BR55 Heavy Barrel Service Rifle

For tactics on the BR55 and BR55HB SR, look at HaloWiki

The BR55HB SR Battle Rifle is a United Nations Space Command ground firearm and a variant of the standard BR55 Battle Rifle

Summary
The BR55HB SR is a burst fire, gas-operated, magazine-fed, mid-to-long range weapon. It is relatively the same as the BR55 Battle Rifle but with some design changes. It still fires the 9.5x40mm X-HP-SAP round in three round bursts from a 36 round magazine and it still has a scope with a 2x magnification. Its power as well as accuracy and range are pretty much the same.

Physical Description and Appearance
It is a bullpup, burst-fire UNSC rifle that fires the 9.5x40mm X-HP-SAP round, which is actually a larger bullet than an assault rifle round, giving more power but also more recoil. It fires from a 36 round magazine which fits flush in the receiver. The receiver is built directly into the butt of the gun and is located behind the grip (known as a bullpup configuration). This gun fires in three-round bursts due to difficult handling while firing automatically and actually is only fired 12 times before needing to be reloaded.

This titanium alloy weapon is gas-operated with a rotating bolt and therefore must be cocked before the first round can be fired. The bolt used to chamber the round is located on the left side of the weapon and does not move during operation. From then on, the gases from the previous rounds rotate the bolt inside and continue to chamber rounds until the mag is empty. Once the mag is empty, the bolt (even though not illustrated in either Halo 2 or Halo 3) can either be pulled back and locked or it can be fully cycled after a fresh mag has been housed. If it is pulled back and locked, then it must be pushed forward once a fresh mag is housed to chamber a new round. The ejection port is located on the right side of the weapon.



The BR55HB SR, having a rifled barrel, has noticeable changes from the BR55. First off, it has a longer barrel for increased range and accuracy. It is fitted with a Trijicon ACOG-style scope on a modified carrying handle and now also has a trigger guard. The safety is also located on the handle of the weapon.

Changes From The BR55

 * Modified carrying handle
 * New Trijicon ACOG-style scope
 * New trigger guard
 * Longer barrel
 * Increased range and accuracy
 * Less power against shielded enemys
 * Less flesh damage

Ammunition
It is interesting to note the ammo used for the Battle Rifle. It uses a new 9.5mm x 40 Experimental Round. The 7.62mm x 51 round is a moderately large round used on the MA5B and on modern day marksman rifles and machine guns. The 7.62mm already has a history of having too much recoil because of the bullet's size, which made it hard to fire fully-automatically in assault rifles. Having a bigger bullet that is almost 2 mm wider would make recoil worse. Due to this theory, it would make sense to say that future technology might have some role in countering these effects. It could be safe to say also that due to the Battle Rifle's bullpup design, it could counter the recoil effects.

However, the 9.5x40mm ammunition used for the BR55 has less powder in each cartridge than the 7.62x51mm rounds used in the MA assault rifles. So despite having a large bullet diameter, the decrease in powder for each round would actually cause less recoil, making it very tolerable. A burst setting on the rifle would also reduce recoil, preventing the user from spraying a target with high-caliber ammunition, possible causing uncomfortable physical effects such as mild bruising and so on.

The size of the ammo would also have a problem fitting in a 36-round magazine of the current Battle Rifle. If a Heckler & Koch G3 (which is chambered in 7.62mm x 51) has a standard magazine count of 20 and being the size that it is, it would be hard to see a bullet much thicker than the 7.62mm fit inside of a magazine of the Battle Rifle's size and with a capacity of 36 rounds. Again, this might have something to do with future UNSC weapon technology. This is a continuous pattern with UNSC rifles, as a similar instance occurred with the MA5B. The MA5B has a magazine of 60 rounds chambered in the 7.62mm x 51 with a rather "small" magazine size, which looks to be smaller than the Battle Rifle's magazine.

Influences
The BR55 is largely based on the French standard issue FAMAS assault rifle, and also has features resembling the US Army's prototype XM8 rifles.

Character Compatibility
This is most likely what the compatibility will be in Halo 3.
 * Elites
 * Spartans
 * Marines
 * Brutes
 * Drones
 * Jackals
 * Flood Combat Form (Human)
 * Flood Combat Form (Elite)

Trivia

 * Technically speaking "HB" stands for "Heavy Barrel". The "SR" stands for "Sniper Rifle" hinting at a higher zoom level (possibly meaning that it is the designated marksman variant of the BR55), making the previous suggestion of more sustained fire unlikely. Neither elements have been confirmed though.

Related Links

 * BR55