/AKM/ - Guns, weapons and the art of war.

This guide will be purely talking about equipment. There are many other resources for training and organizing. I will leave out anything that requires further knowledge, this guide is meant to be accessible NOT in depth. This guide is meant to be shared to people who do not own a gun or are otherwise ignorant. If you have any suggestions or corrections I will edit it. Once the final product is complete I will turn it into a pdf and a simple image guide to be shared. This is a collaborative project so if you think something I said is stupid, let me know.

You need a semi-auto rifle, specifically an ar15.
They're accurate, lightweight, high capacity, and can shoot quickly.
An ar15 is recommended due to their customization and versatility. Parts and ammo for an ar are also very easy to get (at least in the US). The 556 round has proven time and time again to be effective. Sure an ak might look cooler but they are often more expensive and not as reliable as an ar. This guide will be US centric so a lot of the advice maybe won't apply to you if you live elsewhere.

Ar15 Basic Guide:
You can save money by getting a separate lower and upper. They're easy to put together. The upper matters a lot, the lower much less so. Oftentimes complete ars will have an overpriced lower so buying just the upper and the lower separate can save you quite a bit.

Handguard style: I always recommend M-Lok. It's lighter and better than keymod and allows easy attachments. I honestly don't see any reason to choose anything else unless if you just don't like the feeling of m-lok for whatever reason in which case you can research alternatives.

Length: The length you'll likely end up using is 16", this is as short as you get without dealing with any annoying laws. For whatever reason anything below this is much more of a hassle to get. 16 is a fine length anyway. A 20" will shoot the round faster and a bit further, but the military decided to move away from it in favor of a shorter length. I don't think the extra speed makes enough of a difference to justify the extra length. As for going shorter the rifle will get less accurate but for close quarters combat (such as inside buildings) this is preferred. Specifically an 11.5" is a great option. Remember though the military used 20" barrels inside for years. If they can do it so can you.
Tldr: Buy a 16"

Brands: Now this part depends heavily on your budget. If you're well off I would recommend just buying a complete Daniel Defense ddm4v7, it's high end and out of the box simply works. (Around $2k) The next runner up is a BCM upper and an aero M4E1 lower. This is still pricey but cheaper than the ddm4v7 and has 99% of the performance. You can also get a Smith & Wesson M&P 15 Sport III for around $700. There are many other brands but these are just to give you an idea of what's out there. There's also PSA guns for under $500 but honestly you're betting on this thing to protect your life, you may as well spend the extra money.
I got to go to work so I'll continue this a bit later. I'm going to write up parts about Pistols, Holsters, Plate Carriers/Armor, boots, Gloves, magazines, optics, etc.