The Best Gun For A Man On A Budget

Have you ever wanted to own a caliber of gun that is all around useful? If you are anything like me, you are not a man with unlimited funds. This means that when you make an expensive purchase—like a gun—you want it to be as versatile as possible. You need it to be a tool that can provide protection, recreation, and also bring home the game to put on the table. It needs to be both versatile and affordable.

Is it even possible that such a gun exists? Well, I’m happy to let you know that there is. 

A Gun For All Uses

Having spent the majority of my life in the woods—a large percentage of it hunting—I have found that if given only one choice for a caliber of gun, it would be a 12 GA pump shotgun. If there ever was a more practical, affordable, and versatile caliber of gun… I can’t think of one. Without any glitz or fanfare, it’s a gun that gets the job done. Whether its protection, hunting, or sport, this caliber of gun covers it all.

Personally, I have owned one for over twenty years and I use it regularly throughout the year. Beginning with turkey hunting in the spring, followed by grouse hunting in the early fall, then deer hunting in the late fall, and rounding it all out with grouse hunting again into early winter… this gun gets a solid workout.

In the time between, it sits in the corner of my bedroom as one of my primary lines of defense, should anyone be foolish enough to break into my house. During the summer months, it also occasionally gets used to bust clay pigeons down at the range.

Some would argue that there are more superior calibers for hunting deer, but in my experience, the areas where I hunt—northern New England—are perfectly suited for this caliber of gun. Its a region filled with very dense woods and swamps where short, quick shots are the norm, not the exception. When hunting in this type of cover, a high-caliber rifle with a scope can end up being a hindrance. 

Why The Pump?

Good question! Owning and using both single-shots and semi-automatics for hunting has shown me that when it comes to getting the perfect trifecta of functionality, reliability, and affordability—an all in one gun—the pump wins hands down. It gives you the luxury of shooting a number of shots in quick succession without costing you a premium, nor does it require an abundance of rings and gaskets that can potentially fail. What’s not to like?

Will Any Brand Work?

Yes. There are a few well-known, easily available brands, all with a track record of proven performance: Winchester, Mossberg, and Remington to name a few. All of them are well-made and able to get the job done.

There are also lesser known (and cheaper) brands in the affordable 12 GA pump category. In the interest of saving money, the temptation might be to go with one of them. However, experience has shown me that you get what you pay for. If you only pay $150 for an obscure brand of pump shotgun, you will probably get a cheap gun that doesn’t hold up. Basically a piece of crap that you won’t really end up liking.

All that aside, if I had to pick my favorite brand for an affordable 12 GA shotgun, it would be the Remington 870. 

What Sets It Apart?

It all boils down to the following: reliability, availability, and affordability.

Reliability

Through tough conditions, hard use, and a lack of regular cleanings, I have never seen a brand of shotgun perform as well as this make and model. Rain, snow, dirt, grime, heat and cold… it’s a gun that never quits. When I have needed the gun to work, it has never failed. This alone makes it stand out.

Despite twenty years of very hard use, there has only been one small issue with something in the receiver. This was brought on due to my failure to pull the pins and air-hose out the receiver on a regular basis. In other words, negligent maintenance. Despite this issue, the gun continued to do its job without fail.

Availability

With over 10 million manufactured since 1951, they are prolific. This will help you when a part needs to be replaced or if you are looking to purchase additions for it. Also, if things get really bad (societal collapse), a brand as abundant as this will be very easy to get any parts for. That is something worth thinking about.

Affordable

With so many in circulation, the supply is abundant, giving you a versatile gun that can be purchased on the cheap. For less than $300, you can purchase a well-maintained, used one that will last you for the rest of your lifetime. Now that’s receiving good value for your money spent! 

Does It Need To Be Fancy? 

No. A used and well-maintained Remington 870 with a smooth bore 18″ barrel and improved choke is all you need. If money is really tight, this configuration will enable you to protect your home, shoot skeet for fun, and hunt any game, large or small. With this configuration, I’ve shot turkey, grouse, snowshoe hare, and even deer. There are also affordable additions you can make to your shotgun that will make it even more efficient for hunting, but that’s a topic for another post.

If you’ve been thinking about buying a gun for the first time and want to get the most for your money—or just want a caliber of gun that covers all bases—the Remington 12 gauge pump is the best bang for your buck. If I could go back in time, it would have been the first gun I ever owned rather than the second. Making this purchase will not leave you disappointed.

Read More: How To Choose, Buy, And Shoot A Shotgun

64 thoughts on “The Best Gun For A Man On A Budget”

  1. How about a Ruger 10/22? Yeah, it’s a .22 but it has the most accessories of any gun on the planet. You can get a 100 round Tommy Gun drum, 25 round mags and buckets of rounds at a reasonable price. You don’t get the satisfaction of high power but it makes up for it in its versatility and low cost. I like my Ruger 10/22.

    1. 10/22 is probably the next best choice after a 12g or 20g shotgun as your do everything gun. The only problem is, .22 long rifle will never be useful for killing dear at long distances. Sure, a head shot at a close enough distance that you are sure you’ll hit the brain. But the 12g and 20g with 1oz slugs can kill deer out to 100 yards or more. And you can also kill all the small game you’d normally hunt with the 10/22 just by using #6 or #7 shot. Duck, squirrel, rabbit, coyote, deer, bear, human, snake, varmit. All can be easily accomplished with the shotgun if you keep the right ammo in stock.
      Probably the trifecta is to have a large bore shotgun for all general use purposes, as author noted, a revolver or auto pistol for personal protection. Carry this at all times and it becomes home protection, work, car, walking etc… and then a .22 rifle for super cheap plinking and super cheap hunting. Bonus if your .22 is silenced for super quiet hunting, but that of course is more expensive.
      Then, if you still have more funds and you are shooting those enough, you can move up to a deer hunting rifle or maybe a sporting AR for fun and defense. Then again, everyone has a different plan for their guns and their needs.

      1. In our region its illegal to shoot any large game with a 22. Also…you never want to shoot large game in the head. Your chances of a clean kill are slim to none..heart shot is the way to go.

        1. To add: 223Rem is the same caliber but another party.
          Wound ballistic with a highspeed bullet is like an explosion.
          Liquids (blood) turn to gas at once (cavitation effect) and the wound channel expands.
          Thats the reason highspeed rifle calibers are much more deadly than pistol calibers or even shotguns medium to long range.
          And for additional information:
          A 223 Rem weights less than a 9mm para

        2. Not with a 22lr. Head shot for deer is the ONLY way to go. They use the equivalent 22lr in Slaughterhouses for pigs and cows. Works like a charm. Heart shot-results in lots of tracking and no guarantee of a find.

  2. What about while traveling in your car? A shotgun is great for home defense, but down right cumbersome to access and use in a cramped vehicle.

    1. Probably a .357 mag 4″ barrel revolver, or a 9mm or .40S&W double stack automatics are best choices for quick in the car use. You could keep the shotgun in there as well, but the pistol would be your first grab and you’d only go for the shotgun if thing get really hairy and the pistol had bought you the time to get to it.
      Those with more money can go something fancier like a sbr, or pistol brace sbr in various calibers, but if you really want to be on the cheap, a good revolver.

      1. You need to get a good one though. I have a Taurus 1911 that is a piece of crap. A Springfield mil-spec used to be a good deal, but haven’t checked prices in years.

      2. It was invented in 1911. Like a Model T Ford. No thanks
        I prefer my Glock, way fewer moving parts (alot less to go wrong) requires little in the way of cleaning or maintenance, and just all around works and at half the weight. Nothing against 1911s but theyve since been surpassed.

    1. I loved my Taurus PT92 9mm, 15 round mag., very reliable and never jammed. I shot thousands of self loaded rounds through it, before the police collected all the hand guns in the UK.

      1. How’re the “gun laws” in Thailand?
        Or is that even something one has to consider?

        1. AUTOMATIC SLIM
          If an intruder breaks into your house (They will ALWAYS be on the pure Methamphetamine Ice laced with Taiwanese China white heroin dust known as Shabu) and you shoot him or to protect yourself you are looking at paying his family $5000 compensation, plus $1000 to your local witch doctor lawyer, plus a some to the cops).
          It is illegal to carry a gun around in public and foreigners cannot get a permit.
          In so far as a gun in your house, no problem.
          Generally, you do not want to kill anybody in Southeast Asia. Prisons there are awful places (Though you won’t be raped because Asians lack the aggression or sexual inclinations of prison blacks). You should comply with the laws.
          One night I was walking home to my subdivision in Cebu, Philippines and I walk past a Shabu addict (Shabu is meth but the Chinese labs infuse it with a certain amount of Chinese heroin residue to level the high out and also make it more addictive) and had my laptop. He chased me to my gate and tried to steal it. I could have probably overpowered him but I would have had to seriously injure him to stop him. Luckily security was there.
          As a rule I would say that if young local Thai or Filipino street guys say “Fuck you” to just keep going and ignore it altogether.

        2. AUTOMATIC
          You really should not consider carrying a weapon in public in Southeast Asia and you do not really need one.
          Southeast Asian criminal types are only in certain areas and certain industries-drugs mainly, also kidnapping other criminals, robbing jewelry stores.
          Unless you are planning to go into low bars in Thailand and push young males around and say “fuck you” to them you do not need a gun. Thai police come down VERY HARD on robberies or unprovoked assaults on Westerners because of the GDP from tourism and Thais know that if they rape a white girl or mug a white guy they are going to go to jail for a long time. It is better for them to be in the Golden Triangle heroin trade or whatever.
          Overall, Asians do not seem to have the aggression of blacks or Mestizos. It would be really rare to have to defend yourself from them.
          As for having a rifle in your house that is perfectly legal.
          If you are caught carrying a gun in Thailand the cops are going to assume you are a major player in the heroin trade. I guarantee you. Those are the only Westerners that carry guns. And once in a blue moon the bikers do shoot one another in Pattaya.
          Going to prison for killing another foreigner, much less a Thai, is going to be a five-star affair. Let me tell you. You’ll probably be dead from the conditions in 5 years anyhow so it will be a short sentence.
          Philippines is a bit different because the Chinese have dumped Shabu (Meth with a little heroin residue) on the country for 35 years now and there are generations of tweakers. Meth is to Filipinos what crack is to ghetto blacks and that is why the President shoots addicts and dealers like dogs.
          Filipino police will tell you to register the gun in your wife’s name. If a mad tweaker is breaking in, you can shoot him.
          But overall, Asians do not have the random aggression of blacks or Mestizos. The former tend to oversexed high-T Alpha beasts and the latter have a great deal of sadistic inclinations merely from being the product of Aztecs and Mediterranean bandits, pirates etc.
          If you HAVE gotten into a serious long-term beef with a Thai or Filipino….leave.

        3. Automatic Slim
          Asian intruders do so by stealth, not in some moronic Jason Voorhees type home invasion. They are already IN your house by the time you know it.
          Beefing with somebody in Southeast Asia is the stupidest thing you can do.
          I knew one South Korean who was an asshole and was simply set up by the local cops with drugs. They simply arrested him at a road block, planted the drugs on him and he went to jail.
          The only foreigner I knew killed in his house was stabbed in his bed by Filipinos. This was a crime of passion because the American was a loud, black ex-serviceman who abused every Filipino he knew. He lived in a duplex but with Asians they can very easily infiltrate guarded compounds and silently kill you.
          Generally, you should stay silent in Southeast Asia. If you get all worked up at some post-adolescent townies saying “Fuck you round eye” and mouth off back to the point that a lethal beef ensues, you do not belong overseas.
          Even if you got off on killing a Thai or a Filipino you’d have to pack your bags and leave. And hope to make it to the airport.
          One American remarked to me that with 4 shooter 2 motorcycle hits the guy on the street, armed or not, does not stand a chance. They will always roll up from behind on motorcycles and if the first two do not hit you, the second two kill your ass.
          So if you are a macho stupid fucking loudmouth then don’t come to Asia.

    1. SKS are for sniping. What are you going to use a long-barrel like that for in a street situation?

    1. I miss my old Yugoslav M59/66 SKS. I sold it to finance another gun project. I bought mine Arsenal Refinished. It was a real peach.

  3. if one is really on a budget then let me suggest the pardner pump 12 gauge shotgun which is Remington’s knock off of the 870. i was going to buy another barrel for my 870 but found i could get the complete gun for half the price of a barrel. bought it, it is an exact copy and some say it is better than the new 870s.
    i cant tell the difference between them

  4. I have owned countless guns in my 60 years of existence. Glocks, SIGs, Rugers, HK, Beretta, Walther, Colt, S&W, etc. I swear by the 1911 Colt .45, and the Browning High Power 9mm. John M. Browning, next to Dr. Engineer Paul Von Mauser, was the greatest gun inventor in history!! I have a Kansas CCL, and carry both guns in my truck, and on my person, as I work in an urban core feces hole scrap yard in Kansas City. The darkie thugs pack cheap die cast Magnesium Loercins in my city, so not much of a threat in my book, except they sucker punch, and shoot you in the back. I have a short slide Para Ordinance 1911 .45 officers model, all milled steel receiver, and a Hungarian FEG Browning High Power knock off. Both work flawlessly. Single action, carry cocked and locked, but I’d stake my life on them. I agree with the author, the Remington 870 12 gauge is probably the best home defense weapon, but I’d also say the Mossberg 500 and Ithaca Model 37 are first rate weapons. Contrary to the ROK youngsters hatred of dogs, I also keep big bad dogs inside my home as my first line of defense. I don’t see the point of spending $1,200 + on an AR15, and keep it in the closet for self defense, plus liberal DAs go after white males with “naughty assault rifles” who use them in self defense, especially against feral minorities who do assaults and home invasions. Better off to cap some bro-brother with a Ruger 10-22, or Remington 870 sporting arm. I’d also put a plug in for Russian Baikal shotguns as an affordable and durable shotgun for defense. I’d swear by my experiences owning them. In my area, white males use long guns as much as possible in self-defense shootings, as liberal DAs go after them hard and heavy, especially when a handgun is used, as an evil handgun is only meant to kill in their warped book. Also, guys will hand the long guns to their spouses or girlfriends as the liberal DAs, and cops, tend to go easier on the women, at least where I reside.

    1. i dont know why one needs a 1200 dollar ar when you can put one together for a bit over 400 by buying a lower and upper.
      they wont be shooting fleas off of a fly’s ass at 800 yards but will work fully well for hd. for even better shits and giggles buy an 80 percent finished lower, drill it out in half an hour, slap on an upper and now you have an untraceable weapon that can be tossed at the scene.

  5. My gun of choice is a CZ 7.63 X 39
    Cost me a 1000 CAD but rounds are dirt cheap, and good stopping power and solid accuracy up to 200 yards
    I can buy a box 1400 rounds for $300

  6. The 870 is by far the best shotgun I have ever owned. I have one that is older than me that I bought used years ago. I carried it on duty as a ghetto cop for years. Everyone listens when you rack a round in!
    Between the Remington 870 and the Mossberg 500, I would take the 870 all day long. The Mossberg is fine, and I own several. But after doing armorer work on both of them, it is apparent that the 870 is built out of thicker metal and is more solid.
    If a man becomes a gun nut like me, he eventually buys other guns for specific purposes. I have several shotguns – an over-and-under duck gun, a long-barrelled deer gun, but the trusty 870 riot is always there, ready to go when it is time to go.

  7. I keep my Mossberg 590 shockwave 12 GA near to my bed while i sleep. It has a 14.37 inch barrel and a shockwave technologies raptor grip instead of a stock. it carries 6 +1. I am working on adding a light to it. Recoil for me is not too bad. I fire from the hip and do so comfortably. It is not classified as a NFA3 SBS by BATF, but as a firearm. Mossberg provides a copy of the original ATF letter regarding the 590 shockwave that can be found on their website. It is quite handy, but it is probably not for everyone. They just released a 20 GA model for the 590 shockwave. Cant wait to see how the recoil is on this model.
    https://www.mossberg.com/product/590-shockwave-6-shot-50659/

  8. Very good summary—but—the model with the interchangeable choke tubes (or an older gun with an adjustable choke device) should be first consideration.
    Of course, the good old .22 rifle is not considered a ‘gun’–rather an article of useful furniture–hence the 12 gauge ‘first’ gun idea.

  9. A Beretta ARX100 223 RFL 30RD sells for $1,000 here in the good ole USA, but in Canada they sell it for $15,000 in the underground economy! I wonder if Metoo will increase prices for firearms in Canada?

  10. If you need a firearm for personal protection it has to be a pistol. Fortunately here in the United States, outside of a few crappy liberal states (come on Republicans finally with National Reciprocity…that is why we voted for you) it is pretty easy to get a carry permit. Even if you are restricted to home/land defense it is a far superior option. A “cheap” semi-auto will run you a few hundred. Ammo is cheaper these days fortunately too.
    But if you are ever in a combat situation, especially in a house you can’t just go blasting away with a 12 gauge especially with slugs. I mean you can, just dangerous and you won’t like all the dry wall patching that must go on after defending your homestead.
    Get a used pistol. Learn how to use it. Keep it in your nightstand. Full mag and at least two pre-loaded next to it. When Jerome comes to collect his slavery repartitions from you in the form of your new television you can throw him a proper surprise party.

    1. JEFF
      In the DEATH WISH films Michael Winner always portrayed the criminal thugs as happy multicultural thugs who come bursting in with some big white guy (Usually played by an Irish-American albino like “Fraker” from Death Wish 3 or “Nirvana” from Death Wish 2 or Jeff Goldblum in Death Wish).
      In real-life the intruders are not multi-cultural and usually they want to get the jump on the homeowner. You wake up and the pistol is at your wife’s head already and another at your face as she is being raped. The culprits are never Jeff Goldblum or Gavin “He had no business shooting the Giggler” O’Herlihy. They are Hood Rat thugs.
      As for Cholos, in my experience their crimes are usually random spur-of-the-moment Aztec sacrifice/Spanish Inquisition sadism exhibited by Richard Ramirez or they are broad daylight street assaults.
      Neither of these groups are really going to chop down your front door like Jack Nicholson.

    2. JEFF
      If you need to carry a firearm ON THE STREET than perhaps you should consider changing your geography. I’m not a liberal and I have nothing against lawful citizens carrying guns but when you have to walk around with an SKS! it is time to move somewhere else.
      This is never going to happen in the suburbs or in rural areas.
      The last time it happened to whites was in the Cocaine Cowboy era of Miami and once more it boiled down to the old Red Man vs White Man, British settler vs. Spanish brigand conflict as most of the perpetrators were Colombian Indians and Mestizos.

  11. good article , I have an 870 and a mossberg 500. I think I like the 500 a little better.
    The 12 is great , but if you can do a lot with a 20 ga. The barrel is ported and that reduces recoil . They have choke tube that give you a great flexibility . you can also get a 18″ barrel that makes them much more maneuverable for defensive use.

    1. I have long argued that the 20 gauge is an excellent home defense weapon.
      Three inch, 20ga with number two buck is essentially a handful of M-16 rounds in a single shot. Minimal recoil allows better aim (AND less interior damage) as opposed to 12 gauge.
      In my own opinion, Hollywood has overblown the image of the 12 gauge.

  12. Surplus 7,62×39 has a corrosive primer. Good for long storage bad for the gun.
    You should always clean carefully your gun with warm soap water after shooting.
    Oil alone doesn’t fix it.

    1. There is nothing that turns me off more than a woman who loves/likes to hunt. Its the domain of men, always has been and ( outside this blip of PC lunacy) will always remain that way.
      Sweetheart – your place is in the kitchen cooking us up some stew….you can find us men out on the porch sipping whiskey and reliving the hunt.

  13. The BEST gun you NEED is the one you have in your hands to get the job done, WHEN YOU NEED IT.
    All the other specifics do NOT matter.
    If you don’t have it when you need it, no amount of agonizing about form function having the ammo for it and training will change your outcome. an empty or unload gun with no ammo is just an expensive brittle hammer, nothing more.
    Aside from the one that is loaded and works and is simplest to operate and clean, all the rest is negotiable and subject to opinion.

    1. Even a working loaded flintlock is better than the most sophisticated techno wonder black gun when you need it ( and don’t have it or the ammo for it).
      The USA was set free from royalty rulers by all manner of primitive muzzle loading guns. I rest my case.

  14. “All that aside, if I had to pick my favorite brand for an affordable 12 GA shotgun, it would be the Remington 870. ”
    If you can only afford one gun, the 870 is what it should be.

    1. Most Police Depts agree. 870 Great gun. Used is even preferred. Anything pre 1990 is quality, they simply dont stop working.
      1. Glock Handgun – Compact in 9,40,45,10mm
      2. 870-2 barrels
      3. 22 Ruger 10/22 sets the standard
      4. Bolt gun- 6.5 creedmore, 270, 243, 308- All great candidates for 1000 yd shooters
      All 4 are about $1100. ($500, 250,150, 200)
      Slick Guns Website had Bolts from Thompson Center for $200

  15. I always describe the 870 as the Ford F-150 of shotguns. Like the F-150, it comes in numerous trims and is quite versatile. (Ditto shotgun ammunition – 7.5, 00, 000, rifled shot, waxed-shot, flechettes, you name it.)
    That said, I have the feeling that Remington is sort of coasting on their reputation. For example, Mossberg offers their shotguns fully equipped with iron sights (and slings) while Remington doesn’t, meaning you have to find a competent gunsmith to install them for you, not always easy if you’re in a city. Also, I much prefer the top-mounted easy-to-see safety on the Mossberg vs the semi-hidden one on the 870. Remington could easily offer the sights and such, but evidently doesn’t feel the need to serve the customer.
    Also, not a word from the author about installing a Knoxx recoil reducing stock. Cuts the recoil of the shotgun about 50-80%, and give you both an adjustable length of pull – the distance from the trigger to your shoulder – as well as a dramatically more ergonomic and comfortable pistol style grip.
    (If you want to go truly hardcore, consider replacing the pump slide with a Surefire forend weapon light/ slide. Installs in about 30 seconds – slides are easily removable on shotguns – and give you a blindly bright 600 lumens to work with.)
    Hope this helps.
    Just a thought.
    VicB3

  16. I totally agree. For power, versatility, and reliability, you can’t beat a 12 gauge pump shotgun. For the commenter that asked about using a shotgun in a car–check out the Taurus Judge. It’s a five shot revolver that shoots .45 longs or .410 shotgun rounds. It’s concealable too.

    1. Agreed, but the Smith & Wesson Governor is of far better quality. Plus, it comes with a factory laser mounted into the grip.
      (I have one. Really. And I really like Lasers on guns. In a panic situation, if you can aim a flashlight, then you’re going to hit something. When in panic or in doubt, light up the laser.)
      Taurus or S&W, either weapon is a small and very nasty piece of work.
      (Both illegal in California. Reason enough to own either one.)
      Just a thought.
      VicB3

  17. If one’s state allows possession, then the non-NFA Rem 870 Tac-14 or Mossberg 590 Shockwave are good options with a 14-inch barrel.

  18. Every man (well, except soybois and numales) should own a basic and common assault rifle such as the AR series in the US, AR or AK in Europe. Californians are fucked (sorry).
    Shotguns won’t serve you well at any distance.
    Wouldn’t worry about hunting much. All the game, cats and dogs and birds and rats will be gone relatively quickly. Livestock too. Your worry will be your mild-mannered neighbor who is starving and will shoot you in the back for whatever you have.
    Next should be your pistol of choice, for concealed (Sorry Californians you’re super-fucked) or open carry backup.
    After that you can branch into shotguns and .22 cal. Any other calibers are exotic and won’t be as easy to get when SHTF.

  19. I humbly suggest that you skip any new manufacture Remington, or any used one made after 2008, when they were acquired by Freedom Group. A pre-08 870 is a *fantastic* shotgun, but anything after that will have defects, rust and will not last nearly as long as you think. If you’re buying one firearm, and only one, with the goal of using it for everything, quality is paramount.
    If you can’t find a used Remington, a new Mossberg 500 should cost around $300 or so, and is in every way equal to the classic Remingtons.
    Or just buy one of the Ruger or S&W ARs – they’re going for about $450 and will serve any purpose as well.

  20. Opinions on the best gun
    can get as religiously passionate
    as engine oil discussions.
    They’re ALL right, mostly.
    My $0.02:
    -9mm Keltec P11 even smaller than new SIG P365 (which is exemplary)
    -Ruger LCP or Keltec P3AT tiny pocket .380 super concealable
    -Any J-frame sized revolver in .327 Federal. You get 6 shots instead of 5 in
    a similar sized .38 special. And you can feed it .32, .32L, .32 H&R, .32ACP
    -GLOCK 20 or 29 if you really need to kill something dead, 10mm can do that.
    -an old AMT Backup in .45, the most concealable .45ACP
    -PMR30 because you never know when you need 30 rounds of 22Mag before a reload
    -AK47 or any derivative because you can drop it in the mud and keep firing.
    -Mossberg 500 or Maverick shotgun. Cheap and reliable.
    -and last but not least Ruger 10/22 is widely considered indispensable to own.

  21. Best budget handgun by far: Taurus PT-111 g2. Taurus got this one right. Great gun, highly highly recommend if you want an inexpensive pistol.

  22. Have a close look at he Winchester SXP pump shotgun. Cheap (made in turkey) hard chromed barrel (a feature that lacks most genuine US shotguns) and the recoil impulse unlocks the system, so you have a very smooth repetition.
    Cons: You have to polish the trigger system. It’s very hardgoing in a new gun.

  23. Some Americans may have felt uneasy 35 years ago when DUI laws, DWI checkpoints, seatbelt laws, and car liability insurance laws were started, but most people felt that the experts must be right.
    Pro-police state shows like “COPS” and “America’s Most Wanted” were then aired, neighborhood watch groups were formed, “get tough on crime” candidates were elected, and laws allowing mandatory minimums, IMBRA, 3 strikes laws, curfews, police militarization, teen boot camps, school metal detectors, private prisons, and chain gangs were enacted.
    Nanny state smoking laws then started appearing.
    When 9/11 happened, the Patriot Act was passed, NSA wiretapping, no knock raids, take down notices, no fly lists, terror watch lists, Constitution free zones, stop and frisk, kill switches, National Security Letters, DNA databases, kill lists, FBAR, FATCA, Operation Chokepoint, TSA groping, civil forfeiture, CIA torture, NDAA indefinite detention, secret FISA courts, FEMA camps, laws requiring passports for domestic travel, IRS laws denying passports for tax debts, gun and ammo stockpiles, laws outlawing protesting, Jade Helm, sneak and peek warrants, policing for profit, no refusal blood checkpoints, license plate readers, redlight cameras, speed cameras, FBI facial and voice recognition, tattoo databases, gun bans, the end to the right to silence, free speech bans, searches without warrants, CISPA, SOPA, private prison quotas, supermax prisons, sex offender registration laws, and sex offender restriction laws were allowed.
    Now that the USA is a total police state, Americans are finding out that changing anything is impossible and that freedom is lost forever.

  24. A shotgun is good, however you won’t be eating very good in a pinch. The best gun would be a smaller caliber rifle, that you can use for both small/big game and it would also provide personal protection. Something like a 22-250 or 243. Both of these are big enough for big game, deer, elk, etc, but can also be used to take small game and birds. No shot gun will reliably take big game, but it is good for close personal protection. So I’d go for the small caliber rifle.

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