Archives: Glossary

A usually round extension at the top of the barrel or rib of a shotgun which fits into a matching hole in the top of the standing breech.

The eye that controls both eyes when pointing toward or picking out an object.

A firing mechanism in which the trigger serves the dual purpose of cocking and then releasing the firing mechanism – either hammer or striker. Double action firearms can be manually cocked similar to single action mode. For differentiation, see Single Action and Double Action Only.

A firing mechanism in which the trigger serves the dual purpose of cocking and then releasing the firing mechanism – either hammer or striker. Double action only (DAO) firearms cannot be manually cocked to emulate single action mode. For differentiation, see Single Action and Double Action.

A pistol mechanism in which a single pull of the trigger cocks and releases the hammer.

A type of revolver in which the rotation of the cylinder, cocking and firing are performed by a single pull of the trigger. Most Double Action revolvers can also be fired in the single action mode by manually cocking the hammer.

A shotgun with two barrels adjacent to each other in the horizontal plane (See Side-by Side). If arranged vertically, it is usually termed an “over/under” shotgun.

A propellant composed of colloided nitrocellulose and nitroglycerin as its base as opposed to single base powder which has colloided nitrocellulose only as its base material. The percentage of nitroglycerin added ranges from a low of 3% to a high of 39%.

A trigger which has two distinctive pull characteristics. The first or take-up stage is usually long and light in pull force; the second stage having a short but distinct increase in the pull force required to discharge the firearm.