"Budget" main long gun recommendation?

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Shooter Chuck

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I've been out of firearms game a long time. Currently only own a few C&Rs, bolt hunting rifle, hunting shot gun. I'm very familiar with SKSs and AKs. I don't know much about AR's they are a little overwhelming trying to understand that stuff lol

Don't have a budget in mind, not looking to spend $1,000 but will pay for something good! Bonus points if you know where I can find these things close to Winston!
 
You say long gun...
Do you mean long range precision ?
Do you mean battle rifle?
Bit of both?

Do you want optics recommendations as well?
Scope?
Precision scope?
Fixed power combat optic?
Red dot?
Holographic?

Not trying to overwhelm you, but if we know more about what you want the rifle for, and what you want to do with it we can help you more.
 
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Sorry, looking for more Main Battle Rifle/Defensive firearm. Not sure about optics, I've only used open sights and hunting scopes. I kinda like a ghost ring/peep rear sight.
 
Shooter Chuck said:
Sorry, looking for more Main Battle Rifle/Defensive firearm. Not sure about optics, I've only used open sights and hunting scopes. I kinda like a ghost ring/peep rear sight.
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Well, first off, your timing is going to cost you, no matter what you pick these days. :(

Secondly, "Main Battle Rifle/Defensive firearm" is a pair of very different things. When you say " defensive", I hear "minute of property". Suburban "MOP" is realistically well less than 100 yards. For that, a PCC in your pistol caliber of choice has a number of advantages. "MBR" is a decent AR in whatever caliber trips your trigger.

Which leads to: Thirdly, if you're "very familiar" with the 7.62x39 platforms, why not go that way?

Your question is a real rabbit hole, but you'll find all the help you can stand here at CFF. :D
 
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Ok, So you are familiar with AK's and SKS,
but everything is at a premium of 100-300% right now, so be prepared to pony up some major $$$
The AR is not hard to learn.
There are PCC's- pistol caliber carbines, which are also good, for less than 100 yards...
Ammo is also at a premium...
You can also now get a "pistol" that has a "brace" on it, which gets around the SBR Class 3 rules/stamps...
 
You need a basic AR15.
Even in today’s market you should be able to find one for your budget.
 
If you’re familiar with the Kommie stuff, stick with it. Especially if you have ammo for it! Like previous stated ammo is high but it can be had and especially again in the x39 stuff, a bit more plentiful ( at least in my area.). The guns themselves are at a premium but that’s the price (no pun intended) you pay for starting now with 3 different things pushing prices, 1. Elections 2. Riots 3. COVID-19. And I figure that all of these are really just 1 reason that looks like 3. If you do decide to come over to the dark side with an AR, they are not super hard to learn, I’ve taught thousands of 18 year olds how to use the same type platform and they have the attention span of a banana! Good luck!
 
Shooter Chuck said:
Sorry, looking for more Main Battle Rifle/Defensive firearm. Not sure about optics, I've only used open sights and hunting scopes. I kinda like a ghost ring/peep rear sight.
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There are lots of options for this but a basic AR with a low power optic (think 1-2x) isn't a bad choice. As stated earlier, good luck on price at the moment.

An underfolder AK wouldn't be bad, but good luck on price.

One seriously under rated gun is an M1 carbine. Get one that runs well and extra mags. Ammo might be an issue with this one. Powerwise, it's on par with a .357.

One other old school choice, a pistol caliber lever gun. Decent ammo capacity, lightweight, reliable.
 
You can still find good SKS guns for sale on the private market for sub-$500, and you won't have to learn how to use it or fuss with buying mags or optics. Several quality aftermarket iron sights exist.

Keep a close eye on pawn and gun shops in your AO, and on the classifieds here - lots of good stuff regularly pops up, and despite the deluge of non-supporting BST barnacles, there are still plenty of good deals to be found.

The AR doesn't take a rocket surgeon to figure out, but as a few folks have pointed out, ammo matters. 5.56/.223 is largely unobtainium right now and when stuff becomes available it is generally crazy expensive. x39 also commands a premium these days, but it's in stock in a lot of places and the markup isn't horrible.
 
You could get an SKS for a somewhat reasonable price, but pricing on AKs worth owning seems to be going to the moon. A centerfire lever action could do in a pinch.
 
Shooter Chuck said:
I've been out of firearms game a long time. Currently only own a few C&Rs, bolt hunting rifle, hunting shot gun. I'm very familiar with SKSs and AKs. I don't know much about AR's they are a little overwhelming trying to understand that stuff lol

Don't have a budget in mind, not looking to spend $1,000 but will pay for something good! Bonus points if you know where I can find these things close to Winston!
Click to expand...

Hold out for a couple different opinions around this joint @Shooter Chuck !
 
If you really want a Main Battle Rifle, CMP M1 Garand Service Grade is currently running $750. ;) That’s a pretty good rifle price in today’s market.
 
Dave951 said:
There are lots of options for this but a basic AR with a low power optic (think 1-2x) isn't a bad choice. As stated earlier, good luck on price at the moment.

An underfolder AK wouldn't be bad, but good luck on price.

One seriously under rated gun is an M1 carbine. Get one that runs well and extra mags. Ammo might be an issue with this one. Powerwise, it's on par with a .357.

One other old school choice, a pistol caliber lever gun. Decent ammo capacity, lightweight, reliable.
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M1 carbine fan here. Ammo is plentiful last I checked, only having increased a few cents for surplus ball from the 80s. Try SGAmmo for that.
The carbine is a really decent choice for suburban yard type defense.
I've loaded up hollow points for it that vaporize melons, so you're defensive gun doubles as a range toy.
I've got an Auto Ordinance reproduction model (not a military gun). It's extremely reliable now, but when new it took about 300 rounds to break in. Keep it lubed and it's a happy gun.
I've bubba'd mine. It's wearing a Primary Arms red dot and an Inforce light.
 
Someone had an m1 carbine package with a bunch of ammo listed. It was over $1k but six or seven hundred rounds to go with it.
 
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