In my last post I spoke about some of the gun types that I could have used for my dissertation, however I managed to narrow it down between the rifle and shotgun types. The three types I will be looking at is:

  1. Bolt action rifles
  2. Bolt action shotguns
  3. Pump action shotguns

In the post I will go over each gun type in more detail on how they reload and then I will decide which gun type I will use in my next post.

Bolt Action Rifles

A bolt action rifle is a long ranged weapon which is designed to allow more accurate and high velocity shooting (Nunley, K 2016). When the rifle is fired the shooter must cock the bolt back to reload the next cartridge and then set back to its original position to be able to fire again (as shown in this video: Bolt Action Rifle Animation by John Moses Browning).

A bolt action rifle could have either an internal or external magazine which feeds the cartridge into the rifle. An internal magazine (such as a tubular magazine) holds the bullet inside the gun horizontal to the barrel of the gun which, when the trigger is pulled, is pushed into the firing chamber (Bryan, 2014). An external magazine holds multiple ammunition which is then fed into the firing chamber (Bryan, 2014). 

Some examples for bolt action rifles: Kar98k, Springfield M1903, Lee-Enfield

Bolt Action shotguns

A bolt action shotgun is used to hit targets at a short distance. They fire a single projectile which release shots that spread out as they release from the shotguns barrel (Brett, 2012). The bolt action shotgun reloads the same way as a bolt action rifle, requiring the shooter to cock the bolt to reload the next shot.

There are not many examples of bolt action shotguns, one being the Savage 212.

 Pump Action Shotguns

A pump action shotgun uses the same way as a bolt action shotgun and uses the same ammunition, however pump action shotguns are reloaded in a different way. When the shooter pulls the trigger the shooter must eject the shell by pulling the pump back and then returning to its original position. (Bapanna, S 2012).

Most pump action shotguns do not use a detachable magazine and have the shells fed into an internal magazine in the gun.

Some examples of pump action shotguns: Franchi SPAS-12, Remmington 870, Winchester Model 1200.

I am currently deciding on

References

Bapanna, S. (2012). Shot Guns. [online] Knowledge-sastha.blogspot.co.uk. Available at: http://knowledge-sastha.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/shot-guns.html [Accessed 12 Oct. 2016].

Brett, (2012). A Primer on the Shotgun | The Art of Manliness. [online] The Art of Manliness. Available at: http://www.artofmanliness.com/2012/06/06/a-beginners-guide-to-the-shotgun/ [Accessed 3 Nov. 2016].

Bryan, T. (2014). Magazine vs Clip – Getting the Terms Right. [online] Thefirearms.guide. Available at: http://www.thefirearms.guide/blog/educational/magazine-vs-clip#prettyPhoto [Accessed 3 Nov. 2016].

Moses Browning, J. (2016). Bolt Action Rifle Animation. [online] YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKa4OQBejKQ&ab_channel=JohnMosesBrowning [Accessed 3 Nov. 2016].

Nunley, K. (2016). How Does a Rifle Work? | eHow. [online] eHow. Available at: http://www.ehow.com/how-does_4741146_a-rifle-work.html [Accessed 12 Oct. 2016].