Outdoor Survival Info

Archive for the ‘Firearms’ Category

I went to the range yesterday, and I was horrible. I took my Springfield XD9, and my lack of practice was evident. My shots were all high, high and to the right, or just all over the place.

I hadn’t been to the range for nearly a year — eleven months, I believe. That’s far too long to sustain any real skill. Even though I’ve been shooting various firearms throughout my life, I’ve never been really good. The practice I did get was sporadic, and I’ve never had any actual professional marksmanship instruction.

Out of practice, and just learning as I go has produced some horrible results. So, I’m going to need to shoot more often. The more you shoot the better you get, I’ve heard. Well, since I can’t afford to pay for a class or a weekend workshop right now, I’m going to just have to learn as I go.

I’ll be visiting the range more often. I want to improve my skills from decent to really good. I think I’ll buy a book on pistol marksmanship. Time to head to Amazon.

I set out to find a hunting rifle, with the intent that it be somewhat utilitarian. I wasn’t just after a hunting rifle…I wanted a firearm that could serve multiple purposes if needed. Sure, if it’s decent and everything, it probably won’t be really good at one particular thing, like hunting, but in my search I was prepared to make that sacrifice.

While searching, I saw many great rifles, read some good reviews of weapons and one interesting critical analysis of the .30-06 cartridge. My decision is for the Mosin Nagant. That might seem like an odd choice for a hunting rifle. At close range, there might not be much venison left for me to eat, since I’ve heard that those rifles pack quite a punch.

My reasoning is based in pure practicality. Right now, I don’t make a lot of money, so I need to purchase a rifle that won’t put undue financial strain on the family. I can also get these rifles at quite a discounted rate once I get my C&R firearms license. That’s right, I’ve decided to go ahead and start my collection of old arms.

It’s been something which has held my interest since I was a child. Now, as deer season approaches, I see the opportunity to get some great rifles for the collection and also have some decent hunting rifles. Sure, they may not be ideally suited for deer slaying, but most of these rifles I will buy will have already proven themselves. Some may have been used in actual battles. So I’ll have a little piece of history.

I’m not going to get my license right away, because I will be moving soon. It would be kind of pointless to get something that is directly related to my physical address, and then move a couple of months later. So, I’ll wait until my wife and I pick out a house to buy, and then I’ll get the license and start buying Mosins. Now…do I want the carbine, or the sniper model?

While researching various long guns for this rifle search, I have learned that this isn’t going to be an easy decision. Simply put, I want them all. There are so many fine rifles out there, it’s going to be hard to choose.

I have looked at all sorts of rifles — semi-auto, bolt-action, lever guns, old war horses, and modern combat weapons. There’s clearly a lot to choose from, so how do I narrow it down? I could shop by pure economy, purchasing the cheapest rifle I can find that has sufficient power. On the other end of that spectrum, I could go for a really nice, high-end rifle in use by troops and police officers worldwide. Taking a different approach, I could shop based on task-specific criteria, such as buying a rifle that has been fully designed as a deer hunting rifle. You see where I’m going with this? How do I decide?

If I base my decision on pure utility, options both expensive and inexpensive come to mind. For example, the Springfield M1A Scout rifle would be an excellent all-around weapon with a history of reliability. Unfortunately, those are terribly expensive. An inexpensive option would be to purchase a mauser, mosin, or sks. Those rifles have proved themselves throughout history, but they don’t cost a lot.

Which brings me to a recent discovery. Well, I didn’t really discover it recently, but I did learn details about it recently. I could always get a Curio and Relics federal firearms license and just buy some of these historically proven and still serviceable rifles online and have the shipped to my door. These licenses are cheaper than I thought, and since I’m a good citizen, I’ll qualify for one. If I do go this route, not only will I be able to get some great deals on some field rifles, I’ll be able to have a collection of these historical weapons–something that has been an interest of mine since childhood.

Regardless of what I choose, I still want them all. Right now, based on my family’s financial stature, I think that I’ll need to go with a more economical firearm. But that still leaves the question of utility vs. specific purpose. Do I want to get an older rifle that is really cheap (inexpensive, not shoddy craftsmanship), or save a bit more and get a task-specific rifle? I don’t know, but I imagine that my continued shopping and research will lead me to the answer.

Choosing a rifle that would be suitable as a basic all-around utility weapon is my goal. I mean that I am looking for a rifle that is both field-ready for hunting large game and also battle-ready for defending my family. I’ve come up with some basic criteria that I will use when shopping for a rifle. I don’t just want some bullet-slinger, but rather something with a bit of elegance.

Here are some of my basic criteria:

• Reliability
• Availability of ammunition
• Ease of carry and handling
• Accuracy
• Stopping power
• Availability of spare or expansion parts

I am looking for a round with enough stopping power to take down a whitetail deer without too much of a risk of merely wounding it. That pretty much rules out the .223. I know that many deer have been killed wih a .223, but in the thick hardwoods that I hunt, I’m afraid that it’s just not enough bullet to be a reliable slayer of deer. Prove me wrong if you can, because I would love to buy an AR-15.

I would like to get a rifle that is somewhat common, that way I can get spare parts and accessories at most gun shops, instead of having to search around for them. However, this isn’t really such a big deal since one can find just about anything online. Still, it’s a consideration of mine.

Since I am looking for more of a utility rifle, meaning that it will plausibly serve more than one purpose, I may not go with the standard bolt-action hunting rifle. In a defensive situation, when my pistol is not near or ready, a bolt action rifle would be cumbersome. Even so, this is just a minor consideration, since my shotgun would also make a fine defensive weapon.

Cost is something else that I must unfortunately consider. This is really too bad since there are some amazing and well-reputed rifles that cost over twelve hundred dollars. I would not be able to disclose such a figure to my wife, no matter how well off we are at the time of purchase.

Check back for part 2 of this series, where I will have a few rifle considerations, and why I am looking at them.