What is the best sniper rifle for Arctic warfare?

All militaries weapons weather it be sniper rifles or normal battle rifles are built to NATO spec which should include cold weather conditions to -55.
This the "normal" or it is deemed extreme cold. So in short, what is good in the summer, is good in the winter.
 
I would say our Canadian made PGW is probably built to run in extreme cold being that it's produced in one of the coldest southern provinces and the fact that it's built like a tank. I haven't shot one but I've never read or heard anything bad said about them.

I would put the Sako TRG high on the list as the Finns designed the rifle to function in their climate which can get pretty nasty in the winter. I was shooting mine in a snow storm the other day just for fun and it functioned flawlessly. Rifle was covered in snow that was melting and freezing as I was shooting and not a single hiccup. Can't wait to hunt with mine in 2016.

I have seen a couple Remington's freeze up in a blizzard in -25 Celsius. One wouldn't fire and the other the bolt wouldn't open until we thawed it out.

Other than that, although the newer AI's weren't specifically designed to run in Arctic, I'm sure the AT and AX/ AXMC would have no problem in those conditions.
 
Like cappy said, carried over into the AX series.

The AW's the are out there are not being replaced anytime soon, they will be around for a long time. Parts and support are still there (obviously). Some older ones have been updated with new skins, scope mounts and the like.

Here is Sweden's updated version with Spuhr mounts. Their contract requirements for an arctic SWS back in 1988 started the AW series, it was developed for them. After that the design took off, many militaries use it as their SWS along with the Sako TRG which also runs very well in freezing conditions.



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Thomas D'Arcy McGee said:
Arctic conditions can happen in many parts of the world without being in the arctic. It happens inside Canada every winter!
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Yea, I know, but how many Spec Ops are Canadian civilians doing that they need a purpose built Arctic Warfare rifle.
Just to have it, I get that for collecting, but in my mind I'm trying to visualize the scenarios. .50 cal long range I'm thinking because of vast snowy flat distances. The Accuracy International AW50 comes to mind with white camo painted on it.

I love winter time, too much time spent on the internet for me. fraserdw was an officer and knows what the military do and yes I believe the Russian, Swedes, Norwegians, Finns practice all the time because of their past warring neighbours, but Canada? My rem 700 has shot all day in -30 C weather without a hiccup and snow has got in it, but not really a problem.
 
All rifles will run in the cold at a range. The problems will start under field conditions whe they are exposed to blowing snow all day or night, temperature changes, moisture, getting dragged through the snow, in a bivi bag overnight, ect.

The Americans used to piss on their M1's in Korea when they froze shut, the Germans had problems with their MG's and other weapons in Russia. Some designs work better than others in these environments. AI's bolt lug design and bolt flutes along with certain tolerances allow them to run well in anything from snow to sand. The design has proved itself all around the globe in the last 30 years.
 
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Pretty much any rifle that has reasonable bolt to action tolerances (not your BR action) will do alright in the cold and snow. Bolt fluting will help, provides for less metal on metal contact so less chance of it all freezing together. As well as providing dirt, snow and ice somewhere to go when it does get into the action.
Clean the lube out of the gun and run it dry or with graphite or something along those lines, oil and grease gets thick and gummy when it gets cold.
There are lots of conditions that can't be controlled, but if you think the average sniper isn't putting at least some effort into shielding his rifle from the elements when reasonably possible you would be mistaken. Don't forget that their favourite part of that job depends on that rifle working, not to mention potentially their lives depending on it.
Yes certain firearms are better suited than others but it's up to the operator to keep it running.
 
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