Sniper Dragunov

The Dragunov Rifle (Russian: Снайперская винтовка Драгунова, Snayperskaya Vintovka Dragunova, abbreviated as SVD), is a semi-automatic rifle designed by Evgeniy Fedorovich Dragunov in the Soviet Union from 1958 to 1963. This rifle was the first rifle made specifically for shooters and commonly found in the former Eastern Bloc countries, the Soviet Union, the Middle East and other countries that are well connected with the Soviet Union / Russia such as India, Vietnam and Venezuela. The rifle is also produced locally in India, China, and Iran.

History
In the 1950s, the Soviet Union military was aware of the need for accurate rifles to be used at the platoon level. And in 1958 a tender was opened among Soviet arms makers to make this new rifle. The winning bidder above is a rifle designed team led by Evgeniy Fedorovich Dragunov. In 1963, the SVD was officially used by the Soviet Army.

Modernization
SVD initially has furniture (butt, rear grip, and front grip) made of laminated wood. This laminating layer in addition to make it look better, also to protect the wood coated. But this has a weakness if the enemy has night vision. SVD wood turns bright yellow when viewed through night vision binoculars.

Current SVDs are made with black polymers to reduce weight and avoid the above flaws. In the 1990s, IZhMASh also modified the inside of the SVD, to make it stronger and to prepare the SVD to be exported in a variety of other calibers. 

UsageIn Soviet times, each team was given one SVD. SVD-equipped soldiers are usually given special training to wear this rifle. These soldiers move in tandem with his team and are meant to add their range of up to 600 meters. Without SVD, the effective distance of the infantry team is only up to 300 meters, due to the smallness of the AK-47 range. So judging by its role, technically SVD is not a sniper rifle, but a sniper rifle.
Designed to extend the range of the squad range, this rifle remains strong and resilient. This is evident from the place for bayonet installation, as well as a backup iron shot when the telescope's viewfinder is damaged. The reliability of these rifles is still recognized, and these rifles are still used in the Russian Armed Forces and Russian law enforcement units.
The Soviet-made light weapons are generally well-known for being very durable, as evidenced by the large number of widely used SVDs and the long "career". This rifle is used in many conflicts around the world, including the Vietnam War, Chechnya, Gulf War, Iraq War, until the Libyan Conflict.