Small arms vs Miliatry Arms?

Question

I really don't know much about guns, but I was given it as topic for a reseach paper. Could anyone give me an explanation about the difference between small arms and military (assualt) arms?

Answer 1

In the widest definition, the term 'small arms' includes not only ALL firearms, BOTH military AND civilian, but non-firearm weapons including all edged weapons(swords and knives) as well. This even includes such medieval weapons as axes, maces, morning stars, war-hammers, et al!
Small arms are ANY and ALL weapons that can be used by a single individual.
Technically, even a RPG and the like are considered to come under the definition of 'Small Arms'.

Answer 2

All military rifles designed to be carried by one man are also classified as small arms. My guess is your teacher is a liberal who hates the idea of people being free to protect themselves with guns and is using this project to try to convert people who believe in the right to self-defense over to her anti-freedom agenda.

Answer 3

Small arms refers to military weapons, and is classified as anything that can be carried by an indiviual, to include pistols, rifles, submachine guns, and light machine guns. The calibers will vary slightly depending on the military force using them, but pistols and submachine guns will generally be 9mm or .40 caliber, while rifles will be around .223 caliber (the US and NATO countries will use 5.56mmx45, while nations that use soviet weapons will use 5.45x39mm if they have the newer weapons while the older will use 7.62x39mm) or .308 (7.62mm). Light machine guns will generally be in the .30 caliber range, while some nations will also have a .223 machine gun. Anything larger that that will generally fall out of the small arms range, but there are exceptions.

Answer 4

Small arms are anything less than cannons, tanks, and military jets. The military uses what are called select fire weapons, that is, can shoot both semi- and full-auto. Civilians can own full-auto arms by getting (after a long, expensive, extensive background check) a class 3 license, but most people can't afford to buy or feed full-auto guns. So we have to settle for semi-auto copies of military surplus small arms, or bolt action rifles. Military small arms are mostly "intermediate" caliber, less than full power rifle ammunition, like 5.56 NATO (civilian .223 Remington), 7.62X39 (AK-47 ammo, what our enemies use). "Sub-machine" guns use pistol caliber ammo (9mm, .45ACP, the "Tommy Gun" is a .45 ACP cal. Sub-machine gun). Full size machine guns can be .308, .30'06 to .50BMG for Americans, 7.62X54R and 12.5mm Russian. (7.62=.30 cal.). Mortars are considered small arms. Small arms generally means 'can be carried by from one to three men'.
The term "assault weapon" really means a full-auto firing weapon. The term is misused by the anti-gun media just to make civilian owned guns sound like something we shouldn't have. But that is an anti-gun propaganda LIE, since civilians can't or don't usually own full-auto "assault" type weapons. For instance, a civilian can own a semi-auto COPY of an AK-47, but NOT own a military AK-47 that can fire in fully-automatic mode (without the proper license). Civilians can own bolt action, pump action, lever action, or semi-auto action rifles, shotguns, and pistols and revolvers, and none of these are assault weapons.

Answer 5

Small arms would be classified under any weapon that a single person can carry. An example would be handguns rifles sub-machine guns.Military Arms would be classified as any weapon where 2 or more people are required. An example would be the SAW(squad automatic machine gun) M60. Short and sweet version.

Answer 6

Small arms are generally accepted as .50 caliber and below.

Anything bigger is generally considered artillery.

Seeing how you mentioned "assault" - that term today has little meaning. Originally, an assault rifle was capable of selective fire (semi/full, semi/burst fire modes changed via a selector switch) and used a shortened or small rifle cartridge. Nowadays, the term "assault weapon" is completely bogus thanks to your local anti-gunners who don't know a damn thing. Everything on the general civilian market is semi-auto only, and not one is an "assault weapon". The military and Class III collectors have all of those.

Answer 7

You had better get a clearer definition in regards to the question. Military arms are also known as small arms so at this juncture the question makes no sense.

Answer 8

small arms are the average guns that people own for hunting and target shooting.These guns are either single shot or semiautomatic.Miliatry Arms are assault rifles with high cappacity magazines.These weapons ase ushally full auto and they were made to kill people and do extreem damage.Rite now in our country it is legal to own special modified versions of these asssault weapons.They only shoot semi automatic.But people in our country love to try to make these weapons illegal.Instead of taking away our assault weapons why dont they crack down on criminals who use them to commite crimes.And leave people allone who are collectors.In our country we have the rite to bear arms.And all my life I slowly watched this right fade away.
In my life time I bet I will see a day when you can no longer buy guns.Then they will start to round up all the guns.So only the criminals have them.Im not gonna sit back and watch this happen to me.

Answer 9

small arms= handguns, rifles, shotguns, machine guns and the like.. basically weapons that a soldier can carry

military arms= tanks, fighter aircrafts and the like