Well I found another reason for the popularity of .22lr!
Was in Big R yesterday( local ranch store) and when picking up feed asked the clerk if they'd gotten any .22lr in. He said ya, on the shelf even but it comes with an expensive target.
While walking over to see what he had he told me that when they get ammo in the Seniors from the home just down the road start flooding the place buying it up. He stopped one little old lady to ask her how much shooting she does as she was carrying five bricks. Her reply was that she thinks the end of the world is coming quick and .22lr ammo will be the new currency!
And all this time I'm thinking we need to stockpile buttwipe and garden seeds!?

she may be right

I must confess that I'm of the same mind set.

A LOT of those little ol' ladies buy the limits of ammo, and in an hour they are on Gunbroker at 3 times the price they paid...

It's what they do for money. Instead of going to work, they make the rounds of who sells .22 lr.

When the government is buying ammo, food and medicine; its time for you to do the same thing.

I think .22lr ammo is of little use other than plinking at this point. If it really goes to hell, .223,9mm, .40 is all going to be worth more by far.
For getting food I'll use my bow, and won't have a parade of people coming to see what's going on. In fact it would be a quiet defense as well.

My suppressed .22 ain't very loud......

a 25 round magazine of 22 rimfire would a bettr defense than a bow.

Better how?
With a quiet can maybe I'd agree. But I have little faith in a .22 saving my life and would never trust it to save my family. In the scenario of topic, quiet is good. Anyone who has something they are willing to defend, has something the rest of the mob will want. Be it food, supplies, Meds, etc. A bow is very lethal, nearly silent, and I have plenty of other options if it isn't sufficient.
The less attention you draw the better. If I have to get noisy, I'll choose something way more effective.

Pros and cons to each. A 22lr has killed a lot of people! A bow limits to strength and range as well as skill to shoot accurately. Bow will most likely kill more efficiently than a 22 unless a CNS hit?

A 22lr while small has many uses. It has killed a great number of people. While not a "stopper", it will kill. It has been rumored to be used for Hostage Rescue as well as riot control in Israel. It has further been used for assassinations.

With my experiences using a suppressed 22, Im more afraid of a sub sonic hp, than a fmj 45.

NEVER, underestimate what a 22 can do to you, put in the right place.

Not many people function well with a .22 lr in the head.

Exactly. Seems a lot of guys here underestimate the abilities of a good hp 22lr.

Granny might be right. Or not. She might not do much business with some of you fellas that shoot arrows or CF. What you need to keep in mind is that the nature of the tool only defines parameters. It is the operator that matters. The brain is the most deadly device we have.

Yep.

Not per pound.

I like .223 and 9mm ... but when the SHTF I want an M1 Garand and tons of 30-06

Anyone that would choose a bow over a .22 for defensive purposes has seen one too many Rambo movies.

Look what a .22 did to Reagan and Brady. And that was from a pistol.

It's the camo mentality. Would you want to be 45 yards from your target or 200? 200 gives you a little more head start once you're discovered.

i'd argue that the 22LR is the ultimate SHTF gun. you can fit probably 5k rounds in ACU cargo pockets and with a m&p15/22 and a half dozen 25 round mags, you would be a formidable foe. granted you ain't not match for a 223 range wise but i wouldn't want to be within 200 yards of the other end of my 15/22.

Some seem to look at the .22 as an extra loud pellet gun.

These threads always remind me of one of my tag lines: "Never under estimate the power of stupid people in large groups."

Took me a while to realize these guys are not joking around.

Nothing wrong with sincerity.

I'll take my Nylon 66 loaded with CCI Stingers over my Long Bow any day of the week for self defense & hunting.

And I'd take my cheap ass Marlin .22 mag bolt action rifle over both of those in a SHTF scenario.

That being said, I've got plenty 556 ammo for my 3 AR-15's & 5K rounds of 10mm for my Glock 20 if ShiiTT REALLY Hits the Fan.

And if it ever does, Food, Water, & Medicine will be the biggest concerns, IMHO

A quiet 22 and a brick of ammo will let you all of the above should you find need for it. GW

I don't advocate choosing it first always, but having had a full conversation with a guy bleeding from two .22lr holes in his chest while waiting for the ambulance I'm not impressed.

Anyone who thinks they are going to head shoot "bad guys" that are interested in taking you out better be practicing an awful lot.

Yes I know the arguement for using a .22lr and yes I have several and some ammo. Overall, I think larger caliber, popular ammo will be more valuable. Not attracting attention to yourself and how well stocked you are would be smart, however it's achieved.

I've not heard of anyone living through being shot with a bow. Then again, most bow shooters only shoot game or targets. Porch monkeys provide a lot of data on the effectiveness of handguns and ammo.

If I have a good .22lr, I can acquire any other gun I need, if necessary.

Hi Nate!

Glad to meet ya! I survived getting poked by an arrow many, many years ago. A cautionary note: One may shoot an arrow into the air, but there is a reasonable probability of discovering where it fell to earth.

Kids do the darndest things.

Wasn't there a post a while back from a guy that had been there done it in south america or somehwere when the SHTF and was saying how one has to live, how ammo and gold and silver were the only means of bartering, what guns and calibers were best etc, etc...?

Congrats Dan! I'd like to know the details as I used to play that game as well, but not with broadheads. I do remember someone saying they'd suffered an arrow trough the foot like on the movie with Adam Sandler now, but I was thinking more like a directed hunting arrow.
I have a "dumb" scar on my calf from a target arrow too.

Well, it weren't a broadhead. About 7-8 years old, long bow and field tips. Hold my coke and watch this!

Straight up it went. I realized it was coming down sort of in my direction. Run! Run! Run! Poked me on the right heel while I was in full stride.

My friends laughed at me. My feelers were hurt but not my foot.