| Walther WA 2000 | |
|---|---|
Walther WA 2000. |
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| Type | Sniper Rifle |
| Place of origin | West Germany |
| Service history | |
| Used by | German police units [1] |
| Production history | |
| Designed | 1970s-1980s [1] |
| Manufacturer | Walther [1] |
| Produced | 1982-1988 [1] |
| Number built | 176 [1] |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | |
| Length | 905 mm (35.6 in) [2] |
| Barrel length | 650 mm (25.6 in) [2] |
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| Cartridge | |
| Action | Gas-operated [2], rotating bolt |
| Rate of fire | Semi-automatic [2] |
| Effective range | 2,297ft, 700m, 766yds |
| Feed system | 6-round detachable box magazine [2] |
| Sights | Schmidt & Bender 2.5–10X telescopic sight [1] |
The WA 2000 is a semi-automatic bullpup sniper rifle that was produced by the Carl Walther GmbH Sportwaffen company.[1] It was produced in three different calibers.[2] Production of the rifle was limited and it was shortly stopped because it was too expensive to achieve widespread sales.[1] The rifle is currently rare and very valuable.[3]
Contents |
The WA 2000 was designed in the late 1970s and early 1980s, in response to the 1972 Summer Olympics Munich massacre.[1][4] The bullpup design was chosen because it would allow a standard length (for a sniper rifle) barrel to be used whilst the overall length would be shorter than a conventional rifle. The WA 2000 had a quick-detachable scope mount with a weight of 0.96 kg (2.1 lb).[2] The rifle did not have iron sights.[1] The most commonly used optical sight was a Schmidt & Bender 2.5-10X telescopic sight.[1] With no scope equipped, the rifle has an unloaded weight of 6.95 kg (15.3 lb) and a loaded weight of 7.35 kg(16.2 lb).[2]
The .300 Winchester Magnum round was chosen as the primary caliber because of its long range accuracy and its consistency at all ranges. The entire rifle is designed around the barrel. The WA 2000 fires from a closed bolt and uses a bolt with seven locking lugs. It has a two-stage trigger with a trigger pull of 1.2 to 1.4 kg (2.65 to 3.1 lb).[2] The rifle uses single stack box magazines that feature a 6-round capacity.[2] When loaded, this magazine has a weight of 0.4 kg (0.88 lb).[2]
The WA 2000 was chambered for the .300 Winchester Magnum, but also the 7.62x51mm NATO and 7.5x55mm Swiss.[1]
Only 176 total rifles (15 of which are in the United States) were ever produced, and in two different variants. The two variants can be differentiated by the type of flash suppressor used: the first, the older model, uses a "can" type flash suppressor; whereas the second generation and newer model uses the more conventional "flash-hider/compensator" design. The second generation incorporated several changes improving the rifle's accuracy, making it more suited to its intended job.
The rifle was produced from 1982[1] until November 1988. The rifle was used by some German police units, but production was stopped because it was too expensive to achieve widespread sales.[1] The final retail cost for a base rifle in the 1980s was in the range of $9,000 to $12,500, and the rifle's current value ranges from $40,000 for the first gen. to $75,000 for the 2nd gen.[3]