What is your caliber of choice for SHTF

[Rocketvapor]

How about those of you that had to flee when they woke up to water in their house?
Not a BIG SHTF, just a minor inconvenience SHTF.
How many different calibers did you pack out when you left?
What did you leave behind? 

[DerMuppet]

I guess it would depend, what I have access to, where I'm going, with who, and what they're capable using.

Depending on circumstances, 9mm, 12 gauge, 7.62x39, or 7.62x51.  Depending on the range, they're compatible with my available hardware to send a good dose of "Leave me the ____ alone please" that way quickly and in volume.

If I had semi-automatics in 5.56 or 7.62x54R, I'd throw that on the list, but I only have bolt actions so, not for me.

Honestly, if you've got a reasonable quantity available, and a reliable weapon that works with it, aside from balancing out range and weight (mostly of the weapon required to fling it) I'd think most anything reasonable would suffice.  Competence and practice so that you can get the rounds out efficiently and effectively should the need arise would most likely trump the particulars of one over another. 

SHTF isn't like war where you can end it by getting the right bad guys (even then, it's not that simple.)  You really just want to get away from other people, particularly the wrong kind of people.  If I'm engaged in regular exchanges of gunfire, it's only a short matter of time before my luck drops to zero.

My perspective anyway.

[Lostinspace]

How about those of you that had to flee when they woke up to water in their house?
Not a BIG SHTF, just a minor inconvenience SHTF.
How many different calibers did you pack out when you left?
What did you leave behind?

I can give you some pretty good answers.  As most of you know Baton Rouge flooded in epic proportions last year.  My brother in law and his wife woke up to 3 feet of water in their home at 4:00 AM with a sheriffs boat outside their home with a bullhorn to rescue the neighborhood.  The only firearms they were permitted to take were handguns in a backpack so as not to scare others in the boat.  He had to go back inside his home with the AR's and secure them in a secret hiding place that was shall we say, at least 10 feet above ground level.  If you are not able to self rescue you WILL NOT be able to bring the firearms you want/need if you are being rescued by others.  The only advice I can give is that when you KNOW ahead of time of a disaster coming,  you best make plans to get the dipstick out of Dodge ahead of time.  We live in an area that is prone to wildfires and have all of our get out of Dodge really fast stuff marked, boxed and ready to go at a seconds notice.  We can get everything we need loaded up in our SUV's and heading down the highway in less than 15 minutes.  We have alternate routes that run contrary to the route that 99% of the people will take and will put us two hours ahead of them at the same spot 50 miles outside of town on the freeway.  Hardly a week goes by that my wife doesn't mention escape routes if something goes down.  In fact, just yesterday we went to an area we were totally unfamiliar with and was probably 60 miles from our home in the middle of nowhere to check it out as a possible bug out location.....after glassing the area and checking out where it was at etc I decided that this was not a place we would put onto an emergency bug out location.  However having checked it off the list simply means I have dozens more that I haven't checked out to check out. 

[juaneye]

.22,x39, 9mm. .45, 30 carbine and 12g are my go to calibers, I'm hurting in the long range category right now.  At the moment I would grab my SKS set up for pd rifle (thank you Mr. Murray), although I am looking at a thumbhole Chinese AK which I hope to make mine.  I would have to grab the G19's and GI Colt .45 to help save the town.  To save the house and family I would grab one of my 870's setup as trench guns or the M1 carbine and my 92F or M9 which ever you prefer to call it.

[wolfgang2000]

My stocking calibers are 22LR, 9MM, 357 mag., 5.56, 7.62x39, 308, 12 and 20 gauge.

Most shelters do not allow firearms. You have to understand, that LEO's aren't really anti gun.  They have X amount of space and time.  They can't wait around while people unload their house's.  Their concern is saving lives.

There is a reason that most people in La. keep a ax and of a chain saw in the attic.  Plan as good as you can, but expect some loses.

[Filroy77]

Rocket, u got a chainsaw in yer attic? 

[Rocketvapor]

Got one in the upstairs SHTF ROOM next to Flo's Dr. Mom Exam Room

(you really didn't expect less, did you?)

[Lostinspace]

Got one in the upstairs SHTF ROOM next to Flo's Dr. Mom Exam Room

(you really didn't expect less, did you?)

I hope you have an ax or at least a hatchet there too.  Nothing worse than a chainsaw that won't fire up when you need it most.  Heck even if you have a hammer you can bust out a whole 4'x8' panel of the roof and have an escape hatch.  If someone lives in an area that can possibly flood I would also add a quality PFD for everyone in the home upstairs too.  A PFD literally will be a lifesaver if the water is that deep and you have no other option than to evacuate the home before help arrives.  Back in the flood of 1927 in Avoyelles my great grandmother drowned with one of her babies on her trying to escape.  They found her body and the baby was alive clinging to her on top of the floating corpse.  No doubt if she would have had a pfd she would have lived.

[Rocketvapor]

Inflatable raft do?
I guess I could tie a few boats to the house
Everybody has boats and stuff like that, right?

[Filroy77]

One boat would do or a couple pair of these. 



Put two on yer legs and you would have a place to rest your beer.   

[BigBill]

Caliber of choice any caliber will do. It’s how much of it you have. I don’t plan on shooting anything but to protect my family. That won’t take much ammo.

[smawgmaw]

My caliber of choice in handgun is .22lr, 9x18mak, 9mm, and 7.62x25.  In rifle it is .22lr, 9mm, 7.62x39, and for long range 7.62x54r.  In shotgun it is 12 gauge and .410.
I try to consolidate calibers.

[bodrika]

Got one in the upstairs SHTF ROOM next to Flo's Dr. Mom Exam Room

(you really didn't expect less, did you?)

I hope you have an ax or at least a hatchet there too.  Nothing worse than a chainsaw that won't fire up when you need it most.  Heck even if you have a hammer you can bust out a whole 4'x8' panel of the roof and have an escape hatch.  If someone lives in an area that can possibly flood I would also add a quality PFD for everyone in the home upstairs too.  A PFD literally will be a lifesaver if the water is that deep and you have no other option than to evacuate the home before help arrives.  Back in the flood of 1927 in Avoyelles my great grandmother drowned with one of her babies on her trying to escape.  They found her body and the baby was alive clinging to her on top of the floating corpse.  No doubt if she would have had a pfd she would have lived.

How did the baby's life after that turn out?

[Sgt_Pork]

I recently picked up a few long arm sized dry bags on Amazon to keep the moist and salty sea air away from my guns here on the coast (I live a quarter mile from the beach).  For those of you living in flood zones they might be a smart investment too.  I can fit two rifles in soft Allen cases into one of these dry bags.  They are not too expensive, about 20 bucks per bag, they are thick and expedition tough, they really do work, and they are way cheaper than a bunch of Pelican cases.

Link:

https://www.amazon.com/SE-OD-WB6412R-Waterproof-Tarpaulin-Rifle/dp/B0196LACAQ/ref=pd_sbs_200_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B0196LACAQ&pd_rd_r=8GDK159AFFTGQ8K406WE&pd_rd_w=xGsrX&pd_rd_wg=pEkjp&psc=1&refRID=8GDK159AFFTGQ8K406WE



Oh, and my SHTF ammo: .22 and x39 (keeping it simple).  If you need MOA at 800 meters to hit it, you are probably better off just avoiding it.

[juaneye]

.22,x39, 9mm. .45, 30 carbine and 12g are my go to calibers, I'm hurting in the long range category right now.  At the moment I would grab my SKS set up for pd rifle (thank you Mr. Murray), although I am looking at a thumbhole Chinese AK which I hope to make mine.  I would have to grab the G19's and GI Colt .45 to help save the town.  To save the house and family I would grab one of my 870's setup as trench guns or the M1 carbine and my 92F or M9 which ever you prefer to call it.

I did pick up the Mac90 and I have it setup to my preference, it's still a toss up; do I grab  the AK or the above mentioned SKS.  The SKS seems to be more accurate, or atleast I shoot it better anyway...although I do like the feel of the Mac90.