Download Firearm Terminology: Understanding the Anatomy of Guns and more Exams Safety and Fire Engineering in PDF only on Docsity! Firearm Terminology • Action: the part of a firearm that loads, fires, and ejects a cartridge. Includes lever action, pump action, bolt action, and semi-automatic. The first three are found in weapons that fire a single shot. Firearms that can shoot multiple rounds ("repeaters") include all these types of actions, but only the semi-automatic does not require manual operation between rounds. A truly "automatic" action is found on a machine gun. • Barrel: the metal tube through which the bullet is fired. • Black Powder: the old form of gunpowder invented over a thousand years ago and consisting of nitrate, charcoal, and sulfur. • Bore: the inside of the barrel. "Smoothbore" weapons (typically shotguns) have no rifling. Most handguns and rifles have "rifling". • Breech: the end of the barrel attached to the action. • Butt or stock: the portion of the gun, which is held or shouldered. • Bullets: the projectile. They are shaped or composed differently for a variety of purposes. o "round-nose" - the end of the bullet is round. o "hollow-point" - there is a hole in the bullet that creates expansion when a target is struck, creating more damage. o "1/2 jacketed" - the soft lead is partially surrounded by another metal, usually copper, that promotes exit velocity. o "jacketed" - the soft lead is surrounded by another metal, usually copper, that allows the bullet to penetrate a target more easily. o "wad cutter" - the front of the bullet is flattened. Used mainly for target p r a c t i c e . • Caliber: the diameter of the bore measured from land to land, usually expressed in hundredths of an inch (.22 cal) or in millimeters (9mm). • Cartridge: also called a "round," "ammunition," or "shell". Made up of a case, primer, powder, and bullet. • Centerfire: the cartridge contains the primer in the center of the base, where it can be struck by the firing pin of the action (most commonly on a 22). • Chamber: the portion of the "action" that holds the cartridge ready for firing. • Choke: a constriction of a shotgun bore at the muzzle that determines the pattern of the fired shot. • Double-action: pulling the trigger both cocks the hammer and fires the gun. • Double barrel: two barrels side by side or one on top of the other, usually on a shotgun. • Gauge: refers to the diameter of the barrel on a shotgun, in terms of the number of lead balls the size of the bore it would take to weigh one pound (10 gauge, 12 gauge, etc.) • Hammer: a metal rod or plate that strikes the cartridge primer to detonate the powder. • Ignition: the way in which powder is ignited. Old muzzle-loading weapons used flintlock or percussion caps. Modern guns use "primers" that are "rimfire" or "centerfire"
