Home defense/ bug out rifles package deal

AR15 and an AR15.

Then:
Vortex Viper or Razor Low power variable optic.

Done.

And spare parts for the AR's plus the tools to do field repairs.

Man, if I had five grand to set on a couple of ARs...

Nice ones from Daniel Defense, stout scopes from Vortex and a short ton of filled Lancer magazines.
Some weapon lights and parts and a couple of tools.
With grab-and-go bags, too.
And a med-kit.

That would be nice.

But I ain’t leavin’ the house...

Demi-human said:

But I ain’t leavin’ the house...

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That was my plan until a fire forced us to evacuate.

I guess what I am saying is: it's good to have a plan for both.

It would depend on where they we’re going to “grab and go” to. If urban ARs would be a consideration, if rural or wilderness it would be tuff to leave a .22 behind and maybe an 06, .270 or similar.

BTDT already.
I have my AR set up for a utility grab and go.
SR556 Ruger, 3x nikon bdc, offset iron sights regulated to 15yds. Streamlight weapon light. No rattle sling.

I'd say a pair of all weather Henry's in either 357mag/38spc, 44mag or 30-30
Or you could go with the single shot Henry's in the same few calibers. Scope accessories are pretty easy to find for these rifles.

Couple good ARs like SOLGW topped with the ACOG of their choosing. For all around I love the 2 and 3 per models. Good eye relief and still gives extended practical range.

depends on how they intend to 'grab and go' and the circumstances. Vehicle or man portable system? How long do they anticipate having to be gone for? Will they both be leaving at the same time/together? Urban environment or woods? Whats the likely hood of armed conflict as opposed to just surviving. Each person should have their own BO bag/case built just for them. Whats in the kit needs to be dedicated to the kit so can you afford to have expensive firearms just dedicated and not in use? You cant go around assembling components if you need to actually grab and go. What he can carry isn't necessarily what she can carry. Weight is going to add up fast. Man portable you are going to want light weight and storable, like a take down 22LR. You can carry a lot more .22 LR ammunition as opposed to .223. 1K rds. of .22LR weights in about 5lbs. 1K rds. of .223 weighs in around 28 lbs and is going to have a lot of package bulk. Both dont have to have the same caliber rifle either or for that matter two rifles vs one rifle and one pistol. Many factors to consider for sure.

I’d agree with the pair of AR’s if they can run them okay. I’d almost recommend AR Pistols with 11.5 inch barrels, brace, and the light/scope/sling

I thought we didn’t do SHTF here?

In the context of home defense and given a $5k budget (ish), I’d build a pair of 10.5” SBR’s in 6.8 SPC with TBAC Ultra 7’s out front, nested into a 12” Midwest Rail, wrapped with a JP detent adjustable gas block, Magpul UBR’s out back, Geissele Hi-Speed National March triggers in the belly, and Vortex Raxor Gen 3 1-10x’s on top, with a Trijicon RMR dual illumination riding at 45degrees.

Or did you mean $5k total for BOTH?

Grayrock said:

An old friend of mine asked me to put together a pair of rifles for him and his wife to just grab and go if the need ever arose.

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So, what do they like?
What is easiest for them to run?
What is easiest for them to picture using? No sense in a black rifle if they would rather like wood, lever guns would be silly if they like the practicality of an AR.
Are they truly going set untouched until needed, or is there some practice involved?
How much practice? A Forty Four Magnum will cost a bit more to practice with than other cartridges.

Is there any prestige involved? Two BCMs will cost the same as six PSA build-a-bear ARs, and do the exact same thing. While two is one, and one is none, six is...more.
But they won’t say (Name Brand Here) on the mag well.

It’s not an emergency, we’re just helping spend his money...

Yeah, non-gun people or sorta-gun people may not do well with, or want, the choices gun people would pick. Do these folks like ARs or can they even have "black rifles" where they live and where they think they would go to?

If I have to leave my house I'm going to be in another building of some sort whether a hotel, apartment, or house in an urban or suburban environment.

While years ago I might have picked a rifle with some reach, and then a few years ago I would have went with a .22 WMR carbine with dreams of whatever . . . but now I've come around to pistol caliber carbines.

So, I'd want a PCC and a handgun with cartridge compatibility. Of which I'd prefer an autoloader for both if we're talking about home defense. So, two carbines and two handguns in 9mm is what I'd pick where I live now and where I'd foresee me going to.

Red dots need batteries, but both carbines would have them. Non battery sighting would be covered by iron sights on the guns.

Playing with other people's money, I'd pick a pair of CZ Scorpion PCCs and put a pair of Trijicon MROs on them.

I’ve always wanted a Kel Tec CMR/PMR combo and at $800 for the pair there would be much wiggle room for an AR.

PMR: Holosun solar reflex ($300) and Surefire light ($100).

CMR: 1-4x Trijicon AccuPoint & AD QR mount ($900).

That leaves $2,900 for an AR in whichever caliber and configuration makes the most sense. I would budget for a riser to swap the RDS to the rifles if necessary and probably choose the same 1-4x scope/QR mount for both rifles which would add another $900 leaving $2,000.

On that budget, with optic already covered, and if I didn’t want to build, $800 with some smart shopping would buy a pair of Aero uppers, one short, one long, 2 NiB bolts and Raptors for another $300, an SBA brace and Magpul ACS for $200, RRA trigger $100, leaving $600 for a lower and a light.

That gives you SD, small and large game hunting options, two hi-cap low weight ammo options that share caliber, and a mix bag. If a suppressor is an option, bag the pistol and use that $800 + anything else you can spare in the budget for one swappable between rifles on a common mount system.

So, based on the parameters described, a pair of ARs In 223/556 makes good sense. But, as a constructive contrarian, I will propose an alternative.

There are increasing jurisdictional challenges with an AR15, so grab and go suitability may be subject to "and go where" . So, let me propose for rifle a) Ruger PCC in ubiquitous 9mm. Great HD, optics simplicity, and should outside the home CQB be required, it's handy (doesn't really address his desire for the finer things though - so perhaps a JM Marlin 1894 in 45LC?). And for rifle b) one of the 308 Scout type rifles. Ruger, Mossberg, Savage all have them. Wouldn't forward scope them myself, but the original concept was a grab and go multipurpose rifle, so...

Food for thought.

Something in the cheap and available 7.62x39 might be worth a thought as well.
Maybe not too defensive minded, but a ruger American ranch like this one covers some of the criteria.

Grayrock said:

Requirements were easy ammo availability, light weight, scoped, reliable and easy to maintain.

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Sounds an awful lot like glassed AR-15 carbines to me.

Armored farmer said:

Something in the cheap and available 7.62x39 might be worth a thought as well.
Maybe not too defensive minded, but a ruger American ranch like this one covers some of the criteria.
View attachment 897177

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Takes training to operate the bolt efficiently, more than a semi auto to achieve the same efficiency.

Where are they bugging out too?

I suppose I’d call some of my friends and have a “bug in”. Would be a lot more viable than just me and the wife heading towards chaos and give them a place to go if they decide to bug out.

At that point weight and such isn’t as much concern.

Corpral_Agarn said:

AR15 and an AR15.

Then:
Vortex Viper or Razor Low power variable optic.

Done.

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^

This, and spend the extra on mags, ammo, slings, spare parts, maybe a .22LR conversion for cheaper practice and small game hunting. Maybe even consider some training.

An LPV on an AR15 makes for a pretty versatile package. You could even invest some money in additional optics with quality QD mounts, or another upper in a different caliber.

Well “bug-out” have different meanings to folks. Before any recommendations can be made it is necessary to know what the threat is.

I am “bug-in” person however there is one situation that will cause us to bug-out. There is a major highway and a short line railroad that moves tank cars twice a day from a refinery about 1/2 mile away. So a hazardous chemical spill from a semi-truck accident or a railroad car derailment releasing toxic chemicals into the air forcing us to evacuate in a big hurry is a realistic although rare possibility. In such a event it will be grab the wallet, truck keys, the dogs and a gun and get out of the area fast.

Since they want long guns I think a 16” barrel AR-15 in 5.56 would be a must. My second suggestion is for a AR SBR (i.e. handgun). A compact AR handgun would be handy for use when in a vehicle. The .223 / 5.56 is loud especially with short barrel so a pistol caliber such as 9mm would be a good choice.

Your friends need to think deeper than just taking a couple of guns. Gear, ammo and magazines are very important and should not be overlooked. I also have a small minor emergency first aid kit I added since I took this picture;



10 30 round magazines and 600 rounds of ammunition (300 loaded in the mags and 300 extra) for the AR in one can and another ammo can full of pistol magazines;

outside of the ARs or whatever chambered in .223, there are some other functions they may want to consider

a 10/22 and a Henry survival rifle, 2 guns that shoot .22 so if one breaks, and thousands or rounds of ammo. this is so you don't waste your other ammo, and for after all other ammunition has run out, you still have some .22

a decent BB/Pellet gun. you may want to hunt small game - but do you want make a lot of noise and invite possibly unwanted guests

a solid hunting rifle in 30-06 or .308 … you may want to take a bear, moose, or other large game, and .223 might do that, but if you're starving and get a shot at a moose at 300 yards, I'd rather have the 30-06