Best Rifle – Top 3 Survival Rifles

When it comes to facing an apocalyptic (or post apocalyptic) scenario, your main focus will be how to survive and make it through the remains. The cause of the fall doesn’t really matter. It can be economic collapse, food shortage, EMP attacks or even a zombie epidemic spreading rampantly amongst the population. The end result will be pretty much the same: people struggling to stay alive. And staying alive will not only be about finding and benefiting from the little sources of food that will remain available. As chaos will ensue, so will violence amongst the survivors, based on the “survival of the fittest” law of natural selection.

There will be constant struggles between the people, and if you don’t want to become easy prey, best get your hands on a gun and fast. Experts agree that there’s no other gun better for self defense than the rifle. It’s the most versatile fire arm you can get your hands on. It’s just as good for hunting as it is for defending your shelter, your territory or even if you plan on tanking revenge for some reason or another. Handguns or shotguns are better than nothing, but they’ll never deliver as much as a rifle will. There are many rifles available to the general public in order to consider the absolute and undisputed top 3. But out of my personal experience, I’ll share with you my personal favorites and why I think they’re the best to hold on to.

The Ruger 10/22

When it comes to arming yourself for an upcoming cataclysm, you’ll find that opinions vary from one survival expert to another. One hand you’ll find the elitists, who only trust the newest technology available and who tend to look down upon those who stick to older and simpler things. On the other hand you have the “nostalgic”, the ones who prefer nothing better than a good ol’.22 caliber Long Rifle as a trust worthy companion for any sort of end-of-days scenario imaginable. And almost all of the .22 enthusiasts seem to agree that you can rarely stumble across something as efficient or as beautiful as the Ruger 10/22.

Its major advantage is that its ammunition is cheap and easy to procure. So not only can you stock up to A LOT of it before things get from bad to worse, but you can also enjoy countless hours of target practice. But not only is the ammo cheap, so it’s the gun itself. As a starting price, the basic model shouldn’t be ore then a couple of hundred bucks. That being said, it should leave you more than sufficient funds to customize and accessories you’re weapon according to your every need: scopes, camo paint job etc. The rifle comes with a 10-round rotary magazine that sits flush with the stock, making it more comfortable to carry around. The .22 caliber delivers very little recoil or kickback while shooting, making it perfect for beginners, even children. Despite this, it still can deliver very precise, easily hitting targets 100 yards away.

The AR-15

It’s one of the most used rifles in the world today. There are many variations of style to this weapon, which is currently being manufactured by numerous companies from all around the globe. Armalite designed the semi-automatic AR-14, which later on sold the design and patent to Colt (in 1964 precisely). After taking the rights of manufacturing the AR-15, Colt updated it from semi to fully-automatic and quickly became the first choice of weapon of the U.S. Military. Its notoriety in the military made it just as popular amongst law enforcement officers and civilians alike.  The secret of its popularity stood in its accuracy and unlimited customization possibilities, made possible by its 2-piece receiver and modular design. It’s capable of firing 5.56x44mm rounds, very accurately. But not only; it performs just as well with .223 caliber rounds, which are typically found as 30-round magazines.

I think that the best version of this weapon for a survival scenario is the DPMS Sportical. It’s a ready to shoot AR rifle, with a 16 inch barrel, adjustable stock (it shoots 5.56 as well as .223) and it’s highly customizable thanks to its modular structure, making it very easy to adapt to any sort of survival situation that you might encounter. The starting price is around $700, but it’s definitely money well spent. If you consider it too expensive for your budget, other manufacturers (like Smith & Wesson, Ruger, Bushmaster, Remington, Armalite and Colt) still produce AR versions for civilians, and maybe you can find the one that suits you the best.

Henry Arms AR-7

The “survival rifle” term firstly appeared with the weapons that were small and compact enough in order to be packed in cockpits of military planes or helicopters, and which the pilot or passengers could use to defend themselves if they were gunned down and found themselves in hostile situations. And these types of weapons needed to be perfect. They were expected to be powerful enough to take down both man and wild beasts that my pose threat, but also light and manageable, as to be carried around with the minimum of effort. The first collapsible gun that the military came up with was the M6 Scout (considered very practical even by today’s standards), which was equipped with 2 barrels, for .22 LR and .410 shotgun rounds.

The improved version of the M6 Scout is the Henry Arms AR-7, which is a more modern approach to collapsible weapons. It comes with 2 8-round magazines of .22 ammo, which is one of the most available survival ammo there is. The costs shouldn’t go higher than $280. And you’ll realize how little that is if you consider that this rifle weighs only 3.5 lbs and doesn’t measure more than 16.5 inches when taken apart, which makes it ideal for concealing in the car, in a bag or even under your jacket.

And there you have it. Keep in mind that this list is made up of my personnel preferences, guns that I’ve researched and tested throughout the years. There are plenty of possibilities out there for you to consider, because when it comes to survival rifles, you’ll have to make sure you get what suits you and your needs best. So make sure you get the right rifle and practice enough before SHTF; it’s the only way you’ll be able to save your own skin. Learn from the experts >>> Best Home Defense Plans

by Alec Deacon