Another comrade wrote this. It is good advice so I am posting it here.

I’ve made comments in the past asserting that the vast majority of all firearm activities can be done with just 5 different guns. I still stand by this. I believe that anyone, with a gun from each of these categories, can participate, in a meaningful way, in most gun-related things. Not necessarily at the highest level, and not every single discipline or subcategory. For example, having a Ruger 10/22 will gain you entry into a whole host of target shooting and competitive disciplines, but it won’t be good enough or even legal to shoot in Olympic smallbore- you’ll need something else. Your deer rifle with a Nikon Prostaff cope chambered in i.270 WIN might shoot 0.75 MOA at 200 yards and will allow you to compete, even well, in a PRS match, but you probably won’t beat the dude launching handloaded 6.5 Creedmoor pills out of their GA Precision rifle with a Nightforce scope. It also won’t be good enough to go hunt a coastal brown bear in Alaka- you’ll need something else for that. This isn’t to belittle inexpensive or general purpose gear. The opposite case is my thesis.

The 3 main categories of firearms-related activities generally are: defensive use, recreational use (collecting, competition, non-competitive target shooting), and hunting. I separate hunting from recreational use, even though almost all hunting is considered recreational in some way, since the gear is more practical and use-driven (food security is no laughing matter), as opposed to “just for fun” or novelty for its own sake. If there is a flaw in my viewpoint, perhaps that would be it- let’s discuss in the comments. I think the only aspect of recreational use that isn’t really addressed by owning 5 general purpose guns is collecting. Modern, common, and/or inexpensive firearms are not necessarily collectible (almost by definition) and their use is focused around practicality instead of design novelty, rarity, historical provenance, etc. But competitive shooting, and recreational shooting can be entered into in a meaningful way with 5 guns.

This post means to show that while special purpose gear outlcasses general purpose gear for those special purposes, for the average user, general purpose gear gets you so much performance and so much value, that you should focus on it over special gear, UNLESS A SPECIFIC and SPECIAL NEED arises from your experience that DICTATES A REQUIREMENT FOR SPECIAL GEAR. Most people do not shoot enough to warrant buying super niche items. Start with these 5, learn to shoot, learn and develop your own needs and interests, then branch off into technical la-la-land and transcend into full gun nerd.

Bottom Line 5 guns:

  • Semi-auto, striker-fired, polymer-framed 9mm pistol. HK VP9, Walther PPQ, Glock 19, Smith and Wesson M&P 2.0, Sig P320, Ruger SR9, or CZ P-10C are great places to start. Good quality, decently priced. Look for police trade-ins, used versions. These pistols can be had for under $600 new, as little as $350 used. By a concealed carry holster (r/ccw can help with this- body fitment is personal and unique), 3-5 extra magazines, and hit the range. Consider a weapon light down the road.

  • 16" barrel, mid length gas system AR15 with an adjustable stock and preferably an M-Lock handguard. Buy the rifle from Midwest Industries, Aero Precision, Ruger, Bravo Company USA, Smith and Wesson, or Sons of Liberty Gun Works. Get a weapon light from Surefire, ModLite, Cloud Defensive (these 3 are expensive), Streamlight, or Inforce (bot are vetted, affordable alternatives), then buy a quick-adjust 2-point sling from Ferro Concepts, Blue Force Gear, Haley Strategic, Magpul, Viking Tactics, Little Creek Trading, or others (they all range from $25-80 or so). Seriously consider spending $120-250 on a new red dot sight made by Vortex, Holosun, Burris, Sig, Primary Arms, or get a used red dot from Aimpoint or Trijicon ($300-500). It’s probably the single most drastic improvement you can make in performance value on a rifle. Buy 6-10 Magpul Pmags for practice and use. You should budget $600-1000 for the rifle, and roughly $500 total for all the essential accessories.

  • 12ga shotgun- Mossberg 500/590, Benelli Nova/Super Nova, and Browning BPS are excellent. Remington has fallen off in quality since 2007, but their 870 pump is still quality enough to recommend, they just have cosmic finish issues. Consider buying a Remington used. Smei-auto guns are also a good choice. Benelli and Beretta are the top of the heap, with FN and Browning as mid-tier, Stoeger, Mossberg, Winchester, and Remington rounding out the acceptable budget level. If possible, get a gun that comes with a short, 18.5-22" barrel AND a long, 26-30" barrel for maximum versality. $300-600 for a new pump, $600-1400 for a semi-auto. Get a gun that has a 3" chamber and removable chokes in at least the long barrel. Get the same sling that you have on your rifle, Velco cards from Vang Comp, Esstac, others, and consider a forend light from Surefire or Streamlight.

  • A semi-auto 22 LR rifle. Ruger 10/22, Marlin Model 60, Thompson/Center TCR22. Bolt-actions like Savage and CZ are great, but leave a little to be desired as far as rapid-fire capability. If you have a bolt 22, keep it and don’t worry. If you’re buying new, go semiauto. For a “perfect” 22, look at the Liberty Training Rifle, a concept put out by the Appleseed Project, for ideas on a solid rifle great for training, hunting, and target shooting. Put a red dot or scope on it if you want, but iron sights are fine for this gun and a great way to practice fundamentals.

  • A high power, bolt-action rifle with a variable-power, magnified optic. Savage, Ruger, Thompson/Center all make great guns for under $500 new. Tikka and Weatherby make maybe the best rifles for under $500 new. Tikka and Weatherby make maybe the best rifles under $1000. Vortex, Athlon, Burris, SWFA, and others make relatively inexpensive, but feature-rich optics. A good rule of thumb is whatever you spend on a rifle, spend that amount on a scope, or as close to it as possible. Rifles are so good nowadays that even cheap rifles will outshoot most people, but scopes are not that way- the more you buy upfront, the more you save in the long run, both in money, maintenance, and usage.