I have a Savage 24-V I bought new in 1977. It's .222 Remington over 20 gauge, 3" chamber.
Nice gun. The .222 barrel will put five 50 gr. bullets into a silver dollar at 100 yards, from a benchrest, with iron sights. It could probably do better, but my 57-year-old eyes can't!
I haven't shot it in a number of years, but when I was reloading for it I could get fine accuracy from it. Been thinking of having it rechambered to .223 Remington, but I'm not sure if the .222 rifling pitch is compatible with the .223 an its heavier, longer bullets.
I used to carry it in my vehicle as a survival rifle.
I agree with you, that an inexpensive shotgun/rifle combo would be a good rifle. I think a .357 Magnum over 20 gauge would be just about ideal for survival.
People forget that when it comes to real survival (not the fantasy in TV, movies and "survivalist" books and articles) most of what you shoot will be very small game: rabbits, squirrels, beaver, ducks, etc. Perhaps a deer. The U.S. Air Force concluded this decades ago, after a long study, and it's why it adopted the .22 Hornet over .410 bore (and the earlier bolt-action .22 Hornet) survival rifle.
The .22 Hornet might be good -- a box of cartridges doesn't weigh much -- but ammo is hard to find. The .357 would let you shoot .38 Special, .38 Long Colt, .38 Short Colt and perhaps even .38 ACP and .38 Super (since they're rimmed, they might have enough to grab the edges of the chamber).
Good versatility!
The 20 gauge, loaded with a modern, saboted slug, could take large game.
Throw in a .410 adaptor for the 20 gauge barrel and you've got even more versatility.
A hollow, plastic stock could open from the SIDE to reveal a metal liner to be used as a fry pan, with a small pot for boiling water. Within these, you'd have matches in a waterproof container, salt, cord, a Space Blanket, decent compass, etc.
The hollow forend could carry other supplies.
Add a sling that carries extra ammo in protective pouches and you're set.
Yep, been thinking of this concept for years!
But sure enough, some corporate weenie would want to have it chambered for .50 S&W or some other silliness.
Keep it simple. Keep it versatile. Keep it real and not some script-writer's fantasy.
