1. Firearms

2. A little history lesson. Wham! Bam! Thank you, China!
Gunpowder first appeared in use in China over a thousand years ago.
It was used primarily in firecrackers, but used only sparingly in weapons for military use (cannons).
The knowledge of gunpowder manufacturing spread to Europe in the 14th century.
The Europeans then realized how much damage a projectile can do to a knight’s armor or a fortification.
This led to the development of firearms, and then the use of firearms proliferated rapidly.

3. Chinese Hand Cannons

4. Gunpowder (Black Powder)
Gunpowder, made of a mixture of
sulfur,
charcoal, and
saltpeter (potassium nitrite: KNO3)
The explosive force is due to the result of a little chemistry
1 mole of solid powder  combustion  6 moles of gas
This rapid expansion in the enclosed space of a metal tube is used to drive a projectile at high speed in a specified direction.
Modern gunpowder is a more refined version of the primitive gun powder .
In modern gun powder, the chemical composition has been altered to provide the greatest expansion with the smallest quantity of gun powder and the least amount of residue.

5. Guns work much like cannons
A cannon is just a metal tube.
The tube has a closed rear end (breech) and an open front end (bore).
The closed end has a small fuse hole (A).
Gunpowder (C) is placed in the breech and then cannonball (B) is inserted.
The gunpowder and cannonball sit in the breech.
A fuse is lit, the flame travels along the fuse and finally reaches the gunpowder.
The ignited gunpowder burns rapidly, thus producing a lot of hot gas.
The hot gas applies a much greater pressure on the powder side of the cannonball.
The cannonball is propelled out of the cannon at high speed.

6. The Guns Handguns Single shot weapons (target pistol) Revolver
Semi-automatic pistol
2. Rifles
3. Shotguns
4. Fully automatic

7. Manual, Semi-automatic and Automatic
In manual guns, the user must insert a round into the chamber, either manually or through the action of the weapon (e.g. levers, pumps, etc), between shots.
In semi-automatics, a trigger pull is needed per round fired. For example, to fire ten rounds in a semi-automatic firearm, the trigger would need to be pulled ten times.
In contrast, a fully automatic firearm can continue to fire as long as the trigger is held pulled or until it runs out of ammunition.

8. The 1st handheld guns were essentially mini-cannons: gunpowder, a steel ball & lit a fuse

9. Need for Speed War typically yields improved weapons technology.
In the late 1800’s, the revolver quickly became popular due to its size & quick loading.
It only had to be reloaded every 5-6 shots instead of after each shot.

10. Enter the handgun, not cannon
Handguns have reigned supreme for the past 200 years.
They remain the most popular and readily available firearm.

11. Revolvers & Pistols

12. Basic Anatomy of the Handgun
Action
Muzzle
Chamber
Barrel
Hammer
Magazine
(Clip)
Bore
Caliber
Rifling

13. Just Pull the Trigger Pulling the trigger releases the firing pin…
The firing pin strikes the primer…
The primer ignites the gun powder…
The powder generates gas…
The gas propels the bullet forward through the barrel…
The spent cartridge case is ejected…
The process may be repeated.

17. Shotguns: Autoloading, Pump & Break

18. Rifles: Automatic, bolt & lever action

19. NOMENCLATURE OF THE M16: A Rifle, Not a gun

20. NOMENCLATURE OF THE M16

21. How Guns Fire The cartridge goes into chamber Cartridge in chamber
Firing pin forcefully strikes primer
Primer explodes, ignites powder
Gas from burning powder expands in cartridge
Gas pushes bullet out with force
Speeding bullet exits barrel
Bullet and escaping gases make the "BANG”

22. Ejection!

24. Components of a Bullet Cartridge
Bullet –the projectile that is loaded into a cartridge and fired from a firearm. Only the projectile is fired from the gun
Cartridge –This is a self-contained unit that includes an outer casing, projectile (bullet), propellant (gunpowder), and primer (source of ignition). The spent cartridge is ejected from the weapon.
Cartridge casing –usually made of brass, steel and aluminum. Better quality cases can be reloaded and reused.
Primer – The primer fits into the butt of the cartridge casing or shotgun shell.  It contains an explosive chemical that explodes when a firing pin is slammed into it.  This collision causes the primer to explode and ignite the gunpowder. 
Jacket – The metal covering over a bullet that overlies a core of different consistency.  Jackets are used to manipulate the degree of deformation that occurs upon impact.

25. Bullet Anatomy

26. Anatomy of a Bullet

27. More about bullets Bullets come in many shapes and sizes
They are made of either soft metals, like lead or hard ones, like bronze.
They can be
hard if they are solid,
or soft, if they have a hollowed tip (hollow-point or hollow-tip).
They are either partially or completely covered by a jacket – usually made of copper.
(Hence the phrase “Full Metal Jacket”)

28. Solid Bullets
Made of bronze, copper-nickel alloys

29. Soft-point Bullet a.k.a soft-nose bullet
A soft-point bullet, also known as a soft-nosed bullet, is a lead bullet with a copper or brass jacket that is left open at the tip, exposing some of the lead inside.

30. Hollow-point bullets a.k.a. hollow-nose
Contain a hollow in the tip
Hollow-tip bullets are designed to “mushroom” upon impact - to cause more tissue damage – used for hunting.
They can be partially jacketed (soft-point) or fully jacketed
Full metal jacket hollow nose
Soft-point hollow nose

31. Rim-fire vs. Center-fire Cartridges
Center-fire cartridges are usually more powerful than rim-fire ones.

34. Shotgun Shells
The projectile of the shotgun shell can either be tiny pellets or “shell” that spray out or a single “slug”.
(Wad)

35. Gauge sizing

36. Shotgun Shot (pellet) sizing

37. What is a Caliber?
The inside diameter of the barrel of a firearm is called the caliber
The word caliber is used to differentiate bullets according to their diameter and the guns by the bullet size they fire.
The final number is represented as 1/100th of the actual diameter (inches).
A 32 caliber bullet has a diameter of 0.32 inches. It is generally referred to as a “thirty-two caliber".
Europeans are metric, so bullet calibers are expressed as mm. For example, a 9mm bullet.

38. Caliber sizing
9mm soft point bullets

39. Gradients of Caliber

40. What is “Magnum”?
A cartridge that earns the “magnum” title, has more power or charge than another cartridge of the same caliber.