Modern Firearms

1. Modern Firearms

2. Safety Mechanism • Never trust the safety • Prevents the firearm from firing • Could fail! • Don’t be afraid to ask if you don’t know how a firearm safety works

3. Damascus Barrel: • Older or custom made barrels which were typically made before the turn of the century • Weaker than modern barrels • Couldn’t fire as far and straight

4. Airguns: • Pneumatic – use a pump system • CO2 Powered – use compressed CO2 contained in a steel cylinder • Spring – involves a spring that is compressed by a lever

5. Rifles and Shotguns: • Use expanding gas from burning powder to force a bullet or shot out of the muzzle • Main difference in shotgun and rifle is found inside the barrel • Shotgun bore (inside of barrel) is thin and smooth • Rifle bore are thicker and have grooves that spiral around the bore

6. Grooves are called rifling • Spins the bullet making it more accurate • Caliber of a rifle is determined by measuring the width of the bore • Shotgun sizes are given in gauges • Gauges is usually marked on the rear of the barrel

7. Always use the correct gauge shell in the same gauged shotgun (12-gauge shell in a 12 gauge shotgun) • Rifle and shotguns are usually identified by their bore sizes and action designs • Action in the part that moves the cartridges or shotshells into the chamber (loads, unloads, and ejects ammunition)

8. .22 Rifle

9. .22 Hornett

10. 243

11. 270

12. 30-06

13. 7 mm

14. Stock, action, and barrel are 3 main components of guns • There are 5 categories of actions: - break -pump -lever -semi automatic -bolt

15. Rifle sights: • Open – least accurate • Peep or Aperture • Telescope – most accurate

16. Dominant Eye: • The one you should look through when sighting • Keep both eyes open when shooting a shotgun • Usually close one eye when shooting a rifle

17. Rifle positions: • Standing – most difficult • Kneeling – forms a tripod • Sitting – forms a tripod • Prone – most stable (lying down)

18. Firing Techniques • Hold breath • Gently squeeze the trigger • Apply steady pressure • Never jerk or slap the trigger

19. Range or Distances • .22 caliber bullet (rimfire) can be dangerous at a mile or more • Centerfire bullets (.30-.30, .30-.06 etc) can be dangerous at more than 3 ½ miles

20. Ammunition: • Divided into two categories - cartridges – handguns and rifles -shotshells – shotguns

21. Ammunition • Case • Primer -centerfire or rimfire • Smokeless powder • Bullet

22. Shotguns: • Measured in gauges • 10, 12, 16, 20, 28, and .410 are the most common • The smaller the number, the larger the bore (inside of the barrel)

23. Shotgun positions: • Always fire from a standing position • Slight bend to knees and elbows • Lean forward a little

24. Shotgun range: • Not a long range gun • Depends on the shotshell • Average is within 45 yards

25. Shotgun choke: • Determines the spread or pettern of the shot after it leaves the barrel • Three chokes: -full – most constricted -modified – less constricted -improved cylinder – less than modified -cylinder choke – no constriction, shot spreads quickly

26. Ammunition • Case • Primer • Smokeless Powder • Wad and Shot