Firearm

A Firearm is a projectile weapon that uses expanding gas from combustion to propel projectiles through a barrel.

• AKA: Gun, Small Arm, Personal Firearm.
• Context:
  • It can utilize Controlled Explosion through gunpowder and propellant combustion.
  • It can employ Mechanical Action through firing mechanisms and trigger systems.
  • It can incorporate Safety Features through mechanical locks and safety catches.
  • It can achieve Projectile Propulsion through gas pressure and barrel configuration.
  • It can implement Rifling Patterns through barrel design for projectile stabilization.
  • It can utilize Loading Mechanisms through breech design and magazine systems.
  • It can integrate Targeting Systems through sight mechanisms and optical systems.
  • ...
  • It can provide User Interface through grip design and stock configuration.
  • It can support Ammunition Feed through magazine design and belt systems.
  • It can maintain Operating Temperature through heat dissipation and cooling systems.
  • It can ensure Operational Safety through mechanical interlocks and warning systems.
  • It can require Regular Maintenance through cleaning procedures and part inspections.
  • ...
  • It can range from being a Simple Mechanism to being a Complex System, depending on its operating principle.
  • It can range from being a Single Shot Device to being an Automatic System, depending on its action type.
  • ...
  • It can be subject to Legal Regulation through licensing requirements and ownership restrictions.
  • It can enable Rate Control through action design and trigger mechanisms.
  • ...
• Examples:
  • Historical Firearms, such as:
    • Early Firearms, such as:
      • Hand Cannon for medieval warfare.
      • Fire Lance for early projectile combat.
    • Matchlocks for military use.
    • Wheellocks for civilian use.
    • Flintlocks for colonial warfare.
    • Percussion Cap designs for 19th century combat.
  • Modern Firearms, such as:
    • Military Firearms, such as:
      • Assault Rifle for infantry operations.
      • Service Pistol for sidearm use.
    • Civilian Firearms, such as:
      • Bolt Action for precision shooting.
      • Semi-Automatic for sport shooting.
      • Hunting Rifle for game hunting.
    • Specialized Firearms, such as:
      • Sniper Rifle for long-range precision.
      • Competition Pistol for target shooting.
  • Purpose-Built Firearms, such as:
    • Anti-Materiel Rifle for heavy target engagement.
    • Survival Rifle for emergency situations.
  • ...
• Counter-Examples:
  • Pneumatic Weapons, which use compressed air rather than expanding gas from combustion.
  • Crossbows, which use mechanical energy rather than chemical energy.
  • Spring-Powered Devices, which use stored mechanical force rather than expanding gas.
  • Electric Guns, which use electromagnetic force rather than chemical propellants.
  • Directed Energy Weapons, which use focused energy rather than physical projectiles.
• See: Ballistics, Ammunition, Gun Safety, Weapon History, Military Technology, Ranged Weapon, Projectile, Weapon Design, Combat System.

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References

2020

• (Wikipedia, 2020) ⇒ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firearm Retrieved:2020-3-6.
  • A firearm is a gun (a barreled ranged weapon) designed to be readily carried and used by a single individual. It inflicts damage on targets by launching one or more projectiles driven by rapidly expanding high-pressure gas produced by exothermic combustion (deflagration) of chemical propellant. If gas pressurization is achieved through mechanical gas compression rather than through chemical propellant combustion, then the gun is technically an air gun, not a firearm. Some legal definitions of "firearm" are more broad, and may cover any and all projectile devices, or even other destructive devices. The first primitive firearms originated in 10th-century China when bamboo tubes containing gunpowder and pellet projectiles were mounted on spears into the one-person-portable fire lance, which was later used as a shock weapon to good effect in the Siege of De'an in 1132. In the 13th century the Chinese invented the metal-barrelled hand cannon, widely consideredthe true ancestor of all firearms. The technology gradually spread through the rest of East Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. Older firearms typically used black powder as a propellant, but modern firearms use smokeless powder or other propellants. Most modern firearms (with the notable exception of smoothbore shotguns) have rifled barrels to impart spin to the projectile for improved flight stability.

    Modern firearms can be described by their caliber (i.e. their bore diameter; this is given in millimeters or inches e.g. 7.5 mm, .357 in.) or in the case of shotguns by their gauge (e.g. 12 ga.); by the type of action employed (muzzleloader, breechloader, lever, bolt, pump, revolver, semi-automatic, fully automatic, etc.) together with the usual means of deportment (hand-held or mechanical mounting). Further classification may make reference to the type of barrel used (rifled) and to the barrel length (24 inch), to the firing mechanism (e.g. matchlock, wheellock, flintlock, percussion lock), to the design's primary intended use (e.g. hunting rifle), or to the commonly accepted name for a particular variation (e.g. Gatling gun).

    Shooters aim firearms at their targets with hand-eye coordination, using either iron sights or optical sights. The accurate range of pistols generally does not exceed , while most rifles are accurate to using iron sights, or to longer ranges using optical sights (firearm rounds may be dangerous or lethal well beyond their accurate range; the minimum distance for safety is much greater than the specified range). Purpose-built sniper rifles and anti-materiel rifles are accurate to ranges of more than .

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