The quickest way to tell them apart is what happens inside the barrel. Rifles have spiral grooves cut into the bore that spin a single bullet for accuracy at distance. Shotguns have a smooth barrel and usually fires a cartridge packed with many small...

You can own a shotgun in the UK, and you can own several. What you cannot do is buy or hold one without a shotgun certificate issued by your local police force. That certificate is the whole game. Getting it, keeping it valid, and staying inside its ...

For UK sub-12 ft/lb shooting, the rifle itself is rarely the thing that lets you down. Any decent modern air rifle from a known brand will put a pellet where you aim it and kill a rat or squirrel cleanly at sensible range. The choices that actually s...