Plenty of people get confused about the specific gun they’re holding or how it works. And the thing is, there are lots of different types of guns with glock threaded barrel out there. From their inception in 1364, guns have evolved significantly through history, to micro-compact handguns and massive machine guns.
It can seem like a lot to handle, and where do you start if you’re looking at owning a gun, or even build one with a paperweight? How do you know what gun is going to work best for you and your needs? Well, not to worry. We’ve put together an extensive list to help you understand the most common personal guns out there. Let’s dive into it!
How We Classify Modern Guns
According to the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), a firearm is any weapon that forces a projectile outwards through an explosive action. This includes starter guns and anything that can be easily converted to a gun. In other words, if there’s a tube and a projectile, and the projectile comes flying out of the tube because of an explosion, then you have a firearm.
Of course, this could also include potato guns, which is a whole other article. For now, let’s look at more traditional gun types and designs. Mostly, they all work similarly. There will be a trigger, which releases the firing pin, and it’s this movement forward that sets off the explosion. This ignites the gunpowder inside the bullet, and the resulting pressure change forces the bullet out of the casing and down the barrel.
All modern guns also have the same basic components. We refer to these as the action, the stock, and the barrel. Consider the action as the heart of the gun. It’s where all the complicated stuff is happening, and it’s also where the bullet is loaded, fired, and ejected from.
The barrel is the metal tube that the bullet moves down when the gun is fired. It’s pushed through the barrel with gunpowder or compressed air. The barrel also acts as a way to aim and indicates where the bullet will go. Finally, there’s the stock, which is the support for the barrel and action.
This is where you will actually hold the gun, though the action of holding the gun will vary based on the gun type. So now that we understand a bit more about how guns work and how they’re classified, let’s look at distinguishing individual types.
Different Types of Guns – Long Guns vs Handguns
Essentially, we can break guns down into two simple categories. We say simple, but it can get complex. To start, we’ll address the difference between long guns and handguns. Long guns are bigger and longer and we typically need to shoulder these to use them properly. This means we must brace the butt of the firearm against the shoulder.
Handguns are more comfortable and are designed to be handheld devices. You can fire them with one hand, but we don’t recommend this, and they do not need to be shouldered. But, as we said, it can get a bit more complicated than that. Long guns include any rifle, shotgun, or carbine and a handgun could be a pistol or a revolver.
Let’s dig into this a bit more.
Rifles
Rifles need two hands to wield, and the stock will sit against the shoulder. Rifles also have a long, smooth barrel with a bore designed for rifling. The bore is part of the barrel, and a rifled bore has grooves that help guide the bullet down the long tube of a rifle.
What separates a rifle from other long guns is that the explosive energy fires only a single projectile for each pull of the trigger. There are also a few varieties of rifle gun options to choose from.
Bolt-Action Rifles
These are probably the most popular rifles, as they’re easy to use and accurate. Essentially, a bolt-action rifle has a small metal bar behind the chamber and above the trigger. This is the bolt handle. The bolt handle can eject the last cartridge, load the following round, then seal the chamber, ready for the next shot.
Lever Action Rifles
These were the first true rifles, and if you think of a typical cowboy in the wild west, this is likely the gun he would have used. A lever-action rifle has a tube that runs alongside the barrel. This is the tubular magazine. Behind this sits a trigger that needs to be pulled back to bring a cartridge through the magazine and into the chamber. They are less accurate and also heavier than your standard rifle.
Semi-Automatic Rifles
Semi-automatic rifles are easily the most simple because they remove the need to manually load a cartridge into the chamber. These commonly use a clip or magazine and can fire a round with each pull of the trigger. There’s no need to pull a mechanism or load more bullets.
The AR-15
Arguably, the most popular semi-automatic rifle is the AR-15. Most people think the AR stands for assault or automatic rifle, but it’s still semi-automatic. The AR actually stands for Armalite. They’re based on the Colt AR-15 design and are lightweight and easily customizable.
For example, you could look at an AR15 pistol grip replacement to make the gun more comfortable for your hands and body. We should preface this by saying that even though the AR15 pistol is shorter, it’s not the same size as a handgun at all.
Shotguns
Similar to a rifle, a shotgun fires from the shoulder and also has a long barrel. However, where the rifle has a bore, the shotgun’s barrel is smooth and has thinner walls. The smooth bore reduces friction, and because we consider a shotgun a more short-range weapon, there’s less pressure in the barrel, and less need for thick walls.
A shotgun differs from a rifle or handgun, however, in that the shotgun can fire off multiple projectiles at once. These are called shot. This explodes out from the gun and spreads out as it flies from the barrel. Because there are multiple projectiles flying at speed, a shotgun can be a lot more damaging.
Much like rifles, shotguns also have multiple types.
Break Action
These are the simplest design and can have 1 to 3 barrels side by side. We load shells into the gun by hand when it is broken open. Single barrel break-action shotguns are definitely better for beginner gun enthusiasts since they only take one shell at a time.
Lever-Action
These are like lever-action rifles. The lever works the same way, but instead of pulling a rifle round into the barrel, it brings a shotgun shell. These have largely become unpopular options, though where they are the only legal option, people are still more than happy to use them.
Pump Action
These are easily the most common shotguns out there. They have multiple shells in a magazine under the barrel. The shells are forced into action by the shooter pulling back on the forestock, then pushing it forward again. This ejects any spent shells and brings new ones into the chamber.
Semi-Automatic
They work the same way as semi-automatic rifles. These are becoming more popular amongst gun enthusiasts, but have slightly different controls compared to a pump-action shotgun. These have buttons that release the spent round rather than us pulling the forestock. This makes the gun quicker to fire.
Revolvers
Revolvers differ from handguns in that they have a cylinder above the trigger that holds separate bullets. You’ll have seen this style in many action and thriller movies. The gun can shoot different calibers, which means you have more variety each time. These also come in single-action, double-action, and double-action-only.
Single action means that the trigger only has one use, and that is to fire the gun. Single-action guns have a hammer that must be pulled back before pulling the trigger. Double action means that the trigger can rack the hammer and fire the gun in a single motion. The first click of the trigger racks the hammer, and the second fires the gun.
Double-action only means that the revolver has no hammer, but the gun fires in the same way, with a two-click system.
Handguns
Handguns are light, carry a hefty kick, and are very accurate. Because of this, they’re ideal for concealed carry users. The barrels are short, with thick walls and rifle boring. Handguns also come in a variety of sizes, from compact to micro-compact or pocket-sized pistols.
All modern semi-automatic handguns have a detachable magazine. These handle a single caliber, but it is possible to have multiple styles of that caliber. Nearly all magazine-fed handguns are also double-action, meaning you need two clicks to fire the gun.
Knowing How to Buy a Gun
Buying a gun is a personal endeavor. What works for one person may not work for you, and there are so many different types of guns on the market that you’ll need to do more in-depth research about popular brands and styles.
The great news is, there is absolutely a variety of gun options out there for you and you will find something that not only suits your style and needs but your budget too.
If you enjoyed this article, be sure to check out some of our other lifestyle and hobby pieces.