Air rifles provide backup firepower as well as relatively quite firepower.

While a struggle to reload, the Girandoni Air Rifle provided soldiers with the ability to kill or injure at long range, using rapid fire and relatively silently.

For modern preppers though, what makes the gun so attractive is its sustainability. Think of everything that goes into the making of a modern day bullet. The copper jacket, the lead, the gunpowder, the primer etc. While you can learn how to reload bullets, ultimately you have to rely on civilization at some point to restock your supplies. With the Girandoni, all you need is lead, a fire and a cast. And since there is no gunpowder involved, the gun is going to be very easy to clean.

It’s the most logistically simple firearm ever made. If you had to endure a long term survival situation, an airgun like this would keep shooting long after you ran out of ammunition for your other firearms. And with modern manufacturing processes, the gun could probably be built with a more robust design, and with longer lasting parts. Modern rifling could also make it far more accurate than its predecessor, and turning it into a semi-auto firearm would certainly be feasible. Making the magazine spring loaded would also be an easy fix.

While several replicas of the Girandoni have been made in recent years, it’s never been mass produced, and no modern air rifles have been able to perfectly match it. There are, however, several guns out there that have matched its lethality. They’re referred to as “big bore” airguns, and are capable of taking down very large animals. But so far none that I have seen have had the same ammunition capacity. Being able to put so many rounds down range so quickly would give you a fighting chance against anyone with a modern firearm, should the situation arise.

Hopefully, someone out there is thinking of bringing this gun back, or at least a modern day approximation. When they do, sign me up for the first model. I wouldn’t want to leave civilization without it.

The Girandoni Air Rifle had flaws to be sure, but for its time, it was accurate, lethal, silent and easily maintained.

On today's market, air rifles are more rugged, but still have their flaws – like needing to be much closer to larger game and having to have very accurate shot placement.

To learn more about the Girandoni Air Rifle, please visit Ready Nutrition.