Bolt actions are also more reliable than most other action types, because being of a more basic design there are simply fewer things that can go wrong. Another reliability advantage is that the action is cycled by the user, rather than by a mechanism. Both rifles and pistols have been manufactured with bolt actions. The most striking difference between them, other than the obvious difference in size, is that a right-handed bolt action rifle will have the bolt handle on the right side of the gun, while the bolt handle on a right-handed bolt action pistol will be on the left side of the gun.
Also called the turnbolt action, this type of rifle has seen much service in wars as well as afield with hunters. The bolt has an operating handle which the user grasps to operate the rifle's mechanism. To open the bolt, raise the handle and then pull it to the rear of the gun. To close it, push the bolt forward and the rotate the handle downward.
In a loaded repeating bolt action rifle without a magazine-block device, each time you push the bolt forward (close it) you load a round of ammo into the chamber. Each time you open the bolt with a round in the chamber, the rearward stroke of the bolt removes that cartridge (or empty case, if the round was fired prior to opening the bolt).
