John Walters has posted his list of 10 essential guns that will help you survive the time when civilization starts to crumble and fall over. His conclusion says it all:
Ten guns. Thousands of dollars. Hundreds of training hours. This isn’t hobbyism. It’s insurance against hard times, written in steel and gunpowder. My uncle understood what I’m only now fully grasping: preparation becomes necessity without announcement, and those ready sleep while others pace in darkness.
Acquire these tools. Learn them. Maintain them against the day when phones die and police stop coming. That day approaches regardless of elections or economic indicators.
Civilization persists where force maintains it. Ensure you possess sufficient force.
I think that everyone who visits my website with any regularity will be familiar with the concept, because I’ve been hammering on about it for over two decades.
As for his list, I have no problem with anything he says, because his rationale is well supported by common sense. (I may disagree with a couple of his specific guns, of course, as may any one of you, but that’s absolutely unimportant: the category and the need they address are well stated. Also, some of the categories kinda overlap, but that’s also not a major fault: there’s nothing wrong with a little redundancy, as any fule kno.)
- Pump Shotgun: 12-Gauge
- AR-15 Platform
- Service Pistol: .45 ACP Long-Range
- Hunter: .30-06 Springfield
- Rimfire Battery: .22 LR
- Concealed Companion: Subcompact 9mm
- Battle Rifle: 7.62x51mm NATO
- Revolver: .357 Magnum
- Tactical Shotgun: Semi-Automatic 12-Gauge
- Precision Instrument: Bolt-Action .308
One could argue that the “hunter” (.30-06) and “battle rifle “(7.62x51mm) could be addressed by the same rifle (e.g. an M1 Garand), and the “hunter” likewise with the “precision instrument” (e.g. a scoped Mauser in [pick one] chambering). As I said, there’s some overlap.
Interestingly, I am deficient in both shotgun categories — I don’t own a shotgun of any description at the moment — and I don’t really have a subcompact handgun either. (If Clint Smith carries two 1911s, I see no reason why I shouldn’t, or else carry two .357 Mag/.38 Special revolvers, as I sometimes do.) And really, those handguns are just there to buy me the time to get to the trunk of my car, where Hell Awaits To Be Unleashed™.
I am also somewhat leery of the “precision instrument”, mostly because my eyesight is becoming so crap that any shot needing to be made over 400 (300 even?) yards would see me seeking deep cover or retreating instead. (I do have a decent precision/hunting rifle or two, of course, but I’m no longer confident of my ability to reach out and touch anyone further out than the above, with any degree of confidence.)
I’m getting to the point, in other words, where my “hunter”, “battle” and “precision instrument” categories will soon be blended into a .357 Magnum lever rifle (with an old Ruger/S&W revolver as a companion piece when it comes to halitosis-range combat).
But don’t let me be a downer: get out there and do as the man says. Practice till you can’t practice anymore, and then practice again and again, as often as you can.
Your life may well depend on it.
