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Hand gun questions

Powderhorn
I have a couple questions due to the lack of knowlege of handguns.

What's a "hand carbine?"


What's a larger caliber .44 Magnum or a 45? (I don't understand caliber)
Thanks for any help!
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Comments

9 comments

Date Votes
  • nmyers
    There's no such thing as a "hand carbine." "Carbine" is a term used to loosely describe a short version of a rifle, but there is no definitive length or weight.

    The diameter of a bullet is either described by the metric system (in millimeters, such as 9mm), or by caliber (in hundreds of an inch, such as .45). So, a .45 cal bullet will be 1/100 of an inch larger in diameter than a .44 cal bullet. However, this has nothing to do with "power", as that is determined by the length & shape of the bullet, as well as the size of the case & amount & type of powder.

    I suggest that you subscribe to a gun magazine; that will expand your knowledge, & allow to gradually learn most of what you want to know. The best place to start is with a membership to the National Rifle Association; membership includes a subscription to their American Rifleman magazine.

    Neal
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  • rhmc24
    Hand Carbine is not a commonly used gun term. There may be an esplanation but more info is needed as to the context in which you have it used. .45 is larger in caliber than .44. The point xx as in .45 denotes the diameter of the bore in hundredths of an inch, 45/100. Caliber is often expressed in millimeters, indicating the bore diameter in millimeters which can be converted to inches as 25.4 millimeters per inch. That is a simplistic explanation of caliber designations of guns and cartridges. Caliber does not necessarily denote the power of the cartridge because the caliber measurement of bore diameter does not consider other factors such as amount of powder, weight of bullet, etc. I could write for an hour and more knowledgeable people could write you a book on that subject. Hope this helps.
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  • Powderhorn
    Thanks for the help! Just what I figured, but wanted to make sure I was thinking correctly.

    The reason I asked is, I'm going bow hunting in South Africa. Since I'm only taking a bow to hunt with, I would like to have a handgun with me for safety. The info I got lists some items that are prohibited, including "hand carbine," handguns larger than 45 caliber, etc. The don't allow semi auto rifles and it's not real clear if that includes handguns. So I'm a little skeptical of taking my Glock so I think I'll take my .44 magnum.

    I am already a member of the NRA, but I get the "Freedom First" magazine, which is mostly political, etc..

    Thanks again for the clairfications.
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  • Throckmorton
    If it's Africa you are hunting you'll want all the backup power you can pac,and that means your .44 mag.
    I wonder if by 'hand carbine' they mean 'hand cannon',a term used to describe the single shot pistols b y J.D.Jones,et al.


    Throckmortons' the alias,cas is the game.
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  • v35
    Try for more info. Something may be misinterpreted in translation.
    Pistol carbines were used in the period of the Civil War which were single shot pistols with a detacheable stock. This may have also applied to some 1860 Colt Armies. Luger had a pistol carbine with forend, long barrel and detacheable stock. Mauser M96 and some early Colt autopistols also had stockmounting provisions.Your instructions may apply to such weapons as Browning or Mauser or Luger with stock.
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  • profesor01
    i heard once that a pistol was considered as hand carbine if the barrel was over 12" but i havent heard this term used on modern pistols just on old black powder with stock extentions cabelas use to carry one called the cattlemans carbine it was a .44 with a 12" barrel

    ONE SHOT ONE KILL.....
    RANGERS LIVE FOREVER
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  • He Dog
    The above descriptions of caliber are accurate as far as they go, but in the real world things are a bit more complicated. For example the .38 special and the .357 magnum are the same diameter: .375" The names are often chosen by manufacturers to sound tougher than they are. Most are accurate, but many are not. .30-06 is actually a .308 diameter bullet, .260 Remington is .264 and so on. For the details you just have to memorize them or know the developmental history as a lot of it is not logical.
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  • Hangfire
    quote:Originally posted by He Dog
    For example the .38 special and the .357 magnum are the same diameter: .375" .


    And all these years I thought .357 was the correct diameter for both....oh well, live and learn[8D][8D][I think a little transposition took place, don't you?}

    Love them Pre-64's!!!!-Bob
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  • allechalley
    And I think .44 mag and special are .429.
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