Daft subject, but since when has that mattered here 
I was watching Mad Max 2 the other day, and started wondering about what would be the best sort of gun for such a scenario.
The setting:
Post-Apocalyptic Australia.
Terrain:
Flat, open, semi-desert. Good roads (when not blocked by destroyed vehicles).
Technology:
Limited, and unreliable. Motor vehicles still available, but fuel very scarce (so much so that Max was willing to collect fuel from a destroyed enemy vehicle while there were still hostiles in the vicinity). Firearms exist, but are very rare, and ammo is in very short supply (Max has a sawn-off shotgun, with is empty for about half the film; the leader of the barbarians has a revolver; that's about it). Most people using bows/crossbows, or axes/iron bars from close combat.
The bad guys:
Roaming barbarian hordes in cars/ bikes/ dune buggies, etc, armed as above.
The good guys:
Living in isolated fortified camps, or trying to cross country in trucks/busses, with faster vehicles as escorts.
Given that some of the "main characters" have access to much better technology than average (Max with "the last of the V8 interceptors", the Gyro Captain with his gyrocopter), we can assume you can also have a much better gun than most people, plus ammunition, but resupply may be a problem.
So: what would be most useful?
My thoughts have narrowed it down to three possibilities:
AK/similar self-loading / select fire rifle with large magazines. Good for defending encampment from barbarians trying to scale the walls, or once they have got inside. Also good for defending your fuel truck or transport bus from bandits trying to hijack it.
Full-bore bolt-action hunting or sniping rifle. Can take out the enemy before they are aware of you, and keep them away from your camp, and ammo isn't too bulky. But not too great once they get in close.
50BMG sniper rifle. Long range, so you can take out the barbarian chief when he has camped outside your walls at a distance too great for other rifles. Also can disable enemy vehicles before you make your sortie from camp. But ammo will be bulky and probably harder to replenish than for other weapons.
I was watching Mad Max 2 the other day, and started wondering about what would be the best sort of gun for such a scenario.
The setting:
Post-Apocalyptic Australia.
Terrain:
Flat, open, semi-desert. Good roads (when not blocked by destroyed vehicles).
Technology:
Limited, and unreliable. Motor vehicles still available, but fuel very scarce (so much so that Max was willing to collect fuel from a destroyed enemy vehicle while there were still hostiles in the vicinity). Firearms exist, but are very rare, and ammo is in very short supply (Max has a sawn-off shotgun, with is empty for about half the film; the leader of the barbarians has a revolver; that's about it). Most people using bows/crossbows, or axes/iron bars from close combat.
The bad guys:
Roaming barbarian hordes in cars/ bikes/ dune buggies, etc, armed as above.
The good guys:
Living in isolated fortified camps, or trying to cross country in trucks/busses, with faster vehicles as escorts.
Given that some of the "main characters" have access to much better technology than average (Max with "the last of the V8 interceptors", the Gyro Captain with his gyrocopter), we can assume you can also have a much better gun than most people, plus ammunition, but resupply may be a problem.
So: what would be most useful?
My thoughts have narrowed it down to three possibilities:
AK/similar self-loading / select fire rifle with large magazines. Good for defending encampment from barbarians trying to scale the walls, or once they have got inside. Also good for defending your fuel truck or transport bus from bandits trying to hijack it.
Full-bore bolt-action hunting or sniping rifle. Can take out the enemy before they are aware of you, and keep them away from your camp, and ammo isn't too bulky. But not too great once they get in close.
50BMG sniper rifle. Long range, so you can take out the barbarian chief when he has camped outside your walls at a distance too great for other rifles. Also can disable enemy vehicles before you make your sortie from camp. But ammo will be bulky and probably harder to replenish than for other weapons.
"Fetchez la vache!"
