TPS M6 Survival Rifle

Loyalist Dave

Loyalist Dave

Member
Joined
May 5, 2006
Messages
3,426
Location
People's Republic of Maryland
So the only thread that I found on the TPS M6 "survival rifle" was from four years ago, I just bought one that's .357 Magnum over .410. The .410 barrel is fitted with a screw-in choke matching a standard Invector choke, and the rifle came with a choke wrench. Sights were a flip, peep and V notch , the peep is for the upper barrel, the V for the shotgun barrel. I bought an Invector .410 skeet choke tube to try .410 slugs. I didn't care for the idea of shooting the slugs down the full choke tube.

I have been very pleased with the .357 barrel out to 75 yards with 180 grain soft tip jacketed bullets as well as jacketed 158 grain hollow points. I chose the .357 Mag option as straight walled cartridge rifles are legal all through my state for deer, when in the past where I hunted it was BP or shotgun only. I Also tried .38 special ammo out to fifty yards, just plinking, and they shot well too.

The .410 barrel with a skeet choke didn't shoot slugs well at all, so I went back to the full choke tube. Five pellet 000 buck then shot very well at 20 yards, and 11/16 ounce #6 shot shells at 30 yards also did well on a paper turkey target. This spring I will likely test out the the shotgun barrel on a turkey.

The trigger is still a large paddle for the folks wanting to wear a mitten covered hand, but the back end of the trigger-paddle has what I'd describe as a half-finger notch, and works quite well as a trigger. There is a manual safety bar in the stock, as well as the barrel selector knob having a half-way position where the hammer will not strike the firing pin of either barrel when that position is chosen. Otherwise the selector knob when fully pulled upwards fires the upper barrel, then two clicks downwards, and the lower barrel is selected. The stock holds six shotshells, and seven .357 cartridges, enclosed by a plastic cover.

I'm rather pleased with the rifle/shotgun, so far. I admit the purchase was more of a curiosity thing at the time, but the firearm has turned out to be rather fun.


LD
 
That’s pretty cool. I’ve been looking at them a little myself, and just dug up the original M6 manual online yesterday out of curiosity. The issue 410 shells with them were 3/4 ounce #6 in an aluminum hull. I’d consider a .357 more useful than a 22 Hornet. I’m not sure what I’d use an M6 for other than recreation, but that’s an OK reason to own one too.
 
I had one of the Springfield versions in .410/.22 hornet.
It was fun but that horrible "trigger", corresponding poor accuracy, and cost of ammo relegated it to an ugly oddity for shock value conversation, and head scratching more than shooting.

I'd love a .357/20g version with an actual trigger, and the ability to mount a red dot...and then drop the price to match what it is, a bare bones utility rifle with no serious thought to regulating the barrels, no polishing, and a parkerized finish.
 
silicosys4 said:
I had one of the Springfield versions in .410/.22 hornet.
It was fun but that horrible "trigger", corresponding poor accuracy, and cost of ammo relegated it to an ugly oddity for shock value conversation, and head scratching more than shooting.

I'd love a .357/20g version with an actual trigger, and the ability to mount a red dot...and then drop the price to match what it is, a bare bones utility rifle with no serious thought to regulating the barrels, no polishing, and a parkerized finish.
Click to expand...
Funny you should mention "red dot"... you can removed the flip sights and mount in their place a short weaver platform for a red dot. That's next on my list of stuff to try. I have the platform in place, I'm waiting on the red dot to arrive.

LD
 
It is an intriguing little rifle combo. My ex-wife was the one who first showed them to me. She never wanted me to go after one because they are expensive. Now that we are divorced I want one partially out of spite. But would enjoy it anyway. I am considering either the 357 magnum or the 22 magnum as the most versatile for a real survival situation. I don't have anything in 357 so that would be a new caliber to invest in.
 
Were it possible to have those in the original barrel length (which would make it an SBR) I'd like the concept better.
All the 'survival rifle' concepts were interesting, if not especially useful. What was the .22 that stored the barrel and magazine in the buttstock, and would float?
No disrespect for the OP; hope it works well, and is entertaining.
Moon
 
natman said:
AR7. Sold by various companies, including Charter Arms and Henry. IMO, the one of the worst POS I've ever come across. If you're depending on one of those for survival, you're doomed.
Click to expand...
The ones (!) I had worked well enough, but always felt like an answer to a question nobody asked. Had the same problem with 2 (!) Sub2000s.
Moon
 
silicosys4 said:
I had one of the Springfield versions in .410/.22 hornet.
It was fun but that horrible "trigger", corresponding poor accuracy, and cost of ammo relegated it to an ugly oddity for shock value conversation, and head scratching more than shooting.

I'd love a .357/20g version with an actual trigger, and the ability to mount a red dot...and then drop the price to match what it is, a bare bones utility rifle with no serious thought to regulating the barrels, no polishing, and a parkerized finish.
Click to expand...
I had one of those, only in 22LR. I made the mistake of taking the trigger and hammer out in an attempt to improve the horrible "trigger" pull. I managed to improve the pull somewhat, but reassembly was an awful experience. It required making two slave pins and an absurdly complicated assembly procedure. I finally realized that the gun must have been assembled in one half of the receiver and then the other half was riveted on. The OP's gun appears to use Allen screws to hold the halves together, which is a MAJOR improvement.
 
Loyalist Dave said:
So the only thread that I found on the TPS M6 "survival rifle" was from four years ago, I just bought one that's .357 Magnum over .410. The .410 barrel is fitted with a screw-in choke matching a standard Invector choke, and the rifle came with a choke wrench. Sights were a flip, peep and V notch , the peep is for the upper barrel, the V for the shotgun barrel. I bought an Invector .410 skeet choke tube to try .410 slugs. I didn't care for the idea of shooting the slugs down the full choke tube.

I have been very pleased with the .357 barrel out to 75 yards with 180 grain soft tip jacketed bullets as well as jacketed 158 grain hollow points. I chose the .357 Mag option as straight walled cartridge rifles are legal all through my state for deer, when in the past where I hunted it was BP or shotgun only. I Also tried .38 special ammo out to fifty yards, just plinking, and they shot well too.

The .410 barrel with a skeet choke didn't shoot slugs well at all, so I went back to the full choke tube. Five pellet 000 buck then shot very well at 20 yards, and 11/16 ounce #6 shot shells at 30 yards also did well on a paper turkey target. This spring I will likely test out the the shotgun barrel on a turkey.

The trigger is still a large paddle for the folks wanting to wear a mitten covered hand, but the back end of the trigger-paddle has what I'd describe as a half-finger notch, and works quite well as a trigger. There is a manual safety bar in the stock, as well as the barrel selector knob having a half-way position where the hammer will not strike the firing pin of either barrel when that position is chosen. Otherwise the selector knob when fully pulled upwards fires the upper barrel, then two clicks downwards, and the lower barrel is selected. The stock holds six shotshells, and seven .357 cartridges, enclosed by a plastic cover.

I'm rather pleased with the rifle/shotgun, so far. I admit the purchase was more of a curiosity thing at the time, but the firearm has turned out to be rather fun.


LD
Click to expand...

Can you use both the .357 and .410 barrels during the same season? Some states prohibit rimfires for some seasons, only allow shotguns for small game or turkey, etc. I like the nostalgia of this type of gun, but many times when I look at game laws the utility gets a little more grey. These definitely have the potential for a good squirrel and rabbit gun in 22/410. The 357 is versatile and can be loaded down for small game, but some states still prohibit centerfire rifles for those seasons.
 
oof what are they, like $600?
I bought mine for $100 out the door from a local pawnshop in 2012 or so and thought that was about right, lol
 
natman said:
AR7. Sold by various companies, including Charter Arms and Henry. IMO, the one of the worst POS I've ever come across. If you're depending on one of those for survival, you're doomed.
Click to expand...
That gun actually invented the term “jamomatic”.

Two long stays at the Charter Arms factory couldn’t solve the problem. To this day I have nothing but distain for that company.
 
herrwalther said:
It is an intriguing little rifle combo. My ex-wife was the one who first showed them to me. She never wanted me to go after one because they are expensive. Now that we are divorced I want one partially out of spite. But would enjoy it anyway. I am considering either the 357 magnum or the 22 magnum as the most versatile for a real survival situation. I don't have anything in 357 so that would be a new caliber to invest in.
Click to expand...
I agree, and the only reason that I got the .357 version, is that it's now legal in my county for deer, when previously for fifty years of my life, my county and the neighboring counties were muzzleloader or shotgun only, for deer. IF it was for an actual survival scenario on a long wilderness trek, I'd opt for .22 WMR and .410. More ammo in the stock, eh?

goon said:
Can you use both the .357 and .410 barrels during the same season? Some states prohibit rimfires for some seasons, only allow shotguns for small game or turkey, etc. I like the nostalgia of this type of gun, but many times when I look at game laws the utility gets a little more grey. These definitely have the potential for a good squirrel and rabbit gun in 22/410. The 357 is versatile and can be loaded down for small game, but some states still prohibit centerfire rifles for those seasons.
Click to expand...

Well I could, but not on the same game. For example, I can load the .357 barrel for deer, and put a .410 shotshell in for small game. Maryland doesn't allow buckshot for deer, as some states do. Too many guys in the past pushed the max range on buckshot and there were too many crippled deer.... what was the famous movie quote... "Looks bad in the newspapers and upsets civilians at their breakfast." Maryland also doesn't allow .410 slugs for deer..., same reason. I can do the same during turkey season, especially since we have a mountain lion in my area, as long as the turkey if I'm stopped, was shot with shot. I can shoot small game with a .357 but would likely use .38 Special if I didn't want to use a shotshell.

silicosys4 said:
oof what are they, like $600?
I bought mine for $100 out the door from a local pawnshop in 2012 or so and thought that was about right, lol
Click to expand...

Agreed. Maryland now permits me in the counties where I hunt deer to use a "straight walled cartridge" for deer. I already have .357 revolvers, as well as some in .38 spl, and dies for reloading. I priced lever actions and single shot rifles in .357, and in my area and on Gunbroker, they are going for about the same price as the M6. I could get a .350 Legend upper for an AR style rifle, but then add the magazine, reloading dies, and the optics, and I'm back to around the same price.

And again, I admit I liked the rifle/gun because it's sort of odd.

LD
 
Loyalist Dave said:
I agree, and the only reason that I got the .357 version, is that it's now legal in my county for deer, when previously for fifty years of my life, my county and the neighboring counties were muzzleloader or shotgun only, for deer. IF it was for an actual survival scenario on a long wilderness trek, I'd opt for .22 WMR and .410. More ammo in the stock, eh?



Well I could, but not on the same game. For example, I can load the .357 barrel for deer, and put a .410 shotshell in for small game. Maryland doesn't allow buckshot for deer, as some states do. Too many guys in the past pushed the max range on buckshot and there were too many crippled deer.... what was the famous movie quote... "Looks bad in the newspapers and upsets civilians at their breakfast." Maryland also doesn't allow .410 slugs for deer..., same reason. I can do the same during turkey season, especially since we have a mountain lion in my area, as long as the turkey if I'm stopped, was shot with shot. I can shoot small game with a .357 but would likely use .38 Special if I didn't want to use a shotshell.



Agreed. Maryland now permits me in the counties where I hunt deer to use a "straight walled cartridge" for deer. I already have .357 revolvers, as well as some in .38 spl, and dies for reloading. I priced lever actions and single shot rifles in .357, and in my area and on Gunbroker, they are going for about the same price as the M6. I could get a .350 Legend upper for an AR style rifle, but then add the magazine, reloading dies, and the optics, and I'm back to around the same price.

And again, I admit I liked the rifle/gun because it's sort of odd.

LD
Click to expand...

I think you made a good choice. A .38 roundball load with 000 buck or a 105 grain cast bullet intrigues me as a small game load, but I haven’t lived anywhere that I could reasonably try it. I think you ended up with a lot of fun and versatility rather than just another AR.
 
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