Browsing Barrett Firearms in Small Details

Barrett Firearms Manufacturing is one of the most recognized firearm manufacturers in the world. Established in the USA, the company is an Australian owner. Despite its popularity, it’s not as old as its competition, with many names producing guns and trading since the 19th century.

Established in 1982, the primary goal of the company was to produce high quality rifles in the .50 BMG caliber. The initial prototypes were produced in 1980, but the first official firearm was introduced in 1982, hence its name, M82.

Ronnie G. Barrett, the founder, had very specific requirements that were meticulously incorporated into the first gun carried. In fact, every single part of the gun was made by him. Initially ignored, he personally funded the production of the weapon before gaining international recognition.

In 2023, NIOA Group acquired Barrett. The two companies had a long history of collaborations, but this acquisition was a more official agreement between them. Overtime, Barrett rifles have been used in military conflicts all over the world, with many of them sold to the public too.

Anti-materiel rifles

Anti-materiel rifles were clearly aimed at military forces. After all, such rifles are mainly used against professional military equipment. This is probably Barrett’s most diversified category of guns.

M82 is the first rifle made by Barrett. The U.S. military named it M107. Some refer to it as Light Fifty, only because it uses the .50 BMG cartridge. It’s a recoil operated unit that comes in three variants. M82A1 was the first one, followed by M82A2 and M107A1.
M90 is one of the first bolt action Barrett guns out there. The bullpup rifle uses the same NATO cartridge. It was introduced in 1990 and made until 1995. It doesn’t come with iron sights, but it can take a scope.
M95 is similar to M90 from many points of view. Introduced in 1997, it quickly became a primary option for numerous military forces from various countries. Some see it as an upgraded version of M90.
M99 is a single-shot unit. It came out in 1999 and quickly gained notoriety due to its low price tag, mainly because it didn’t come with any bells and whistles. The configuration makes it a bullpup rifle, but it has a pistol grip.
XM109 came out as a prototype. It was built for 25x59mm grenade rounds. Multiple prototypes were released and studied overtime, but it’s hard to tell what happened to the weapon. There are no official statements about it.
XM500 is a gas-operated unit produced since 2006. It’s similar to the original M82, but it comes with some improvements. It’s not as heavy and it’s said to have an incredible accuracy. It can also take a few accessories.

Sniper rifles

There are only two Barrett rifles in this category. However, both of these Barrett rifles were proven to be extremely accurate and useful.

M98B is also known as 98 Bravo. The bolt-action unit relies on the .338 Lapua Magnum caliber. The production was announced in 2008. By 2009, it was already available for sale. However, the initial engineering plans were developed in 1997.

MRAD stands for Multi Role Adaptive Design. Borrowing the frame and some of the features of M98B, the rifle was announced to be the best of 2009, according to the NRA. It’s in service since 2013 and has a few variants.

Semi-automatic rifles

Given Barrett’s growing popularity, semi-automatic rifles became a hit as soon as they hit the market and for some good reasons.

M468 is often considered a variant of the M4 carbine. It was produced between 2004 and 2010. To boost the performance of this rifle, Barrett modified it for the large and heavy 6.8mm bullet cartridge.
REC7 stands for Reliability Enhanced Carbine and it actually raises to the expectations. Introduced in 2007, it has used in two different calibers, 5.56x45mm NATO and 6.8mm Remington SPC.
REC10 uses the 308 Win caliber and has a round capacity of 20. It’s a direct impingement gun that weighs nine pounds. It’s available in two configurations, as well as a few different colors. Its unique gas block makes it stand out, as users can service it themselves.

Machine guns

Barrett rifles dominate the manufacturer’s portfolio, but overtime, it has also developed a solid machine gun with impressive capabilities.

M240LW was introduced in 1977. It has been used by military forces from all over the world since it came out. It relies on the 7.62x51mm NATO caliber and it’s one of the most reliable machine guns on the market, despite being heavier than its competition.

Optics

Many Barrett firearms can be enhanced with proprietary optics. The BORS (Barrett Optical Ranging System) is more than just a scope. It’s a computer that can help rifles reach amazing accuracy over long distances.

The computer helps shooters take the temperature into consideration, as well as the barometric pressure for accuracy.

Ammo

Apart from Barrett guns, you can also find high quality ammunition developed by the successful manufacturer.

.50 BMG M33 Ball is a cartridge measuring half an inch. It’s in production since 1921 and was initially used by the M2 Browning machine gun.
.416 Barrett is also known as 10.4x83mm. It was introduced in 2005, as a more modern alternative to .50 BMG.
6.8 SPC is a classic, mainly produced between 2002 and 2004. It was originally produced by Remington Arms.
.338 Lapua Magnum is a cartridge produced since 1989. It’s one of the most popular bullets among snipers.

Barrett shotguns

Barrett shotguns have never been a priority, yet there were all kinds of rumors overtime. Two prototypes have been released, but without gaining too much success. Both of them have been made by an Italian manufacturer under Barrett’s license.

Beltrami can be found in 12 and 20 gauge. A variant in 28 gauge has also been created.
Albany has the same configuration, but it looks differently.

Bottom line, these are the Barrett firearms that have changed the industry’s standards over the past four decades. The company has constantly tried to innovate and tends to stand out with every new release.