I have been getting a lot of email and questions lately about what I would recommend as a survival weapon. I have a lot of different opinions about what constitutes a survival situation and what is a survival weapon. What I have been telling these people will not float well with many, but I will give my reasons for doing so also.
Most of the people asking are not experienced shooters or hunters. Most of these groups already have something or know what they want. Most of the people asking are city or suburban residents and have little or no experience. My recommendation to them is to acquire a good quality .22 in the action of their choice be it semi-auto, pump, lever or bolt action. Then to go buy a bunch of whatever mart bulk .22 shells and start shooting. The more you shoot a .22 the better you get at using it under pressure.
The lowly .22 can be used to stop almost anything. It may not be the best but it will eventually work. One can grab a rifle and 500 rounds of ammo of very little weight and be on his way. I have read stories of Eskimos hunting polar bear and seals with the .22. Native Americans in the Northwest hunt moose with them. Poachers have long chosen the .22 rifle as the weapon of choice. Maybe not the best choice nor politically correct but it will work in a survival situation.
Now pay attention to what I am about to tell you about ammo as this is very important. There are three .22 cartridges that are a must have in a survival situation and you should have enough of this stored in a cool dry place to last as long as you will need it. I would also get some extra parts for your rifle such as magazines, firing pins, ejectors and springs. The first cartridge is the Remington CBee .22 Long Rifle. This is a subsonic round with .36 grain hollow point that moves at 780 feet per second. It makes about the same noise as a pellet gun when fired from a rifle and is an effective small game cartridge at close range and when you do not wish to make a bunch of noise. The next cartridge is the CCI Velocitor which moves a 40 grain hollow point bullet at 1435 feet per second. This will be the cartridge to use for self defense, larger game or predators. Last of all I would purchase as many bulk packs of Federal Champion .22 long rifle in solids or hollow point bullets as I could afford or need as they are reliable and will feed your rifle for all the rest of your shooting needs.
Each of us must decide what we need in a firearm but for those without experience the lowly .22 will get you into the game and it sure beats a stick or throwing rocks.
GOD Bless the Republic. Wild Ed
2 comments:
Ed,
The CB Long round from CCI is a good substitute for the 22 CBee from Remington. I can never find the Remingtons in stock around here but a couple shops usually carry the CCI CB Long round. It is a 29 grain, 710 fps load and it is quieter than a pellet gun. I am occasionally called on to do some nuisance trapping for one of my co-workers who owns some rental properties in town. I use a Hav-A-Hart to catch the critters and I don't relocate them unless it is a neighbor's cat. I use an old bolt action Remington with the CB Longs to dispatch the raccoons and opossums that I catch there. I can just go behind the house or garage or some bushes and shoot the nuisance animal in the head with the CB Longs and no one even knows it happens. I've dispatched a coon at the back of my truck with the tenants 25-30 feet away in front of the truck talking with the landlord and they don't even realize the gun has gone off.
Mark (from Pastured Poultry)
Mark I also use the CCI .22 CB Long Round if I do not have the Remingtons or need a little less noise. The CCI CB Long has not been an accurate round in my rifles at any kind of distance so I only use it at very close range. I have to order the Remingtons as no one carries them here in my area either. Ed
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