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A carbine is a firearm, similar to but shorter than an ordinary rifle or musket in length. The carbine was originally developed to be used by cavalry soldiers, for whom a full-length rifle was too heavy and cumbersome to be fired from horseback. Carbines were usually less accurate and powerful than the full length rifles they were based on, due to a shorter sight plane and lower potential power of the shortened barrel. With the advent of fast burning smokeless powder, the velocity disadvantages of the shorter barrels became less of an issue (see internal ballistics). After the demise of horse-mounted cavalry, carbines, generally identical to standard rifles by with shortened barrels, continued to be issued as secondary weapons for armored cavalry and non-combat personnel, such as cooks, technicians etc., for whom a lighter, more compact weapon is desirable at the cost of reduced accuracy and power. Many bolt action military rifles have been manufactured in both full-length and carbine versions.
In the decades proir to WWII, the standard battle rifle used by militaries around the world started to grow shorter, either by redesign or by the general issue of carbine versions instead of full length rifles. For example, the Russian model 1891 31.5 inch (800mm) barrel went to 28.75in (730mm) in 1930, and to 20in (510mm) in 1938; the German Mauser 98 went from 29in (740mm) in 1898 to 23.6in (600mm) in 1935. The US was unnusual in that the barrel length did not change between the M1903 rifle used in WWI and the M1 Garand, but the 24in (610mm) barrel on the M1903 was short for it's day. The US did have an 18in (460mm) barrelled carbine, the M1 Carbine, but despite the similar designation it was a completely different design than the M1 Garand, and fired a unique round that was halfway between a pistol cartridge and a rifle cartridge.
During WWII, the Germans began to experiment with selective fire carbines firing rifle cartridges. These were determined to be too powerful, as the recoil of full power rifle cartrdiges caused the weapon to be uncontrollable in full auto fire. The Germans then tried reducing the length of the standard 8x57mm cartridge, making the 8x33mm. This round was chambered in the MP-44 (which, during development, had the designation "machine pistol" due to Adolf Hitler's fondness for machine pistols). Once developed (and there was no longer need to deceive Hitler) a new designation was created for this new type of weapon: "Sturmgewehr", or "assault rifle". After WWII the assault rifle, which is basically a cross-breed of the carbine and a submachine gun, became the standard infantry weapon, and carbine as a separate category of military firearms has virtually vanished.
The modern usage of the term carbine covers a broad range of short rifles. The traditional useage, for a rifle that is a shortened version of a full sized rifle, is still widely used. The term has also been applied to rifles that are short as designed, like the M1 Carbine. Generally rifles with barrels of less than about 18 inches (460mm) can be considered carbines, while rifles with barrels of 20 inches (510mm) or more are generally not considered carbines unless longer barreled versions exist. Modern carbines are chambered in calibers from pistol calibers to full power rifle cartrdiges--all but the highest velocity magnum rifle cartrdiges. In the extremely high powered rounds, the short barrel of a carbine has significant disadvantages in velocity, and the high residual pressure when the bullet exits the barrel results in a punishing amount of muzzle blast.
Pistol caliber carbines
One of the more unusual classes of carbine is the pistol caliber carbine. These first appeared soon after metallic cartrdiges became common. These were developed as "companions" to the popular revolvers of the day, firing the same cartridge but allowing more velocity and accuracy than the revolver. These were carried by cowboys, lawmen, and others in the Old West. The classic combination would be a Winchester lever action carbine and a Colt revolver in .44-40 or .45 Colt. Modern equivalents also exist, such as the Ruger Police Carbine, which uses the same magazine as the Ruger pistols of the same caliber.
Ultra Carbines
Due to legal restrictions in the US, firearms with shoulder stocks and barrels less than 16" in length are classified as "short barreled rifles", and are restricted in the same way that sawed off shotguns and machine guns are. Because of this, rifles with barrels of less than 16" (or pistols with shoulder stocks) are very rare. In the world of airguns, however, firearms restrictions don't apply. There is a small but growing class of what are called "ultra carbines", that have extremely short barrels. These may be rifles with barrels cut down to as short as 8 inches, or pistols converted into carbines with the addition of a shoulder stocks.
Famous carbine rifles:
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