Survival/bush guns?

D

dumprat

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I have been trying to come up with an "ultimite" bush gun, survival gun, go everywhere type of rifle. I have tried several different guns and have not been real happy with anything that I had. I am now thinking of building some thing that suits me. I was thinking of a mauser in .308 with as much weight shaved off. Probably a 18 1/2" barrel and a fiberglass stock. I haven't decided on scope or peep sights. Something simple,cheap, and real light and not likely to give any law enforcement types heart failure.

What do you guys use? Any ideas? Pictures?
 
For a survival gun I like the savage 24 .22 over 20ga. It might be a bit heavy but it covers the bases nicely. 22 takes grouse and rabbits as does the 20ga, load the shotgun barrel with slugs for bigger game.
 
I would say a No5 Mk1 Jungle .303 but I also like to hunt small game in a survival aspect then a .22 cal would be it. So in between the 2 or best of both I would a .12g shotgun.
 
Ruger 10/22 with 25 or 30 round mags (at least 3 of them).

Advantages include:
-cheapest ammo
-.22 is good enough to shoot anything that moves - especially considering how many rounds you can carry and how big your mags are
-unrestriced mag capacity
-rifle is totally proven and durable (about 40 years)
-and (extremely important) you can literally carry THOUSANDS of rounds in your back pack - good luck doing anything close to that with bigger calibres

This is what I have set up for myself, for these reasons.
 
Pretty tough to kill a whitetail in the bush with a .22 . I have a savage24vs in 30-30/20ga. It is too heavy and cumbersome. And carrying two types of ammo is a pain. I had a real nice jungle carbine and I liked it but ammo is becoming more expensive and harder to get. Look under the seat of a pick up at any autowrecker and you will find .308 and 30-06.
 
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This is mine (internet picture). H & R Tamer

photo_tamer.jpg


It's a single shot .410. I paid $170 for it new 5 months ago and unlike trying to shoot something many, MANY times with a .22, this should only require one try.
 
For survival, and the bush I feel my Winchester Defender 12 guage has my back(full stock not a pistol grip). Rifled or saboted slugs for large animals, 00 buck for backup, and 4 - 7.5 shot for birds or rabbits or other small game. So you have defence and food. Large caliber centerfires can't do it all, nor can a .22. My second choice would be a Savage model 24, 22 over 20ga. Only drawback to the Savage is you get one shot from the selected barrel, whereas my Defender gives me 7 or 8 depending on the length of shell I'm using.
defender.jpg
 
I carry a Marlin 94 in 44 mag. Open sights, 20 inch barrel, levers are fast into action and accurate. Can be scoped easily enough if so desired. Average wt is around 6 1/2-7 pounds. With 44 mag, I have a proven, accurate and powerful calibre which is available anywhere, except TO, can be used as a defensive gun against bears, will take deer or even elk, with careful shot placement grouse can be taken, which FWIW, is a more likely food item in a survival scenario than deer etc. Easy to pack quite a bit of ammo too.
Levers are less likely to draw unwanted attention as well. 30/30 would also work well. I just prefer my 44 though I have both.
 
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12ga Remmie pump or a Marlin 45-70. Butt is covered. Nothing really say no to either but a 308 lever would be my single choice if I had to choose just 1.
Have a Savage 99 that I am fond of and great truck gun to boot. DM works for me.
 
Hard to beat the venerable .30-30 Model 94 for it's light weight, compact size, and perfect balance in the hand. Although, in most(if not all) provinces it's not legal on small game like hare and partridge. A short action Browning BLR also gets my vote if you want a caliber with a little more gusto like .308, etc.

However, for all around usefullness, any shorter barreled shotgun in 12 is hard to beat for anything that walks and/or flies in the brush.
 
Seeing as how you are in the province that is home to the grouchiest bears in the country, I think you are on the right track with a light .308 or .30/06 (I'd lean towards the '06) but on the wrong track of how to get to where you want to be.

The Mauser action is a good call due to the controlled round feed action, and a used sporter like a Brno 600 can be found from time to time in the EE. A milsurp can be a good rifle, but they often require some work to scope them. If you are bound and determined to have a synthetic stock, get a good one. A good wood stock is much better than a poor synthetic. The harder the use the gun sees, the better it will have to be. Junk will inevitably let you down. That means you need a good glass if you scope the rifle, and good mounts. That means spending some money.

If you want a rifle that requires no modification then I too would suggest a #5 Lee Enfield. It's a solid handy rifle that has enough power to solve most of the problems you'll encounter, with the added benefit of a 10 round magazine. I don't particularly like to see them scoped, but that is a personal prejudice.

I don't know where you've been buying ammo, but most places sell .303 British for the same price as .30/06. A 150 gr bullet at 2700 fps shoots flat enough for hunting purposes and 215 gr bullets would be the answer for bear work. Start handloading, or it won't be long before the cost of factory ammo eclipses the cost of even an expensive sporter.
 
Defoinitely something in .44 mag. Even one of the 16" trappers holds a ton of shells, the 44 shooting 265 SP's (especially in rapid succession ;) ) is medicine enough for bears, you can buy/load shotshells for grouse at closer ranges, and you can load down light bullets to shoot rabbits, etc.
Ammo is easy to pack, the guns are lightweight and rugged as hell.
My #1 choice for sure :)
 
If your all touting SAV 24's in 22/410 why not go M6 scout? Lighter,can carry alot more ammo get a red dot ,sling made out of paracord,and some brenneke 410 slugs and you can drop anything a 44 mag can! Its my choice and I'm sticking with it. JITC
 
Woodsman said:
Hard to beat the venerable .30-30 Model 94 for it's light weight, compact size, and perfect balance in the hand. Although, in most(if not all) provinces it's not legal on small game like hare and partridge. A short action Browning BLR also gets my vote if you want a caliber with a little more gusto like .308, etc.

However, for all around usefullness, any shorter barreled shotgun in 12 is hard to beat for anything that walks and/or flies in the brush.
Click to expand...

You mean kinda like this?

n509315198_930079_7448.jpg


:D
 
The ultimate do-it-all rifle for hunting, walking, protection, survival, is a Steyr Scout .308.

Might not be THE perfect choice for any of the above, but can handle them all nicely.

Lightweight, in a tough synthetic stock, picatinny rail with back up iron sights, great accuracy, spare magazine in the buttstock, integral bipod in the forearm good enough in a pinch, mag system is capable of single round loading, and more.

Not the cheapest alternative, but that's my pick.

Image016-1.jpg
 
Wrong Way said:
Defoinitely something in .44 mag. Even one of the 16" trappers holds a ton of shells, the 44 shooting 265 SP's (especially in rapid succession ;) ) is medicine enough for bears, you can buy/load shotshells for grouse at closer ranges, and you can load down light bullets to shoot rabbits, etc.
Ammo is easy to pack, the guns are lightweight and rugged as hell.
My #1 choice for sure :)
Click to expand...

The first gun that came to mind was my Marlin 94 Stainless Steel in 44 mag. I do load it down with light lead bullets but with full loads there is lots of power for deer and black bears.

20" barrel, 10 shot magazine.
 
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