I've never shot the Ruger, but I love my Browning Buckmark. Stainless with a bull barrel would be a sweet setup.

I pack a stainless M6 Scout in .22 hornet with the 410 gauge shotgun in my survival pack. Not sure how good I would be w/ a hand gun for varmint or things at longer range.

TD

I had a Browning Buckmark. Flawless pistol. But when I was in high school a buddy of mine had a High Standard Sentinel with a 6 inch barrel. It's a 9 shot .22 long rifle revolver. Very nice. They were also sold under the J.C. Higgins brand. The older the better I'm thinking. The one he had was Nickel plated with ivory colored grips.

Like this:
http://www.gunsamerica.com/923329082/Hi ... -R-107.htm

FWIW regarding "it must be stainless."

Stainless steel resists rust but is softer than carbon steel. Match barrel makers love it because being softer it's easier to cut precisely. Both regular carbon and stainless can be black nitride treated. The cured coating is actually a lubricant and decreases friction and heat making the barrels last longer. But we probably don't use 'em enough for that to be a real world factor.

Hard chrome, chromium over a separate copper plating, is also used to prevent corrosion. Properly done chrome will outlast stainless, which is only corrosion resistant, not corrosion proof. Chrome is often used for high rate of fire barrels, as in full automatic weapon use. Hopefully, your neighborhood does not require that sort of rate of fire. Chrome linings also impart a small accuracy penalty that isn’t there with black nitride. Again not enough to be a real world consideration.

Just my $0.02 but IMHO black nitride is a better choice for general purpose use.

Jackie

PS

I also think that a revolver is a better choice for a survival kit. It can fire any ammo that will physically fit without feed or cycling issues even if you have to spin the cartridge and then physically eject a split case with the cleaning rod. But you have one of those right. Plus the learning curve is short if some of the members of your party are not familiar with firearms.