Let's See Your "Survival" Rifle

[kraigwy]

I'm not in to survival scenarios. I have a gun safe full of guns which I don't plan on getting rid of whether I had to survive or not.

But in the spirit of the topic, I'll chime in.

I want to Alaska in '72 working on the Rail Road, I was sent to Healy where there was no place to live but a hotel, but no place for a family, I had a wife and two small kids. So I squatted on RR land and built a little log cabin.

I live there two years. In the winter I got laid off and there was zero jobs. I had to feed my family any way I could.

Then I had several guns, but used one to feed my family through the winter, that was a Savage Model D, 22/410 over and under. It worked, we survived on rabbits, ptarmigan, and fish.

So if I was to have to do it again, (which I wont) I'd pick the same gun, even though I have a gun safe containing just about any firearm style you can imagine.

Not all situations are the same. Later in my 22 years in Alaska I spent a great deal of time living with the Alaska Natives on the Bering Sea. (I was a company commander of a Native Alaskan NG Company).

These people had a different requirement for a "survival gun", that being what they could get ammo for, because like Healy, there are few jobs, no jobs means no money (except for their monthly guard check). They survived by hunting, to hunt marine animals you can't get by with a 22/410, but you shoot what you could get ammo for. The Guard had lots of ammo, so these guys picked a gun that would shoot Guard ammo, started with an '06, 308 and now 223s.

Now with the cheap surplus rifles and ammo, a lot of these guys have went to the Mosin.

 

[jaysouth]

Here is my Topper 30-30. The barrel has been cut to 16.5 inches and weights about 5 pounds.

I reload 113 Lee cast bullets at 800 fps for small game, it's functionally my .22 rf at a time when .22s are hard to come by. With 165 cast loads at 1,800, I have killed lots of deer and feral pigs. And in the event of need, factory .30-30 is easy to come by.



For a true 'survival rifle' I would install iron sights to back up the Bushnell TRS-25.

 

[SR420]

I don't own a .22, but my dad owns this .22 Magnum rifle that he purchased in 1960.
I installed a nice Leupold on it this year for his 81st birthday.

My personal survival rifles are 5.56 NATO and larger calibers.

 

[Legionnaire]

Yes, it's heavy, but hard to beat the functionality of a .22mag/20 gauge combo. Capable of taking game birds and everything from squirrel to whitetail. Iron sights are still in place, too, if the scope got dinged and needed to be pulled.

 

[armoredman]

Buddy of mine has a Savage .410/22lr combo he is very proud of, and he should be - he's taken dove on the wing and rabbit on the run with it. Nothing wrong with a good combo gun...unless it's one of those Crossfire monstrosities of the 90s. Gah.

If I ran out the door right now, (hobble slowly, actually), it would be this setup,



...with chest pouch of ammo. However, I don't foresee this happening any time soon.

 

[Budda]

I have my dads old AR-7, he kept it in the Cessna 210 as a survival rifle. very accurate and fun to shoot.

file photos,

 

[g.willikers]

Nice.
Is that an original Armalite?

 

[Budda]

Yes. Original AR-7. Not a Henry. Super accurate. Rebuilt it after 15years of use. Still good to go.

 

[Geezerbiker]

For me a survival rifle is something to get small game with if I'm lost out in the wilderness. The only activity that would get me out in there in the first place is hunting.

So what I have is survival rounds rather than a survival rifle. I make up cast bullet loads with small amounts of fast burning powder for whatever rifle I'm carrying so that I could pop a rabbit or other small game that a full power rifle round would blow all to hell.

I also practice with these low power rounds not just to be good with them but because it's fun. I find the point where they shoot to aim with my sights and get to where I can judge that distance. With the low power loads I'm usually shooting them on the way up rather than the way down like on full power rounds.

If I could still hike, I'd carry something like a Cricket single shot handgun. I'm thinking about getting one for no particular reason anyway...

My concealed carry gun is either my Colt detective special or my M1911a1. I hope to never need to use any of my survival tools...

Tony

 

[Sheikyourbootie]

Well, if using home cast bullets with fast burning (for rifle) powders is your criterion, then I'll keep my "Appalachian AR" Marlin 336 in 30-30.

With a Lyman 311041 mold and hollow pointed version of the same mold...it can be pushed with a max load of Varget or Leverevolution powder for speeds up to 2400fps and is great on Boar/bear/deer/coyote out to 200 yards, or the bullet can be downloaded and hollow pointed for use with Alliant 2400 powder down in the 1000fps range for things like rabbits or chupacabra or whatever small game you have in mind.

Hell on squirrels, though it saves time if you are trying to make an aerobatic dish of carnage asada:

 

[Geezerbiker]

It looks like you need to back off the powder for squirrels but I love your description if it...

I picked up a .32" round ball Lyman mold for 10 bucks at a gun show many moons ago and I run them though my .311 Lee sizer for a little elongated bullet that shoots great with 4 grains of Red Dot or W231. I haven't shot any tree rats with one yet but I'm thinking if I kept the hits shoulder or higher, there the hams would still be eatable...

Tony

 

[Malamute]

I've used .310" round balls with 3 grs Unique in the 30-30 for small game and grouse, they work great and dont tear them up much.

 

[Yung.gunr]

My Dad bought on of these http://www.rossiusa.com/product-details.cfm?id=45 a couple years ago for my two younger brothers Christmas present. It's in .22lr & 12ga. They never showed much interest and lost the front sling swivel which held the handguard on. I asked if I could have it so I fashioned a new bolt/wingnut to hold it on and cut the shotgun barrel down. I musta checked the length a dozen times before cutting to make sure it was still legal.

The wife and I made a little bag for it that holds the components and about 200 rounds of .22lr and 25 or so shotgun rounds. Got some defense 12ga and some birdshot.

I think it would work out ok if needed, plus the only money I put into it was the bolt/wingnut and the fabric for the bag.

 

[Mohave-Tec]

If I had 30 seconds to get out of the door never to retun it would probably be this...

Kel Tec SU16C .223. Folds up. 20 rd mag, red dot, flash hider 5lbs.

 

[Meeteetse]

Sorry, no pictures, but if I had to make a decision it would depend on what you mean by survival. If you are talking about protecting the family, that would be one choice, if gathering food, that would be another.

I think my youth stocked 10/22 could provide a lot of small game if there was any. My Mini-14, my 30/30 or my Scout .308 could protect the family and take bigger game. I don't plan on having only one choice and that would include handguns too.

If I stay in the south where I usually winter, in an urban environment, I would probably choose a good .22 rifle and a large caliber handgun for survival. If I am at my cabin in the northern Rockies, I would probably reverse the choices, large caliber rifle and a .22 handgun. These have been my choices long before everyone started talking about survival situations.

 

[Deja vu]

These are mine. The First one is to hunt small game and provide food for the family quietly

Its a 22lr with a suppressor and a scope with a custom dial on it that will allow me to shoot quiet sub sonic rounds out to about 120 yards by only moving the dial to the right distance.


My second one is this one:

This one is a suppressed 45-70. If times are very really bad the ability to stay hidden and quiet may be important. This gun can maintain over 1000 FPE at 100 yards and still be subsonic from the muzzle.


p.s. yeah I love suppressors.

 

[Stevie-Ray]

This may end up being a survival rifle, not sure yet.

 

[Diesel9]

I think this combo are about as rugged, reliable, and weatherproof as it gets (if that's important in a survival situation).
Ruger 77/357 and GP100 .357 mag.

A good .22 probably does have the advantage of lightweight ammo/better small game cartridge however.

 

[farmall]

Dont have pics, but I really like my M6 Scout, and the versatility of the Hornet/410 combo, especially if you consider slugs. Extra shotshells carried in pack or pocket easily, and without adding much weight. Same for the Hornet ammo.

 

[GunDude123]

OR you can buy a Henry AR-7