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The size of the hole in the barrel. Since there are high and low grooves cut to spin the bullet, it is the distance between the high places (called the "land" of the rifling). If that distance is 0.030, it is a 30 caliber weapon. Shotguns are done differently. The "gage" of the shotgun (except 410) refers to the number of round lead balls the same size as the hole that it takes to equal a pound. A 12 gage shoots a 11/3 ounce round lead ball and it takes 12 of them to equal a pound. A 16 gage shoots a 1 ounce round ball, etc.

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16y ago
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Q: What determines caliber in guns?
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