Airguns for survival?

[Mozartghost1791]

I haven't survived with an airgun for two weeks, and I agree that I'd probably get more squirrels with my break action .410... but when you're out in the woods, once you got the basics (shelter water fire) covered, you got a darn large amount of time to hunt. Also, when the animals get used to you, and you get 'attuned' to nature, it gets that much easier... and in a survival situation, we can just forget about it being illegal to set 20 deadfalls that get whatever they get, or shooting migratory non-game birds, or setting up a fish trap in a stream... There are a lot more options available than what's considered 'legal' hunting.

[1stimestar]

I don't have anything against people wanting to have guns. It's just that some of these survival sites seem to focus almost exclusively on 'end of the world' scenarios and people talking about guns. The main point I mean to make is that though they make it easier, guns aren't necessary to survival, and they shouldn't be the exclusive focus of survivalists. There are also alternatives to guns and just because they aren't quite as good, people are completely ignoring them here. In a real survival situation the chances are that you won't have a gun... maybe not even a knife. If it's more of a hunting-camping scenario you would have a gun, but your ammo won't last forever. In the end of the world scenario... I would like it if they devoted a different section of the site to that rather than make the whole site and the very term 'survival' into some sort of violent soap opera. Maybe I'm just in the wrong place and should look for a site about primitive wilderness living rather than keeping a gun on you at all times. I own guns but the only time I carry them is when I'm hunting. If I got stranded in a plane crash or lost camping, chances are I ain't armed to the teeth. If the world ends... well let's just say that's another topic altogether.

Some people live in much different situations then you do. Situations where guns DO mean survival. Places where people carry guns just to go for a walk. And NEED to. Small aircraft pilots here do carry.

[crashdive123]

There's one fella on here that won't walk to his outhouse without a firearm.

[Wildthang]

When you need a gun and don't have it with you, you then will realize how important a gun could have been. The people that think guns are not important are the ones that die in home invasions, car jackings, and armed robbery.
I dont's worry about having a gun, I just always have one and it is natural for me to be prepared, and I actually feel naked without one. The simple task of driving through Chicago, Detroit, and several other large cities merits having a gun for self defense in my opinin. I am not paranoid, just prepared!

[Mozartghost1791]

I guess you guy's situations are a bit different than mine... I hate big cities and if I had to live in one I'd want a concealed handgun too. In Alaska there are bears that you have to worry about, that are big enough to eat you. Here in backwoods Appalachia though, the bears aren't as big and they hardly come into contact with humans at all. I live in a little community where everyone is neighbors and everyone has guns, they just don't use them for anything but 'legal recreational' hunting. I like to practice other methods of survival than guns cause I live in a place where that's a practical idea... I didn't mean to offend or criticize those who live in more dangerous locales.

[kyratshooter]

I haven't survived with an airgun for two weeks, and I agree that I'd probably get more squirrels with my break action .410... but when you're out in the woods, once you got the basics (shelter water fire) covered, you got a darn large amount of time to hunt. Also, when the animals get used to you, and you get 'attuned' to nature, it gets that much easier... and in a survival situation, we can just forget about it being illegal to set 20 deadfalls that get whatever they get, or shooting migratory non-game birds, or setting up a fish trap in a stream... There are a lot more options available than what's considered 'legal' hunting.

So we get the "talk" about nonexistant need for firearms, in a thread about pellet rifles, posted in the section for general survival rather than the guns and ammo secton?

Get out from behind the computer and put some boots on the ground.

If you really want to talk to some "Like minded" people there is a forum for you, which I already mentioned, called Survival UK. They seem to share your belief system and run about helpless and hopeless intending to live on snared rats and fight off hordes of zombies with crossbows. One with nature and all that. Most of them live in flats in one of their major cities and have never spent more than a weekend camped in a commercial campground. However, they, like you, know all about survival, they read it on the internet!

Lots of free time? Have you ever collected enough firewood to last for a 14 hour night at below freezing?

Do you know how long it takes to set "20 deadfalls" and how much area you have to cover daily to check the 20 empty traps?

Have you ever "become one with nature" to the tune of collecting every bite you eat from the sorrounding area?

Yes, there are many methods of food gathering, their efficiencey dependent on the location and climate of your region, but we do not know your region, do we? That is because while belittling the folk here that have foresight to carry a firearm, or habe an ionterest in discussing firearms, you live in a "secret lab in a secret location" which I now suspect to be your Mom's basement in suburbia.

You're not really old enough to buy a firearm yet, are you?

[welderguy]

Were im from Texas, I share the woods with critters that if shot with an air rifle would fall over laughing. I have seen the video of the guy shooting a wild pig with an air rifle not impressed I want to see him hunt one on the move, How about a bob cat or a Mt lion. No thank you my airguns are reserved for plinking cans with my son in the back yard, and helping to teach wayward critters that my trash can is not a 5 star restaurant and my truck tires there personal outhouse.

[Mozartghost1791]

So we get the "talk" about nonexistant need for firearms, in a thread about pellet rifles, posted in the section for general survival rather than the guns and ammo secton?

Get out from behind the computer and put some boots on the ground.

If you really want to talk to some "Like minded" people there is a forum for you, which I already mentioned, called Survival UK. They seem to share your belief system and run about helpless and hopeless intending to live on snared rats and fight off hordes of zombies with crossbows. One with nature and all that. Most of them live in flats in one of their major cities and have never spent more than a weekend camped in a commercial campground. However, they, like you, know all about survival, they read it on the internet!

Lots of free time? Have you ever collected enough firewood to last for a 14 hour night at below freezing?

Do you know how long it takes to set "20 deadfalls" and how much area you have to cover daily to check the 20 empty traps?

Have you ever "become one with nature" to the tune of collecting every bite you eat from the sorrounding area?

Yes, there are many methods of food gathering, their efficiencey dependent on the location and climate of your region, but we do not know your region, do we? That is because while belittling the folk here that have foresight to carry a firearm, or habe an ionterest in discussing firearms, you live in a "secret lab in a secret location" which I now suspect to be your Mom's basement in suburbia.

You're not really old enough to buy a firearm yet, are you?

For one, if you'd been paying attention, I have said that I have my own guns and hunt with them often enough. I have killed more with an airgun than I have with my shotgun but I appreciate the shotgun's superior 'instant killing without aiming' power.
For two, I was trying to apologize to those who I had criticized for being conjoined twins with their firearms and would die without them, and you only started criticizing me after I apologized.
For three, I caught 21 bass in one afternoon with my rod and reel in my pond (not stocked) one day, and can usually get 6 or 7 in an afternoon easy. That's without bothering to cut the string into separate lines and fish multiple baits.
Something you might like to know is that I actually tried killing a possum with a (breath powered) blowgun, and though my 4-inch dart sunk all the way into its chest and I fired more than once with similar accuracy, I had to use my shotgun to finish it off because the blowgun was not sufficient. I know the shotgun is the better hunting weapon, I'd just like to know other ways to hunt/procure food, that's all.
Fourth, who said anything about mowing down zombies in a serious survival discussion. I don't think we need to concern ourselves with them until I make some in my mad lab... which brings me to
Fifth, I live in the country, not a city, and I have hunted, fished, foraged, and cooked all of the resulting food with primitive methods. I have even made a campfire with a bow drill, which I doubt at least some of you haven't done.
Setting 20 deadfalls.... hmm... in my woods there are plenty of rocks... I've even built a small wall with nice flat ones.... It took me about 10 minutes to assemble one deadfall so the raw figure for 20 is about 3 and a half hours. Count in another hour for collecting the parts and finding nice spots and that's still only half a day's work. Do 2 or 3 a day until you get up to 20 and you only spend about 45 min a day on it. As far as 'empty traps' goes, I have actually had some that weren't empty ...
As for my region I live about 10 minutes drive from Elkin NC, and natural resources are plentiful and we only have about 10 '14 hour nights below freezing' per year.
My age is Nunya.

[Wildthang]

I guess you guy's situations are a bit different than mine... I hate big cities and if I had to live in one I'd want a concealed handgun too. In Alaska there are bears that you have to worry about, that are big enough to eat you. Here in backwoods Appalachia though, the bears aren't as big and they hardly come into contact with humans at all. I live in a little community where everyone is neighbors and everyone has guns, they just don't use them for anything but 'legal recreational' hunting. I like to practice other methods of survival than guns cause I live in a place where that's a practical idea... I didn't mean to offend or criticize those who live in more dangerous locales.

Well where you are, maybe the crime is low, and there is never a threat of any kind, but that is rare anymore. I have run into some people out in the West virginia mountains that I would not want to be around without a gun, and I am sure there are those people all through the Appalachian range.
But hey dude, if you wish to frolick around without a gun, I respect your wishes, no problem!

[Mozartghost1791]

I keep my shotgun ready to use in my closet. Unless I'm hunting I don't need it with me the rest of the time. If someone breaks into the house I'm on the second floor so I'd have time to grab it. The chances of someone sticking me up on the street in a small town are next to none... It seems that this forum is more about gun rights (which I incidentally support) than wilderness survival, which was the actual purpose I joined, as it is called Wilderness Survival Forum... Too bad Tom Brown or Thomas J. Elpel don't have a survival forum where you can talk about surviving without a high power rifle and 50 lbs of supplies... I wouldn't have that stuff if I got in a bus/plane crash in the lower 48, and I wouldn't have that stuff if I got lost on a college hiking trip (you can't even have a gun in college), and even though I might have that stuff if the world ended, other people would have even better stuff and we would be talking modern warfare 3 rather than wilderness survival...

[GreatUsername]

We do have sections that are about primitive survival. All of this gun-buzz right now is unusual, it's kind of our pro-gun fervor getting stirred up by the potential bans the government is considering. If you want to talk primitive, I'd suggest a post to one of those sections, with no mention of firearms or airguns.

This is a good place, don't write us off just yet

[Wildthang]

+1 to that, we are all about wilderness skills and survival, and as said above, the gun ban has us all worked up, but I guarantee we will get over it!

[hunter63]

I keep my shotgun ready to use in my closet. Unless I'm hunting I don't need it with me the rest of the time. If someone breaks into the house I'm on the second floor so I'd have time to grab it. The chances of someone sticking me up on the street in a small town are next to none... It seems that this forum is more about gun rights (which I incidentally support) than wilderness survival, which was the actual purpose I joined, as it is called Wilderness Survival Forum... Too bad Tom Brown or Thomas J. Elpel don't have a survival forum where you can talk about surviving without a high power rifle and 50 lbs of supplies... I wouldn't have that stuff if I got in a bus/plane crash in the lower 48, and I wouldn't have that stuff if I got lost on a college hiking trip (you can't even have a gun in college), and even though I might have that stuff if the world ended, other people would have even better stuff and we would be talking modern warfare 3 rather than wilderness survival...

Yeah, we all have an opinion, and sometimes they don't all line up.......we get it.

[finallyME]

Tom Brown doesn't have a forum because then he couldn't charge for the info he gives out.

[Mozartghost1791]

I wonder how much a forum costs to operate these days? I guess I might remember something about tom brown not charging to teach people....
@ everyone else: sorry I stirred up this argument.... I will check out the primitive skills section.

[welderguy]

I keep my shotgun ready to use in my closet. Unless I'm hunting I don't need it with me the rest of the time. If someone breaks into the house I'm on the second floor so I'd have time to grab it. The chances of someone sticking me up on the street in a small town are next to none... It seems that this forum is more about gun rights (which I incidentally support) than wilderness survival, which was the actual purpose I joined, as it is called Wilderness Survival Forum... Too bad Tom Brown or Thomas J. Elpel don't have a survival forum where you can talk about surviving without a high power rifle and 50 lbs of supplies... I wouldn't have that stuff if I got in a bus/plane crash in the lower 48, and I wouldn't have that stuff if I got lost on a college hiking trip (you can't even have a gun in college), and even though I might have that stuff if the world ended, other people would have even better stuff and we would be talking modern warfare 3 rather than wilderness survival...

Mozart, I understand your comfort of a small town, and your feeling of safety , but consider the economy and jobless rate right now its even worst in a small town I live in a small town , and in the last 5 years Crime has grown , shooting, armed robbery, murder, home invasions. its when you get so comfortable in your surroundings and every day routine that you forget to remember why your a prepper/survivalist...etc etc. I can respect your feeling about firearms and CCW. what i suggest in the future.A good rule of thumb on this or any forum is, If its not a subject your interested in or care about dont reply or even look at it. Hang around get to know some of the ol timers there bark is worst than there bite.

[kyratshooter]

I keep my shotgun ready to use in my closet. Unless I'm hunting I don't need it with me the rest of the time. If someone breaks into the house I'm on the second floor so I'd have time to grab it. The chances of someone sticking me up on the street in a small town are next to none... It seems that this forum is more about gun rights (which I incidentally support) than wilderness survival, which was the actual purpose I joined, as it is called Wilderness Survival Forum... Too bad Tom Brown or Thomas J. Elpel don't have a survival forum where you can talk about surviving without a high power rifle and 50 lbs of supplies... I wouldn't have that stuff if I got in a bus/plane crash in the lower 48, and I wouldn't have that stuff if I got lost on a college hiking trip (you can't even have a gun in college), and even though I might have that stuff if the world ended, other people would have even better stuff and we would be talking modern warfare 3 rather than wilderness survival...

Sorry that we are not "bush hippies" up to your standard. BTW if you see Tom Brown ask him where he was between 1969 and 1976 and how he came to know so much about the Canadian wilderness in those years.? I suppose he was visited by "Grandfather" and told to go north.

Not being able to have firearms in planes is why I seldom fly. Plumb naked you would be as far as gear goes but if something happens to your plane at 30,000 feet it is a moot point anyway. Your chances of surviving a plane crash and being in survival mode in the lower 48 is nonexistant! You are either dead or someone heard the noise and called the police.

Busses?? Last buss I rode I was really glad I had my CCW with me. That was a spooky crowd! That was the trip back from hiking the AT all summer back in '01. That was my mid life crisis trip which I seized at age 51.

Lastly, we are not always talking guns. We usually do that on the section set aside for gun talk and not in the general survival section as was stated before. We have entire threads filled with stickies on every topic you have mentioned. This entire thread is in the wrong section and should have been moved days ago. If one does not want to use a firearm that is their perogitive, just quit promoting a superior attitude and tying to put a guilt trip on other people for their choices.

Now getting lost on a college hiking trip I can understand since most kids that age don't know where they are, where they are going most of the time and can't find their butt with both hands! (sorry Sparky you are an exception!) I always noticed that those college trip organizers always stressed leaving the guns at home but had plenty of tolerance for medicinal herb around the campfire. Probably not a good idea to mix the two and they made their priorities clear. Makes one ponder.

Truth is, you have to really search hard to find a wilderness in the lower 48 and you have to try even harder to get lost in it once found. 9 times out of 10 if you sit down and quit talking to yourself you can hear traffic on the nearest road.

Or you can just check your phone and see how many bars you have. If reception is poor climb that mountain peak and shout the universal cry for help...

CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW????