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Spin off thread.. More versatile, .22 or 30-30?

grumpy356

bordering on illiterate
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Spin off from a the do you have a plan thread in Chit-chat

If you could ONLY HAVE 1. Do you want a .22 or 30-30?
 
If I thought the wilderness was a real option to access and that it would not be overrun by people fleeing the city, (which I think it will be) the idea would be shoot, move and avoid people / crowds. I would want a .22 rifle, a shotgun and MAYBE a pistol and a backpack with a water purifier / filter a good knife and fire making material. and here is why:

I can fit 1000 rounds of .22 ammo in a pair of cargo shorts. I would survive off small game. (squirrels, rabbits, etc.) a deer would be of little or no use for me, given the ability to process a whole deer, the ability to preserve the meat, and the ability to transport. it just isn't practical.

I want a 12 gauge for bigger game, birds and self protection. I prefer a 12 gauge to a pistol for self protection whenever possible, Just because it feels better to me.

If I had the capacity, I would add a 308, to kill people far away, and a pistol, when I am just too close to people to adequately wield the shotgun.

Consider a 30-30. A bit more dual purpose than a .22. Deer are not hard to process as long as you aren't trying to make ground meat out of it.

Like many complex questions, the answer to this one is "It depends." If it's a minor SHTF for less than a week, I'm sheltering in place. If it will be longer, I'll retreat to the family farm where people I trust can share the workload of survival. I've lived for 2 weeks in the woods with people hunting me and traveling light. It is a shit ton of work. I'm not leaving my wife and daughter who have essentially zero survival skills other than shooting, so I'm going to be doing the work of 3 people. That is much simpler if I can shelter in place where I have a good supply of fresh water and wild game and easily defended. The trade off at the farm is it is a much larger area and the home sets in the lower areas and you could keep concealed to well within small arms range. You will run through ambush lanes to do it though. Having family there to work gardens, pull water and protect livestock with a well supplied shop to work with or without electricity makes it very appealing. I would need to travel about 1.5 hours to get there by normal roads, there are multiple alternatives to travel there that get up to 2 hours. It would take a very specific fire to hurt me as I am on a peninsula. I have a solid basement for a tornado. No significant tactical targets for war other than the dam that makes the lake, so it gets pretty strange to plan around after that. The key is a wide skillset, the possession of appropriate assets, ability to prioritize, and the mentality to survive. In that sense, I'm far better off than most.

Can you carry a 1000 rounds of 30-30 in your cargo shorts?

You shoot small game with a 30-30... The noise alone is a reason against the rifle.

Have you ever shot a squirrel with a 30-30? How much damage was done to the meat??

How are you carrying and storing that deer meat? You don't have refrigeration? are you lugging around a cooler and running to the stop & go for ice?

Sure, you can make some NICE jerky, but how much time do you have to do that? You got a smoke house somewhere and a week?

A deer is fine in a fortification, it is not practical in a move and evade situation (TO ME).


The closet thing I've lived through is Hurricanes, and true grid lock. Like old folks dying on the roads in Houston, because there was no way to move them due to traffic and abandon vehicles blocking all roads and no gas available. This Bug-out situation would likely look like that.

But Mike Tyson said it best "Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth" And everybody has a plan until there is no fuel available, no roads that are passable, and no power.


Right now, How many of ya'll have enough gas in your junk to bug out in the fashion you are talking about???

A thousand rounds in my shorts? WTF would I do that? I've ate for a week straight and not even needed to reload. You don't plan on changing your shorts?

You think an animal doesn't hear your stealthy .22?

Yes, I've shot many squirrels and rabbits with a 30-30 and the meat is no less damaged and even easier to prepare than when I shoot them with a preferred .410. It's not a fuckin howitzer. Ideally, a pellet gun works best in my experience. I didn't say the 30-30 was best at anything. I said more versatile. One of the things a lot of people underestimate is what happens to pet dogs in a long term situation. A lot of people talk shit about how they would do anything for their dog. I've lived out long enough to see hundreds of abandoned dogs in my day so I'm going to say not everyone actually lives that out. One of the most terrifying things in the world is a pack of domestic dogs that have gone feral. I'd dam sure rather be defending with something that has some knock down.

First off, I don't have to carry and store shit. It's a survival situation, ethics change about using everything. I can cut the backstraps out grill the steaks and leave the rest for the wildlife. If I don't go far, I may even kill off that bait. If I choose to, I can filet and smoke salted meat over night while I sleep so long as I leave the raw carcass out of camp. It will keep for a while like that without going full jerky. All I need is saplings and a tarp. Like I said, I'll be feeding 3 people on the move burning calories. I deer is only going to give about 70lbs of meet if I take everything.

Where I live there is no gridlock and the only place I'm going to go is only marginally better than where I start from so I'm in no hurry to hit the road until I can figure out there is a way. My oil burner will burn a lot of shit if needed. Mike Tyson is right. That's why you have to be flexible and able to think on your feet. Plans change.

I don't change my shorts now, why would I do it in an apocalypses??

I am not worried about noise because of 4 legged animals, it's PEOPLE I am trying to avoid. And have you shot a modern pellet gun? not much quieter than a .22 (especially not a .22 with a can).
Here is the debate.

(I admit there is no right or wrong answer, I am just hoping for a debate)
 
22lr. you can kill a deer with a 22lr if you make sure your hunting is similar to bow hunting ranges.

could we compromise and say 22 magnum?
 
22lr all day every day.

especially in a shit hit the fan scenario, but even in a practical stance living anywhere in society. yes, i'd rather have something that shoots 22lr as personal defense living in the city going about a daily normal routine than a 30-30.
 
Another vote for .22lr. They make an amazing variety of ammo for .22lr. Personally I'd go with some subs and a 40g high velocity HP.
 
22lr for me.
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Between the two probably 22lr. 30-30 would be fine if you were living off deer and bigger stuff, but that isnt practical for survival unless you are setup to smoke or salt meat, in which case you can probably have more than 1 gun.

If we open it up more I would consider my CZ 223. Ammo is still pretty light and small, 223 can take smaller animals but also deer in my area. And the gun is super light, it I was going to carry something for a while.

Or a 5.7x28. More power than a 22 and centerfire is more reliable. Ammo is still small and light.

Much depends on what the situation is. If you are just getting into the wood and need to survive - light, reliable, rifle. If you need to ward off attackers I would want something bigger, sure shot placement but that can be difficult when you are running for your life. Aside from ammo size a shotgun is very versatile. You can get loads that are good for anything from rodents to bears. How much ammo you need is varied - if you are regularly having to defend yourself you need more, say 3-5 rounds a day average. If you are unable to preserve meat you would need more - maybe 1 round per 2 days if you forage. But what if you were in somewhere cold enough to preserve meat, maybe 1 round a week or less.
 
5.56 - If that's too big of a round for what you're hunting, find bigger animals. :flipoff2:

Naw, I'd say 22. Can't imagine deer hunting with one though.
 
5.56 - If that's too big of a round for what you're hunting, find bigger animals. :flipoff2:

Naw, I'd say 22. Can't imagine deer hunting with one though.
I've finished a few road hit deer with a 22. You have to be very accurate for a clean kill but its doable.
 
I've finished a few road hit deer with a 22. You have to be very accurate for a clean kill but its doable.
Meanwhile I got a through and through with a 30-30 and trailed it for 2.5 miles only to lose it. :homer: :laughing:
 
Neither but since its an A or B thing.....22 ellll arrrrr.

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-22Plinkster
 
5.56 - If that's too big of a round for what you're hunting, find bigger animals. :flipoff2:

Naw, I'd say 22. Can't imagine deer hunting with one though.
That's the poachers favorite round. They sneak up on 'em and shoot them in head.
 
A .22 rifle is light and inconspicuous, especially if it is something like the 10-22 with removable barrel or an AR-7. An AR-7 with everything stowed into the stock will fit into any small backpack or gym bag.
My friend Joe has an AR-7. The only thing I don’t like about them is that the stock feels super fragile.
 
I have had one since the 70s Never had a problem with the stock. The early ones had a rep for misfeeding but that is fixed with a Dremel and long nose pliers. I expect the new Henrys have that sorted out.
Yours is probably a little better built being older.
 
5.56 - If that's too big of a round for what you're hunting, find bigger animals. :flipoff2:

Naw, I'd say 22. Can't imagine deer hunting with one though.
The Mexicans slay deer herds with .22lr in California.

I'd take a .22lr all day long, I can suppress it with stuff I find in the garbage if I need to.
 
Yours is probably a little better built being older.
I have had the Henry version for about 2 years now, bought new, and haven't had feeding issues. Stock seems fine for what it is, not flimsy but not Garand solid either.


I'd vote 22LR as well. Easy to carry a bunch of rounds, easy shooting, and can kill deer and small game. I know it will kill Muleys since that is what we have here and the poachers take many every year with a 22LR.
 
Hate to pile on but either/or I’d take my .22LR if I was bugging out. (I don’t own a 30-30 because for a rifle that size/weight I want more powder behind that .30 cal projectile) .22 probably wouldn’t be the first thing I’d pick up at the house but it wouldn’t be the last either.
 
.22....deer and even hog can be taken if you can shoot.

I do like my 30.30 bolt action for deer hunting.

But if I have my choice of just one it'd be my Marlin camp 9. 😁
 
Looks like the majority disagree with me. Interesting. I shoot a lot and I don't think I would want to try to feed and defend myself with a .22 only. Once I turned 12 and got a rifle besides the .22, the .22 only came out for target practice. It's still that way. I reload more 30-30 than anything else other than my 6.5 and I just like shooting that at the range. The only round that comes close is a 12 gauge for actual hunting, but I don't reload those and I don't do skeet/target with them any more so it's a bit tougher to compare.

There is a ton of game between tree rats and deer and a lot of game over the size of deer even if it isn't in your back yard. Hogs are going to be a big source of meet around me and a physical threat on occasion. I mentioned packs of domestic dogs in the other thread, but all scavengers will increase in population. Coyotes, wolf, down to vultures. If I'm running a black bear out of my garden, do I really want it coming back?

Maybe my view is skewed since I can't see any houses from my house or maybe I'm thinking about this differently than others. People talking about a deer is too much meat in a survival situation, I know I have thought about that. No fucks are given about how much I leave on the carcass in a survival situation. I'll kill one for breakfast and one for dinner and take one portion from both if I need to. I think I have more deer than cattle around me right now and I can take a backstrap out of one in less than 10 minutes if that's all I'm after.

You guys have given me something to think about though. One of the things I see mentioned repeatedly is the phrase "If you can shoot". I know if I don't practice, I lose the accuracy necessary to take down large game with a small round. Also in a defense situation, it's well known your accuracy decreases meaning those perfectly placed kill shots are unlikely.
 
I answered 22LR based on only have one weapon and in a SHTF type situation. It's just easier to carry a lot of ammo in 22 and they are usually lighter firearms if you have to carry for a long distance.
 
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