![Combination gun examples](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/Combination_gun_examples.svg)
A combination gun is a
firearm
A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions).
The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes ...
that usually comprises at least one
rifled
In firearms, rifling is machining helical grooves into the internal (bore) surface of a gun's barrel for the purpose of exerting torque and thus imparting a spin to a projectile around its longitudinal axis during shooting to stabilize the proj ...
barrel and one
smoothbore
A smoothbore weapon is one that has a barrel without rifling. Smoothbores range from handheld firearms to powerful tank guns and large artillery mortars.
History
Early firearms had smoothly bored barrels that fired projectiles without signi ...
barrel, that is typically used with
shot
Shot may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Shot'' (album), by The Jesus Lizard
*''Shot, Illusion, New God'', an EP by Gruntruck
*'' Shot Rev 2.0'', a video album by The Sisters of Mercy
* "Shot" (song), by The Rasmus
* ''Shot'' (2017 f ...
or some types of
shotgun slug
A shotgun slug is a heavy projectile made of lead, copper, or other material and fired from a shotgun. Slugs are designed for hunting large game, and other uses, particularly in areas near human population where their short range and slow speed h ...
. Most have been
break-action
Break action is a type of firearm action in which the barrel or barrels are hinged much like a door and rotate perpendicularly to the bore axis to expose the breech and allow loading and unloading of cartridges. A separate operation may be require ...
guns, although there have been other designs as well. Combination guns using one rifled and one smoothbore barrel are commonly found in an over-and-under configuration, while the side-by-side configuration is usually referred to as a cape gun.
A combination gun with more than two barrels are called a (German for "triplet") with three barrels, a (German for "quadruplet") with four barrels, and a (German for "quintuplet") with five barrels. Combination guns generally use rimmed cartridges, as rimless cartridges are more difficult to extract from a break-action firearm.
Use
Combination guns have a long history in Europe, Middle East, Asia, and Africa that date back to the early days of cartridge firearms. These guns are almost exclusively hunting arms. The advantage of having a single firearm that can fire both cartridges designed for rifled and smoothbore barrels, is that a single gun can be used to hunt a very wide variety of
game
A game is a structured form of play (activity), play, usually undertaken for enjoyment, entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator s ...
, from
deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...
to game birds, and the shooter can choose the barrel appropriate for the target in seconds. As a result, they are popular with gamekeepers who often need the flexibility of the combination gun during their activities.
Firing mechanisms
The earliest combination guns were called ''swivel guns'' (not to be confused with the more widely known
small cannon), which used a set of barrels designed to rotate to allow either the rifled or smoothbore barrel to line up with a
flintlock
Flintlock is a general term for any firearm that uses a flint-striking lock (firearm), ignition mechanism, the first of which appeared in Western Europe in the early 16th century. The term may also apply to a particular form of the mechanism its ...
mechanism. Modern combination guns tend to resemble
double-barreled shotgun
A double-barreled shotgun is a break-action shotgun with two parallel barrels, allowing two single shots to be fired in quick succession or simultaneously.
Construction
Modern double-barreled shotguns, often known as ''doubles'', are almost u ...
s and
double-barreled rifle
The double rifle, also known as a double-barreled rifle, is a rifle with two barrels mounted parallel to each other. Synonymous with big game hunting found primarily in Africa and India, the double rifle is a purely sporting weapon with no militar ...
s, and are almost universally
break open
Break action is a type of firearm action in which the barrel or barrels are hinged much like a door and rotate perpendicularly to the bore axis to expose the breech and allow loading and unloading of cartridges. A separate operation may be requir ...
designs. Combination guns generally have a selector that allows the user to choose which barrel will fire. Drillings with two shotgun barrels and one rifle barrel may have two triggers, one for each shotgun barrel, and a selector that will allow one trigger to fire the rifle barrel. Four-barrel versions known as Vierlings generally have two triggers, and selectors to switch each between shotgun and rifle.
Layouts
Combination guns
![M6 Survival Rifle](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/10/M6_Survival_Rifle.jpg)
Combination guns are over/under designs such as the
Savage Model 24
The Savage Model 24 is an American made over-and-under combination gun manufactured by Savage Arms. The basic .22LR over .410 gauge model weighs 7 pounds, has 24-inch barrels and an overall length of 41-inches. It may also be disassembled for ea ...
, usually with a rifled barrel over a smoothbore barrel.
Iron sights
Iron sights are a system of physical alignment markers (usually made of metallic material) used as a sighting device to assist the accurate aiming of ranged weapons (such as a firearm, airgun, crossbow or even compound bow), or less commonly ...
are commonly used for aiming the rifle, and the front sight alone is sufficient to point the shotgun.
Scope mount
Scope mounts are used to attach telescopic sights or other types of sights to firearms. The scope sight itself is usually made for only one of two main types of mounts, which can be classified as ''scopes for ring mounts'' (for example a 30 ...
s are available for some designs.
An interesting combination gun is the
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...
M6 Aircrew Survival Weapon
The M6 Aircrew Survival Weapon was a specially-made .22 Hornet over .410 bore combination gun issued to United States Air Force aircrews to help forage for food in the event of a plane crash. It was issued from 1952 until the early 1970s, in conj ...
and its civilian version, the
Springfield Armory M6 Scout
The Springfield Armory M6 Scout is a .22 Hornet over .410 bore combination gun that is virtually identical to the original M6 Aircrew Survival Weapon. It is also made in .22 Long Rifle over .410 bore and .22 Magnum over .410 bore. The Scouts are ...
, an all-metal folding combination gun in
.22 Hornet over
.410 bore
The .410 bore is one of the smallest caliber of shotgun shell commonly available (along with the 9mm Flobert rimfire cartridge, and the less common .22 rimfire shot shell). A .410 bore shotgun loaded with shot shells is well suited for small g ...
or
.22 Long Rifle
The .22 Long Rifle or simply .22 LR or 22 (metric designation: 5.6×15mmR) is a long-established variety of .22 caliber rimfire ammunition originating from the United States. It is used in a wide range of rifles, pistols, revolvers, smo ...
over
.410 bore
The .410 bore is one of the smallest caliber of shotgun shell commonly available (along with the 9mm Flobert rimfire cartridge, and the less common .22 rimfire shot shell). A .410 bore shotgun loaded with shot shells is well suited for small g ...
.
Cape guns
A cape gun is a side-by-side version of a combination gun, and is typically European in origin. These were at one time popular in southern Africa where a wide variety of game could be encountered. British versions are commonly chambered for the
.303 British
The .303 British (designated as the 303 British by the C.I.P. and SAAMI) or 7.7×56mmR, is a calibre rimmed rifle cartridge. The .303 inch bore diameter is measured between rifling lands as is the common practice in Europe which follows th ...
service cartridge and a 12-gauge smoothbore barrel, with the rifled barrel positioned on the left. German and Austrian cape guns have the rifled barrel on the right side, which is fired by the front trigger. The front trigger is usually a set trigger as well. The German and Austrian versions are commonly chambered in 9.3×72mmR and 16-gauge, as were commonly carried by the old gamekeepers, although they were chambered in a wide variety of rifle and shotgun cartridges.
Drillings
![BlaserBD98](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6d/BlaserBD98.jpg)
Drillings (Drilling: German for triplet) normally consists of two matching smoothbore barrels and a rifled barrel (german: Normaldrilling, common drilling), but may cover a much broader range of shapes and configurations:
* Two matching rifled barrels and one smoothbore barrel
* Two rifled barrels of different calibers (typically one
rimfire, one
centerfire
Two rounds of .357 Magnum, a centerfire cartridge; notice the circular primer in the center
A centerfire cartridge is a firearm metallic cartridge whose primer is located at the center of the base of its casing (i.e. "case head"). Unlike rim ...
) and one smoothbore barrel
* Three matching smoothbore barrels
* Three matching rifled barrels
Since drillings were generally made by small manufacturers, each maker would pick whichever layout they preferred, or whatever layout the customer ordered. The most common layout was a side-by-side shotgun with a centerfire rifled barrel centered on the bottom, such as the
M30 Luftwaffe Drilling
The M30 Luftwaffe Drilling ("triple") was a survival weapon issued to Luftwaffe pilots during World War II. It was used by airmen operating in North Africa. The M30 was intended to be used for hunting and self-defense against natural predators.
F ...
. A similar arrangement of a side-by-side shotgun with a rifled barrel centered on top, generally a .22 caliber
rimfire or .22 Hornet, was also fairly common.
Rarer were the drillings that used two rifled barrels and a single smoothbore barrel. These were harder to make, since, like a double-barreled rifle, the rifled barrels must be very carefully ''regulated'', that is, aligned during manufacture to shoot to the same point of aim at a given distance. This requires more precision than regulation of double-barreled shotgun barrels, which are used at shorter ranges with wide patterns of shot where a small misalignment won't be significant. If the rifled barrels were the same caliber, then the three barrels were generally arranged in a triangle, both rifled barrels on top, or one rifled and the smoothbore barrel on top (this being known as a ''cross-eyed drilling''). If the rifled barrels differed in caliber, generally the layout would be an over/under using the shotgun and a centerfire rifle barrel, with a rimfire rifle barrel mounted between and to one side. These configuration, with shotgun/centerfire/rimfire barrels, are the most desirable configuration for modern collectors.
The triple-barrel shotgun is the rarest configuration, and arguably is an odd variant of a double-barreled shotgun rather than a drilling, since it lacks the rifle/shotgun combination that all the other drillings have. The triple-barrel shotgun is generally laid out like a side-by-side shotgun, with the third barrel centered and below the other two. Although, the
Chiappa Triple Crown
The Chiappa Triple Crown is a family of Italian made triple-barrel, break-action shotguns, chambered in 12-gauge, 20-gauge, 28-gauge, and .410-bore. The barrels have a triangular arrangement with one on top and two below. This gives the Triple Cr ...
has a triangular arrangement with one on top and two below. This gives the Triple Crown a single-barrel sight picture. The barrels are all the same
gauge
Gauge ( or ) may refer to:
Measurement
* Gauge (instrument), any of a variety of measuring instruments
* Gauge (firearms)
* Wire gauge, a measure of the size of a wire
** American wire gauge, a common measure of nonferrous wire diameter, es ...
.
An unusual but notable drilling is the
TP-82, a short-barreled drilling pistol consisting of two 12.5 mm smoothbore barrels over a 5.45 mm rifled barrel with a detachable shoulder stock that also doubles as a
machete
Older machete from Latin America
Gerber machete/saw combo
Agustín Cruz Tinoco of San Agustín de las Juntas, Oaxaca">San_Agustín_de_las_Juntas.html" ;"title="Agustín Cruz Tinoco of San Agustín de las Juntas">Agustín Cruz Tinoco of San ...
. It was developed by the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
as a survival gun for their
cosmonaut
An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...
s, and was in use from 1986 to 2006, when it was retired due to the fact that the unique ammunition it uses had degraded too far to be reliable.
Vierlings
Vierlings ("vierling" being German for "quadruplet") generally consist of two matching smoothbore barrels, a .22 caliber rimfire rifled barrel and a centerfire rifled barrel. Although, they can come in a variety of configurations. Vierlings are quite rare and are almost always custom-made for the high-end commercial market. One example was the four-barreled
Lancaster carbine
The Lancaster Pistol was a multi-barrelled (2 or 4 barrels) handgun produced in England in the mid-late 19th century, chambered in a variety of centrefire pistol calibres—chiefly .38 S&W, .450 Adams, .455 Webley, and .577 inch. The designer, Lo ...
, originally designed for the
Maharajah of Rewa
Rewa State, also known as Rewah, was a Rajput princely state of India, surrounding its eponymous capital, the town of Rewa.
With an area of about , Rewa was the largest princely state in the Bagelkhand Agency and the second largest in Centra ...
for hunting
tiger
The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus '' Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on u ...
s.
The maharajah's gun
/ref>
See also
*Chiappa Double Badger
The Chiappa Double Badger is an Italian made over and under combination gun manufactured by Chiappa Firearms. It comes in four versions a .22 LR over .410 bore, a .22 WMR over .410 bore a .22 LR over 20 gauge and a .243 Winchester over .410 b ...
*Chiappa M6 Survival Gun
The Chiappa M6 Survival Gun is an over and under combination gun that comes in four versions; with a 12 gauge or 20 gauge shotgun barrel over a .22 Long Rifle or .22 Magnum barrel. It has a similar appearance to the original M6 Aircrew Surviv ...
*Chiappa Triple Crown
The Chiappa Triple Crown is a family of Italian made triple-barrel, break-action shotguns, chambered in 12-gauge, 20-gauge, 28-gauge, and .410-bore. The barrels have a triangular arrangement with one on top and two below. This gives the Triple Cr ...
*Flakvierling
The Flak 30 (''Flugzeugabwehrkanone 30'') and improved Flak 38 were 20 mm anti-aircraft guns used by various German forces throughout World War II. It was not only the primary German light anti-aircraft gun but by far the most numerously prod ...
* LeMat Revolver
*Marble Game Getter
The Marble Game Getter is a light, double-barrel (over-under), combination gun manufactured by the Marble's Arms & Manufacturing Company in Gladstone, Michigan. The firearm features a skeleton folding stock and a rifle barrel over a smooth-bor ...
*Multiple-barrel firearm
A multiple-barrel firearm is any type of firearm with more than one gun barrel, usually to increase the rate of fire or hit probability and to reduce barrel erosion/overheating.
History Volley gun
Multiple-barrel firearms date back to the ...
*Savage Model 24
The Savage Model 24 is an American made over-and-under combination gun manufactured by Savage Arms. The basic .22LR over .410 gauge model weighs 7 pounds, has 24-inch barrels and an overall length of 41-inches. It may also be disassembled for ea ...
*S&T Daewoo K11
The S&T Daewoo K11 DAW (Dual-barrel Air-burst Weapon) is a multi-weapon resembling the earlier US Objective Individual Combat Weapon in concept, design and operation. It consists of two separate weapons combined into a single unit: a lower assaul ...
*List of multiple-barrel firearms
Below is a list of multiple-barrel firearms of all forms from around the world.Small Arms Illustrated, 2010
Pistols
Rifles
Flare launchers
Less lethal
Automatic rifles
Submachine guns
Shotguns
Machine guns
Grenade launchers
S ...
Notes
References
* Fjestad, S. P. ''Blue Book of Gun Values'', 13th Edition.
{{Authority control
Hunting rifles
Multiple-barrel firearms
Shotguns
Combination guns