whats a great all around caliber that will be in stock when the SHTF

Other than having chrome or being easy to scope, and when you qualify with the correct documents, maybe an M-1 Garand? You might already qualify.
For those who don't realize, the CMP has been selling the gun for decades, and M2 Ball ammo is .50/round.

Many people recommend shooting commercial 30-06 in Garands only After a gas plug is installed to reduce the gas pressure spike with the commercial ammo, because slower-burning powder compared to M2 Ball can seriously damage the rifle.

One day in the (not so distant) future another massacre might prompt the govt. to try to at least put a huge tax on all imported guns, if an imported gun with evil-looking features was used.

The UN Small Arms Treaty which 'we' signed might one day help 'them' justify banning imported ammo.
 
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Lately I've been shopping for reloading components. What I see around here on the bullet shelves are 6.5mm and 270 bullets. If a fella was a reloader, those are the calibers that I'd lean toward if ammo got scarce. But, if brass needs to be part of the equation, and you are a reloader, I'd go for something that has the basic 308 case. You can neck up, down, and sideways with that brass from 243, 308, 7mm-08 and 260.
 
What puzzles me about a thread like this is, "Why just now?"

If folks don't already have a bunch of "stuff" set up for some sort of uncertain future, to me it means that they haven't been paying attention for the last ten years (I'll forgive the under-30 folks).

Things haven't look all rosy for a long time. Pick a subject: Economy, foreign affairs, political climate: All bad for everybody. But this is NOT brand new!

I've never worried about any of this SHTF stuff because all my stocking up of reloading components was based on one obvious thing: Anything I buy now is less costly than it will be next year. That's held true since back when I bought primers at $13/1,000.

Shrug. It's all "using stuff" for hunting and plinking. Obviously it would be Really Good if the world goes all to garbage, but that's not something to focus my life on.

Rant mode off. :D
 
Buy whatever you want and a case of whatever it's chambered in. Set aside as much ammo as you think you'll need for the "poop hits the wind mover" moment you envision.

Then your grandkids will have a stash of ammo when the world doesn't end.
 
I haven't read this thread... too long for my attention span.

I'm sure this thread has already run it's course and the only information left is bickering but I would like to jump right in and say that if the SH scare showed us anything, it's that 30-06, 30-30, 22lr, 223, 5.45x39, 7.62x39, 308/7.62x51 9mm, 40S&W, 38spec/357mag and 45ACP will not be available in a time of extreme crisis. some calibers that remained attainable, though markedly more expensive that I noticed were:
6.5x55 swede
303 brit
7.62x54R
45/70
and 44 MAG/spec

6.5 is about as multipurpose and flat shooting as it gets. it is a little light for larger game like elk but far from anemic. 303 brit and 54R are great at mimicking the ballistics of 308, at least to the lower end of the spectrum. 45/70 is a great casting/reloading round due to it's great versatility, allowing everything from bird shot to 420gr slugs. 44 mag is also quite versatile though it is only suited to medium game and smaller but a rifle/handgun combo in 44 mag would offer a great deal as far as personal protection and food collection purposes goes.
 
If folks don't already have a bunch of "stuff" set up for some sort of uncertain future, to me it means that they haven't been paying attention for the last ten years (I'll forgive the under-30 folks).

My reason is I just got back in to shooting a couple years ago after a 10+ year never even picking up a gun period . I'm a single parent and my son is out of the house and starting the next chapter of his life . I now have some real me time .

A lot of people said to get 7.62x54R . Is there really that much here in the US . I don't know that much about it . I thought it was a Russian made steel cased ammo that is no longer in production . If times get bad for what ever reason would we still be expecting lots of imported ammo coming in ?
 
6.5 is about as multipurpose and flat shooting as it gets. it is a little light for larger game like elk but far from anemic. 303 brit and 54R are great at mimicking the ballistics of 308, at least to the lower end of the spectrum. 45/70 is a great casting/reloading round due to it's great versatility, allowing everything from bird shot to 420gr slugs. 44 mag is also quite versatile though it is only suited to medium game and smaller but a rifle/handgun combo in 44 mag would offer a great deal as far as personal protection and food collection purposes goes.

I'll agree that the 6.5 is very versatile, I wouldn't say it's a bad cartridge for large game, but youre limited to the heaviest bullets for the higher SD to break through those heavy bones and shot placement will be more important than ever.

Also a 45-70 can be loaded from birdshot up to 630 grain round nose slugs. Yes they go that heavy. You can have a subsonic round with over 1200ft/lbs of energy. Pretty impressive, or you could load it "hot" and push over elephants. :D
 
Remington is expanding its ammo production facilities. An entirely new company will go into production in North Carolina. I wouldn't pick an uncommon cartridge just because there has been all this madness over the usual cartridges.

Were I starting from scratch, I'd likely get some sort of general purpose rifle (anywhere from an SKS on through a Ruger Scout) and set up to reload for it. Build up a stock of components. I'd add a .22 rimfire or maybe something like the .17 Mach II or the .17 HMR.

It all depends on where you live, what your general usage might be on a day-to-day basis, and your own view of future scenarios.

Not I, not anybody else, can define another person's reality.
 
I stopped by the two local Walmarts.

One has a pile of .410, a pile of .270, and a few boxes of 20 gauge. They appear to be the same boxes from week to week. That Walmart is in a bit of a shady area, so I wonder if something is going on.

The other Walmart had their ammo case 1/4 full of .270, no joke. There was some .30-06, some of the magnum cartridges, and a pile of Winchester buckshot.

I wonder what it is about the .270. Other posters report it being widely available despite the panic.
 
I'll agree that the 6.5 is very versatile, I wouldn't say it's a bad cartridge for large game, but youre limited to the heaviest bullets for the higher SD to break through those heavy bones and shot placement will be more important than ever.

Also a 45-70 can be loaded from birdshot up to 630 grain round nose slugs. Yes they go that heavy. You can have a subsonic round with over 1200ft/lbs of energy. Pretty impressive, or you could load it "hot" and push over elephants.
I wasn't insinuating that you couldn't take larger game with a 6.5, it's been done for decades in northern europe/scandinavia. I've read several threads about Eskimos and Inuits hunting polar bear with 223, wyoming ranchers killing elk with 243s, F&G killing problem grizzlies with 40 S&W and seen countless medium game animals killed with 22lr(not by me, I'm not that good). anything can be used for hunting as long as you know how to use it properly and I would not doubt for a minute that a 140gr 6.5 bullet could kill anything in the US as long as you know how to use it, I was just saying that unless you are a skilled hunter it may not be the perfect rifle for the job if you need to get at larger animals like moose, elk, or grizzlies.

as for 630GR slugs I would hate to see what one of those things could do:eek:
 
.... Anybody have any thoughts on my idea to use the AR10 platform rather then a bolt action . Really I'm looking at the LMT mws or armalite AR10 for this idea of one rifle multiple calibers in the same parent case family . Looking to have one rifle with 3 barrels . 243 , 308 , 338 . I was looking at the cost to do what I've been talking about . WoW very spendy . I could buy three different rifles for less then doing the whole barrel switch-a-roo thing . I'm really liking the semi auto thing though .

You somewhat answered that question. If you want different caliber capabilty, there are other options. The Savage rifles are pretty simple to change barrels on, and other makes can be adapted to the principle fairly easily also. Barrels, especially take-offs, cost far less than spare guns and uppers, (or AR 10 barrels).

For the money you'd spend on the AR-10, you could buy a very nice rifle, good glass, and a lot of ammo/reloading components, and not have to worry about ammo availability much.

I'm in the "use something common" camp. If ammo truly gets hard to get, trading from someone else is likely. More people have the common calibers, and many may even have unused ammo around in common calibers that they dont have guns for. Reloading is simpler also. Components are simpler in common sizes. Parts can even be broken down from loaded rounds that dont fit your gun.
 
7mm rem mag has been continuously available here in a variety of brands. Another reason why I feel it's very nearly the perfect cartridge for North America.
 
I've been able to get 30.06 or .270 whenever I need it, consistently, for the last 5 months, including at WalMart.

For the most versatile cartridge, the .30-06 is it, in my opinion, given your parameters.
 
I've seen a lot of 270 lately and some 222. There has been more 7.62 russian than 223 also. When panic starts, don't get caught with the ammo box on empty. You can't rely on going to the store and picking up a box of what you need.
 
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