firemochimc]

@@BleedingUranium pretty sure he was supposed to be a regular on this channel but it fell through. Only Chieftain stayed on.

[@pagodebregaeforro2803]

There's no fkn shame on this channel. Yes, Ian would be a good add, but if you search any of these guns and his name you prolly get what you want in detail there on his channel. And he going to meet Indy and the guys will not be free, they are many kilometers apart..

[@Paladin1873]

The photo at 11:59 was taken during the Vietnam War and is of Marine rifleman Dalton Gunderson, who is using an 8X Unertl scope mounted on his issue Winchester Model 70 in South Vietnam. This illustrates the longevity of the Winchester Model 70 design in military service.

[@andrewroberts7428]

there's a subtle yet incredible intensity to that photo

[@jerryw6699]

The Winchester design is really just a copy of the Mauser, you know, as is the Ruger 77, the 03 Springfield and several others.

[@Paladin1873]

@@jerryw6699 The 03 action is based on the Mauser 98 action, which resulted in the US Government paying royalties to Mauser until WWI ended the practice. But when it comes to details, the rifles vary greatly. The Model 70 received the sobriquet "the rifleman's rifle" and is generally considered the ultimate refinement of the 98 design, at least where hunting rifles and target rifle are concerned. I'm sure others will claim this to be merely a marketing ploy and declare other rifles made by Sako, Mauser, Remington, Savage, etc., to be just as good or better. I won't disagree with them because we are getting into esoteric and personal preferences (Ford vs, Chevy). The fact that bolt action firearms remain popular for sporting uses and military sniping is a testament to the soundness of the concept.

[@markwilliams2620]

Yeah....that film looked to fine a grain and with a much better panchromatic range than the WW2 stuff. Thanks for the info.

[@thebigdrew12]

I'm a firm believer that the pre 1964 Winchester model 70s are the finest bolt action rifles in the world.

[@Alex-cw3rz]

The briefly mentioned British No.4 Mk1 will continue service up until the Falklands War and beyond it was that good a sniper rifle

[@420JackG]

I've been trying to find a nice one for years.

[@stephencarran7650]

They upgraded to the L42A1 in the 1970’s and these saw service in the Falklands in 7.62 Nato.

[@AbbyNormL]

Although you have a long way until 1945, one interesting rifle was introduced during the invasion of Okinawa. The US Marines were issued 200 M2 .30 T3 Winchester carbines with an attached M2 infrared night vision scope. The scope could illuminate targets out to 70 yards. I own both a Springfield Armory M1903A3 and a 1941 dated Kar98k in 8mm Mauser. The Kar98k is remarkably very accurate. I would love to get one of the sniper variants with the scope attached. Unfortunately, those are a little out of my financial abilities. Another great video!

[@tando6266]

Its important to note that "Marksmen" and "Sniper" are not interchangeable terms. They are separate roles with different training and doctrine, the only commonality being they are both expected to be capable to provide accurate fire.

[@silversurfer3202]

You are Very correct!!! In the Army, we had 3 different Rifleman's badges..."Marksman", "Sharpshooter" and "Expert". Marksman being the lowest skilled shooter in the bunch...(meaning you couldn't hit the side of a barn!!!). "Sniper".....Is a whole nother specially trained catagory!!! Wearing a "Marksman" Badge in the Infantry (M.O.S:11B10) was and is a Badge of Shame!!! (Or any badge less than Expert)🧐

[@thegoldencaulk2742]

Exactly. The marksman was integrated into a regular rifle squad and shared the same equipment (except an optical sight) and objective, and the sniper typically operated alone or in a small team with it's own special equipment and objectives.

[@MrNicoJac]

@@thegoldencaulk2742 Today, designated marksmen usually have larger, heavier 'battle rifles' right? Sort of an intermediary between a 'normal' assault rifle, and a sniper rifle. (although I'm sure this will depend per period and nation and arm of service, lol)

[@tacomas9602]

@@thegoldencaulk2742 I SEE YOU HERE AGAIN MY GOOD SIR. Lol

[@01cthompson]

Indy: "We're uploading a weapon video today." Guy that monitors the comments: 😭

[@WorldWarTwo]

@Chris Thompson We're doing okay but I'm definitely not a weapons expert! We just love the enthusiasm our audience has. TimeGhost Army is the best!

[@DavidBurnham]

When talking ammunition the "x" is "by" as in "7.56 by 54R" and cylic rate of "rpm" is "rounds per minute".

[@Navyrifleshooter]

That isnt a M1903A4. That was a USMC M1903A1 with a 8x Unertl scope.

[@southronjr1570]

I was about to post the same until I saw your post. The Marines actually hated the unertl scope because of their fogging and tendency to grow mold inside the scope tube.

[@bbb462cid]

Correct

[@stephencarran7650]

Yep, cringe moment for me.

[@brokenbridge6316]

At the start of this video I actually had a thought on Timothy Murphy who was a snipper during The Revolutionary War and shot dead that British General. Now he was an accurate shot.

[@moors710]

The correction for chromatic aberration is important as the sight gets blurred. We currently use an optically clear adhesive between the lenses that corrects for chromatic aberration. The problem with this solution is sometimes mold grows inside the adhesive and all you see when you look into the sight is a clear image of the mold between the lenses.

[@moss8448]

years ago had the same issue with older surveying instruments, a lot of it was because they were stored while fogged up our practice was to never close the case and leave the box open at room temperature til it cleared up. war time is a whole 'nother ball game tho.

[@strwbryjamprvrt8523]

When I was younger we had a World War Two Officers Edition Springfield rifle. I had only seen it shot a few times due to kick and my mothers shoulder being problematic with it's multi-directional instability. It's a rifle I will always hold near and dear to my heart.

[@thewhiteman800]

Just found this channel recently it's absolutely fantastic. Regularly learn new things about a subject I thought I knew thoroughly.

[@WorldWarTwo]

Glad your enjoying! If you want to help us continue to make amazing new videos consider joining the Time Ghost Army www.patreon.com/join/timeghosthistory?HARDWARE_019_PI

[@WorldWarTwo]

That's great to hear! We also cover the war day-by-day on our instagram where we can fit in even more details that don't make it in to the youtube videos so consider checking it out

[@alphaprawns]

The rare double channel response

[@WorldWarTwo]

That means good luck for the coming year!

[@UHCredhead]

I’ve fired a USMC m1903 sniper, strange to think it could’ve been in one of those photos!

[@azimisyauqieabdulwahab9401]

Before replaced with M14 or Remington 700

[@tonilehtonen1958]

My cousin in Finnish Lapland has one SVT-38 which he hasn't told how he got it, but it's amazing nontheless! He even has talked about giving it to me since he knows my obsession about it! Though it's known for jamming after nearly every shot with the cartridge staying between the bolt opening. I did some further research from its serial number and found out that it was the SVT-38 from april 1940, which stunned me since according to the production schedule, they stopped making SVT-38's completely in april 13th 1940 and started switching over to the more known SVT-40 from the Izhevsk factory. Only 150,000 SVT-38's were made in comparison to SVT-40 with 1,6 million made in total! This one he owns must've been captured during the Continuation War between 1941-1944, very special rifle as it didn't see action in the Winter war despite its 1938-1940 production and wasn't replaced by the SVT-40 in 1941 by the owner. :D

[@azimisyauqieabdulwahab9401]

First Semi Automatic Sniper Rifle

[@maxsmodels]

I have a 100+ year old Eddystone P-17 (aka the American Enfield in 30-06). Amazingly accurate.

[@ConfusedGoat13]

Me too I love mine, very soft shooting for 30-06.

[@IrishTechnicalThinker]

Indy is the type of guy to lick his finger to see what direction the war is going. Legend.

[@Paladin1873]

In US small arms parlance, when describing such cartridges as the 7.92 x 57, the typical spoken nomenclature is "seven-point-nine-two-by-fifty-seven". When describing the magnification of a telescopic sight such as a 3X scope, the typical spoken nomenclature is "three power" rather than "three times". This nomenclature may differ in Europe or Russia.

[@Flightline_fanatic]

What an excellent follow up to the episode on Vasily Zaitsev.

[@Collectorfirearms]

Last year at 20 I bought a svt40 and g43. I love them both.

[@improvisedsurvival5967]

Always wanted svt 40

[@Collectorfirearms]

@@improvisedsurvival5967 it's a great gun man.

[@timothyhouse1622]

I love these hardware specials. I am surprised though that there has not been any on aircraft. Aircraft were truly instrumental in World War 2. More collaborations would be great too. You should have got Gun Jesus for this one.

[@greg_mca]

There has been a hardware aircraft special about the bombers in the west, from last spring, but I think that's it for now. Aside from that it's just tidbits from regular episodes

[@DavidBurnham]

They originally had both Gun Jesus and Gun Santa lined up, but things didn't come together.

[@loserface3962]

gregs airplanes and automobiles has a lot of videos on the specifics of ww2 planes, engines, superchargers and turbochargers, fuel quality and more.

[@jeremy28135]

Thank you Indy and all the crew for your continued quality & hard work. It is appreciated and enjoyed so much more than you'll ever know.

[@WorldWarTwo]

We are glad to hear that! Thanks for watching.

[@samueladams3746]

The Japanese optics are puzzling since they entered the war with far superior naval optics and until radar directed gunnery became prevalent in the USN, the IJN generally prevailed in low light and night engagements. Maybe simply another instance of the destructive IJN v IJA rivalry

[@Macovic]

The 6,5 mm Gevär m/1941 sniper rifle was the most smooth shooting, accurate, reliable, powerful enough beyond 200-800 beyond and used to some extent in Finland. Fitted with intended optics/good optics made a big difference of course.

[@Tadicuslegion78]

Indy: I think we'll be doing an episode on WW2 Snipers *Door bell rings* Indy: Who could that be? *Opens door to see Othias from C&Rsenal, Ian from Forgotten Weapons, and many, many other gun focus channels fighting on his front lawn to be in the episode* I think I'll just do this one myself.

[@jaxwagen4238]

I for one am an avid Finland enthusiast. Lots of my favorite hockey players hail from there

[@WorldWarTwo]

🇫🇮

[@markmierzejewski9534]

I hope we get a special on the different fighters in detail of WW2! Great Episode!

[@WorldWarTwo]

Thanks!

[@vasilerogojan4520]

Good job !!! I'm wainting for other special episodes about other weapons.

[@accubond3004]

Been saving this video so I had time to watch it! I love these episodes on firearms and weapons, its my favorite history subject!

[@theoldar]

Everyone hated snipers. They made it so you couldn't even crap in peace.

[@dentoncrimescene]

You could work with Ian from Forgotten Weapons. He's a gun expert who doesn't seem like a psychopath. He's great. Or the guy from the Royal Armouries, he's great too.

[@janwacawik7432]

The original intention when plans were being made for this channel was to have Ian and Karl from InRange to cover the small arms, but due to communication issues Ian and Karl decided they'd rather not get involved.

[@ivanvoronov3871]

@@janwacawik7432 that is sad because there were a lot of mistakes and inaccuracies in the firearms videos that forgotten weapons will not miss

[@janwacawik7432]

@@ivanvoronov3871 Absolutely.

[@stephencarran7650]

What about Othias from C&Rsenal? You collaborated with him on The Great War! He’s as knowledgeable as Ian from FW. Lots of inaccuracies. Some pretty cringeworthy.

[@billknoderer8202]

My Dad was a sniper in the 351st regiment, 88th infantry Div. in the Italian theater during the Rome/Arno /N.Apennines campaign May-Nov. 1944. He carried a 1903-A4 variant of the Springfield rifle.

[@WorldWarTwo]

@Bill Knoderer That's great that you know so much about his service. Thanks for sharing about him here.

[@57WillysCJ]

The Winchestor M-70 in 30-06 was used by Carlos Hathcock in Vietnam. It is still a good today. In fact you have Carlos at 11:58 demonstrating the M 70. Of course Carlos was born in 1942.

[@WorldWarTwo]

@57WillysCJ Good catch

[@stephencarran7650]

Did you not liaise with Othias again as per The Great War? There were a lot of inaccuracies in this episode.

[@JohnLaMonte]

Outstanding! Very, very good. Thanks.

[@somerabbit6909]

The Finnish sniper Indy mentions at the very end said that he never took a shot at over 75 yds. His forte was sneaking in close and hiding so well that even after killing his target the enemy couldn't find him.

[@vksasdgaming9472]

Actually Häyhä's longest recorded hit was over 500 meters away. Why bother trying to sneak that close when noise your rifle makes will tell your exact location anyways and counter-snipers are there in seconds.

[@michaellorusso4912]

Mr. Indiana , thank you for all the hard work you do.....Bravo, Sir!

[@FantomWireBrian]

My dad was one of Patton's men . He was an extreme marksman . He didn't need or want a sniper in his squad. I don't think he liked sniper's on both sides. He had bad eye's and was a natural . He didn't like scopes and his weapon of choice was the M1 Grande. He was in charge of a squad put together by choice of his abilities. He took out the sniper's but did lose men from them. Peep sights were his choice.When he came back the army wanted him to sniper train ,the police wanted him for SWAT training. He turned that down. He didn't believe that the M1 was best for accuracy . His choice for me was a Browning Tee bolt 22 with peeps and for high power a bolt synthetic Remington 700/ 270. He wasn't impressed much with the Scope but loved that it was free floated. He probably would've chosen a Belgium Browning as the 22 but I couldn't afford it. Interesting that he hated snipers but was one. Interesting he squirrel hunted with a Smith and Wesson 22 revolver with a 6" barrel and I never saw him miss. Years after he passed away I put the revolver in a gun vise and expected it to be right on . At 50 feet it was 6" high and same to the right. He had clearance to shoot at all police ranges and I never saw him leave the bull. There's obviously a lot to the gun ,but more to the one pulling the trigger. Another mystery is he was being pressured by a police officer about joining the NRA . Dad just shook his head and just said " No.". I say no myself . You didn't question anything he said about anything related to guns.

[@edm240b9]

Very few Winchester Model 70s saw combat usage, but the USMC did use them for competition target shooting. Fun Fact; the Marines were actually interested in the Model 70 as their primary sniper rifle before the war began. But, Aberdeen Proving Grounds rejected it simply because it wasn’t a standard weapon for the military and a nonsensical complaint that it was too fragile. Fast forward to the early years of the Vietnam War, the Marines had to start their sniper program all over again, and what did they choose as their rifle? The Winchester Model 70 in the same configuration as in the 1940s, but this time it was accepted.

[@michaelmusson3593]

love this very informative especially like the fact you mention the short coming of each rifle

[@WorldWarTwo]

Thank you Michael! Glad you enjoyed!

[@robmiller1964]

As a New Zealander, who's father fought the Italians and then the Germans in Greece, Crete, North Africa and then Italy he grew up in North Otago where you were born with a rifle! He was given a Winchester .22 and he went rabbit hunting with it in his school holidays. And the Waitaki Boys High and St Kevin's College boys also had access to old .303 riffles to go Deer Hunting in the McKenzie Country near mount Cook! Then WW2 broke out and New Zealand was off to war; but this time my dad was armed with the Great Lee Enfield .303! What a great rifle it was! He used it in Greece against the Italians, then the Germans because the Italians were being stuffed by the Greeks, Aussies, Kiwis (New Zealanders) and a few Battalions of Brits! But once the Gerries came in we were toast. However the great.303 was a good rifle, probably not as good on an individual shot for shot basis as the K 98, but had 10 shots in its mag compared to 5 in the K 98! Anyway my point is those that had learnt to shoot and hunt at an early age were better than those taught later! And more importantly, those that could shoot accurately through an open sight and had hunting/stealth skills were far more deadly than some Russian Fella with a copy German telescopic sight! Yes I would have loved to have had Winchestor, BRNO, Miroko, .22. Lets be honest, the Germans had the best optics, Now we just have to keep an eye out for the new Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini, and the most evil man in modern history Pol Pot......

[@Emil-Sinclair_and_Don-Quixote]

we are bless with this channel

[@ronaldjohnson1474]

Awesome stuff, very accurate and informative information. Thanks!

[@WorldWarTwo]

Thank you for your kind words! Stay tuned for more!

[@MaiaCoimbra]

Love it man, learn a lot, thanks

[@rokkinjohann]

First time to see your channel--returning soon. Your storytelling style is excellent for my level of understanding in the arms of WWII.

[@Cablancer2]

Bit of feedback. Since "7.62 x 54" are dimensions of the bullet, the "x" is not a times symbol but rather an separation of the deimentions. Typically the phrase is verbalized as "seven six two by fifty four"

[@TheMCD1989]

This was overall well done but there were some inconsistencies just from, I'm assuming, a production team not familiar with firearms. Besides what you mentioned I also picked up on the German scopes. The scope they would end up using was a ZF4 I, not a ZF41. There would be further improvements on it such as the ZF4 II.

[@alecjones4135]

But I'm common use most people say "7.62 times 54" they're not incorrect. It's obviously not actually multiplying 7.62 X 54.

[@JackWheeler360Fitness]

Great work as always time ghost!

[@WorldWarTwo]

Thanks!

[@kistler1994]

The most precise rifle I have is a 1930s Remmington Sportsman 341. Its only a .22cal and we hit bullseyes at 100 yards sitting with iron sights. 50yds standing. There's something to be said about the craftsmanship back then.

[@Karifi]

.22 cant kill anyone on long distance

[@hillbilly5609]

My grandpas brother secretly brought a Belgium made Mosin-Nagant from the Continuation war. It has been passed to my grandpa as a hunting rifle now. It has been modified to fit the restrictions of Finnish gun laws. Still a beauty.

[@artawhirler]

Another excellent video! Thanks!

[@jirkazalabak1514]

Hitler´s generals: "Mein F*hrer, what shall we equip our snipers with?" Hitler: *remembers what it was like to be hunted by snipers in WW1* "I don´t really like snipers, tbh."

[@george217]

Of course, Simo Häyhä didn't even use telescopic sights for his 500+ rifle kills...

[@hannahskipper2764]

Great episode! I can't wait for part 2!

[@WorldWarTwo]

@Hannah Thanks for watching, stay tuned :)

[@ATINKERER]

The Winchester M70 is still considered one of the best rifles in production today.

[@1reb]

Sir you have done a great job! Very well done!

[@Jarod-vg9wq]

I literally ask for a video special like this yesterday, you guys work fast!😂

[@dirus3142]

Forgotten weapons is a great channel to see many of these rifles in depth.

[@thylange]

Sniper rifles are interesting, but I think that aircraft and artillery are more important subjects.

[@bbb462cid]

No as important as the C-46, C-47, and Studebaker truck

[@uazfoursixnine]

A good overview of sniper rifles. Looking forward to more of these

[@WorldWarTwo]

@matej Thanks for watching!

[@jacobmaker8833]

The 1903 and the pattern 14 Enfield were both 30 06. The British had a version of the pattern 14 in 303. See Othias and May. They will explain in much more detail.

[@jeffreytam7684]

It’s vital to note that both G41 designs were handicapped by a requirement that the rifle can be used as a bolt action should the self loading functionality fail. This is the primary reason that the G41(W) and the Mauser design (which was even more troublesome) used gas trap designs. Walther would, in a way so typical of the labyrinthine German procurement of the day, essentially eliminate the gas trap system of their own volition, replace it with a piston very similar to the SVT’s and that would, more or less become the G43.

[@naveenraj2008eee]

Hi Indy Sniper week. Awesome video.. Explained well.. Learnt about sniper gun.. Thanks..

[@WorldWarTwo]

@NAVEEN Thanks for watching! Glad to have you with us every week

[@Tbone-Steak]

I own a .30-06 Winchester model 70. Quality bolt gun. I was inspired by Carlos Hathcock and had to have one myself.

[@jeremy28135]

x2. love this gun. Although mine is a newer model (2006), i was reading that it was one of the last to be produced in the New Haven, CT plant. i have several panzDeerjager kills to my credit using the Model 70 😏

[@scotttindale8167]

One good thing which is also the obvious thing is due to adding the scope to the left hand side of the mosin that required them the completely redesign the bolt handle because when rechambering the bolt would pretty much come vertical to slide back which would obviously hit the scope or not even lift all the way to rechamber so they had to design the handle to come more flat to the rifle like the m1903 springfield etc

[@WorldWarTwo]

Thanks for sharing, the Mosin has quite an interesting history with many variants used from its initial production to still somewhat in use today although more often you'd find an SKS or some other semi automatic as opposed to bolt-action. Almost 20 million were produced throughout the war with many variations taking place in that period. Thanks for watching!

[@user-gs8kw8tr4r]

Small mistake. 1.5x optics designated marksman’s rifles is the ZF41, not the ZF39. The ZF39 is the standardized turret style sniper rifle introduced in 1939.

[@azeclecticdog]

Rifle magazine did a comparison of sniper rifles (Enfield, Mosin-Nagant, Mauser, Springfield) and the Mosin came out on top.

[@beeg8615]

A good way to cap the day and accompany dinner, thank you timeghost for making these videos!

[@jimmyspatterson1632]

Two special episodes in consecutive days? You guys are the best!

[@WorldWarTwo]

@Jimmy S Patterson You're the best! Seriously the TimeGhost Army is the best audience out there. We could not do it without your support. Thanks for watching and stay tuned

[@clevlandblock]

Interesting and well done video.

[@oneshotme]

Enjoyed your video so I gave it a Thumbs Up

[@KatrinaLeFaye]

k98 receiver is one of the best ever designed, I have half a dozen and I love them.

[@stephencarran7650]

It’s actually termed the M98 action. K98 refers to the short model M98 rifle not the action. The K98k rifles are actually stamped M98 on their actions.

[@KatrinaLeFaye]

@@stephencarran7650 my latest is a Z98 as it was made by Zastava, same old action just made in modern times when you don't want to destroy a K98 rifle.

[@ATINKERER]

The K98 is the pinnacle of bolt action rifle design, and can't be improved upon in any significant way.

[@-oiiio-3993]

@@ATINKERER You've never met a Mannlicher Schoenauer?

[@vasilerogojan4520]

I should expected that after a biography of a very good sniper will come a special episode about sniper rifles. Good job.

[@ketiheagen186]

Anyone who has seen Steve 'n Seagulls perform "The Trooper" will be an instant Finish fan. Amazing how well the bajo translates to heavy metal music.

[@HamanKarn567]

Geweher 41 and 43 are some of my favorite rifles ever.

[@freetolook3727]

I never understood the idea of Japanese snipers in trees. There is no escape route and is sure to be a suicide mission.

[@chazzerman286]

From the viewpoint of the average IJA soldier, that's not a problem at all. Sacrificing yourself for the gain of Japan is actually admirable.

[@stephencarran7650]

Many other country’s snipers used trees as well due to their excellent camouflage. Pavlichenko recalls her story of being shot out of a tree wounded and playing dead to escape capture.

[@legatvsdecimvs3406]

Trees provide a "high ground" for better visibility of the area when no hills or buildings are available.

[@joostprins3381]

The Bang system is named after Bang who designed some autoloading guns. I think he was Swiss. So you got rifles which are named “Bang” rifles, very catchy.

[@joostprins3381]

@@Al-vb6js ah thanks.

[@jeffreycoulter4095]

Another outstanding video

[@WorldWarTwo]

@Jeffrey Coulter Thanks for watching

[@stevekaczynski3793]

The sniper at 12:01 has also been described as participating in the Vietnam War, and certainly that rifle type was used.

[@carolospetrou9458]

Hello from Cyprus !!

[@WorldWarTwo]

Hello from Canada!!

[@WorldWarTwo]

Hello back from around the world where our team are based 🙂

[@SenLouie]

I'm surprised this many years in and we haven't gotten a general equipment episodes for the fighting sides like in The Great War series. Stuff like the Kar98k , Garand, Mosin, and Arisaka rifles were instrumental in this war.

[@EdEighty6]

Thank you Indy and rest of the crew for this excellent content you keep creating. Greetings from Finland! :D

[@WorldWarTwo]

Thanks Ed. And greetings back from team members around the world

[@drewisaac9884]

Most people just say 7.62 by 54 mm. With the Russian round it's called 7.62x54r. 7.62 is the diameter of the bore and 54 is the rough length of the case. The r at the end means rimmed.

[@Casyfill]

Thanks for the episode! I hope there will be an extensive episode on planes at some point, something on the level of details for tanks episodes

[@WorldWarTwo]

@Philipp Lots more hardware specials to come, in addition to weekly episodes and some bigger projects in the works. Stay tuned, every bit of support from the TimeGhost Army helps us produce more episodes!