Your Beater Guns

[Cowhide Cliff]

If we are talking inclimate weather and nasty conditions

For waterfowl it's my trusty old SBE
For deer hunting it would be my Browning stainless stalker or Ruger American both have synthetic stocks
For cowboy action it's would be one of my older Cimarron 1873 rifles and model P revolvers

 

[mljdeckard]

I have an SKS I played with and put all the Tapco stuff on it, specifically to have a gun I won't be heartbroken if something bad happens to it. I also have my dad's old Remington 760 in .257 Roberts, that he put elevated rings on to be able to use the iron sights. (I know they make some people cry.) It's what I grab when I am working the tick sage brush.

 

[tightgroup tiger]

I have an old 8mm Mauser I use for a foul weather gun. If I lean it up against a tree and it falls over, it stays there until I get up. I should treat it better because it is a real deer slayer. But that's what I bought it for. Not worth anything as it's been modified so I use it for that.

 

[GNP]

A Taurus 92, it has been submerged quite a few times, looks pretty rough but you can't seem to kill it. I paid $100 for it more than 30 years ago.

 

[Legionnaire]

I don't have anything I'd call a "beater." I have a Mossberg 500 that has seen some pretty rough conditions, but it is still in great shape. Same can be said for the stainless Ruger Single Six I like to carry with the .22 WMR cylinder when out and about.

 

[GBExpat]

When you are just out to have some fun and you know that conditions may be at their absolute worst or your actions increase the likelyhood of catastrophically breaking your firearm while out hunting or any activity you participate in, which gun do you take? ...

~20 years ago I bought an interesting rifle.

It looks like the result of a drunken night spent by a FAL with an L1A1.

Upon first holding it I dubbed it "FrankenFAL" even though I am not normally one to name my firearms. Well, to be honest , "FrankenFAL" was not the first name that came to mind, more like the 4th or 5th ... it was the first that seemed likely to pass a mixed-company test.

It is (f)ugly ... but ... it is both reliable & accurate ... and tough. IMO, it is a perfect rifle for rough conditions/handling.

 

[Howland937]

Aside from sentimental guns I rarely shoot, everything I own could be a beater at any time. If I'm doing anything where a gun is required, I just take whatever serves the purpose best.

 

[FROGO207]

Yeah everything I own is used as needed. It can all be cleaned and restored as needed. That said, I will revert to a SS firearm if I plan on a day or two out in the wild (snow/rain)and have no time to clean and oil it till I get home.

 

[bassjam]

I don't have any "beater guns".

That being said, I would like something other than my lcp to carry in my pocket when I wade fish. These aren't crystal clear mountain streams I'm in, they're Ohio river watersheds full of silt and mud and whatever I carry is submerged in that for hours and hours.

 

[Howland937]

I don't have any "beater guns".

That being said, I would like something other than my lcp to carry in my pocket when I wade fish. These aren't crystal clear mountain streams I'm in, they're Ohio river watersheds full of silt and mud and whatever I carry is submerged in that for hours and hours.

This one spent about 3 hours submerged in Rattlesnake Creek, that runs into Paint Creek Lake.
Didn't hurt it a bit. I switched out ammo though, but I've since fired all of it without issue.

 

[Charlie Martinez]

My "beater" gun used to be my Charter Arms Target 357 until I realized what a nice little gun it actually is. Now I don't have any guns I would place in the "beater" category. I simply hate to damage or abuse any gun regardless of its monetary value.

 

[Captcurt]

My knockabout gun is a Ruger 22/45. It goes with me 90% of the time. All of my centerfire rifles have synthetic stocks and butler caps on the scopes, so I grab whichever one that I am in the mood for. The old 1300 Winchester gets all of the nasty weather when a shotgun is called for. The only nice guns that I hesitate to abuse are my O/U shotguns and my CZ455. They're too nice to drag behind the truck.

 

[mjsdwash]

Springfield GI, Ruger NM Vaquero, and a home built AR. They've all been soaked in rain, sand, snow. The two pistols have been completely underwater a few times. Lots of damage to the finish, but they always work.

 

[.38 Special]

If I expect to get wet - I know I am going to get rained on or whatever - then I just bring something stainless and plan on giving it a good going-over at the end of the adventure.

If I figure the chances of catastrophe are high, I just stay home!

I do have one treasure that runs perfectly but looks pretty well used up, which is the closest thing I have to a "beater", I guess.



This is my K22 "Combat Masterpiece". For once my camera made it look better than it really is. It's traveled a lot of miles in the holster and has been dropped onto dirt and rocks more than once (and has had the grips replaced more than once too!) but has always run like a top and is supremely accurate.

 

[mcb]

Some of my favorite days in the woods are wet days. The only thing better than rain is a really hard all day snow. This was a good if wet day. We both eventually dried out, none the worst for the experience.

 

[The Glockodile]

The closest rifle I could think of would be any one of my Tikka SS Lites, the ones with the Glock Stocks.

 

[Captcurt]

View attachment 1022219

This is my K22 "Combat Masterpiece". For once my camera made it look better than it really is. It's traveled a lot of miles in the holster and has been dropped onto dirt and rocks more than once (and has had the grips replaced more than once too!) but has always run like a top and is supremely accurate.

Perfect!

 

[Lo-Profile]

I really don't consider any of my guns "beaters" even my $49 "bubba'd" Mosin Nagant. It's served me well deer hunting. Did need a stock replace.

 

[sarduy]

When you are just out to have some fun and you know that conditions may be at their absolute worst or your actions increase the likelyhood of catastrophically breaking your firearm while out hunting or any activity you participate in, which gun do you take?
.

A Glock 19 and AK47

 

[rust collector]

I have an old Ithaca model 37 20 gauge pump that was well used before I found it on the rack at the local gun shop. It has since been one of my favorite upland guns. It isn't pretty, but clearly one of the previous owners taught it how to smack pheasants!

 

[chicharrones]

My current “beater” guns are my pocket carry guns, TCP732, RM380, and a 21A that’s not carried anymore. Sweat, rain, dirt, pocket lint, etc. Everything else are safe queens in comparison.

 

[pharmer]

I hate the term "beater" as gun terminology. This is an "ultra high mileage" Model 34-1. Joe

 

[irishlad]

Weather is almost a non factor as long as it's wiped down and oiled at the end of the day. What's much more important is how banged up it's going to get in the bottom of a boat or back of a truck etc. A little bit of care can mitigate most of this though.

With only a very few exceptions, my guns are used for the purpose I want to use them independent of weather or other environmental conditions. I have found that weather is rarely an issue if the firearm is well cared for before and after the exposure. I have never worried about damaging my guns with what I am doing.

Nothing's better than a firearm (tool) that is ugly from honest wear, it stands tribute to the success and trials its user(s) have overcome.

The only place I ever was worried about was the Salton Sea in Southern California. I bought a 870 Express, just to duck hunt there. You can almost watch stuff rust. I live in Utah now and people tell me the Great Salt Lake is even worse.

 

[mcb]

The only place I ever was worried about was the Salton Sea in Southern California. I bought a 870 Express, just to duck hunt there. You can almost watch stuff rust. I live in Utah now and people tell me the Great Salt Lake is even worse.

Salt water would be one worry and I might be slightly more selective about what gun I expose to salt water, maybe, but I grew up in Ohio and now live in Northern Alabama and hunt in Middle Tennessee so salt water is never an issue except on the roads in Ohio in the winter.

On the other hand you bought an 870 Express. You can practically watch those rust while sitting in the middle of the Sahar desert...

 

[irishlad]

On the other hand you bought an 870 Express. You can practically watch those rust while sitting in the middle of the Sahar desert...

It certainly might. I bought it when they first came out, has held up well. Grandson has adopted it. Here's what one guy said about the Great Salt Lake, "I have hunted the GSL many times and watched guns rust before my eyes. It's amazing how fast a gun will rust on that body of water, especially on a foggy day when there is a lot of moisture in the air. It's like putting a wet gun in a wet case overnight. Instant rust!"