Choose a Rifle

In this article, you will learn what the best rifle is for your shooting needs and your level of experience.

Steps

  1. Determine your current level of experience.
    • If you are brand new to shooting, and just want a rifle to learn with, a light caliber is recommended. .22 caliber is cheap, easy to come by and is probably the best choice for informal shooting and learning the basics of firearms. Several other small calibers exists, but none can match the commonality and price of the .22 LR (.22 Long Rifle).
    • Due to the low power of the .22 caliber round, many companies offer simple and not too expensive rifles in this caliber. Brno makes excellent bolt action rifles, Marlin, Henry, and others make good lever action rifles, and Ruger makes an excellent semi-auto rifle in this caliber (the Ruger 10/22). All of these are user friendly, easy to field strip. The Ruger is also modular with aftermarket parts. Whatever rifle you choose, make sure you know all the relevant features, particularly safety features, before use.
  2. A beginner rifle should be simple both to use and maintain. An easy rifle to use will be fun to shoot. The only real way to get proficient with rifles is to shoot a lot. A fun rifle will therefor be the better option. If you plan to buy a rifle in a larger caliber later on, the type of operation can be important. If you plan to use a bolt action hunting rifle later, choose a bolt action and so on.
  3. Determine what you will be using the rifle for.
    • Hunting rifles come in many calibers. There is an old saying from colonial days that ".30 is a squirrel gun, .40 is a rabbit gun, .50 is a deer gun and .60 is a bear gun." Of course, weapons have become a lot more powerful since then, so that formula doesn’t really apply. But on a similar format, here is a good standard for today. A .22 is a squirrel gun, .22 magnum is a rabbit gun, .30 or 7.62 is a deer gun and .300 magnum is a bear gun. Larger rifles are not recommended for beginners (or even experienced shooters except in special circumstances). Rifles do however come in calibers up to .600 Nitro Express, suited for elephant (and costing you as much as a house)
    • Good guns for survival type situations are military rifles with semi-auto or (where legal) full auto mechanisms. A good place to start is the AR-15 type rifle. It is very user friendly, and very accurate, but it tends to be unreliable when irregularly maintained. The .223 cartridge it fires can have too much over-penetration for too little stopping power. They also tend to be expensive. Another choice is the AK-47 or derivatives. It is much cheaper, it's 7.62x39 mm cartridge packs more punch, and it is much more reliable even in nasty conditions. But it is much less accurate, and many of the features are difficult to manipulate when compared to the AR-15 series, most notably the safety and magazine release. A very important aspect to consider in a survival rifle is ammunition availability.
    • Rifles are by their nature not ideally suited for self defense. They are long and cumbersome, and most of the calibers offered in rifles are excessively powerful and will tend to penetrate walls and potentially kill innocent bystanders. For an urban setting or other situations where you anticipate a lot of potential for collateral damage, some great choices are the Beretta Cx4 Storm chambered for 9mm and the FN P90 chambered for 5.7x28 mm. Both of these are good choices, as they are very short and easy to handle indoors, and the rounds are much less powerful, and when using hollow point or frangible ammo, they will most likely not go through walls.
    • Another thing to keep in mind is that it is becoming frighteningly common for criminals to wear bullet proof armor. For people living in inner city areas or in trouble with the Russian mafia, a good rifle of choice will be the M-14. It is very accurate, semi-automatic, fires from removable magazines, and its 7.62x51 mm cartridge will easily punch through Kevlar armor and in some cases, even ceramic ballistic plates. In the USA, this rifle is not considered an assault rifle, so it is California Legal.
  4. Decide how much you want to spend.
    • Hunting rifles typically come in larger calibers, usually around .30 (7.62 mm). Most rifle makers offer rifles in this range, and used rifles are easy to come by for the budget buyer. If you buy a used rifle, make sure the paper-work is in order and take the gun to a gunsmith to make sure it is in good working order before using it! Cartridges in the .30 caliber range hold enough powder to endanger a shooter in case of a barrel obstruction or broken locking lugs.
  5. For the budget conscious hunter, an outstanding deer rifle for not a lot of money is the Mosin Nagant. This was the Russian service rifle during WW2, and they are extremely common in gun and knife shows. It is a bolt action rifle that fires the 7.62x54R cartridge from a 5 round fixed magazine. And as of May 2009, they can usually be acquired for $100 or under, plus tax. Ammunition for it is also extremely affordable, and can be brought in bulk on the Internet for an even better deal.
    • As for the budget conscious personal defense rifle, that title definitely goes to the SKS 7.62x39 rifle. It is cheap, going for around $300 before taxes if bought used. It is extremely accurate. It can be modified to use a detachable magazine, but does not usually come with that feature, instead firing from a fixed 10 round magazine loaded by hand or from stripper clips. It is very reliable, even in bad conditions. And it is very easy to maintain. And like the M-14, it is not technically an assault rifle in the USA.



Tips

  • Be aware of recoil. Remember, lighter rifles may be easier to lug around the woods, but they also have less weight to absorb recoil.
  • Be willing to shop around. You can quite often find a better deal if you just look. The author once saw a vendor at a gun and knife show trying to sell a Mosin Nagant M44 for $350 while another vendor not far from him had the same rifle being sold for $99. While this is an extreme case, it is something to keep in mind.
  • The best tip you can be offered is this. It does not matter what rifle you choose in the end if you do not practice well and often. A 10 year old with a .22 that they squirrel hunt with every day is much more dangerous than a first time gun owner who just bought an AK-47.
  • Try before you buy. Some public shooting ranges have rifles you can rent to try out. And most shooters at ranges will be glad to let you fire some rounds through their rifles if you just ask. Most shooters are proud of their rifles, and consider it a compliment for someone to admire their rifle enough to want to try it out. And most will refuse, but offer to pay for ammunition you use.

Warnings

  • Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot. I repeat this one because this is how far too many accidents happen.
  • Always clear your weapon when picking it up, when removing from storage or a vehicle, when loading into storage or a vehicle, when handing to someone, BEFORE DISASSEMBLING OR CLEANING (that's a big one, kids. You wouldn't believe how many people shoot their knees and feet off because of that.), and after firing. This is a short list of times to clear your weapon. It is best to do it often as to build it up first as a habit, later as an OCD.
  • Never point the weapon at anything you do not wish to kill or destroy. Always maintain muzzle awareness.
  • Make sure not to buy a bullpup design weapon if you're left handed before making sure that it won't fling red hot cases into your face when ejected. Some rifles, like the Steyr AUG can be converted for left hand shooters.
  • Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot.
  • Never forget, a rifle is a weapon made to kill. As soon as you start disrespecting your rifle, your rifle will disrespect you.
  • Read the literature on your rifle before firing it. If your rifle did not come with literature, it can be obtained for free by calling or checking the website of the company that made your rifle. If your rifle is military surplus, check the Internet, as there are many websites with details of your rifle as well as step by step instructions, often with video, on how to disassemble and clean your rifle.
  • Always wear hearing and eye protection.

Things You'll Need

  • Cleaning kit:
    • cleaning rod,
    • a toothbrush,
    • cloth patches for the barrel,
    • a rag or torn up undershirt for everything else,
    • cleaning solvent. Some very good solvents are Break-Free CLP and Hopp's #9.
    • rubber mallet (for Russian made weapons)
    • hexagonal wrenches
    • modular screwdriver.
  • Snap caps or other dummy ammo. You may want to run bullets through your rifle to function check it after performing maintenance. These are preferable for this task, as they will not shoot the dog if the weapon accidentally goes off while checking it.
  • For long range shooting:
    • a scope,
    • scope rings,
    • scope mount. This can cost from $50 to several hundred dollars.
  • Ammo. This can be acquired at your local gun store, or on websites such as www.cheaperthandirt.com

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