pick one gun for the rest of your life.

[Deer Hunter]

My STG58 FAL.

 

[Roswell 1847]

It would have to be a combination gun, and a simple,reliable, and easy to repair one at that.
I'd go with a Savage O/U
Caliber and gauge would depend on the ammo supply situation.

Idealy a centerfire rifle barrel with adapters for smaller game cartridges.
223 with adapters for .22lr and .22 Magnum rounds.
The .223 is not a good military round but with proper shot placement it will take down any game animal in the Southeast.
I generally prefer the twenty gauge in a lightweight gun, but if twelve gauge is more easily available thats the way it would be.

Also since the Savage can handle centerfire pressures I'd have a few inserts made for the Shotgun bore as well. Like a .44 magnum insert and one that could handle 9mm through .357 pistol rounds.

I've seen the Savage in .223 over 20 but not sure if they make a 12 or not.

PS
I'd be sure to ream the .223 chamber if necessary for use of any 5.56 that came to hand.

PPS
I'd been researching the GECADO bolt action rifle over a shot barrel earlier on. If such a rifle were available today in a commonly available centerfire rifle caliber it would make an excellent all around Sporting/Survival weapon.
I'd drawn up some ideas for a similar combination gun years before I first saw a GECADO.
My idea had been a 22. autoloader over a 28 gauge single shot, with free floating barrels ,which the GECADO design doesn't permit.
I may still have the sketches of my design laying around. If I find them I'll post them here later.

 

[jr_roosa]

I'd go with an Anschutz 64 Multipurpose in .22LR.

Good for target, good for plinking, good for small game, adjustable trigger.

A high-powered rifle, 1911, or shotgun would be nice if I could have two, but it's hard to imagine not having a .22 rifle.

-J.

 

[Sgt.Dusk]

AK47
Reliable and there is no place in the world where you couldt find ammo for that.

 

[JeremySmith]

I'd have to go with a lever-action carbine in .44. Picking from what I actually own - I love my 1911, but It'd have to be my Super Redhawk with the 9.5". It'd take anything I'd ever run into around here, plus if I run out of ammo, it'd make a handy club or hammer.....

 

[10-Ring]

There was a time when I laughingly wanted a Porsche minivan then came a SUV w/ their name on it
So, if I were only to have one, it would be an HKP7M81911AR15REM870BHPUSPS&W17PYTHON

 

[Wopasaurus]

Easy Choice. My Yugo AK Underfolder.

You can make it have no stock, easy for carrying it on your back, or for close quarters. A full stock for longer/more controlled shots. You could hunt game with it, as well as defend/attack.

Sure it's not as versatile as a shotgun, or as concealable as a handgun, but I know it's always going to go boom, and ruin whoever/whatever's day is on the receiving end.

I'm assuming it's a SHTF situation, a lot of the guns mentioned on this thread won't work without proper maintenance and upkeep. I know that if I don't have time/resources to clean this gun, it'll still be kicking long after I stop.

 

[AStone]

Old threads never die;
they just fade in and out,
in and out ... forever.

If I was offered this challenge today -
pick one gun for the rest of your life -
I'd answer the same as I did months ago:

Marlin 1894C in .357 mag.

 

[tuck2]

Pick one gun--You got to be kidding--Thats un American-- an evil propsal--is someone sick ? A body has to have a little rimfire, a center fire varmint rifle or two, a small big game rifle, a big big game rifle , and what about a short fast handling woods rifle or a long barrel open country big game rifle ? A fast little 28 Ga for Quail, and a 3 1/2 inch 12 Ga for passing geese, are shot guns that has to be is the gun case. And what about hand guns ,life with out a target 22 rimfire ,Thinking about having only one gun ,could make an old man sick....

 

[illinoisdeerhunter]

sorry --- accidental double post

 

[illinoisdeerhunter]

tough question!

If my main concern is survival---Savage 24 combo gun, 12ga/.223 or .22 hornet.

Home protection---mossberg 12ga pump

If I ONLY could have one, I guess it would be a 12ga pump. One can use it for home protection, small game with shot and big game with slugs. I've used my Mossberg for all three over the years. From squirrels and rabbits to deer and 600 lbs hogs, a 12 ga seems the only way to go however, it would be a little tough to carry concealed!

 

[Hokkmike]

After I study up on it, a high capacity 12 gauge pump shotgun!

 

[cyclist]

pick one gun for the rest of your life.

No.

This is like saying pick one car, one bike, one house, one dog, and so on.
Things change, needs change, environments change, situations change, needs change (sometimes daily).
There can not be only one. I won't give "them" an inch to say I said there could be only one. I might not need one thousand, but definitely want the option to have more than one.

'scuse me now, my ankle's itching

 

[frankcostanza]

that would be my 870

 

[AStone]

Pick one gun--You got to be kidding--Thats un American-- an evil propsal--is someone sick ?

No.

This is like saying pick one car, one bike, one house, one dog, and so on.
Things change, needs change, environments change, situations change, needs change (sometimes daily).
There can not be only one.

But, with all due respect, those posts miss the point of this exercise.

Yes, yes, we all agree that "one gun" is not desirable, moral, ethical, etc.

But play along for a minute. Imagine a scenario (as difficult as that is) in which one could ONLY have one gun.

Is this that much different from Marine training where one has only a survival knife?

Don't take it so seriously. It's just an exercise in critical thinking.

It's just an exercise to get us to think about which gun is the best optimum for just about everything.

And, if one were to ever suffer the same fate that many have - poverty - where one had to sell a bunch of stuff just to have enough to eat, but had enough money to keep one gun, which one would it be?

Yes, yes, it's un-American. Despicable. Horrendous thought. Hope it never happens to you, much less me.

But if it did, which one would you keep ... and why?

It's just a game.

Really. It's just a game.

 

[Eightball]

heh

If I really had to pick one gun for the rest of my life, I'd take the Masada, plenty o' spare parts, and keep a near unholy amount of ammunition in the varying calibres spare.

Why pick one calibre or barrel length, when you could have a couple at once? Some occasions call for .223, some call for 7.62x39, or whatnot, and some for a 16" barrel for handiness, and a 20" for hunting.

Though, from what I currently own, an AR, with a couple different uppers. If the "calibre changing" aspect is forbidden, then I'd probably want a 20" Stainless upper for accuracy/hunting purposes--it's plenty handy when it needs to be. Or, sell it, buy an AR10 20"--because .308 is handy in more places than .223 when it comes to taking game that's big enough to eat off of for a while

Or, barring that, probably snag a Sako 75 Hunter in .30-06, or maybe even a K98 or some other bolt-gun that has already withstood about 4x my current lifespan and can probably take any punishment I can dish out (preferably one of the post-war commercial FN mausers in .30-06, for versatility).

 

[awwhite1012]

Remington 870

 

[AStone]

Same as on November 28:
Marlin 1894C in .357 mag.

 

[Sgt.Dusk]

any pump action shotgun.
12gauge of course.

 

[Mannix]

12/20ga pump action shotgun. Birdshot for little critters, buckshot for HD, and slugs for hunting, seems like it's the most versatile solution to me.