Editing Bolt action (section)

==History==
The first bolt action rifle was produced in 1824 by [[Johann Nikolaus von Dreyse]], following work on [[breechloading]] rifles that dated to the 18th century. Von Dreyse would perfect his [[Dreyse needle gun|''Nadelgewehr'']] (Needle Rifle) by 1836, and it was adopted by the [[Prussian Army]] in 1841. While it saw limited service in the [[German Revolutions of 1848]], it was not fielded widely until the [[Second Schleswig War|1864 victory over Denmark]].<ref>Dupuy, Trevor N. (1980). ''Evolution of Weapons and Warfare''. Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill, p. 293.</ref> In 1850 a metallic [[Centerfire ammunition|centerfire]] bolt-action breechloader was patented by Béatus Beringer.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g5dbAAAAcAAJ&q=Verrou+Arme+Beringer&pg=PA44|title=Description des machines et procedes specifies dans les brevets d'invention, de perfectionnement et d'importation, dont la duree est expirée ...|date=1855|publisher=Bouchard-Huzard|language=fr}}</ref> In 1852 another metallic centerfire bolt-action breechloader was patented by Joseph Needham and improved upon in 1862 with another patent.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Office|first=Great Britain Patent|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P1wWAAAAYAAJ&q=Needham%2C+Joseph&pg=PA163|title=Abridgments of the Specifications Relating to Fire-arms and Other Weapons, Ammunition, and Accoutrements: A.D. 1588–1858]-Pt. II. A.D. 1858–1866|date=1859|publisher=George E. Eyre and William Spottiswoode, pub. at the Great seal patent office|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3GWAyUMi5eMC&q=Needham+1862+1544&pg=PA21-IA29|title=English Patents of Inventions, Specifications: 1862, 1522 – 1600|date=1862|publisher=H.M. Stationery Office|language=en}}</ref><ref>Blackmore, Howard L. (1965). ''Guns and Rifles of the World'', p. 69. London: Chancellor Press. </ref> Two different systems for [[Primer (firearms)|primer]]s –the mechanism to ignite a metallic cartridge's powder charge – were invented in the 1860s as well, the Berdan<ref>{{Cite book|last=Mast|first=Gregory|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/847527424|title=To be a military sniper|date=2007|publisher=Zenith Press|isbn=978-1-61060-032-3|pages=48|oclc=847527424}}</ref> and the Boxer<ref>{{Citation|last=Heard|first=Brian J.|title=Firearms: History|date=15 September 2011|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/9780470061589.fsa1022|encyclopedia=Wiley Encyclopedia of Forensic Science|place=Chichester, UK|publisher=John Wiley & Sons, Ltd|doi=10.1002/9780470061589.fsa1022|isbn=978-0-470-06158-9|access-date=3 April 2021|url-access=subscription}}</ref> systems.

The United States purchased 900 [[James Durrell Greene#Greene Rifle|Greene rifles]] (an under hammer, percussion capped, single-shot bolt-action that used paper cartridges and an ogival bore rifling system) in 1857, which saw service at the [[Battle of Antietam]] in 1862, during the [[American Civil War]];<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://www.nramuseum.org/guns/the-galleries/a-nation-asunder-1861-to-1865/case-15-union-muskets-and-rifles/greene-breechloading-underhammer-percussion-rifle.aspx |title = NRA Museums}}</ref> however, this weapon was ultimately considered too complicated for issue to soldiers and was supplanted by the [[Springfield Model 1861]], a conventional muzzle loading rifle. During the American Civil War, the bolt-action [[Palmer carbine]] was patented in 1863, and by 1865, 1000 were purchased for use as cavalry weapons.<!--CSA or AUS?--> The [[French Army]] adopted its first bolt-action rifle, the [[Chassepot rifle]], in 1866 and followed with the metallic cartridge bolt-action [[Gras rifle]] in 1874.

European armies continued to develop bolt-action rifles through the latter half of the 19th century, first adopting [[tubular magazine]]s as on the [[Kropatschek]] rifle and the [[Lebel rifle]]. The first bolt-action repeating rifle was patented in Britain in 1855 by an unidentified inventor through the patent agent Auguste Edouard Loradoux Bellford using a gravity-operated tubular magazine in the stock.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rFVHmi_fLtYC&q=Bellford+1855+1436&pg=PA6-IA7 |title = English Patents of Inventions, Specifications: 1855, 1419 – 1481|year = 1856}}</ref> Another more well-known bolt-action repeating rifle was the Vetterli rifle of 1867 and the first bolt-action repeating rifle to use centerfire cartridges was the weapon designed by the Viennese gunsmith Ferdinand Fruwirth in 1871.<ref> Lugs, Jaroslav. ''Firearms Past and Present'', p. 147.</ref> Ultimately, the military turned to bolt-action rifles using a [[box magazine]]; the first of its kind was the [[M1885 Remington–Lee]], but the first to be generally adopted was the British 1888 [[Lee–Metford]]. [[World War I]] marked the height of the bolt-action rifle's use, with all of the nations in that war fielding troops armed with various bolt-action designs.

During the buildup prior to [[World War II]], the military bolt-action rifle began to be superseded by [[semi-automatic rifle]]s and later [[automatic rifle|fully automatic rifles]], though bolt-action rifles remained the primary weapon of most of the combatants for the duration of the war; and many American units, especially the [[United States Marine Corps|USMC]], used bolt-action [[M1903 Springfield]] rifles until sufficient numbers of [[M1 Garand]] rifles were made available. The bolt-action is still common today among many [[sniper rifle]]s, as the design has the potential for superior accuracy, reliability, reduced weight, and the ability to control loading over the faster rate of fire that all semi-automatic rifle alternatives allow. There are, however, many semi-automatic rifle designs used especially in the [[designated marksman]] role.

Today, bolt-action rifles are chiefly used as hunting and target rifles. These rifles can be used to hunt anything from [[vermin]] to [[deer]] and to [[large game]], especially big game caught on a [[safari (hunting)|safari]], as they are adequate to deliver a single lethal shot from a safe distance. Target shooters favour single-shot bolt actions for their simplicity of design, reliability, and accuracy.

[[Bolt-action shotgun]]s are considered a rarity among modern firearms but were formerly a commonly used action for .410 entry-level shotguns, as well as for low-cost 12-[[Gauge (bore diameter)|gauge]] shotguns. The [[M26 Modular Accessory Shotgun System]] (MASS) is the most recent and advanced example of a bolt-action shotgun, albeit one designed to be attached to an M16 rifle or M4 carbine using an underbarrel mount (although with the standalone kit, the MASS can become a standalone weapon). Mossberg 12-gauge bolt-action shotguns were briefly popular in Australia after the [[National Firearms Agreement|1997 changes to firearms laws]], but the shotguns themselves were awkward to operate and had only a three-round magazine, thus offering no practical or real advantages over a conventional double-barreled shotgun.

Some pistols use a bolt-action system, although this is uncommon, and such examples are typically specialized hunting and target handguns.