John,

What would be your weapon of choice, other than your bare hands, if the zombie attack were to begin tomorrow?

Chris L.

ZOMBIE PREPARATION#1

Interesting that you should ask, as Captain Jim and I had a similar discussion over a SoCal Margarita the other night.

I think you have to break things down into two categories: Wish vs Practical. The Wish encompasses anything you might have seen on YouTube or heard about on a forum but might not be practical in terms of availability or sourcing of ammo. Lets face it, when the zombies attack you will need something that is both useful and common in ammunition. Where as the Practical includes weapons you have experience with, ones that could be carried with some ease and could actually purchase. I live in California where the Zombie Invasion is bound to start, and also the most liberal gun state in the country. And I do not mean liberal in a good way. A sub-category divides this list even further as I break distance down into Close & Personal and Far & Away.

Wish for Close & Personal

  • Auto Assault-12 (AA-12) is a fully automatic shotgun developed by Maxwell Atchisson. The weapon is selective fire, operating as a semi-auto or in fully automatic mode at 300 rounds per minute. It is fed from either an 8-shell box shell or a 20 or 32-shell drum magazine.

ZOMBIE PREPARATION#2

  • Glock 18c – a fully automatic handgun chambered in 9mm with high capacity magazines.
  • FN 5.7 – lightweight and accurate with low recoil, a large magazine capacity, and the ability to penetrate anything when using certain cartridge types. 20 shots on target with little to no recoil makes this a favorite.

ZOMBIE PREPARATION#3
Wish for Far & Away

  • FN Scar Heavy 7.6x51mm – Lightweight, selective fire semi-auto and full-auto 7.62 rifle with a short stroke gas piston and interchangeable barrel. This favorite of operators in harms way is reliable and useful.
  • H&K PSG 1 – The PSG1 means “precision marksman rifle” and is a semi-automatic platform by the German company H&K. The weapon is chambered in 7.62x51mm and is a tack driver.
  • CheyTac M200 Intervention – A bolt-action sniper rifle manufactured by Randy Kobzeff for long-range soft target interdiction. It is fed by a detachable single stack magazine, which holds 7 rounds. It shoots .408 or .375 ammunition. CheyTac states the entire system is capable of delivering sub-MOA accuracy at ranges of up to 2,500 yards (2,300 m), one of the longest ranges of all modern-day sniper rifles. This one was featured as #1 on the list for “Top 10 Sniper Rifles” for the Military Channel. With a price tag of $12,000 and limited availability this lands #1 on the wish list.

ZOMBIE PREPARATION#4
Practical for Close

  • FN 5.7 – We find our first weapon to make both lists…the FN is lightweight and accurate with low recoil, a large magazine capacity, the ability to penetrate anything when using certain cartridge types and 20 shots on target.
  • Benelli M4 – a semi auto shot gun made by Benelli USA. Their motto says it all…Simply Perfect.

 

  • ZOMBIE PREPARATION#5H&K 45 – this new handgun platform from H&K is smooth and powerful chambered in .45 with high capacity magazines.
  • LMT AR-15 chambered in .223 and .308 – LMT’s piston AR’s are an industry standard and with interchangeable barrels puts this one at the top of the list.

Practical for Far & Away

ZOMBIE PREPARATION#6

  • AI .338 Lapua – Two words…Accuracy International. A clean, bolt-action rifle chambered in .338 Lapua with collapsible stock that is accurate out to a mile.

ZOMBIE PREPARATION#7

  • Barrett M82 A1 in .416 – higher muzzle velocity than that Barrett .50 and more accurate. Offered in semi auto means 5 shots on target up to 2400 meters. The only hard part is dropping the coin on the optics to match the range. Night Force or US Optics are a must.

DESERT SHIELD
I have a bit experience with a few of the weapons on the list. After all there isn’t much to do in Kansas City and living down the street from a shooting range makes it convenient. Most KC nights were spent shooting with Kyle Turley. And while all the weapons on the list are impressive, they are only as good as the person handling them.

Giving someone with little to no range time an AI .338 Lapua and asking them to make a 1600 yard shoot is like giving someone Jack Nicklaus’ golf clubs and asking them to win the Masters. I have been fortunate enough to receive great instruction on handguns, rifles and long guns and nothing beats practice.

Now all you need is a Kifaru pack to haul it all and you should be good to go.

*The list above is just a hypothetical list and TTMJ does not make any recommendations or condone the use of these weapons. After all do you think zombies will really attack…