Effective January 1, 2010, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife changed their guidelines for distance learning. Students are now required to spend a minimum amount of time on each course page before proceeding to the certification exam.

Click here to go to the latest version of the Today's Hunter in Oregon online course—the official hunter education course of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

The following course material is for reference only. Please go to the new course to complete your Oregon certification.

Break (or Hinge) Action Firearms

Break (or Hinge) Action: The break-action firearm operates on the same principle as a door hinge. Simple to load and unload, a hinge action is often chosen as a hunter’s first firearm.

To open the action, point the barrel(s) in a safe direction. A release is pressed, and the stock drops downward. This allows the cartridges or shotshells to eject or to be removed manually if the firearm is loaded.
Hinge-action firearms have a separate barrel for each shot rather than a magazine. Most models have one or two barrels, but some have up to four.
Some models also have an exposed hammer(s), which can be dangerous.
You must check the chamber(s) visually to ensure they are unloaded.