Talk me out of.....or into!

FYI she bought (I bought) a 1971 Ruger Bearcat 22lr revolver.

Something I would have never have picked, but she felt comfortable loading and shooting it.

So that's how she got her firearm.

originally posted by: DBCowboy
FYI she bought (I bought) a 1971 Ruger Bearcat 22lr revolver.

Something I would have never have picked, but she felt comfortable loading and shooting it.

So that's how she got her firearm.

Ammo is as cheap as it gets.

a reply to: vonclod

She liked shooting it, my 1911 scared her.

Back in my prior life I had ARs in 556, 7.63x39, .22..... in lengths from 14.5 to 21 inch sniper rifle. I also had a few SKSs and AK-47s... I was a hunter killing feral pigs at night and day with night scopes and good glass. A Vortex scope is also good glass at half the price of some of the other high end scopes. Well at least it used to be,,,, for as I said it was a prior life time of my hunting life. 5.56 at 327 yards was just about it for a one shot kill regardless of what the Marines claim... My experience anyway.

I say all that simply to point out weight is a big deal if you are going to be moving.

762.39 IMO is like throwing rocks after 150 yards due to bullet drop. However the round did have great penetration. There are many good reasons for an AR lower as many uppers can fit and be had.

I always carried a 1911 as a back up and usually only carried 4 30 round mags if I were on foot. The idiots who claim 30 round mags are a danger to humanity have never been on a long overnight hunt.

Kinda funny as gun talk was why I joined ATS way back when. Reading what some of the members who knew nothing except what MSN told them really pissed me off into joining.. hahaha

The idea about checking ammo out first is very reasonable in today's world IMO along with weight of the weapon which to me really is a big deal unless you are fixed and just shooting paper. Whatever good luck and enjoy .... Bolt action to slow to noisy in a multiple hunting environment for me. Notice I said for me

Update - Misread the OP's 2nd sentence. Looks like he's made his choice. I typed this before I read that part correctly. I'll just leave this here for others.



Definitely check out ammo availability in your area! Go to more than one place too and look for trends. Reloading supplies are almost non-existent these days. I was in a Cabela's the day before yesterday and just took a quick gander at their ammo stock. They've gone from (4) aisles down to (1) aisle of ammo, and that aisle was only about 20% stocked if that. They did have some 5.56 in bulk, but all FMJ. Just about all the popular calibers were zippo except for some of the most expensive personal defense stuff. 9mm, .38 spcl, .357, and 7.62 all gone. They had some .44 mag, but otherwise bare shelves. They did have some of the big stuff like .50 S&W and .454 Casul. 12 ga looked pretty bad also, no 7.5, some 8's, some 4's and 5's...00 buck you can forget about it. I did see some 16's and 28's which was kind of surprising. But zero AA's, only off-brand and imported stuff.

Reloading - Wow...decimated. Good luck finding any. Primers, forget about it. Powder, gone. Last 1,000 lot of large rifle primers I got I paid an arm and a leg for. Shotgun, even finding shot is hard (thinking of casting my own now). Only wads I could find were AA (which is good for me because I generally reload Winchester), but everything else was gone-o. Plus they only had two bags of AA wads at that (I'd go through those in one night). Still looking for several powders. Fortunately, I'm good now on small and large pistol primers as well as small and large rifle primers, and shotgun primers. But powder is a different story.

I saw two lonely boxes of .30-30 sitting on the shelf. I almost felt sad for them, they looked so lonely sitting there. I probably should have grabbed them. .30-30 is such a wonderful round. First centerfire rifle I ever fired was a .30-30. Loved them ever since.

If I was going to buy an all-purpose rifle right now, I'd probably go with a 5.56 NATO/.223. Might as well go with an AR type design. Heck, might as well pick one up while you can, if you don't already have one. Pretty versatile, decently accurate, light, lots of accessories out there. Plus they're probably cheaper than they've ever been (because nobody can get ammo for anything right now). But you can still find some FMJ plinking ammo. That, or you might consider a .22-250 bolt action. Flatter shooting and more reach than the 5.56, and way more accurate at distance.

If you need something you can hunt larger game with, like deer and larger, you'll probably need to be above .23 caliber (where most states draw the line). You might consider a .243 or a 7mm. You could also go with the old faithful 7.62 (.30-06 Springfield). I'm not a big fan of the 6.5 round, but some people rave about them. If you've read this far, you're probably screaming..."What about .308? Why hasn't he brought up .308's yet???" Honestly, I've never owned a .308, I've always opted for .30-06 and .270 Wby Mag, on either side of the .308 (caliber wise). The SA-M1A's are definitely nice and a fine rifle, but I've never owned one. 7mm mag is another fantastic round, but 7mm mag ammo is really tough to find and it can be expensive.

In summary, look for what ammo you can get. The military calibers are the most likely because of sheer volume. So, that's basically: 9mm, .45ACP, 5.56mm, 7.62x63 (.30-06), 7.62x51 (.308) and to a lesser extent the .50BMG. The other calibers I've listed above, in non-military calibers, are all common enough to still be found, but not so common that people hoard them. It's a crap-shoot no matter what you pick really.

Hope this helps.

originally posted by: JinMI
I've opted for a. 308/7.62x51

I have a Windham .308 and love it in the Biblical sense.

Nvm.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

So, basically the AR-10.

Which one? The RF20FFTM?

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

I need to check the model number, they do special ones for New Jersey; welded break and pinned stock.

a reply to: RussianSpy

Just got my wife a Glock 42 with a little ammo, there's still some options available depending on where you look!

a reply to: JinMI


I got a SCAR 17 (.308) ... That gun is EASILY the best gun I own, and I have A LOT.

Thats my vote!

originally posted by: DBCowboy
a reply to: vonclod

She liked shooting it, my 1911 scared her.

My dad loved his Gold Cup 1911, also loved his Ruger .41 mag SA, I do like the SA revolvers..2 different beasts..both I could enjoy shooting.

originally posted by: DBCowboy
FYI she bought (I bought) a 1971 Ruger Bearcat 22lr revolver.

Something I would have never have picked, but she felt comfortable loading and shooting it.

So that's how she got her firearm.

S&W M&P EZ is a pretty decent choice for the fairer sex, too.

I was thinking about a pistol for my wife, and had the fellow at my gun shop pull it out for a closer look. I watched him rack the slide very "EZ" .... using his elbow! (apparently the recoil spring is lower tension for easier use).

Also the Shield EZ has a lever on it magazine springs for super easy loading of rounds into the magazine.

Seems like a very female-friendly firearm