Best guns to stock up on

[LI0NSFAN]

EDIT: My fist discription yeilded a lot of good answers but not what I was looking for. Here is the deal,

1- I want 4 guns the total cost of all 4 combined cost can't be over $1600 (that takes almost all AR, 1911's, AR-10and 50 cals out). I want all members in my group to carry the same guns for the ability to just swap mags,ammo,parts.

2- Ammo has to be affordable and accessable. I am not looking at roaming the street looking for ammo to get off the less fortunate. I will stock enough to last a while

3- I am not prepping for end of the world, just prepping for civil unrest. (situations like that happened in the middle east) that gets back under control after a couple of months.

4- looking to get a handgun, carbine in hand gun ammo, and a mid - long range rifle, 22 rifle or handgun. I won't be hunting for survival (maybe for fun) this is protection only.

5- the safe house is smaller so need wepons that are ment for close quarters (that rules out shot guns- to much for what I need)

6- would like to be able to carry all 4 at one time if needed, the safe house will have other fire arms in it, I just want these four to be the goto's so I can train family on them and the will be comfortable using them.

7- we will be using the safe house mainly as a protection at night and we would just hang around the property during the day. We are not going to go out and look for a fight. I don't think of this as being sitting ducks, just makes more sense to stay where you are fimiliar with the surroundings.

I understand that AR's and Shotguns are great, I own some but when looking at this project they did not fit what I was going for,like most I have a budget and money is an issue, if it wasn't an issue I would not have posed this every one would have 1911's, ar-15, ar-10 and cz 22lr. I understand that my prepping may not make sense to you but I am not afraid of the END of the world as I know where me and my family are going. I just want to be safe if people get stupid.

Edited March 19, 2012 by climberscott_1999

[Sandman]

Glock 17/19.

AR-15.

Throw in an 870 depending the deal(s) you got.

[ted]

1911 45acp lots of ammo out there

Ar-15 in 5.56 223 lots of ammo out there

Everybody uses thease calibers oh and maybe add 9mm to the mix

What do you have climberscott and why

[LI0NSFAN]

I don't think I want to go with a 45 just because I can ge SO much more 9mm for the price, I understand the AR arguement but getting an AR woul pretty much eat up the budget because lately AR's are being built with gold parts or something. I have not been able to find a non budget AR for under $1000 and I was looking at getting a few so waiting around for a sale or "good deal" and don't really want to build one. I was planning on getting all 5 people 3 guns- handgun, handgun ammo rifle, mid range gun. So far the best setup I can come up with is G17, sub200 that takes glock mags, mini 14. That should keep me under 1500 and allow the 2 guns to share ammo and mags. then I only have to stock up on 9mm, and 223. I might throw in a couple of shotguns but they might be over kill as we would just be staying put and not roaming the streets and shots are a little overkill for close quarters.

[Oh Shoot]

If I knew which day EOTWAWKI was scheduled, I'd buy 50 Hi-Point C9s and 50 995 carbines; most cost efficient way to arm whatever band of folks circumstance might make one a part of.

- OS

[runco]

For the money, pistol Glock 17 9mm, SKS 7.62x39, and any defensive 12 ga shotgun with 8 shot tube, mossberg 500 12 ga. Then ammo, ammo and more ammo, and a Bible.

[Guest Revelator]

Replace the mini with a Mosin Nagant and I think that would fit your criteria.

[LI0NSFAN]

OS- I was thinking of those options because of the amount of ammo you can buy with the price diff. I would buy 2-3 for each person If I went that route

Runco- I was thinking of the SKS, but trying to keep it simple as far as the handgun ammo rifle goes something in 9mm. still have not decieded if a shot is necessary, Bible already in there

P.Stegall- Nagant might be a little much for the ladies and younger ones in the group. I do have a couple ready though

[Oh Shoot]

OS- I was thinking of those options because of the amount of ammo you can buy with the price diff. I would buy 2-3 for each person If I went that route...

I was thinking more in general than just planning for an already small existing group, which I don't have. Thinking I wouldn't know who my allies might turn out to be -- if any.

- OS

Edited March 19, 2012 by OhShoot

[dou44]

good sks or ak and i like the xd 9mm and 40. mosin nagant with a scope would make a good long distance gun if money were tight.and the ammo can be found easy for all the above.

[Guest ITGuy]

If I could only have 3 I'd definitely have to say...

Handgun - Glock 22

Shotgun - Mossberg 590 A1

Rifle - AR-15

I have to admit though, the HK USP 45 is a beauty. I can't judge it unless I've fired it though.

[Caster]

Actual gun model may vary. They should suit you with enough spare parts to carry through to the next life. CALIBER should be the priority. If you're stocking, you want something common.

These are NOT in any particular order. The bulk of southeastern United States Firearms will be chambered in these.

*9x19

*45 ACP

*.40 S&W

*.223/5,56

*.308/7,62x51

*7,62x39

*30/06

*30/30

*12g

[nightrunner]

Actual gun model may vary. They should suit you with enough spare parts to carry through to the next life. CALIBER should be the priority. If you're stocking, you want something common.

These are NOT in any particular order. The bulk of southeastern United States Firearms will be chambered in these.

*9x19

*45 ACP

*.40 S&W

*.223/5,56

*.308/7,62x51

*7,62x39

*30/06

*30/30

*12g

Probably want to add. 357 to that list as well, lots of those floating around.

Either a 1911 or glock for handgun

Midrange just screams shotgun buckshot is very lethal at that range and slugs reach out a little further.

for more range get something in. 308 but if your just waiting for help ( not very smart imo) you dont need a long range solution.

Substitute the shotgun for a carbine either an ar or quality ak if you like.

[Moped]

Option No. 1: Combat

Glock 17

M-4

2000 rounds of .223 hp

2000 rds 9mm whatever flavor they prefer.

Option No. 2: Putting Meat in the Belly

S&W 686 6" Barrel .357mag

Savage 10 Scout in .308 (with both rifle sites and a good 3-9X scope

Bolt action .22 Single Shot Rifle

2000 of of the rounds your rifle likes the best

2000 rounds of 158 SJHP

20000 rounds of whatever .22LR that your rifle is the most accurate with

(Notice I slipped a extra rifle in on you here)

Option No. 3: The World Ain't Never Coming Back

Bolt Action Single Shot .22LR

Black Powder Flintlock Rifle in .58 caliber

Black Powder Pistol in same caliber as above

Lots of FFFG and FFFFG black powder

Bullet mold for making .58 caliber balls.

100 lbs of lead for making said balls

Recipe for making Black Powder

20000 rounds of .22LR of whatever your rifle shoots the best in.

Book on bow making

Tools needed to make bows and arrows

Personally, I'd have every option covered. I don't think any one or two or three guns is going to cover it. Plus, I'd want some non firearms weapons on hand as well.

Edited March 19, 2012 by Moped

[LI0NSFAN]

Good suggestions, I was really looking to find a combo that allows you to share ammo and possibly mags. I don't want to have to stock up on 3 diff kinds of ammo. I know that an AR is EVERYONES favorite gun but after buying an AR it only allows for $500 to buy 2 other guns. AR's are just to high in price right now, I know they "sell" for 700-800 but thats if you can find them at that. I was looking at a total cost of $1500 for 3 guns.

[I_Like_Pie]

1 - 12 ga shotgun

1 - bolt action 30/06

1- .22lr Rifle

If you shop around you can get all for around $600 on the used market

================================

Don't take it the wrong way, but I challenge anyone to find a better set than those three for what will amount to substance work...getting food and basic protection. Everyone talking about 9mm and pistol calibers....if things ever went really really south then they are pretty much useless. Even now our military only uses their pistols if they are about 3 seconds from dying. If you are in this situation in SHTF you are doing something major wrong or you are about to get ground up into meat.

A SHTF historically entails a very different reality than what is being described in most forums.

[mikegideon]

Interesting thread. You need some AR-15's. Maybe some pistols if they break. Weapons get voted on over time. There's a reason they made so many AR=15's. They're useful

[broylz]

i would choose a glock 17 for the pistol and a decent AR15. you can find ar15s for around $600, used glocks for $400. that gives you $500 for mags and ammo which i would spend on 1k of wolf .223 and 1k or wolf 9mm. whatever is left gets spent on spare mags. if 5 people did this, it would last quite awhile. save a couple hundred bucks by using an ak47 instead of an AR15, which would be my second option.

[Dolomite_supafly]

Something that no one has mentioned is something I would consider a priority in any survival situation when you are trying to stay low.

A silencer.

And get one for as many calibers as you can but if you only have one make it a 22. The reason is subsonic 22 ammo is readily available and lightweight to carry. And 22 will kill any game we have in our area with the right shot. And with a silencer it is possible to get multiple shots before what you are shooting at realizes what just happened and by that time it is too late.

If you are hunting, even with a 22, the shot will alarm and bring in curious people. And those curious people are going to be problems. And realistically I could fend off intruders from quite a distance with a 22 and my silencer. I routinely practice 200 yard shots and at 200 yards anyone would be hard pressed to hear the shot or figure out where the shot came from.

In my 22 AR it is literally the hammer hitting and the bolt cycling that you hear over the shot. In a bolt gun all you hear is the impact on target even if the target is dirt it is still louder at 100 yards than the shot.

A few more things I would consider mandatory is a decent pellet rifle to take game quietly with and a slingshot for the same reason. You can also shoot arrows quite well with a slingshot making it effective for deer or larger animals when shooting isn't ideal.

Dolomite

[Jonnin]

If you had to do it with 3 guns ---- well, I would say get a shotgun first, and have slugs and buckshot and bird shot all in quantity, and use it as your hunting rifle / birds/ and defensive long arm. So a high cap semiauto 12 gauge.

Next I would say get a 308 AR if you can afford it, or a similar platform in 308. Lots of ammo, long range, deadly power, versatile.

And unfortunately that means using one of the above as your primary source of defense, and getting a .22 pistol for small game. Or, if you can, a 22 multi caliber (22 short, long, and mag) revolver perhaps --- which can be used for self defense with the magnums, if you needed a smaller weapon.

Given the small size and weight of modern pistols, I see no reason to not have a second pistol in 9mm to go with this setup. I could easily carry 4 or 5 modern pistols in my pockets without much trouble, why not have some extras?

[Will H]

What I have put together...

1. Beretta 92fs. 2nd to that would be the Glock. It's high quality for sure, but service life will be an issue and the 92 has the edge there, not to mention the compatibility with mags and parts from US servicemen you might find laying around. If you have the option of a backup gun I would choose the Glock 26 for much the same reason. You are likely to also find glock 9mm mags laying around from time to time.

2. Glenfield model 60. It's the same as the Marlin model 60, except made before 1984. It holds 18 rounds of .22 LR, and is good for all sorts of small game. Very reliable with Federal Bulk copper hollow points.

3. Mosin Nagant 91/30 w/ mil surp silver tip Russian ammo. This gives you the ability to kill anything on this continent. It shoots thru walls, cars, body armor, mild steel, etc.

[LI0NSFAN]

Dolomite- I did not think of silensers. good idea especially if we are going to remain stationary. It would get steep in cost and might raise eyes buying 20 suppressors. I guess if I get 2 per person that might not be as bad.

[Jonnin]

EDIT: My fist discription yeilded a lot of good answers but not what I was looking for. Here is the deal,

1- I want 4 guns the total cost of all 4 combined cost can't be over $1600 (that takes almost all AR, 1911's, AR-10and 50 cals out). I want all members in my group to carry the same guns for the ability to just swap mags,ammo,parts.

2- Ammo has to be affordable and accessable. I am not looking at roaming the street looking for ammo to get off the less fortunate. I will stock enough to last a while

3- I am not prepping for end of the world, just prepping for civil unrest. (situations like that happened in the middle east) that gets back under control after a couple of months.

4- looking to get a handgun, carbine in hand gun ammo, and a mid - long range rifle, 22 rifle or handgun. I won't be hunting for survival (maybe for fun) this is protection only.

5- the safe house is smaller so need wepons that are ment for close quarters (that rules out shot guns- to much for what I need)

6- would like to be able to carry all 4 at one time if needed, the safe house will have other fire arms in it, I just want these four to be the goto's so I can train family on them and the will be comfortable using them.

7- we will be using the safe house mainly as a protection at night and we would just hang around the property during the day. We are not going to go out and look for a fight. I don't think of this as being sitting ducks, just makes more sense to stay where you are fimiliar with the surroundings.

I understand that AR's and Shotguns are great, I own some but when looking at this project they did not fit what I was going for,like most I have a budget and money is an issue, if it wasn't an issue I would not have posed this every one would have 1911's, ar-15, ar-10 and cz 22lr. I understand that my prepping may not make sense to you but I am not afraid of the END of the world as I know where me and my family are going. I just want to be safe if people get stupid.

Oh, OK.

Lets see... you want cheap... 4 guns at 1600 is 400 each or less. No hunting stuff. A totally different problem...

Kel tec plr 16. Using standard AR 15 mags in 223, it shoots cheap ammo, is a cheap gun, accurate and reliable, lightweight ... its the perfect inexpensive replacement for an AR. If you prefer a rifle, the same gun is sold as a rifle, one of the other Kel-Tecs, just a longer barrel and stock but same action and design. $500 roughly, or less, it varies.

Handgun: take your pick. A used 9mm glock is going to be fairly cheap. A surplus cz82, you could spend $500 and have both the gun and 1k rounds of ammo for it .... most of that price is the ammo! Its not quite a 9mm, but trust me, the bad guy won't know the difference. But unless you go for an exotic surplus gun, that used glock or other used gun (I got a used ruger p89 9mm for $250 for example, reliable all day long though its a brick) is the way to go. If the gun cost over $500, you did it wrong here.

Pistol caliber carbine: Here also, kel tec makes an inexpensive gun. Also, the highpoint carbines have a solid reputation. These are inexpensive guns that you will want to buy, test, break in, and get them up to par before stowing them --- sometimes inexpensive brands have troubles and while you can get em fixed, best to do that right away before you need the gun. Once working, they tend to work well for a long time.

that just leaves you a .22. I would get a S&W 22a or 22as pistol, which is a target gun with a long enough barrel to get some velocity and very, very accurate. Another good choice is the classic 10-22 rifle. The pistol is lighter to haul around if you want to carry all 4, though.

Of these, the only ones I cannot vouch for are the highpoints. I have heard good things from some cheap buddies, but I have not owned one nor fired one more than a couple of shots. Again, cannot stress enough that while a cheap gun will do a lot, you must break them in and discover any issues with them right away, so they will be ready to go. The biggest difference between big brand names and high price tags is the ability to use it out of the box without issues and the number of rounds before it is worn out. Presumably, a week or 2 of civil unrest won't wear out cheap guns, so you really just need to ensure they work out of the box which some of the "less reputable" "cheap/inexpensive" weapons, ahh, "strugggle" with.

Edit: both highpoint and kel tec have lifetime "we will fix it for you" warrenty, which is why I listed them over some of the other inexpensive options.

Edited March 19, 2012 by Jonnin

[Guest alloyguitar]

I built my ar based on parts from PSA for around 700 with all the magpul furniture. It's a 14.5" length, which would be just fine for closed-quarters.

My springfield 1911 was 300 dollars. That could be substituted for a police-trade in glock 17 if that's your thing. I see them at local gun shows for 300.

That puts me at a grand.

For a .22lr, I'd pick up a marlin 60 or a rem 597. My marlin was 70 dollars at a pawn shop and it feeds like a dream, and we've picked up several 597's for under 140 with the medium barrel profile.Let's call that 140.

So we're at 1140.

That'd leave you 460 bucks for tax, background, and that fourth gun, whatever it may be.

If it was me, though, I'd get a .22 conversion bolt for the AR if you can squeeze it in your budget with the fourth gun. They're not terribly accurate, but they're inexpensive and if, in the unlikely event that you ran out of 5.56, you would still have ammunition in the form of a brick of .22lr, which wouldn't be difficult to carry.

As for the fourth gun, you said a shotgun would be overkill, but there really is no better firearm for protection indoors. I'd get a used mossberg 500 or maverick 88 12ga pump with an assortment of shells. I picked up a 500 for 189 recently in good condition. If need be you could probably find a wood furniture long-barreled hunting rifle and change the barrel or cut it down to fit your uses.

[LI0NSFAN]

Ok so after a ton of research on compatiblity and reliability. I have decieded to go with

G17 $600 otd

Sub2000 $350 otd

Mossberg 100atr $350 otd

Ruger 10/22 $250 otd

All these are new prices for worst case secnario that puts me at $1550. The major up side to this combo is that the G17 and sub 2000 take the same ammo and mags. I chose a bolt action for the sake of reliability and cost, I don't expect to have to use this but I have always hunted with a bolt and feel it is more reliable. I could have gone with a cheaper 22lr but the mag capacity was the best on this. After researching I found that mag capacity was probably most important to me. I don't want the less skilled in my group to have to reload often. I know if I take time and buy used or on sale i can get a way better deal but I have to be high on what I expect to pay as I am doing this setup x5. so 1550x5= $7750 after getting 10,000 rounds of 9mm 2000 per person, 1000 rounds of 308 200 per person, 50000 rounds of 22lr 10000 per person I come out at just over $10,000 retail. If I pick up 30 33rd glock mags and 25 25round mags for the ruger I have another 1,000 add in tax and a little for unexpected expences I can do all of this for $12,000 and that is full retail.

The MODS can choose to take down or keep up