...I would probably grab my customized 1917 Swedish Mauser in 6.5 x 55mm, but only because I'm especially confident that I'll hit whatever I'm aiming at, at any reasonable range. For close up personal defense, I'll choose the 9mm CZ75, for much the same reason. Then again, there's absolutely nothing wrong with a .22LR, in the hands of a good marksman.

Another thing to consider that has only been touched on briefly – WEIGHT. Carrying a larger-caliber rifle means a lot more weight and bulk to lug around, something to consider carefully in a survival situation. There is also the weight of the ammo – a box of .22 LR weighs little and gives you 50 opportunities to hit something, as compared to 20 for a box of .223-caliber that weighs about the same. Non-marksman that I am, I’d opt for the law of averages.

Well the Springfield M6 survival rifle was offered in 22LR and .223... I originally wanted more punch/kick for the buck until I calculated the price and commoness of one vs the other. I chose 22LR because of what you said in terms of ammo weight. If used correctly 22LR will be as effective and versatile as .223. Don;t get me wrong... I would love to have 30-06 and 12 gauge combined in something that weights as much as M6 but that's impossible.

But in regards to the book. I still believe that he was totally unprepared and his skills and abilities didn't match his ego. And his luck run out.

Matt

But still he chose the same caliber firearm as you would for that kind of situation!

he had prior experience, skills and he was out there for a long time.

For those of you at least open-minded enough to appreciate the (several) advantages of the ubiquitous 22lr...

I'd encourage you to take a look at modern air guns. While none but the most exotic will do for even deer, well... if it comes down to meat for the pot there are a LOT more squirrels and bunnies out there than deer, and a lot less hunters aiming (more or less) in their direction.

Airgus are relatively silent (which could become important), the ammunition weighs MUCH less, and is much less bulky than even .22lr (think 250 rounds in an Altoids tin), they can be amazingly accurate (up to Olympic level), and production air guns are easily available up to .25 caliber (yes, there are production 9mm and even .50 caliber air rifles, but they have other disadvantages).

More importantly, having one can make HUGE differences in the amount of target practice that you can get in. They don't require frequent cleaning or maintenance, and the lack of noise means that an improvised range can be set up in a typical basement... meaning that if you get bored watching Gilligan's Island re-runs (despite their obvious survival relevance), you can be shooting instead in a couple of minutes, and quit just as easily... which means you can shoot every day if you like- no packing, unpacking, forgotten ammo, clips, hearing protection, no cleaning, no round-trip driving to the range. That can easily amount to SEVERAL times as much practice as even the devoted shooter can get at a range- and the skills gained are largely transferable to firearms.

I won't go into detail here- there's a great deal to know about modern air guns, and a great many are NOT directly applicable (IMHO) to survival situations, but many are. I would not suggest trying to replace powder burners with air guns by any means, but they are an excellent supplement, and the better ones can do amazing things for your marksmanship skills, as well as possibly enhancing your ability to quietly put meat on the table if need be.

That thing would never kill a rat, and why the hell does it have a silencer when there is nothing to silence?

I chose it just because my M6 has a .410 mounted on top of the 22. I can drop anything I want with that slug or use bird shot for regular stuff. 22 is just an icing on the cake.

Matt

Understand that you can't hunt with an airgun, it's so stupid airguns, if you wanna kill beer cans or something like that otherwise it's no use. In a survial situation, an airgun would probably be very dangerous, if you walk around thinking it will help you. It won't.

>>Understand that you can't hunt with an airgun, it's so stupid airguns<<

Not sure where you're getting your info.

Since a great many people have taken a great many animals with airguns for hundreds of years (one went with Lewis and Clark, and they were used by poachers long before that), I'd have to guess that they'd be very surprised to hear that you can't do it.

The most powerful firearm is completely useless if you can't hit anything with it- and most people can't. Unlike in the movies and on TV, that is NOT an automatic thing... you can't just wish the bullet into the target, and the bullet doesn't care if you're the "good guy". It takes time and practice, and lots of it.

At, say, $5 to $10 for a mere 20 shots, most hunters will never get nearly enough practice with their hunting rifles. For most hunters (at least here in the East) it doesn't matter much- deer are so abundant that it's a struggle to keep from running over them in the streets, and if the hunter doesn't get one all season, nobody misses a meal, so marksmanship sometimes gets glossed over. It won't work that way anymore if they're hungry.

I've been shooting powder burners of various descriptions off-and-on for almost 30 years, and still do. In all that time, nothing improved my marksmanship nearly as much as getting involved with air rifles in the past few years. I stand by what I said.

I have shot with Beeman R7 rifle which had muzzle vel of 700 fps. With pointed 4.5mm pellet I was a king of the yard within 40 yrd radius. I never went beyond shooting a rabbit but hey that enough.

Matt