Camp gun: Shotgun or rifle?

[Kruel J]

After some range time today and the opportunity to shoot @Kruejl 9MM AR pistol that has my vote!! Son of a gun that thing was fun.

Yep, easy to shoot, compact enough for a backpack. Hopefully mine is tucked in and amongst friends this evening.

 

[DirectDrive]

Whatever. Mossberg 500 or a 590...

You want ambi safety on the tang.

Honestly, I'd have my 930 JM loaded with ½ 00BK and the other ½ with slugs.

And with a Mossberg it's extra-insulting to the perp to get shot by a cheap gun with a tang safety.


In Viet Nam (I wasn't there) a certain combat doc was running the roads in a Jeep armed with a .45 and an M16.
When a friend found this out, he took the M16 away and gave him a shotgun.

 

[Alexx1401]

Shotgun seems nice because of the sheer power and shot spread since incidents are generally within 7 yards. But the slow reload, limited capacity and lack of ability to penetrate cover such as that of a vehicle leave a bit to be desired. Plus there is no guarantee some yahoo won't shoot at you from afar out there. Some crazy mofo's out there....

This is of course as a primary gun while carrying a handgun as a backup. What would you carry (rifle or shotgun) for a camp gun?

Either will of course work. For penetration if that is a concern slugs. Many do not realize how these can perform. Long ago I used to shoot at an old Quarry. Lots of trash of course left. One time we got there and an old hot water tank was there. Several were shooting it and nothing hand gun would go through. One guy with a .44 mag tried. You could feel a bump on the far side but they would not go through. I had a 12 in my trunk that lived there. Pulled it out and sent a couple slugs at it. They sailed right through. So given how cars are made these days these would I am sure sail through both sides of a car.
For me and my old eyes the PCC is my first choice for this. One of my folding ones is what I like. Super compact and is seconds is in operation. One of the AR pistols with a brace would really shine for this too.

 

[Alexx1401]

Actually I do a lot of camping, yes. I've run into some strange groups out there, as has a friend of mine. Last thing I want to do is face down 4 rednecks in a truck, each of them armed, with just a handgun.

Also, no one other than you mentioned carrying a long gun around camp. All I asked was which option, rifle or shotgun, would you choose as a camp gun and why? I gave some of my reasons.

What worries me in the great outdoors is not red necks, its the drug zombies. Many mobile meth operations end up setting up way out of the way trying to avoid the public. For this reason I ALWAYS have a long gun with me. No one sees it but it is there.

 

[11Charlie]

Yep, easy to shoot, compact enough for a backpack. Hopefully mine is tucked in and amongst friends this evening.

Yes yes it is! My Tikka is singing it a lullaby right about now!

 

[Andy54Hawken]

When the camping might involve a little bit of shooting fun... I usually bring my Hawken.
Its the rifle / firearm I shoot the most....So It also is the one gun I'm most likely to score a hit with.

Nope its not the fastest to re-load , but a .530 round ball pushed by 80 grains of 2F does the trick for any two or four legged issue I might come across...
Andy

 

[KKG]

After some range time today and the opportunity to shoot @Kruejl 9MM AR pistol that has my vote!! Son of a gun that thing was fun.

And, then tomorrow you'll have a New favorite so all bets are off!!! It's your trip so you decide.

 

[2DaMtns]

I frequently take my marlin 1894 in .357 camping. More for fun than anything else. Not to be a jerk, but if you think you need a rifle to go camping, why not just go somewhere else?

 

[djharteloo]

Generally when I camp I bring my CZ527 carbine in 7.62x39 as my primary "camp gun". There's almost nothing that can go wrong with it, it's very accurate, light weight, and 7.62x39 federal fusions should handle anything I need to shoot in Western Washington. That being said I always bring a pistol (Glock 19, Gp100 .357, or my 10mm 1911) and a 10/22 take down never leaves my truck.

But a shotgun seems like it would fit the job fine. Personal preferences.

 

[RVTECH]

Not to be a jerk, but if you think you need a rifle to go camping, why not just go somewhere else?

I agree - while guns might be included as a PART of your camping activities to create the illusion of it as an armed outpost and fear of marauding 'rednecks' is really a bizarre concept I don't quite understand - but then I have only been camping and enjoying the woods for 40 + years now and even recently have not felt the need to arm myself with anything other than a couple sidearms I am pretty confident with.

 

[djharteloo]

What worries me in the great outdoors is not red necks, its the drug zombies. Many mobile meth operations end up setting up way out of the way trying to avoid the public. For this reason I ALWAYS have a long gun with me. No one sees it but it is there.

Elk hunting this weekend in the Gifford Pinchot, and almost every time I'm in a particular area of the GPNF, I see these 2 large white panel vans with no windows driven by two younger Hispanic guys. I see this pair of vans (sometimes there is a third) in this area all the time. Some other hunters I've talked to in the area about them seem to think they're related to a drug grow or something similar.... Maybe a camp AR is in my future.....

 

[Dungannon]

Elk hunting this weekend in the Gifford Pinchot, and almost every time I'm in a particular area of the GPNF, I see these 2 large white panel vans with no windows driven by two younger Hispanic guys. I see this pair of vans (sometimes there is a third) in this area all the time. Some other hunters I've talked to in the area about them seem to think they're related to a drug grow or something similar.... Maybe a camp AR is in my future.....

I hope you're telling the USFS about these guys. And their license plate #, if you can get a good look, with the county sheriff.

 

[RVTECH]

I hope you're telling the USFS about these guys. And their license plate #, if you can get a good look, with the county sheriff.

Yep! - I most certainly have when I see 'shady' people/situations in the woods near my house - or anywhere for that matter.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Every once in awhile we seem to get a series of different sketchy types that skulk through the area I hunt and camp in...So far no real trouble , other than some not so subtle eyeball checking out of my camp or setup....So far.
This seems to happen in waves...so years it seems that there is a lot of these types ... other years not so many.

While many here may scoff at my Hawken Rifle Copy...It is a big rifle with a large bore and while I do not rely on the sight of it alone to deter any ne'er do well... Perhaps the sight of it along with the general look of me knowing how to use it and a polite , but firm "Don't mess with me and mine" attitude , may have influenced interactions to go more my way...
Andy

 

[djharteloo]

I hope you're telling the USFS about these guys. And their license plate #, if you can get a good look, with the county sheriff.

I made a report with a WDFW officer this weekend. I couldn't see the plates from where I was above the road but in the past I've seen these vans with Oregon, California, and no license plates at all.

The very first time I saw the vans (which was probably 2012?) I was camping outside of Chelatchie Prairie and a few hours after the vans drove by, a single Hispanic male in his early 20s came walking down the middle of the gravel road wearing a back pack and street clothes. Walked right past us, didn't ask for help or anything, and kept walking down the road. At least 15 miles from the nearest anything. The woods are getting weirder.

 

[RVTECH]

Walked right past us, didn't ask for help or anything, and kept walking down the road.

Wow - he was walking down the road, past you and did not ask for help or anything? Uh, anything unusual here? Maybe he was just on his own and didn't need anything - seen this maybe a 100 times and never thought twice about it - but then when I am in the woods I don't often ask others for anything either so maybe I have raised question with others and never knew it....

 

[No_Regerts]

I know some people may scoff at having a long gun at camp. Every year, I see more and more idiocy in the woods, especially during hunting season. When I lived in Vancouver, I was frequently up in the hills near Yacolt. If you walked away from your car, somone would trash it.

For me, I would nix anything but a pistol in an established campground. But, I don't think the OP is the kind of camper that has an RV slot at a resort. He sounds like more of a remote area kind of guy.

Your preferred long gun depends on what your perceived threat may be. If its animals, a shotgun is hard to beat. If its mostly people, it just depends on your abilities. Something like an AR gives you ease of reload and firepower. Its terminal performance outside of the A-Zone is not great. When I'm in the woods with an AR, magazines are loaded with Barnes Vor-Tx, not FMJ or green tip.

If you've ever seen anyone shot with a shotgun, you don't doubt its lethality. I load shot for indoors, but prefer slugs outdoors. Slugs give me a little more range and no disadvantage up close since most shot patterns are real tight up close anyway. Slugs do better on barriers like cars and such.

 

[djharteloo]

Wow - he was walking down the road, past you and did not ask for help or anything? Uh, anything unusual here? Maybe he was just on his own and didn't need anything - seen this maybe a 100 times and never thought twice about it - but then when I am in the woods I don't often ask others for anything either...

It struck me as strange. The way he was dressed. Basket ball shorts, T shirt, tennis shoes, no jacket. Doesn't seem like appropriate clothing for SW Washington in October.

 

[RVTECH]

The way he was dressed. Basket ball shorts, T shirt, tennis shoes, no jacket. Doesn't seem like appropriate clothing for SW Washington in October.

Well then he is the one that might wind up on the missing persons list for SW WA and maybe be found in the spring......I have seen people freezing their azzes off in JULY in the Cascades wearing similar clothing and have told them they better get their azzes down to better weather and to not return until better prepared....

 

[CountryGent]

What worries me in the great outdoors is not red necks, its the drug zombies. Many mobile meth operations end up setting up way out of the way trying to avoid the public.

^ Indeed. The meth cretins are indeed a serious problem in some parts. Beyond that, I have encountered some unusual (and I'm putting that charitably) people whilst out hiking or hunting in the past. But they never caused me trouble, nor did I bother them.

We live on forested acreage, off the beaten path, and we have the occasional individual trespass; some it has been an honest mistake, others are knotheads. One regular interloper, who I finally caught in the act, had to be told in no uncertain terms to gtfo and don't ever come back. To the moron's credit, he appears to have heeded that friendly advice, because I never saw him again, nor is there any evidence of a return. So, thus far no serious issues. Knock on wood.

It has been a long time, for a variety of reasons, since I've actually camped out in the hinterland, rather than just day trips. And times I have years ago often involved hunting, so there was at least one long gun (normally a rifle) and at least one sidearm (normally a full-sized revolver or automatic) readily available. A few years back, one that didn't involve hunting, was when we camped on acreage owned by my father and I know I had my M1911A1 with me.

So (shrug) I don't know. I suppose it is going to really depend on where you are, who you are with, if you are hunting or not, what your level of concern is, etc.