"Clip" vs. Magazine CLARITY....

[tostada]

This isn't the same thing as "Kleenex" vs "tissue." Using "clip" and "magazine" interchangeably is roughly equivalent to wiping your ass with Kleenex and blowing your nose with Charmin.

And what's wrong with that? I wipe my ass with Puffs all the time when I run out of toilet paper. And in public restrooms I quite often blow my nose on toilet paper. They're functionally equivalent. They're totally interchangeable. It's not the same as trying to jam a moon clip up the butt of a semi-auto.

 

[hso]

I think it's easy to distinguish the two by what they do.

A "clip" clips the ammo together. Enblcoc, stripper, whatever, the ammunition is clipped together with the little metal thingy.

 

[sniper5]

OK, here's my strategy to get them to ask. Anyone who comes over (trusted friends, I'm not running a public museum) and wants to see some "living history" usually gets shown the Ishapore 2A first. Then while I'm talking about it I note that it can be reloaded with either clip or magazine. Then they look puzzled and ask "what's the difference?" The answer usually sets off a stream of other questions, then dialogue occurs, and learning begins along with them developing an interest in historical arms and battles. When my wife's anti friends are around and talk the blah blah about guns, I say "I'm a Federally Licensed Collector". Then I'm instantly not only OK, but an information source to a slew of questions. When they figure out the whole thing is about living history, they come away with a different outlook.

Winning hearts and minds, one rifle at a time. Now excuse me, I have to order some more history.

 

[CountGlockula]

Zombie thread... I love it!!!

ENOUGH of the tissues scenario (no visuals needed). Please keep it within the magazine and clip topic.

 

[yeti]

And in public restrooms I quite often blow my nose on toilet paper.

 

[RockyMtnTactical]

http://www.minutemanreview.com/2008/09/clip-vs-magazine-lesson-in-firearm.html

 

[daorhgih]

Why are those "bullet"-holding thingies I snap into the bottom of my AK called 30- or 40-round "banana-clips"? Cheeezo,, ain't this a fun thread? And which is the "pistol"? . . . . the S&W wheel-gun or the Glock?? A local establishment (Non-Governmental but big on tax-money income) has a big red sticker on the door prohibiting what looks like a revolver within the confines of the building. So I always make sure when I'm visiting, that I'm wearing an auto-. ("Auto-" is shorthand for "automatic-self-loading" fire-arm.) Cheaper Than Dirt lists Rifle, shot-gun, revolver, pistol ammo/cartridges. Ae we missing something? No, we are just enjoying jibes at each other. Keep it up.

 

[ch1966]

Here's your Banana magazine:
http://images.google.com/imgres?img...zine&um=1&hl=en&rlz=1T4TSHB_enUS209US209&sa=N

 

[Sniper X]

Well count I have to agree on this one and anyone who doesn't I have a question.

Do you also call a car wheel a rim? Or call a revolver a pistol, or a carbine a rifle. Lets be knowledgeable about our passion here and show it with good articulation and correct vocabulary.

My 2 cents.

 

[Griz44]

Why doesn't gunclip depot sell gun clips?

 

[moooose102]

i am leaving this one alone. no sense in throwing gasoiline into a raging fire!

 

[Hawk]

I have little to add that wasn't already in the thread when it was new. However, just as a fun little challenge, how about the "revolver vs pistol" folks filling me in on exactly when revolvers stopped being pistols and by whose authority?



Online Etymology gives us:

pistol
"small hand-held firearm," c.1570, from M.Fr. pistole "short firearm" (1566), of uncertain origin, sometimes said to be from Ger. Pistole, from Czech pis'tala "firearm," lit. "tube, pipe," from pisteti "to whistle," of imitative origin, related to Rus. pischal "shepherd's pipe." But earlier form pistolet (1550) is from M.Fr. pistolet "a small firearm," also "a small dagger," which may be the literal sense; though some connect this word with It. pistolese, in reference to Pistoia, town in Tuscany noted for gunsmithing. Pistol-whip is first recorded 1942.

NRA-ILA provides:

PISTOL
Synonymous with "handgun." A gun that is generally held in one hand. It may be of the single-shot, multi-barrel, repeating or semi-automatic variety and includes revolvers.

LearnAboutGuns.com offers us:

Pistol - A semiautomatic hand gun which stores ammunition in a magazine. Not to be confused with a revolver.

Wkipedia jumps on board with:

In American usage, the term "pistol" refers to a handgun whose chamber is integral with the barrel, making pistols distinct from the other main type of handgun, the revolver, which has a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers. However, Commonwealth usage makes no distinction at a technical level—"pistol" may refer to revolvers, semi-automatics, or muzzle-loading/cap-&-ball handguns. For example, the official designation of the Webley Mk VI was "Pistol, Revolver, Webley No. 1 Mk VI", and the designation "Pistol No. 2 Mk I" was used to refer to both the Enfield Revolver and the later Browning Hi-Power semi-automatic.

Well, that certainly clears it up doesn't it?

NRA says "pistol" includes "revolver", learnaboutguns says it doesn't and Wkipedia says the distinction is geographical.

So who's right?

I guess what puzzles me is that any number of folks have stated that it's incorrect to call a revolver a pistol although NRA and about half the online resources have the opposite view.

So are these people actually correcting those who confuse the terms or simply pushing their random internet viewpoint as the correct one? And, if it is actually a "correction" would a poster from Britain be exempt from such "correction" - this is, after all, an international forum?

I'm no expert but etymology can be fascinating in small doses and I'm curious when the "pistol v revolver" definitions diverged for us but not the Commonwealth.

 

[daorhgih]

Definers

One can generally count on the NRA to drop the ball in any punting situation.....so join JFPFOA. Their lives have always depended on being armed, no matter the government.

 

[mljdeckard]

I got a giggle out of my hunting party last weekend when I corrected out 18 y/o mall ninja by telling him, "Every time you call a magazine a clip; God Kills a kitten. Please; think of the kittens."

Having said that, I was out of the army for 16 years, and then went back in. Went to a range with about 200 firers last summer, and in between zeroing and qualification, we had concurrent training, which was refreshingly good for a change. We got a refresher in tactical rifle from a SF SFC who was all too willing to make it real-world. He kept referring to "where your gun should be pointed right now", and one of the younger NCOs asked him, "Don't you mean rifle?" He paused in the training, and made a point to say that "there's a big difference between terminology the military clings to to force you into a particular mindframe, and what you are actually thinking when bullets are flying past you. Let the drill sergeants use the former. I'll use the latter. They can say magazine, rifle, round of ammunition, target, and watch your lane, I will say ....ing gun, ....ing bad guy, and kill that ............ You've already had the book version. Start thinking about the real-life version, because you'll need it sooner than you think."

 

[I_AM_LEGEND]

Rather the anti's call them clips or mags doesn't really matter, correcting them will only draw more anti-opinions on guns and gun owners. Calling magazines clips or vice versa isn't drawing people over to their side or changing people's opinions any more than using the correct terms. Essentially all this is good for is if you here someone talking about a clip when they mean magazine, you know instantly they're probably not all that knowledgeable about firearms. Being nit-picky about this is pointless as it doesn't really matter, the terms are pretty much used interchangeably to the majority of people out there and it's only the big gun gurus that get all in a tizzy about the terms being used incorrectly.

If you here someone make this mistake, just politely correct them and explain it to them and don't go off ranting and raving and making a big deal about it. I made this same mistake a few years ago on another board and got so much crap and made fun of so much I eventually just left the forum. Don't turn people off to guns and gun-ownership over vocabulary.

 

[RockyMtnTactical]

I have yet to meet an anti who became that way because they were chided for saying "clip". If you like firearms, you like them. No vocabulary Nazi is going to change that.

I agree that we don't get anywhere with people when we do things in a rude way. However, there's nothing wrong with helping people know what they are talking about.

 

[mljdeckard]

I have sometimes used the incorrect language to my advantage. When they say scary sounding things like 'high capacity' (standard capacity) High-powered (medium-powered) and point blank range, (usually 200 meters) I continue their theory using their incorrect terminology to make them look stupid. "You say the victim was killed with a 30-06 at 200 yards? No? That's curious, because that's what high-powered rifle at point blank range means."

But come to think about it, it's been a long time since I had time to argue with antis.

 

[RPCVYemen]

It's hard to imagine a thread this long on such an insignificant topic. Who'da thunk it?

Mike

 

[jnyork]

It's hard to imagine a thread this long on such an insignificant topic. Who'da thunk it?

Mike

I love this arguement, it's hilarious to see grown men come to blows over such small things. I saw one of these threads over at Rimfire get REALLY nasty and it went on for pages and pages. I guess boys will be boys!

 

[yeti]

'I rather eat an apple than be shot' 'I rather eat an apple then be shot'

Both are correct, both have completely different meanings. (I'm a big then/than abuser)

If Joe Yokel, in all his tactikewl finery, wanted me to look at the new 177 round clip he just purchased for his Gecko45 Extreme Edition, I'd look, say 'kewl', and go back to my shooting. I would keep a wary eye on him, but I probably would not get into a lesson on proper terminology.

If my 13yo Nephew asked to run a couple of clips thru my 1911, I would say yes, explain the difference between the 2, show him some clips and magazines, then take off and go shooting with him.

If Elmer Keith asked if that was the new 177 round clip for the Gecko45 Extreme Edition, I would say "Why yes Mr. Keith, it is. Would you like to give it a try?" And from that moment forward would always call magazines, clips.

If Sara Brady came up to me and asked "is that one of those evil, hi cap, clips", I would launch into a detailed explanation of the difference between mags, and clips until her eyes started to glaze ov... Oh hell, if Sara showed up, I would probably run off screaming like a 5 year old girl, with a toad in my knickers.

 

[Tirod]

I see it as an indicator of 1) real gun knowledge, but not necessarily functional skill. If Carlos Hathcock wants to call them clips, more power to him, 2) what kind of character the "corrector" has - go ahead, tell someone they don't really know all about it. You could be embarrassing yourself no end.

Kind of like the story about the young lieutenant describing to a senior officer what sexual acts he could commit with a beautiful young lady across the room, only to discover he was talking to the commander about his daughter.

Give respect, you get respect.

Having owned a HK91 sporter rifle and hearing it called a "machine gun" every time I brought it to a public range, I'm aware of the depth of ignorance out there. I agree with the SF SFC tho, who cares what it's called when you're downrange from it?

It's just an interweb discussion. But I'm glad to know some people care. I'll probably start calling them "clips" more often around the young and seriously sincere. It's always good for a laugh.