Posted: 9/7/2011 6:15:22 AM EDT
| I was wondering what people have for gun Calibers at there bug out land? the reason i ask is I'm thinking about selling some guns that I haven't used (haven't been shot in 5-10 years.) And getting a AK47, or ak74 or a few Mosin Nagant. I have one Mosin Nagant that will be there for large game (elk, and bear.) |
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I would say that would depend on the land and the game in your area. Around here a good 12 gauge with a 28in modified choke would be great. Not only can you shoot regular remington forster slugs but you can take all forms small game and birds with it. I would consider that the universal firearm for feeding myself. You can buy a used rem 870 for $150
Not to mention with a shotgun like a browning auto 5 if you are out hunting small game/birds and see a deer. You can throw the switch and dump the current shell while it holds the rest in the tube and throw a slug in it to take the deer. 2nd choice to that would be something like a combo gun .270, 30-06, .308 ( what ever you already have ) over a 12 gauge would be handy. |
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Something that you may want to consider is ammo availability and commonality of calibers.
I try to keep something in each common caliber at my BOL....5.56/.223, 7.62x39, 9mm, .45, .22LR, 12 gauge. None of them are high-dollar 1st-class fancy firearms but they are solid and dependable. If you already have a decent selection of firearms with some duplicates or "overlap", I'd hesitate in selling off your "excess"...use the extras to stock the safe at your BOL. SKS is a good choice for 7.62x39 as it isn't dependent on detachable magazines. They're $250 - $300 in my area these days. WASR-10 AK's aren't top-of-the-line, but they're good, solid serviceable rifles and can be had for around $400. Add another $150 for a few mags & a 500rd. case of ammo. A KISS/basic AR can be had cheaply these days if you shop a little... Bargins on 9mm & .45 handguns are easy to find...look for used Glocks & Rugers. Police trade-in Smith & Wessons are a good bet as well. The Mosin/Nagant recommendation is a great idea as well. Plenty of power out to decent ranges. Cheap surplus ammo already spam-canned for long-term storage available right now. Don't overlook other bolt-action rifles. The pawn shops around me will have a shit-ton of scoped bolt-actions on their shelves after deer season is over in my area. A bit of haggling will likely score you a good, clean used rig at a substantial discount from new. Try to stick with a common caliber like .308 or .30-06. Other calibers like .243, .270 and 7mm Mag would probably be OK as well. Keep in mind that you probably will have others...family and/or like-minded individuals...at your BOL. They might need to be armed as well, for whatever reason. I keep my BOL firearms secured in an inexpensive but decent safe that's positioned well out of sight and a bit hard to access. |
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I regularly scan the local trader newspapers and bargain hunt. At this exact moment there is a decent Winchester 94 in 30-30 leaning in the corner at the hunt camp. It was a $200 firearm. Other acceptable choices are the Mosin Nagant (really like those cheap spam cans of ammo) and the SKS. my Nagant ran $65 (including a couple hundred rounds of ammo) and the Yugo 59/66 sks were bought a few years ago when they were $139.00 new.
I have a few 'rules' for hunt camp/bol guns. 1) They have to be cheap enough to buy so that if its stolen I do not cry much. This means sub-$200. 2) They have to be effective as both defense and big game guns. These are sometimes pressed into duty as a "holy crap, there's an 8 pointer behind the shit house" guns. If it will reliably take deer, I am happy 3) Ammo must be commonly available and reasonably priced. I like to leave a couple hundred rounds at the camp. This means that oddities like .375 Winchester, my .260 and the .350 Rem Mag aren't great choices. 30-30, 7.62x39, 7.62x54R, .308, .30-06 and the like would all be fine. 4) I don't want to have to spend an additional $300 on accesories to make a $200 rifle run. Even if the rifle itself is dirt cheap I don't want to have to spend hundreds on a scope and mounts, or buy a half dozen magazines at $45 a pop. I find the SKS is nearly ideal for this reason. $20 in stripper clips and you can keep it running without a lot of additional cost. Same for the model 94 (nothing required) or the Nagants (Strippers are cheap). |
