Urban Survival Firearms - Survival Firearms Battery Comments

UrbanSurvivalSkills.com received a question on handguns and rifles to outfit a Urban Survival Group. “I have been preparing to survive a collapse for a few years now. Been buying dehydrated and other food, stocking rice, beans, pasta and such. I have a location that my family and I can bug out to with I am forced to leave my house. This location has year round water and a liveable house about 6 miles away from the nearest State or County road. My question is on guns suitable for Survival. I have several 12 gauge hunting shotguns, a .30-06 bolt action rifle, a .243 bolt action rifle, an M1 Garand, a .22 LR semi-automatic handgun and a .44 magnum revolver of all things. My son can handle all these guns, but everything except the .22 LR handgun are too much for my wife and two younger daughters. I am thinking about buying some additional .22 LR handguns so at least the girls can be armed. What do you think?”

UrbanMan replies: I think you got the right idea on being able to arm everyone. You never know when your family (Survival Group) can be separated. However, being armed with only a .22 LR handgun is just a step above a pitchfork, unless the user is very skilled and has plenty of ammunition, then a .22 LR pistol is just above a Samurai Sword. Okay, come on, a little humor appreciation is requested here.

Handguns are defensive weapons and marginal for protection,……being the choice when a rifle or shotgun is unavailable. You didn’t mention the ages of your daughters, but I’ll just bet if they are old enough to consider arming with a .22 LR handgun, then they are old enough to be trained to handle and shoot something in a better caliber. Handgun caliber carbines would be very easy to handle in 9x19mm or .40 S&W. Although I would have a hard time carrying a long gun in a pistol caliber when carbine and rifle calibers are available in the same size. I would consider a rifle/carbine in .223 Remington such as an AR platform (AR-15, M-4 variant or Ruger Mini-14),….even an M-1 carbine would be a step up.

I know a man in Northern Arizona , who Survival Firearms Battery consists of Mini-14’s for him and his son, and M-1 carbine for his wife and one teen-age daughter, plus 9x19mm handguns for all and a couple 12 gauge shotguns. This guy is well north of the Interstate Highway and very rarely sees undocumented (illegal) aliens.

If AR’s, Mini-14’s or M-1 carbines don’t work for you, because of cost or whatever, and you want to stick to the .22 LR caliber, then I consider arming my females with both handguns and rifles.

You may be able to borrow several different types of guns for your girls to shoot,..lever actions; magazine fed center fire pistol caliber carbines; .38 Special /.357 Magnum revolvers, and others. The females have go to be able to operate the gun and be comfortable with it, so this try before you buy concept have pay off for you.

Good luck to you. With your current Survival Firearms Battery you are off to a good start and better armed than a lot of people. I think you are on the right track wanting to arm everyone in your small family (Survival Group), just consider the reliability for the guns you choose both in function and capability to stop a bad guy; consider training a very necessary step for all your family members.