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River Runner
Optics Apprentice Joined: January/24/2012 Location: Colorado Status: Offline Points: 50 |
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Posted: March/22/2012 at 18:16 |
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I think people who's whole lives are focused on (Hey, I made a pun!) doomsday scenarios are a bit looney. But, on the other hand, I can see a couple scenarios that could actually happen. For instance, someday we will run out of oil and I see an awful lot of people in denial about it. When it comes, we won't be ready. Things could get crazy.
Some reserves of food and water and fuel would be reasonable. I think some firepower to protect yourself and your supplies would be prudent. I'm thinking shotgun and handgun for close quarters and possibly an AR 15 for reaching out a bit farther. Looking for some advice on what sort of sights, lights and whatever, to put on these.
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Randy
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Urimaginaryfrnd
MODERATOR Resident Redneck Joined: June/20/2005 Location: Iowa Status: Offline Points: 14964 |
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Well nobody knows what the future holds and if the Mayans were correct Dec 21, 2012 its all over but lets say for the sake of argument that a disaster occured - is doesnt make much diference if it was a train that derailed or a flood that took out a major highway bridge or any other act of nature or a planned and premeditated act of man. The results are likely the same. One needs food water and shelter to survive. Knowing how to start a fire is a useful skill. Knowing how to skin and cook a small animal is a useful skill and we would not be here today had animals not come in the single serving size. To hunt small game one is probably best served by a rimfire rifle 22 or 22 mag or 17hrm. The ammo for 22 is least expensive but the 22 mag is more powerful and the 17hmr is more accurate. Such a rifle should have a scope like a 2-7 or 3-9 power or a fixed 4x or 6x etc, These type rifles are best under 100 yds but can reach out further. Im not wild about shotguns because the ammo is large and heavy for the number of bullets one has. There has been lots of interest in the .223 AR-15 semi autos and they do make an acceptable battle rifle in the hands of a trained soldier. Unfortunately the .223 cartridge was designed to be adequate to shoot a 17 lb animal at 100 yds, but yes it will polk holes in paper at 600 yds. The failure of semi automatic rifles is that one can go through all their ammo very rapidly under stress and be left with an empty rifle. To me the average deer rifle would be a better choice for the average person. A man with a 243 or 270 or 30-06 or .308 all of which one can find ammo in WalMart for should be able to do a reasonably good job of defending himself considering that 30-06 was the military rifle caliber in WW1, WW2, Korea - you remember the places we once went where we actually WON a war. For a deer rifle used by a man with not a lot of tactical training I like the Leupold FX3 6x42 with long range duplex. Yes one should have a flashlight and batteries and a surefire flashlight is a fine choice but one needs a task light like the small head mounted lights with the elastic band so that one can see what they are working on after dark. As for handguns those really are your defensive firearm they are worn even when one is not expecting trouble and I would recommend a Glock Model 23 in 40 S&W using 155 gr hollowpoints. If you feel no need to hunt large game or defend against large animals just own a rimfire rifle and a handgun. If you are concerned about shooting at night consider Trijicon Accupoint scopes and Aimpoint red dot scopes. This is designed as information for someone who just isnt that into guns and hunting but might like to be able to eat small game if the grocery store closed for two weeks or so because of an unforseeable emergency. Most importantly dont forget some means of purifying water as many natural disasters can disrupt the water supply, and even a man who does not have a gun can often rig a trap to catch a small animal or bird or fish but he will still need pure water and a good knife or two.
Edited by Urimaginaryfrnd - March/22/2012 at 20:36 |
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"Always do the right thing, just because it is the right thing to do". Bobby Paul Doherty Texas Ranger |
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Urimaginaryfrnd
MODERATOR Resident Redneck Joined: June/20/2005 Location: Iowa Status: Offline Points: 14964 |
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"Always do the right thing, just because it is the right thing to do". Bobby Paul Doherty Texas Ranger |
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The Dude
Optics Apprentice Joined: July/21/2010 Status: Offline Points: 82 |
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Fantastic post Urimginaryfrnd....very level headed advise. I definitely could not have said it better myself but it is certainly in line with my way of thinking.
Josh |
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RotoReuter_DM
Optics Apprentice Joined: December/09/2011 Location: WI Status: Offline Points: 296 |
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Old Mil ftw
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3_tens
Optics Jedi Master Joined: January/08/2007 Location: Oklahoma Status: Offline Points: 7853 |
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Rifles are fun. They is no defense for an armed Preditor. Pay attention. In the last census the GPS position of your front door was taken. Why waste the time worrying. Live life for the fun.
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Folks ain't got a sense of humor no more. They don't laugh they just get sore.
Need to follow the rules. Just hard to determine which set of rules to follow Now the rules have changed again. |
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cheaptrick
MODERATOR Joined: September/27/2004 Location: South Carolina Status: Offline Points: 20844 |
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[QUOTE=Urimaginaryfrnd]
Well nobody knows what the future holds and if the Mayans were correct Dec 21, 2012 its all over but lets say for the sake of argument that a disaster occured -
[QUOTE]
My birthday..... |
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If at first you don't secede...try..try again.
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Bigdaddy0381
MODERATOR Georgia peach Joined: February/27/2007 Location: Georgia Status: Offline Points: 13682 |
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I guess it will be true, Just not a disaster but a party at CT's Place. BYOB/C/W/QL/H and hookers. If something major did happen, it would all boil down to where the water is then food but that is after the looting stopped. Now if zombies try and take over I see it this way. I have a 55 gallon drum of penut butter. i also have a good stock of bite sized crakers. I'm going to take the crackers and cover in penut butter. as we all know a zombie will attack you with his or her mouth wide open. So, I'm just going to toss a heavily penut buttered cracker is said zombies mouth. while said zombie is trying to get his mouth from being stuck together I'm going to stab it in the eye with knife used to spread PB on the cracker. I'm going to do this to save ammo for the real wacko's running around with the food/water wasting ammo shooting the zombies. when they run out of ammo ( which will be pretty fast) I'm going to take there food or make them into pack mules to carry my items (penut butter/ammo and reloading supplies) into the hills to meet my other (gun toting nut ball whack job ) friends and have a party with tons of food and water that other folks supplied. So if anyone would like to join in on the fun, just Pm me your address .. |
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P&Z Firearms , Pro gun cleanings and gun repair and wood refinishing.
Ecclesiastes 10:2 |
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SD Dog
Optics Master Extraordinaire OT Scratching Post Joined: February/28/2008 Status: Offline Points: 4177 |
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I'm in. Just for clarification, will the celebration of CT's birthday cause the end of the world or will it happen regardless? If it is going to happen regardless, lets move the celebration up a day so we can get full use of the party favors. |
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If nobody ever said anything unless he knew what he was talking about, a ghastly hush would descend upon the earth. AP Herbert
Stupidity & ignorance have been the foundation for many certainties. |
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Bigdaddy0381
MODERATOR Georgia peach Joined: February/27/2007 Location: Georgia Status: Offline Points: 13682 |
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CT's B-day will end life as we know it..
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P&Z Firearms , Pro gun cleanings and gun repair and wood refinishing.
Ecclesiastes 10:2 |
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SVT_Tactical
MODERATOR Chief Sackscratch Joined: December/17/2009 Location: NorthCackalacky Status: Offline Points: 31233 |
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I ain't sure there is enough beer to properly celebrate CT's b-day!
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"Most folks are about as happy as they make their minds up to be" - Abraham Lincoln
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koshkin
MODERATOR Dark Lord of Optics Joined: June/15/2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 13181 |
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Who said anything about beer? Bring scotch! ILya
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koshkin
MODERATOR Dark Lord of Optics Joined: June/15/2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 13181 |
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As far as doomsday scenario goes, this is very personal and, in many ways, is driven by whether you have a permanent place to hole up in or whether you have to be on the move.
That dictates how much stuff you can bring with you. If you have to carry everything on your back, then a 22LR rifle is looking mighty good. Shotgun is a spectacular weapon if you are able to stay in your house. Then you can stock up on ammo without having to move it around. Some sort of an AR-15 variant (or a similar rifle) chambered for 223/5.56 is a good compromise weapon and is likely one of the best options if you expect to be based in a vehicle. Then you can have sufficient ammo with you with the ammo being light enough to take with you on walking excursions. Lethality of 223 ammo on 2-legged predators is much better with commercially available ammo than with what our military is allowed to use. If you are worried about both terminal performance and barrier penetration, stick with bonded bullets or partitions. Typical hunting rifles, just like shotguns are probably at their best when you have a permanent base of operation. I can make a pretty good argument that unless you need to take pretty long shots or need to take out a vehicle, a good quality 5.56 rifle with the right ammo will do just about everything in a survival situation that a typical big game rifle will do. Ideally, an intermediate caliber like 6.5Grendel could be the best of both worlds, but it is not commonly available, so it only works if you can afford to stock up with a lifetime supply of it. As far as handguns go, almost any respectable caliber should work fine. While my personal calibers of choice are 357Sig in semi-auto and 38sp/357mag in revolvers, I can make a pretty good argument that for self defense purposes it does not get any better than a reliable semi-auto chambered for 9mm Luger and with high capacity magazines. Once again, get a supply of ammo with good bullets. There are a lot of choices here. Lastly, if you are truly worried about 2-legged predators, equip your rifle with a suppressor. ILya
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koshkin
MODERATOR Dark Lord of Optics Joined: June/15/2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 13181 |
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And finally, on weapon sights:
For an AR-15, get this: That is what I plan to have on my SHTF AR-15. For redundancy, either get a small red dot on it as well: Or simply buy two scopes in identical mounts and keep one as a spare. I have a backup scope for every rifle I consider important. ILya
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Sapper524
Optics Apprentice Joined: January/25/2010 Status: Offline Points: 218 |
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I chose the TA31F ACOG and a 1x24 Reflex ... both on QD mounts ... I have learned to hate batteries And a BUNCH of 22LR for the 10/22 and 77/22 I like my Mossberg 500 a lot but shells take up a LOT of room... great HD weapon though.
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