Using the four "C's" in firearm terminology.

I realize it is hard for people to hear they have no clue what they are talking about. If your already an old dog your not going to learn new tricks. I started the thread so new or younger firearm users know the correct terms. From what I am seeing most still would rather argue to be wrong than change and be correct. There are no excuses to use terminology incorrect, the purpose of discussion is to inform and learn. So if some would like to continue to missinform, that is up to them.
 
From my experiences in dealing with hundreds or people at our Fish&Wildlife club, and local range, most of the people that don't understand the basic terminology of firearms, ammunition etc, seem to be the same people that don't understand the firearms laws or the licensing system. They also seem to be the same people that don't understand our draw system or our game regulations.

There are still people asking me how to get an FAC. I am surprised in that many of the people using the term are too young to have ever held an FAC. As well, while an FAC, and a PAL are similar, there are very significant differences between them, that a person should be aware of.
 
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I get more upset when I see a thread titled. Bear Defense What Is Best Firearm For The Job. PS Hurry I live at Young and Bay!
 
noneck180 said:
Well I just want to get a few things off my chest. There are way too many people using incorrect teminology. It drives me crazy that some misunderstand and/or use the the terms Caliber, Cartridge, Chamber and Chambering interchangeably in reference to the identification of a firearm and/or the round it fires. We tend to accept that people use these terms wrong every minute on this site. Repeated incorrect usage does not make it correct. It may, however, be okay because, almost everyone misuses these terms in the very same way.


"Caliber"- The diameter of a firearms bore or the diameter of the corresponding bullet fired through it.

"Cartridge"- A combination of a bullet, powder, primer, and a specific brass case.

"Chamber" Noun,-refers to the portion of a breech-loading gun or firearm in which the cartridge is contained when said cartridge is in shooting position.

"Chambering" Noun, -hich refers to the cartridge which fits a particular gun. For example, if a gun is intended for use with the 7MM Rem Mag cartridge, its chambering is said to be 7MM Rem Mag.

"Chamber" verb to place a round of ammunition into the chamber.

"Chamber" Verb used as a verb to refer to the act of cutting a chamber into a firearm.

I guess I am just tired of seeing/reading...
"What Caliber is the best for Moose"? "Oh the 270 win Cailber had always put moose in the freezer for me".
" What Caliber is that rilfe you have there? It sure is nice" . "Why Thank-you, it is a 6.5 Swede Caliber, I have used it on everything from Gophers to Moose."

Well if I even help one person by my rant I have accomplished something. My hope is one day we all can get the terminology correct. So we as group can communicate properly and accurately. Please excuse my punctuation, grammer and spelling.
Oh, I can't sleep and it's about -40 or colder outside.
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lets hope someday that you dont get cancer and have something real to worry about other then the little stuff.
 
saskbooknut said:
Sloppy language is usually a sign of sloppy thinking, as is often illustrated in this forum.
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Agree .....
Punctuation, phrase construction, spelling, coherent thought/sentence structure ...... lost skill ?

There is nothing so endearing as the two hundred word sentence ...... with no punctuation.
Would you like to read a Service Manual, Legal Document, or Physician Instructions written the way some of these posts are presented ?
Just asking ........ (happy face) !
 
Clip?? Well some of us with grey hair seem to recall the manufacturers and the writers of the day using the term clip when describing a gun. I seem to have several guns with clips too, and I was able to purchase extra CLIPS as such to fit them. But then, we were not politically correct , OCD was not invented yet, and nobody was obsessed in showing their expertise in trivia on line as the computer was in it's infancy. We did know the diference between stripper clips and clips too so we asked for the right one when we needed it.
We actually were more concerned with important things and had the ability to interpret what was said and get along just fine.
 
stubblejumper said:
From my experiences in dealing with hundreds or people at our Fish&Wildlife club, and local range, most of the people that don't understand the basic terminology of firearms, ammunition etc, seem to be the same people that don't understand the firearms laws or the licensing system. They also seem to be the same people that don't understand our draw system or our game regulations.

There are still people asking me how to get an FAC. I am surprised in that many of the people using the term are too young to have ever held an FAC. As well, while an FAC, and a PAL are similar, there are very significant differences between them, that a person should be aware of.
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I totally agree.
 
petew said:
Clip?? Well some of us with grey hair seem to recall the manufacturers and the writers of the day using the term clip when describing a gun. I seem to have several guns with clips too, and I was able to purchase extra CLIPS as such to fit them. But then, we were not politically correct , OCD was not invented yet, and nobody was obsessed in showing their expertise in trivia on line as the computer was in it's infancy. We did know the diference between stripper clips and clips too so we asked for the right one when we needed it.
We actually were more concerned with important things and had the ability to interpret what was said and get along just fine.
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If you would like to start the clip/magazine debate, start your own thread.
 
9.3mauser said:
If the bore diameter is large enough to consider it artillery, then I guess it is.
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.68 calibre probably comes up a little short, despite its fake military heritage. However, I did use the British spelling of "calibre", and since it doesn't take cartridges, or have a chamber and does take bullets (or a least ball) so it will henseforth be referred to a .68 calibre hand cannon.

About the other sidearms, the ones with rifling. Can they properly be called guns?
 
stubblejumper said:
From my experiences in dealing with hundreds or people at our Fish&Wildlife club, and local range, most of the people that don't understand the basic terminology of firearms, ammunition etc, seem to be the same people that don't understand the firearms laws or the licensing system. They also seem to be the same people that don't understand our draw system or our game regulations.

There are still people asking me how to get an FAC. I am surprised in that many of the people using the term are too young to have ever held an FAC. As well, while an FAC, and a PAL are similar, there are very significant differences between them, that a person should be aware of.
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Maybe a topic for another thread, but the FAC was around for what, 20ish years? Well now the PAL has been here for 20 years as well. Why don't more people know the PAL is the current licence requirement?
 
joe-nwt said:
Maybe a topic for another thread, but the FAC was around for what, 20ish years? Well now the PAL has been here for 20 years as well. Why don't more people know the PAL is the current licence requirement?
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Why?

The exact reason for this thread, old school people spreading information that is incorrect and not willing to change terminology.
 
Terminology does seem to differ from place to place. I find that most people seem to understand what is being said in various posts in this forum. If something is not understood, clarification is just a question away. If someone refers to a mag as a clip, so be it, no harm done.
With all due respect to the OP, it must be realized that when you find others use of terminology annoying and rant about it, the OP then becomes every bit as annoying if not more so.
To point things out and to help educate, is one thing. But to rant about it is another...
 
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