Heading to the desert..

What rifle for fun in the desert?

  • AR of some type. All rifles are now are AR's deal with it.

    Votes: 23 30.7%

  • AK because choices. And who has time to clean a rifle?

    Votes: 12 16.0%

  • Marlin 1894 in 44 mag. John Wayne would approve!

    Votes: 27 36.0%

  • Brno Kar 98k 8mm Mauser. History! Range. use steel butt to pound tent stakes!

    Votes: 9 12.0%

  • I am the guy that will tell you go buy something else, because reasons.

    Votes: 4 5.3%
  • Total voters
    75
  • Poll closed .
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Dr.Rob

Dr.Rob

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Can't take all the guns.

Taking my nephew for a long weekend in the desert, and packing a couple of .22's (a marlin 22 magnum and a 995 in 22lr) and steel targets.

But I have room for another rifle. He's had some time on 22's and the 22WMR and run a few rounds on an AR before.

We aren't hunting or prepping for a zombie apocalypse and I have a pistol for defensive use or wild animals (it's mountain lion country). So this is just bringing a rifle for fun.

My choices are based on what I have, not on what I want.

A. Bring an AR, always an AR! He's shot one before, you said so! Plus there are aliens/wendigos/mutants in the desert. You can't be too careful :uhoh:

B. AK all the way. Throw some dirt on it. You don't need optics! Real mutants don't respect the AR. :scrutiny: (Mine is a 5.56 Mak-90 so it's not really a caliber war.)

C. Cowboy up! Marlin 1894 in 44 magnum. Short range lightweight big boom. Forget about the recoil, it makes you grin when you shoot it! :D Big foots and meth heads will cower in fear of the size of that muzzle alone!

D. Good enough for the Afrika Korp! Take the Brno 98k and a ammo can full of Yugo surplus ball. Zap some stuff long range with irons and wash it out with windex. Can penetrate the skin of a UFO! :eek:

E. Go and buy something else! (For you who must insist on your own version of fun.) :rolleyes:
 
Going to the desert? Gotta take the cowboy gun. Pack a .44 revolver if you have one for extra showing off.
 
I usually take my .44 vaquero so there's that.

Have fun answering, we are certainly going to have fun camping.
 
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AK. If your nephew's a kid, it's a proven fact that all kids love AK's.

If he's older, make the brat learn to appreciate the cowboy guns! Or, bring your most accurate rifle and see who can hit stuff the furthest distance away.
 
Lever-action PCCs are just plain fun. Makes you feel like a cowboy every time you throw the lever.

If it's a 16 inch carbine, it's probably small and light for him to handle comfortably too.
 
Dr. Rob;

What size & age is the nephew? No sense to packing along another gun that'll induce flinch and aversion if he's not a full sized adult. (Why yes, that Mauser does recoil a bit now doesn't it?) If he is full-grown, my vote would go to the .44 magnum, particularly if your pistol is in the same caliber. Excellent teaching tools to the point of how mass attenuates recoil.

900F
 
I don't see how you can go wrong with any of the choices. Perhaps try to expose them to as many types of actions as possible, as a learning experience? That's one of the things I did with my kids, and they sucked it in like sponges.

Most of all, be safe and have fun!
 
You narrowed down way too much! AK, AR, cowboy up. I would need everything for a trip o the mountains. You are going to have fun so have fun!!!!
 
Can the steel handle hits from 5.56, let alone 8mm. You know they'll get shot at...

Are you willing to double up on ear protection for the short barreled 5.56's? I know CO deserts aren't as hot as AZ deserts, but still sweat is sweat.

If you have the Vaquero, I'd bring the Marlin 44 along with a variety (power level) of loads.

In a truck? Maybe bring them all. It's the only way to be sure.
 
Can the steel handle hits from 5.56, let alone 8mm. You know they'll get shot at...
Click to expand...

No my steel targets are rimfire only. My dad blew a hole in one with Mini 14 twenty odd years ago. They are still great for 22's. I have told the young man this before.

I have other targets suitable for centerfire. (Self healing orange ball type. I know BIG stuff like .375 H&H eats them up. Ask H&H Hunter, Robert & Justin)

Are you willing to double up on ear protection for the short barreled 5.56's?
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I have all the hearing protection we could need. My short barreled AR has a welded up FH that's no louder than a 16 inch carbine.

Headed out to a fairly secluded spot in Utah. I've camped there before and found lion tracks, momma and cubs, beside the spring where I was filling up my coffee pot. (Taking trail cameras for that) It's a pack your poop out kind of place, but you can 4x4 to get there. It has a VERY good backstop for 50 yards or so shooting. For long range I need to drive out to an old uranium mine.

Wish I could take them all, but I figured I'd limit myself to the .22 rifles listed, plus one centerfire rifle. Added my Colt .22 Frontier Scout if he wants to shoot a handgun. (He has never shot a centerfire pistol they are a tad intimidating for him--I might bring some .38's to shoot in one my my 357's.)
 
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If I weren't late to this poll, I'd cast my vote for the .44 mag lever carbine. Good Lowrd, what fun! While .44 mag from a handgun can be quite a handful, the same round through a lever carbine is something else entirely. It must be experienced to be believed.

Some claim the recoil similar to that of .30-30 but in my experience the rifle round from a 20" 1894 can be a bear to shoot a lot of whereas the .44 through a 20" 1892 is easier on the shoulder but through 100 yards it will still hit with absolute authority.

Desert plinking can be anything you want it to be but for me it's hitting tin cans with my levers and with my pistols. What a hoot!
 
I voted for the 44, and I stand by it ESPECIALLY if you have seen lions in the area. While I have not seen a lion in my neighborhood in the other end of Denver from you since 1998, I keep one handy just in case...When I saw a lion run between my pickup and my brothers at 11:30 am down on the ranch in West Texas, my ranch handgun went from a 22 to a 44 (or 45--what ever is handy) overnight.

Plus, the big hole in the end of the barrel is a big intimidator should you run into any two legged rattlesnakes
 
Nothing says desert-rompin' like a lever gun, so I went with that.

I might have suggested the AK if it were in 7.62, since he already has some 5.56 experience but, if it were me and I'd brought mine, I'd probably still be wishing I'd brought the 1894 instead.

(You don't say how old/big your nephew is.)
 
I have almost always brought my AR on every range trip. Lots of cheap ammo, easy to shoot, and very accurate, even with the iron sights.
 
I'd take the 1894. It fits with the scenery. Second choice would be the K98.

Sounds like a nice trip. Have fun!
 
Dr.Rob said:
Headed out to a fairly secluded spot in Utah. I've camped there before and found lion tracks, momma and cubs, beside the spring where I was filling up my coffee pot. (Taking trail cameras for that) It's a pack your poop out kind of place, but you can 4x4 to get there. It has a VERY good backstop for 50 yards or so shooting. For long range I need to drive out to an old uranium mine.
Click to expand...

That's one of my favorite things about Utah, although most of my spots are in the west desert and I'm assuming you're more on the eastern side. :) Here's a view from one of my favorite areas in the world. There probably wasn't anyone else within a 15 mile radius. It was awesome. The date on the picture is wrong. It was late September last year. Lots of people think I'm nuts, but the desert is where I go to get away. Just not in July or August anymore. Too hot for me as I'm getting older. :D

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I voted 44 magnum also although the K98 is a close second. I always take my main AR when we go in case we see any coyotes. We haven't yet, but it's taken its fair share of jackrabbits. I haven't seen a lion out there, but we've seen tracks and I know that they're there. Lots of pronghorn, wild horses, deer, coyotes, rabbits (both jack and cottontail), kit foxes (can't shoot those), and the occasional human (can't shoot those either).

Matt
 

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How I remember it in 2008...
 

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I live in the SW Utah desert country and since distances tend to be long, I'd vote for the AR or the Mauser.
 
1. Can't go wrong with the 1894. Might be the last gun I ever give up...19th century AR.
2. AK because I just got an SKS and it is currently the most fun gun I own...
3. BRNO because I want one.
4. AR because I don't own one.

All good choices.

Greg
 
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