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I have two choices in a truck gun. My purpose for this gun would be hunting, survival, self defense, and just to hand to another person in a a problem arises scenario. Chances of me ever using this besides property patrol is slim.

I have it down to these two choices. I know there are a lot better chocies but this is what I have. A Century Arms AK pistol in 762x39 for a Beretta ARX 22lr. Both are very small in size and cheap ammo. Both are low cost so they can get thrown around. I know 22lr isn't the best for hunting or self defense but I can carry a lot of ammo with it and the recoil is very managable for anyone. I'd like to hear everyones opinions here. AK pistol or a 22lr ARX.

Option 3: 18" shotgun.

I recently bought a Rem 870 Tactical with a one-piece 6 round tube, and I am very impressed with it. $319 at Academy, and remington is always running a $25 - $50 off mail in rebate. I can hit a 12" steel plate with the regular remington slugger rifled slugs out to 75 yards with just a bead sight.

I live in suburban Fort Worth, so I carry an AR under my back seat. If I lived out a little further, this 870 would be my truck gun.

I would get the AK pistol since I don't have an AK. But your situation might be different. I can't imagine handing off a weapon to someone else, specially if they are recoil sensitive. The first rule of a gun fight is bring your gun. They should have came packing already

AJSully421 wrote:Option 3: 18" shotgun.

I recently bought a Rem 870 Tactical with a one-piece 6 round tube, and I am very impressed with it. $319 at Academy, and remington is always running a $25 - $50 off mail in rebate. I can hit a 12" steel plate with the regular remington slugger rifled slugs out to 75 yards with just a bead sight.

I live in suburban Fort Worth, so I carry an AR under my back seat. If I lived out a little further, this 870 would be my truck gun.

+1 on the shotgun. several different load options from bird shot to slugs. while not as easy on the recoil as 22lr, it can be handled by the majority of people, either in a pump or semi auto. I keep a Mossberg 500 with 18.5 " barrel, a five round side saddle, and a sling with a light mounted on it. I also carry a 50 round bandoleer with it. while it is limited on the number of rounds available before reload, it will be a much better choice than a 22 for self defense purposes. I have never fired an AK pistol, so I can't comment on it's effectiveness as a truck gun.JMHO (edit: the light is mounted on the barrel not the sling)

My designated Truck gun is a JRC Carbine in 45acp, I carry two 27rd mags in the gun case with it, I could hunt with it if I keep the range around 50yds, but it's really intended for the chance that the locals or imports get nutz and decide to off people, they may get me but they'll have to work for it!

My concern is always securing the darn thing. At least with a pistol I can keep it on-body. For our trip to San Antonio, Austin and Hill Country this week, I decided to take 8 mags for my G19 and a Kimber Solo with 3 mags as a BUG. So that gives me 136 rounds of 9mm mixed HP and FMJ. If I need more, I plan to take it off the attacker.

Bitter Clinger wrote:My concern is always securing the darn thing. At least with a pistol I can keep it on-body.

This is my question as well. When people say "truck gun", what do you mean? A cheapie Taurus in the globe box I can see, but where do you store an AK pistol or a shotgun that's sufficiently out of sight but still reasonably secure and accessible?

Back in the day, everybody had gun racks hanging on the back window of single cabs, all but tickling your ears. But with 90+% of trucks now being crew cabs, that doesn't really work, even if you weren't concerned about theft. I know we used to keep a lot of stuff behind the seat of my dad's single cab F-100, but there was quite a bit of room back there for that very purpose, and it was easy to flip the seat back forward to get to it (I'm not even sure it had a safety latch of any kind now that I think about it). Maybe other trucks are different but that area behind the back seat of my Tundra barely has room for a rope or a folded tarp, much less a rifle or even an AK-type pistol of any size. It does have a couple of decent storage bins under the seat but they're somewhat difficult to get to because the seat is secured by two latches and you pretty much have to clear everything off the seat and floorboard to get it to fold down properly.

Scott Farkus wrote:

Bitter Clinger wrote:My concern is always securing the darn thing. At least with a pistol I can keep it on-body.

This is my question as well. When people say "truck gun", what do you mean? A cheapie Taurus in the globe box I can see, but where do you store an AK pistol or a shotgun that's sufficiently out of sight but still reasonably secure and accessible?

Back in the day, everybody had gun racks hanging on the back window of single cabs, all but tickling your ears.

It is astonishing to think how many of those there were, and how few of those were stolen, even from unlocked trucks.

The AK pistol I shot was extremely loud and had a fair amount of recoil. You can't put a stock on it without turning it into an NFA item, and even then you couldn't hand it to someone else without putting them in violation of the law. I really wouldn't recommend it as a truck gun. They are fun to shoot, though. If you want a concealable rifle in your truck, you might look at the Kel-Tec Sub 2000. It folds up small, they're relatively cheap if you can find one, and they're pretty beginner friendly. If you want something cheaper, look at a Hi-Point carbine. They are super cheap, easy to find, relatively small, and if it gets stolen, you're not out that much money. If you get one chambered in 9mm, the recoil is pretty much non-existent. Neither is a great choice for hunting, but they are really good for defense, and could certainly be used for hunting small game in a survival scenario. They are also really fun to shoot, and 9mm is about as cheap as you can get in terms of ammo I would trust my life to. Just my pair of pennies.

JALLEN wrote:

Scott Farkus wrote:

Bitter Clinger wrote:My concern is always securing the darn thing. At least with a pistol I can keep it on-body.

This is my question as well. When people say "truck gun", what do you mean? A cheapie Taurus in the globe box I can see, but where do you store an AK pistol or a shotgun that's sufficiently out of sight but still reasonably secure and accessible?

Back in the day, everybody had gun racks hanging on the back window of single cabs, all but tickling your ears.

It is astonishing to think how many of those there were, and how few of those were stolen, even from unlocked trucks.

Back in the day, if we were going hunting after school, we would bring our shotguns/rifles in the gun rack and leave them in the parking lot, doors unlocked, most of the time with the keys in it, in case your buddy needed to borrow it while you were in class. Never gave it much thought, but now I am paranoid about leaving anything, even an envelope with my address on it in the vehicle. Do I sound like an old man complaining about the good old days?

I have a single cab Dodge (yeah they still make them) I have fairly large storage area behind the seat. I keep all my roadside emergency equipment, my get home bag, rope, change of clothes, tie down straps etc.. I still have room to slide my shotgun in a soft case behind the seat, with my bandoleer on top of it. but I don't leave my gun in there if I am going to be away from it where it is out of sight. And even then I keep a close eye on it.

Consider a HiPoint carbine.

They're only 31" overall length.

They're inexpensive. $300.00 for a basic model and quite reliable.

They can be had in a wide variety of calibers.

Only drawback is their magazines carry only 10 rounds, but they make a bracket to carry 2 more magazines fully loaded on the stock.

If it gets stolen you aren't out a mega amount.

Well, since we're talking about 'back in the day' I can't resist it any longer. When my family & I were living out on our place up in Clay county, we had an old Ford, 2 door pickup truck, and Dad kept 2 guns behind the seat. An old Browning A-5 12 gauge, and a Remington 81 Woodmaster in .35 Remington. Kept both of them in soft cases. I begged him to get a 2 gun rack for the pickup( so I could have bragging rights) just like all my other friends had. But he'd have none of that. I guess he didn't want other people to know we had guns in our pickup like every other resident in the county had.

Abraham wrote:Consider a HiPoint carbine.

They're only 31" overall length.

They're inexpensive. $300.00 for a basic model and quite reliable.

They can be had in a wide variety of calibers.

Only drawback is their magazines carry only 10 rounds, but they make a bracket to carry 2 more magazines fully loaded on the stock.

If it gets stolen you aren't out a mega amount.

I agree with the Hi-Point carbine. I have the 9mm, you can also get them in .380, 40 & 45. It's a blast to shoot with very little recoil and it's been 100% reliable. My 17 year old grandson can keep his shots within a 4" circle at 50 yards with the factory sights. Like Abraham said, if it gets stolen you're not out a lot of money.

Of the options you mentioned I would probably opt for the .22LR because it's a rifle and I feel I could do more with a .22LR rifle than an AK pistol. AK pistols to offer little to me. They are compact but they are the least shootable to me.

I have pistols on me so any truck gun is going to be a rifle. Fortunately I have several options for a "truck gun"/"ranch use gun":

* I don't leave any weapons in my vehicle when I get home. I don't want anyone stealing them to use on me. Don't arm the criminal so he can break into your house and use it on you.

1. AR-15 Carbine-can be cheap
2. AK-47 WASR-Cheap
2. AR-15 SBR-Most favorite option, most expensive and least likely to leave the house to get left in the car.
3. AR-15 Pistol-Same length as SBR, no tax stamp required, With a sling and cheek rest on the buffer tube use of proper technique makes it a formidable workable solution with rifle ballistics. It is a "handgun" so LTC rules apply. Most used.
3. 12 gauge tac pump shotgun-a little long but inexpensive and effective. versatile
4. .30-30 lever gun-most handy, slender, easy to store, lightweight AK-47 power. I take it to have on me while not specifically hunting at my friend's ranch. Makes the most sense for deer and hogs as well as predators.

After owning HiPoints I can say that I am not a fan and I would not trust my life to them.

Scott Farkus wrote:

Bitter Clinger wrote:My concern is always securing the darn thing. At least with a pistol I can keep it on-body.

This is my question as well. When people say "truck gun", what do you mean? A cheapie Taurus in the globe box I can see, but where do you store an AK pistol or a shotgun that's sufficiently out of sight but still reasonably secure and accessible?

Back in the day, everybody had gun racks hanging on the back window of single cabs, all but tickling your ears. But with 90+% of trucks now being crew cabs, that doesn't really work, even if you weren't concerned about theft. I know we used to keep a lot of stuff behind the seat of my dad's single cab F-100, but there was quite a bit of room back there for that very purpose, and it was easy to flip the seat back forward to get to it (I'm not even sure it had a safety latch of any kind now that I think about it). Maybe other trucks are different but that area behind the back seat of my Tundra barely has room for a rope or a folded tarp, much less a rifle or even an AK-type pistol of any size. It does have a couple of decent storage bins under the seat but they're somewhat difficult to get to because the seat is secured by two latches and you pretty much have to clear everything off the seat and floorboard to get it to fold down properly.

I keep a cheapie Taurus in the center console. I am not leaving anything in my F250 that I can't afford to have stolen. I have a Keltec sub2000 9mm but I won't leave it in the truck. Have you considered one of those Henry survival rifles in 22LR. Fold up really small. I have one of the original Armalite survival (precursor to Henry). Has never failed me, easy shooter and 22LR like you want. I paid $49 new at Western Auto so you know how old mine is.