Ideal Survival Rifle

I would venture to say that "best" survival rifle is the one you " know" the best...or it could just be the one you have , in a given situation.
Kinda of a non - answering , answer...sorry.
But there are lots of variables here...
Just what kind of situation I am in , would dictate my choice

The rifle I shoot and " know" the best , is my Hawken Rifle copy.
If were in a situation where I needed to be as close to 100% sure that I could make a given shot at any given time , this would be the rifle I would chose.

Would it be the rifle that I would pick if I needed to engage in any sort of firefight....No...but with that said ... I wouldn't just curl up and wait to die 'cause that's all I had....

If hunting was part of the day...then my Hawken...if fighting were the order of the day , one of my bolt action rifles in .30-06 or my AR15 Carbine...

Maybe a good old fashioned carbine in .30-30 or a pistol / revolver caliber carbine for "double duty" as a combat arm / hunting arm would fit this bill....
Its also had to beat a .22 rifle for many different roles....

Whatever rifle you chose , I do think what matters most is that :
You learn your rifle...get to where you can use it , almost as if it were "second nature" , muscle memory ,so to speak...
Its not so much which rifle you pick....as it is what you can do / your skill with said rifle....
Andy

 

If you don't want an MSR, I can recommend a pistol caliber carbine. You can match up your rifle to your side arm. Certainly a .44 Magnum or .357 gives you plenty of power for game, and self-protection. Plus, if you've practiced, you can shoot a lever action or pump almost as fast as a semi-auto. Generally, it isn't how fast, but how accurately you can shoot.

Old West folks appreciated having the same rifle/pistol caliber as it reduced the amount of different types of ammo they had to stock. I'm considering adding a .357 Henry to my safe...almost nothing that can go wrong with it, and matches my S&W model 28 (Highway patrolman).

 

I think these questions about survival are too vague .
Survival is relevant to the circumstances that can and will change with time .
At the beginning of an event the sheer volume of participants is immense .
Over time all these factors change . over time can be months day years and even moments .
There are a few things that can be counted on,
gangs/raiders will form
lone wolf will die out . some one rejected by every one, will not have a place to go.
People will compromise in groups ,but only few will remain solid.
Hunting in the wild will be more competitive even deadly . different groups claiming ownership.
People on farms will need extra defense, seeing the military might be commission to take them.
It's happening in south America now.
Communist that have been working at tearing the country down will be in the wings waiting and working toward their control.
More than willing to hand you food they stole from some one else ,at a price .
question is, do you have the stones to stand up against them ?

AS for a survival weapon ,I think several means should be available not just one.
Stopping a threat does not always require killing, and having the means and will to use an alternative I think is wise.

 

Normally, I would think shotgun for versatility. Have an assortment of rounds from 12 gauge to slugs. But a firearm is only good if you have ammunition. So I might go the other end of the spectum and go with maybe something like a Ruger 10/22 with a boatload of ammo. That can easily be paired with a 22LR handgun. Silenced would be even better.

Got a lot of rounds to throw downrange. And can eat using it as a hunting weapon. 22LR is common so it may be possible to scrounge more.

And learn to make a bow and arrows, atlatl and darts, traps and other primitive stuff. Because if the scenario is SHTF, then at some point there will be no more ammo for you. Then you have to take stuff off the folks that come for you. Or you can conserve your weapon(s) and ammunition while using primitive methods.

 

Different hammers for different jobs, sledge hammers for busting concrete, claw hammers for framing, tack hammers for small detailed work, and etc.. For me, my core rifle is a .22 RF, all others radiate out from that and depend on what I want to accomplish. I don't live in big bear country and am remote enough to have little concern of 2 legged varmints, but have a hammer for them should they appear. If hoofing it, it would be the .22, as weight is my primary concern, imagined encounters are secondary, and for me that provides the perfect balance point between rifle & ammo weight and power output.

 

I like my internally suppressed 10/22 with subsonic ammo.
It goes nicely with my ruger 22/45 pistol with GM22 supressor. But the pistol isn't nearly as quiet as the rifle.
But the pistol renders common standard super sonic 22LR ammo sub sonic.

 

Yeah,I brought three gents from England last Friday with some of the toys similar to yours,The 2 young lads loved the M-44 Mosin throwing flame and a recoil monster!

 

Just buy one of everything...well not everything. Handguns, at least 6 different calibers from .22 to .45. Shotguns, stick with 20 and 12 gauges... unless you have a Browning Sweet-Sixteen. Rifles, have several types .22 LR to .30 calibers. Also have BB and pellet guns ( rifles and handguns) and muzzle loading BP weapons. Buy ammo...lots of ammo. Reload a few calibers, especially those that are compatible with BP and cast lead bullets

 

I might have a problem with the .458 Postal 500 gr bullet in my .45 ACP, but I'm trying to do the rest

 

IMO ,
I think it may boil down to how much weight and bulk you can cary in ammo, on top of survival supplies ,if one is strictly on foot .
Few of us have that stamina any more .
However if one is planing on digging in then movement is not an issue, several guns and tons of ammo is practical.

 

I agree, every gas station and outhouse in the back country has 30.30...22lr...and 12ga and usually 30.06. 30/30 has taken everything from Prairie Chickens/rabbits/grouse/geese/ducks/deer/elk/moose/and even Grizzly Bear. Think head shots. But as always the determining factor, is shot placement. Heck in WROL/SHTF that 30/30 could even get you a fancy AR from the hands of that marauder baring gifts.

 

Guns are just a tool, just as a carpenter wouldn't try to cut down a tree with a chisel, he could if that was ll he had. It's your knowledge and skill with whatever weapon you happen to have that counts. Know your tool and know your limitations, YOU are the weapon and you should be able to adjust to whatever situation you are in. The key word is "should" and that is where training comes in. Learn to think and use whatever tool you have at your disposal. A special ops guy with a 10/22 is far more deadly than a snowflake wandering around in his PJ's with an AR-15.

 

I am not so concerned with snow flakes , they won't last long enough to enjoy the event, unless they learn to grow a spine.
I am more concerned with radical groups and marauders ,these will be well armed and trained . Never assume your enemy is a sloppy shot .
Many fire fights "cops and robbers", a lot of ammo is spend with no result .panic and semiautomatic weapons and the lack of discipline waste a lot of ammo ..
Suppressive fire is only used practically, if you have a surplus of ammo .
Post SHTF where will you be getting ammo?
If I had some one on the firing line using the spray and pray method I would switch them out with a single shot .

 

Talking about ammo,how much do most of you keep. I try for about1000rds center fire for each gun,and over 5000 rds rim fire total. Just this morning I was ask why I bought so much ammo,my answer was “because I might need it”. I believe the .22 and the 12ga will be the go to weapons. The only two that I have less than 1000rds are the .32-20 and the .22hornet.

 

A gun is only worth the ammo it can process. out of ammo , the gun is an expensive door stop .
If ammo is no longer available what will you do.?
Having been poor As a kid even though a box of 22 was .50c I had to make it last .make each shot count . Can you do that?
Ever been in a fire fight , real or air soft or paint ball ?
if your are careless with your shots you will loose .
Forget the idea of replacing your stores from the store or on line ,
I've watched people at the range burning up ammo like it's free .
They don't develop survival skills .

 

I'm kind of interested in the takedown lever actions by Winchester, Browning, Taylor and Chiappa.
Got a strange feeling if I see one in the local pawn shop .. it's coming home with me.

 

A whole lotta info and opinions in this thread, good stuff if it gets people to think.. Engaging anyone with gunfire is chancy as return fire can put a major owie on ya. What are your plans if yourself or one of your party is wounded or injured? Any med supplies and someone trained to use med gear to care for an injured person? "Die off" in the first year will probably be 90 percent, and that will include many of those most able to maintain a "doable" standard of living...
i have a variety of shooting iron available- from bows to flinters to percussion and cartridge arms. Can't carry them all and am too unhealthy to move much of anywhere esp on foot. My PDW will probably be an AR15, altho I like a Kalashnikov for most purposes within 300 yards.. I know the system well, trust it implicitly and speaking for my own experience it has been more reliable over the decades than any AR.
Another favorite has been the K98k Mauser, it has been a useful companion and have used it all my life. Bought the ammo cheap and stacked it deep as they say..

 

Way back play back day! Lol

One thing to add, i have finally finished my modern fighting bolt action rifle project and have been experimenting with a bunch of loads, from 100 gr pills all the way to 240 gr sledge hammers, this rifle semd them all accuratly, and with cast lead and Black powder, is about as useful as it gets! My only limit is primers, and a 10,000 count brick should see me through rapture! Yes, its a .30/06, and it can pretty much safely handle any repurposed powder I may find, and Ibcan hand load if in the field! Suppressed, this thing is super quiet, and running full pop supersonic, can sting at beyond the ranges of any returning fire! Still not my "one rifle to rule them all" but pretty damn close! It is about the most perfect rifle i can find, and using time honored training tactics from the era this rifle originated from, a very viable option, amd it could be a one rifle battery is needed!
Now to perfect my top secret sabot ammo development, and i will solved the "what the hell do I do with this ammo" problem! Lol! One of the most neat-0 things about the mighty .30/06 is the ability to hand load such a wide range of ammo for the widest range of uses, even to the point of making ammo out of other ammo that would be otherwise useless!