"Asking for our opinion, then laying down rules?

I personally use .22LR rounds. Not too much kick, but they can still f*ck sh*t up. Also, they're small and relatively cheap."

"Yeah, I was kinda meaning the other one, too."

"Really this answer comes down to personal circumstances. Even if ..30-06 is the perfect z-poc round, I only have 9mm, .36 and .357.

Now tuck in that some weapons won't feed or eject certain types of rounds correctly... i.e. DevilDogMP has an AR7, which "seem" to have a notorius habit of feeding poorly inexpensive, underpowered .22 rounds. You can see how this question gets had to answer.


For me it's like so: 9mm is Federal Hydrashok 147 +p+ JHP
.357 Remington Golden Saber JHP
.36 ammo I make for my self, plain lead balls"

"I would say 12 guage... buckshot is probably the best load... for zombies. Other rounds may be more well rounded for a general survival situation."

"No matter how many shells you can carry, you'll never shoot every target you see. Personally, I plan on using stealth and melee to conserve ammo at every possibility. Even if I used .22, I don't believe that I could carry enough rounds for 1/3 the population of my town(roughly 36,00). Planning to survive really only has a little to do with what gun and how much ammo, and more about how you will keep your self out of danger and away from things that need shooting."

"I'm a coroner man, I don't buy the whole .22 mystique... I see lot's of other rounds bring me business, .22 rarely does. I can carry roughly 1,000 rounds of my 9mm, and I'm sure that number is way lower for 12ga.
My point is this: No one caliber can be counted as best... this thread is a perfect example, you insisted I give a "best" caliber and then immediatly found a reason why it isn't best. You are asking for an opinion, but want it to sound like fact... not gonna work. A caliber that is sure power is heavy and expensive, a caliber that is in-expensive is prabably not lethal enough(opinion again) etc, etc."

"I personally think the 12 gauge is the overall "best" round.

In addition to being able to deal with zombies, it's extremely effective one human targets, as well as large game and birds. I wouldn't want to try duck hunting with a .30-06.

For rifles, I'm actually a fan of the old .30-30. It's cheap, low-recoiling, powerful enough to deal with most threats, accurate out to the ranges I feel comfortable shooting at, generally chambered in easy-handling guns, etc.

Finally, for handguns, I'd have to say the .357 Magnum. It's powerful, accurate, easy-to-find, and very versatile (being able to fire the .38.) Also, it can be used for hunting at close range, which is another plus.

But, I don't believe you can put the term "best" on any one caliber. It all depends on the circumstances and the competency of the shooter."

"Not so sure I agree. Check out this link (http://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=57072)

The post is authored by Doctor Gary K Roberts, a well known & highly respected medical expert on the subject of terminal ballistics."