thoughts on my first rifle

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armadio

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hi,

i am looking for a rifle for target- shooting at 100 and sometimes 200 yards.
the rifle should be able to shoot groupings under 3" at 100 yards.
it also should be reliable, spare parts should be availabe, handy, not too heavy and equipped with open sights.
+ i really like the idea of having a tool for shtf- situations.
a .30 caliber is prefered.

i shoot rifles left- handed. i really don`t like using rh- bolt actions.

here are my options:

Marlin 336
M1 Carbine
Ruger Scout


are those rifles accurate and reliable enough and useful in a shtf scenario?

any other options/thoughts?
 
M1 Carbine is basically a pistol caliber gun, so not really comparable to the Marlin 336 or Ruger Scout.
 
How bout a .22 for your first rifle? Any reliable rifle in a decent caliber is good for defensive purposes. The problem is you'll be doing a whole lot more shooting for fun and skill building than in gunbattles. .22 is $.10 or less a trigger pull.
 
.30 carbine was designed for a rifle, right?

You are right, and i am already practicing with .22lr. rifles at 25 m. Because its all i can do.
It doesn't make much sense to me to shoot .22lr at the obove mentioned distances.
And the closest shooting range does not allow .22lr and some pistol cartridges at their 100 meter range. Some stupid german rule maybe...
 
.30 carbine is OK(200 yards is ?) for your stated purpose. But you'll be dealing with old guns that aren't very cheap. And more expensive ammo. An AR15 (or similar) would be better in every way. If you're in Germany I have no idea of your possible restrictions.
 
here are my options:

Marlin 336
M1 Carbine
Ruger Scout
I have seen great things out of the scout and the 336, but I don't have much experience with the M1 carbine. I will tell you that the scout and 336 will suit you well for those distances and for a hunting rifle if you need it.
 
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just as an example:
a m1 carbine in nearly perfect condition is about 850$.
the lowest ar15 price (dpms panther) is about 1106$. without any sights.

the ammo prices are nearly the same, if i compare only brass cased ammo. steel cased wolf in .223 is cheaper than the version in .30 carbine. i just wont buy steel cased ammo, since reloading will be an option for me in the future.

the m1 is a beauty to me. never shot her at 100m, only at 25m. shot an ar15 at 100m and did with 5 shots a 1,5" group with open sights. i guess thats not possible with a m1 carbine. :(
 
200 yards? Of the choices, Ruger Scout in .308 maybe.

Kind of a short list, there.

I love the M1 Carbine, mainly the looks. It's sort of useless for any sort of hunting or such and at 200 yards it ain't much. Just trying to be practical. :D There's time for an M1 Carbine if you like 'em as much as I do, but for your uses, well.....

BTW, I own a lot of long guns and not one AR15. There are other choices, ya know. I don't like ARs or AKs. I do like M1As, but they're pricey.
 
I have a Ruger Gunsite Scout Rifle that was originally 308 and converted to a 358 Win with a match grade barrel. Due to ammo availability I dont recommend the 358 caliber for this rifle (unless you plan getting into reloading) so I recommend to you the 308. Youd need to convert it to 358 anyway as it isnt a factory option caliber for the GSR if you wanted it.

A 308 Ruger Gunsite Scout would suit your needs perfectly and ammo is plentiful. Plus you get insane customability options with the Ruger GSR. There is SO MUCH aftermarket support for this rifle.

The 308 is popular with Law Enforcement in particular SWAT.

As far as accuracy, that depends on you but the 308 is a shooter for sure.

As far as SHTF scenario you can get 10 round mags easyly but an AR 15 could give you 30+ rounds of 5.56. Personally id take my 10 358 Win rounds over 30 5.56 rounds. You might have a problem with over penetration. If you live in a dense area you could theoretically shoot through your wall and kill your neighbor if your in a rural area your good.

On MY CUSTOM 358 Ruger GSR I have a Zeiss scope for 100+ yds and Masterpiece front and rear Irons for 100 and under with QR mounts for quick access to my Irons if needed.


END NOTE: If your a pajama warrior and play American Sniper get the 308 Ruger GSR if your Rambo get the AR 15.
 
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The Marlin 336 is a great shooter and not too expensive. You can get a basic AR 15 for around $700 to $800. I have my 30-30 Marlin 336C that I got at age 14 way back when and I still love shooting it. It has taken many deer for me over the years and I still hunt with it around my house in the Atchafalaya Basin swamp as the shots are close.
 
I know, it's a short list. It was really longer and included for example the m14 (too expensive, too heavy), or the m1 garand (too heavy, getting hit by the clip)...
And i am not a fan of modern rifles.

Hunting with a m1 carbine should be possible. I mean here in germany after ww2 they hunted hogs with m1 carbines.
Not perfect, but possible. And like i said hunting is definitly not my primary use.

I should have mentioned that my bug-out place is a forrest surrounded place with an open field view to maximum 300 yards. Hogs, small and medium sized deer.

Thanks so far!
 
i shoot rifles left- handed. i really don`t like using rh- bolt actions.
If your only aversion to bolt actions is that there are few lefties available, here are a few you might want to consider: Savage Mod 16 & Mod 11, Remington 700 series, Ruger M77 Hawkeye, and Tikka T3. I believe the Winchester Mod 70 Featherweight is also available in left hand and would make an excellent choice. All listed are bolt action and designed for a hunting event (planned and anticipated at a time of your choosing). Their consistency and reliability in the field is unsurpassed for that purpose.
 
CZ makes a lefty 527 in 223. That would be a nice little 0-300 gun.
 
The Ruger would probably be your most accurate for rage work, but between those options, I'd personally opt for the 336. They're pretty darn accurate as lever guns go (well under your 3 MOA requirement), fast handling, and basically ambidextrous.

My 336 has never been scoped, but I've had no trouble busting clay pigeons at 120 yards with the iron sights. I suspect the rifle is ~1.5 MOA capable with good bullets and glass.

Hornady's LeverEvolution bullets have made the .30-30 a bona-fide 200+ yard gun. There was always the single loading option with spitzer bullets, but now you can have your cake and eat it too.

http://www.hornady.com/store/leverevolution

Loaded ammo and bullets (140 and 160 gr. offerings for .30-30)

the M1 carbine is a cool little gun, but wouldn't even be in the running if I were trying to satisfy your requirements.
 
Marlin 336
M1 Carbine
Ruger Scout

How is your eyesight? Do you have good young eyes? I can tell you from my 50 year old eyes, that the Ruger GSR "ghost ring" rear sight doesn't help me focus on the front sight at all, which limits my use of open sights on the GSR to 100 yards or less. But that's okay if you intend to eventually put a scope on the GSR, or you have good eyesight and are under 40 years old. :D

With the Marlin, you can put on an aftermarket aperture rear sight and use a small 0.050" aperture for target work and go larger for other shooting. The only downside to the Marlin is it has a typical lever gun trigger which isn't near as nice as a factory issue Ruger GSR trigger. I only mention that because the Marlin will be more of a challenge to shoot smaller groups than the GSR.

The upside to the Marlin over the GSR and the M1 Carbine is the Marlin has a tube magazine. This means you won't spend money buying extra magazines like you would for the detachable magazine guns.
 
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The 336 and ruger scout will give you the 3 MOA no problem. I don't have any experience with the M1 carbine. All would be great for self defense.
 
so what about reliability of the 3 mentioned rifles?
spareparts for the 336 and m1 carbine are easy to get here. i don`t know about the ruger scout.
 
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