Posted on 02/19/2009 1:32:54 PM PST by terabyte
Given the instability of the world today and the very real possibility of worldwide economic collapse, let us accept that every family should own at least one firearm. There are more reasons, of course, and those have been discussed ad nausaeum on more websites than could possibly benamed here. Since our budgets will allow most of us to own only a few (or potentially just one) firearm, we should choose wisely.
The criteria is simple. The firearm must be very simple to operate. Ammunition must be plentiful, even in a scenario in which law enforcement and traditional retail markets have broken down. The firearm must be inexpensive, versatile, and be completely reliable. Each of the four firearms listed below has good marks in each of those five categories. There are too many excellent firearms on the market to compromise on any of those criteria.
1. The first firearm in any home should be the American standby, the twelve-gauge pump shotgun. There are numerous makes and models on the market, but the best is the venerable Remington 870. With easy-to-change barrels, it can switch duty from defending the home to putting food on the table in less than a minute. With the ability to fire a wide variety of birdshot, buckshot, and slugs, it can handle hunting duties from all but the smallest of small game up to deer-sized animals. Its stopping power is legendary. There is very little this shotgun cannot do. Buy one inexpensive 870 for around $250, and then simply purchase an extra barrel or two for the ultimate in versatility.
2. The second firearm in a home should be a high-quality pistol. The pistol should be in a caliber no smaller than 9mm Parabellum. Anything smaller than that is simply ineffective for anything other than target practice.
(Excerpt) Read more at associatedcontent.com ...
BTW, you can practice with 38 Special ammo in a .357 revolver, and, as I do, keep 38 Special +P Hollow points in the .357 for home defense rounds. Because most .357 revolvers are made heavier than a 38 Special, the weight of the .357 revolver helps 'dampen' recoil when shooting.
Great Post!! Should be very useful to the ladies.
Aren’t SKS rifles up in the $1,000 range ?
thanks
bump for later read.....
Yeah, if you want four or five of them.
Good point about smaller hands of the ladies. Wife can shoot a .380 auto but the .38 is just too much gun for her hand.
Power, reliability, accuracy, very easy to maintain, inexpensive. As soon as I got the cosmolene off my paratrooper model (shorter barrel mostly), I was hitting my aim points and 100 and 200 yards, regularly, with open sights. Shot it so much the first few months, I put a rubber butt/recoil pad on it the second week. Took the twenty round box mag off when I found reliable thirty round banana mags to fit it. Get it dirty, don’t clean it regularly, it still shoots reliably. But I clean mine after every trip to the range ... part of the shooting ritual.
Here is the kicker - I have 2 boys so I buy in batches of 3’s everything but the .45. I am thinking of going to .40.
If you have sons and can afford it then stock them up now.
Gotta get to bed. Have a good one, enjoy your Mini-14 ... I had one a few years ago, bought from of Park Service surplus. Traded it for a nice Rockola M1-Carbine. Never regreted it.
Agreed. That was my reaction to the article, as well. Now, you can shoot deer with that 12 gauge, but only at shorter ranges.
Don’t sweat it. It’s super easy/logical. Forgot to mention that it has a nice feature, the barrel tips up. Push a lever with your thumb and up pops the barrel. Pop a round in and click it back down and start shooting. You never have to rack the slide back to chamber the round. Very unique.
I've got a 10/22 the same way, only around 2 years younger. IMO, the Marlin's only problem is lack of aftermarket parts sources. You can build a 10/22 from parts without using a single Ruger-manufactured component. The Colt 1911 is the same way - lots of repair parts available form lots of different sources. That's a big plus.
That's a Yugoslavian copy of the Russian SKS. Last year, I would've said that price was way too high. These days, it's probably a reasonable figure. Grab a copy of Shotgun News and see if some vendors are still listing the Yugo SKS.
Ammo similarly *was* very reasonable, but recently has become extremely hard to find. Most is imported, non-reloadable stuff, which means that an ammo import ban would hit the SKS and AK owners hard.
Ping for later
bflr
Rockola M1. Rare of rare.
How many rounds of ammunition for each of the four mentioned firearms would all of you recommend be kept on hand?
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