When SHTF, what will be your rifle of choice?
- Thread starter jstokes1
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SpeedRacer
Well-Known Member
Your SHTF rifle should be whatever is reliable that you perform the best with. People get so hung up on ruggedness, if a SHTF situation ever actually arose that necessitated a long gun I'd be more worried about actually winning a firefight than how long your rifle can be buried in mud. Durability don't matter if you're dead.
freedive10
-Global Mod-, Caballoloco
Feel free to come buy when the SHTF and I'll barter with you for goods. I'll make you any gun you want! 
well thats true, but i'd lean towards something that doesn't need to be pampered cleaned and maintained flawlessly to perform at expectation. I may not have the time/supplies/capability to care for it.
My trusty Mosin Nagant. Actually has been modified since these pictures... added a new rail on top and a custom angled bolt to accomodate the longer rail. It puts the scope at the decent distance for shooting.
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Durability still has its place though. I've seen some preppers rave about how much they loved their SHTF KelTec rifle or shotgun......
I think these SHTF threads are pretty stupid until some comedy shows up. However, I do think discussing what people think the next real SHTF situation might look like could be entertaining.
For instance; Katrina was as close as we here in Louisiana have come. Watts riots and Rodney King Verdict riots for California; and the major blackouts in New York City for New York. If you lived in Baton Rouge, the 2 weeks without power in the aftermath of Gustav was pretty intense; but it wasn't absolute. Many never lost power. So the desperation level was lower as a whole.
These events are real and happened. So, instead of trying to tell people what hero legend BS you will do when it happens; we should discuss how or why, and what sequence of events will get us there. At least that gets us on track to understand the kind of hero that may be required.
My guess is the next possible SHTF scenario for Louisiana will be yet another hurricane. Think about it. It was contained to New Orleans, but 2 more breaches (Jefferson Parish East and West banks), and you have a colossal cluster on a scale unimaginable other than an actual war. But this one has to knock out at least one other major city (Houston for instance), too, and still breach the levees here.
So for you preppers, I see flooding first; the destruction of electric grid and no communications infrastructure; then the obligatory looting and subsequent unrest; then food starts becoming a problem. When food is scarce, that's when the fun starts!
Now of course, we would likely need some parallel events elsewhere to strain resources that would ordinarily go to helping out in a catastrophe. But the possibility exists.
A depression era economic collapse would be my second guess, and an unforeseen nuclear calamity or attack third.
For instance; Katrina was as close as we here in Louisiana have come. Watts riots and Rodney King Verdict riots for California; and the major blackouts in New York City for New York. If you lived in Baton Rouge, the 2 weeks without power in the aftermath of Gustav was pretty intense; but it wasn't absolute. Many never lost power. So the desperation level was lower as a whole.
These events are real and happened. So, instead of trying to tell people what hero legend BS you will do when it happens; we should discuss how or why, and what sequence of events will get us there. At least that gets us on track to understand the kind of hero that may be required.
My guess is the next possible SHTF scenario for Louisiana will be yet another hurricane. Think about it. It was contained to New Orleans, but 2 more breaches (Jefferson Parish East and West banks), and you have a colossal cluster on a scale unimaginable other than an actual war. But this one has to knock out at least one other major city (Houston for instance), too, and still breach the levees here.
So for you preppers, I see flooding first; the destruction of electric grid and no communications infrastructure; then the obligatory looting and subsequent unrest; then food starts becoming a problem. When food is scarce, that's when the fun starts!
Now of course, we would likely need some parallel events elsewhere to strain resources that would ordinarily go to helping out in a catastrophe. But the possibility exists.
A depression era economic collapse would be my second guess, and an unforeseen nuclear calamity or attack third.
I think most of the prepared folks are going to run to higher ground and take the guns with them, just like we did in Katrina. The looters will still rampage, at least the ones that don't drown. The police and national guard will clean up again. And New Orleans will be a ghost town afterwards, because a lot of businesses are going to relocate. I also don't think FEMA is going to dump in the money again like they did.
As far as real rioting I'd bet on an economic collapse. If God forbid the Demorats win the midterm elections and the next presidential they will bankrupt us and push us into a corner with more control laws. Eventually conservatives (or right wing extremists...) will say they're not taking any more and resort to violence. Then it will get ugly... Not good.
As far as real rioting I'd bet on an economic collapse. If God forbid the Demorats win the midterm elections and the next presidential they will bankrupt us and push us into a corner with more control laws. Eventually conservatives (or right wing extremists...) will say they're not taking any more and resort to violence. Then it will get ugly... Not good.
freedive10
-Global Mod-, Caballoloco
The SHTF bravado in this thread is about as real as
SpeedRacer
Well-Known Member
That's going back to reliability though. I wouldn't trust those to begin with.
Baseline reliability AND durability, yes. I'm more referring to people I've seen that "choose ___________ because it's more rugged" even if it's not the most efficient platform or the one they are most proficient with.
The chances of full scale SHTF are slim. The chances that during said SHTF you get into a firefight with your rifle are even slimmer. The chances that the average member survive one, maybe two firefights are virtually nill. I think improving those odds in any way possible is much more important than "ruggedness". For some reason people tend to think SHTF means burying rifles in mud and spending months in the woods with no gun lube. I guess I just have a different outlook on it, and it doesn't involve zombies or Mad Max.
Wolfgang1952
LOCAL Fla. Par, Cha. Pres
You take away my a/c and my diet coke and I'll be dead in a matter of days.
I'd go for my Romanian wasr-10 (ak47), about as reliable as you can get, designed to be abused and still fire. Will do 5" groups at 100yds. Not ar platform accurate but let's be real. Chances are that any encounter whether combat/zombie/general shtf, etc... You come across, you will probably be well within 100yrds, so an ak will be accurate enough, not to mention the 7.62x39 round has power that a .223/.556 round just cant rival, a fire rate that a mosin, or any bolt gun for that matter cant touch, and power equal to a shotty considering the damage that round can cause when combined with a much higher firing rate.
Just my .02
Just my .02
I got a news flash for you, some of the 223 loads deliver 1400 ft lbs, which certainly DOES rival the mere 1500 ft lbs of the .30 AK. In fact, with good softpoints, the 223 beats .30 AK ball all to hell on animals. It's provable any time you want to test it for yourself. Use the 60 gr Nosler Partition load, from Black Hills. Semi-auto, the AK has no faster firing rate (HITTING anything) than an autoloading 12 ga.
the only tactic that makes sense for shtf
is remaining undetected, by staying underground in daylight, and by having a year's supply of food cached (and then using sub-surface, scattered, hidden plots of sprouts for another year. By then, so many will be dead that it will be much safer to be out and about.
There's really no need to bugout any further than the local water source, as long as you have a concealed hole there, and buried food. the further you try to travel, the much higher risks you take. Staying in place won't be viable, either. Every above ground shelter will be searched, multiple times, by your 'neighbors", who will be desperate and kill you just as dead as the "townies" will.
is remaining undetected, by staying underground in daylight, and by having a year's supply of food cached (and then using sub-surface, scattered, hidden plots of sprouts for another year. By then, so many will be dead that it will be much safer to be out and about.
There's really no need to bugout any further than the local water source, as long as you have a concealed hole there, and buried food. the further you try to travel, the much higher risks you take. Staying in place won't be viable, either. Every above ground shelter will be searched, multiple times, by your 'neighbors", who will be desperate and kill you just as dead as the "townies" will.
And when that ar jams cuz its been raining or its dirty, I'll be going strong with my reliable ak.lol.. Its all good. Everyone has their preference
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