Firearm actions

thumb|upright=1.1|A Smith & Wesson Model 10, the most common revolver design thumb|upright=1.1|Firing a Smith & Wesson Model 686 [[.357 Magnum]]

type of firearm action

right|thumb|A Springfield Model 1888 rifle with its breech open. right|thumb|Schematic of various forms of locking on breechloading firearms. A breechloader is a firearm or artillery piece in which the user loads the ammunition from the breech (rear) end of the barrel. The vast majority of modern firearms are breech-loaders.

thumb|right|upright=1.5|A "Brown Bess" muzzle-loading musket, used by the [[British Army from 1722 to 1838]] A muzzleloader is any firearm in which the user loads the projectile and the propellant charge into the muzzle end of the gun (i.e., from the forward, open end of the gun's barrel). This is distinct from the modern designs of breech-loading firearms, in which user loads the ammunition into the breech end of the barrel. The term "muzzleloader" applies to both rifled and smoothbore type muzzleloaders, and may also refer to the marksman who specializes in the shooting of such firearms. The

thumb|Early German musket with [[serpentine lock.]] A matchlock or firelock is a historical type of firearm wherein the gunpowder is ignited by a burning piece of flammable cord or twine that is in contact with the gunpowder through a mechanism that the musketeer activates by pulling a lever or trigger with his finger. This firing mechanism was an improvement over the hand cannon, which lacked a trigger and required the musketeer or an assistant to apply a match directly to the gunpowder by hand. The matchlock mechanism allowed the musketeer to apply the match himself without losing his concen

automatic firearm that is only capable of firing in the fully automatic mode

type of pistol

a small metallic cap or cup, usually of copper or brass, containing a shock-sensitive explosive compound

earliest form of firearm used in 13th century China, 14th century Europe

right|thumb|A wheellock pistol or puffer, Augsburg, c. 1580 A wheellock, wheel-lock, or wheel lock is a friction-wheel mechanism which creates a spark that causes a firearm to fire. It was the next major development in firearms technology after the matchlock, and the first self-igniting firearm. Its name is from its rotating steel wheel to provide ignition. Developed in Europe around 1500, it was used alongside the matchlock (), the snaplock (), the snaphance (), and the flintlock ().

300px|thumb|upright=1.6|Flintlock of an 18th-century hunting rifle, with flint missing.

action which uses a pump to eject spent rounds

frequency at which a specific weapon can fire or launch its projectiles

system of operation used to provide energy to operate autoloading firearms

weapon that performs all steps necessary to prepare the weapon to fire again after firing, capable of firing only once with each activation of the trigger

thumb|400px|right|Illustration of some firearm breechblocks A breechblock (or breech block) is the part of the firearm action that closes the breech of a breech loading weapon (whether small arms or artillery) before or at the moment of firing. It seals the breech and contains the pressure generated by the ignited propellant. Retracting the breechblock allows the chamber to be loaded with a cartridge.

A gunlock mechanism that uses a piece of flint to strike against a peice of steel which produces sparks to ignite the priming powder of a flintlock firearm

type of firearm action

type of firearm action

method of locking used in firearms

firearm action using a hinge to expose the breech

rifle capable of repeated discharges from a single barrel between ammunition reloads

type of autocannon

type of firearm action

weapon that performs all steps necessary to prepare the weapon to fire again after firing

single-shot firearm action

thumb|right|300px|Shiloh Sharps Model 1874 Hartford in .50-90 Sharps In firearm designs, the term single-shot refers to guns that can hold only a single round of ammunition inside and thus must be reloaded manually after every shot. Compared to multi-shot repeating firearms ("repeaters"), single-shot designs have no moving parts other than the trigger, hammer/firing pin or frizzen, and therefore do not need a sizable receiver behind the barrel to accommodate a moving action, making them far less complex and more robust than revolvers or magazine/belt-fed firearms, but also with much slower rat

automatic firing mode

gun stocks that can be used to assist in bump firing

firearm mechanisms where the bolt is in the rearward position (open) when ready to fire

type of large gun

firearms mechanism that moves cartridges and/or seals the breech

firearm action, subclass of breech loader

system used to ignite the propellant of a firearm

ability of a firearm to fire in different modes as chosen by the operator

Breech-loading rifle

class of firearm with more than one barrel

firearm that can discharge multiple times before needing reload, including both manual repeaters and automatic firearms

firearm mechanisms where the bolt is in the forward position (closed or locked, depending on mechanism) when ready to fire

hammerless action of a type commonly used in double barreled shotguns

In a firearm; the distance measured from the face of the bolt to the part of the chamber that stops forward motion of the cartridge

self-revolving and cocking revolver

Ethyl centralite is an organic compound. Its chemical name is N,''-diethyl-N,''-diphenylurea. The molecular formula of ethyl centralite is . This compound has important uses in industry and forensics. The structure of ethyl centralite includes two phenyl groups (aromatic rings) attached to a central urea group. There are also ethyl groups () bound to the nitrogen atoms of the urea. Its primary use is as a stabilizer in double and triple-base smokeless powders.

REDIRECT Blowback_(firearms)#Delayed_blowback

Type of firearm mechanism

thumb|Swedish snaphance guns from the mid 17th century

trapdoor, hinged breechblock system for rifles

type of matchlock mechanism used to ignite early firearms

thumb|480px|right|This toradar is probably used for hunting. The decoration on the stock shows various animal figures e.g. buffaloes, panthers, etc. A toradar (, , ) is a South Asian matchlock primarily found in the Mughal Empire, dating from the 16th century. It was a preferred firearm in India well until the mid-19th century because of its economical and simple design.

thumbnail|right|Shown is a small Type 2 English lock of the English Civil War era. The lock is in the full-cock position. The dog has been automatically pushed out of the notch in the back of the cock and is lying back horizontally.

type of firearm action

type of firearm

The Kammerlader, or "chamber loader", was the first Norwegian breech-loading rifle, and among the first breech loaders adopted for use by an armed force anywhere in the world. A single-shot black-powder rifle, the kammerlader was operated with a crank mounted on the side of the receiver. This made it much quicker and easier to load than the weapons previously used. Kammerladers quickly gained a reputation for being fast and accurate rifles, and would have been a deadly weapon against massed ranks of infantry.

type of firearm action

type of gas operation for a firearm