Really need advice - tactical rifle under $900 ideally

[dak]

$900 for gun + mags. Not for ammo. Although I am eyeing the 5.45, 5.56, 7.62x39, and 7.62x51 because of their bulk pricing!

5.45x39 is the cheapest bulk you can buy but the problem being is when the surplus runs out... And it will. .223 vs 7.62x39 is comparable for steel case only. Brass .223 or different bullet types like M855 are substantially more than steel case. Surplus 5.45x39 is steel core which will give you problems at a lot of ranges.

Pick a caliber, then pick a gun.

 

[Glocktogo]

5.45x39 is the cheapest bulk you can buy but the problem being is when the surplus runs out... And it will. .223 vs 7.62x39 is comparable for steel case only. Brass .223 or different bullet types like M855 are substantially more than steel case. Surplus 5.45x39 is steel core which will give you problems at a lot of ranges.

Pick a caliber, then pick a gun.

This. 5.45 is cheap in surplus form. Try and find non-surplus 5.45 and IF you could, what you'd pay. .303 Brit used to be chap surplus. M2 ball used to be cheap surplus. .30 Carbine used to be cheap surplus. All of them are uber expensive now that most of the old stocks have been depleted.

You're planning a SHTF gun. In a SHTF situation, you may or may not be able to lug a ton of stockpiled ammo with you if you have to bug out quick. 5.45 will be difficult to near impossible to find. .223 is everywhere. 7.62X39 is getting that way. A cheap way out would be to get a .223 Saiga AK variant (convert it yourself if you want a folding stock). Stock up on some Wolf .223 and you can still replenish at nearly any place that stocks ammo.

I'm open... what fits into the "trust your life with" category? I'm ready to hear any suggestions.

For me it would be a Colt, Daniel Defense or Bravo Company AR's. There are others, but they would be more expensive and not necessarily give you an edge over these three. With a careful search, you could get any of these for under a grand.

 

[Robert871]

How is it? 5.56 seems kinda weak to me, as 7.62 seems heavier hitting and 5.45 seems more flesh-damaging. I'm not anti-AR though. Seems like most people frown on "cheaper" AR's though. Is it reliable? Is it accurate? The other thing that appeals to me is "ease of maintenance". I like how a lot of AK variants are meant to be "run no matter what guns". Are their AR's that can live up to that?

You could probably build a decent. Piston ar for close but under 900. Build it right and it's a good gun, keep em wet and happy.

People will preach 7.62 over 223 or even the other way around until the cows are dead and we are eating Japanese poo meat; but the 223 is a good round and if you hit your target right, just about any bullet will do the trick.

 

[MrShooter]

maybe he is highly skilled with everything.....lol

 

[Super Dave]

308 Saiga AK. All you need. You may thank me later.

 

[pak-40]

308 Saiga AK. All you need. You may thank me later.

+1 on this. .308 Saigas are SWEEEEEETTTTT! A lot more accurate than I thought they would be. If you have 900 bucks to spend, you can spend almost half of that on ammo if you go the Saiga .308 route.

 

[jakerz]

He got my advice Piston....I'm not trying to be an ass. He just needs to refine his actual need, "SHTF" means a lot of different things to different people. He's all over the map from a kel-tec to 5.45 of 7.62 AK, to ARs...that cuts a wide swath. Define the mission and then get the equipment and skills you need to perform it.

If you want something to shove under the bed to make you feel good, you can get by with one thing. If you want a rifle you can take out and shoot a few hundred rounds every once and awhile, you can get by with another. If you want a rifle you can shoot hard, run through more than one 1,000 round weekend training course without puking and trust your life with, you need entirely different beast.

Everyone has their own tastes, needs, opinions, and definitions of "reliable"...we've had some long threads on here about that subject...so it would be foolish to say "buy this" even if the need is refined. Crap, maybe I should've stayed out of this one.

I agree with this. Training with your weapon is the most important thing. If you can't afford to train with a 223, then buy something you can afford to train with. I would be more afraid of a guy with a 22 that is well trained, over a couch jockey that has the baddest AR/M14/AK, etc in his safe that has only shot it a few times. With cost of ammo aside, I would go with the AR platform. However, I might be biased towards this, since it's what I used in the military. I am trained with this weapon platform and feel very comfortable with it. I enjoy shooting my AK74, but don't feel as comfortable with it, and don't "train" with it on a regular basis. To each their own.

 

[Glocktogo]

Inside 100 yards, a skilled marksman with a scoped 10/22 is a force to be reckoned with.

 

[stevie_d]

Inside 100 yards, a skilled marksman with a scoped 10/22 is a force to be reckoned with.

I believe that! I have a CZ 452 Ultra Lux 22. I love it, but I'd like to grab a ruger also, just for semi-auto capability.

 

[MrShooter]

Inside 100 yards, a skilled marksman with a scoped 10/22 is a force to be reckoned with.

If the target has ZERO cover