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suggestion for backpacking long gun

GAgunLAWbooklet

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The Hen that laid the Golden Legos
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The "suggestions for bug-out rifle" thread showed that many people have very different ideas about what "bug out" means. Some people thought of going long distances on foot, camping in the woods for days at a time, and killing small critters for protein.

So let's talk about THAT KIND of gun-- a long gun to take backpacking.
You need to hump this thing for 10-20 miles a day over the hills and valleys. For weeks at a time.
You want two guns? Great. Are you up for carrying BOTH of them, and the ammo they use?

This long gun HAS TO be able to kill some critters to supply you with meat. That's a hard requirement. If you also want it to serve double-duty as a defensive weapon, fine. That's optional.

Are you sure you want that M1A now? (Not me, and that's my favorite rifle for most purposes).

If you want to talk about what HANDGUN to take backpacking, also state what long gun, if any, you'd take with it.
 
Savage fvsr suppressed. Light, accurate, Hollywood quiet suppressed. Carrying enough .22 would be fairly easy along with other essentials.
 
MY CHOICES:

HANDGUN: .38 snubby: I would carry a personal protection pistol on my belt at all times. Given the stress of hiking many miles a day for weeks, I would have to leave my full size 9mm, .40 and .357 magnum pistols at home. I'd pack a .38 snubby, alloy frame, and probably have it concealed. If somebody wants to rob me and they disarm me of my long gun, the .38 would be back-up.
HANDGUN AMMO: First shot in the cylinder would be a CCI shotshell, for snake-killing. Next 4 rounds would be any decent 125-135 grain HP. I'd have a "speed strip" in my pants pocket, and maybe 15 more rounds loose in a baggie in my backpack. Just in case I have to use it one day, I want to be able to reload it, and replenish the speed strip, for the next day and all other days of my journey.

LONG GUN: I'd want a light weight, pencil-barreled AR rifle or carbine, but with a 1:9 or 1:8 twist barrel to stabilize the longer, heavier bullets that are best for deer, hogs, and other game of that size.
I would want an M16A1 butt stock on it (a bit shorter than the modern A2 dimensions).
In fact, I think that a semi-auto version of the M16A1 would be fine, as long as it's got the modern fast-twist barrel.
The carry handle would be a welcome feature. I want to hold the gun, not wear it slung across my back (or front).
As for optics-- definitely NOT a variable power scope. That's going to add nearly a pound of weight. More once you factor-in the scope rings. Maybe no optics at all. The factory iron sights should be good enough for bagging a deer in the woods, where it's hard to get a clear shot even out to 100 yards (except where there's a power line easement through the woods).
And yeah, I'd shoot a squirrel or rabbit with a .223. FMJ should zip right through. It would ruin some of the meat, but I'd get enough meat from what isn't pulverized. Using FMJ bullets from this fast-twist barrel would minimize tissue damage compared to expanding bullets.

Maybe a cheap 3X or 4X scope of the type Colt used to sell with their first generation AR's would be good.
It clamps to the top of the carry handle.
AR retro scope.jpg


I'd carry the rifle with one 20-round magazine in it (loaded with FMJ ammo for defense, or small game), and I'd have another 20-round mag on my person (loaded with different ammo-- 65 grain big game rounds? Maybe 52-grain varmint ammo?), and a 3rd and final 20 or 30 round mag loaded with FMJ ammo in my backpack. That's it. I'm not going to carry 4 or 6 loaded 30-round mags in a tactical vest like I'm headed into a war zone. I'd have a total of 3 magazines and 60-70 rounds of .223, and that should be enough for some hunting, even a self-defense incident, and possibly firing a shots for emergency signaling.
 
Where can you hump through miles of woods in GA? There will be hundreds of humpers just like you being shot by the land owners protecting their resources. Stop the fantasy
 
ALTERNATIVE PLAN:

HANDGUN: Same .38 snubby.

RIFLE: Remington 597 in the .22 WMR (.22 magnum) caliber.
Semi- auto. 8 shot magazines. And I'd carry at least 3 of those magazines on my person, and I'd have a box of 50 more rounds in my backpack.
This rifle would only weigh 6 pounds when loaded, maybe 7 after you add a sling and scope.
The gun doesn't cost much: $400 or $500. Half the price of the kind of AR that I was discussing above.
.22 Magnum is "good enough" for deer with a head, neck, or heart shot.
.22 Magnum from a semi-auto is probably 'good enough' for self-defense against people, aggressive or rabid animals, pack of coyotes, whatever.
I'd want to have a light weight scope on it.
Rem 597.jpg
 
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