Preparedness On A Budget-A Rifle

Now I want to mention a little on a good rifle.  To all the pureists out there, I just want to say, again, that I think military surplus exceeds in many ways.  If not for mil-surp, I would not have a rifle.  A good rifle can be expensive. 

The first thing you need to think of is, what are you going to use the rifle for?  Is it purely to fend of bad guys (you know who you are) from a distance?  Are you going to use it for food gathering?  Home defense?  Car gun?  Ask yourself these things before you decide what to buy when it comes to caliber and size of the rifle.  Undoubtedly, you need a good rifle.

There are so many in the way of mil-surp rifles, that I won't spend time talking about all of them.  I will go with, for the purpose of this post, what I think is a great, all around rifle, the SKS.

The SKS can be had for, around, $300, some more, some less.  It depends on the condition.  This is snother weapon that has grown in popularity and short in supply which has affected the price.  About 10 years ago, one could be had for $150.

The cartridge is 7.62x39 and is readily available all over.  Most name brand ammo manufacturers make this round.  Of course, you will pay much more for Remmington and Winchester and Hornady ammo than you will with mil-surp such as, Wolf or Brown Bear.  Something to consider is that if you plan to re-load, you will have to stay away from Brown Bear and some Wolf because they are steel cased, not brass.  But 1000 rounds can be obtained from Cheaper Than Dirt for $240.

These guns fire every time and can be modified for high capacity magazines.  You might find one at a gun show already done.  It will take down a deer and is fun to shoot.  This can be obtained for a small investment, on a budget.  If you're like me you don't have a ton of cash.  So, look into these great rifles.

WEIGHT: 8.8 lbs.


BARREL : 20.34 inches

LENGTH: 40.16 inches

MAGAZINE: 10 round, fixed, staggered double row box

FRONT SIGHTS: Hooded post

REAR SIGHTS: Tangent leaf, graduated from 100 to 1000 meters

CALIBER: 7.62 x 39 Soviet M43

BORE DIAMETER: .301 inches

RIFLING DIAMETER: .311 inches

RIFLING: 1 turn in 9.45 inches RH

BAYONET: