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From Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum
→Operation
==Operation==
[[File:Bolter - Astartes MK Vb.jpg|right|thumb|A standard [[bolterBoltgun]]]]
[[File:Stormbolter - Astartes MK VII.jpg|right|thumb|[[Storm Bolter]], with attached drum Magazine]]
[[File:Heavy Bolter - Astartes MK IVc.jpg|right|thumb|[[Heavy Bolter]], with Belt Feed]]
Using this method, personal bolt weapons can easily fire in bursts of three to four rounds in rapid succession.<sup>4</sup> However, in order to keep the ammunition capacity high, bolt shells lack a subsequent booster stage or fin stabilization.<sup>4</sup> This limits their effective range, though this is seen as less of a problem given their role as a shock and assault weapon.<sup>2</sup> [[Heavy Bolter]]s fire a larger round with extra propellant, giving them superior range and hitting power to hand-held [[bolter]]s and [[bolt pistol]]s.<sup>4</sup>
The explosive warhead within the bolt is triggered by a mass-reactive detonator - any sudden increase in local mass triggers the explosive, causing the weapon to explode inside the target.<sup>2</sup> This can have a gruesome effect on the target, often killing them in a single shot as their chest cavity or head is blown apart, while simultaneous hits can render the corpse unidentifiable.<sup>5</sup> However, the detonator has a minimum arming distance, during which it will not arm the warhead. At point-blank ranges the bolt will instead pass through the target and explode behind it, though its sheer size and velocity still makes it capable of causing damage.<sup>6</sup>
==Types of bolt weapon==
