Posted on 10/22/2019 3:48:46 AM PDT by Kaslin
In my last column, I recommended three firearms every man had to own in order to retain his man card. The theme of the column was threefold – 1) Protecting one’s home, 2) Protecting one’s loved ones while away from home, and 3) Raising children with respect for firearms (and, of course, knowledge of responsible firearm use). Since only three essential firearms were recommended, I was bombarded with emails asking me which should follow. I am certainly glad they asked. And I am happy to provide the next three choices needed to advance those three important interests:
The Mossberg 500 .410 shotgun. The 12-gauge is clearly ideal for protecting one’s home from intruders. That is why I recommended it in my previous column. But home defense sometimes involves taking care of predators in one’s yard. For me, that is most likely a copperhead snake. Where my parents retired in Huntsville, Texas, it was almost always an armadillo tearing the yard apart. Either way, the .410-gauge shotgun is absolutely ideal for these kinds of threats. I don’t need to blow a snake to bits with a 12 gauge when I can do the job with a .410. Even in residential areas in the county where it is legal to use a firearm there is a need to be mindful of one’s surroundings. It is a matter of both safety and courtesy to avoid using more firepower than is necessary to complete the job. Thus, something less than a 12 gauge needs to be in every man’s shotgun defense arsenal.
Smith & Wesson Model 640. I previously recommended a 9mm for concealed carry because I wanted to suggest something a man could use - and that he could also let his wife use should the need arise. My second recommendation is also good for both man and wife. Men will definitely want to use the .357-magnum round in this snub nosed revolver, which features an internal hammer. (I use 145-grain silver tip hollow points). The knockdown power is more than sufficient for a concealed carry weapon. But women will also love shooting this snub nose with a lighter .38-special load. (Many will prefer 110-grain hollow points).
Marlin 30-30. The process of raising children with respect for firearms and with firearm proficiency begins with a .22 long rifle. But it continues with a good lever action rifle capable of taking down a deer. The 30-30 Marlin is my weapon of choice – and I am certainly not alone. This gun has dropped more deer than any in the entire history of this gun-loving nation. But it also has important defensive purposes. It has more than enough firepower to level a coyote. And, as a duel North Carolina/Colorado resident, I definitely advocate having one of these around if you ever have contact with black bears. Using 170-grain soft points, this gun can definitely lay any black bear on its back. And the ammo is also relatively cheap.
One last note: The deer hunter who is hunting in brush and taking shots between 50 and 100 yards can hardly do better than the lever action 30-30 (although the .44-magnum lever action rifle is a close second). Of course, long-range deer hunting will require another rifle. And that just means my column series will have to continue.
As usual, all deranged feminists (pardon the redundancy) and totalitarian progressives (pardon more redundancy) offended by this column should write to Chancellor@uncw.edu. Make sure to explain that you are writing in opposition to my continued employment because I am a) exercising my First Amendment rights by writing about guns, and b) exercising my Second Amendment rights by using the profits to buy more guns and ammo.
If you do write to UNCW, please be sure to remind them that I just don’t give a damn about the feelings of my hoplophobic critics. The statement will be accurate. Much like the fine choices in my ever-growing collection of firearms.
… To be continued.
Just the engagement sound of a Mossberg in the dark will have anyone make in their pants.
Lots of threads on must have firearms. How about essential,edged weapons? Might be even more essential than firearms once powder, primers and bullets run out.
The better marlin 336 lever rifle is the .35 Remington chambered version. 44 magnum (model 1894)is fine .30-30 is better. And except for availability of ammo .35 Remington is superior. I fired mine yesterday. With its micro-groove rifling barrel I can keep 3 rounds into 1” at 100 yds. After 3 rounds you will lose accuracy as the barrel heats and pulls against the barrel bands causing vertical stringing. Still good enough for a whitetail at 100 yds.
I also shot 2 topbreak S&W in .38 S&W yesterday. A military stock WW2 1911a1 and a 1961 vintage SAA in .45 Colt. It was a good range day.
All can be made at home.
That cat has been out of the bag for hundreds of years,
Edge weapons are useful and interesting.
It is only a liberals wet dream that firearms well disappear.
Agreed. I had 2. I have one now and a Winchester pump. The sound of the pump action is classic and scary to any burglar. Try this. Rack the slide on an empty gun and listen. Now rack the slide on a live round. The piston sound of the round entering the chamber increases the sound and will let anyone know it’s the real deal.
What utter BS. The 45-70 GOVT far outshines these two in brush hunting. This guy writing this seems to pull information out of thin air. Like saying Marlin 30-30 has killed more deer than any other rifle. What utter BS. How can he/she make this claim. Maybe 30-30 ammunition has but NOT the Marlin.
A .44 magnum CVA single shot rifle 1:20 twist using Barnes bullets and the accuracy was incredible. This gun and ammo are made for each other and is devastating on deer. The 22 or 24 inch barrel on the CVA really drops the sound blast to your ears way down and recoil feels very light to me. In all performance and trajectory is very similar to an in-line muzzle loader loaded with 100 gr powder, and 240gr sabot/bullet. My daughter uses the CVA and the 44 mag rifle will hit as hard at 100yds as the revolver will at point blank, so all you who say 44 mag rifle is under powered for deer- think again. It aint like a .410 with a slug -like when the slug wont exit even at a mere 30 yards.
Now I like a little back-up insurance so I use a more expensive Ruger 44/77 SS bolt action .44 mag with the same Barnes bullets, because it has a 4 round clip, but this rifle also has the 1:20 twist (unlike the 44 lever actions that are 1:38) Compared to the CVA the Ruger has a bit more sound blast d/t shorter 18” barrel, slightly less accurate but still very good, and seems to have slightly more recoil.
Both guns with the Barnes Vor-Tx ammo have fully exited with big holes - deer at 100 yards with broadside shots.
I’m not gonna lose my hearing over some deer! and neither are my kids.
Yep. I went to the range on Friday to prep a few rifles for the upcoming season. BLR in 7mm-08, sporterized 1903A3, Savage 111 on .30-06, and my little back-up for anyone in the woods, my Mini-30.
The 03A3 is incredible. I picked it up last year in North Dakota for $275. It shoots far better than me but I can do a half-dollar group on a bad day at 100 yards.
The Mini-30 gets dragged along on every Wisconsin hunt. Over the years, someone always seems to use it, mostly the younger hunters. It has bagged a bunch of venison.
The BLR was my Dad’s so I prefer it when hunting to keep his wonderful spirit alive and well. Since I hand load a lot of 7mm-08 (both my boys use the round), it is a tack driver. I love how it handles.
I recently picked up a couple Swiss K-31’s. One of them might see the woods this year just for fun.
A good Day
at the Range,
Lucky.
Don’t have a problem with the shot gun other than the caliber, let’s keep it at 12ga.
OK the idea that you have to have a 640 is just ridiculous, if you want to shoot 9mm then get one and take advantage of the higher capacity. My 365 SIG is just a tad bigger but not as wide and carries 11 rds.
Now we’re down to the 30-30. I’ll will have been walking this rock for 70 years next month and most of the time it’s been with a firearm either on me or beside me. More than 60 of these years involved hunting. I can’t tell you off hand how many rifles pistols and shotguns I currently have, and I damn sure can’t tell you how many I’ve owned over these years. What I can tell you is a 30-30 has never entered my house. Worse than mediocre ballistics and out dated for over 100 years.
Keep the Mossy just make it a 12ga.
Ditch the 340 and just get one of the small frame 9mm. SIG and Glock make excellent ones.
Put the 30-30 back on the wall where it belongs. Not a fan of the 308 but would probably have to go with that, some real nice rifles available in that caliber.
Interesting. I’ll have to find part 1 for later amusement.
As to the topic, I don’t entirely agree. I prefer to minimize my caliber (ahem) diversity, so when it comes to shotguns I’ll stick to 12ga. If I feel the need for a lighter round, I’ll get some of the stubby ones that are available now - and get a magazine capacity bump with it.
For a lever, well, I think I’d actually prefer a .357 so that I could share the ammo with a revolver. Can’t exactly say I’m into that, though as I’m not really into that. Being more a fan of things like the CZ75, I picked up the ruger 9mm rifle instead. If I want to hunt, I’ll use my .308.
Due to my occupation, I haven’t gotten a CC yet, but I probably should. If/when I do, it’ll be the little Ruger .380 in my pocket holster.
One of the considerations being - if you ever do have to use it, it’ll end up in an evidence room and you’ll probably never see it again. I’d rather not use an heirloom for that.
More Fudd nonsense from this guy, how many guns is he going to list before he finds his way to an actual fighting weapon?
That's one thing I like about the 30-30; it's pretty much a short-range rifle. In the hands of one of the many morons who doesn't fully know what he's doing, at least you know its ballistics will limit the damage radius. [Note: I am not fond of hunting in "brush" if that means you cannot tell what is behind your target.]
From the era before carry permits.
When the second floor door of a national chain motel outside a St. Louis broke open to be caught by the secondary bar lock,
the would be room invaders heard the throaty sound of an 870 12 ga. loading one into the chamber.
All I heard then was, “Don’t shoot! Don’t shoot! We be leavin. We be leavin.”
And they did.
This dude keeps talking about dialing back the loads for women. As if the poor, fair maidens simply cannot handle a ”real” gun.
Two of my daughters are shooters. And both can accurately shoot anything I can shoot. .25, .380, .38 special, .357, 9mm, .41mag, .44 special, .45 colt, .45ACP, .556. You name it, they’ll shoot them just as good, if not better, than most dudes.
My eldest dated a man whose father was the handgun instructor for Miami PD. One of their first dates was at a range. Him and his dad gave her the princess treatment. Then she took her turn at the line. Left both their jaws on the ground.
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Why no AK47? Cheap ammo and dead nuts reliability.
Now I'm not saying it is the end all, but there is not a cartridge out there that is as dependable, versatile, and taken more small game than any other than the simple 22.
One thing I also notice about all the 'end-of-the-world' writers, is they never talk about ammo availability. It's great to talk about needing a shotgun, a high cap sidearm, long gun, CQB rifle, etc, but no one ever talks about what happens after?
Do you save to reload? Will you be in a place where you can reload? Or do you carry a bunch of 22 ammo to barter for other ammo.
This is also the domain of the .22. a box of 50 will go a long way in trading for 5 rounds for the battle rifle.
But I digress. The writer interjects his man-card into play as he says.
My preferences.
Shotgun - 12ga. Check.
Pocket revolver(why?) - S&W 940. Check.
Full size sidearm - I prefer a .45, but 9mm is ok also.(He makes no mention about this)
Long guns - Now we get into preferences and what utility is needed. Battle rifle -
ANYTHING in .308. Bolt or auto.
An AR of some type. AK's are ok, but I think 5.56 is better availability/accuracy.
Utility
Any .22LR rifle. Bolt or semi.
A.22 handgun. Doesn't matter what it is here. Rugers are awesome, so is the Buckmark. Lots to choose from here, revolver or auto.
In the end you pick the weapons your budget can afford.
You don't need multiples of everything, but you should enhance your inventory when the opportunities come, and in the world of firearms they happen pretty frequently if you have knowledge that something like a Glenfield 60 is exactly the same is the Marlin 60.
This article and his last one on this subject all list “essential” guns. He is up to 6 now and still has not listed a single infantry weapon. He’s a gun-tard.
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