Loading ...Gun Basics
Learn the basics of firearms.
Handguns
The handgun is your most common weapon. A handgun is any type of gun you can easily hold in your hand including revolvers, semi automatics, bolt action or break action pistols. Handguns are essential to police and (some) military duties and are literally the staple of the firearm world. The most common types of handgun calibers are 9mm and .45, a constant debate exists between which is better.
Advantages: The advantage of a small gun is that they are smaller and thus easier to carry and conceal. Handguns also offer maneuverability that is paramount in a close quarter’s situation.
Disadvantages: Handguns have a limited effective range and can only be considered useful with a distance of 50 yards or less. Handguns also become less accurate at farther ranges because they have limited muzzle velocity compared to a rifle or long gun.
Shotguns
A shotgun is a shoulder fired weapon that is usually used to shoot many little pellets, like a cluster of bullets. Some shooters use slugs which are essentially giant bullets but the pellet shot is the standard. A shotgun is held with two hands and nestled against your shoulder. This weapon is meant for close quarters defense and small game.
Advantages: It’s easier to hit fast moving targets with a shotgun because of the sprawl of the pellets and has a lot more stopping power than other guns. The shotgun also doesn’t overshoot and go through walls to hit unintended targets like rifles and handguns do. Shotguns are also very giving and easy even for beginners to hit their mark.
Disadvantages: The range on a shotgun is limited. Don’t plan on taking on a target that’s far away with this gun. Also shotguns don’t penetrate very deep which can prevent you from obtaining a kill.
Rifles
A rifle is a long range weapon with a long barrel that is “rifled” or has grooves cut in a circular motion on the inside of the barrel to give bullets a spin thus making them go farther and straighter. Think of it like a football, it goes better if you give it that twist. Rifles are shot from the shoulder and held with two hands. Ranges from rifles can vary greatly but they can range from 100 yards to just over a mile (for very experienced marksman).
Advantages: Rifles give you the valuable advantage of being able to shoot from a long distance while still hitting your target. You can also be easily concealed and hit your mark, never having t expose yourself or risk getting shot or captured.
Disadvantages: Rifles don’t carry tons of ammo so you better be precise and have a backup plan. (They are not efficient in a close range situation, sure it’s possible to shoot something up close with a rifle but with lengthened reloading time and less maneuverability rifles are not preferred in these types of situations.)
Machine Guns
A machine gun is any weapon that can fire bullets rapidly without having to pull the trigger multiple times. Machine guns use the gas expelled from shooting the bullet to eject the casing and insert a new bullet. Basically they use their own strength to continue shooting. There are many different types of machine guns but the most commonly recognized are the assault rifle or various submachine guns such as the MP5.
Advantages: One word; sprawl. Machine guns lay out a ton of bullets and you can do a lot of damage without expending too much effort. Aside from the obvious, machine guns are effective at creating “suppressive fire” which makes the enemy retreat or hide while you flank or maneuver.
Disadvantages: Machine guns are heavy and the ammo they require is even heavier. This creates many problems of transportation and reduces mobility. Machine guns are also indiscriminate and can hurt or destroy unintended targets. It’s hard to be precise with a machine gun.
Resources
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Forums
July 25th, 2008 at 5:45 am
[...] Gun Basics | Survival Blog | Survival Information It’s easier to hit fast moving targets with a shotgun because of the sprawl of the pellets and has a lot more stopping power than other guns. The shotgun also doesn’t overshoot and go through walls to hit unintended targets like rifles and handguns do. Shotguns are also very giving and easy even for beginners to hit their mark. No Nanny State - Molon Labe!: Day Off With The Grinders July 24th, 2008 [...]
August 10th, 2008 at 5:33 pm
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November 18th, 2008 at 5:52 pm
Pistols have an effective range beyond 50 yards, but that is dependent upon the caliber of the weapon.
Most shotguns have interchangeable barrels, some with rifling, a slug fired from a shotgun with a rifled barrel can have an accurate range of about 100+ yards. A solid slug can penetrate the engine block of a vehicle, so I’d say they do have some penetrating power.
Most machine guns are illegal without special permits. Not all models are heavy and unwieldy, the M249 (SAW) is a lightweight weapon and fires the same caliber as an M16A2 (.223 I believe), which isn’t a very heavy ammunition. An added drawback to a machine gun would be the possibility of it jamming or overheating, I’ve seen .50 Cals overheat and cook off ammunition before it enters the chamber, bad times.
-Thales