SHTF

[Rob454]

I love reading SHTF threads where people explain how they will carry around their AR15 for long range threats, their shotgun for close encounters, their handgun for last resort, oh and maybe a .22 for squirrels, maybe a revolver for backup, along with ammo for all the guns in addition to whatever else they may be carrying...lol

That's a lot of s*8t to carry. I doubt if you can make more than 4-5 miles a day. Most people today do not realize what energy is used to walk x amount of miles while carrying 50-60 Lbs worth of stuff. The average civilian simply is not physically prepared for that sort of physical work out. Going to the gym and pumping weights in no way prepares you for walking up and down hills with a pack. I go hunting and I know how far I can go and how much weight I can carry and the distance I travel in one day. I know what my wife can travel and I can tell you that if you are in a group you are only gonna go as fast as your slowest member. You also have peopel whose stamina levels are different. Some guys shoot up and fizzle quick others are slow but can go all day.

. A rifle or shotgun and a pistol is what I would take. I dont plan on fighting every criminal on the way to where Im going. I plan on avoiding groups of people. Also ammo gets heavy and it only gets heavier the longer you carry it. in fact everything gets heavier. That AR with all the cool s**t hanging off of it will feel like a 50 pound sack of flour by the end of the day. If you are gonna hump it think light weight. I would carry more ammo and water than food or anything else. i can live off the land. hell you can kill and eat just about anything from a rat to a cat or a dog. And ( this is gonna sound horrible) there will be plenty of cats and dogs running loose.
IF you are in a group you planned with try to make sure you all have the same caliber. it woudl reaqlly suck to find out you are all running low on ammo except a few guys but you all have different calibers.
I would get something that can do couple of hundred yards and that has a lot of ammo capacity or quick easy reloading. Sure a shotgun is devastating at close range and if you can get a small one short barrel pump action that you can hang off the side of the BOB great keep it as a total back up with maybe 50 rounds of slug or buckshot ( it is a back up not the main weapon) otherwise use the rifle.
While its fun to think a what if scenario I personally hope SHTF never happens.

[VegasND]

I love reading SHTF threads where people explain how they will carry around their AR15 for long range threats, their shotgun for close encounters, their handgun for last resort, oh and maybe a .22 for squirrels, maybe a revolver for backup, along with ammo for all the guns in addition to whatever else they may be carrying...lol

That's a lot of s*8t to carry. I doubt if you can make more than 4-5 miles a day. A rifle or shotgun and a pistol is what I would take. I dont plan on fighting every criminal on the way to where Im going. I plan on avoiding groups of people. Also ammo gets heavy and it only gets heavier the longer you carry it. in fact everything gets heavier. That AR with all the cool s**t hanging off of it will feel like a 50 pound sack of flour by the end of the day. If you are gonna hump it think light weight. I would carry more ammo and water than food or anything else. i can live off the land. hell you can kill and eat just about anything from a rat to a cat or a dog. And ( this is gonna sound horrible) there will be plenty of cats and dogs running loose.
I would get something that can do couple of hundred yards and that has a lot of ammo capacity or quick easy reloading. Sure a shotgun is devastating at close range and if you can get a small one short barrel pump action that you can hang off the side of the BOB great keep it as a total back up with maybe 50 rounds of slug or buckshot ( it is a back up not the main weapon) otherwise use the rifle.
While its fun to think a what if scenario I personally hope SHTF never happens.

The shopping cart will allow you to make better time.

[C.W.M.V.]

The shopping cart will allow you to make better time.

Oh I cant wait to see the Zombie/tactical shopping cart.

[Notblake]

And remember, there's no such thing as "knockdown power". People do not go flying back when hit with bullets, even with a shotgun. Sure, they might disintegrate if the bullets big enough and traveling fast enough, but no flying action. The only things that will do one-shot stops, which is what I am assuming you mean by knockdown power, are either mounted on the wings of aircraft, or on the turret of a tank. Your AR is plenty good enough, just make your shots count. And yes people, the zombie apocalypse IS coming. The question is, will they be Resident Evil type zombies, Romero type zombies,28 Weeks Later type zombies, etc.

I'm sorry WHAT?

[Notblake]

Oh I cant wait to see the Zombie/tactical shopping cart.

Ask and you shall recieve

[Reductio]

Let us hope they don't get mopeds.

[mif_slim]

Personelly I would grab my sg for a sthf and drop everything else. I'm not planning to engage anyone in a shtf situation. Be unseen and get distance between anyone unless friendly. People here talk as if when shtf the governmet switches a "citizen hostile" switch and everyone becomes aggresive and start shooting anyone they come in contact with.

I choose a sg because it was my primary hunting weapon for 18 years.. I've hunted almost all waterfowl, upland game, small game and big game with it and I know it will feed me and my family. IF I have to defend myself slugs and buckshot are plenty for self defense since I won't be engaging anyone past 50 yards or 100 if need be but those will be pop shots to get them down so me and my family can get away. The best way to survive to stay out of a fight.

Call me a sissy but I'm just telling the truth. I rather have another day with my wife, son, family members then make a stupid decision in engaging and have a chance of dying because I wanted to be macho.

[E. Fudd]

But certainly a 5.56mm is more than capable of stopping a person with a single shot. If not the battles in Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan would have been much more different. Any damage done to the brain, heart, or the spine no matter the round will put people down.

The 5.56mm with the right bullet... There were tons of complaints on the poor performance of M193 in the dense jungle environments of Viet Nam, where the round often deflected or blew up pre-maturely when hitting thick tropical/jungle brush.

The 'fix', the M885/SS109, penetrates better, but has a rep for anemic stopping power. Complaints from the grunts/operators from Somalia, Iraq, to Afghanistan abound.

Some of the early arrivals into A-stan were scrambling to find old stocks of M-193, as at least in that environment (non-tropical jungle), it had better stopping power performance that the M885.

The fix appears to be the M262 77 gr. SMK round., which is making it out to our guys in the field in increasing amounts. Better knockdown power, especially out to 300 yd.

For civilian SHTF scenarios, basically anything from 55 to 77 gr. is preferable over the M855/SS109 bullet, whether it's FMJ, SP, SMK/HP.

Keep the AR. Buy a shotgun. SG is fine for static HD against 'normal' numbers of BG's. If you need more than 4 - 7 rd., the reloading speed of an AR/AK makes are huge difference, even you are limited to 10 rd. mags.

Also, if you have to bug out, 300-450 rd. of .223/5.556, even 7.62x39, is a lot lighter than the same amount in buckshot/slugs...

And don't forget your Slim Whitman records... ('Mars Attacks!')

[tools2teach]

Primary would be an AR with red dot and I'll tell you why....lighter, more ammo capacity. It's all about shot placement. Shotgun 7+1 max only, slower to reload and if your talking about resident evil or 28 weeks zombies, then forget it. Your dead. AR with shotgun will slow you down.

[Rob454]

The shopping cart will allow you to make better time.

LOL yeah but you better slap some off road tires on that puppy otherwise you're screwed. besides lots of shopping carts today lock one wheel as soon as you take them off the premises

[The Sauce]

AR's are HORRIBLE go-to weapons for SHTF.

That being said, I would like to save you. I will trade you my 12ga pump for your AR, straight across...from me to you. You don't even have to owe me the rest.

[Rob454]

I choose a sg because it was my primary hunting weapon for 18 years.. I've hunted almost all waterfowl, upland game, small game and big game with it and I know it will feed me and my family. IF I have to defend myself slugs and buckshot are plenty for self defense since I won't be engaging anyone past 50 yards or 100 if need be but those will be pop shots to get them down so me and my family can get away. The best way to survive to stay out of a fight.

Call me a sissy but I'm just telling the truth. I rather have another day with my wife, son, family members then make a stupid decision in engaging and have a chance of dying because I wanted to be macho.

Avoiding fights would be my primary concern. ( especially with family in tow) getting in a fight even with one person much less two or more is at best a 50/50 in a one on one fight but as soon as you are attacked by two or more your chances of not getting hurt and surviving drop at a much higher rate. The thing is that you dont need to be a great shot. lucky works well also. its best to avoid a fight unless you're cornered and you got no other avenue then you gotta fight. Especially if you are facing a numerically superior force. Not saying you cant win but a stand up duke em out fight ( forget what they depict in movies) you will most likely lose. granted if you are trained and they are not you have a better chance but even then there is something to be said about numerical superiority. unless you can do a bunch of ambush hit and run style attacks to dwindle their numbers..........

[Jimmy310]

Avoiding fights would be my primary concern. ( especially with family in tow) getting in a fight even with one person much less two or more is at best a 50/50 in a one on one fight but as soon as you are attacked by two or more your chances of not getting hurt and surviving drop at a much higher rate. The thing is that you dont need to be a great shot. lucky works well also. its best to avoid a fight unless you're cornered and you got no other avenue then you gotta fight. Especially if you are facing a numerically superior force. Not saying you cant win but a stand up duke em out fight ( forget what they depict in movies) you will most likely lose. granted if you are trained and they are not you have a better chance but even then there is something to be said about numerical superiority. unless you can do a bunch of ambush hit and run style attacks to dwindle their numbers..........

Good Point

I take it the unarmed will end up getting their food/water/etc taken away quick and everything else will be like fallout 3/stalker (computer games).

[stormy_clothing]

um they are slow moving zombies, your worst fear is not them but unarmed victims trying to jack you. You can carry more heavy grain .223 than shot shells unless you have a pack mule, save your ammo keep your rifle as you should run from zombies not shoot them.

[Rhythm of Life]

Zombie attack survival quiz.

Holy ****....

Would you survive a zombie attack?

My Results:


You Did perfect!

You made every move correctly.