I think I need at least 1 rifle

[rcinma]

But am not sure what to get.

I know this is a loaded question but I would like to hear some opinions.

A little back ground, I used to be into lever guns and had several Winchesters - my favorites being 94's in 307 and 375.

(Obviously I wasn't afraid to load my own at the time either).

But shoulder injuries kept me from shooting them as much as I would have liked, ammo components weren't always available and economics forced me to eventually sell them off.

Now I find myself completely rifle-less and think I should look into getting at least one decent rifle in the safe even if I don’t use it very often. (I have a few shotguns left but am mostly a pistol shooter these days).

So what I am looking for is an affordable/versatile rifle that is easy to find ammo for that could be pressed into hunting duty but will likely just get used at the range occasionally (unless the zombies do actually attack some day).

I don't want (really can't afford) an EBR and want something bigger than a .223 anyway.

My thinking is either a 30-30 lever gun or an open-sighted .308 bolt gun. (I could also possibly swing a .308 BLR).

I am not against going with a surplus Military rifle either but don’t want something that weighs a ton and am not very knowledgeable on the available mausers and what-not out there. I could of had a friend's old Enfield 30-06 but the thing was huge and I was told kicked like a mule.

So if you had say $400-500 for one rifle and a decent supply of ammo, what would you buy?

 

[hminsky]

M1 Carbine. It has virtually no recoil, and is very accurate, lots of surplus high cap magazines available.


$419 from the CMP. Ammo is available for about .30 per round.

It's the most fun to shoot of anything I've ever tried.

 

[Rockrivr1]

M1 Carbine. It has virtually no recoil, and is very accurate, lots of surplus high cap magazines available.


$419 from the CMP. Ammo is available for about .30 per round.

It's the most fun to shoot of anything I've ever tried.

+1 Very fun and easy to shoot rifle. If you have a shoulder injury that keep you from shooting a rifle often, bolt action rifles are not going to do you any favors.

 

[rcinma]

I actually had an M1 Carbine years ago, it was fun to shoot but I am thinking something a little more substantial in caliber than that.

I can handle some recoil occassionally, I am just not cut out for too much too often.

 

[JD09]

Maybe a SKS Para model?

Light, handy, robust and a little more powered round but not with punishing recoil

Another choice if you want a bolt action would be something like an M38 Swede short rifle. Carbine in a 6.5x55 if you don't mind that caliber. Samco has them for $309 atm

.308 is going to be a trade off between recoil and weight. 2 possible choices based upon your criteria are a Savage 10FCM scout rifle (a little more expensive) or maybe a Spanish FR-8 carbine

 

[Bob P]

BAllistically an M1 Carbine isn't all that much different from a 30-30.

You said no EBR and you don't like .223. What about a Ruger Mini-30?

 

[natf]

Maybe a Garand through the CMP if you are looking for a substantial caliber? A field grade Garand is $495 and a 192 round spam can of greek 30-06 is $60. That's very slightly over your top of your price range. Compared to a bolt action 30-06 I find the Garand to have very light recoil due to the gas system.

-Nat

 

[M1911]

+1 Very fun and easy to shoot rifle. If you have a shoulder injury that keep you from shooting a rifle often, bolt action rifles are not going to do you any favors.

+1 on the M1 Carbine. It's got plenty of power for an up-close-and-personal social engagement. Little recoil. Light and easy to shoot. Very fun little gun.

 

[USMA-82]

Here's a suggestion out of the blue - if you would consider a milsurp rifle, look at a Model 1895 Chilian Mauser in 7x57mm (7mm Mauser). The pluses:

- Can be found in near excellent condition for your specified price range (check Gunbroker)
- 7mm is a great round - accurate and flat-shooting
- Recoil is much less than a .308 or .30-06
- If manufactured before 1899, it qualifies as an antique. No firearms license OR C&R license is required, and it can be shipped directly to your house.
- Commercial 7mm ammo is readily available and easy to reload

Minuses:

- I can not attest to its effectiveness on zombies

Good Luck!

 

[Madball13]

for common ammo and power you can't beat a .308. If your looking for hunting, plinking and the occasional zombie a bolt action Savage with the accu-trigger can't be beat for $450. To save on your shoulder i would look into an autoloader like a Remington 7600 in .308. Reasonably priced and from what i hear decent accuracy and you can get 10 round mags for it.

 

[Madball13]

BAllistically an M1 Carbine isn't all that much different from a 30-30.

My sources tell me a 110gr .30 carbine round shoots 2000fps and 880 ft/lbs of energy and a 110gr 30-30 shoots 2684fps with 1760 ft/lbs.

 

[vellnueve]

No EBR? No problem!

 

[rcinma]

No EBR? No problem!

OK, no EPHKR (Evil Pink Hello Kitty Rifle) either.

 

[SemiAutoSam]

A AR with a Monster Man grip ? WTF NO NO NO Don't try to push him down that primrose path.

What he really needs is a FAL.
Or maybe a Preban Galil in 308 link to Pics in my sigline.

Beauty and effectiveness.
http://www.dsarms.com/STG58-Austrian-FAL-Carbine-Rifle-308-Cal/productinfo/STG58C18/

No EBR? No problem!

 

[Vintovka]

+1 on the FAL, or an M1A. They'd pretty much meet all of your requirements, except for price. If you can't afford an EBR at the moment, that would probably rule these out.

The ROMAK in 7.62x54R can still be found in the $700-$800 range, and ammo is plentiful and fairly cheap. With the lighter surplus rounds, you should find the recoil to be very tolerable.

In .308 bolt-action, the market opens up a bit. Not sure that would be my first choice for zombie season, though.

 

[Raoul Duke]

Yes, I'm pretty sure a ($1800 entry model) FAL is out of this man's reach as he posted.

I'm going to say bag the Garand. Not that there is anything wrong with it. But, for $200 less $250-$350 you can get a very nice SKS, which shoots 7.62x39. It's a great short to mid range cartridge. Most decent condition SKS's I've shot have excellent accuracy up to about 200yards and they're reasonable past that for another 1-2oo yards.

The round is cheap currently and you can feel totally fine about feeding it steel case Russian ammo all day long which you can buy, even in today's market, for about $.25-$.30 round. On top of all that, they're just a blast to shoot as someone else mentioned!