How many rifles do you need?

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Thanks for the info. In other forums that I've used, there was a handy-dandy "quote" button at the bottom of every post that did the work for you. In fact, those were vBulletin boards too. I wonder why that feature isn't here...

Anyway, thanks again for the info. Sorry for straying from the topic.
 
Mr. Alloy said:
I wonder why that feature isn't here...
IIRC, It was a conscious decision on the part of Staff, in order to cut down on frivolous block quotations.

Ah, back on topic:

I've mentioned how many rifles I need: a .22 and a general purpose CF rifle.

I like having:
~a couple of .22s, in different sizes, for teaching and for plinking;
~a target AR;
~a center fire, deep woods & brush rifle (Marlin 336 in .35Rem.);
~a longer range, scoped hunting rifle (custom Mauser in .257 Roberts); and
~a fighting rifle (M1 Garand).

I firmly believe that I'll never need a fighting rifle. I write, speak and vote with the goal of such never becoming necessary in my country. Still, as citizens, I rather think that it's our civic duty to have them and to practice with them.
 
Didn't mean to strike a nerve with some----didn't mean "need" in a strictly literal term. More of a minimum amount of rifles for what you "need" or "want" to do. Seems most of you understand what I meant though :p.
 
A competitive shooter needs two rifles of each type she competes with. That way one can be in the shop for a new barrel without missing matches.

A sporting big game hunter needs one rifle appropriate for the game they are hunting. That can vary hunt to hunt. If that breaks, well, bummer but no long term consequences.

A sustenance hunter needs two working guns, but depending on region arguably they should be a .22 rifle and a 12ga shotgun that can fire slugs (wooded areas) or .22 rifle and a long range rifle/.308 at worst (plains).

A defense shooter needs 1 + 1/GROUP-SIZE. In other words, an individual needs 1 + 1/1 = 2 rifles. A family with three people who can shoot needs 3 + 3/3 = 4 rifles.

A collector might need hundreds of rifles, depending on the nature of their collection.

A plinker/recreational shooter might need 5-10 including a range of semi-auto, bolt, lever, break, etc., in everything from .22 rimfire to 50 BMG.

An offensive shooter needs one.
 
More than you can buy. So, you have all thr guns YOU need. Just wait till some big country (read, china:D) attacks, then you suddenly won't have anough guns. Trust me. Really! :D:D
 
I need:

4 rifles in .22LR - a bolt action, a pump, a lever, and a semi-auto. Wait - make that 5 - I need 2 autos, my 10/22 and my suppressed Marlin Papoose.

2 rifles in 22 Mag - One pump, one bolt.

1 rifle in 5.56/223 Rem - An AR of high quality.

1 rifle in 243 Win - A DPMS AR10

1 rifle in 7mm-08 - A quality bolt action like a CZ or an Icon

1 rifle in 30/30 - A lever action Marlin.

3 rifles in 7.69x39 - an AK47, a Saiga converted to AK variant with the ability to be switched back in case of AWB bullskip, and a Ruger Mini-30.

2 rifles in 7.62 Nato/308 - A DSA FAL and a Armalite AR10 (This gun will also have uppers in 7mm-08, 260 Rem, and 450 Marlin so it'll actually have the ability to be 4 rifles but we're counting it as one.)

1 rifle in 30.06 - A Winchester Pre-64. A true classic.

1 rifle in 338 Win Mag - A Ruger MKII stainless with a synthetic or laminated stock

1 rifle in 357 Mag - A Marlin lever action.

1 rifle in 375 H&H - A Cooper or a Dakota.

1 rifle in 454 Casull - A Puma lever action.

I guess that means I need 21 rifles.
 
Even if I had a deuce and a half bed filled to capacity with rifles, it probably wouldn't suit my wants. Needs my #@!, it's my right.
 
Not wishing to hijack the original intent of this thread, I have a question:

You probably have a fairly fixed income (most of us do right now). Only so many dollars and no real way to even double that. So you've got the choice,

1. Owning more (buying guns)
2. Using more (buying ammo and going to the range, hunting, etc)
3. Knowing more (taking classes, buying books)
4. Owning better (trading off to buy higher grade guns, or upgrading components that are not worn out e.g. aftermarket triggers)
5. Accessorizing (scopes, magazines, cases, slings, etc.)

How do you prioritize?

Most of my gun money goes to guns, then to accessories (cases, scopes, reloading stuff, etc), then upgrading (triggers, barrels, tritium sights, etc.), then using (ammo and range fees), with the least on knowledge (I buy 2-3 gun books a year). I wonder at times whether it would be better to, for e.g., stop buying, upgrading, and accessorizing for 2 years and learn to hunt or something.
 
Mayo;

Sorry, "need" is not a word used in the second amendment. There is no official reason to provide "need" when discussing firearms. Wives or significant others may attempt to argue, but the arguments are specious, applying only to their own perception of a social situation, usually their social situation.

How many tubes of lipstick do you need? Shoes? Handbags? etc, etc. Need is your perception and answerable to nobody else when it comes to firearms.

Liberal opinions may differ, but don't count.

900F
 
CB900F, as I read it, Mayo has clarified his intentions in Post #53, above. He's asking for the number that suit a member's particular range of interests. I don't see him suggesting that a member need justify his or her rifles to anybody else.
 
One for small Varmints . . .

One for medium Varmints, and one or two for large Varmints. Four should do it, until a larger Varmint comes along. cliffy
 
It's not a question of how many you need, but of how many you can buy before Visa puts a hold on your card.

Seriously though I see 3 as a bare bones minimum. Centerfire carbine, rimfire plinker/small game, midweight semi-long range rig.

That said I have a Marlin 30AW 30/30, RRA 24" varmint AR, Browning A-bolt II Hunters .308, and stainless Ruger 10/22 (.17hm2 conversion en route).

I would like to have an AR midlength/AK carbine, a 7mm long range rig, and a dedicated target rimfire to round out my rifle collection, at a minimum. Pistols are a different story.
 
The question is, clearly, "how many rifles do you need?"

The key word is "need".

The thread isn't about "How many rifles do you want?"

It's about how many do you need.

Premise: "need" is based on game acquisition (= food) plus SD.

Someone on page 1 wrote this:

Minimum battery of rifles:

.22LR - plinking, small game, etc.
.243 Win - intermediate game
.30-06 - everything else
My philosophy is similar.

  • Marlin 39 in .22 takes care of small game: squirrel, rabbit, bird. Can do SD in a pinch.
  • Marlin 336 in .30-30 takes care of medium game.
    With hard cast, light bullets, will also take smaller game without much meat damage.
    Does a fine job for SD, also.
  • Either Marlin 1895 in .45-70 or Marlin .338 ME will take the big stuff.
With those, my "needs" are covered. The kit is small, portable, covers all bases.

Add my SW 65 (.357 mag/.38) and 642 (.38 spl +p), I'm good to go.
 
As many as you can afford! When I was younger I had to make do with multi-purpose rifles, but now I can afford to specialize.

Before:

Big Game

- 30.06
- 243
- 35 Rem

Varmit

- 223 Sporter

Bird

- 12 Ga Pump

Small Game

- 22 Sproter
- 22 Revolver

Target

- None

Defense

- 357 Revolver

Now:

Big Game

- 30.06
- 243
- 7mm Mag
- 375 H&H
- 25.06
- 250 Savage
- 308

Varmit

- 223 sporter
- 22-250 Varmit
- 22 Hornet Sporter

Bird

- 12 Ga Pump
- 12 Ga O/U
- 20 Ga O/U
- 20 Ga S/S

Small Game

- 22 Sproter
- 22 Revolver
- 22 Varmit

Target

- National Match AR

Defense

- 357 Revolver (2 ea)
- 1911 (2 ea)
- 357 Sig
- .38 Special (2 ea)
- 9mm
 
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You should really re-phrase that question to "How many tools do you need?" If you think about it, we don't "NEED" ANY gun. You could easily accomplish what a gun can accomplish many other ways; a gun is just a more efficient and plausible means of doing it, depending on what job/past time you are trying to pull off. Do you need a knife to cut a box? No; you can use a spoon, but a knife MIGHT be a little more effective...but what do I know, I'm a stupid normie :)
 
When I was a kid, I asked my Dad this same question (as my kids also asked me). His response has been covered here by just about every post in one fashion or another.

Right v. Need, Militia call up (should that ever occur), squirrels to big bear (meat on the table approach), w/ backups ready just in case (Clint Smith's 2 is 1 and 1 is none), etc.

A good shooter could probably "make due" w/ a single small bore (.22lr) and a mid bore (.30), maybe changing the mid bore to something larger if one lived in Alaska or Africa where things can bite ya or stomp ya.

But what fun is that? ;)
 
Need = One

Want...

Well, all pistols come in pairs + one spare incase one breaks.

All rifles and shotguns should come in ones + one spare incase one breaks.

And my wife, kids should each have a duplicate of my collection...because each one in my collection has a purpose - based on functionality. Functionality is not completely required due to the heirloom status of some guns.

I suppose my sisters aught to have a duplicate collection as well. And my parents...etc.
 
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