Sniper: Ghillie and rifle basics

ok now I'm not a professional, i can only tell you what i have gained from experience.

Sniper: as you all well may know the sniper is a force that allows for long range precision shooting to take out key targets or other whatnot's. as well as recon. Now in this state a sniper must be able to remain hidden from the enemy, this is often done by the use of camouflage, called ghillie suits. the ghillie suit originated from Scottish game keepers who would conceal themselves to help catch poachers, ok enough history.

Its all a science of how the human eye sees. your eyes are trained to see shapes and images that are familiar, such as a face or the shape and outline of a person, now the ghillie attempts to deceive your eyes by creating the outline to blend, and not stick out. to disappear into the background

Construction:
Now there are a lot of things that go with creating a ghillie suit but I'm not going to mention it all here cause it to vast and i don't feel like typing it all.
Materials and supplies
BDU-shirt and pants
Boonie hat large
thin nylon netting about 1 inch wide gaps in the netting
jute/burlap
fire retardant spray
dyes

ok first lay out the BDU, which ever you start with either or is fine , but me i like to start with the pants
cut the nylon netting in to the shape of the BDU whether pants or shirt fasten the netting on the BDU parts via sewing, very strong glue bonds or what ever you can think of to keep the netting attached and strong
next with either burlap or jute start a the base of each BDU section and work your way up tying on various lengths of burlap or jute or even a mix of both keep the material close together and as you work you way up make sure it over laps the material below it so the netting doesn't show. remember normal burlap and jute is sort of a brownish color, with the aide of dyes you can create various shades of color to the ghillie. make sure that the ghillie is bushy and full that covers all parts. Now colors are important you have to match with your environment. if you are in a heavily dense green area you have to match the different shades of green yes but you have to remember that beneath that green is brownish colors. so what i do is create a darker brownish ghillie and add natural vegetation just talking the green foliage and add it into the ghillie. next you want to construct a piece that breaks up the shape of your head. the best way to do this is by using a Boonie hat cutting out a rather large section of burlap to cover the hat make sure its enough to drape down to the back of the BDU jacket as well as the sides and not to much were it completely covers your face. next attach the netting to the hat and apply your jute and burlap. Take your time with this and understand that where every you going to be those are the colors you want to closely match. Very important often people think black as a color its not its absents of light there is no true black in objects found in nature ie. plants and trees. so avoid black as much as possible. also a rifle wrap is good idea to make as well a ghillie that fits over your gun, because that shape sticks out as well. Lastly VERY IMPORTANT JUTE AND BURLAP ARE EXTREMELY FLAMMABLE ALWAYS SPRAY YOUR GHILLIE WITH FIRE RETARDANT SPRAYS


Okay for my ghillies personally i like to stick with more brown colors overall because i can add the need green from plants and such this way transitioning from very green area to a brown leafy area is just a matter of removing the add foliage, i see keeping the ghillie with brown colors helps create it to be more effective in all situation. so that's just something to think about. Also for this will work for winter as well just add strips of gray and white material dye burlap and jute as well as some waterproof linings and sprays.

stalking:
its just the word chosen for sniper movements. OK there are different type of stalks, and each one means a sort of different level of stealth and risk. The upright stalk which is walking slow and cautious is used if your risk level of being seen is low. Next your have a High crawl which if risk is a little higher all you do is your on you hands and feet and crawl, keep your back a bit low. next you have the low crawl this time your on your hands an knees this is for if the risk is now rather high. and finally the prone position this is if risk is at the highest this crawl you must keep slow and keep your movements to very minimum.
Remember when moving plan your steps look around for threats and your next location for cover. avoid sunspots as this is like stepping into a spotlight and saying "look at me" avoid twigs, dead leaves and never walk or step on fallen logs, they could be rotten and give way make loud noises. Next moving with the wind will help mask you movements, and not give you away, if the wind is blowing the tall grass left and a huge chunk is moving right it looks odd. Patients is the best tool you can use with stalking.

Sniper rifle basics

Most often found with bolt action springs these are to me the best type there affordable and have fewer parts and less likely to brake. Operation: you cock the bolt it pulls the spring back push the bolt forward the piston sear holds it in place till you pull the trigger then the piston fires forward sending the air at the BB expelling it out of the barrel. simple. there are electric and gas but i don't use those as much and I'm sure you could find some were else on how those work.

Ok for the question in my comments on my pict. That is a UTG MK96 or L96 both are the same. that particular rifle has no upgrades except the scope i bought for it. which is a tactical sniper scope Mil Dot with red green ill 4x 60. its pretty good. other than that its the same. I would recommend that rifle it is worth the money at $130 450fps with and effective range of about 150ft-200ft its worth it.

lastly the role on my team
Pretty obvious that I'm a sniper... my main job is to give sniper support to my fireteam as well as search out on ahead to recon the area and gather as much intel on the opposing team as much as possible being the team leader i coordinate with the fire team and draw up the plan of action. the fireteam may execute that plan any way they see fit.

ok well that's enough writing for me... you any one wants anything else explained or in further detail let me know. last thing two great books on ghillie construction and snipers tactics are The Invisible Advantage Workbook if you want to know more about ghillie suits and The Ultimate sniper book if you dedicated to the science and art of being a sniper


thanks hope you enjoy it

remember ONE SHOT ONE KILL!