I have a dilemma...
 

I won a gun in a local fundraiser. :23_30_104: Actually it's a gift card for $400 from a local retailer to go pick out a gun. They do not carry handguns. Just a somewhat limited supply of rifles and shotguns.

In a nutshell...there's nothing I "need". I'm covered for battle rifles, hunting rifles, shotguns, .22's...

You have $400 in your hand that you must spend on a gun...

What are you going to buy?

Just looking for ideas and reasoning. I spent an hour there on Tuesday and left empty-handed.

Suggestions? Help me out.

And no, "give it to me" is not an option...

Re: I have a dilema...
 

buy a couple .22's ( depending on price )

i think .22's are undervalued as a deterrent weapon, especially against gun-phobia sheeple

Re: I have a dilema...
 

Buy yourself a couple of Marlins...:wink:

Re: I have a dilema...
 

A cheap .22 rifle or two to train others with! (or as gifts to young responsible relatives)

*I see no handguns :-(

Re: I have a dilema...
 

Buy more ammo. Maybe 20 bricks of .22 and the rest in .308. Can't go wrong with ammo.
Opps, I re-read your post and I see it was for a gun, In that case, go ask the retailer if you can use it for ammo.

Re: I have a dilema...
 

I agree. It's a gift card, I am sure you can talk the manager/owner of your situation and ask to purchase ammo instead.

Re: I have a dilema...
 

That's the first thing I thought of...Ammo :ok: You got a good knife?

Re: I have a dilema...
 

�You might be a gun nut . . . �

If you win a $400 gun store gift card, and can�t think of anything you don�t already have . . .:biggrin:

Re: I have a dilema...
 

As others have said, see if ammo is an option. You could also buy something and then sell it or buy something with the intent to barter it later. If you have a couple of friends or relatives in your SHTF network that need a gun then you could look there as an option.

You could buy 3 Mosin Nagants and some Ammo and arm your neighbors.

Re: I have a dilema...
 

Sell it on Craigslist.

Re: I have a dilema...
 

That's a nice problem to have.

Re: I have a dilema...
 

Can you buy ammo with the $400?

Re: I have a dilema...
 

Get 4 Mosin Nagants.

Re: I have a dilema...
 

I would get 2 mosins and 2 440 round tins of ammo.

Re: I have a dilema...
 

Get a .50 or preferably a .54 cal. muzzle loader and put it away with some sealed Pyrodex RS or tripple 7 FF powder, and primers.

M/L's will probably be overlooked by gov't at turn-in or go to jail time, and you'd be surprised just how much "stuff" you can ram down the barrel of one of these babies: nails, ball bearings, marbles, short pieces of barb wire, fence staples, rocks, clad dimes...you name it.

Re: I have a dilema...
 

The idea of Mosins and .22's seems like a winner. Think of it as free handouts to friendlies for emergency situations.

Re: I have a dilema...
 

I like the Nagant idea, but they don't have anything even close to that.

Ammo? No thanks. I can buy all the ammo I want, the wife never says a word about it. But walk in the door toting another new gun, and her hackles get up a bit. However, since I won this one, she's OK with it. Think of it as a get-out-of-jail-free card for a new gun...

Anyway, I spent some time at the shop again this evening. My eye kept getting pulled back to a Marlin 336 lever action 30-30. Why? Because I don't have anything like that, and I remember my grandfather hunting with a lever action 30-30 when I was growing up.

Did I get one? Nope. Moved two guns to the right of it and walked out with a new Stainless Steel Marlin Model 1895 Guide Gun lever action chambered in 45/70. I got the lever action I wanted in what is by far the largest caliber rifle I own. You can almost stick your thumb down the barrel. (Which, by the way, is only 18.5") It eats 325 gr bullets. Stopped at my buddy's house on the way home to show it off, and we had to try her out. It's almost closer to "cannon" than "rifle".

What am I going to do with it? I have no idea. I do go bear hunting every year, maybe I'll carry it for that next year. All I'm sure of right now is I carried a heck of a big gun through the door and the wife actually asked to see it. Didn't pitch a bit@h at all!

I'm a happy guy tonight!:s9:

Re: I have a dilema...
 

Congrats! :applause_ Those are nice guns and it should be perfect for bear hunting!

Re: I have a dilema...
 

Sounds like a good choice. Congrats!

You know, I really can't relate to that dilemma :no_ma:...Even if you already have something, redundancy is a good thing. :yes:

Re: I have a dilema...
 

.45 Cal Rifle can't be all bad...:ok: Beefy Round:

300 (Trapdoor) Lead PB 1,597 ft/s (487 m/s) 1,699 ft�lbf (2,304 J)
405 (Trapdoor) Lead FN 1,394 ft/s (425 m/s) 1,748 ft�lbf (2,370 J)
300 (Standard) JHP 2,069 ft/s (631 m/s) 2,852 ft�lbf (3,867 J)
300 (Strong) JHP 2,275 ft/s (693 m/s) 3,449 ft�lbf (4,676 J)
Test barrel length: 24"

Re: I have a dilema...
 

Looks like geting a Marlin while you can was a good choice, although the article states operations will be set up elsewhere, I'm not sure I'd be too happy with a Mexican or Indian made Marlin...

Marlin Firearms to Close Next Year
Remington Arms' Marlin Firearms to close in 2011; 265 workers to lose their jobs
The Associated Press
1 comment NORTH HAVEN, Conn. March 26, 2010 (AP)
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Marlin Firearms Co., a 140-year-old company which made a gun that was a favorite of Annie Oakley, is closing its Connecticut plant, company officials said Friday.

Workers at the plant in North Haven say they've been told all 265 employees will lose their jobs.

Jessica Kallam, a spokeswoman with Madison, N.C.'s Remington Arms Co. Inc., which owns Marlin, said the Connecticut plant will close by June 2011 and employees would be offered severance and help finding jobs. She said Marlin is relocating its manufacturing operations to an undetermined site.

Kallam could not confirm if all employees in Connecticut are losing their jobs.

She read a company statement that says Freedom Group, which owns Remington, must reduce its costs to remain competitive.

"Although long term prospects of the business look positive, economic factors beyond Freedom Group's control related to increasing costs and pricing pressures within the firearms industry are impacting the entire Freedom Group of companies," the statement said.

Remington Arms bought Marlin for nearly $42 million in 2007.

Marlin's Web site says John Marlin opened the company in 1870 in New Haven after having worked at the Colt plant in Hartford during the Civil War. The company says its lever action 22 repeater was a favorite gun of Annie Oakley.

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory?id=10208259

Re: I have a dilemma...
 

Great choice for a light caliber gun....lol..

Re: I have a dilemma...
 

A SS Guide Gun in in .45-70 is a really nice rifle! Good choice, enjoy!

Re: I have a dilemma...
 

Spend it all on 22LR ammo.....it will never be cheaper.

I've been stacking away many cases over the years....it only goes up in value.

Re: I have a dilemma...
 

That's about half way to a Beretta Xtrema2. They run around $800.

Maybe a little wheeling and dealing with the retailer can bring that price down. YOU DID WIN THE FREE COUPON ANYWAY. Why not see if your luck is holding.

Re: I have a dilemma...
 

I thought I was all set with shotguns, until I saw this.:23_30_104: Where in the world can you get one for $800?; I've seen 'em about twice that.

Re: I have a dilemma...
 

OK, here's one that is close. But not at $800. Sorry.

$987
http://www.ozarkguns.com/Beretta/Ber...ma2/xtrema.htm

I see them on Auction Arms, Guns America and Gun Broker occasionally. But the ones that are listed BELOW $1000 don't last more than a day or two.

THEY DO COME UP. You just have to be willing to have the money and ACT as soon as you see one. That's how you get one for $800.

OR wheel and deal with the guy whose gift certificate you are holding. The chances are he just GAVE the foundation that certificate. He had no idea what it would be used for. So TALK to the owner. Or who ever signed the certificate. Tell them what your thoughts are.

You might be surprised. If he/she decides that a happy NEW customer buying a high end shotgun for his cost MIGHT be good business. Like I said, you might be surprised.

Re: I have a dilemma...
 

Gunpowder in bulk?

Cross Bow? Compound bow? Blow Guns?

Poison tree frogs?

2 step viper? They might get in, out is another story.