Second Amendment Armory Dictionary

Welcome to the Second Amendment Armory's dictionary. You can use this page to find the definition of words or abbreviations related to firearms. You can search the dictionary by entering a word, partial word, a word or combinations of words. Or, you can view all the words in the dictionary realted to a specificc letter. If you have suggestions for new terms, abbreviations, or deifnitions, please contact us at questions@saarmory.com.

Use the buttons to view all of the definitions of the words in the dictionary that start with that letter.

Derringer

A derringer is generally the smallest usable handgun of a given caliber. They were frequently used by women, because they are easily concealable in a purse or as a stocking gun. The original cartridge derringers held only a single round, usually a pinfire or rimfire .40 caliber cartridge. The famous Remington derringer design doubled the capacity, while maintaining the compact size, by adding a second barrel on top of the first and pivoting the barrels upwards to reload. The Remington derringer was in .41 Rimfire caliber and achieved wide popularity.

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Double Action (DA)

An action type, typical on handguns, where the hammer may be cocked manually prior to each shot, OR, one may pull the trigger through a long throw which cocks the hammer

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