A trigger guard is a loop surrounding the trigger of a firearm and protecting it from accidental discharge. [1] Other devices such as inhalers, crossbows and power tools may also have trigger guards.
On rifles with a bottom metal, the trigger guard is often part of the bottom metal.
Some firearms may have their trigger guard removed or repositioned as not to impair use with large cold weather gloves on, especially those intended to be used in arctic conditions. Quite notably, the Accuracy International Arctic Warfare line of rifles have enlarged trigger guards for use in cold climates, primarily northern Sweden.
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A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries.
Gun safety rules and practice recommendations are intended to avoid accidental discharge or negligent discharge, or the consequences of firearm malfunctions. Their purpose is to eliminate or minimize the risks of unintentional death, injury or property damage caused by improper possession, storage or handling of firearms. There were 47,000 unintentional firearm deaths worldwide in 2013.
The M14 rifle, officially the United States Rifle, Caliber 7.62 mm, M14, is an American select-fire battle rifle that fires 7.62×51mm NATO ammunition. It became the standard-issue rifle for the U.S. military in 1959 replacing the M1 Garand rifle in the U.S. Army by 1958 and the U.S. Marine Corps by 1965 until being replaced by the M16 rifle beginning in 1968. The M14 was used by U.S. Army, Navy, and Marine Corps for basic and advanced individual training (AIT) from the mid-1960s to the early 1970s.
The SKS is a Soviet semi-automatic carbine chambered for the 7.62×39mm round, designed in 1943 by Sergei Gavrilovich Simonov. Its complete designation, SKS-45, is an initialism for Samozaryadny Karabin sistemy Simonova, 1945. The SKS is an extremely reliable, simply constructed weapon with two unique distinguishing characteristics: a permanently attached folding bayonet, and a hinged non-detachable magazine. However, it is incapable of fully automatic fire and limited by its ten round magazine capacity, and was rendered obsolete by the introduction of the AK-47 in the 1950s. The SKS was only briefly a standard infantry weapon in front-line units of the Soviet Armed Forces before being replaced by the AK-47.
The matchlock was the first mechanism invented to facilitate the firing of a hand-held firearm. Before this, firearms had to be fired by applying a lit match to the priming powder in the flash pan by hand; this had to be done carefully, taking most of the soldier's concentration at the moment of firing, or in some cases required a second soldier to fire the weapon while the first held the weapon steady. Adding a matchlock made the firing action simple and reliable by a single soldier, allowing them to keep both hands steadying the gun and eyes on the target while firing.
The Accuracy International Arctic Warfare rifle is a bolt-action sniper rifle designed and manufactured by the British company Accuracy International. It has proved popular as a civilian, police, and military rifle since its introduction in the 1980s. The rifles have some features that improve performance in very cold conditions without impairing operation in less extreme conditions.
A gunstock or often simply stock, the back portion of which is also known as a shoulder stock, a buttstock or simply a butt, is a part of a long gun that provides structural support, to which the barrel, action, and firing mechanism are attached. The stock also provides a means for the shooter to firmly brace the gun and easily aim with stability by being held against the user's shoulder when shooting the gun, and helps to counter muzzle rise by transmitting recoil straight into the shooter's body.
Accuracy International is a British firearms manufacturer based in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England. The company produces the Accuracy International Arctic Warfare series of precision sniper rifles. The company was established in 1978 by British Olympic shooting gold medallist Malcolm Cooper, MBE (1947–2001), Sarah Cooper, Martin Kay, and the designers of the weapons, Dave Walls and Dave Caig. The founders were professional international or national target shooters. Accuracy International's high-accuracy sniper rifles are used internationally in military units and police departments.
The Wassenaar Arrangement Semi-automatic Rifles are a line of rifles manufactured in Romania by the long established Cugir Arms Factory as result of a collaboration between Century Arms International and Cugir.
Thompson/Center Arms is an American firearms company based in Springfield, Massachusetts. The company is best known for its line of interchangeable-barrel, single-shot pistols and rifles. Thompson/Center also manufactures muzzle-loading rifles and is credited with creating the resurgence of their use in the 1970s.
Winter Guard is an indoor color guard sport and performance art derived from military ceremonies. Modern winter guard is a competitive, performance-based activity which incorporates choreographed staging, dance, and manipulation of equipment such as flags and prop rifles and sabres. Unlike traditional color guard, winter guard performances and contests are held indoors, usually in a gymnasium or an indoor arena. Performances typically last 3 to 7 minutes and are accompanied by recorded soundtracks rather than live music. However, the use of live instrumentation and vocalization have grown in popularity. Winter guard is most present in the United States; independent units have also been formed in Canada, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Japan. Winter guard ensembles often perform at judged competitions officiated by local and regional associations using criteria developed by Winter Guard International, host of the annual Winter Guard International World Championships in Dayton, Ohio. The World Championships event purportedly attracts in 60,000 visitors to the event annually. Scoring attempts to rank units on the repertoire and achievement of aspects of each performance such as unity, quality, range, precision, skill, design, and effect.
The M6 Air Crew Survival Weapon was a specially-made .22 Hornet over .410 bore combination gun issued to United States Air Force aircrews to help forage for food in the event of a plane crash. It was issued from 1952 until the early 1970s, in conjunction with the M4 Survival Rifle. Plans to replace both with the ArmaLite AR-5 never came to fruition and in 2018 was instead replaced with the GAU-5A Aircrew Self Defense Weapon in some instances.
The following are terms related to firearms and ammunition topics.
The Saiga semi-automatic rifles are a family of Russian semi-automatic rifles manufactured by Kalashnikov Concern, which also manufactures the original AK-47 and its variants, Saiga-12 shotguns and Dragunov sniper rifle. Saiga rifles are a sport version of the Kalashnikov rifle, and are marketed for hunting and civilian use. They are sometimes referred to as Saiga Sporters.
The Winchester Model 1905, is a blowback-operated, semi-automatic rifle produced by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company beginning in 1905 and discontinued in 1920. This rifle loads cartridges from a 5 or 10-round capacity, detachable box magazine located immediately forward of the trigger guard. Winchester offered factory chamberings in .32SL and .35 Winchester Self-Loading.
The IWI Galil ACE is a series of assault rifles and battle rifles developed and originally manufactured by an Israeli firearm manufacturer, Israel Military Industries (IMI) of Ramat HaSharon, now produced by Israel Weapon Industries (IWI) after IMI privatised and renamed their small arms division. It is also produced under license by Indumil, FAMAE, RPC Fort and Z111 Factory. It is produced in three different calibres; 5.56×45mm NATO, 7.62×39mm and 7.62×51mm NATO.
In firearms, a safety or safety catch is a mechanism used to help prevent the accidental discharge of a firearm, helping to ensure safer handling.
An AR-15 style rifle is a lightweight semi-automatic rifle based on the ArmaLite AR-15 design, which is itself a scaled-down derivative of Eugene Stoner's AR-10 design. ArmaLite sold the patent and trademarks to Colt's Manufacturing Company in 1959. After Colt's patents expired in 1977, Colt retained the trademark and is the exclusive owner of the "AR-15" designation.
The Colt C19 is a licence-built, Finnish-designed Tikka T3 CTR bolt action rifle modified for the Canadian Rangers. The C19 replaces the longer and heavier Lee-Enfield No. 4 rifles in service since 1947.
A bottom metal is a part used on some firearms which often holds the magazine. On firearms with bottom metals, the trigger guard is also often part of the bottom metal, like for instance on the Mauser M 98 and M1 Garand. The bottom metal can for example be attached to the stock or the receiver, and can for example hold a fixed, detachable or hinged magazine. Not all firearms have bottom metals, and SIG Sauer 200 STR and SIG Sauer CROSS are two examples of firearms without bottom metals.