ACC

Accelerator

ACC

Remington Accelerator     

ACP

Automatic Colt Pistol (.45 ACP, .32 ACP)

Action

Part of the rifle that holds the bolt and trigger mechanism and is assembled in and around a part called the receiver in rifles or frame in handguns. The action also refers to the mechanism used to load, fire, and extract the ammunition. 

AD

Accidental Discharge 

AE

Action Express  (.41 AE, .50 AE)

AJHP

Aluminium Jacketed Hollow Point

Ammunition

A general description for cartridges used in firearms

Annealed

A method of heating and cooling brass necks of cases to soften them

ANSI

American National Standards Institute

AP

Armor Piercing (has a steel or other hard metal core)

ATA

Amateur Trap Association

AVG

Average

B&D

Bain and Davis (.357/44 B&D)

Back Stop

The impact area of the range that stops the bullets.

Back Strap

The lower rear portion of the grip frame on a pistol.

Barrel

The part of the rifle, pistol or shotgun that the projectiles (s) travel though, before entering the atmosphere. It is a steel tube that is rifled, that is it has grooves cut in the inside walls that spiral down its length. The surfaces of the bore between grooves are called lands. The purpose of the rifling (lands and grooves, collectively) is to impart a spin to the bullet so that it will be stabilized during its flight from gun to target. Shotguns and older firearms like muskets normally have smooth bores, but there are exceptions. The opening in the barrel through which the bullet departs is called the muzzle. The opening where the bullet enters is called the breech.

BATF

US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms

bbl

Barrel

BBWC

Bevel Base WadCutter

Beavertail

The upper curved area on the back strap of the handgun where the web of the shooting hand fits.

BEB

Brass Enclosed Base

Bench Rest

A form of rest used to rest the fore-end (and or butt) of a rifle on. Is also a term used to describe a rifle competition.

Black Powder

Original form of explosive used to propel objects, invented by the Chinese.

Bolt

The bolt consists of a tube of metal inside of which the firing mechanism is housed, and which has at the front or rear of the tube several metal knobs, or "lugs", which serve to lock the bolt in place in the breech of a rifle.

Bolt Action Rifles

Bolt action rifles are operated by lifting up, pulling back, and then pushing on a handle of the bolt to enable a cartridge to be fired. Bolt action rifles are generally known as both the strongest and most accurate rifle action.  

Bore

Sometimes used as a Synonym for the measurement or calibre of a gun. Also generally used as an equivalent to gauge for shotguns.

BR

 Bench Rest Remington (6mm BR, 7mm BR)

Brass

 The cartridge without the bullet or powder. Spent or unloaded ammunition casing. This is what is ejected from the gun after a bullet is fired.

BT

Boat-Tail

BTHP

Boat Tail Hollow Point

Bullet

A bullet is the solid projectile propelled by a pistol and is normally made from metal, usually lead and does NOT contain explosives.

The term bullet should not be confused with the term “round” or “loaded round” referring to the combination of bullet, case, gunpowder and primer.Bullets are also sometimes referred to as lead slugs, projectiles, or pills.

cal

Calibre

Calibre

The diameter of a round can be measured in both imperial or metric, i.e. 6mm/.243 is the same calibre.

Cartridge

An assembled round - Bullet, Casing, power and primer

Cartridge chamber

The machine component of a barrel which holds the cartridge.

Casing

Generally, the same as brass.

CB

Cast Bullet

Centre Fire Shoot

An event (s) devoted solely to centre fire calibres.

CF

CenterFire (Centrefire) (ammunition)

CF P&R

CenterFire (Centrefire) Pistol & Revolver (ammunition)

CFR

CenterFire (Centrefire) Rifle (ammunition)

Chamber

The chamber is where a cartridge is placed in order for it to be fired. Most chambers are integral parts of the breech end of the barrel. The notable exception is the revolver, which has a cylinder made with several chambers which revolves to align each chamber with the bore. The internal dimensions of the chamber and bore define what ammunition may be fired in the gun

CL

Core Lokt

CL

Remington Core Lokt

Clay target

A round disk thrown by a thrower for shotguns. Can be various colours but is normally a standard size

Clip

A clip is used with some types of rifles clips, while not part of a firearm; they are used to hold a number of rounds of ammunition together to facilitate loading them into a firearm or magazine.

CoM

Centre of Mass. The largest part of the target.

Cowboy Shooting

Cowboy Action Shooting (CAS), also known as Western Action Shooting or Single Action Shooting, is a competitive shooting sport that originated in California, USA, in the early 1980s. Cowboy Action Shooting is now practiced world wide.  

CUP

Copper Units of Pressure

Cyl

Cylinder

DA

 Double Action. Meaning that it can be fired from both a cocked (hammer back) or uncocked (hammer down) position just by pulling the trigger.

DAO

Double Action Only. Meaning the hammer cannot be thumb cocked. It can only cock and fire by the pulling of the trigger.

DEWC

Double Ended WadCutter

DF

Drop Free (As in a drop-free magazine) 

DIS

Disintegrating

Double Taps

Two quick shots fired as fast as possible.

DPH

Diamond Pyramid Hardness

DQ'd

Disqualified  

DRT

Dead Right There

Dust Cover

The forward part of the grip frame that covers the recoil spring and guide rod area.

E0

Muzzle energy

EV

Extreme Variation

F Class Shoot

Developed in Australia in the 1980’s as a long range competition. Shot on special targets, using ½ minute 10 ring

FFL

Federal Firearms License

FG

Finger Groove(s), as on the grips of some pistols

FG/R

Finger groove(s) and rails

Firing Line

The line parallel with the backstop that you shoot from on a firing range.

FL

Factory Load

FMC

Full Metal Case

FMJ

Full Metal Jacket

FMJBT

Full Metal Jacket Boat Tail

FMJSWC

Full Metal Jacket Semi-WadCutter

FMJ-TC

Full Metal Jacket -Truncated Cone, another type of bullet

FML

Fully Metal Lined magazine (same as a DF magazine)

FN

Flat Nose

FP

Flat Point     

FP (Incorrect)

Foot Pounds

FPS (incorrect)

Feet Per Second

Front Strap

The front part of the lower grip frame on a pistol.

FSP

Front Sight, Press

FST

Fail Safe Talon

FST

Winchester Fail Safe Talon (Black Talon)     

ft/s

feet per second

ft-lb

foot-pounds (lb)

G&A

Guns & Ammo Magazine (.40 G&A, .460 G&A)

Ga

Gauge

GD

Gold Dot

GDHP

Gold Dot Hollow Point

GDHP

Speer Gold Dot Hollow Point

gm

gram

gr

grain

Grips

The stocks or grip panels on a pistol.

GS

Golden Saber, a bullet design used by Remington

Guard

 A Retention Shooting Position taught as the First Level of Weapons Presentation in Fist-Fire.

Gun

General description used to describe all firearms

Gun Powder

Gun Powder (black or smokeless) is used to propel the bullet through the firearm's bore.

H&H

Holland & Holland (.375 H&H)

H&R

Harrington & Richardson (.32 H&R Mag.)

Hand Gun

A handgun is a firearm designed to be held in the hand when used

HBWC

Hollow Base WadCutter

HC

Hard Cast

HP

Hollow Point

HPE

Hollow Point Expanding

HPJ

High Performance Jacketed

HPL

Hollow Point Lead

HS

Hydra Shok

HSP

Hollow Soft Point

HV

High Velocity

IBS

International Benchrest Shooters     

IBT

Ignition Barrel Time

Imp Cyl

Improved Cylinder (choke)

Imp Mod

Improved modified (choke)

IMR

Improved Military Rifle (Originally, DuPont's name for some of its canister powders.)

IMRP

Improved Military Rifle Powder

Isosceles Stance

A shooting stance where both elbows are locked straight and both hands gripping the gun.

J

Jacketed

JDJ

J. D. Jones (.375 JDJ)

JFP

Jacketed Flat Point

JHC

Jacketed Hollow Cavity

JHP

Jacketed Hollow Point

JHPBTS

Jacketed Hollow Point Boat Tailed Spitzer  

JRS

John R. Sundra (7mm JRS)

JSP

Jacketed Soft Point

L

Lead (metal) with respect to bullets

L

Long (length) with respect to cartridges

L-C/T

Hornady Lead Combat/Target     

lb/in²(Correct)

Pounds(lb) per square inch

lb_f-ft

Pound (lb)-force-foot

LC

Long Colt (.38 LC)

Lead slugs

Another term for bullet, the solid projectile propelled by a rifle or pistol

Lever Action Rifle

Lever action rifles uses a lever located around the trigger guard area (often including the trigger guard itself) and uses a tubular magazine that holds the cartridges end to end.

LFN

Long Flat Nose

LFP

Lead Flat Point

LH

Left Hand

LHP

Lead Hollow Point

loaded round

The combination of bullet, case, gunpowder and primer

Long Range

Normally more that 200 yds or meters

LR

Long Rifle (type of rimfire cartridge) (.22 LR)

LRN

Lead Round Nose     

LSWC

Lead Semi WadCutter

LSWC GC

Lead Semi WadCutter Gas Checked

L-T

Lead Combat

L-T

Lead Target

LTC

Lead Truncated Cone

LUP

Lead Units of Pressure

LWC

Lead WadCutter

M, MK

Model or Mark

Mag

Magnum (.357 Mag, .44 Mag)     

mag

Magazine

Mag

Magnum

Mag Button

The button on an auto pistol that releases the magazine when pushed.

Mag Well

The cavity into which the magazine is inserted.

Magazine

A magazine is where cartridges are stored until they are loaded into the chamber. Pistols, except for revolvers, often have a removable magazine in the grip frame. Rifles normally have a magazine, which may or may not be detachable, below the action. The part of the magazine that a spring pushes against to keep cartridges in position to be fed into the chamber is called the follower. A Magazine is also an old term used to describe the place where gunpowder, ammunitions and firearms were stored.

Malf

Malfunction

MC

Metal Cased

MCOPE

Metal Case Open Point Expanding

MCWC

Metal Cased WadCutter

ME

Muzzle Energy

MJ

Metal Jacketed

mm

millimetre (10mm, 7mm Mag)      

Mm

Millimetres

MOA

Minute of Angle

Mod

Modified (choke)

Mod Iso

The Modified Isosceles Shooting Stance (also known as Modern Isosceles or MI) in which both elbows are bent and pointing towards the ground.

MP

Metal Point

MRT

Mid Range Trajectory

MRWC

Mid Range WadCutter     

MV

Muzzle Velocity

ND

Negligent Discharge.

NDF

Non-drop free (same as NFML)

NFML

NOT Fully Metal Lined magazine (same as a NDF mag)

o/u

Over/Under

Off Hand

If you were right handed, the left hand would be considered your "Off Hand". Also called "Weak Hand".

OPE

Open Point Expanding

P

Point

Para

(sometimes Pb) - Parabellum  (9mm Para.)     

Parkerize

The application, to properly prepared steel, of a non=reflective, no-rust, flat grey to black finish. This is a finish based on the chemical interaction of different phosphates and various heavy metals, using heat as a catalyst.

Patch

A paper round sticky patch used to repair targets, in various colours

Pb

Lead Bullet

PB

Parabellum

Pb  

Used (on cartridge cases rather than bullets) as an abbreviation for Parabellum

Pb –

Lead (Element symbol for lead Latin: Plumbum)

PF

Power Factor. The formula for momentum used to determine bullet power in competition. Bullet Weight X Velocity = Power Factor.

Pills

Another term for bullet, the solid projectile propelled by a rifle or pistol

Pistol

May refer to revolvers, semi-automatics, or muzzle-loading/cap-&-ball handguns

PL

Power Lokt

Plate Racks

Steel knock down targets hinged on a rack. Usually six 8" plates about 4' above the ground.

Plinking Recreational shooting

Generally done with old cans and bottles, normally conducted on private ranges in Australia.

Polymer Material

A lightweight, strong, plastic used in the firearms eg, magazines, and certain other internal components.

Ported

Has holes in the barrel (and perhaps slide). See Compensated.

Post-Ban Mag

A magazine holding more than 10 rounds, made after the ban. Thus they can only be used by military personnel or holders of special licenses. It is normally illegal to own or even possess within certain State and Territories in Australia refer to the Firearms Act of the relevant State or Territory.

PPC

Pindell-Palmisano Cartridge (.22 PPC, 6mm PPC)     

Primer

A Primer contains a small, pressure sensitive explosive held between the cup and the anvil in the case of centerfire (centrefire) ammunition, or distributed around the rim of the cartridge in the case of rimfire ammunition. When primer is struck by the gun's firing pin, the priming compound detonates, igniting the charge of gun powder.

Projectiles

Another term for bullet, the solid projectile propelled by a rifle or pistol

PS

Point Shooting

psi

Pounds per square inch

PSI (Incorrect)

Pounds per Square Inch

PSP

Plated Soft Point

PSP

Pointed Soft Point

RC

Reverse Chapman. A shooting position taught as the Third Level of Weapons Presentation in Fist-Fire.

Rds

Rounds

Recoil

Is considered the backward kick or force produced by a gun when it is fired

Rem

Remington  (.223 Rem, .35 Rem)     

Ren

Charles Rensing & Jim Rock (.270 Ren)     

Revolver

A revolver is a repeating handgun that consists of multiple chambers and at least one barrel. Revolvers can be divided into two sub- groups: Single Action (SA) and Double Action (DA). Revolvers requires a hammer to be cocked before a cartridge can be fired by pulling the trigger. Each time the hammer is cocked, the cylinder rotates to align a chamber with the barrel. When the trigger is pulled, the hammer falls and fires the cartridge in that chamber.

RF

RimFire

RFM

RimFire Magnum

RH

Right Hand

Rifle

A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves ("rifling") cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling grooves are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile (for small arms usage, called a bullet), imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the orientation of the weapon

Rim Fire Shoot

Match for RimFire rifle/pistols normally .22 calibre

RN

Round Nose

RNFP

Round Nose Flat Point

RNL

Round Nosed Lead

RO

Range Officer

Rockwell Scale

A scale for the measurement of hardness used with gem stones and metals.

Round

A  single complete loaded cartridge

round

The combination of bullet, case, gunpowder and primer

RSA

Recoil Spring Assembly

RSR

Retention Speed Reload.

RW

Reverse Weaver. A shooting position taught as the Second Level of Weapons Presentation in Fist-Fire.

RWR

Reload With Retention. A reload where the partially spent mag is removed and stowed in a pocket. A fresh mag is then inserted in the gun.

S

Soft, Semi, Spire, or  Spitzer.

S

Short (type of rimfire cartridge)

S&H

Sharpe & Hart  (7x61 S&H)      

S&W

Smith & Wesson (.40 S&W, .32 S&W)    

SA

Single Action

SAAMI

Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute, Inc.

SH

Strong Hand. If you are right handed that would be your "Strong Hand".

Shell

Ammo for a shotgun

Shooting trap

Trap shooting has been a sport since at least 1793, however the modern version uses one house that releases targets and the shooters only move through 5 different positions

Shotgun

Is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of the explosive in a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot or a solid projectile. Shotguns come in a wide variety of sizes, ranging from 5.5 mm (.22 inch ) bores up to 5 cm (2 inch) bores, and in a range of firearm operating mechanisms, including breech loading double barreled shotguns, pump-action, bolt-action, lever-action, and semi-automatic models

Sights

A sight is an optical device used to assist aim by guiding the eye and aligning it with the path of a bullet. Sights may be a simple post on the muzzle end of the barrel that is centered in a notch on the breech end when the shooter sights along the top of the barrel. Other forms of sights include iron sights, red dot sights, peep sights, and telescopic sights.

SIMS

Short for “simulated munitions”. Simulated munitions are special cartridges that fire coloured wax projectiles to mark targets, commonly used in “Force on Force” training

SJ

Semi Jacketed

SJHP

Semi Jacketed Hollow Point

SJSP

Semi Jacketed Soft Point     

SJWC

Semi Jacketed WadCutter

Skeet

The term skeet may refer to a clay target usually used in Skeet shooting or clay pigeon shooting and is one of three major types of competitive shotgun shooting.

SL

Solid Lead

Slide

The upper part of the auto pistol that "slides" back and fourth during cycling.

Snake Eyes

Bullet holes that appear very close together as a result of very good "Double Tap" shots.

SO

Safety Officer

SP

Soft Point

SP

Spire Point

Spl

Special  (.38 Spl. .32 Win Spl.)    

Sprg

Springfield Armory (.30-06 Sprg.)     

SPTZ

Spitzer

SR

Sporting Rifle Powder

SR

Speed Reload. A very fast reload where the empty mag is ejected and a fresh mag is inserted.

SS

Shotshell

ST

Silver Tip

STB

Safe-T-Block

STHP

Silver Tip Hollow Point

Stock

The stock of a rifle (usually of wood) is what the shooter holds when supporting and shooting the rifle. The butt of the stock goes against your shoulder, and the forearm of the stock is supported by the non-trigger- operating support hand.

Striker

A name sometimes used to describe the firing pin

SV

Standard Velocity

SWC

Semi WadCutter     

SWCHP

Semi WadCutter Hollow Point

SWCL

Semi WadCutter Lead

SX

Super Explosive

SX

Hornady Super eXplosive     

SxS

Side-by-Side

SXT

Supreme Expansion Talon

TAC

Tactical

Target Shooting

Target shooting is a challenging outdoor sport in which participants fire at targets between distances of 30metres to 1200 yards away. Participants assume either a sitting, lying or prone position.

TC

Truncated Cone

TCHP

Truncated Cone Hollow Point

TCU

Thompson/Center and (Wes) Ugalde  (7mm TCU, 6mm TCU)     

Tenifer

A carbo-nitrating hardening process that penetrates the slide and some other parts for several thousandths of an inch, creating a "flake-free" hardness and durability.

TL

Tac-Load. Short for "Tactical Reload" (see below).

TMH

Trigger Mechanism Housing

TMJ

Total Metal Jacket

TR

Tactical Reload. A reload where a fresh mag is brought up to the gun and exchanged for the partially spent one in the gun. The partial mag is then stowed.

Trap

The term trap may refer to a clay target usually used in clay pigeon shooting and is one of three major types of competitive shotgun shooting.

Trigger

The trigger is a mechanical device operated by the shooter's finger. In most designs, when the trigger is operated, a spring-loaded mechanism is allowed to fire a cartridge which has been loaded in the gun.

TSR

Tactical Speed Reload. A technique unique to Fist-Fire.

TSW

Team Smith & Wesson (.356 TSW)     

VEL

Velocity

VLD

Very Low Drag

V

Muzzle Velocity

WC

WadCutter

WCF

Winchester Center Fire  (.25-20 WCF, .32-20 WCF)     

Western Action

Western Action Shooting also known as Cowboy Action Shooting (CAS), or Single Action Shooting, is a competitive shooting sport that originated in California, USA, in the early 1980s. Cowboy Action Shooting is now practiced world wide. 

WH

Weak Hand (also called "Off Hand").

Win

Winchester (.308 Win, .32 Win Spl.)     

WLN

Wide Long Nose

WMR

Winchester Magnum Rimfire (.22 WMR)

WS

Weaver Stance. A two handed hold made famous by Jack Weaver. Strong arm and elbow is higher than the weak and both elbows are bent.

WSM

Winchester Short Magnum

WSSM

Winchester Super Short Magnum

XTP

Extreme Terminal Performance

XTP

Hornady eXtreme Terminal Performance