Which rifle and caliber should I consider?

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tcoz

tcoz

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Currently, my only rifle is an AR15. I use it as a target rifle and also for home defense. I'm going to start shopping for something in a larger caliber as a SHTF and ultimately longer range rifle. I'd like to know what caliber you would recommend and why. I'm going to consider .308/7.62, 6.8mm and 300 AAC. As far as rifle type, AR style, Mini-30, Gunsite Scout but probably not Ruger American because of limited capacity. At this point, I'm really most interested in what caliber people recommend and why. If it makes any difference, I'd be reloading ammo once I break it in. Once I get past .223/5.56, I'm pretty ignorant so please help educate me. Thanks.
 
I would in this case only consider the .308/NATO round bc in a SHTF scenario you'll want readily available ammo that you can stick up ahead of time to get. And you can hunt anything in the Lower 48 with it.

Greg
 
Stick with the AR platform and get an 18" or 20" match barrel upper with 1/7 twist. Shoot heavier .224" bullets in match hand loads or quality factory ammo.
 
Mossberg MVP in .308 bolt action, ammo is plentiful easy to find components to reload and the MVP uses ar-10 mags.
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And M14/M1A mags.

My vote is for a VEPR 308. If your looking for detachable mags and .308, there is really no reason to go with a bolt action rifle over a decent semi for "shtf". Vepr is easy to QD scope, accurate enough, built to last and even after the anti Russian sanction, still a lot less expensive than most other options.
 
I have the Ruger scout rifle

that takes 10 round removeable mags. I like it a lot and it shoots close to 1 MOA. I also have the Windham Arms SRC in 308. It is a little better than one MOA and I really enjoy shooting it. I haven't had the time to find the best loads for either gun yet but I am shooting up a bunch of factory ammo to start my load development soon.
 
Why not an AR-10? I don't plan for any hardcore scenario as logistics have me in an area that would be nearly inescapable and riots bring fires that you can't bug in for.

If your other supplies for disaster are healthy enough though, yeah, the AR's long range brother should be an easy enough choice.
 
Get a military-issued (read un-bubbad) SKS and keep it that way.

Cheap to shoot, plenty o' thump and plenty o' accurate for any task save grizzly hunting.
 
I have the Vepr and love it but in a SHTF scenario, mags would be a bitch. Go with a PTR 91. Reliable, accurate enough, 308, and $3 mags.
 
Go with a PTR 91. Reliable, accurate enough, 308, and $3 mags.
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+1

It's what I did. Magazines are usually closer to $10 now, good ones anyways, still quite the deal. It is 100% reliable, eats anything and shoots to the point of aim. Probably the best $900 I've so far spent on a firearm. It even loves the cheap ZQ1 ammo from Wal Mart.
 
My view is that it is difficult to find a more reliable, and more robust rifle than a bolt-action. I would opt for (did opt for) a .308 Win. If it does not have iron sights from the factory, I would have them added. If you have an AR, a bolt-action .308, a pump-action 12 gauge, and an autoload pistol (9mm, .40 S&W or .45 ACP) you're well equipped for plinking, target shooting, hunting or defense of your home/family.

JMHO,

Geno
 
For a significant increase in range and accuracy at range the .308 is the best option. It's available most anywhere. It has more bullet options than you can shake a stick at and works with a wide range of powders. It's practically universal. At the least it's a jack of many trades.
 
What are you going to use the larger rifle for?

5.56 is more than adequate for social work.

You're not going to hunt to survive. There isn't enough game to feed all the people.

If you want to learn to hunt, then a bolt action 308 is an outstanding choice. I might prefer a 7mm-08, but that's just me. Even with a semi-auto, it's hard to get a good follow-up shot at a deer you just missed. At longer ranges, you have to lead a full-throttle deer by 10-20 feet. The first shot has to count.

If you just enjoy punching paper, then get something fun to shoot so you can enjoy going to the range. The 30-30, or a Marlin lever action in 357 Mag come to mind. You can buy either one for less money than a 30 cal or 6.5/6.8mm upper.

As mentioned, a good balanced collection is an AR15, a bolt-action big game rifle, a decent shotgun and a handgun that is just fun to shoot. Well, toss in a Ruger 10-22.
 
I have the Vepr and love it but in a SHTF scenario, mags would be a bitch.
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Thats true. I'm just lucky to be sitting on a pile of CSSPECS steel 20 rders and a few crates of ammo. PTR is a good rifle, if you can conform to the funky ergo's.
 
Gee. Bolt guns, AR 308 platforms, MiAs, H&K clones...everything a right-thinking person would lay down before picking up his FAL. I mean, the FAL is only the toughest. simplest, most reliable battle rifle ever made.
 
Just as many varied opinions as I was hoping for. Many of your reasons have given me ideas to consider and look at. Thanks guys. Keep them coming.

BTW, I already have the AR15, shotgun, revolver and auto loading pistols covered. Also, hunting isn't a concern unless it were by necessity. I had to give it up a number of years ago when my legs went south. This would be for a combo of "outside the home" defense and 300+ yd target shooting if any of the rumored longer distance ranges open near me.
 
You have an AR and like it so why change? The platform supports plenty of different calibers but the 223 will do most anything you want in your scenario. Talk about readily available ammo and magazines! Isn't it the most common rifle sold? You can also go to an AR-10 and keep the same platform if that is what you want.
From an ammo availability situation and a "more power/range" situation then a bolt action 30-06 would probably be the best. No ammo is more readily available, from the LGS to every big box store, than the 30-06. There is no real ballistic reason to choose 308 over 30-06 or 270. Any of the three are capable of doing what needs to be done. A bolt action is usually the most reliable platform with the least moving parts. You give up speed and magazine capacity but increase the simplicity factor.
I am not at all interested in SHTF scenarios though I guess they are real and need to be addressed. In my mind we all tend to think that we will be able to go to Walmart right before the SHTF and get what we need. I think drinking water, food, and medicine will be the most valuable commodities with guns and ammo coming in a distant 5th or 6th.
 
I think the advice many have given leans more toward real world practicality rather than doomsday catastrophe. In other words, buy something you enjoy because you want it, not because you feel you really need it. Come Apocalypse day, are you really gonna sit watch over 360 degrees scanning the distant horizon for threats 24/7?
 
The reason we don't get into SHTF here at THR is because there are way too many different scenarios of equal validity--which is why entire websites are devoted to that subject. From our standpoint, "home defense" is in itself a variant of SHTF. And defense is considered under most law to be pretty much up close and personal--and that means anything which groups inside of minute of cranium. AR/Mini/AK/SKS/etc. all work.

Use for target shooting and hunting with an AR is a function of the setup of the upper and the quality of the trigger.

IMO, from a practicality standpoint, a larger and more powerful cartridge than a .223 should be in a good bolt action with a good scope. I dunno. I've messed with ARs and such since the early 1980s and bolt guns since before the Dead Sea got sick. So, FWIW...
 
I guess I misrepresented my needs when I mentioned in my original post that I was looking for a SHTF rifle. I don't expect end of the world scenarios and I was unaware that was the only meaning of the term. As I mentioned in my later post (#18), "outside the home" defense is what I was alluding to. If I'm forced to defend my family or property outside the confines of my home, I'd like to have the choice of doing so with something other than my 5.56. By far, the most common use would be target shooting and just plain fun.

Sorry if I was unclear.
 
"a right-thinking person would lay down before picking up his FAL. I mean, the FAL is only the toughest. simplest, most reliable battle rifle ever made."

I absolutely love the ergos of the FAL however, they have a tendency to choke on steel case ammo.
 
Outside the confines of your home, you'd highly unlikely to have any rifle close enough to help in the first place. Think in terms of excessive penetration as well. You are responsible for where any shot you take ends up. Hit a person or property way down the street, you're guilty.
Target shooting is far more realistic. For that, a lot depends on the kind of target shooting. If you're thinking NRA Full Bore, it's one type of rifle. IPSC style rifle shooting is another. Your budget will determine most of it, but a Loaded M1A will cover both and most other types of target shooting.
 
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