Shot 09- SCARs For Everybody

If you’ve got the cash, now you too can have a street-ready version of the weapon special operators will soon take to combat. In late December, FNH USA LLC began selling the first production models of its new civilianized Special Operations Combat Assault Rifle. “Everybody wanted it,” Tommy Thacker, product manager for FNH USA, said Jan. 15 at Shot Show ’09. “It’s a big thing.”
FNH officials said that the company would likely introduce a civilian version of the 7.62mm SCAR sometime next year but no date has been set yet, Thacker said. The only real differences between the new 16S and its military big brother: it doesn’t have the full automatic option and the three separate quick-change barrel system.

The SCAR 16S semiautomatic rifle is chambered for 5.56mm and features a 16.25-inch barrel. U.S. Special Operations Command selected FN in 2004 to develop two versions of the SCAR to replace its M4 carbines and other M16 series weapons. In addition to the 5.56mm version, there is also a heavier military version in 7.62mm.

It does have the six-position adjustable stock that also folds against the right side of the weapon for compact carry. The sights, the rail system and overall handling are also the same. The 16S is also equipped with a special muzzle compensator that greatly reduces recoil, Thacker said. “There is no muzzle climb,” he said describing how the shooter feels “straight recoil” to make the weapon more controllable.

The 16S weighs 7 pounds and measures 37.5 inches long overall with stock fully extended and 28 inches long with the stock folded. It retails for about $2,700, but because it is so new, some have sold for it for more than $9,000. “What they are selling for now is whatever anybody is willing to pay,” Thacker said.