[Nightcrawler]

Okay, there are a few words and phrases in the firearms vernacular that, I'm humbled to admit, I don't quite know. For many of them, I have a rough idea perhaps, but aren't sure on the specifics.

So, it's time I swallowed my pride and asked, I suppose. If you all would be so kind as to define and/or describe the meanings of these phrases (again, for most of them I have an idea) I'd be very grateful.

-Headspace: Something to do with the barrel, I know...

-Forcing Cone: Again, barrel related, right?

-"Paddle" holster: Where's it worn and what's the paddle for?

-Sear, Disconnector,: I kind of know what these are, but what exactly do they do in regards to semiauto, full auto, and burst firing weapons?

-Comb: What part of the stock is the comb?

-Length of Pull: Where's it measured from, exactly?



That's all for now.

[arinvolvo]

Ill feild a few of them...but not hog all of the answers (ok, i just dont know some of them)

A sear, in simple terms is what catches a firing pin on the forward motion of the slide....the slide returns forward, but the pin stays back...ready to be released again, by another trigger pull, and restart the cycle.

Sear disconnect allows the sear to stay un-engaged, as long as the trigger is held down, allowing the firing pin to return as the slide does...allowing full auto fire.

A paddle holster is an easy on/off design that I happen to like, if made correctly. The paddle slips inbetween YOU and your waistband, and holds the holster in place....properly made, they are VERY comfortable, very secure, and like I said, Easy on/off, and easily adjustable from hip to back of hip to front etc...without having to deal with belts, or belt loops. The paddles can be made of Kydex, leather, whatever.

My dad has carried a desantis paddle for 10 or so years...I have worn it, and it is very nice, and very secure. However, it seems that desantis has changed their paddle design, and I cannot vouch for the new one.

[Monte Harrison]

I'll take a couple.

-Forcing Cone: Again, barrel related, right?
Yes. In revolvers, this is the part of the barrel that is just ahead of the front of the cylinder. It corrects for very slight misalignment of the cylinder by forcing the bullet into the bore, kinda like a funnel.

-Comb: What part of the stock is the comb? The part you rest your cheek on.

-Length of Pull: Where's it measured from, exactly?
From the butt plate to the "wrist", or part your firing hand grips.

[Mikul]

The headspace is the space that a cartridge takes from the chamber to the bolt. This is adjusted so that the cartridge is completely in the chamber and not being held out too far by the bolt. If the headspace is too small, you'll have chambering problems, if it's too large, the case will blow out. If you're lucky, that's the only thing that will blow out.

The sear on my FAL certainly doesn't meet that description.

The sear on my FAL works to hold the hammer back, and gets out of the way when I pull the trigger, but due to it's own spring, is raised immediately back into place to catch the hammer when it's cocked back by the bolt on recoil.

[Jim Watson]

Oh, dear.
Length of pull on a rifle or shotgun is measured from the center of the buttplate to the **trigger.**

A shotgun has a forcing cone, too. It is the taper from the chamber down to the bore size.

[Penforhire]

If I understand headspace correctly it does not include the bullet, just to the case mouth.

[DJJ]

Sear disconnect allows the sear to stay un-engaged, as long as the trigger is held down, allowing the firing pin to return as the slide does...allowing full auto fire.

I believe the disconnector actually does the opposite - it disconnects the trigger from the sear, which enables the sear to return to the position to trap the hammer back as it's cocked, even if the trigger is still to the rear (as on a semiauto). When you reset the trigger, the disconnector snaps back into place between trigger & hammer and enables the hammer to move the sear once more.

[AZ Jeff]

Others have provided some good answers to your questions, but I have an even better recommendation:

buy the NRA's "Firearms Facts Book" from their website for $12.95

This book is a treasure trove of information about firearms, including ballistics, a dictionary/glossary, technical overview of various types of firearms actions, sights, cartridges, etc.

Every serious shooter should have this book in his "library", as it contains lots of good information on all sorts of firearm related topics.

[9mmepiphany]

this is sorta fun, let me take a shot too

"lenght of pull" is from the buttplate to the front face of the trigger

the "comb" of the stock is the top of the stock, if you have a "raised cheekpiece", you'll have a raised comb

"forcing cone" is at the rear of the barrel on a revolver, ahead of the cylinder. as the bullet makes the leap from the cylinder to the barrel, across the "cylinder gap", the cone helps the bullet align with the rifling.

"headspace" is measured differently depending on the fire and action involved.
1. in a wheelgun, it is the distance between the back of the cylinder and the breechface
2. in a closed action (pistol, rifle, etc.) it is from the breech face to the case mouth (except for rimed cartidges,,,refer to #1)

[PAshooter]

OK - you know what they say about opinions (and certain other things...) - everybody's got one. Let me chime in with mine. As I understand it, how headspace is measured is not a function of the particular gun's action, but the type of cartridge. Basically it's the distance from the face of the bolt to whatever stops the forward movement of the cartridge when chambered.

Rimmed cartridges (e.g. .357 magnum) "headspace" on the forward surface of the rim - so headspace for them is the distance from there to the bolt face.

Rimless cartridges (e.g. .45 ACP) "headspace" on the forward rim of the case - ditto.

Necked cartridges (e.g. .30-06) "headspace" on the shoulder of the cartridge - so it's the distance from that part of the chamber that touches the neck (I'm a little fuzzy on exactly what part) to the bolt face that constitutes headspace.

Thus, proper headspace can very greatly from one cartridge to the next - from a tenth of an inch or so for a rimmed revolver round to upwards of an inch and a half or more for a large rifle round.

How'd I do?

[9mmepiphany]

mdshooter - i liked yours better than mine...explaination that is...i'll go with it

[AZ Jeff]

Headspace on bottlenecked rifle cartidges can be confusing. Some measure the distance from the bolt face to the BOTTOM of the neck of the cartridge.

Others measure the distance from the bolt face to some theoretical point on the shoulder of the case where it is of some specific diameter.

Most RIMLESS cartridges measure headspace from the bolt face to the MOUTH of the cartridge.

For more information on this, look at some reloading manuals that show headspace dimensions, or check out the NRA's book called "Handloading", which contains this stuff, among other items.

[9mmepiphany]

isn't headspace of the belted magnums measured from the boltface to the front of the belt?

[AZ Jeff]

Yes, belted magnums use yet ANOTHER way of measuring headspace. With all the different methods, it's kinda hard to keep track of which cartridges are measured which way. SAAMI drawings (or mil-spec equivalents) are you best bet.