Forearm (firearm component)

firearms A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions). The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes ...

, the forearm (also known as the fore-end/forend,

handguard A barrel shroud is an external covering that envelops (either partially or full-length) the barrel of a firearm, to prevent unwanted direct contact with the barrel (e.g. accidental collision with surrounding objects, or the user accidentally tou ...

or forestock) is a section of a gunstock between the receiver and the muzzle. It is used as a gripping surface to hold the gun steady, and is usually made out of heat-insulating material such as

wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin ...

reinforced plastics Fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP; also called fibre-reinforced polymer, or in American English ''fiber'') is a composite material made of a polymer matrix reinforced with fibres. The fibres are usually glass (in fibreglass), carbon (in carbon- ...

. Near the front of the forearm there is often an underside

sling swivel stud In the context of firearms, a sling is a type of strap or harness designed to allow a shooter to conveniently carry a firearm (usually a long gun such as a rifle, carbine, shotgun, or submachine gun) on their body, and/or to aid in greater hit ...

, and sometimes also a barrel-band to secure the forearm to the barrel (as seen in the photo at right). Some forearms are equipped with additional

heat shield In thermodynamics, heat is defined as the form of energy crossing the boundary of a thermodynamic system by virtue of a temperature difference across the boundary. A thermodynamic system does not ''contain'' heat. Nevertheless, the term is al ...

s to protect the user from heat radiating from the barrel when the firearm is fired. {{firearms-stub Firearm components