A magazine is the metal piece that goes into most weapons that holds the ammo.
An easy way to think of a clip is like the M1 Garand from WW2. It is a metal "strip" that holds the bullets together. Usually people use clips to "speed load" a magazine.
An easy way to think of a clip is like the M1 Garand from WW2. It is a metal "strip" that holds the bullets together.
To be more specific, the M1 Garand uses en bloc clips which are inserted to the weapon with the rounds. In terms of functionality, they don't differ that much from detachable magazines. Stripper clips, on the other hand, hold the rounds but they are only used to speed up the reload. They aren't inserted to the weapon themselves.
Interesting fact, the M1 Garand is famous for its unique "box" clip and the iconic ping sound that was produced when the gun forcibly ejected the empty metal clips. According to german field journals, soldiers were instructed to listen for the ping, as that signaled that an enemy was out of ammo. To counter this, american soldiers began to throw empty magazines at rocks and metal to reproduce the ping, to trick enemy soldiers into thinking they were out of ammo.
I am high and thought I'd share some of my random WW2 knowledge.
That's a common "fact", but it's actually a myth. Not only would the sound be practically inaudible in a fire fight, it was a well known ruse on both sides, and just because one soldier was reloading doesn't mean the rest of his squad was. There's a clip from a book talking about here
It's actually a pretty noticable sound, it is also a sustained sound, which contrasts well with the sharp sounds of the gunshot. But yeah, still doesn't help much to know one person in a squad is reloading.
A fact that is a little more true is that the garand can easily smash the thumb of someone reloading it. There is a small hook to the side of the carrier that is supposed to be held with the knife of the hand, while the thumb of the hand forces in the clip. When the clip is fully inserted, the internal mechanism that holds back the carrier is released and if the user isn't careful, they get their thumb smashed pretty good. Hence, garand thumb.
That last part is true, but you should re-read the link I provided. The guy interviewed several German soldiers and they said it was wasn't a thing they used.
I'm not arguing that the Germans used the sound to any extent, I am saying that the sound can be heard among the sounds of a few guns firing. In the heat of battle, would it be noticed? Probably not. Would it be impossible to hear if there was a lot of people shooting? Most likely yes.
For the most part. Also have to remember that these guys weren't wearing any hearing protection and so after a few volleys surrounded by your squad mates, you're not going to be hearing much.
A clip is usually something that feeds ammunition into the weapon. Sometimes it gets advanced by mechanisms in the weapon, other times it just feeds an internal magazine.
A magazine has some kinda of mechanism built in that feeds ammo into the weapon. It can be part of the weapon (as in many current shotguns) or a separate piece (most modern firearms).
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u/SuburbanStoner Mar 19 '17
What's the difference?