Firearms :: essays research papers

Firearms War. Conflict. Famine. Pestilence – these are the four horsemen of Apocalypse as the people in the mid-ages imagined them. They stormed through countries and cities, leaving thousands dead, injured, frightened or crying behind. The first two – the most merciful ones, or to be more precise, the fatal tools they use to make their evil deeds are the subject of my essay. To be precise, I’m going to speak about the types of modern firearms - the ones that a single man can handle and which fire bullets – very simple, easy-to-use and deadly. Revolvers – these can be described as pistols with revolving chamber which enables you to fire several shots without reloading. Revolvers were popular in the end of XIX - beginning of XX century because they are quite easy to use, reliable, and cheap, but were soon replaced by pistols because of their limited capacity and mobility. However, revolvers are still used by the policemen -- large-caliber bullets they use (â€Å"Magnum† 45 or 36 millimeter) can knock out an outlaw at first shot, even if fired in foot. Revolvers usually hold 5, 6, or 7 bullets. There are 2 major types of revolvers: with single and simultaneous extraction of fired shells. In the first case, after you’re done shooting, you have to take out every single shell using some sharp object to push on it from the front holes of the chamber. In the second case, the revolver usually opens up, â€Å"breaking into two pieces† and you pull out every single shell, or the chamber is shifted left an d emptied by pushing on the special rod in the front (i.e. â€Å"Colt† or â€Å"Smith-Wesson†). Revolvers are also divided into manual and automatic ones. In the manual revolver you have to draw back the firing lever each time to make a shot, in automatic it moves back itself, each time you pull on the trigger. Pistol – The main difference between revolvers and pistols it that the revolvers use the muscular force of the shooter to recharge, and on the other hand, pistols use the energy of gunpowder gases and don’t have revolving chambers. There are lots of different designs of pistols, but the principle of work is the same. Pistol’s bullets are usually located in its handle, and are of a smaller caliber than those of revolver. The capacity of the pistol’s cartridge can range from 5 to 30 bullets and pistols shoot automatically, as many times as you pull the trigger (of course, until it runs out of bullets).