Survival Rifle

This is the only weapon I would walk around with and feel safe:

I would agree that diversity is key, as is the need to keep your gun selection to the more common calibers. My main choices are .22 pistol and rifle, a .38/.357 revolver and lever action rifle (which also shoots 9mm if necessary) which is perfect for my wife as it is light and accurate, a 30.06 rifle, 9mm pistol, and my AR-15. In survival situations I would leave my other weapons, including my shotguns and heavy rifles, such as a .300 Win Mag, at home.

I love shooting bows and have several, but I have to disagree with those who think they are good survival choices. With a rifle, most game falls where shot if your shot placement is correct. With a bow, most (large) game runs and requires one to do some searching to find the kill, which is not really a good survival strategy. Additionally, I can carry a few hundred rounds in the space it takes to carry two-dozen arrows, and arrows break and are very easily lost. It is also impossible to make arrows for high pull-weight compound bows - try making (i.e., home made from back-yard trees) a wooden arrow and shooting it with a compound bow - it will most likely shatter injuring the shooter. Also, gun is faster if multiple shots are required, has longer range making it easier to target game, and can be sucessfully handled by all individuals, which is important if the owner of the bow is incapable of using it (i.e., if you are injured and your wife/child/weaker partner needs to hunt to eat, and your bow has a 60 lb pull weight - you will starve).

Choice rifle for me would be a Steyr-Aug 5.56, and then an AK-47. I would still like a winchester that can lub out heavy shots but by far I would take the military rifles and here is why:
Rate of fire should someone try something
The Steyr-aug's come with a scope, so you can pick people off
After a disaster there will be butloads of ammo laying around of military grade
You can get armor piercing arounds for it in case some yahoo's from the local garrison try and steal what you have.
Steyr is light-weight
YOU CAN GET SILENCERS FOR THEM (Raid your local army depo after the disaster)
They have the penetration needed

Nothing wrong with a .22 however when it comes to surviving you need to worry about humans and larger animals. Humans come first of course. A rifle of low caliber may be silent, yet it will not save your life should you get into a fight with some brigands unless they have .45's and the like. You need something that will be used for hunting game, and a 5.56 will do this on single shot, yet, on the flip side, it is one deadly anti-human round.

Originally posted by Vekar

Nothing wrong with a .22 however when it comes to surviving you need to worry about humans and larger animals. Humans come first of course. A rifle of low caliber may be silent, yet it will not save your life should you get into a fight with some brigands unless they have .45's and the like. You need something that will be used for hunting game, and a 5.56 will do this on single shot, yet, on the flip side, it is one deadly anti-human round.

I agree. However, my choice for .22 is that you can carry a lot of ammo which can be used for birds, squirels(sp), rabbits, and other small food items that would be destroyed with larger caliber guns. For people and large game, the 5.56 is a great multi-tasking choice.

If I read the OP right and I think I did, we are only allowed one and it is a rifle.

That being said I would have to choose one of the over under combo's already mentioned. Most probably the .223/12guage combo although I also grew up hunting small game with a .410 Stevens side by side and loved it so that combo would be second choice. As for the noise factor, you have to sacrifice something and if I were in survivor mode and heard a shot I would definitely avoid wherever it came from so I would think visa versa.

Also, I have put down a white tail with a .22LR open sight. 25 yds, behind the right ear, went down without a step. However, in a survivor situation you may not get a head shot that close but then again....

That is an awesome weapon!! Great find alphabeta I totally forgot about this one. Didn't this come out recently, like in the past 5 years? I think I browsed some gun magazine at a barbershop and this was on the cover and they did a whole expose on it- cool stuff

What's the price for this?




[edit on 14-12-2006 by jaguarmike]

I was kinda wondering the weight myself.

SLPEXE

can't be more than a g....

SLPEXE

Obviously you have never seen a black Bear in the wild lol ....

Jaguarmike, you aren't going to start an internet fight with me. What you have said is certainly true. The effectiveness of any weapon is dependent upon its user.

I simply believe that in a survival scenario, a person is much better off keeping a low profile and not drawing attention to themselves. An AR-15, for example, is clearly a superior weapon to that lever action pistol caliber carbine, but its also going to draw a whole lot more attention for that very reason. Some of that attention is going to be from people who would like to have that rifle for their own, and a few of them will be willing to take it forcefully. It won't be a fair fight when they do it, either.

So again, I'd pick something basic and ordinary, yet reliable and effective as an everyday carry weapon. Stash the battle rifle at home and save it for major engagements. With any luck, you will never need it. And DON'T let anyone know you have it. Appearances are everything. If you appear to have little of value, you also avoid making yourself a target.







[edit on 14-12-2006 by vor78]

Another point I made which people missed: After a disaster of what we seem to be talking about (civilization colapses) as I stated, it would be NO PROBLEM to go raid a army depo and steal a couple of silencers for your gun. Besides which, ammo will be in abundance since the military got wiped out. Next, as for sound, I am not going to worry about that much since people are ransacking houses like crazy after an event this big. You will NEED that rifle to hold them all off, yes they can hear you, but after a few head shots I doubt they will be very eager to try again if any of them are left alive. Frankly I would make sure there was a 0% survival rate even if that meant going human hunting.
Considering where I live I would NEED that 5.56 Steyr-Aug, there is over 10,000 people in a 30 mile radius and believe me they would be going bonzo and ransaking homes like crazy. That 5.56 would REALLY help out in my case, besides I know there is at least 2 military depos within a two-three days walk of where I live so ammo is no big deal when it comes down to it.
Reflect on this: Your choice of weapon in this case a rifle, largely reflects WHERE you live and WHO you live around.

I'm not planning on an all out war for resources with having to worry about looters and gangs of marauders. I will be long gone before that happens. I do believe that one should be able to hunt and attend to minor defense worries. The AR-7 was designed from the beginning as a survival weapon and with minor modification, does that very well. It breaks down and stores entirely inside the stock so transportation and concealment are superb. A Ruger 10/22LR is a good alternative. I don't need a big bore rifle with the accompanying big bang. I prefer to remain discrete. For longer term survival a bow is the obvious choice.

For marine use I prefer a stainless steel Remington shot gun to repel boarders. I intend to bug out by way of sea. Less people to worry about and easier to get to my planned destination. No traffic jams either.

Originally posted by thisguyrighthere
The crossbow sounds like a good idea. Maybe a heavy compound bow.

I like the idea of keeping a muzzle loader around just in case. You may not always be able to find bullets for your center fire rifles but it isnt very hard to find or make some stones and a combustable material to mimic black powder.

Indeed, they make really powerful crossbows these days, combine that w/a laser and optical scope...you could take out a deer or anything smaller.

Also, if you are in "evasion mode" a crossbow bolt being fired is much quieter and harder to poinpoint than a gunshot. If you are trying to ambush and surprise a foe, an arrow is quiet, powerful, and lightweight.

Also, poisons or anti-coagulants could be laced onto the tips...

I kind of like this Calico 9mm Carbine.

That and a good Bow or Crossbow would serve me well.

As far as 'loading' the arrow or bolt tips, have you thought about Ricin?

Taking out larger game,I'd definitely go with a 300 savage or remington30-06 with 180 grain shells.For smaller game I stick to my mossberg 20 gauge w/modified choke.

All out warfare, well I would hope to be long gone too, however as stated I have to get past without question at LEAST 2000 other people in my area first. For that I need the assualt rifle, besides if I want to hunt game a 5.56 NON-ARMOR PIERCING round will do just find, soft lead not iron or steel core. However due to versatility I can switch to armor piercing and take on armored foes just fine or should they decide to hide behind something...
I would think in my area a rifle shot going off after a distaster of magnitude where I HAVE to bug out would draw little to no attention, especialy around here. Besides which, I do not mind the "big-bang" that follows, because if I have to fire, it is already to late. Besides I have a knife, swords and other melee weapons to use if I want to be silent.

As someone else said, a compoud MODERN bow would do a world of good IF IT HAD THE PROPER CONSTRUCTION. A lot of what we get on the market today is that cheap Chinese junk that lasts less than a year. If I had a bow I would prefer USA or Japanese made, along with a quiver of 100 aluminum shaft, steel arrow head arrows. The 100 will cover any bends or breaks. Not much to worry about though, after the first guy/gal goes down I doubt the others will be very eager about sticking around since they only have a rough idea of which direction the arrow came from.
A friend of mine had a special longbow made and he showed it to me once, however what I remember most was his string, he had two "fluff balls" attached that dampened the "twang" sound when fired so it was completely silent.

If i'd only be allowed one rifle it would be .308 or 7.62x54R boltgun with scope and a silencer (silencers are perfectly legal here) This rifle allows me to create a 500m safety zone around my postition (and yes i'm sniper trained)

As for other rifle .22cal bolt action rifle allows you to get enough food for a survival situation. And it can be silenced relatively easily with normal houshold items... Coke bottle, cardboard and disks made from steel can go a long way

Sidearm of choise is CZ-75B since i prefer steelframed pistols.

Link

Niiiiiiiiice. This comes in 308. A review I read said the classic "scout" scope for this is really only awesome in the middle of the day, so opt with a conentional American styled scope.

mod edit: cut down link length to correct page width

[edit on 15-12-2006 by UK Wizard]

...But would elect to take only 3 of them with me if I neded to bug out. First I would take my Mossberg 590A-mil 12 guage shotgun. It is the same shotgun used by the US military and has been field tested to the most rigorous standards. There is some additional info on the 500 series here. This link only shows the 500 series, you have to look a little bit to find a 590A, but they are available. Forget the Super-magnum chamber and just elect for the standard 2.75" and magnum 3" chamber as rounds are much more readily available. This weapon is perfect for hunting game, large or small, or for protection. It is affordable at around $400(us). I have modified mine with a Knoxx SpecOps stock with pistol grip and Hogue grip and Knoxx forend. You can see it here. Not only does it make the weapon shorter for transport, it has 2 recoil damping springs for improved accuracy and fatigue reduction.

My second rifle would be my Sig556. The SigArms 556 is a super badass rifle.

Here it is! This baby is a tried and true and fires the 5.56 NATO round. It will fire either the 5.56 OR the .223 (With some loss in accuracy at range due to the narrow casing). Here in the US, an AK or any 7.62 chambered rifle would be nearly worthless for survival unless you have a huge stockpile of rounds. The 5.56 is the standard round of the US military and it's NATO allies and is slightly smaller and lighter than it's 7.62 cousin with very, VERY little loss in performance. The rounds will be widely available in a crisis in comparison to 7.62. This is a ranged weapon with assault characteristics. It would suffice for hunting large game at range OR in fending off assault forces at range.

Finally, my sidearm would be my Sig P229 .40S&W. Again, a tried and true firearm and preferred choice of the Secret Service, US Coast Guard, Homeland Security Dept., US Marshalls, and countless law enforcement personnell nationwide. It is accurate and reliable. the .40S&W is the same as a 10mm and will fire either round (Although the 10mm is slightly less accurate through this sidearm). I have had no problem finding rounds for this piece and prefer the Federal Hydro-shock rounds.

As someone before me stated, firearms are like golf clubs, you need a different one for different situations - a ranged weapon like my 556 is like a wood, my shotgun is like an iron and my sidearm is like my putter. Each one serves it's purpose!

[edit on 15-12-2006 by kozmo]

[edit on 15-12-2006 by kozmo]

[edit on 15-12-2006 by kozmo]

Originally posted by jaguarmike
That is an awesome weapon!! Great find alphabeta I totally forgot about this one. Didn't this come out recently, like in the past 5 years? I think I browsed some gun magazine at a barbershop and this was on the cover and they did a whole expose on it- cool stuff

What's the price for this?




[edit on 14-12-2006 by jaguarmike]

Mike, yes it's a relatively newer firearm...list price had a range of $1200 to $1800 (although I saw prices at the time it WAS manufactured between 1998 and 2001 of $3300 or more) when they were first introduced. They're next to impossible to get these days yet, some afficianados may sell them at shows or online (if they're FFL) via ebay and the like at roughly the same priceline.

Earlier it was mentioned about weight, the weight is runs around 9 pounds (a lot for a rifle, but a decent sacrifice for the versatility).

The fact that it can take either m-16/ar-15 clips is a plus to me as well.



I would just like to point something out (not to you mike but in general) that whether it be NATO5.56, .223, .22LR, .22MAG, we're all saying basically the same thing... 22 caliber no matter which way ya cut it


AB1