One of the all-time most popular posts here on Bug Out Survival is the piece I wrote back in 2010 on some of my ideas and modifications for fitting a Ruger 10/22 into a bug-out bag. The reason is obvious: the Ruger 10/22 has long been a favorite in a semi-automatic carbine of this caliber, and because of it's great reliability record and aftermarket support, many people planning to carry a .22 long gun as part of their bug-out equipment would prefer to have this model over most choices out there.
The 10/22 is a compact carbine even in its standard configuration, and even more so with a 16-inch barrel, but until recently, if you wanted to conceal it completely inside the average backpack or bug-out bag, you needed to either fit a bulky and somewhat heavier aftermarket folding stock, or take the receiver out of the stock as I described in the above-mentioned post. I've carried the 10/22 both ways on various wilderness trips. Folding stocks such as the Butler Creek model I used completely change the balance and feel of the weapon, and add a lot of bulk inside the pack when folded. Taking the standard rifle apart works, but does entail some risk of losing internal parts if you're not careful, and takes a lot more time than simply folding a stock.
The new take-down version of the 10/22 brings a whole new reason to choose this weapon, as you can now have one of the best semi-auto .22 carbines in existence with the packability of other take-down models such as the Marlin Papoose and Henry AR-7.
Here's a video introduction to this new 10/22 model that shows just how easily it can be taken apart and put back together:
For serious packing of a bug-out bag, I would certainly lose the bulky, fitted backpack it comes with, though this may be a handy way to carry it in other situations such as in a vehicle or boat. I haven't picked up one of these yet, but for $300 I probably will and look forward to comparing it to my other 10/22 rifles.
Whether considering a rifle for the bug out bag or for other purposes, I have a strong preference for short, handy carbines, and few rifles can meet that description better than the Winchester Model 1894 Trapper. I've owned one chambered in .30-.30 in the past, but my current favorite is this one in .357 Magnum. This is the pistol caliber carbine I mentioned in Bug Out that goes along so well with a revolver chambered for the same round. While I would still choose a compact .22 if I could only take one firearm for wilderness survival purposes, if at all possible, this handy little levergun will go along as well.
This slim lever-action rifle carries easily in the field, with or without a sling, and weighing only 6 lbs., it would be no great burden considering it's capabilities. The .357 Magnum version is more than adequate for deer at reasonable ranges and can do the job for protection against dangerous animals, although I would choose the .44 Magnum or .30-.30 version if I were in big bear country. The nice thing about the .357 Magnum is that it can also handle .38 Specials for smaller game and cheap plinking. The only hitch with these rifles chambered in pistol caliber is that you have to experiment a bit with different brands of ammunition to find the ones that feed reliably. This was never an issue with the .30-.30 I had.
Here, you can see just how compact this rifle really is, with an overall length of just 34 and a quarter inches.
Here it is compared to a Saiga AK-47 with an ACE folding stock. Overall length is very similar, but the AK is much bulkier and heavier. Of course they have different purposes, but there is some crossover in the utility of each. The Winchester is more refined in every way, with regards to fit and finish and within it's effective range it is more accurate, making it more suitable for survival hunting. I love how quick it is to handle and how it comes to the shoulder and points naturally. The AK is more of a beast, but with a whole lot more firepower potential with its 30-round mags, of course. The Trapper in .357 Magnum holds 9 rounds in the tube plus one in the chamber. In .30-.30, this capacity is reduced to 5 in the tube. But, one thing nice about a lever gun is that you can top off the magazine at any time between the shooting, adding rounds as soon as they are expended. In a modern combat role, the lever action rifle that won the West is sometimes referred to as a "CAR" (Cowboy Assault Rifle)!
The Trapper version of this Winchester is short enough to fit in some large backpacks fully assembled. I used to carry my .30-.30 that way, with the butt down and just a couple of inches of barrel protruding from under the backpack flap on my large external frame pack. I would simply put a nylon tent pole bag over the end and when hiking in places where I might encounter some park ranger or game warden, they would never guess I had a rifle in there. But if you really want to make it disappear, you can remove one screw and slide the butt stock right off, as shown below. This leaves the longest part at 24 inches. So many of the best bug out firearms options break down to 24 inches that I would never consider a backpack that didn't have a 24-inch deep compartment to be a valid choice for a serious bug out bag.
Keep in mind that this rifle was not intended to be taken down this way and I wouldn't do it all the time. For bugging out purposes all you would have to do is break it down once to pack it and then put it together once you're out in the boonies. By threading the screw back into the receiver you won't lose anything and you can carefully wrap and pad the receiver with spare clothing in the bag. This is the same concept as packing the Ruger 10/22 the way I described it in a previous post.
Here is another view of the Trapper and the AK, with the Trapper broken down and the AK's stock folded and magazine removed. The AK is still bulkier, but it has the advantage that it can be fired in the folded position if necessary.
Now for the bad news. Winchester stopped production on the Trapper several years ago, so what was once a $300 rifle has now soared in value as a collector's item. I found the one pictured on Gun Broker last year in brand new condition for a reasonable price. I've seen them going for as much as $1K, but if you look around, you might come across a used one at a gun show or in a pawn shop. Other options that are similar and still in production are the Rossi Model 1892 and the Puma. Marlin has also made limited runs of their lever carbines with a 16-inch barrel.
To explore the possibilities of the lever-action rifle as an alternative to semi-automatics like the AK-47 and the AR-15, I highly recommend you visit Gabe Suarez' Warrior Talk Forums. Although Gabe is a guru of the modern AK-47 in a combat role, there is a sub-forum on Warrior Talk called "Fighting Lever Guns" that any fan of these rifles will find of interest, as there is lots of discussion on calibers and makes, as well as applicable tactics. Gabe is also offering classes on gunfighting with lever guns. See below:
The Ruger 10/22 is an all-time favorite among many rimfire enthusiasts, and for good reason. It's a reasonably priced, lightweight, reliable and infinitely customizable auto-loading carbine chambered for the .22 Long Rifle cartridge. The 10/22 has long been one of my personal favorites when it comes to semi-auto .22 rifles, but in its standard configuration, it's not often marketed as a "survival rifle" in the way that purpose-made take down rifles such as the Henry AR-7 and the Marline Papoose are. I've owned all these various survival rifles at one time or another, and all have gone with me on some of my long wilderness trips. But given the choice, I would take a 10/22 over any of them. It was never a problem to slide a standard, wood-stocked 10/22 into one of the long storage compartments of my sea kayak or into a duffel bag in the canoe, but how do you fit one in a backpack or bug-out bag?
In my book I make the case for having a take-down .22 survival rifle inside the bug-out bag and away from the prying eyes of the authorities or others who may take an interest in it, especially in an urban bug-out situation, where firearms may be confiscated as they were in New Orleans after Katrina. There are folding stock options available for the 10/22 that can solve this problem, and I've used them many times, but never really warmed up to them. I really like the handling of this great little carbine in the standard wooden stock. And the folding stocks are much heavier and add the bulk of a pistol grip that is really not necessary in a survival .22 rifle. Once such stock that is still available is the Butler Creek Folding Stock Butler Creek also made a take-down folding stock for the 10/22 that was much more practical, but is no longer in production.
To keep the look and feel of the carbine stock, I decided to customize mine for my own requirements. The main criteria regarding fitting it easily in the bug-out bag for me was that the longest part had to be 24-inches or less. To that end, I took a Ruger 10/22 Compact model, which comes with a 16-inch barrel, and mated it with a cut-down carbine stock from another 10/22 I have that is currently residing in a Butler Creek folder. The entire barrel and receiver assembly for the 10/22 Compact is just 21 1/2 inches long. The overall length of the Compact in the factory stock is 34 inches and it weighs just 4.5 lbs. - a good place to start. Here's what is looks like in factory configuration, the other stock pictured will be explained next:
I didn't want to mess up the nice new stock that came on my new 10/22 Compact, in case I want to sell the rifle later, and besides, I like the traditional buttplate style of the carbine stock anyway. If you don't have a spare carbine stock like this, you can pick one up on Ebay all day long for about 25 bucks, as so many people take these off to install all sorts of "tactical" stocks on the 10/22, as well as target and precision hunting stocks. In this photo you can see the difference in the stock lengths, and the piece I cut off the carbine stock. I cut it to a total length of 23.5 inches, which meets my requirements and still leaves plenty of forearm to grip when shooting. After all, remember the Marline Papoose and the AR-7 have no forearm forward of the receiver at all, forcing you to grip the front of the receiver or rest the barrel on your hand. This cut-down carbine stock is comfortable for me and I'm 6'-2" tall. It's also extremely lightweight.
After cutting it down, I reshaped the fore end and sanded away all the fake walnut finish on the birch stock. I then coated it with clear epoxy resin to make it impervious to the elements.
Although the naturally-finished wood looks better than the fake stain (did I ever say how much I hate stained wood - being a professional boatbuilder and yacht carpenter?) I decided to spray a coat of green Krylon Fusion over it to keep in the spirit of a "survival" rifle. I now have a handy 10/22 that fits within the 24-inch package, which is plenty short enough to disappear inside a decent sized backpack.
The 10/22 is not meant to be a "take-down" rifle, but the fact is that there is only one screw attaching the receiver to the stock (the Compact model does not have the barrel band). You can assemble this by tightening down this one screw with a screwdriver blade on your multitool just as fast as you can put together a Papoose or AR-7. Sure, you have to be careful not to lose the screw, or the take-down pins that hold in the trigger assembly, but for bug-out purposes, the rifle is going to stay disassembled until you get out of Dodge, and then will likely stay assembled and in use for the duration of whatever SHTF event sent you packing in the first place. I simply slide the receiver end into one of my spare socks inside the pack, the take-down screw threaded in place. The stock and barrel can be protected inside a sleeve or pants leg of your spare clothing - or you can get fancy and make a custom case for the two parts.
The main thing is that when you do need it for survival hunting, you'll have a well-made, reliable rifle that is easy to carry and handle in the field.
I'll be posting more about this set-up in the future, as well as some of the other Ruger 10/22 options and other .22 rifles you may not have considered for the bug-out bag.
Gabe Suarez recently posted on Warrior Talk News some interesting points about the current prices of rifles and ammo, particularly his favorite weapon, the Kalashnikov. If you're not familiar with Gabe and his excellent books, DVDs and training courses in the use of Kalashnikov derived rifles I highly recommend you visit his Warrior Talk Forums or his main website, Suarez International.
I've found some of the most knowledgeable firearms folks around on the Warrior Talk Forums, and I highly recommend it as a one-stop source for info not only on Gabe's favorite, the AK, but on a wide variety of handguns and rifles suitable for combat and self-defense. These discussion forums include sub-sections on the AK, the M4/AR-15, Fighting Lever Guns, the SKS, Glocks, Combat Handguns, Bolt-Action Rifles and many others.
I'm also a big fan of AK rifles, not as something I would carry for a wilderness bug-out situation, but definitely for post-disaster aftermath defensive purposes such as in the wake of Katrina or some similar SHTF situation. I've mentioned the 7.62 x 39 Saiga here before and will be posting more about it in the future. The AK has a lot going for it due to simplicity, low-cost, and effectiveness within it's design limits. Speaking of low-cost, as Gabe points out in his article, you can once again get into the Kalashnikov game for a small investment now that the crazy gun prices of late 2008 and 2009 have settled back down somewhat. He gives these examples:
Romanian AK-47 GP75 in 7.62x39 - Price about $425
Romanian WASR-10 in 7.62x39 - Price about $370
VZ-2008 (VZ-58 Copy) in 7.62x39 - About $430
Yugoslavian M70 in 7.62x39 - About $465
Bulgarian AK-74 in 5.45x39 - About $330
Polish Tantal in 5.45x39 - About $390
And ammo:
5.45x39 ammo (7N6) as low as $120 for 1080 rounds
7.62x39 ammo (Wolf) as low as $200 for 1000 rounds
Mark Knopfler's song Cleaning My Gun in my last post reminded me of a job that needed doing this morning: stripping and cleaning my Kel-Tec Sub-9 carbine that I'd stashed behind the seat in my truck and forgotten about for awhile. The Sub-9 is a compact carbine that's easy enough to misplace, seeing how it's only 16 inches long when folded:
This folding feature makes it extremely handy and readily concealable. Folded away, the Sub-9 will fit unobtrusively in a lap top computer bag, brief case or many other everyday bags. It can be folded with a magazine locked in place, and deployed almost instantly by unfolding it and racking the slide to chamber a round.
Many readers are probably familiar with the Kel-Tec Sub-2000, which is the current version of this carbine, but may not have seen a Sub-9. The main difference is that many parts the Sub-9 are built of aircraft grade aluminum rather than the polymer utilized on the less-expensive Sub-2000. The main reason Kel-Tec changed the design was to get the production costs down. I got lucky when I found this one that a friend had and bought it at good price along with several mags. The only downside is that mine is set up to use S&W Model 59 mags rather than Glock 17/19, which would be ideal. The mags shown here are 25-rounders, and though they won't interchange with my Glock 19, this set up still represents a respectable amount of firepower in a small package.
The folding configuration is ideal, but unfortunately none of these Kel-Tec carbines, in either the Sub-9 or Sub-2000 version come in a suitable caliber to make good primary bug-out weapons, as the 9mm and .40 S&W are far from ideal for hunting. But for a general purpose, concealable truck gun or close-range carbine, one of these could be very handy for SHTF. I've found mine to be absolutely reliable, with no malfunctions in well over 1,000 rounds, and the accuracy is decent out to about 100 yards. More on the current Sub-2000 at the Kel-Tec website: http://www.kel-tec-cnc.com/sub2000.htm
This is my pair for urban survival where the threats are on two-legs and hunting is not an issue - Saiga AK in 7.62 x 39, with Ace side-folder stock, and Glock 19 with full-capacity mags.
Neither would be high on my list of choices for bugging out in most scenarios, as I wrote here.
I like guns a lot and over the years have owned just about all the ones that I found interesting; buying, swapping and selling and still ending up with more than I can use, much less carry in a bug out situation. Here on Bug Out Survival the subject of firearms in general will naturally come up frequently.
I grew up hunting in rural Mississippi, and when I was first allowed to take off into the nearby woods on my own at about seven, my hunting rifle was a Benjamin .22 caliber pellet gun - very effective in slaying the wild gray squirrels that thrived in the tall mixed oak and pine forests of a nearby creek bottom, so long as I waited until they came closer to the ground. That single-shot air rifle that had to be pumped up about 10 times between shots taught me a lot about making every shot count and the importance of patience in stalking close or waiting on game to approach. Later, when my dad trusted that I wouldn't do anything stupid, he let me take the old Savage single-shot 20-gauge shotgun. With a long barrel and a full choke, using number six shot, I became a real threat to the local squirrel population and occasionally brought home a rabbit as well. Not too long after, I got my first .22 rimfire rifle, a bolt-action, tube-fed Marlin Model 781 that I still have today. I came to love the .22 for its versatility and the ease of carrying lots of cartridges, though I really didn't need many for hunting, because that rifle with a 4-power scope was a tack-driver.
Most people discussing survival firearms on various blogs and forums on the Internet agree on the usefulness and versatility of the .22 rimfire rifle, and I'm no exception. I've seen .22 rifles used to bring down everything from deer to wild turkey and all manner of small game. In the jungles of Nicaragua and Honduras, along the Rio Coco and Rio Patuca, the Miskito Indians I've trekked with used well-worn, rusty Marlin Model 60 semi-auto rifles to shoot monkeys and birds the size of turkeys high up in the rainforest canopy. Then, coming to small, clear streams, they would turn these same rifles to the task of shooting fish. They didn't question their ability to take the occasional deer as well with the same rifles. They were very effective hunters and we ate a variety of exotic wildlife at every night's campsite.
These Marlin .22 rifles were not the only weapons these guys had, by any means. In every village there are at least a few AKs around, left over from their struggle with the Sandinistas. These were the real thing, of course, not the castrated semi-automatics we're allowed to own here. But ammunition for them was precious, so it was not wasted. I saw one fired only once from a dugout canoe - our river guide taking a shot a crocodile that quickly sank from view, whether hit or not, I don't know.
I like the AK as well when it comes to defensive firearms and will be discussing that type of weapon here as well, including my favorite variations, and other combat weapons such as Glocks, AR-15s, etc. I'm also a big fan of leverguns and one of my current favorites is the Winchester Model 1894 Trapper, with the 16-inch barrel. Combined with a suitable revolver in the same caliber, this is a great compact and lightweight bug-out combination that can do most everything, from defense against human and animal aggressors, to hunting deer-sized game at reasonable ranges, on down to small game with .38 Special rounds.
But if I could take only one gun that would have to do for everything, it would probably be one of my .22 rifles, whether that trusty old Marlin Model 781, the Ruger 10/22, the Winchester 94/22, the Marlin Papoose or the AR-7 Explorer.
This is just an introduction to the subject, I will certainly get more specific as time goes on and I get around to posting more photos and articles. I will also look forward to your comments and would love to hear your thoughts on bug-out firearms as well as see photos of your favorites.
that goes along so well with a revolver chambered for the same round. While I would still choose a compact .22 if I could only take one firearm for wilderness survival purposes, if at all possible, this handy little levergun will go along as well. 
Butler Creek also made a take-down folding stock for the 10/22 that was much more practical, but is no longer in production. 
