Ammunition Diversity

[rpatton]

A gun is useless without ammo.

Additional part of my wish list are the older war rifles with bayonets for back up when the ammo runs out... so far only have an SKS and a m 91/30 mosin nagant... Brittish Enfield and Japanese Arisaka are the next two on that list.

 

[CarlMc]

As the OP, I was thinking of getting a little carbine in 9mm (since I have a 9mm pistol) and was briefly wondering if getting one in .40 would have been worth doing. The .40 would be nice, but it's another kind of ammo I need to maintain stock of. The other consideration was the 5.56 vs. 7.62 controversy. It seems that NATO has admitted that the 5.56 is pretty wimpy and I suspect will be "upgrading" after some time, and while the 5.56 won't be going away any time soon, I'm thinking the 7.62 might be a better choice in the long run.

 

[rpatton]

As the OP, I was thinking of getting a little carbine in 9mm (since I have a 9mm pistol) and was briefly wondering if getting one in .40 would have been worth doing. The .40 would be nice, but it's another kind of ammo I need to maintain stock of. The other consideration was the 5.56 vs. 7.62 controversy. It seems that NATO has admitted that the 5.56 is pretty wimpy and I suspect will be "upgrading" after some time, and while the 5.56 won't be going away any time soon, I'm thinking the 7.62 might be a better choice in the long run.

While I have never fired or been won over by 9mm or 40 S&W the temptation is there just because of the "coolness" of the Beretta CX4 Storm carbines, the 9mm version will accept pistol magazines from the Beretta 92 model and the 40 S&W version accepts the pistol magazine of the PX4 so not only do you share ammo but the bonus is magazines fit either carbine or pistol (there are 9mm PX4's also so that may be the pistol/mag interchange in the 9mm caliber vs. the 92)

 

[Nwcid]

Combo guns are cool but pistol caliber rifles would not be my first choice. On most guns for the size and wight you really limit yourself on what they can do. Dont get my wrong I have several pistols caliber rifles and am building another one now and they are cool.

Here is my favorite combo now, even take the same mags

 

[The Cheese]

My thoughts are to have at least 2 guns in the same caliber and a bunch of guns in 22lr . 9mm was the first to leave the shelves during the ammo crunch not that long ago. But its also cheaper than 40s&w or 45ACP which means you can acquire more of it for the same amount of money and it will allow you to shoot more. But for stuff being available the longest, the 40 was on the shelf for waaay longer than the other 2. Really though its a tough decision to make. Some like to keep it simple, others not so much. If you can afford to have a bunch of different guns in all sorts of calibers, then more power to you. If not, go narrow on your caliber selection, but deep on your ammo supply. I would also not rely on ammo always being on the shelf. A couple 50cal ammo cans can hold several thousand rounds of 9mm and is pretty easy to tuck away somewhere where it won't be noticed.

And to the OP: if you are looking for a pistol caliber carbine, check out the Beretta CX4 storm. Its a way better gun than the other two choices.

 

[Sasquatchvnv]

Nevermind.

 

[mjbskwim]

As the OP, I was thinking of getting a little carbine in 9mm (since I have a 9mm pistol) and was briefly wondering if getting one in .40 would have been worth doing. The .40 would be nice, but it's another kind of ammo I need to maintain stock of. The other consideration was the 5.56 vs. 7.62 controversy. It seems that NATO has admitted that the 5.56 is pretty wimpy and I suspect will be "upgrading" after some time, and while the 5.56 won't be going away any time soon, I'm thinking the 7.62 might be a better choice in the long run.

NATO seems to like to have small calibers so the soldiers can carry more rounds? I don't know.

But for a home gun,I would much rather have the 7.62nato.
The 5.56/223 is just a 22,really.Yes it flies faster than the 22lr,but it's still a 22.

With that said,there is a ton of ammo for it at most stores.

I have read ,in a few of these threads,that you should have a few 9mm pistols and a few ARs,in your arsenal,cause the ammo will always be readily available.

I don't think we will really be able to get ammo other than what we already have,without some big problems to overcome (guards?with guns?)

I have a Glock 22 now,but if I was to load up on guns and ammo,I would go with a few G17s ,a couple ARs,and a few FALs
And ,no,I haven't seen the need yet.Not until I found this site
Plus I couldn't survive without my 22s
And at least a 12 gauge

I kinda like the "man with one gun" scenerir five of the same "one gun"

 

[Page.k]

Just try looking for the handguns that can be changed from one cal to the next with a barrel or upper change. Like the 357 Sig, 40 S&W and 10mm can run on the same slide. The 357 Sig and 40 S&W use same mag. 357 Sig can be made out of 10mm brass if needs be. If you have a 1911 in 45ACP why not look at the .400 Cor-Bon?? Less guns and more total ammo can be used for only a little more in price.

 

[boxer13]

yeah I have only 5 ammo types but thats because I haven't purchased the corresponding guns for those calibers.

.22lr, .380, 9mm, 5.45, and 7.62x54r.

But .45, .223, and 7.62x39 are all on the near horizon.

 

[toddt36]

I think if you are concerned about the shtf scenerio have guns and ammo for that, and fun guns pick whatever caliber you feel like shooting I.E. 45/70, alot of fun to shoot but wouldn't be a good shtf gun for reasons you can imagine. I personally like the 7.62x39 round, has ballistics of a 30-30, and since its an intermediate round you can carry enough to get you by and its readily available and cheaper than .223. There are a few cool weapons that use this round such as Mini 30, of course AK, and I think some bolt actions, and maybe more. I am not a hunter so I got rid of my hunting rifle caliber weapons as I don't see a need for them in my collection. I try to keep my collection so far to .45, 22lr, .380(daily carry), and of course 7.62x39. I have one fun gun a 30-30 lever Win94 and I love it but don't have a ton of ammo for it since I only plink a little with it here and there. BTW not knocking .223 at all its a nasty hot and flat shooting round, and works great so it would be a great choice as well.

 

[cybersomatix]

I'm not particularly concerned with ammo diversity so much as price/round efficiency... right now I've got weapons in 7.62x39 (which I've been able to find around 18 cents a round... same as some sources for .223), 7.62x54mmR (19-21 cents/round), .22 LR (3-4 cents/round), 9x19 (18-20 cents/round), .380 (35 cents/round) and 12 Ga (least cost effective... at 60 cents/round for steel shot and $1/round for buck shot)

I plan on purchasing a .357 revolver and throwing .357 (40 cents/round) & .38 (30 cents/round) into my ammo collection and also purchasing something in .45 ACP (30-35 cents/round).

There's plenty of calibers I'd like to shoot (.50 BMG, .50 AE, .460 S&W, 7.62x25 Tokarev, .375 H&H, .44 magnum, .303 Brit, .308, .30-06 & .30-30 for instance)... but these are a bit rich for my tastes (albeit only slightly in some cases).

Correction: 7.62 Tokarev is actually within my price range... never mind that one.

 

[olydemon]

This has been a great read, Myself, Im just a newb with a 9mm. I am however hooked on finally owning a firearm after only borrowing to shoot. I plan to get an AK and probably a few .22's in the near future. After that I may look for a higher caliber HD weapon. I shot a .45 recently and really liked it. (have a Glock 30 as a loaner while my 9mm is repaired)

Thanks OP, great resource.

 

[gaijinsamurai]

I've been thinking about this issue a great deal for the last couple of years, especially after the post-Obama election guns/ammo run. I have a large collection, with a few rifles and pistols in obsolete/hard to find calibers (Martini Henry, Arisaka, Enfield .38 revolver, etc.). I also have guns in other calibers, such as .45 LC, .22-250, .44 Mag, 8mm, 7.62x54, 6.5x55 Swede, .303,.357 mag, .38 special, and .30 carbine that I try to keep stocked, but don't consider part of my "SHTF arsenal". I've tried to limit my "stockpile" to the following calibers: .223/.556, .308/7.62 NATO, 5.45x39,7.62x39, 9mm, and .45acp. It's nice to have a few extra boxes of 12 gauge and .22 LR around too.

 

[USMC1345]

I currently stick to 9mm, .22, and .45acp, with at least two guns per caliber. I've been a gun owner for a decade, but only started 'collecting' last year and am still trying to keep things simple.

To anyone considering the pistol/carbine combo, FWIW I highly recommend the Beretta CX4 and either the PX4 or 92fs. I got a great deal on a pair of 9mm CX4's last year and love them. My PX4 is a .45acp, so I guess I need a CX4 to go with it...

 

[Just Jim]

Just a point of view here. What will one cartridge do that the other won't? Most rifle rounds in the 30 caliber class do just about the same when you shoot them. The real difference is in the delivery systems that launch the rounds. Same with handguns, most do about the same with good ammo in the larger calibers so it's just a matter of what delivers the bullet best. What is best is up to you.

Having a lot of diversity in ammunition doesn't help if the ammo can't be delivered accurately to the target.

jj

That being said I went to count how many different calibers and delivery systems I have and have decided everything I just said only works for you and not for me. LOL LOL