The FAL is a fine gun, so why did I get rid of mine and get the two Hklones? This question came to the girlfriends email. She said I might want to post a response but I demurred, saying that anytime you get into the ‘gun-x vs. gun-y” argument it rapidly devolves into flamewars and ‘agree to disagree’-fests reminiscent of the 1980’s Atari vs. Commodore vs. IBM vs. Apple threads….except the computer kids mostly didn’t have automatic weapons.
Succinctly, the biggest reason, for me, was economics. Within parameters of what I wanted in a .308 semiauto the PTR’s came out on top…not because they were ‘better’ than the FAL but because they were economically more advantageous while still keeping the qualities I wanted in a .308.
The HK series has its problems – lack of a last-shot hold open jumps to mind. And the FAL has some sweet ergonomics… but, as I posted some time back, for the price of 100 FAL mags (used) I could (and did) buy 260 G3 magazines. Plus spare parts are, for the short term, dirt cheap. Example: I have four extra stock sets that cost less than $100 total.
And while I love the FAL, the best clone out there, the DSA, clocks in at around $1300+. The PTR, probably the best Hklone, dealers at less than a grand (barely).
Don’t think Im selling the Hklone short…its functioning has been flawless and its accuracy beats the FAL (with open sights). I probably trust it more than the FAL and confidence in your defensive arms is a huge thing. Huge. Force multiplier huge.
So….I think both are great guns and youre well served by either. If youre on a budget the PTR might be the better value.
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Article on the news about Zimbabwe raising the price of corn around 700% to fund subsidies to farmers to encourage them to…grow more corn.
I am officially starting the countdown clock on Mugabe. The level of dissatisfaction is growing down there and unless theres some amazing wagon-circling, Bobby Mugabe is headed for exile or assassination. Most likely exile…some nation will buy him out to retire to Saudi Arabia or something. Bloodless coups seem the preferred thing these days. Probably South Africa will make a deal in order to ensure some regional stability. Last thing they want it a refugee problem at their border, they can barely hold their own act together.
Why is this blogworthy? Hyperinflation examples in contemporary times aren’t too frequent. Argentina comes to mind. Argentina is far more advanced than Zimbabwe and in Africa economic chaos or the complete lack of economic policy at all seems to be the norm. But its interesting to see the effects… dissatisfaction as the poor get squeezed, the affluent start getting their parachutes ready, the police.military get the royal treatment to keep them loyal, popular support wavers, protests erupt, get crushed, erupt again, and in the end a black Mercedes makes a nighttime run to the airport as rebel factions loot the palace. Seen it before, see it again. These things happen the same whether its third world Africa or imperial Germany…although Germany made some poor leadership choices in hopes of getting out of their economic morass.
There are a few blogs out there from Zimbabwe and they talk about rolling blackouts, lack of fuel, lack of water, no public transportation, commercial deliveries of goods being disrupted, etc, etc. Its positively…New Orleansian.
Recent increases in fuel and food prices are not foreshadowing of some epic inflation ( or hyperinflation) episode in this country, in my completely uninformed opinion. However, they do make me think about economics in general and how it relates to me and the girlfriends security. (By security I mean our ability to be fed, warm, clothed and sheltered…physical security hasn’t been an issue for us since we learned which end of a barrel the bullet comes out of.) I know little about economics beyond ‘don’t pay more than you have to’ and ‘its gonna cost more later’. I am, of course, willing to learn more.
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Speaking of future security, I have officially gotten the page up for Group Buy #5. This is the Mountain House #10 cans available as singles and cases, instead of just cases. So…if you want one can of Lasagne, one of Beef Stew, one of breakfast food and one of Chicken and Rice now is the time.
If you’re unsure what your tastes run to, order up a ProPack in the flavor you want (top right frame of the website). I recommend the Spaghetti, Lasagne, Teriyakis, Chicken w/ Rice, and Spicy Chicken. I’ve heard good things about the Chicken ala King as well. Its also worth noting that the ‘base’ foods (the vegetables, and FD meats) are an excellent choice if you’ve got a 100# drum of rice and want something to add to it to make a more interesting meal. Heck, 100# beans, 100# rice, a case of FD corn, peas, green beans, and chicken and you can make some good food sometime between now and 2030.
Prices on the MH will be going up before the end of the year. Bank on it. Also, one good hurricane or earthquake and expect product availabilities to shift hard and fast. Prepare and prevail.
Speaking of long-term storage food. Remember the bucket o’ ‘survival food’ that CostCo was selling? Its reduced to $99.99 and I bet its still not going to have too many takers. When Hurrican Katrina, LA Riots, and tsunamis aren’t on the news no one gives any thought to being prepared. Im the opposite….when things are going well I think ‘This is gonna come to a screeching halt annnnnny second now….’
Wait…here it comes: Honeybee die-off threatens food supply
ah the price of
always goes up with the price of fuel, or when a crisis hits home, or even an “event” like Y2K. a good buyer should always be aware of this, along with the usual scams and con artists out there.
and yet amazes me how well the average joe and jane will not pre-perpare before an event, usually perfering to buy at the last minute or do with out, as the event looms before them.
wait to see the prices jack up on food and honey, never mind the price of fuel involved in production to transport of said items.
real question is, can Americans deal with a homegrown famine? shall find out soon, aho,ho, ho! Wildflower 07
Re: ah the price of
Agreed. However, the price of honey is already going up. I have bought quite a bit of honey from a beekeeper at the Job, but if you compare prices even as short as three months ago honey has increased significantly.
Crom
Aaaah! I was just about to email you the link about the honeybees! 🙂
I might be quiet over here…but I’m reading! I am back in full support mode of what J has been doing to get us ready. He’s just been plugging along at it for quite a while. Oh…you’re going to love this one, my niece, who used to be in the army and is living in an army base town had an overstock of MRE’s. I guess that whatever they don’t use they have to get rid of so that they will get the same supply amount from the goverment for the next round of manuvers. (I don’t understand it all…but yeah…..it’s the government.) SO….she, and her now ex-hub (now deployed in Iraq) had this stash of MRE’s…..BOXES of them. She’s single, moving, and just wanted to clear her closet….long story short, J drove the few hour drive immediately before she just threw the lot away and came home with over 6-8 large boxes of stuff.
Muahahaha…. 😉 I thought you’d appreciate the score! 🙂
Re: ah the price of
I agree, and beeswax getting harder to find too. in the real end, those whom can gouge a higher price for anything sold will do so. on the other hand starving people will do strange things to obtain food. and you all worried about the “bird flu”. Wildflower 07
Choices….
Greetings Commander!
I think you made the right choice with the PTR. You can’t bet those cheap magazines, parts are available, and it’s a rock solid platform.
There has been a fair amount of talk lately on various boards about “consolidation” both caibler consolidation and weapon colsolidation. What are your thoughts? Should a person stick to just one rifle caliber and one handgun caliber or should a person diversify as much as possible as long as they can support each weapon with ammo, spare parts etc.?
I think you have over-thought the FAL vs. HK situation. From your own writings, you have illustrated you don’t put an above-normal volume of fire through them, or run them particularly hard. So other than the occasional lemon or lost part, do you see yourself replacing parts that constantly in your lifetime? Do you see yourself losing and breaking mags(beyond a simple rebuild like spring changes) at a rate that you’ll need more than 100 to replace them in your lifetime? Even if the world went to hell and you and the misses were opposing an enemy force, do you think you’d want to engage the enemy that often, just the two of you? I think under any possible situation, the difference in costs would have been small enough to not be an issue.
weapons
Any weapon that has proven itself reliable is probably a good choice. I have started downsizing my arsenal (50+ guns, 100,000 +/- rounds) and beefing up my transportation, increasing medical, food, fuel supplies. If I have to haul it all will it fit in my vehicles?
Some feel that a big firefight either makes the big bad guys notice you and therefore become the focus of their efforts or makes you full of leaky holes. Being able to skedaddle to the boonies with LMI’s while keeping a low profile may be the better route to survival. If they don’t know where we are they can’t get us and our stuff. IMHO.
Not all the extras are for replacements. Many are for splitting up between multiple locaions. Additionally, that one big box of magazines may have to be split up amongst several guns. When you start doing the math, under those circumstances 100 isnt very many.
Let’s just end it here: Anyone who’d sell an FAL for an HKlone must be a goddamn Nazi. 🙂
Godwins Law! Thread closed!
Don’t suppose you can point my toward the “barely less then a grand” dealers? The shops around here are running around $1400. I got a price of $850 from a kitchen table FFL acquaintance, but frankly I dont trust him enough to risk that kind of money.
Lew Horton.