Not gonna happen, not as long as we have the SCOTUS ruling on Bruen, there are many challenges facing the Gun Grabbers, and they will ultimately fail to get anything banned, and Pedo and Co. will be stuck with a great big nothing burger with extra flys! That being said, I find different "load Outs" that fit different situations is the real secret to live! For traveling to restrictive areas where I could get into trouble ( Until the anti's get the royal smack down that's coming) I carry one of my "Standard Capacity" rifles, ether the Mauser 98, or Springfield 1903, both in .30/06, Or, I carry my most favoritist .30/06, the Winchester 1895, also in .30/06. Or, if i'm feeling sporting, the K-31 barreled in 7.62X51 NATO! The point is, I "Can" choose to comply, and not have to suffer under some arbitrary bans, as all rifles are fed via the 5 round Stripper clips! For Handguns, the "Standard Capacity" 1911 has always served me well, and I always have a hand canon revolver with in easy reach or on my person, so, again, I can choose to comply and not feel out gunned! Now, for areas of heightened threats, or more Constitutnal aligned, I carry what ever the hell I want, but find the situation usually dictates what and how, I really like having ether a wood stocked Bolt or Lever action over the shoulder,, and a Colt Python or Anaconda on the belt cross draw, I find most folk don't really notice the "Old" firearms nearly like they do the all black ones, if only they really knew! Grand Daddies .30/30 Winchester is FAR FAR more potent/powerful then any AR-15, but alas, I'm not about to tell them, let them think that old Greybeard with his worn out looking 1895 Lever is not a real threat, i'm good with that! Now, SHTF or TEOTWAWKI, its game on with the Black Rifles and hand guns, and I don't care what the sheeple think, if you know, then your ether on my team or your a threat and will be shot first before I bother with the questions!
I don't think we have been able to buy made in Russia saiga guns in a long time. But they make them in the US now. Stupid Obama banned the import of saigas so the Kalashnikov Concern opened a factory in the US with new machinery and they make them here now. Part of the 10x increase in "assault weapons" build capacity that happen under the Obama administration.
If you're "investing" in firearms and ammunition now you missed the boat a few years back. Rawls lays out some interesting investment options. Bearing in mind the whole "you get what you pay for" idiom, and his stated bias I still find it odd that he skips over everything from AR15/AR10 to antique pre-1899 bolt guns and antique revolvers. There were a lot of economical and reliable rifles in stout calibers that were left out along with every modern revolver and the 1911. If we have a government that's butt-hurt about anything with a ten round magazine, why would you exclude these? Have you checked prices and availability on any quality revolver or 1911 lately? I think the best advice may be to get them while you can. @Ura-Ki made an excellent point about fitting your load-outs to the situation. A lever-action 30-30 doesn't get the same attention in your trunk as an AR or AK if you get stopped and permit a search of your vehicle. A lightly cased Winchester 94 or Mauser carbine (with straight bolt handle open) are narrow enough that they may be missed if the case material isn't bright and they can be missed in the shadows of the trunk. (or between that sagging spare tire cover and the trunk liner) An SKS with a chest rig full of ammo loaded on stripper clips still doesn't get the interest of any magazine fed black rifle. I've been reading Rawls stuff for decades and have to see this as an investment article rather than survival advice. The rifle or pistol that you have ammo for and can shoot well will be the best survival investment.
I read it the other day - and it makes sense to buy the better quality gear that will soon be unavailable >>> goes for everything & anything and not just firearms - you like a particular brand of imported Scotch (even Canadian) - I'd be working on a lifetime supply .... I like Jimmy Rawles - only BS that I really disagree on is the actual practicality of investing in vintage blackpowder firearms because of the current FED ownership laws >>> once IT gets started - ANY FIREARMS found are getting confiscated .... unless you collect old firearms as a passionate hobby or got more freaking $$$$$ than God himself >>>> most of us should be investing & buying up the practical - if nothing else think about it as a gift to future generations that'll actually mean something ...
The Black Powder arms actually makes VERY good sense! B.P isn't on the radar of the anti's so even after they get rid of those scary black guns, then they go after Pops old Lever action and Pump Shotgun! Pretty soon, there won't be anything left BUT B.P! Now, give this a think, suppose we actually hit TEOTWAWKI, how long before all the loaded ammo dries up, or folks hoard it all, and your stuck with only what you stashed or can scrounge up, What if you had B.P. arms and knew where to look for the "Ingredients" and how to process them into functioning B.P. as well as other nifty uses, wouldn't that make you pretty smart! So, every one else has run dry several years on, and their worse off because they didn't plan ahead and put up a couple B.P. Arms and learned all that they could, Now, Who has the upper hand! Couple of good replica Cap&Ball Revolvers and a couple of big bore Long Guns and maybe a smooth bore "Fowler" and your set once you lay in a stash of powder and shot and what ever ignition source you prefer, they are not all that expensive, pretty damn fun to shoot, and economical as all, and you can really stretch your resources if you are thrifty about it!
if you actually bothered to read what I wrote - I SPECIFICALLY SAID "VINTAGE" - and not "blackpowder" .... you going to buy vintage "Cap&Ball and a couple big bore Long Guns" from Jimmy at 10X the cost of perfectly functioning replica pieces? - take a chance on them in a crucial moment? - no spare parts? >>> just plain tie up that kind of $$$$ exploited artificially raised value? >>> AGAIN - you want to collect a vintage piece of history - got the $$$$$ without cutting something more important >>> go ahead - but it's not for just any prepper anything blackpowder would be tangent to what is actually needed for a recommended arsenal - and that's plenty - keep your eyes strait on the mission and don't get lead astray by sexy ....
Still have my Winchester 30:30 Saddle-Ring Carbine that I bought 50 years ago, that wouldn't scare a Grasshopper, and my 9mm Belgien Browning HiPower, that is my Old Faithful Pack Gun... It some Politico Yahoo passes a 10Round Max Mag Capacity Statute, I will claim the Browning 13 Round Mags as BTP FFL Inventory... I still keep my two BP 50Cal Cap-Lok Rifles, and my Ruger Stainless Old Army .44 BP Pistol around, as well... I keep my Custom AR10 w 24" Stainless Bull Barrel back behind the bed, along with 3 20Round Factory Mags, out of casual sight...
Personally, I think "best" firearms are what works best for YOU. You can talk about getting an AR-15 all day long, but if it's not going to complement your survivability, is it really then the "best" gun to own? Same with pretty much any firearm. Back before the last big ammo shortage (~2012/2013), I was all over the place, with the firearms and (more importantly) ammunition required to feed them. That shortage caused me to give up my .357 and .44 Magnum pistols, and stick with 9mm and .40 S&W (for my carry gun), plus an old .45 ACP I'd held onto. While I hated giving up those old wheel guns, they simply didn't add enough value to my collection. Since then, I've added a .357 Magnum back to the collection (when ammo was cheap, and I could stock up on .38 Special and .357 Magnum), and have added a couple more .45 ACP pistols to my collection. I also added an inexpensive .22LR semi-auto rifle, and about 10,000 rounds of ammo. My stock of ammo pretty much reflects what I'd expect to use, should push come to shove. And while I enjoy my AR's (2 rifles, plus components enough to make 5 more....thanks, Hillary, for spoiling that investment! LOL....as well as the parts to make an AR pistol), I'd give every one of them up, along with all the magazines I've collected over the years, if the SHTF. They're simply too maintenance heavy.....compared to my Ruger Mini 14. And that's what I'm talking about, when I say, "Does a firearm still count as BEST, if it's not complementing your collection??"
^^^^^This. JWR has written a couple of good books and(IMO) several that aren't. The man has built a business on prepping. Some of his advice is sound, some is pure BS. Even in his 1st book he contradicts himself a few times. He strikes me as full of himself and loves his adoring fan base. His article above does has some merit, but not for preppers IMO. True collectable firearms have little place in a preppers safe. Better to fill that safe with weapons that are going to be truly useful in a SHTF situation. As a rule collectable firearms from the old west or earlier aren't that. I do believe that modern made BP weapons can fill a niche, but the 100+year old ones shouldn't be depended on unless that's all there is. If you want to collect antique firearms by all means do so-I have several myself, but I don't plan on using them for my family's defense post SHTF. YMMV
