Getting Shot by a Barrett .50 Cal

The Barrett rifle is one of the most powerful weapons a single soldier can carry, and this video explains how it came to be. The video covers the story of the .50 BMG cartridge, first designed during World War 1 when tanks and armored aircraft appeared and older machine guns could no longer deal with them. It looks at how General Pershing asked for a new heavy caliber, which led to the legendary M2 Browning machine gun and a round still used more than a hundred years later. The video gets into the German anti-tank rifle from the First World War that inspired the whole idea. It also covers Carlos Hathcock and his record-setting long-range hit with an M2, which hinted that this big cartridge could be accurate at extreme range. The video then follows Ronnie Barrett, a photographer with no engineering background who sketched a semi-automatic .50 caliber rifle and built it in a garage after experts told him it was impossible. The video explains how he solved the massive recoil, how the first Barrett rifles reached the market, and how Sweden and the American military became early buyers. The video also covers the rifle's combat debut in the 1990 Gulf War as an anti-material rifle, its use during the conflict in Ireland, and the many types of .50 BMG ammunition, including armor-piercing, incendiary, and the famous Raufoss round. It ends by clearing up one popular myth about the fifty cal. This channel makes military history documentaries about the wars, the weapons, and the people and machines behind them. Script written by:    / andreja-rakocevic   Contact: [email protected] Unbelievable True Stories covers the forgotten and surprising corners of history. Facebook: facebook.com/profile.php?id=61587274704384 X: x.com/UTStoriesYT Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/utsproducti... Unbelievable True Stories covers the forgotten and surprising corners of history. © Unbelievable True Stories 2025 Chapters: 0:00 Why This One Is Different 0:24 The Bullet Built for Tanks 1:08 The German Idea That Started It 2:07 One Hit at 2,500 Yards 3:10 The Photographer They Laughed At 4:54 Taming a Machine Gun Round 6:45 Hidden Inside a Car 9:04 The Rounds That Cost $100