In Your Opinion, what is the best?

Another thing to think about is a .22 - inexpensive rifles, dirt cheap ammo, awesome for practice, good accuracy, and perfect for small game and, in extreme cases, defence.

Thier all within budget, some suggestions would be the Marlin Papoose, or the Ruger 10/22.

Buy standard .22LR and some .22LR-HP, its less then $15 a brick.

Some of the considerations already put forth are very valid:

What can you afford, what is the most reliable easily maintained, stopping power, reach.

You also need to consider the weight of the weapon(s), then the added weight of the ammo that you need to carry. If you plan on staying close to your base of operation then weight may not be as big a factor as to someone who has to bug out with food and water also.

Another consideration is ammo, how much do you have and can you get anymore? Reloading is an option but probably not if you're on the move. What ammo is readily available to you? .308, 30-30 and .556 will be more readily available that 7mm magnum. 9mm and .45 may be more available than .40 or unusual calibers.

Add to all of this, familiarity with your weapon. Practice, practice, practice. No gun will help you survive if you can't hit your target, site picture and trigger control.
Take it apart and put it back together blindfolded. (Unloaded of course)
Get some extra spare parts and clips. Ask your local gunsmith what parts are prone to wear and get replacement parts.

Get some training. Really.

I know how to shoot. I shot a Glock 17 regularly for 5 years. I will just have to get used to a new gun. I am going to start off with the cheaply priced guns and work my way from there.

I am more than likely going to bug out with my family, and some of my friends. We just started talking about it, and we already have our place in mind. It will be about 50 miles from where we live. It has been scouted out pretty well. As for traffic . . . where I live and where we are going is all county back roads . . . and you can't forget the tractor trails through fields and hunting trails to help get there.

reply to post by xxpigxx

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Whatever you get, familiarize yourself with it. In the middle of a fight is a bad time to try and figure out where the safety is or how to change out the mag.

As a few other have mentioned AKs and SKSs are also great rifles. For an all around gun, with cheap, light ammo the 10/22 can't be beat. A .22 can even down an animal as big as a moose if you're a good enough shot. Good Luck.

It doesn't matter what gun you get - just buy any and every gun (unless the cal is SO uncommon) you can get from a PRIVATE party. Order the ammo shipped to a properly permitted friend's house. Multiple guns of the same caliber will save you on ammo. Yard sales are the best place.

If you buy extra, you can always use them for currency in the future.

Actually guns are not the number one cause of death data taken from National Center for Health Statistics NCHS
The data is from 2004 but from what I could find it is the latest compiled data. If you download the pdf on the link provided you will see that Assualt (homocide) is number 15 on the list that is probably where guns would be located maybe number one in that catagory although not sure on that one.

Number of deaths: 2,397,615

Death rate: 816.5 deaths per 100,000 population

Life expectancy: 77.8 years

Infant Mortality rate: 6.8 deaths per 1,000 live births

Number of deaths for leading causes of death:

Heart disease: 652,486

Cancer: 553,888

Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 150,074

Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 121,987

Accidents (unintentional injuries): 112,012

Diabetes: 73,138

Alzheimer's disease: 65,965

Influenza/Pneumonia: 59,664

Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 42,480

Septicemia: 33,373

. . .

reply to post by me262

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Good stuff. But what did you mean with shipping more ammo to a friend's house, etc.?

And I do plan to get very familiar with my guns

Ok...........Now this is something I think I can help with.


If I were going to KEEP just 3 guns my choices are below.

BARRETT REC7 WITH ( SUREFIRE FA68AR SUPPRESSOR AND SCHMIDT & BENDER SHORT DOT SCOPE) HERE YOU HAVE A GAS PISTON AR PLATFORM WITH A .277 ROUND. LESS PSI, HEAT, AND MORE KNOCK DOWN THAN 5.56.

BENELLI 1014 M4 ENTRY ( PAY THE EXTRA 200 TO ATF FOR THE 14" INCH VERSION, SHOTGUN IS TOUGH AS HELL, AND IMPOSSIBLE TO JAM) THIS GUN IS SHORT, FAST, AND YOU CAN EVEN MOUNT A EOTECH 553 TO THE TOP IF YOU WANT.

HK45 (TOUGH AS HELL AND HOLDS 10 ROUNDS .45ACP. GRIP NOT MUCH BIGGER THAN YOUR OLD GLOCK 17) LARRY VICKERS EX DELTA HELPED DESIGN THIS FOR HK. HE DID A HELL OF A JOB.

Ok.............got to add a 4th..

Get a Ruger 10/22................Next remove barrel........Buy a GEMTECH OASIS-R suppressed barrel and install....Buy a Leupold scope and....You have the perfect gun too teach kids to shoot and take small critters. each of my kids have a suppressed OASIS-R, and they love them. I happen to have one too as I am just a big kid.



[edit on 17-3-2008 by TXMACHINEGUNDLR]

reply to post by drift393

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Guns don't kill people, Super-sized Big Mac Combo meals do! I can feel the plaque hardening in my arteries already.

Isnt it sad that we have to defend our right to defend ourselves...

I speak in sympathy of course, because im in the UK where i have no right to do so. If i attack an intruder in my own house, i will get sent to prison for 7 years and he will probably sue me for emotional distress too.

Sigh... thanks for this thread OP, it allows me to dream of freedom... just like a bird in a cage.

My opinion:

Pistol: Smith & Wesson M&P .40
I personally don't like the way Glock's feel in my hand. Too blocky. The HK USP is a great weapon but too pricey for my taste as is the Sig P226/229. I've only fired about 200 rds through my M&P but it shoots true and has been very reliable. Chambered for the .40 you don't get much more recoil then a 9mm and, while not as much stopping power as a .45, if you're firing good hollow points you've got plenty to halt an attacker. One of the features I really like is that even with a round in the chamber it won't fire if the magazine isn't in. I.E. if I'm being overwhelmed and find myself in a hand to hand situation where someone is trying to get my pistol, if i can drop the mag, and they get their hands on it, they won't be able to fire that round unless they can get the mag back in. But enough on that...

Rifle: AR-15 all the way. IMHO Rock River Arms is the best place to get you going with this one.

Shotgun: No opinion. Between my AR-15 and my pistol, I'm not too concerned.

Side note. Again my opinion: Once you settle on the weapon, just make sure you've got a good supply of good ammunition. There's a big difference between what you'd shoot at the range and what you'd want in your gun in a survival situation. Definately do your research on ballistics, velocity, grain, etc. and it doesn't hurt to have different types of ammunition for different situations.

So I read all the other posts after posting my weapon preferences and have a few thoughts:

On "why the fascination with guns". It's not a fascination it's preparation. I own a gun for the same reason I studied martial arts. I hope I'll never have to use it but I'd rather err on the side of safety then assume I'll never be in a threatening situation and find myself unprepared. God willing none of us will ever have to put our preparation to the test but I'd rather be prepared an be wrong then unprepared and be wrong. 'nuff said.

Concerning "fighting an entire army". You may have to deal with that if you're in a city. Chicago, LA, NY, etc but a lot of us on here probably live in the stix. My owning of defense weapons is a realization that the major threats in the first few months after the SHTF will be looters, road gangs, scavengers, et al. Small groups of unsavory individuals are the most likely threat IMO if you live in rural areas "off the beaten track". Mostly these will be morally ambiguous groups who did not prepared and will now do whatever it takes to get food, fresh water, possibly ammunition, a warm dry place to hole up...All I can say is they better not come to my property in search of those things. I'm all about lending a hand to those in need but I know the rations I can spare to neighbors and friends that may not be prepared. Outside of that, if you try and take what's mine (supplies, loved ones, land, whatever) I hope you've prepared sufficiently to match force.

Good Luck and God Bless.

Guns don't kill people, cars do.

For pistols and rifles I'm partial to CZ's.
However, there is a rumor that FN is to release a civilian version of the SCAR, if they do I'm all over that.
Scatter guns I would go with a Mossberg.
For a knife I would go with the battle tested K-Bar or a samurai sword.

A sword?

I think I would slice myself before someone else

reply to post by Sri Oracle

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Master or no, a thug punk who's a fair shot with a .22 RF pistol will kill you and your dog from 25 yards without much fuss. Owning or using firearms won't make you an 'evil' person. They are tools like many of the ones you named in post. They and their ammo are indifferent to the targets they kill and destroy. They can't kill anyone with someone pulling the trigger first.

I'll have to agree with rcwj75 on this whole-heartedly, I'd pick the same myself =)

Rifle:

Can't go wrong with an AR-15, DPMS is probably the best quality I have ever shot next to a Bushy (Bushmaster Arms). I'd recommend DPMS, Bushmaster, or Stag Arms, all good quality and reliable. (Stay the #$%( away from Colt!!! They are tempting because they are supposedly "The standard" and sometimes a little cheaper. But don't be fooled, they suuuuuck) Also, it is ALWAYS cheaper to buy the gun in 2 parts (upper and lower) and build it yourself. Buy a full upper and lower receiver and you will save yourself anywhere from 100-300 bucks. The upper and lower receivers attach to one another without need for any tools other than your fingers If the AR-15 is outside your price range, you can probably pickup an AK47 for a couple hundred bucks cheaper. Fair warning tho, I wouldn't buy ANY AK47 unless its a Sierra Arms or American made lower receiver.. just my preference I suppose but I won't sacrifice quality and reliability for price.

Pistol:

I've been using an FNP40 for almost a year now and love it. (FN Herstal)
Glocks are great but can be pricey depending on model. You can usually pick one up for under 300 used at a local dealer. I would personally recommend FN or a Smith & Wesson 40 cal. Don't go out and get a crappy 9mm. They will not go through any body armor and are basically useless in a gunfight unless you have absolutely perfect aim

Shotgun:

You can't go wrong with Remington, they have been my favorite since I started shooting and have the most prominent name in firearms. I like Winchester too, but Remmy's always seem to outperform. I think they have a JIC (Just in Case) package still going. Some dealers are selling for as low as 195 bucks! Jump on it if you can find a good deal like that. The great thing about shotguns is that the ammo is dirt cheap! So pickup 1000 rounds and practice as much as your shoulder will bear I also prefer pulling off the generic stock and replacing it with a pistol grip and forward grip. You'll probably be using this for home defense only and not hunting, so a stock isn't really necessary in my opinion.

My favorite website is Gunbroker.net You will find good deals on new and used firearms. The people are very friendly and pretty knowledgeable about their firearms. And lastly, make sure what you are buying is legal in your area!! hehe, I don't have to worry about that much in Arizona.. but elsewhere the restriction laws are getting heavier. So.. my advice is to start off with a pistol. It will be your best all around protection, and probably the cheapest purchase next to the shotgun. Oh yeah, and once you decide on which rifle you are going to buy, start buying ammo noooowww! AR-15 ammo has been jumping in price since the war in Iraq started and the sheeit ain't getting any cheaper.. best of luck to you, happy shooting!

I haven't fired a gun since I got back from Iraq over two years ago. Wonder if I still even know how to? Anyway, I've been considering buying some guns also, but I worry about getting put on a list like that. I'm sure the first people they'll go after is everyone who has registered a weapon, or has a license to carry. I guess that's why somebody mentioned having your friend who has a license buy the guns. (And hold on to them for you til an emergency...don't wanna get warned...) Ah, we're all probably on that list anyway now that we've replied in this thread. Time for me to go buy them I guess.

Incidentally, I've been looking at the extremely inexpensive Springfield XD .45 online, and was wondering if anyone here has any experience using it? Not sure how I feel about it being polymer... But it seems like a simple, easy to maintain, inexpensive pistol. Anyone have any thoughts?

reply to post by an3rkist

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I would say that the Springfield XD would be a nice choice. After firing an XD, I found it to be an extremely accurate, easy to shoot pistol.

uhhhh currently im 12 so i am not in a position to buy a gun, but i do want to be prepared so when i am able to get a gun i can do so right a away

i have a few questions: how old do you have to be to (legaly) own a gun?
how do you get a lisence?
where can you find guns?
how much does ammo (reletivley)cost?

now for my comments: AKs are great because you can switch them to semi-automatic to conserve ammo, but it would be good to carry light fire arms so as to be able to carry multiple guns including a hand weapon, such as crowbar or machete


all suggestions are welcome