So I have a few questions about yalls go to rifle. What components do yall use? What caliber? Why do you have it setup that way? I'm starting to build my go to rifle and was wondering if I should go with a different caliber. Right now I have a .223, a .50 Beowulf, and a 6.8 I'm selling because it's not quite what I want. There's nothing wrong with the caliber, it's the upper I don't like. I don't have any ammo for if so it might not be the caliber I'm looking for or it might be. I don't recall if there's a thread about this already sorry if there is.

For SHTF discussion you might be better off in the Survival forum.

However this could be argued a lot of ways. On one hand 5.56 and 9mm would be a good choice because there is a lot of it around. On the other hand an exotic caliber would be best because everyone else is going to go for the 5.56 and 9mm. So pick what you like and go from there.

Go to caliber is 5.56mm, using Black Hills 77gr. OTM, its a Colt 6920 with an ACOG

5.56.........keep it simple

I have several ARs that can be used for a SHTF situation. They are all set up a little differently. Here is one example.









The upper is a CMMG 5.56 14.5" SOCOM with a Phantom 5C2 FH pinned and welded. Ammo is M855. One 30-round magazine in the weapon and five more on the carrier. Optic is an EOTech 553.

SHTF I'm all about Scout tactics. Light, fast, avoid a fight and if I come under direct contact high volume of fire. I choose the 5.56 because its lighter and I can get more rounds on target faster.

5.56,  20"  A2 is my go to weapon.

I use a suppressed SBR w/ geiselle saa. Light and not nearly as loud so my hearing wouldn't be destroyed right away. I like my aimpoint T1 cause that's my home defense set up with a surefire x300.

Basically my home defense gun is my all around weapon.

I use an 11.5" SBR with a Specwar 556 suppressor and a 1-4 scope on it.  Works great.  It is loud with the suppressor off as I have a brake on it.

The LMT upper / colt bcg is on it at night with a tlr1 , aimpoint m3 , LaRue buis, bcm gunfighter ch
The lower is a spikes punisher , s3g trigger , troy stock ,  magpul asap, custom osoe sling
5.56

I use a BCM EAG carbine with either an Aimpoint PRO, Leupold 1.5-5X, or Larue irons.  

Vickers sling and a Surefire P2X Fury.  

Pmag 40s....

Daniel Defense MK18 with a Aimpoint PRO, Surefire X300U and a SDN-6 on the way handles everything I need it to.

plenty of options but my question for you are you lone wolfing this or are you having a group. and are you evading or engaging

A lot of need-to knows are needed.

The main thing for a serious use rifle is reliability.  The mil specs are a proven recipe for reliability, and are a good starting point.  Also, for a rifle you're carrying in the field, weight is an issue.  Forget the bench shooter mindset about squeezing every bit of sub-MOA accuracy out of your rig... if you can shoot inside of 4 MOA, you are fine for combat purposes.  So I like pencil or gov't profile barrels, chrome lined bores, and 5.56 chambers.  Leave the heavy barrels and hybrid match chambers to the bench huggers.  If you've built a solid rifle, the optics need to be equally solid.  So no Chinese crap.  An Aimpoint PRO is pretty hard to beat for a red dot.  You'll want a good sling... I like the padded VCAS.  Also remember that it is dark half the time, and the action doesn't stop when the sun sets.  Night vision is ideal, but you'll at least want a good rifle mounted white light.  You will also need some load bearing gear to carry mags and your other gear in the field.  Once again, don't get cheap crap.  You can find a serviceable belt or chest rig to get you started at the Army surplus store.  I could go on and on a about training, etc., but that's not what you asked about.

556 for sure, The whole caliber debate is boring and been hashed over a billion times with the same results.

I don't find that one gun is necessary or suits my needs as well as a few set up correctly.

Car gun, CQB gun, short with a 1/3 co witness Red dot sight and flashlight. I dont care about fancy this or that on this gun, a semi stock 11.5 works well enough for me.

My woods, hunting,general use rifle, I like something along the lines of a MOD Holland. Mil scope variable power in the 2.5-10 to the 4-14 or there about. High quality barrel, full length freefloat, suppressor ,Back up RDS or side sights ,so basically a scoped tricked carbine.

I keep a Kiss type rifle around just because they are so rugged and dependable, kill a coon in the chicken coop and what not.

I did run a 1-whatever scope for a time but found it to be less then ideal in ever role.

5.56

lightweight

Accurate

Cheap

Good to great ballistic performance

Easy to reload

Low recoil

Did i mention cheap?

My go to rifle is a BCM 16" middy, on a spikes tactical lower, with moe furniture, DD 1.5 rear sight. (Im saving up for an aimpoint)

Me too!!!!  Colt 6700 HBAR with Acog 4x, sling and a good light and lots of PMAGS!!!!  5.56, it works for our military, it will work for me. Of course I would always have my 12 gauge and sidearm in a SHTF scenario.
NCH

556 either rifle or carbine length. Buy quality, BCM, LMT, Colt, Spikes. Stay away from ARs that use proprietary parts.

I think the AK is the quintessential SHTF carbine. There are few more rugged and simple carbines out there that can endure lack of care yet still be reliable and combat accurate. One can easily hit man-sized targets at 200 yards, which is way beyond most combat engagement distances especially during SHTF scenarios.
My AK's are SLR-95's and I have two 6.8spc AR's, as much as I'd like to prefer to take the AR's, my instincts say grab the AK's when sh*t gets serious.

First you need to define what SHTF means to you.
Does it mean TEOTWAWKI, New Orleans after the hurricane, or something milder where a person is in a disaster zone without power and little or no police presence for a few days or at most a few weeks?
You will also have to account for your potential tactical situations.
Everyone has to tailor their caliber choice and weapon configuration to their circumstances.
My all around weapon has a 5.56mm 18” barrel and collapsing stock.
I have other choices that would be better for specific situations.

I live in a semi-urban environment so if you live in a rural area, you may think differently but here it goes

Caliber: 5.56

It is readily available in the US and you can buy different loads depending on what you think you need out of your ammo and your budget.  There is fairly cheap, decent, surplus ammo available if you feel the need for large quantities.

Barrel length: 11.5"

I like this length because it is decently compact and doesn't lose too much velocity in comparison to your "standard" 16" barrel.  I lose almost 200fps dropping from an 11.5" barrel to a 10.5" barrel (with xm193) but I only lose about 150 going from 16" down to 11.5".  So basically I think 11.5" is the best combination of compactness and performance.  That being said, I would be hard pressed to find an open area where I could even take a 500m shot around my house, and honestly, I don't see shooting at that distance in my idea of a SHTF situation.  If you live on a farm or have 100s of yards of open fields around your property, you may have different ideas.

Optics: EOTech XPS + G33

There are a lot of different optics that I like and would find acceptable but this just happens to be the one I have on this rifle.  I really think magnification is important bc although I may not be taking 500m shots, I think it is good to have magnification on your rifle so that you can at least get a better view of something you may deem shady or someone lurking around in your neighborhood.  ACOGs + RMR or 1-6x/1-4x variable powers would both be fine for me.  I do like having the the ability to get the magnification out of the way, being able to maintain the same cheek weld, and use a 1x that doesn't have any eyebox issues so that is why I am where I am right now.  

Light: Surefire m300

It isn't the most powerful light but I don't see using the light further than 20-50m out so it works well for me.  It is well built and is fairly compact.  I use the SR switch because i can use the light without having to alter my normal grip at all.  

Trigger: Geissele G2S
VG: Larue FUG
Stock: LMT SOPMOD
Rail: DD RIS II MK18
Sling: BFG VCAS
Suppressor:  AAC SDN6

Triggers, slings, VGs ect are really all personal preference.

for a SHTF scenario I would go with my .22lr then my AR and THEN a .308 Remington 700. My top 3 pics for SHTF rifles. Currently I have a .22lr and 5.56 Im working on getting a 308 together. Mainly saving for suppressors for these top 3

I tend to think of "SHTF" from a Second Amendment perspective.  Ask yourself, if I wanted to go out and disrupt TPTB and make my locale as "ungovernable" as possible, right here right now, what kind of things would I be doing?  There are many ways to go about it, but if your plan is to shoot it out in the streets or at your "compound" with large numbers of the bad guys' goons, your plan sucks.  Think elimination of key personnel; and think escape and evasion, and living to fight another day.

Thats cute

He's opinion is legitimate.  An AK is fine, an AR is fine, a 30-30 is fine.  

The software > the hardware.

5.56mm (not 223) is a good way to go. There's plenty of special flavor-of-the-month cartridges on the market; most try to solve a non-existant problem and in a year or two ammo gets really scarce.

Other than that, quality parts, light weight (every ounce counts), sling, flashlight, and (if funds allow) a quality optic appropriate to your environment.

Go with whatever you are trained on.  I spent over 30 years carrying a M16/M4 and mine is set up as I carried a M4 for 20 yrs (5.56, 14.5", SOPMOD stock, Surefire Scout light, Aimpoint M2 and BUIS).  I've got several old LBEs set up that I know and have several plated carriers also set up.  My M4 is a General Purpose Rifle for me from hunting (have taken several whitetails with it), HD and service rifle competition capable to 500 yds with carrying handle.


CD

CWAR

Not an ammo argument but this is not true.  If you think that 5.56 m855 is a better option (not considering price) than something like .223 60gr Hornady TAP you are mistaken.  Surplus 556 is a great low cost option but it is not going to perform anywhere close to some of these .223 rounds.  The problem with x193/855 is inconsistent performance whenever it hits a soft target... a .223 projectile that is designed to expand within that critical first 4-6 inches solves that very real problem.

Actually there are several, with the AR at the top of that list.

To answer OP's question, mine is an LMT 10.5 in 5.56

I think we should discuss what kind SHTF scenario is floating in your head. After that I would love to read what kind of a strategy you worked out for your scenario. Cause zombies most likely are not coming. Same goes to aliens. Russians and Koreans won't be storming our borders. Economic collapse? Wide long lasting blackout? Bugging in or out?
Almost every detail can change your armory drastically.

I am partial for my new 300 blackout. Using subsonic ammo with my suppressor it is very quiet. It is also an SBR 10.2 inches.

Ammo will be hard to come by except for my stash that is why I have tons of 22lr and 5.56 stocked up.

Simple. Compact.  Efficient.  I like it.

To answer OP's question, mine is a Noveske/KAC hybrid 11.5" in 5.56

unless russia doesnt like the idea of us bringing troops and tanks there.... :/

Paint my rifle, please :)

Why a Hague Convention compliant non-expanding bullet for SHTF?  Hunting type soft points or expanding monolithic copper bullets like Barnes TSX have vastly better terminal performance.  My SHTF load uses a Barnes 62 grain TSX.  Milspec ammo, even the best, makes no sense to me when good hunting ammo works much better.  You are not in the Army or Marines.

A 16" 5.56 carbine with this type load would be hard to beat.  Team it with a .22LR and 12 gauge shotgun and you have the bases covered in a survival mode, end of civilized society, breakdown od order scenario.

Same here.  And lots of ammo.

all 5.56 I prefer fn barrels or bcm

Iam also a devote of BDC reticules. I like to go from 100 meters to 500 mrters without altering my scope's setting. unless it's a red dot then its eotech

my newest add is to make my 2 go to rifles NVD capable- no pics of those yet.

I will never understand the "go to" A2.  Its like the hipsters who still listen to vinyl records and use typewriters instead of laptops.


I'm an SBR person because of the layout of where I live but I think this is an awesome rifle.  (Except those lights suck without an LED conversion... but that makes the IR thing useless)

And true!  

For me, if SHTF, I want a reliable and lightweight/compact carbine, preferably a SBR. It'll be 5.56, running Magpul PMAGs.

BCM, DD, LMT, Aimpoint, Trijicon, Nightforce, Surefire, and a few other names come to mind.

18" A2 for me....but close enough!  




Because ~ 1 year after the balloon goes up, iron sights will rule the world!  A fixed carry handle upper is more durable than a flat top with bolted on sights, esp if those sights are flip up.  

Also, I am not a fan of metal handguards either bare, or with more techy crap hanging on them that will fail over time.

For short term crises scenarios, or when resupply is an option, there can be some advantage to technology, but long term SHTF?  Forget about it.

so long as you don't run it over with a truck, an ACOG will last forever too. tritium will burn out, but its pretty much useless anyway. so long as there is ambient light, the reticle will glow. i too don't see the point in a fixed FSB and carry handle.

Fixed it for you.  

Glass can break and get obstructed through snow, rain, dust, debree, etc.  I also am not a fan of the sight picture / reticle.  Also, it adds ~ one full pound of weight, making your gun more sluggish.

techy crap like a light?

I disagree... I think that some people get off to the "bare bones" design bc it makes them feel rugged and manly but a quality optic and light will make your rifle a more effective tool.  The A2 rear sight is just as vulnerable as the base of a removable carry handle.  If the optic fails then i have irons available to me.  If you feel more comfortable with the A2 thats awesome but I really think you are kinda fooling yourself on this one.  Love A2s... much sexier than something like a CQBR but IMO functionally inferior.

Lights can be good when they work, but glass can break and batteries get used up, etc.  We're talking long term collapse of society here, not a short term mission with resupply, etc.  

I understand.... but i still think you should use what you can while you can.  I don't believe that the fixed A2 handle is really any more durable than the removable handle.  I love that simplistic design but I perform better with some of the techy crap on my rifle and i will use it until i am forced to go without it.  I practice with both.

That's why I tend to run the same light on all my builds.
Plenty of replacements and parts on hand.

your logic is flawed.
Magazines fail WAY more often that optics, do you advocate using single-shots because when you loose your balloons all the feed-lips are going to fall in the gravel?

No, they don't.  

you do realize that aimpoints will run constantly for up to ~8 years depending on model. ACOGs will work forever. BUT iron sights will be fine as your SHTFantasy will never happen..