...or maybe not just one....but he makes an argument for FEW vs more...
https://youtu.be/IX-G8BQUs3A?si=80V8z7a4NeYfemRr
...I hate this guy...
But he is right.
Now I realize that for 'fun' it is fine to 'collect' a bunch of whatever, but if the goal is to survive/protect/hunt, you really just need a FEW, that you have shot A LOT...
1 a full size handgun
2 a most-things rifle
3 a most-things shotgun
4 a rimfire rifle or pistol
After that maybe
5 a rifle for other things
- bigger game - if you live in Alaska or whatever
- farther targets - if you live in Wyoming or whatever
- nighttime use - if you live where most of us live
6 a handgun for other things
- more concealable - if you live where CCW is socially frowned upon (and presuming you actually care…
)- more power - if you're in bear country
7 a shotgun for other things
- reaching out more for bird hunting
After that it is not for 'practical' but becomes a hobby
8 - target/competition guns
9 - historic/collectible guns
10 - 'sets' or guns with cool mechanisms, etc...
"The best 'spare parts set' is another identical firearm..."
Yep. Not a 10%-better one with different parts and operation. Just a boring clone of the primary one.
Wish I'd seen this video in 1985 or so; haven't bought a gun since then that I couldn't do without. Optics and lights are much better now, but every 'essential' gun I have could have a high-end thermal on it if I had spent money on optics versus incrementally 'better' guns.
Part of the problem is it's emotionally difficult to sell off unneeded guns because these days everything seems to be perpetually on the verge of being outlawed (and on top of that, you can't sell anything for a profit without being labeled a 'gun dealer' according to the recent legislation...
). Still, I've forced myself to 'purge' the herd over the past decade, and if you set aside say 20% or so of the proceeds to upgrade an optic or buy practice ammo, it eases the pain of thinning the herd, and you still have some money left from the sale you can use to pay bills and use for practical things. My 'used' guns are generally dinged up enough with wear and tear that making 'excessive profit' isn't something I've had to be concerned about, and I never really invested in 'collectibles'. I think the biggest thing to open up my eyes over the years was the constant introduction of new 'miracle cartridges' that seldom accomplished anything different than 50-year-old cartridges could do just as well. Occasionally there are cartridges introduced into the AR platform that duplicate older cartridge performance but do it in a semi-auto rifle, which is kind of nice, but other than that there's not been really anything ballistically new. Even things like 300 Blackout or 6.5 Creedmoor can't do anything older cartridges couldn't do from a ballistic standpoint*. Certainly nothing that my skill set could take advantage of.
* if you think about it, it’s all about the bullet. Within each diameter of bullet, there is a range of available lengths, and the longer bullets generally have better ballistic coefficients, and higher sectional density, but usually weigh more, so require more powder to launch them at equivalent speeds. so it’s pretty much a matter of picking the diameter and weight of bullet you want to launch, and then getting a cartridge big enough to hold the powder necessary to launch it at the speed you want. The only real difference in cartridges at that point, becomes what actions they can fit in and subtle differences in terms of case shape that affect powder burning - things that competitive match shooters can discern, but certainly not me.
