Home Battery

This will be an attempt to describe an overall home battery. In it I will be giving specific recommendations on weapons that over the years I have found a to be exceptional. I will admit that I like any firearm owner have some strong prejudices. For example is the AR-15/M-16. Much of this comes from the early problems it had and the fact that I dont think the 223 is an adequate combat or hunting round. I will be breaking it down into levels from minimum to a complete battery. I suggest you should buy as inexpensive as possible but not cheap. If you can afford the best get it. This is not necessarily the most expensive. Im not recommending that any one try to buy the complete collection. This is more of an outline how to cover needs from basic level one [what someone really needs] to a complete set up to cover all the bases. This outline set up to show people that are new to weapons selection a means of prioritizing their choices. When selecting a caliber a good way to chose is to use the so called Wal-Mart test. This test is to visit the local stores that carry ammunition and see what is on the shelf. This will show what are the most common calibers are. For a survival style battery you will want commonly available ammunition not a hard to find special order type. Although this can be somewhat offset by stock piling and reloading if your heart is absolutely set on that wildcat round. As in all things individual choices are just that.

Level one
Level one is the minimum battery that a person needs. While some specific jobs can and are better covered with specialty tools. This will cover all situations at least adequately. 1. Ruger 10/22 L R. A sweet tack driver right out of the box. I recommend getting after-market magazines that extend out of the rifle regardless of their capacity. This is because the Ruger flush fit magazines are sometimes hard to remove. Since the basic concept is to start a battery for someone new. Start with the basics. The 22 long rifles are usually inexpensive to buying and always inexpensive to shoot. This makes it a good starter gun. Being inexpensive to use, light, and with negligible recoil. This will encourage a new person to practice and therefore increasing their skill level. The 22 long rifle is quite capable of taking small game. Also because of its high rate of fire a semiautomatic 22 is capable of taking larger game and serving in a defensive role. You dont necessarily have to kill to end a conflict. A good wounding at a distance can often discourage further fighting in all but the most determined aggressor. A bolt action hunting rifle. Preferably a 30.06 or 308 due to availability of ammunition and being good for long-range work. Get enough gun to be effective on large game and for defensive purposes. Remember the best defense if you are solo is to play mouse. Avoid fights if at all possible. You are probably outgunned. Dont start something that might end you. You are not a Rambo or any kind of soldier that is taking an objective only someone defending. That is why battle rifles are for later. 12 Ga. Shotgun. This is the best choice for a home defense weapon. With proper shot selection it is devastating at close range but minimizing the dangers of over penetration. By preference a pump would be the best choice. A double barrel break open is somewhat stronger and more reliable after the second shot it has a penalty in reloading time. Pumps are very reliable, fast and the sound of racking in a shell is a deterrent to a burglar staying in your house. The only choice IMNSHO is the Remington 870 pump. Start with a slug barrel. As finances allow add extra barrels and chokes. This fills the holes your long gun ensemble. It covers medium and short range. With its wide range of loads it can take almost any game. Admittedly Im prejudice against Mossburgs. This dates back to the 50s and 60s when Mossburgs where elcheapos. Although a recent conversation was someone at work owns a Mossburg has convinced me that I was not that far wrong. While skeet shooting he had a partial jam and the slide bar broke at the

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weld to the pump handle. Luckily this was a non-critical situation. When he took it to a gunsmith he was informed that this was a typical failure for a Mossburg. So if any of you having Mossburg pump get this area checked as soon as possible. So that you can repair or reinforce as necessary before its too late. While this is just hearsay evidence and wont standup in court it is just one more thing that reinforces my opinion. 4. The pistol: A 45-caliber auto loader from a quality company. (Colt, Wilson, Browning, Springfield, etc.) (But not Smith and Wesson they caved to government pressure and are not on our side.) Get a 1911 or one based on John Brownings original design. The best ergonomic design available. A true point and shoot weapon. The way it is supposed to be. True many like Glocks. I dont, they just the feel is wrong for me. The pistol is for close range rapid deployment. Walking Point is right using a pistol at long-range is foolish. Only use a pistol at long-range only if you have no other choice. At close range a pistol comes into its own. A holstered pistol deploys faster, more maneuverable, and more concealable than any slung long arm. The reasons for the 45 are twofold. At pistol ranges 10-20 ft. you want a stop and drop round. Hes too close to fool around with. Second if you stop at this level you have a complete battery. It will cover 90% of your foreseeable needs. You now have a minimum battery.

This ends level one.

Level two.
At this point you will be primarily adding pistols to expand your pistol battery. Because you have your basic long gun battery completed. 1. A 22 long rifle pistol. This is your practice Pistol. Placing this in level 2 was a real toss up. This could easily be placed at the end of level 1 or just after the 22 rifle. Being cheap and easy to use you are more apt to practice thereby increasing your pistol skills. This is something that that a person new to pistol craft needs to consider. 9 M M pistol. A backup to your 45. 9 M M is the smallest practical defensive handgun round. This is selected, as the backup due to its wide spread use is a high availability of ammunition and parts. Also if you want to use combinations of pistols and carbines. That uses the same ammo in a two for one deal. Because there are more carbines for 9s than any other. 38/357 or 44 wheel gun. I recommend buying Ruger pistols they are the strongest revolvers on the market. The 38/357 combination gives you a wider power range of usage. Personally I do not like revolvers I dont like their balance. Also of many years of shooting the majority of weapons that I have seen have been semiautomatic. I have seen probably as many failures of revolver as with autos. Due to the percentages from my experience it would appear that revolver are less reliable. Most failures usually due more to poor maintenance or bad ammunition than inherent design flaws. So maintain your weapons. Although some have been indexing and timing problems. HK, FAL or Garand in 30-06 or 308 semiautomatic. This is your battle rifle. It has a high rate of fire capability and good long-range abilities, The also have good availability of parts and ammunition. Battle who really needs or wants it. The best bet is to hope it stays in the rack never needing to be used. Pistol caliber carbine combinations. 9 mm., 357, 44 magnum etc. These match up with your chosen pistol. This minimizes the calibers that are needed.

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This is the end of level two.

Level three.
This is where you add specialty weapons to fill specific niches. These weapons fill small holes in your arsenal. These are more dedicated to their job. But your main battery covers their overall work. 1. 2. A high quality extreme range rifle. Minimum a 7.62, 30.06, 300 magnum, Weatherbys, etc. With quality optics. This is your sniper rifle. Reach out and touch someone. A 50 to 60 caliber flint lock rifle. Not percussion cap black powder weapon. This constitutes the survivalists hunting weapon. This allows you to save your commercial higher rate of fire weapons for defense. It is rarely known now days that the Kentucky long rifle was extremely accurate out to about 400 yd. The only people that know it are black powder shooters. I put this in level 3 because it is more of a niche weapon. But do to its long-term abilities without industrial support. With founded flint, homemade black powder, and self-cast lead balls. As a survivalist you may want to consider a smokepole early in selections. Single cock the spring powered pellet rifle. The spring powered type are more reliable longer lasting and faster than any of the others. C O 2 models are faster but what do you do when you run out of cylinders. They come in. 177/BB, 0.22, 0.25 calibers. And there appeared to be new ones that are 9 mm. These are quiet pest control and small game getters. The AR-7, M-6 in 410/22LR or 410/22 Hornet, the Savage or any of the other combo style survival rifles. Small light and easy to use. Most can be quickly broken down for ease of packing and carrying. These are to take a long on your camping trips.

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This is the end of level three.

Level four. THETOYS

Toys for basically self-explanatory. These are the wants not the need to haves. At this point you have what you really need now is the time to get the I wants. 1. Barrett or other 50 BMG. For really, really long range rifle. True this would be the ultimate sniper rifle. But it is so darned expensive. But because of the size, weight and expense of the gun, its optics and ammunition It is simple not practical as anything but to be placed in the toy category. It also doesnt pass the Wal-Mart test. Your S K S s M A Cs AR-15/M-16 or other high rate of fire bullet wasters. By their design they encourage rapid fire non-aimed shooting. These weapons feed the Rambo dreams that we all have of standing off the invading hordes. Most are designed for massed infantry with full military supply support. Sure we all want to carry our AK, SK or AR with a dozen or so 30 round high capacity Magazines. If you need to have that many for reloads during a firefight you should have run. Pistols Desert Eagle L A R Grizzly mentioned to play with. Automag. Etc. Personally I would love to have the three

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Fancy skeet over/under and double-barreled shotguns. The key word fancy equals expensive. Cowboy Action Shoot weapons. True action shoots encourage regular use and practice. Many that are fully involved will be better prepared and more effective with them than with modern weapons. These designs are time proven. All good points in their favor. Still they are something that some people get involved in to play with not as a survival option.

This ends level four

Accessories
These are listed separately here because they are not weapons. But in most cases you will need some of them even in level one. Especially number 1. 1. 2. A good cleaning kit that covers all calibers and gauges. Reloading equipment to match your choices. Your options are from small hand presses to full multi-stage designs. The small hand units such as the Lee presses are good for starting out to see if reloading is for you. If you do progress to more advanced models they make a good cashe item. Scopes for your rifles. Always get good quality optics to match the level of the rifle. In other words dont put a thousand-dollar scope on a hundred-dollar rifle and dont put a $20.00 scope on a thousand-dollar rifle. My preference is for variables this gives you more options. They are a little more than single power scopes but have more capabilities. Bushnell makes a great 3-9 variable for $40.00 that is a perfect match for the Ruger 10/22. Forget pistol scopes if you need the scope its too far for a pistol get a rifle. Slings, Sidesaddles, pistol grips, and barrel shrouds. Things to fancy up your guns to your desired level of plain or fancy. If it works and makes you happy do it.

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Specialty Items
These can be added at any level or as substitution for other items. I have not included these things as part of a home battery because they are not firearms. 1. Bow and/or Crossbow: Silent hunting weapons with reusable ammunition. Along with traps these should be your primary hunting weapons rather than any firearm. The reasons are due to their silence they attract little or no attention from others you wish to avoid and arrows or bolts are reusable also easily made at a primitive level. Im not saying not to carry a firearm when hunting for emergency back up. Just that in a survival situation save items that are hard to replace. Count the cost versus reward. Archery is something I think everyone should be encouraged to get involved in. Throwing axes and knives. Blowgun a cheap fun toy. They help develop hand eye coordination at range. They will also take small game. This is where you go for your Red Dot, Laser sight and pistol scopes. They are fun toys not survival items. Batteries die. Laser Range Finder: This can be useful pre-disaster tool for finding exact ranges to fixed object around the home or retreat. Having known distances around your general living will improve you range estimates to targets. This will then enhance your ability to hit on the first shot. Thereby conserving ammunition. These ranges need to be recorded and periodically reviewed.

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These are my thoughts and the list of a full spectrum battery. You can use this list or make choices of your own. Remember any list that you make on the order of getting weapons should be flexible. If youre

the kind that can fall into a cesspool and come out smelling like a rose with a string of pearls in your teeth. And you find a deal on something farther down the list get it now. Deals only come now and then dont pass them up for the sake of a list. You can always go back and fill in because the needs dont change. Good deals are far and few between. Some may have noticed an omission. There is no mention of the venerable 30-30-lever action. These kind of fall into the cracks. They are not as strong and reliable as a bolt and not as fast as a semi. This is a very acceptable firearm. It can be added to a battery in the level 2 or 3 categories. The problem is that it is a kind of an in between weapon neither fish nor fowl. Not a toy, but not a need. If it would fit it would probably fit in the carbine area. I will end my ramblings for now take them for what they are. No insult intended if your favorite is included or worse yet placed where the first thought is how dare he class my baby at such a low level. He put my pride and joy, what I consider the end all be all of any weapon on the planet, a toy. The true purpose from this dissertation is to make you think. Because thinking is the most important survival tool of them all.