
Misc. Review: Best Gun – Methods of Evaluation
- cost
- legality
- size
- weight
- parts availablity
- acquisition cost
- operational cost
- longevity
- balance
- reliability
- accuracy
- intended application
- cool factor
I have a number of guns in my collection that I acquired for various reasons. Some I acquired because they had historical interest to me, others because they were inexpensive recreational shooters, and others, such as my cowboy guns, for informal cowboy action shooting. Some for no reason other than they were “cool.” Recreation aside, there are certain guns I’d recommend for anyone wanting to put together a basic survival/end of the world arsenal. The hard part is establishing their priority. For years I played the mental game of “If you could have 10 guns, what would they be and why.” Then reduce the quantity one by one until left with “if you could have only one gun, what would it be?”
I see the quest for a minimum battery of guns to be similar to knives. There simply isn’t one gun that does everything, any more than there is one knife that chop down a tree, peel carrots, and conduct surgery. So while there is no one gun, there are categories of function, and for this I’ve narrowed it down to 5.
I have listed the guns I would pick in each category. There are many quality guns. I have made my selection in bold within each category taking into account all the reasons above. As time permits, I will expand on my reasoning.
- personal carry (defensive handun)
- close to medium range (carbine / light rifle)
- medium to long range (heavy rifle)
- small game hunting (.22 rifle)
- bird and small game hunting (shotgun)
- Glock 17/19 9mm
- Browning Hi-Power 9mm
- Sig 226/228 9mm
- CZ-75 9mm
- Springfield XD 9mm
- Springfield XD .45
- Glock 21 .45
- Government Model 1911 .45
- Sig P220 .45
- Smith & Wesson 3-4″ .357/.38
- Taurus or Ruger 3-4″ .357/.38
- SCAR-16
- AR-15 carbine, flat top 5.56mm
- AK-74 5.45x39mm
- AK-47 7.62×39
- Sig 5xx series
- Ruger 10/22 with 2×7 or 3×9 compact rimfire scope
- SCAR-17
- FN FAL / L1A1
- HK 91
- M1A/M14
- AR-10 type
- Remington 700 or Savage 110 bolt-action
- Remington 870 12g
- Mossberg 500 or 590 12g
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