Advice on adding another caliber to my preps

[snapping turtle]

You need a rifle. Look around and remember it is no good without ammo.

Save the cash up. Buy a good used one you find a deal on. Get lots of ammo for it and learn to use it. It should be able to take a deer also so to me that takes away the 40 s and w carbine. (Unless you can really hunt them close).

Wait for a good deal.

 

[Khazik]

Might not count, but I just got a .22 cal pellet rifle, the Benjamin Titan by Crossman, and feeling pretty good about the grab. Ammo is pretty cheap at $8-9 / 500 shots, and less noise than a rimfire. So I can get a rabbit or tree-rat (squirrel) without letting the entire neighborhood know I just shot something.

 

[catfishjn69]

you might look at a ak with a folding stock, I have an amd-65 with a cheek riser it is accurate out to 200-300 for a man size target. with the folding stock it is good for close in(becareful of what is behind target). ammo is .21/rnd so I have alot in case I cant get it anymore with the whole ukrain situation. i bought mine for $450 a couple years ago. i see wasrs are down to about that price now and ak pistols are a little cheaper. I am like you I am trying to keep the caliber simple 9mm,12gauge, 7.62x39,7.62x54 and my daily carry is a .380(dont have but about 300 rnds for it)
fish

 

[Tnichols00]

IMO your SHTF firearms should be in the most popular calibers. Why? When SHTF you want to be able to find ammo, and be able to pick it up off the ground and use it.

22LR
9mm
.223
12ga

 

[jbrooks19]

Ultimately i need to decide if i want to add another caliber just yet or if i want to keep adding stock to what i currently have.

 

[Bravo-4-2]

It's not needed. Get one if you want but not because you feel it is needed.

 

[BigBoxaJunk]

IMO your SHTF firearms should be in the most popular calibers. Why? When SHTF you want to be able to find ammo, and be able to pick it up off the ground and use it.

22LR
9mm
.223
12ga

I agree. As far as shotguns, I also have a 16 (family heirloom) and a 20 (old single shot I picked up somewhere) Shotgun shells and 22's probably make up the majority of ammo that sits gathering dust in more closets.

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

Something else to consider:

A "hunting capable rifle" - something other than 12ga. Like a .357 mag rifle of some flavor... Either single-shot or a lever action. (A lever action .357 Mag is on my "want" list....along with a 9mm AR SBR + suppressor)...

 

[grunt soldier]

Whatever you get make sure you learn to use it. A lot of people on here talk about a "long range gun" but have never shot more than a hundred yards. I would skip the carbine it's not doing anything your shotgun can't minus common caliber.

 

[spencer rifle]

It also depends on the likely range of your likely targets. If you are out in the country and would like to keep the party at a distance, and have clear fields of fire, a .308 makes sense. You could find a CETME for around $500 and they practically give away mags. Get the cast stainless receiver. Test it out if possible. Not much breaks on a CETME, and the recoil is manageable. Finding the ejected brass is another matter...

If you looking at suburban back yard distances, the AK makes sense. Inexpensive, ammo still relatively cheap, difficult to break, easy to work on, and accurate enough for that distance.

If you are looking at small yard/inside buildings, a pistol caliber carbine might work, especially if you pair it with a pistol that takes the same mags. Some combinations: Ruger PC9 with an P-series pistol, Marlin Camp 9 with S&W, Kel-Tec Sub 2000 with either Beretta, S&W or Glock, depending on model. And if you are after a lot of close-range firepower, there is always the 100-round Calico.

And in a real SHTF scenario, I'll get all the ARs I want from the dead guys .

 

[BigBoxaJunk]

Whatever you get make sure you learn to use it. A lot of people on here talk about a "long range gun" but have never shot more than a hundred yards. I would skip the carbine it's not doing anything your shotgun can't minus common caliber.

I agree with the distance shooting. I wanted a 9mm carbine to go with my handgun, and ended up with a High-Point 995TS since it was available and low priced. It's now my favorite range gun. A blast to shoot, and I can be much much more accurate with it than I can with my handgun. The only downside is the 10 round mags, but I can live with that.

 

[LANShark42]

Mosin Nagant. Cheap reliable gun. Cheap reliable ammo. Powerful. Take down anything on the North American continent. For that $1000 you spoke of, you could get the rifle and 3-4k rounds of ammo.

 

[jbrooks19]

Just an update. My wife and I came to the decision that we are going to keep saving and putting back 12ga and 40 like we have been doing and save a little longer so we can buy a nice AK. I went to the LGS and held one and the AK feels nice so i think thats the route we are going to go in the near future.

 

[Archer]

You could also do worse than an AK74. A little more than an AK47, but the ammo can still be had in bulk for significantly cheaper. Another good option is a Mosin, as someone else said for the base price of an AK variant you can have the rifle and several thousand rounds of ammo. SKS isn't a bad option either.

 

[1988-4551]

new caliber. Pros and cons. Do you reload?

 

[Bluestarbass]

I may have missed it, but I didn't see anyone mention those Henry survival rifle. Anyone tried one?

 

[spencer rifle]

I have several, made by Henry, Charter Arms and Savage. The Henry seems the best built, but has trouble with high capacity mags. All could benefit from mag feed ramp and bolt polishing, and a slight camfering of the chamber end. They can be a bit finicky about ammo. Fairly accurate. About the only floating compact .22 you are likely to find. Just don't expect too much and you won't be disappointed.

 

[Iroquois]

SkS for sure...If you can find one under $300...they're good out past 300yrds...and hold 10 rounds . Another option is a used 30-30...If you learn to reload you can cast your own (with gas checks) bullets and only lose about 100 fps compared to factory loads.

 

[6mm Shoot]

The hand gun carbines are more accurate than a hand gun because of the longer sights and a stock that helps you hold it still. You also pick up a little more power because of the longer barrel. With that said it isn't a rife caliber.

A rifle caliber will get you out to 500 yards with out a lot of trouble. If it was me I would go with the Savage in 243. It will give you the ability to hit out to 500 yards with out a lot of trouble. It is capable of taking game and man at that range with the proper bullet. Get the barrel with the 1 in 9 or the 1 in 8 twist so you can use the 100 gr bullets. I think Savage has the 1 in 9.25 twist. Mine handles the 100 gr with no problems.

The 243 is cheaper to load than a 308. The brass is about the same cost, but the bullets are cheaper. The 243 is easier on the brass. Not that the 308 is hard on brass because it isn't. I have found that with the records I have kept that I get more loadings out of the 243 than I get out of my 308. Any way, the 243 is light on recoil and just a good all around caliber. With the lighter bullets it can be used for taking varmints or load it with the heaver bullets and take deer. I use mine to out shoot my son that is a Marine, he shoots his 308 and 223. Most to the time it will take him down. He blames it on my hand lodes. There is no way I am a better shot than he is.

If you are going with just one rifle my thought would be that you would want one that could do a lot of jobs well. The 308 and 243 both do that but the 243 will do it cheaper. Some will say that the 223 will do anything that the 243 will do. Look at the reloading books and see for your self how much stronger the 243 is over the 223. The 223 will push a 80 gr bullet to 2650 FPS and the 243 will push a 100 gr bullet to 3000 FPS. Plus it makes a bigger hole.

 

[Consciouscitizen18]

I really think that you have 2 great calibers right now and the decision to go with an AK in the future is wise. The 40 S&W is my favorite round but the only other thing I would consider is stocking 9mm also since it's a little cheaper, and mainly because it's a NATO used round so something that is plentiful and will be around for a long time. If you were set on the 7.62x51 round you might consider getting a rifle chambered in .308 Winchester so that you can the versatility to shoot both rounds. Good luck in your prepping!