If you could only have 2

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Geckgo

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I know the "if you could only have one rifle" thing has been beat to death, but I thought this would be a neat experiment. Currently I have a 30-06 and a 22 LR (shotguns and handguns don't count by the way, you can have as many of those as you want :D) and I got to thinking about it. When I bought the -06 it was my do anything rifle. Since then I've come to realize the advantages of other calibers as one does when faced with the costs of a dollar or more per round.

Now I have the 22 for those animals that I would rather not spend a dollar to shoot :D

Lately though, I give credit to what I consider to be the best survival rifle ever, a high powered break action .22 cal air rifle, especially if you have traps for your practice pellets, and some swaging equipment.

Now I'm not so sure what two rifles I would pick if I had to do it all over. In the name of being able to hunt anything on the planet I would probably go for a 243 and a 50 cal BMG, that pretty much covers all animals I can think of, not to mention space aliens, tanks, and small meteors.

Costwise, a good pellet gun and proper reloading supplies could feed a family indefinitely in a SHTF scenario, and it can't be overlooked, even more so than a .22 rimfire with lots of ammo stocked up. I still think I'd hold on to the 06 though, so I guess the "second" gun for me would be a toss up between my beloved 10/22 and a high powered pellet gun.
 
Only two rifles, in any calibers, or as many long guns as you want, but you can only choose two calibers?

If it was any two long guns, I would probably pick an M1 Garand as a range toy, and an AR in .223 with an extra upper for 308 and a .22 conversion.

I'm assuming thats cheating, so my two caliber choices would be 30-06 and 7.62x39. That gives me a big hunting rifle, and an AK.

Chris "the Kayak-Man" Johnson
 
With a .30-06 and a.22LR, you pretty much have the bases covered.

Geno
 
Well if your in a hunting senario either a 45-70 or a 50 cal beowolf for my big meat getter / predator defender. Either rifle would do well at a moderate distance. A good .22 rifle should do fine for my trap / small game load preferably my Marlin .22 mag.

If were in a tactical senario I want an AK-47 and a Dragunov to take care of my close and ranged assault.
 
I vote .22lr (my remington 597 vtr) and since shotguns are out, i'd go for a 30-06 or .308
something big n small. you can shoot squirrels and still have something to eat and bigger game also. (coming from a survivalist standpoint i guess?)
 
Only 2 guns

I like the idea of having a 22lr for one of the guns, i'd have to say the 308 to keep others at bay from a decent distance and able to carry a fair amount of ammo with you if you had to pack all you could carry? Mobility is a great thing and lighter ammo is good.:uhoh:
 
I would hate to have a rabbit come out 150 yrds away and be holding my .22. I would say my .17 hmr and .270 win.
 
OK. I have to rebel against the question. For me, a rimfire rifle (bolt-action or semiauto) is a must-have item in the gun cabinet. They are fundamentally necessary for a wide range of shooting tasks, including small-game hunting, training and target practice, and recreational plinking. On the other hand, a bolt-action centerfire chambered in .308/.30-'06 (or one of their many progeny) is also a needed item for anyone who hunts medium game or larger, or who needs a rifle for extended ranges. Locking in these choices, however, means I will not have an option for a semiauto defensive carbine, which I also consider to be necessary. My preference there is a rifle chambered in .223/5.56 NATO. With those three rifles, I could call it a day and be perfectly happy. Without a third option, though, I'd have to forego either a centerfire hunting rifle or a defensive carbine. While I could perhaps use a .308 semiauto for both tasks, it would be a compromise at both ends. If forced, I guess I'd take the .308 bolt gun and simply use a shotgun for my defensive needs, but I wouldn't be happy about that.
 
M1A and AR-15. Then I would have the 2 major military calibers covered. I'd have the M1A for general use against all those 2-legged varmints and for getting more ammo, and the AR if I had to go into a close-quarters environment (which I would try to avoid like the plague) or if I ran out of 7.62x51. I would keep a .22 dedicated upper for the AR for critter gettin... unless a dedicated upper would count as another rifle for purposes of this post, in which case I'd take a .22 conversion!
 
The first would have to be a 30-30 lever action. I have fallen in love with a lever action and I shoot it more than anything. Also, I'm not heading to Alaska to hunt brown bear any time soon so for hunting deer, hog, black bear it will do fine. If I came across a huge monster animal, I'd just pass.

For the second rifle, this gets a bit more tricky. I'd be torn between a 30-06 bolt action, M1A, or mini-14, or a double rifle (Sabatti from Cabella's) in 45-70. I think I'd opt for the double rilfe. Mostly because it would be fun to shoot and unique enough where I don't think I'd become bored with it.
 
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