Pick a Rifle

[SturmSoldaten]

if it was up to you to pick a rifle for the upcoming zombie apocalypse which would you choose and why.

M16A4 (stock rifle with no upgrades)

M4A1 (stock carbine with no upgrades)

[Stickman]

Not much interest in zombies for the board, but for a GP weapon that involves lightly or unarmored targets, I'll take the carbine for ease of movement in buildings and in & out of vehicles.





ETA- I understand the term zombie as a catch all phrase for generic cataclysmic events, but lets keep this from getting to far fetched please.

[CAPT KIRK]

I agree... not to mention the carbine is capable of effective ranges well beyond the abilities of most shooters, and if you desire to pick off "Zombies" at long range you would be much better off with a .308.

[parabellum]

let's see....

lighter, shorter, adjustable stock, full auto FCG instead of that awful 3-burst.

yup, M4A1 all the way.

any weapon that i would have to carry any sort of distance or have on my person for extended periods...i would want the lighter option of the two.

and for a SHTF i would go for the M4A1 above all others (not just the M16A4).

I cant think of any better weapon really.

I'd rather have the M4 than a 9mm carbine/sub-gun, because of increased flexibility and lethality, even tho the 9mm would be a bit lighter.

in theory you could carry more 9mm ammo, but in practice that's not really the case because 9mm carbine mags are long and sometimes curved. with pouches that hold AR mags two or three deep you can carry more AR type mags than unwieldy "stick" magazines.

the chances of a civilian having to get geared up in such a manner are very unlikely. however in the event of a Katrina or LA Riot scenario, i would risk the chance of appearing foolish for a while and assume a protective posture with full kit, if the threat assessment called for it.

[tac40]

Go M4A1, light & easy to carry, I use one at work and most if not all badguys
approve of it over the shotgun

[Army Chief]

I'm not sure why the M4 wouldn't be the default answer for most of us, unless the issue at hand deals with the ballistics of the 5.56 cartridge. Assuming that becomes a limiting factor, and 6.8 et al. aren't qualified for the scenario based upon widespread availability, I would probably opt for my "other" compact carbine: a BRNO G.33/40 hunting re-work in 8mm Mauser, topped with an S&B 1.5-6x42 FD7 (FlashDot) Zenith.

The light weight and heavy loading make it something of a punisher for firing any extended sessions, but there isn't much that it won't stop. Like the M4, the G.33/40 was proof that good things do indeed come in small packages.



Chief

[satchmodog]

I have neither rifle, but if you guys want me to watch your backs, I'll be there with my Match Target HBAR

[Ryo]

M4 out of the 2. Move up to in caliber to make sure those heads explode.

[Army Chief]

I think I would be especially happy with an M4 in 6.8mm for "most intended applications," were ammunition just a bit more widely available. This still strikes me as a win-win ballistic upgrade for an already well-proven weapon system.

Asking a question based upon stock configurations does tend to limit where one can go with his answers, of course, but perhaps that was the point. :)

AC

[Ryo]

If fighting zombies, I dont' think 6.8 would be a good choice. Not because of the lethality, but the limit supply of 6.8 rounds. So stock up. :)

[Guilty]

It appears that all you need is a six shooter and a shotgun to kill zombies...http://www.bumlee.com/deanimator.html

[Ryo]

Hmm.. seems like I would have to opt for another weapon since the zombies keep getting me in the end.

[Topmaul]

I guess if a Zombie hord decends on me I would want my Saiga 12 or Saiga 7.62x39 Under those conditions I would want to put them away with out using too much ammo to do it.

[Army Chief]

Uh, I'm pretty sure that we were focusing on the "one rifle" part, as opposed to the zombie part. There are, after all, other boards for those all-important in-depth zombie discussions. LOL

I guess if we go back to the original premise of the thread, the point most seem to be making is that the carbine offiers most of the advantages of the full-length rifle, but is much faster handling and more convenient -- which is probably why the military has fielded the M4 to begin with.

AC

[TehLlama]

Compromise: 16" Middy. Between those, it is manouverable enough, without sacrificing range.