{"id":2331,"date":"2020-05-12T08:01:15","date_gmt":"2020-05-12T08:01:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ammoman.com\/blog\/?p=2331"},"modified":"2020-06-29T17:37:57","modified_gmt":"2020-06-29T17:37:57","slug":"a-glossary-of-common-gun-terms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ammoman.com\/blog\/a-glossary-of-common-gun-terms\/","title":{"rendered":"A Glossary Of Common Gun Terms"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Glossary of Gun Terms<\/span><\/h1>\n

Navigating the world of firearms ownership is tough. It\u2019s made even harder by the fact that there are so many words used in the gun industry that mean specific things. All these gun terms can get very confusing. To help you out, we\u2019ve created a list of common words and phrases used by people who own guns. Feel free to refer back to this list when the language of guns ties you up in a knot.<\/span><\/p>\n

A<\/a> | B<\/a> | C<\/a> | D<\/a> | E<\/a> | F<\/a> | G<\/a> | H<\/a> | I<\/a> | J<\/a> | K<\/a> | L<\/a> | M<\/a> | N<\/a> | O<\/a> | P<\/a> | Q | R<\/a> | S<\/a> | T<\/a> | U<\/a> | V | W<\/a> | X | Y | Z<\/a> <\/span><\/p>\n

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A<\/h3>\n

ACCURIZE: Improving the accuracy of a firearm by reducing the tolerances between parts.<\/span><\/p>\n

ACP: Short for Automatic Colt Pistol cartridge.<\/span><\/p>\n

ACTION: The mechanism of a firearm, usually located within the receiver.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

AK: Avtomat Kalashnikov, usually associated with the AK-47 Russian service rifle.<\/span><\/p>\n

ANVIL: A part of a cartridge primer used to ignite the priming compound after it has been crushed by the firing pin.<\/span><\/p>\n

AP: (a) Armor Piercing. (b) Automatic Pistol.<\/span><\/p>\n

APERTURE SIGHT: A front or rear sight with a circular opening in the center. Also known as a <\/span>Ghost Ring Sight or Peep Sight.<\/span><\/p>\n

API: (a) Armor Piercing Incendiary ammunition. (b) The American Pistol Institute, the original name for Gunsite.<\/span><\/p>\n

AR: Automatic Rifle. Also, Armalite Rifle, as in AR-7 or AR-15.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"AR-15<\/a>

An AR-15 pistol<\/p><\/div>\n

AR-15: Commercial semi-automatic version of the selective fire Colt M-16 U.S. service rifle.<\/span><\/p>\n

AUTOLOADING: A firearm that uses the force of the explosion of each shot to unlock the mechanism, extract and eject the empty cartridge case, and reload by stripping and feeding another cartridge from the magazine into the chamber. The trigger must be pressed for each successive shot. See<\/span> Semi-Automatic.<\/span><\/p>\n

AUTOMATIC: Firearms that use the force of the explosion of the first shot to continuously unlock, extract, eject, reload, lock, and fire. This type of gun will operate continuously as long as there is ammunition in the belt or magazine and the pressure on the trigger is continued. This term is often used, incorrectly, to describe autoloading or semi-automatic firearms.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

B<\/h3>\n

BACKSTRAP: The rear extension of a pistol or revolver frame that curves downward.<\/span><\/p>\n

BACKSTOP: A mound of earth, hill, or any other barrier that will safely deflect, stop, or absorb bullets.<\/span><\/p>\n

BALLISTICS: The science of studying moving projectiles. Ballistics is further broken down into three areas of study: internal, external, and terminal.<\/span><\/p>\n

BALLISTIC COEFFICIENT: A calculated number derived from how a bullet\u2019s shape, length, weight, diameter. and nose design affect its stability, velocity and range versus air resistance.<\/span><\/p>\n

BARREL: A metal tube containing the bore through which a projectile or charge passes upon firing.<\/span><\/p>\n

BARREL BAND: A strip of metal that holds the barrel and forearm together, holding the barrel in the forearm groove.<\/span><\/p>\n

BASE: The rear end of a projectile, bullet, or cartridge.<\/span><\/p>\n

BEAD: A small knob of contrasting metal, usually brass or gold, that is placed near the muzzle end of the barrel used as a front sight in aiming.<\/span><\/p>\n

BINOCULAR VISION: Sighting with both eyes open.<\/span><\/p>\n

BIRD: A clay target used in skeet and trap shooting.<\/span><\/p>\n

BLACK POWDER: The original gunpowder and a forerunner of smokeless powder, created from a mixture of charcoal saltpeter and sulfur.<\/span><\/p>\n

BLOWBACK: A method of weapon operation where the force of expanding gases moving rearward provides the energy required to initiate and complete the cycle of operation of the firearm.<\/span><\/p>\n

BLUING: A chemical process that creates a controlled oxidation of a metal surface that results in a blue or blue-black finish.<\/span><\/p>\n

BOAT TAIL: The tapered rear end of a bullet that is designed to increase ballistic efficiency at long range.<\/span><\/p>\n

BOLT: A sliding mechanism that does the feed in some types of firearms. It usually contains the extractor and firing pin and supports the base of the cartridge case.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Bolt<\/a>

A bolt action rifle with a telescopic sight<\/p><\/div>\n

BOLT ACTION: A rifle and shotgun mechanism whereby the breech is opened and closed by a manually operated bolt.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

BORE: (a) The interior of the barrel through which the charge of the bullet passes. (b) The inside diameter of the barrel, measured from land to land.<\/span><\/p>\n

BOX MAGAZINE: A box shaped metal container for holding cartridges.<\/span><\/p>\n

BRASS: An empty metallic cartridge case.<\/span><\/p>\n

BREATH CONTROL: Properly controlling your breathing during the aiming and firing process in order to minimize disturbance of sight alignment and sight picture.<\/span><\/p>\n

BREECH: The rear end of the barrel into which a cartridge is inserted.<\/span><\/p>\n

BUCKSHOT Large size lead shot for use in shotgun shells commercially\u00a0<\/span>manufactured in seven sizes with the following designations and diameters:<\/p>\n