In this age, with large magazines and self-loading firearms being the norm, we often forget the effectiveness of single-shot firearms. These simple shooting irons dominated the first three decades of the self-contained metallic cartridge. Today, single-shot firearms enjoy continued production for sporting and utility purposes.
1. In 1874, buffalo hunter Billy Dixon ended the Second Battle of Adobe Walls with his legendary shot at more than 1,100 yards. His borrowed rifle was a—
A.) Sharps .50-90
B.) Remington .43 Spanish
C.) Springfield .45-70 Gov’t.
D.) Keene .45-70 Gov’t.
2. During World War II, one million flimsy, single-shot Liberator pistols were built to arm resistance fighters fighting the Germans and Japanese. Allied leaders didn’t like the idea. Few were delivered, and most were melted or dumped into the sea. In 1964, the CIA tried the same idea in Vietnam with the—
A.) AR-7
B.) S&W Victory
C.) Deer Gun
D.) All the above
3. In the 1877 Siege of Plevna, Bulgaria, troops of Tsarist Russia used this rugged American-designed rifle:
A.) Lee-Navy
B.) Lee-Metford
C.) Kropatshek
D.) Berdan
4. Philadelphia’s Naval Company offers an updated version of the longservice U.S. Navy line-throwing gun. Its Bridger CG85 is based on the—
A.) Harrington & Richardson top-break
B.) 1873 Springfield “Trapdoor”
C.) Winchester-Hotchkiss 1883
D.) Ruger Number 1
5. In the great days of silhouette shooting, Thompson-Center came out with a single-shot, break-action pistol called the Contender, which could handle cartridges as heavy as .30-30.
Later, a rifle-stocked model with a stronger action was introduced. The company offered custom barrels chambered for more than 100 calibers, including .416 Rigby. This rifle was the—
A.) Versa-Rifle
B.) Super Silhouette
C.) Encore
D.) None of the above
6. This Farquarson-actioned falling-block rifle has been offered in more than 50 chamberings and has been in continuous production since 1967:
A.) Harrington and Richardson
B.) Sauer Kliplaufbuchse
C.) Sharps
D.) Ruger Number 1
7. Which of these World War II anti-tank rifles used a single-shot, dropblock action?
A.) .55 Boyes
B.) 7.92mm Panzerbuchse 39
C.) 7.92mm Wzor 35
D.) .318 SS-41
8. This venerable New England company produced the popular Topper single-shot shotgun until 2015, when the factory was closed by new ownership—the Freedom Group:
A.) Harrington & Richardson
B.) Hopkins & Allen
C.) Ivor Johnson
D.) U.S. Firearms
9. At the Battle of the Little Bighorn, Custer’s 7th Cavalry was armed with the—
A.) Spencer carbine
B.) Springfield 1873 “Trapdoor” carbine
C.) Tarpley carbine
D.) Sharps carbine
10. This was the principal arm of the Japanese Imperial Army during the First Sino-Japanese War, the Boxer Rebellion and later, by insurgents in the Philippine Revolution (Spain) and Philippine Insurrection (USA):
A.) Type 38 Arisaka
B.) Type 99 Arisaka
C.) Type 13 Murata
D.) Type 22 Murata
Editor’s note: A version of this article first appeared in the March 2018 print issue of Gun World Magazine.