Preparedness, how ready do you need to be?

[Urse]

You know I was sitting here the other day drooling over yet another gun on gunbroker. My wife walks in rolls her eyes :rolleyes:and gives me the standard "What do you need another one for? You only have to hands.":blah: I quickly reply " I got to have some for you and the kids(1 and 3 years old respectively)" But it got me thinking. How ready is ready? And ready for what? I own several hanguns(mostly Glocks) a few Kalashnikovs(with a 308 version on the way) a DSA FAL and a couple surplus bolt guns as well as a few more sportsman type rifles(levergun, boltgun) I literally do not have anymore room in the safe(that's why i'm selling one..hint,hint). I have several thousands of rounds of ammunition with at least a thousand of 4 different calibers. But do I really need all that. If a massive governmental breakdown happens in the next five minutes how hard is it gonna be to get myself and my family safely home and then what? Am I just being paranoid even thinking about streamlining my guns to three different calibers so it will be easier for me to stockpile(again stockpile for what?) Or am I just using all the gloom and doom as a reason to buy more guns(hey they are fun). And then I realized I can't control any of that and the only thing I could control is protecting my family in the moment if anything happened. Hope for the best but, have and not need is better than need and not have.I hope that I surround myself with the best of people and try to be that myself. I have friends and neighbors that I trust and that can trust me. That goes a long way. Unfortunately we live in a world that can change in an instant. Are you ready? For what? Of course my wife is right. I am being paranoid! I'm supposed to be I'm a father. By the way, when she walked out of the room I placed a bid on gunboker:rock:.

Urse

P.S. No, you DO NOT need to send the ATFto my house!

[Guest CrazyLincoln]

When the protection aspect is covered, people sometimes forget that shooting and collecting are hobbies too. No one ever told Tiger Woods he had too many clubs or told MJ he had too many shoes. Who can say any of us has too many guns?

Unless, of course, you are planning an offensive......

[saintsfanbrian]

Personally, I plan to have one AR-15, I have one AK. I own 1 .45 and 2 9mm. I also have a .38, a .22 Rifle and a 12 ga. shotgun. The reason I am getting an AR is because should the fit hit the shan so to speak I want a long range rifle (I know there are longer ranged weapons) where ammo is more readily available.

Around here, I think we are more likely to see something like the aftermath from Katrina following a major earthquake. Though I do see things in the government that I don't like, I seriously doubt any time in the very near future there is going to be a "break down" of the type that would send the country in to "survival" mode. Could it happen? Sure. Is it likely? Not really, in my opinion and I hope I am not wrong.

As for preparedness. I am working on small "survival" kits to keep in cars. I have poncho's and firstaid kits in both of my cars. I am working on a way to secure a long gun and a hand gun in both of my vehicles -

I think this drawer is big enough to hold some rope, some ammo, a rifle, a handgun, sox, gloves, and powerbar/mre's. I also try to keep a couple of 16 oz. bottles of water in the car. You never know when you might want a drink. Thinking about putting a small bottle of booze and some cash too.

The main thing that I want is to have enough "supplies" to get me back to my house and to get my family some where safe. When we purchase the big jeep in the fall:

we will be able to carry a lot more.

Remember the Boy Scout motto: Be Prepared.

Most of the items I will keep in my car can be bartered incase there is a serious decline.

[shaftbass]

Cool :drool::D:stare: :

[The Rabbi]

I had this conversation with one of my customers about hunting. How many guns does a hunter really need?

The answer is basically 2: A Remington 870 12ga and a bolt rifle in .308 or similar. You can hunt just about anything in North America with those two. That doesnt stop people (nor should it) from owning multiple rifles and shotguns. As they say, variety is the spice of life.

For myself, I decided that I wanted to be good with the handgun(s) I have. Those are primarily Smith Model 19s in 4 and 2 1/2 varieties.

I have a Remington 870 Mariner for home defense and the tiny amount of skeet I shoot. I also own a couple of semi auto handguns, mostly for teaching purposes and a couple of .22s for the same reason. Also an AR just because they are so much darn fun.

I think the minimum is probably one handgun in decent caliber. Better than that is one full sized handgun, one airweight Jframe revolver for daily carry, one 12 ga pump for HD.

[shaftbass]

It's better to have too much than not enough. I have lots of ammo for my AR, .45, 9mm, and shotgun. I have enough ammo for every gun I own to make me feel comfortable should there be some kind of chaotic event or anarchy, or who knows what. Those things are unlikely to happen in the civilized suburbs of Nashville, but as the saying goes, you never know.

I keep several loaded magazines for each of my handguns, several loaded AR magazines, several speedloaders for my .357 686.. all in the safe.

I keep a (needless to say) loaded handgun wherever I am. If I'm driving, it's wedged in between my seat and the console. If I'm in the shower or on the ****ter, it's on the toilet tank. If I'm in the garage, its with me on the workbench. If I'm in my recliner, it's on the floor next to me. It's the same one I carry every day: Glock 36. The ammo capacity isn't that high, but 7 rounds should be enough to allow me to get to my safe where the arsenal is, if I'm home that is.

It never hurts to be prepared. It shouldn't sound paranoid. I mean, most people buy insurance don't they? Nobody says that's paranoid, and the consequences of not being prepared are far less grim than not being prepared to protect your life.

[Guest c.a.s.]

There is an old saying.

Better to have something and not need it that need it and not have it.

There is no "too ready", except tinfoil hat ready, and you can't have too many guns and ammo.

[bteague2]

There is no such thing as over prepared, just the right situation hasn't arisen yet. And I hope one day they find out tin foil hats do block/protect you from something.

[Guest EasilyObsessed]

I started watching Jericho on CBS....since then, I have been trying to consolidate calibers and working on making sure I have 1000 rounds of any caliber I can shoot.

I figure there is no point in not being prepared. At the worst, I have plenty of ammo and toys if I decide I need to hit the range on a whim.

[Guest dotsun]

I just got finished watching all the episodes over at cbs.com. It's an awesome series that I would highly recommend, and I'm not much of a tv watcher.

[Urse]

You know you need to buy the SYSCO industrial strength tin foil. It is the 10mm of tin foil.