Jump to content

thinking about a SHTF gun....ak or ar?


Steve Butters

Recommended Posts

^better hope he likes you more.. im heading there tomorrow for and AK.... hehe

no worries :)

AK's are easy to find - im more interested in the ar i think...never heard of 300blk until today, but after researching it i am really liking it

might sell my nova pump to help fund one

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Jacob and I each ordered a.saiga 7.62. I wanna say they were 315ish. But saiga sells them as sporting rifles not "ak-47's". You'll have to convert them. Carolina shooter supply sells kits for all saiga weapons.

you and him are swaying me towards an AK....did you order yours from dale?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

nevermind

Editing again because I will give my honest opinion

my main goals are SHTF - occasional coyote blasting - and target shooting 100-200yds

Do you want to hit what you are aiming at? Expect around 3-5"+ groups with the AK at 100 depending on how good a shooter you are. Probably closer to 7" at 200

i like the accuracy and range of the ar - but i like the punch of the ak

Even at 500 yards, Punch wont matter if you hit what your aiming at (i.e Vitals) You said 100-200 yards

ar10 would be ideal, but its out of my budget

Gets Expensive fast when doing semi auto on .308. Bolt guns would be my choice in .308

im leaning towards an AK - what would be a good one? i want a synthetic one if i get one

Dont know much about different model/brands of AK's

i see a ton of ARs on armslist in my budget - but i know nothing about them, they seem ridiculously complicated

They are only complicated until you get 1 and strip it the first time then they are no different than any other firearm.

Edited by flounder
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Good thread... I've been considering the same choices(although, I need to stay in milsurp calibers to keep ammo costs down). I'll continue to watch for answers as they flow in.

after talking to jacob - im pretty set on an AK...i can get the AK around 300, the conversion kit i want is 135...all said and done ill have $500 or so in it with a couple mags

gonna see what dale quotes me on that ar though too

Edited by Steve Butters
Link to comment
Share on other sites

after talking to jacob - im pretty set on an AK...i can get the AK around 300, the conversion kit i want is 135...all said and done ill have $500 or so in it with a couple mags

gonna see what dale quotes me on that ar though too

subscribed. Also, please pm me what Dale tells you on the AR, im curious as well

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Jacob and I each ordered a.saiga 7.62. I wanna say they were 315ish. But saiga sells them as sporting rifles not "ak-47's". You'll have to convert them. Carolina shooter supply sells kits for all saiga weapons.

We bought them from K-var. Not from Saiga. Saiga isthe line of guns in multiple calibers produced by Izhmash in Russia. hahaha. Here is K-var's site.

http://www.k-var.com/shop/home.php?cat=

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just got a Smith and Wesson M&P15 Sport in 5.56 NATO. $600. Ammo is cheap and plentiful. Love it. Popped it open to clean - it's not complex at all. I'm actually stunned at how simple it is.

Define "SHTF". If you mean like Katrina where there is a rapid breakdown of law and order that will last a relatively short period of time (weeks, not years) and you are reaching for a gun you have been treating well and storing properly, then I would go with the AR15/M&P15. It's only as complicated as you want to make it. I'm sticking with the iron sights on mine and I was putting every bullet into a 2" circle off-hand at 75' (indoor range!)

Now, if your idea of SHTF is a complete and irrecoverable breakdown of law and order resulting in you spending the rest of your life living off the land and losing your ability to maintain the weapon well... The AK is famous for reliability even when it's treated like a cheap crack whore. The early M16s liked dirt about as much as my ultra-feminist hipster ex-girlfriend liked being told to make me a sammich. They are reputed to be a victim of their own precise engineering - suffering quickly from dirt contamination. The AKs are loose like the Woodbury's owner's momma and will do it whereever and whenever and as dirty as you like it. Nasty bitch.

Either way, apocalyptic survival requires you stick with iron sights because those fancy lasers and holographic sights need batteries. And have PLENTY of ammo available.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just got a Smith and Wesson M&P15 Sport in 5.56 NATO. $600. Ammo is cheap and plentiful. Love it. Popped it open to clean - it's not complex at all. I'm actually stunned at how simple it is.

Define "SHTF". If you mean like Katrina where there is a rapid breakdown of law and order that will last a relatively short period of time (weeks, not years) and you are reaching for a gun you have been treating well and storing properly, then I would go with the AR15/M&P15. It's only as complicated as you want to make it. I'm sticking with the iron sights on mine and I was putting every bullet into a 2" circle off-hand at 75' (indoor range!)

Now, if your idea of SHTF is a complete and irrecoverable breakdown of law and order resulting in you spending the rest of your life living off the land and losing your ability to maintain the weapon well... The AK is famous for reliability even when it's treated like a cheap crack whore. The early M16s liked dirt about as much as my ultra-feminist hipster ex-girlfriend liked being told to make me a sammich. They are reputed to be a victim of their own precise engineering - suffering quickly from dirt contamination. The AKs are loose like the Woodbury's owner's momma and will do it whereever and whenever and as dirty as you like it. Nasty bitch.

Either way, apocalyptic survival requires you stick with iron sights because those fancy lasers and holographic sights need batteries. And have PLENTY of ammo available.

About 200+ rounds and 350+ of 22 through my Sport and love it. The 22conv. didn't work though after that and I've gone through 2 so figured I'm done with it and sent it back for a refund, if you want more details let me know.

As a whole I agree with Flounder on this, I've shot several AKs and several SKS's, neither has anything near the accuracy for me of my AR, but it's all preference. Saying the AR is complex means you probably should spend some more time on youtube, I watched 1 field strip video and have stripped mine each and every time I've shot it, down to the extractor spring being taken out of the bolt carrier group, aka about as far as possible. It takes less than 5 minutes to do.

AK's etc are meant to be beat to shit and put away wet. My brother in law doesn't clean a single gun he owns, and brings his AK and SKS each time and they work flawlessly, even with the shittiest ammo that won't cycle in newer SKS's. BUT as a whole, they are never as accurate in the same person's hands as my AR has been and all 3 are with iron sights.

I'm adding a red dot this month and then am pretty much done. I ain't trying to build something crazy, but I do know I have a reliable weapon that I can pull out of the case and use at anytime, for anything needed, within the law of course.

But like I said, and like Flounder stated, its all personal preference. Same as gun brands.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not sure what you define as "SHTF". What's with the desire to kill coyotes too btw, are we expecting the world to be overun with coyotes when the SHTF?

You should also consider that in a real survival situation you're more than likely going to use this weapon to hunt for food. If you are really serious about having a SHTF weapon you'll buy a 10/22 and about 10,000 rds. Not as glamorous as decking out an AR with all the tacticool bling on the market, but could be yours for the less than $1000.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not sure what you define as "SHTF". What's with the desire to kill coyotes too btw, are we expecting the world to be overun with coyotes when the SHTF?

You should also consider that in a real survival situation you're more than likely going to use this weapon to hunt for food. If you are really serious about having a SHTF weapon you'll buy a 10/22 and about 10,000 rds. Not as glamorous as decking out an AR with all the tacticool bling on the market, but could be yours for the less than $1000.

Good luck hunting deer with a 22LR.

I'm not envisaging the end-of-the-world situation. I'm more worried about a Katrina-style thing where we just need to look after ourselves without the police for a few weeks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not sure what you define as "SHTF". What's with the desire to kill coyotes too btw, are we expecting the world to be overun with coyotes when the SHTF?

You should also consider that in a real survival situation you're more than likely going to use this weapon to hunt for food. If you are really serious about having a SHTF weapon you'll buy a 10/22 and about 10,000 rds. Not as glamorous as decking out an AR with all the tacticool bling on the market, but could be yours for the less than $1000.

This fella has a good point.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...