Should you diversify your calibers in case of bad times?
- Thread starter Playboypenguin
- Start date
parrothead2581
New member
I have, for a long time now, thought that a G17 or G19 would make a perfect "natural disaster" pistol for me.
The 9mm is/was inexpensive enough to stock up on, easy on the recoil, lightweight and popular worldwide.
I do like variety. And who knows, in the event supplies are low, your .40S&W, .357sig, 10mm, etc, may be worth much, much more to someone else (monetarily or otherwise).
It wouldn't hurt to have a moderate supply of them all. Shoot, replenish, repeat.
The 9mm is/was inexpensive enough to stock up on, easy on the recoil, lightweight and popular worldwide.
I do like variety. And who knows, in the event supplies are low, your .40S&W, .357sig, 10mm, etc, may be worth much, much more to someone else (monetarily or otherwise).
It wouldn't hurt to have a moderate supply of them all. Shoot, replenish, repeat.
Lawyer Daggit
New member
My favourite rifle calibres are the .222, .350 Rem Mag and 7x57, but I have a .223, .308 and 30-30 in my safe just in case of 'hard times', as I figure that even although I have reloading materials for the former, it will more than likely be possible to get loaded ammo for the latter.
Diversity good. I'm covered through 9 but to flesh my arsenal out I need a S&W M&P .45 mid size a S&W M&P 9 Pro for 9mm Hi-Cap, a Walther P99 AS in .40 and a .308 DPMS EBR.
Die sets for the progressive in .40. $3500 and I will have it covered.
Oh I forgot, FN SLP 12 gauge so add 1100....4600 total.
2009 was also the year to albeit slowly get the powder, primers, brass stock built up.
Die sets for the progressive in .40. $3500 and I will have it covered.
Oh I forgot, FN SLP 12 gauge so add 1100....4600 total.
2009 was also the year to albeit slowly get the powder, primers, brass stock built up.
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Christchild
New member
^^This one gets my vote. MY humble opinion, diversity is better utilized in the cartridges in particular. 12 gauge, for example...HD/SD, small game hunting AND larger game...just tailor Your loads.
Count me in on a handful of cartridges/chamberings and extra-extra on tools, supplies and components...Gun Care IS included in the "supplies" catagory, Fella's!
Early on in the Great Ammo Shortage, I wandered around the Denver Metro area looking for 9mm or .45 ACP.... plenty of .357 SIG and .40 S&W, but nothing I needed.
Later, after I bought a second .357, I could not find primers to make fodder for either one..... but there was plenty of .32 H&R mag and .327 Fed at Cabela's in La Vista, and I was kicking myself for not buying the sp101 in .327 instead of .357.
Diversity can be a good thing.
Later, after I bought a second .357, I could not find primers to make fodder for either one..... but there was plenty of .32 H&R mag and .327 Fed at Cabela's in La Vista, and I was kicking myself for not buying the sp101 in .327 instead of .357.
Diversity can be a good thing.
whippoorwill
New member
"...just in case." Hey, whatever rationalization you need to purchase another firearm is awesome in my book. Maybe that would make another interesting thread... My best "just in case" excuse for buying another firearm...
For example... I've decided that I need to purchase more revolvers, as they'll no doubt out perform semi-autos once global warming kicks in! Well, just in case!
To my way of thinking, it's better to spend $300 and have a nice reserve of single caliber milsurp stashed away for a rainy day than to spend that same $300 and have a little bit of several calibers and occasionally be out of the one you want to shoot on any given day.
Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.
Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.
When you look at military history, the simpler plan tends to be the more successful plan. Simple plans have fewer points of potential failure than do complex plans.
Yes, it's fun to have a variety of guns and calibers. But the topic isn't what is fun; it's what works best in case of bad times.
When you diversify, you create a minimum of four expenses: the platform, the ammo, the spare parts, and the practice to become proficient. Your platform costs money. Your ammo costs money; without it, your platform is useless. Your spare parts cost money; if your platform needs repair, it is useless without spare parts, and the ammo is useless too. Practice to become proficient costs money and time in terms of ammo, spare parts, range fees, and trigger time not used on another platform. If you don't practice, you may not be sufficiently proficient when the need arises, which would defeat everything you've done.
If instead you apply the costs of the other platform, its ammo, its spare parts, and its trigger time to one platform, you can concentrate those resources more efficiently and effectively. That's why it's a good idea to have more than one of the same platform. There is no additional expense in terms of ammo, spare parts, and trigger time. You are more likely to become more proficient because "practice makes perfect" (or at least gets you closer). It is simpler to maintain and account for. The additional copies of the platform are there to either take over if the primary goes down or act as organ donors, thus increasing your spare parts.
I might also add that although I believe in "Lewis and Clark" mode (foraging off the land; in this case, seeking out ammo during bad times), I would feel more secure making my own preparations than in taking pot luck. You are unlikely to just "come across" a cache of ammo. Chances are, if someone else has a cache of ammo that might work in my diversified collection, that same person has enough to fend off anyone who wants to forage it. Either that person will defend it or take it with him if he leaves, or someone who has killed that person has already taken it and now has it to defend himself.
Yes, it's fun to have a variety of guns and calibers. But the topic isn't what is fun; it's what works best in case of bad times.
When you diversify, you create a minimum of four expenses: the platform, the ammo, the spare parts, and the practice to become proficient. Your platform costs money. Your ammo costs money; without it, your platform is useless. Your spare parts cost money; if your platform needs repair, it is useless without spare parts, and the ammo is useless too. Practice to become proficient costs money and time in terms of ammo, spare parts, range fees, and trigger time not used on another platform. If you don't practice, you may not be sufficiently proficient when the need arises, which would defeat everything you've done.
If instead you apply the costs of the other platform, its ammo, its spare parts, and its trigger time to one platform, you can concentrate those resources more efficiently and effectively. That's why it's a good idea to have more than one of the same platform. There is no additional expense in terms of ammo, spare parts, and trigger time. You are more likely to become more proficient because "practice makes perfect" (or at least gets you closer). It is simpler to maintain and account for. The additional copies of the platform are there to either take over if the primary goes down or act as organ donors, thus increasing your spare parts.
I might also add that although I believe in "Lewis and Clark" mode (foraging off the land; in this case, seeking out ammo during bad times), I would feel more secure making my own preparations than in taking pot luck. You are unlikely to just "come across" a cache of ammo. Chances are, if someone else has a cache of ammo that might work in my diversified collection, that same person has enough to fend off anyone who wants to forage it. Either that person will defend it or take it with him if he leaves, or someone who has killed that person has already taken it and now has it to defend himself.
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The Great Mahoo
New member
Hmm, interesting question.
Diversity is nice. I remember walking into ammoshops and just getting what I could for my guns, simply because that was available. When there were no .45acp's to be found, I still found some .38's to shoot.
However, I also like the idea of specializing, to cut costs of time and money. Its terribly expensive to stock ammo for multiple calibers. I like to keep 2-500 rounds for each caliber, more if I can. If I had a dozen to stock, I wouldn't be able to keep up with that.
Personally, I have moved to consolidate my platforms, while expanding the diversity of them. The majority of my collection is .45acp or .45LC, with a few others. I had my .45LC revolver cut to accept moons of acps (which was good, since I can't find LCs anywhere!) and picked up a .327 that shoots any form of conventional .32 caliber ammo. I have stayed away from 9mm, prefer to stick with ammo for my .45's instead of getting a new platform. I have a levergun in .45LC to match my revolvers, and am looking for one in .327 to be made.
I'd love to get another 10mm, but have trouble finding ammo for it, or a gun that I like.
So, for me, its a bit of diversity, but not going off of the deepend.
Diversity is nice. I remember walking into ammoshops and just getting what I could for my guns, simply because that was available. When there were no .45acp's to be found, I still found some .38's to shoot.
However, I also like the idea of specializing, to cut costs of time and money. Its terribly expensive to stock ammo for multiple calibers. I like to keep 2-500 rounds for each caliber, more if I can. If I had a dozen to stock, I wouldn't be able to keep up with that.
Personally, I have moved to consolidate my platforms, while expanding the diversity of them. The majority of my collection is .45acp or .45LC, with a few others. I had my .45LC revolver cut to accept moons of acps (which was good, since I can't find LCs anywhere!) and picked up a .327 that shoots any form of conventional .32 caliber ammo. I have stayed away from 9mm, prefer to stick with ammo for my .45's instead of getting a new platform. I have a levergun in .45LC to match my revolvers, and am looking for one in .327 to be made.
I'd love to get another 10mm, but have trouble finding ammo for it, or a gun that I like.
So, for me, its a bit of diversity, but not going off of the deepend.
stargazer65
New member
This sounds like a convenient excuse to justify purchases.
Good thinking! Count me in as a yes.
Good thinking! Count me in as a yes.
With the exception of New Orleans, where government sat on its hands for several days; civil authority, during natural disasters in the US, has either not ceased or resumed within hours of said disaster.
Even in New Orleans the stories of violence were for the most part urban legends. Remember white folk are scavengers and black folk are looters.
So I suspect that for the vast majority of the members here in the US, the ammo we got on hand will see us through any natural disaster.
A better investment would be a reverse osmosis water purifier and some disaster preparedness training.
In an interview John Farmer http://news.rutgers.edu/medrel/news-releases/2009/09/new-book-by-dean-joh-20090908 said that the big difference in how effective people were during 9/11 was whether or not they had been trained to think during an emergency.
Even in New Orleans the stories of violence were for the most part urban legends. Remember white folk are scavengers and black folk are looters.
So I suspect that for the vast majority of the members here in the US, the ammo we got on hand will see us through any natural disaster.
A better investment would be a reverse osmosis water purifier and some disaster preparedness training.
In an interview John Farmer http://news.rutgers.edu/medrel/news-releases/2009/09/new-book-by-dean-joh-20090908 said that the big difference in how effective people were during 9/11 was whether or not they had been trained to think during an emergency.
foghorn leghorn
New member
If you are on the road during an emergency, you will have to choose between having your firearms confiscated at the first checkpoint, or going cross country.
If you go cross country, plan on defending your stuff against any and all the like-minded people you come across.
I know the mods here don't like talk of an illegal nature, so I won't speak of the realities connected with survival during evacuation, or bugging out. You won't have to worry about what caliber to stock up very long if you hit the trail.
If you go cross country, plan on defending your stuff against any and all the like-minded people you come across.
I know the mods here don't like talk of an illegal nature, so I won't speak of the realities connected with survival during evacuation, or bugging out. You won't have to worry about what caliber to stock up very long if you hit the trail.
Bartholomew Roberts
Moderator
Well, I standardized on commonly available calibers like 5.56x45 and 9x19mm. My reasoning was that these were so common that they would ALWAYS be available.
I noticed during the recent shortage that quite a few other people must have had that idea too as everytime I tried to find 9mm, it was out of stock or priced so high that I couldn't bear to pay it.
Since I still had some 9mm at home, I just didn't pay it and shot less frequently than I used to. However, it did make me question the wisdom of sticking only to calibers that everybody else has.
I noticed during the recent shortage that quite a few other people must have had that idea too as everytime I tried to find 9mm, it was out of stock or priced so high that I couldn't bear to pay it.
Since I still had some 9mm at home, I just didn't pay it and shot less frequently than I used to. However, it did make me question the wisdom of sticking only to calibers that everybody else has.
If for some reason you aren't going to reload your own ammo, and you don't have the cash for creating an instant SHTF stockpile, you can use a stock-purchasing plan method to build up. I can't remember the term that's used - cost averaging? - but it's essentially this: invest a standard amount each month regardless of price. Over time, the cost averages out between the highs and the lows, and you end up money ahead.
You could buy a box or two of ammo each month that is strictly for your cache. At the end of a year, you should have enough without breaking your bank account.
You could buy a box or two of ammo each month that is strictly for your cache. At the end of a year, you should have enough without breaking your bank account.
foghorn leghorn
New member
At the risk of upsetting someone, I will delve into the
reality of being in the night of the living dead.
.223 as far as long guns go.
I don't mean to promote such activities, but, it is a reality of the battlefield.
You may not want to take a man's provisions, but you can bet someone will.
reality of being in the night of the living dead.
My thoughts on this is, in the morning after mode, you will be stripping ammo and firearms off the corpses of the fallen. In this market, the common merchandise might be police issue, Glocks and 10mm, .40, 9mm, .45 and 12ga,
.223 as far as long guns go.
I don't mean to promote such activities, but, it is a reality of the battlefield.
You may not want to take a man's provisions, but you can bet someone will.