What rifle is best for SHTF situation?

Originally posted by rockoperawriter
if i were to have a rifle for a shtf situation it would be an m-14

M 14 the best in all worlds, works well up close, can be used as a hunting rifle, one of snipers most prefered weapons, and when in doubt placed on auto it can be whipped out and you got you a rock and roll band for a free for all
oh bad

even forrest gump can tear down this weapon and reasmybol it quickly
all jokes aside this is one fine weapon, built off the m1 grand the rifle that won WWII it has one of the longest service life the US has

[edit on 14-6-2010 by hounddoghowlie]

reply to post by Cosmic4life


I have a Savage 30-30/20 guage, over/under. The downfall is that you have a single shot for each barrel but its nice having a rifle and shotgun in the same weapon. I have used it for deer hunting for years and its never done me wrong. I usually use buckshot in the 20gauge.

30-30 have enough power for long-range and moderate-large sized game and the 20 gauge is nice for small game.


Again, the downfall is single shot for each barrel. But i have gotten pretty quick at reloading so its not a huge problem.

You need to make a list of things you want your weapon to have/be able to do.

The SHTF scenario would be open warfare/survival.

typical engagement ranges nowdays are anywere from point blank (cc) out to ~400-600 meters (small arms), or whatever metttc dictates (if you initiate).
You most likely looking for a lightweight weapon that is user-friendly and is mission adaptable.
The AR platform (or hundreds of various AR platforms that they make) would be the most likely candidate for you. The AK series would be a pretty good choice as well. Only downside is that I know of no AK systems out there that are as adaptable as the AR platform (accessory-vise). Get yourself ACOG or an Elcan and you will be able to take that round past it's effective range.
Forget the full auto weapons. Unless it's a SAW type weapon, full auto is just a waste.
Keep in mind that 5,56 might me hard to find in the future (unless you reload your own).
Semi-auto .22 would be a good small game rifle that is cheaper to maintain, and ammo is more readily available. A Ruger 10/22 would be an excellent choice for that.

i've always been a firm believer in the british .303. a great rifle with power, long range, accuracy and it's easy to maintain, but that's just me, i'd also have a good revolver, for the same reasons. in a survival situation, you need to depend on your weapon

reply to post by iamcamouflage


Yeah i like the idea of an over and under rifle/shotgun combo.
Would be nice if the rifle part had a five round clip.
Know of any combos with such a set-up?

Ok, before I read all of the good ideas in this thread ima gonna put my thought out there and see how it compares.
I mentioned in another thread the Ruger 10-22, aftermarket parts are cheap and well built the rifle can take on a multiverse of rolls too.
Although I cannot say that this is the most widely produced rifle in the world I can say that darn near anyone I know or know of has one, and they all say the same thing “This rifle rocks.”
Now with 22 it is a give and take you will lose POWARR but you gain a lot. You get 1000 rounds that weigh what 100 rounds of almost any other will weigh. The rifle itself weighs…according to Wikki 5.25 lbs or 2.4 kg for you Metric types.
It is 37 inches but you can get a quick barrel kit that allows you to remove and replace the barrel quickly to make it half that length. Accuracy is good to excellent with most ammunition and if you add a scope that will improve your working range. (you will see bigger targets)
I have 2 of them my princess and my dirty rifle, princess is just that I take care of her and get her only the best of accessories, the dirty rifle I have yet to clean.
Dirty rifle I have over 6000 rounds and with only factory magazines it has *NEVER jammed (*Exception Dead rounds that just did not fire 7 in total it happens with rimfire)
But as for a rifle functioning jam it has never happened.
Now onto reliability as stated not all 22LR fire every time that is because they are rimfire but hey I’ve had centerfire do the same to me. Taking 7 out of 6000 that comes to around 1 in 1000 rounds not bad for reliability.
Now I’m going to give away my age, when I bought my rifle it cost me $129. US nowadays they go more for $200. So they are definitely affordable. Ammunition can cost around 20 give or take a few dollars for 1000 rounds, by far the cheapest out of any caliber and yes even if you reload and yes I do.
As for ease of use and cleaning, cleaning is easy and as previously mentioned you just may not have to (although I would) ease of use rack and shoot as long as the safety is off.
The gun is useable by my kids when they were young and it is equally comfortable to me too so there are no real ergonomic problems, but if there were as I said parts, stocks, bits and pieces are cheap. So you can make the rifle into any configuration that makes you comfortable.
This rifle can even take large game if you know where to shoot it (although it would be a last choice for me) but soft non armored fleshy targets will drop just the same, a bullet hole is a hole. Plus bullet wounds don’t kill the psychological value of them do.
That is my 2 cents on the issue of the ultimate SHTF rifle.
Now for the nasty, this same Rifle if you have MINIMAL mechanical skill can be turned into a pistol in seconds (see youtube as I am fat old and lazy and lazy too) search 10 22 charger.


(Edit)
OOOh I forgot to add that if you NEED an AR, AK type military weapon, remember as people decrease the military rifle per capita will rise.

[edit on 15-6-2010 by g146541]

Come on people, THINK. I will be using what the enemy is using very quickly.

1# You MUST have a rifle NOW, 2# It must be at least .308 or 30.06 to punch through body armor and have good enough range and knockdown power at distance, if you go with any other you will have a very hard time finding ammo.

At your first opportunity take the enemies assault rifles and ammo as they are better than what you will be using. You will have plenty of free ammo laying around if you use what they are using.

You can buy a new Remington .308 or 30.06 700 SPS right now through Dicks Sporting Goods. The 700 SPS is what the military and police use when they need a bolt action sniper rifle, They modify them sometimes heavily but if you put a good scope on this gun and adjust the trigger lighter then you will be very very accurate.

Dicks has ammo too witch shocked me, most are out.

Have a good pistol or a shotgun for close quarters and your all set till the games begin, After that take the good stuff from the bad guys lol.

I have many of the weapons y'all mention for many of the reasons you mention. My favorite is the Mossberg 500 and the Ruger Mini-14.

Like a few have pointed out... get the ones that are gonna fire the ammo you can get off the dead bodies... aka Charlie style ...circa Viet Nam.

get whatever rifle you are comfortable with and that suits your area. A .308 with a 10x scope is great if you live in the dessert and have 500 yard sight lines, not so much where I live in the woods. The longest shot I have from anywhere on my property is about 80 yards so a carbine with a co witnessed red dot is fine for me.
Most of all whatever you choose, train with it. I know guys who have lots of guns but rarely go shooting. Instead of buying another gun sign up for some classes. Knowledge is power.

I like my 17 HMR, just need to get the best scope to your budget.

Ammo is cheap and the dmg is far better than a 22 to the point that you can defend yourself from very far with the right scope.


1. The rounds are fully sealed so they last well
2. The 17 HMR is more silent than most rifles.
3. Bullets are small and great for storing or on the move.
4. Great for all small/mid game for avg shooter.

[edit on 15-6-2010 by robbinsj]

I would have to say bushmaster ACR for the ability to switch ammunition types, but thats only if you have the other uppers for those types of ammunition.

Originally posted by g146541
I have 2 of them my princess and my dirty rifle, princess is just that I take care of her and get her only the best of accessories, the dirty rifle I have yet to clean.
[edit on 15-6-2010 by g146541]

Typical male attitude, lol.


I still say the 10/22 is the shtf rifle of choice, because of size, weight, ammo price, ammo weight, how quiet it is (relatively).

You don't want to engage in a firefight with any military, no matter what you buy from the local sporting goods store unless you're part of an equally equipped and equally large force of your own. Any gun you have after a breakdown of society is to harvest food or defend against thugs, robbers, and rapists at close range. The 22, while not powerful like some other guns out there, can put 10 bullets into someone in 3 seconds, which will discourage almost any assailant from continuing to try to harm you.

If you are equally equipped, and have a same size element/team, you still not going to make it out of the fight. Remember there is no such thing as a fair firefight. If there is one fire team that you are engaged with, well, you can bet your a** that Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Red, Blue, Gold or whatever is flanking your stupid a**. If there is one squad, chances are there is another one in the area, same goes for platoon size element.
Face it, your best survival tactic should involve you and/or your friends running as far away as possible, and staying there for a long time..

Just my 2c.

Originally posted by kaskad
If you are equally equipped, and have a same size element/team, you still not going to make it out of the fight. Remember there is no such thing as a fair firefight. If there is one fire team that you are engaged with, well, you can bet your a** that Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Red, Blue, Gold or whatever is flanking your stupid a**. If there is one squad, chances are there is another one in the area, same goes for platoon size element.
Face it, your best survival tactic should involve you and/or your friends running as far away as possible, and staying there for a long time..

Just my 2c.

Well said. All that plus they will pin you down till a 500 pound bomb gets dropped on yer head.

Originally posted by Cosmic4life
reply to post by iamcamouflage

 

Yeah i like the idea of an over and under rifle/shotgun combo.
Would be nice if the rifle part had a five round clip.
Know of any combos with such a set-up?

I am not aware of any over/unders that have a clip for the rifle but that would be a great weapon. The Savage, breaks at the barrel to reload and it throws the empty carts when opened, so if you have your ammo handy, you can fire two shots in probably 5secs and have it reloaded in another 5-10secs.

Obivously this weapon has some drawbacks but it also has some unique features you wont find on most other weapons.


g146541

I agree with you about the 10/22, this is a great weapon for all the reasons you listed. Smaller caliber but ammo is light, common and cheap. You can buy a 25 round clip that lets you rip off a ton of shots very quickly. And while the caliber is small, 10 well placed shots could take down decent sized game or at the very least scare away a dangerous predator. I would feel very safe in the woods with a 10/22, you could scare away any north american predator with this weapon, wolves, bear, cougar, etc.

I have a S&W 22 handgun and I really like it, not great for long range but again, great for protection. I need to invest in a 10/22.

Tacticle SKS is your best bet. It is more accurate then the AK and just as durable.

The problem is the way ammo is loaded. it does not do mags...you have to use stripper clips.

But this problem can be easily avoided by using TAPCO sks mags.

The ammunition is cheap and affordable. You can pretty much get it anywhere.

The rifle has outstanding stoping power.

Also if you wanted to mount optics you would have to get new TAPCO sks furniture. which you can order for 50-60 dollars.

It is a great reliable gun.

AVOID THE AR-STYLE RIFLES.

They need to much cleaning and while accurate th NATO round does not offer enough stoping power for SHTF scenerios. I say this because im assuming you would be in fights that are 100-300 meters. Which would usually be okay for the AR-style rifles....but the 223 or NATO round just is not up to snuff. Why do you think the US military is gradually shifting to the 6.8 SPC ammo?

The problems i have stated above also comes with benifits. The 223 or NATO round is alot lighter then the round the AK-47 or SKS uses. meaning you can carry more around with you.

And while the NATO round tends to not pack as much as a punch as the 7.62x39 the NATO round because of its lightweight tends to shatter or 'splinter' enside the enemys body causing massive wounding.

and because the round is lighter it tends to be more accurate.

Personally i would avoid the M-16 rifle.....not for what i have stated above that was just me showing my gun knowledge

The reason to avoide is the damn price. you could by 2 wasr-10 ak-47s for the price of ONE ar-15.

You are essentially getting screwed.

It all comes down to what you need.

Do you need a gun with great stoping power within 300-400? need a gun with great ruggedness and durability? aLL FOR A VERY CHEAP PRICE? if so get the AK-47/SKS/SAIGA.

OR do you need a gun with great accuracy and range(keep in mind once out of 400 yards the NATO round power drastically drops)? are you willing to spend a little more or buy 'american' if so the ar-15 and AR style rifles are for you.

What do you guys think about the SVD?

I happen to like it, but then again maybe there are shortcomings I'm simply not aware of.

At the end of the day, weapons are merely tools and there isn't any specific all singing, all dancing type out there and so its very much a case of personal taste. If you were to buy a good brand hunting rifle with a large calibre, you would be able to look after your hunting needs and also repel any unwanted visitors.

Suppressors (silencers) can be attached to most rifles these days but for it to work effectively, you must have the relevant sub-sonic rounds.

Depending on your abilities, you could use holographic weapon sights for quick/instinctive shooting, but these are only effective to low ranges. Good optics such as a Schmidt and Bender are far more effective for slow, deliberate shooting if used in tandem with a good rifle and trained weapon handling skills.

Bags and bags of ammunition are not required as long as you take the approach of a sniper. Aim for 'one shot, one kill'. If your are up against hostile people you are less likely to be spotted and with your high caliber rifle, your enemies are likely to be firing into the wind.

reply to post by empireofpain




You mentioned that the SKS is better then the Ak-47 this is not true they are both inaccurate weapons.


Also you said the SKS needs stripper clips only this is not true you can convert it to a magazine feed system very easily.




But I would not buy either of them again I have owned them both and they are cheap for a reason they are stamped out crap. they are not accurate over 200 yards. and at 100 yards do not hold tight groups.

[edit on 15-6-2010 by Subjective Truth]

[edit on 15-6-2010 by Subjective Truth]

[edit on 15-6-2010 by Subjective Truth]

reply to post by Extreme Pilgrim


You mentioned holographic sights are only good at close range I shot tight groups at 300 yards with my eotech ?