Yes terrain is a huge factor. Our area is a mix and the reality here is about 300 yards is the max anyone is going to have to deal with. Lots of 50 to 100 yard engagement areas. If God forbid they get close to the house 25 to 50 yards is to be expected. I prefer to keep things bottled up away from the house. This way we can use the .338 or 30-06 from concealment . My AR-15 is my walking rifle. Patrolling the area is going to be necessary to keep bad element away from the lake and our homes. W e have two three man teams for that and 2 two man teams for concealed defensive positions. The plan is to fall back and lead the intruders into those defensive positions. Or just engage them first at those positions. I wish I had your defensive position @BTPost . They would have to have a cannon on the boat to root you out.
We have big swings between farming fields that you would need a cannon to reach out and touch them, and brier thickets that a sawnoff pistol could get hung up in. I tend to go heavy, and go for cover penetration. Talking about young men, weight, and my original posts here talking about not liking .223, I used to carry a 1885 Hiwall in .45-70, with 150ish rounds in a bandoleer and a possibles pouch. Could aim, fire, and reload faster in sub-3 seconds when I was doing it, out to 75-100 yards. 30" bull octagonal barrel, only could have been better if it was a Sharps. Haha. One of my normal carry, back up rifles in a .45LC Winchester '73. 14 shot, tough as all get out, and accurate as well, so long as I calculate distance right to adjust the sights. For about 5 years before the Hiwall, it was the only rifle I would carry. Turns out the same bandoleer that will carry .45LC will carry .45-70, and .308. Pretty cool. Still arguing over a dedicated SHTF rifle now. I don;t really like either one of the options, though I am intrigued by some of the new Century offerings that are all American. I'm partial to the .308 line of thought, obviously. Been thinking over a PTR 91 or a M1a Scout when I can put the coins together.
And I do means War for Southern Independence type cannon. Several Thousand yards across these fields at times, sometimes fading into the distance.
Look into a DPMS GII, specifically the GII AP4 or GII MOE. The weight, ergonomics, and accuracy of an AR-15 in 7.62x51/308. Lowers are 70% parts compatible with AR-15's. Going rate is not much more than the PTR 91. If these had been available when I built my AR-15's I'd have gotten them instead. Also just picked up a slightly heavier Adams piston 308 based on the same pattern. These are also in the same price range if you want a piston gun. The Adams is just over 8 lbs in the version I bought, but has a heavier barrel. DPMS GII // DESIGNED II DOMINATE MICRO .
I run a Mueller reflex sight on my AK, mounted on a TWS dogleg along with a better rear sight that sits at the back of the dog leg and Tritium front sight post. While I love the reflex sight, I have no illusions that it will remain undamaged in a hard fight, which is why I always ensure that I have good iron sights as a back-up.
I just dont have a one gun that does it all. I wish I hadn't had to sell that .44 but I just dont have enough money to own them all. We have two handguns, two shotguns, two 30-06 rifles , one 30-30 marlin lever gun and two .22 rifles . I just bought the new Ar-15 . My wife already wants her own Ar. Ill most likely get another Oracle just like mine with the same optics and everything.
I'd make them identical everything and I suggest getting one extra lower parts kit plus extra springs for spares. Agreed on no one gun does it all - if you try you get one gun that does nothing well. Over specialization is maybe even worse.
Yea, @Kingfish My wife fell in LOVE with my AR10, when I gave her "First Shot" .... Now, it is hard to go out and shoot it, without having her, demand to take her turn, with it... Same thing happened, decades ago, when I brought home, my Browning HiPower... It became HER Gun, until I was able to buy her the Dan Wesson Stainless .357 Pistol Pac.... Beware of bring home a new Weapon, to a household, with a female Shooter....
Between the AR-15 platform and AK-47 platform, I'd take the AR-15 without hesitation. Since I didn't sign the Geneva Convention (just like my Govt.) I'm not bound to use hard ball ammunition. Instead my 5.56 defense ammo is based on a bullet specifically designed to penetrate hard objects and still terminally wound. The bullet I use is the 62gr Nosler Bonded Performance, same as the FBI load. I was planning on a hunting bullet when I ran across them on a closeout sale last year. I practice with XM-193 and have plenty of M855 on hand. What I shoot gets reloaded. The Nosler rounds only get shot for proofing.
What Makes The Best Battle Rifle for me? That would have to be the AR. Lighter weight, quicker to replace a magazine, rounds weigh less. Rifle can easily be aimed and shot with one arm, weighs less. Rounds available from the battle field.
When it comes to such things, I'm not a gourmet so as far as I'm concerned they all work. As far as firearms, I embrace diversity. As daughter graduated college long ago and no bills why not? As I said they all work. The AK is a bar room brawler, the AR has more accurate range, 7.62N reaches farther turning cover into concealment. My current love is the 6.8 SPC2 as it has more legs than the AR. The 6.8 SPC2 is almost as accurate as the 6.5 and is close to the 7mm's terminal ballistics. Shuh-weet of the first order. In the hands of a rifleman, the semi with a 30 round mag is pretty much capable of suppression or convincing the varmint or you to keep their head down. Unless one is being resupplied, the FA is highly overrated. @ghrit Try an RPK rear sight; they are adjustable and compensate for the typical cockeyed front sight. The other alternative is remove the front sight, re-drill the pins and align it correctly. FWIW, even the inexpensive Chicom Pioneer air rifles have cockeyed sights.
I was watching FPS Russia last night and not only did the AK make the the list of the 3 guns for Surviving the Apocalypse but he also put the AK through a test if it gets dirty. I cringed when he started putting stuff on the gun but it still went bang. At the end of the video he challenges if you can put the AR though that.
I'm biased, because I spend a lot of time with the AK platform. I do reload steel case, Berdan primed 7.62x39 with gas checked cast bullets. For me the issues are reliability, sustainability, ergonomics, and quick combat accurate shot placement. I've never been a fan of the M16/M4/AR15. The AK works just for me.
As already stated why would anyone; that being said, he needs to surf YouTube more.. There are a lot of pictures online from Afghanistan of men carrying AKs. One common trait, the weapon is cleaner that they are which is telling us something. If it is mechanical, it will malfunction, jam, break etc.
Snow , rain, mud, sleet, dirt etc. You dont always have a clean gun in war. That is the essence of the Ak-47 iT STILL FIRES FILTHY DIRTY. But they still dont hit much unless fixed to do so. My thinking tells me the American made ones are tighter tolerance and wont fire as dirty. Making them better also makes them not so good as what they were intended for. Russian landscape during ww2 was like a frozen tundra, Mud and horrible conditions. Theres your sign.
The problem there is that the AK47 was developed in (!) 1947, thus post war. Now, I can't tell you that the AK was developed in response to a perceived threat to the Soviets to be fought on Soviet soil, or if it was developed for other reasons (like maybe because the MN and their other guns were old platforms, even if well adapted to the steppes, mud and grime, or because the M1 Garand was clearly superior to the MN as an MBR.) But the AK remains a viable weapon for a LOT of geographic war scenarios as well as being dirt simple (pun intended) and as long as range remains limited. Around the house and yard, well, not a bad choice, says me, and maybe me only.
Here is another sign, judging by war; when M-series meets AK, guess who won? As I really like them and own more than a few; I have nothing against the AK. However, if I need to hit something at 300 meters, I'll take the AR. The former Com Block doctrine is spray fire. In each group, the best shot is issued a Drag, PSL or what have you. Their job is to take out officers, NCOs, heavy weapons etc. As the doctrine of the "West" is aimed fire; at the same ranges, any one in the group can accomplish the same. Better trained soldiers shoot more accurately. In recent conflicts, when range increased (to 400 meters plus) beyond the 5.56's effective envelope, the West added a DMR. Although I doubt it will happen; it would have been nice if the 5,56 would have been replaced by the 6.8 SPC. More range, heavier bullet and almost as accurate as the 6.5. For SHTF, the 6.8 SPC2 is same as the 7.62 or 5.45 x 39, there is a lot more ammo around for 5.56.
And one reason for that is sound recognition, if they (enemy) hear a AK they may come to join the fight. When they get there they will be surprised to find an ambush by US Troops.
