OK, given world affairs lately a friend of your's who has never owned a gun sits you down and says I'm thinkin I should get a gun to protect myself and my family.  You ask the litany of questions, what do you think it will most likely have to be used for, any applications other than defense, will anyone else in the family have to use it, do you have any experience with firearms handling, and perhaps in this instant most importantly - how much do you have to spend.

Your friend tells you that he only has $200 for a firearm and ammo and he and maybe his wife and teenage son will need to be able to use it, he doesn't have much experience with guns other than shooting his grandfather's hunting rifles years ago, he is concerned about defense and also being able to take game should there be a need to leave the city/town at some point.

So what do you recommend?  A .22, a 12 gauge, a Mauser, an SKS maybe an inexpensive but reliable pistol like a used Buckmark or a S&W revolver?  Remember he only has $200 to spend and he needs to be able to buy enough ammo to not only practice but have enough to respond to a possible crisis.

I myself am torn between telling him to get a good .22 semi like a Buckmark (I paid $160 for mine in like new condition), a 10/22 or maybe an SKS.  .22 doesn't strike me as a very effective round for all eventualities, but it is cheap and readily available and all family members could use it without trouble.  A 12 gauge seems very versatile, especially going between birdshot, buckshot and slugs.  An SKS offers a good intermediate cartridge suitable for defense and hunting, a Mauser has plenty of knockdown power and 8mm surplus is cheap, of course it might be too much gun for the wife and kid.

What are your thoughts?  I like to play these scenarios out, especially since I had several non firearm owning friends come to me post 9-11 and ask similar questions.  Of course, most had more than $200 to spend, but some of them didn't.  In general they were looking for defense and didn't have pistol permits, so I helped them find good deals on shotguns.  However, I want to hear your thoughts on all-purpose or general purpose firearms.

Never send a pistol to do a job of the long gun. The 12 gauge is simple to operate and cheap to run.

I would recommend sitting down with the husband, wife, and teenage children and discussing the differences between the two.  Then, if possible, take them to the range and let them try out each one (you DO have one of each, right?).  Everyone will LIKE the 10/22, but they must be made to understand that it is the least powerful, and therefore least effective, of the given choices, and that could make the difference in a dangerous situation.

I would NOT recommend a shotgun to anyone who wouldn't practice with it occasionally, and that means the wife and kids too.  In an emergency, you can't afford to be unfamiliar with a shotgun's recoil.  An SKS has less recoil, especially if you install a Choate stock, and being semi-auto, is more reliable in the hands of unskilled, unfamiliar folks.

MY solution to a similar situation (non-gun-owning relatives staying at my grandmother's home in a dangerous neighborhood to watch out for her) was a Marlin Camp 45.  These run $300-400 used (Marlin discontinued them to distance themselves from any "assault weapon" issues), have very little recoil, point very well, are very easy to operate, and very "newbie-friendly."  They take standard 1911 mags and operate similar to a scaled-up 10/22.  They were also available in a 9mm version that take S&W 59-series mags (NOT rated for +P or +P+ ammo, though).

-Troy

kihn, I got my SKS two weekends ago at the local show, $150 out the door and half cases of ammo were going for around $45, but you could get him down to $40 if you worked him good.

I agree the shotgun is the best bet, but there is something about an SKS...

The other option I didn't think of was I bought an FEG PA-63 in 9mm Makarov from my dealer for $80 out the door last year.  Hell of a heavy trigger, but you can get the gun and a couple boxes of ammo for $100.  That leaves you with $100 to save toward other toys while giving you the IMMEDIATE benefit of having a reliable and concealable defense option.  I tell you, those FEG's are WAY overengineered, ain't nothing gonna stop it from working!

Given the stated parameters, I'd suggest a Yugo SKS or an Israeli 98 Mauser converted to 7.62 Nato.
Pistols are out, given the stated requirements.
A possibility would be a cheapo, but reliable side-by-side shotgun.  12-ga. ammo can be tailored to the target and the shooter.
A cheap, used single-shot .22 LR rifle might be a wise first purchase for training, then the main gun.
$200 is really too low a figure.  I'd gently ask your friend if his and his family's security isn't worth spending somewhat more.

It never ceases to amaze me that people can not follow directions or work within the stated parameters.  There is only $200 to spend.  Maybe there was a sick family member, maybe they are unemployed due to a layoff at the factory, whatever the reason.  There is only $200 to spend, how due you best meet his varied requirements with the resources at hand... in this case $200.  The issue is not what his family may or may not be worth, saving isn;t an option - there is an immediate need for protection, and no you can not loan him one of your's.

God almighty, try to follow directions or back to kindergarten with you...

Romanian SKS (cheaper than the Yugo), sling, ammo, and cheap red dot sight (BSA?)

The SKS is easy to fire, and the red dot makes it easy for the wife and kids who may ahve never fired a rifle.