![]() It is worth considering the purpose of the barrel when looking at bores. This system goes back to the time of muzzle loaders when those with a gun had to force the single ball of shot down the end of the barrel. In an attempt to clarify - during the period of shotgun development cannons were firing rounds distinguished by their weight 1,4 or 8 pounders for example, balls and the most common units of measure was a Dozen (12) therefore the logic of dividing a one pound ball into one dozen pieces follows. the pound of lead divided into 20 pieces. This also explains why a 20 bore is smaller - i.e. The 12 refers to a 12th of 1 pound of lead or more specifically a pound of lead can be turned into twelve balls of equal size that equate to the barrel diameter of what we know as a 12-bore (0.729"). The '12' in 12 bore is not as you might expect a unit of length but a division of weight. As with all gun terminology the categorising system for shotguns is rooted in its history and shows its age.
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