Perfectly justified fear, of course, but it really shows how things are getting scary. It was a really unsettling thread how everyone was sharing stories of their conservative relatives or neighbors who daily talk about killing them.

  • asaharyev [he/him]
    1·
    4 years ago

    Really wish I had $1000 to spare to get a gun license, a rifle, ammo, and proper storage.

    • Chred01 [he/him]
      ·
      4 years ago

      Just so you are aware, with 3 weeks of research and deal hunting I was able to build an AR-15 for under $500. I also could have done it about $100 cheaper, but I decided I wanted to hold out for a mid length gas system and an mlok railed upper. The ammo is expensive sure, but I picked up a gun case and a padlock for under $80, 3 magazines, and a couple boxes of 20 rounds of ammo each. It is still a big expense to be sure, but it can be done cheaper than $1000

      • asaharyev [he/him]
        ·
        4 years ago

        MA adds close to $300 to licensing before you can buy a gun.

        • Chred01 [he/him]
          ·
          4 years ago

          Sure. I got an Anderson lower receiver on sale for ~$45, I bought it online from sportsman’s warehouse and picked it up from their local store near me so there was no FFL transfer fee. Lower parts kit by Anderson as well, I got it for ~$40 from ar15discounts. Buffer tube assembly I bought was a cheap mil-spec one that was on sale for ~$20 and I bought a b5 bravo stock for ~$50, both from primary arms. I could have saved money there by purchasing a cheaper stock but I wanted one with good reviews. You can get them as low as $20 if you go cheap and wait for a sale.

          Lastly I bought a complete upper from palmetto state armory. Like I said I waited for one that met my specific requirements, namely I wanted it to be chambered in 5.56, have a midlength gas system, and have a mlok rail Handguard. This was by far the hardest part to find and wait for. When decent uppers show up on their site they sell out in about 30 minutes, so I had to set in-stock notifications fo ones I wanted. That cost me ~$320, but if I wanted to just get one that was 5.56, carbine gas system, and a classic drop in Handguard with a front sight post I could have managed it for around $250. You can also save some more money here if you buy one without a bolt carrier group + charging handle and buy those separately.

          So all totaled there I was at ~$475, then I bought a few milspec mags for $10 a piece and your done. Still need a hard gun case for storage, which can be found easily enough online, and ammo of course. Ammo prices continue to rise, ammoseek is your best bet for finding the lowest possible options.

        • furryanarchy [comrade/them,they/them]
          ·
          4 years ago

          This is a common idea, that a bolt or lever action firearm is even remotely comparable to a semi-auto when it comes to self defense or use in combat. It's false, completely false. In practice, such guns will give you a single shot, which if you miss (and you almost certainly will), you lose the opportunity. Either you get shot yourself, or your adversary ducks behind something. A semi-auto will give you several shots. Typically it is the second or third shot that actually hits. The idea of being a super accurate "sniper" is videogame bs. You are not any more or less likely to hit your first shot with a bolt-action than you are with a self-loader. You are however less likely to hit follow-up shots, if you even get the chance for them because it takes so long to require. Every military in the world has spent a ton of time and effort studying this and they all agree on these facts. Most of the combat effectiveness of a bolt-action rifle comes from deterrence and morale effects, rarely do they actually hit anything when you are also playing with machine guns and artillery.

          That being said, a gun you know how to use will always be better than one you don't. And for the exact same reasons, the gun you have is always better than the gun you don't have. But don't make the mistake of crippling yourself and putting yourself at a massive disadvantage by using a manually loaded gun when you can help it.