Posted: 9/10/2014 11:34:00 AM EDT
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Most folks on here (myself included) have way more guns and gear than they need, and that’s cool. Most of us also are approached from time to time by friends, relatives, acquaintances and asked for gun type advice. If you had a guy who was serious about getting geared for concealed carry, home defense, and short term SHTF (like riots, storm power outage, etc., not TEOTWAWKI) ask for advice setting up reasonably but as frugally as possible, what would be your advice? I think at minimum: 1. One handgun that can be CCW 2. Holster and at least 2 spare mags 3. AR, 16” 4. Red dot sight 5. sling 6. Minimum 7 mags 7. Chest rig, vest, or battle belt 8. At least one good light 9. Folding knife 10. Electric ear pro 11. Eye pro 12. Water bottle with a way to carry/camelback/canteen 13. 250 rds pistol ammo, 1000 rds rifle ammo Comments on list? Suggestions on least expensive acceptable items to satisfy each requirement? |
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Bare minimum for the situations you describe:
1. Handgun 2. Holster and good belt for #1 3. Magazines filled with self defense ammo for #1 4. Practice using # 1 - 3 5. Rifle (AR-15 or AK-47 preferred) with iron sights or red dot that are properly zeroed 6. Magazines filled with reliable ammo for # 5 (3 - 7 mags preferred) 7. Sling for #5 8. Reliable weapon light for #5 9. Practice using # 5 - 8 That should be enough for home defense and reasonable SHTF (looting, Katrina, etc) scenario. If nothing else, make sure he starts with either #1 - 4 (not skipping 4!) or starts at #5 - 9 (not skipping #9). |
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Glock 19 or Smith and Wesson M&P9 - $500 if you go online and include FFL transfer fee. I would recommend quality police trade ins though on a budget, can be had for sub $400 and you can sometimes snag one with decent night sights
IWB concealment holster from N82 tactical - $40 basic model for concealment only Two spare magazines - $50 AR - Colt 6920 can be had right now for $900 Optic - I personally am OK with a Primary Arms or Vortex optic for budget conscious (others will disagree and say Aimpoint or nothing) - $80 to $140 Sling - 6920's come set up for a two point, I would recommend a Condor Speedy 2 Point - $25 Mags - GI steel mags can be had for $7 a piece online - $50 Although I personally recommend battle belts over chest rigs, I think for a beginner the chest rig is just simply going to be easier, and likely cheaper. You can pick up an SOE Micro Rig from several big airsoft websites and cut out having to deal with SOE bullshit. I payed $80 for mine. Plenty of other good options as well. Good light - Surefire G2X Tactical can be had for $50 on Amazon. Streamlight polytac is good for a hand light as well for $40, probably not suitable for weapon mounting. Folding knife - too many to name. Gerber, CRKT, and Kershaw have tons of decent budget knives. I wouldn't get anything too fancy if you plan on using it for utility. If you want more of a survival knife or a fighting knife then I would recommend spending at least $60 to $100. Electronic ear pro - Howard Leight Impact Sport can be had for $45 on Amazon. I have a pair of Caldwell E-Max that are cheap but so far have held up surprisingly well for $25. Eye pro - Only something I would consider for the range. If shit is going down eye pro isn't even on the short list of stuff I want to grab. Water bottle - Camelbak Eddy. Nalgene. No need to over think it. You can do a hydration bladder setup in a backpack or whatever you want, but honestly a good bottle is the best bet. Belt (not battle belt) - Plenty of good options out there, but for a budget I recommend the Blackhawk CQB Riggers belt. $20 or so on Amazon, no frills. I wear one frequently, don't care if it wears out (although mine has held up well in the past two years). Can handle sidearm, spare mags no problem. Case of XM193 or similar 556 ammo is going for about $325 including shipping right now if you shop around 250 rounds of NATO spec handgun ammo like Winchester White Box will probably run you $75 still Total cost: I calculated $2175 if you get a police trade in handgun, spend $20 on a folding knife, $80 on a basic chest rig, etc. |
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Quoted: The question is "what would be your advice?" Quoted: Quoted: Is training included in that budget? |