It has several loadings light, heavy and a duplex load with two light bullets. The cartridge has a bullet weight of 7-33 grams when utilizing ShAK-12 loads. Standard loading for the ShAK-12 is a lightweight, subsonic ammunition with an aluminium core, exposed at the front and hollowed at the rear and partially enclosed into a bi-metal jacket. 338 Lapua Magnum, originally developed by the same organization that developed the silenced VKS sniper rifle. The ammunition used for the ShAK-12 is the 12.7×55mm straight-walled, rimless brass case based on. To achieve these goals, the designers of the ShAK-12 developed special large-calibre ammunition, loaded with a variety of bullets. The ShAK-12 is a dedicated 'Close/Urban combat' weapon for high-risk law enforcement operations, which must combine high stopping power with limited penetration and a short 'dangerous range', to avoid collateral damage to innocent bystanders or hostages. According to the Russian press, the first batch of ShAK-12 battle rifles were delivered to the FSB in late 2011.

The weapon was designed with extreme short-range stopping power in mind for FSB urban combat units.

The ShAK-12, (Russian: ШАК-12) originally under the name ASh-12.7 (АШ-12.7, which stands for 'Автомат штурмовой 12.7мм' or 'automatic assault 12.7mm') battle rifle is a dedicated CQB/ Urban Operations weapon, developed by TsKIB SOO ('Central Design and Research Bureau of Sporting and Hunting Arms'), a subsidiary of the KBP Instrument Design Bureau of Tula, Russia, by request from the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB). Iron sights, Picatinny rail for various optics

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