Glossary

The Glossary of Industry terms has been compiled by SAAMI’s Technical Committee to facilitate technical interchanges between members of that committee. It is not intended to provide legal definitions of the terms included, and, in light of further experience, the definitions of these terms may change. It is not intended to be comprehensive since it does not cover the full range of the diversity of the sporting arms and ammunition industry’s products. It is, in other words, a working draft that, it is hoped, may be useful in addressing certain technical matters frequently considered by the Technical Committee and is subject to further change and refinement.

It was the committee’s decision that ONLY industry terms would be included which are unique to the firearms and ammunition industry directly. Optical terms have been omitted for the most part. Common metallurgical terms were not included because they are not unique to the industry. Where there is a common term with a usage unique to our industry, it has, however, been included.

V

VARIABLE CHOKE

An adjustable device attached to the muzzle of a shotgun in order to control the shot patterns.


VARMINT RIFLE

A sporting rifle with a heavy barrel, designed for long range small game hunting, firing high velocity, flat trajectory projectiles.


VELOCITY

The speed of a projectile at a given point along its trajectory.


VENTILATED CHOKE

A shotgun choke which is perforated for the release of propellant gases.

Also Known As: Choke, Ported


VENTILATED RIB

A raised sighting surface which is separated from the barrel by means of posts that allow air to circulate around it. Its purpose is to minimize heat waves in the line of sight. Also called Bridge Rib.

Also Known As: Bridge Rib


VERNIER SIGHT

A long-range sight with a mechanism for adjusting windage and/or elevation settings as read on a short scale in conjunction with graduations on a longer, linearly calibrated, scale.


VERTICAL DISPERSION

The greatest vertical distance between any two bullet holes on a target, normally measured center-to-center.