Any suggestions for a reliable survival weapon?

[BroncoFan]

Did any of you graduate middle school? The grammar and punctuation in this thread is atrocious.

Break action shotgun, like some that Baikal makes. They are rad, and some models will break into two pieces, plus a tiny third. That makes it backpack-worthy, and they offer them in 12 ga. .22 will kill a lot of things, but a 12 ga will kill just about damn near anything.

"Rad"...Are you still in middle school?

 

[Spiritof77]

Hunting and gathering requires almost all of a person's time. That's why we settled down to agriculture and animal husbandry.

Maybe I'm being nit-picky here, but I'd have to disagree with you on that one. A big mystery for anthropologists is precisely why the agricultural revolution happened 12,000 years ago. The pros of hunting and gathering greatly outweighed the pros of farming and raising livestock. Back in those days, game was much easier to come by, and so were edible plants (not to mention our immune systems were probably much stronger), and a hunters and gatherers would spend roughly 3-6 hours a day meeting their nutritional requirements. On the reverse side, farmers 12,000 years ago only had one crop, and many times that crop would die because they didn't have our level of crop domestication, and therefore people would starve, not to mention the 8-12 hour days they needed to tend their crops for a longterm investment they might not even see.

The rest of your post, however, I whole-heartedly agree with.

 

[Both Eyes Open]

You just need as many guns as you can afford... For survival I have a ruger 10/22, a pump action rem 22 and an AR in 5.56/223. For hunting a mosin and for defense a sig in 40 SW. I am still saving for a rem 700 in 30 06 to take the place of the mosin for primary hunting tool. Just my 2 sense (lol).

 

[Hook686]

Different strokes for different folks for sure. Personally I went the lever gun/revolver route in .357 magnum/.44 magnum. Either works well for me. I think KISS is the byword in a SHTF scenario.

 

[RVTECH]

Personally I went the lever gun/revolver route in .357 magnum/.44 magnum

Yep - I agree. If I had to scurry off quickly and had to choose which gun to take it would be my Winchester Trapper in .357. No further discussion necessary.

 

[ORHunter79]

I've thought about this in length and have done at least 70-80 hours of reading and research. For what it's worth I've settled on a pump 12 gauge shotgun specifically the Mossberg 500. I have two barrels, one is a 24" with iron sights and the other the typical long barrel with a full choke; both smooth bore. I think versatility and dependability is key in a survival weapon. With this shotgun I can take large game and small game. Obviously i can also use it for self defense. The only draw back i can think of is long range, over 100 yards. But in this scenario, everything is a compromise. All parts are easily replaced, though I have a 1982 500 with no replaced parts minus the plastic safety replaced with a metal one. After all the research I've done the weapon I would grab if SHTF would be my 500. Versatility is the key IMO. Rifles are good but if only small game is available I can still take it. If it has to be a rifle I'd go with a good bolt action like the ruger scout since I believe Col Cooper was onto something when he came up with the scout rifle. But just for me, a pump shooting is the answer. I love Remington 870s but there is one part that can't be replaced easily, extractor or ejector, can't remember which. Good luck in your hunt.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

.303 is like a fossil. I have several of them but they are last ditch weapons and I have 350 rds each for them. God help me if it ever comes to that

 

[mcpoo]

How about a Chinese SKS M with the xtra lg. mag? Cheap gun - cheaper ammo. Reliable for the price - leaves you enough scratch left over to buy a Big Berkey water purifier...

 

[Thebastidge]

More mags are better than high cap mags, in general terms. Higher than normal magazine capacity seems to come with the probability of failures to feed. The Aurora shooter had a 100rd mag and it failed to feed, he didn't know how to clear it, and that probably saved a lot of people's lives.

 

[trainsktg]

Whatever you choose, pick something that has a common caliber. I don't care how much 7.7 Jap, .303 British or .577/.450 Martini you have stashed away. There are dozens of situations where your stash would have to be left behind. Those calibers are hard enough to find mail order, let alone trying to find out on the street when you are in need and can find none. I have rifles chambered in all of those, but I recommend none. 5.56x45, 7.62x39, 7.62x54r, 7.62x51, 12g., .22, and 9mm are the way to go, not necessary in that order. I wouldn't even recommend 8mm Mauser, .38 Special or .30-06 a whole lot anymore either. If the US or Russian military doesn't currently shoot it, then why bother? The rest of the world shoots what we two nations shoot.

Keith

 

[ZA_Survivalist]

More mags are better than high cap mags, in general terms. Higher than normal magazine capacity seems to come with the probability of failures to feed. The Aurora shooter had a 100rd mag and it failed to feed, he didn't know how to clear it, and that probably saved a lot of people's lives.

Very true.

 

[clambo]

Whatever you choose, pick something that has a common caliber. I don't care how much 7.7 Jap, .303 British or .577/.450 Martini you have stashed away. There are dozens of situations where your stash would have to be left behind. Those calibers are hard enough to find mail order, let alone trying to find out on the street when you are in need and can find none. I have rifles chambered in all of those, but I recommend none. 5.56x45, 7.62x39, 7.62x54r, 7.62x51, 12g., .22, and 9mm are the way to go, not necessary in that order. I wouldn't even recommend 8mm Mauser, .38 Special or .30-06 a whole lot anymore either. If the US or Russian military doesn't currently shoot it, then why bother? The rest of the world shoots what we two nations shoot.

Keith

The rest of the world isnt going to go house to house and pass ammo out to those who want it. You're going to have to buy it or steal it, same as now. How many mom and pop stores do you know that carry anything Russian ? For that matter how much 7.62x54R do you see on an average day at oh.....Wholesale Sports ? Not a lot. And then you are faced with penetrating a fairly high population area to get to it. Same idea about 2500 other people are going to have.

Common American calibers people....plus 9mm. Especially .22 LR. Stuff you can get anywhere.

 

[trainsktg]

The rest of the world isnt going to go house to house and pass ammo out to those who want it. You're going to have to buy it or steal it, same as now. How many mom and pop stores do you know that carry anything Russian ? For that matter how much 7.62x54R do you see on an average day at oh.....Wholesale Sports ? Not a lot. And then you are faced with penetrating a fairly high population area to get to it. Same idea about 2500 other people are going to have.

Common American calibers people....plus 9mm. Especially .22 LR. Stuff you can get anywhere.

Five of the seven I listed are the most common US calibers, and there are enough AKs and Mosins running around the country to justify their inclusion in the list too.

Keith

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Maybe I'm being nit-picky here, but I'd have to disagree with you on that one. A big mystery for anthropologists is precisely why the agricultural revolution happened 12,000 years ago. The pros of hunting and gathering greatly outweighed the pros of farming and raising livestock. Back in those days, game was much easier to come by, and so were edible plants (not to mention our immune systems were probably much stronger), and a hunters and gatherers would spend roughly 3-6 hours a day meeting their nutritional requirements. On the reverse side, farmers 12,000 years ago only had one crop, and many times that crop would die because they didn't have our level of crop domestication, and therefore people would starve, not to mention the 8-12 hour days they needed to tend their crops for a longterm investment they might not even see.

The rest of your post, however, I whole-heartedly agree with.

Except.. they were few and we are many. In that scenario 99% of men will die

 

[Blitzkrieg]

As far as calibers, caching is the best route.. and if you are mobile you will find plenty of weapons and some ammo.. IF you survive

 

[Got2gohuntin]

Did any of you graduate middle school? The grammar and punctuation in this thread is atrocious.

Break action shotgun, like some that Baikal makes. They are rad, and some models will break into two pieces, plus a tiny third. That makes it backpack-worthy, and they offer them in 12 ga. .22 will kill a lot of things, but a 12 ga will kill just about damn near anything.

It's a freaking forum. Idk about other people but everything I do online is from my phone. If you can understand what they ment it's good enough for most. If you don't like it go read a published book in your library. You sound like a whinny b*tch.

I'd agree with an AR. Ive made some pretty nice shots at 200-400 yards. If it was legal I'd hunt everything with it and leave my magnums at home. Ammo is cheapish, recoil is low, and parts are abundant.

 

[MissJ]

get some more ammo for the guns you've got.

then get a BUNCH of 00 Buckshot.

if TSHTF, then eventually 12 gauge shotguns will be littering roadways like cans on the side of the road, but 12 gauge SHELLS will be like gold.

Every serious prepper should have available to them at least 1 shotgun, 1 pistol, 1 .22 rifle and ideally 1 larger caliber rifle. (or conversion kits on fewer rifles to make this happen).

In any case, I believe it will quickly become all about the ammo.

 

[Spiritof77]

It's a freaking forum. Idk about other people but everything I do online is from my phone. If you can understand what they ment it's good enough for most. If you don't like it go read a published book in your library. You sound like a whinny b*tch.

I understand that this is an argument that is totally off topic, but also on topic as well. If you allow yourself to degrade anything about anything you do, you're setting a lower standard. In turn, if you allow our spoken or written language to be sub-par, then you are setting a standard for a sub-par written and spoken language.

I feel like most of my fellow prepper's fears are based in the fear of losing standards, and social norm (and the harrowing inevitability of what comes next). If you can't even keep up any resemblance of civilized speech, and consequently a modem of language, then what the hell are we afraid of losing?
Civilization begins with one thing, and one thing only: Written language.

 

[Trailboss]

Civilization begins with one thing, and one thing only: Written language.

Well spoken but not true. Many of the most highly educated people in our civilized nation believe in and practice infanticide, child rape and self worship. Of these elite, the vast majority are well versed in written and spoken languages, yet many lack a soul. I would say rather that the general laborer who didn't graduate from junior high, but who protects his daughter from the highly educated liberal child molester is the more civilized.

 

[Boats]

Well spoken but not true. Many of the most highly educated people in our civilized nation believe in and practice infanticide, child rape and self worship. Of these elite, the vast majority are well versed in written and spoken languages, yet many lack a soul. I would say rather that the general laborer who didn't graduate from junior high, but who protects his daughter from the highly educated liberal child molester is the more civilized.

You've conflated evil and civilization. In both literate and illiterate societies, evil thrives when it is left unchecked.

Nevertheless, a literate society will be far more advanced in every meaningful economic measure than an illiterate one. The easy and accurate transmission of knowledge from one generation to the next is the bedrock of a thriving and durable civilization.