My buddy and I were talking about civilian sniper/scout teams in crisis situations.

If one guy is carrying a scoped bolt gun in .308 (as .223 is a little weak for accurate distance shooting), should the scout have a semi-auto .308 (such as an M1A, FAL, or G3)?

OR...

Should the scout have an AR with lots and lots of ammo on hand just in case the team needs volume fire to break away from the enemy?

Common sense says both guys should be using rifles that are chambered with the same cartridge. I haven't answered this one yet.

Have you?

Good point, raf. However, the most obvious question here is: what if one guy runs out of ammo? Now his weapon is useless if the two guys have different calibers.

That said, I still like the idea of the AR15. It is accurate, plentiful (for parts and replacing/swapping), and utilizes the handier .223 cartridge.

Tough question.

Why not have two snipers with two .308 cal. auto loading sniper rifles zeroed using the same exact ammo like fed gold medal match?  Each sniper should carry half a dozen 20 round mags.  That way when they get into a firefight they can swap magazines.
[sniper]
[sniper]

Except a snipers job is to fire ONE round then E&E.

Funny. More and more I lean towards the scout having an AR.

An FAL (mine is from DSA) is a tantalizing choice, though.

Why wouldn't the "sniper" have a PDW or riot shotgun.

Ideally the sniper team should E+E after any shots and they should have the path preset.

I'm also not sure what you mean by a civilian team.

Perhaps MP-5's SD for both as PDW's, wouldn't rule out an M-203 for the scout either.  

Remember 20 months ago when Y2K talk was all the rage? Just b/c that scenario came and went without so much as a whimper doesn't mean us civvies have stopped theorizing.

Any number of situtations could have cropped up. One huge one was less than a year ago when alot of folk were convinced Klinton would do anything to stay in office...then the election fiasco hit. It had me wondering what was going to happen (suspension of election results, Congress up in arms, Executive Orders declaring martial law...).

Should I continue? Perhaps fuel riots last winter? No heating oil unless you could pay $4/gallon? Nobody driving vehicles, resorting to wholesale looting/destruction of other people's property?

The list could go on and on. This is all just an interesting exercise. Unless it actually happens to you.

And what would a "sniper team" do to help you in those situations?? Mobility is a key asset for the team if you are tasked to defend an area you lose a lot of the effect/advantage of the team.

Well I'm just trying to understand the premise.

I think if this is a SHTF, marauder situation a sniper may not be what you need. It may be a 2-5 man team that can engage a large group in guerilla type attacks. Commo, coordination, palnning, marksmanship, and knowledge of the are would be likely keys.  

No one, certainly not me, can tell you what to expect in the event of a SHTF scenario.

In reference to your specific question Oly, perhaps there is a marauding gang of thugs that moved out into your rural area and is stealing valuables and killing those who resist. NOT UNLIKE THE SITUATION IN SOUTH AFRICA.

If a few like-minded guys (friends, no less) decided to step up to the plate and defend their families from these thugs/terrorists a scout/sniper team might be appropriate. Especially if one of them is a crack shot when the other simply knows how to handle/fire weapons but is not skilled in sniper grade marksmanship.

Just b/c the law is around right now does not mean it will always be. Remember LA '92?

This is how we do it.  Primary shooter and weapon is a boltaction  in 308. The spotter carryies a ar/car-15 and is loaded for bear. Both the pirmary shooter and the spotter can use the same rifle. we just know how to shoot of the other dope. that take time and lots of practice.  If you in SW florida and like to shoor or want to  email me [email protected]

If the spotter has to shoot, all hell has broken loose. I would carry the AR and E&E.