Portable firearms

Portable firearms such as the arquebus become more common on the battlefield. At first the unwieldy guns are fired from tripodlike supports, but versions that can be fired from the shoulder soon appear. 

The requirement to improve portable firearms resulted in a reduction of the caliber (dimension 4-5 mm) and to reduce the ammunition weight led to the caseless ammunition project. Moreover, in the event of a crisis the problem of a worldwide shortage of nonferrous metals for cartridge cases will arise. 

Finer-grained powders are used for portable firearms tubular powder is mostly employed for guns powders in the form of flakes and short tubes are employed for mortars, howitzers, and other high-angle firearms. 

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