what's your survival rifle?

A .22 is always a good general choice, but a bit underpowered for overall survival. I'd probably go to the No5 MkI Carbine ... what I save in the rifles weight I can make up in carrying more ammo. The idea should be, don't carry a ton of ammo, rather cache it and use as needed.

Tiki.
 
Anyway, somebody on that show claimed that the Israeli Mossad has used .22 handguns on actual missions.
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The Mossad and Israeli Air Marshalls used to use the Beretta 70S in 22lr. They'd empty the magazine into the target and walk away. They used the same method when they went after the terrorists that carried out '72 Munich attack. I have one and it's a great little reliable semi-auto. What they use now I have no idea.


If it's a world has ended type of thing, my AR. I'll need to be able to use your ammo, magazines and parts and it's the most common rifle up here in northern VA.
Lost in the woods, probably the same thing, it the lightest rifle/caliber combo I shoot best without getting into higher powered bolt action rifles where the added weight would not be an advantage if I had to keep moving.
 
SHsTF, Zombies, The 2nd coming of Obama - none of this will have me leaving my home.

My home is well equipped for just about any emergency and I'm staying put.




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I'll just use what I have at the moment. That would be my SKS. Got plenty of ammo for it. Don't have to worry about a scope going bad. Also big enough to most 2 and 4 legged animals.
 
I have thought about this for a while and I think a .22 Rimfire would be a good survival weapon. Without Refrigeration small game and birds would make the most sense, not to mention a .22 is quiet and difficult to trace.
 
Another vote for the 22lr. Have a 10-22 and model 60. When it comes to survival, more ammo is better and survival will depend on small game, not large. How long can you keep a hundred pounds of meat from spoiling without electricity? Especially us in the south.
 
Marlin 60 ,holds more rounds and is more accurate.
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I have probably enjoyed more .22 shots than any other caliber in my 43 yrs on the planet. But..... Not to discredit the Marlin in terms of round capacity or accuracy, but.... survivial? Compared to other calibers or platforms..... I tend to disagree.
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Compared to the Ruger 10/22 mentioned in the post above his - the 60 outperforms the 10/22 every time in stock format

WEIGHT becomes the factor, IMO - carrying an 8# AR and - as someone said - tons of parts and ammo - slows you down very quickly

A Savage combo gun - 22 or 22 hornet over a 20 or 12 gauge - would cover more bases and opportunities for food gathering
 
I'd have to go with a .22 lr for a survival rifle. It would seem to me that small game would be more plentiful and it would be easier to carry more ammo. I assume in many survival situations it might be difficult to store meat for a long time so small game in the warmer months makes more sense.

I'd go with my CZ452


If I had the choice of taking a rifle and a handgun in a survival situation I don't know if the choice would be the same. I might go with the CZ and some sort of powerful revolver or I might go with a .32 revolver and a centerfire rifle.
 
I think I was misunderstood when I said that the .22 lr was not a combat weapon.

There is no doubt that a half dozen or more stingers in the body will drop a human being. Not necessarily dead, but that is almost certainly going to disable them.

The question is going to be whether you can get a full magazine into an assailant, and if you are living on squirrels and fish, and a group of men raid your camp to steal everything you have, you will be in a bind if all you have is a single shot .22 or even a 10-22.

It isn't a combat weapon, but it is good enough for defense in most scenarios that don't include well armed intruders or multiple assailants.

My choice would still be the 10-22 with spare magazines and the contender to bring down bigger game, or to take down a single opponent.

To address the issue differently, I really don't see myself leaving the city. I will probably gather as many people as possible in my own home, or another such place. All of my neighbors have desirable characteristics. Our kids will survive in my basement. the men will have my entire arsenal at their disposal. we will defend the home, and survive on our collected food and water reserves for as long as possible. unless people deliberately laid siege against my home, there would be a better chance of survival for my group than there would be out in a forest with no resources outside of our backpacks.

Eventually, I may make my way to my brother in law's home, with my truck loaded with every possible asset I have. he has a country place with lots of land, and it is defendable. the family could meet there. But, there would only be two people with any skills in self reliance, me and him.
 
Someone made a good point about small game being the more likely primary survival quarry versus large--and thus .22. I don't disagree with that thinking, as far as it goes. However, "survival" potentially entails more, including protection from dangerous 2 and 4-legged critters. So, for me it's a .357 lever (for me Rossi) in the mountain/desert west - south of the 40th parallel, and .44 Mag in same north of that. If a sidearm is also permitted in this scenario, then a 3" revolver in either (same) caliber appropriate. In "gentler" country, wherever that is, I'll bite on the .22--probably my Win 69A bolt--moreso for (utter) reliability than 10-22 or 60--with a 4-5/8" Single Six if a pistol is allowed. If I feel there is still a modestly high likelihood of at least 2 legged varmints--the proverbial pot farmers--the 10-22 and/or MkII might receive greater consideration.
Unknown circumstances? The above .357(s).
 
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If I could keep adding on weapons, say one for every person in the party, as I said I'd start with the 10-22 and a contender with a 44 and a mid range rifle cartridge like a .243 scoped barrel. The third weapon would undoubtedly be a .357 revolver, plenty of ammunition, and I have a hundred rounds or so of handloaded shot shells that would come with us.

That would be my sidearm, and the rifle would probably be on someone elses back most of the time.
 
My survival rifle would be a sporterized Mauser in 8MM. Why?

It's the only rifle I currently own! :p

I suppose it depends on what "survival" entails. Is it just having to hunt my own food for three months while waiting for rescue, because in that case a bolt-action .22LR makes the most sense to me, but if it's hunting AND maybe people are trying to kill me (SHTF), well:
As far as hunting goes I would probably use trapwire and my laminated re-curve bow (not necessarily in conjunction), since I can craft an infinite number of arrows given the proliferation of trees in the woods, I can always make more arrows, even reloading eventually your cases will be trashed. Plus arrows are powerful enough to kill Deer sized game, but can also kill a rabbit without obliterating all the meat.
For defending against people, something semi-auto, in a decent caliber, and easy to maintain. I'm not super psyched about it, but I think an AK fills that roll quite nicely as far as rifles go. They aren't as ergonomic as an AR, but they will keep on shooting, even in the hands of someone who is 100% clueless on how to maintain them (I am only 90% clueless on how to maintain an AK). Don't get me wrong, I don't own, and probably will never feel the need to buy, an AK, I just think it fits the role well, since I'll be hunting with my bow anyway. :D
Though if it didn't have to be a rifle, I would probably choose a 12GA shotgun to go along with my bow instead.
 
If I could add a sidearm, I would take a Browning BL-22 in 22LR plus a powerful 4" revolver like a S&W 629 or Ruger Redhawk in .44 mag.

With only a rifle, it would be a compact lightweight bolt gun like a model 7 Remington in .243 Win with a compact 2-7x scope.
 
"I am looking at a very woods survival situation where you have to hunt your own food and live for several months on what the land can provide."

Most any reasonably accurate tube-magazine semi-auto .22 rimfire.

And a good bit of fishing line for snares, plus a good book showing edible plants in my local area.

I'd likely use a flashlight to shoot a fawn or doe during the night, if I wanted a change from rabbits, birds and such...
 
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