Ammo Stockpiles

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Some thoughtful person suggested it’s best to keep quiet, after seeing my posted quantity months ago.

Certain guys on AKfiles have similar quantities of centerfire ammo.

As a hedge against future bans on specific types of imported ammo or the next panic, some of us won’t ask anybody “Should I Now buy...?”
 
The Great Obama Ammo Famine taught me a lesson that I will never, ever, ever forget. We got caught a really short and in the middle of it while I was standing in line at Walmart to get a box of ammunition I promised myself that if things ever eased up I would never get caught short like that again.

We started buying online after the panic subsided. I sat down and did the math once and we were paying right around $12.00 a box for Blazer 9mm when Walmart was selling it for $16.00.

I prefer Speer 124 +P Gold Dots for self-defense and those aren't even available in a 50 round box around here. Even the 20 round boxes are close to a dollar a round. 1 case (1000 rounds) would last me 3 years rotating every year and I'm certain it's cheaper now than it will be in 2021.

We have a minimum but no maximum. If I can afford it I buy it. We have a certain amount budgeted to ammunition from each paycheck and when we have enough to buy a case we do.
 
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Probably need more, came up with this formula as a goal......

50 rounds a day = 18250 rounds a year = 182,500 rounds (10 year plan)
 
How much is enough?

Well if you are preparing for global chaos there is no "enough' while on the other hand there is the thought that if you have to shoot it out with anyone more than a two or three hundred rounds you are probably gonna be more concerned with a smooth guide into the great beyond. It gets pretty heavy trying to carry 500 or 600 rounds of x39 on foot if you have other gear to deal with so it's not like you can waltz off with a few k rounds into the wilderness if you have to leave your location.

From a practical point of view if you have a whole garage, room, or large closet dedicated to ammo and components that you can no longer enter because it is to full you should probably consider building a second garage, room, or large closet haha. That or just go shoot more often or find a 2nd hobby...
 
I figure I will run out of time before I run out of ammo. The Fire Marshal would not be pleased with me should he ever have occasion to check my stock of ammo and components. (but I’m not planning to invite him over)

And I’m busily testing and stocking new loads!
 
Well if you are preparing for global chaos there is no "enough' while on the other hand there is the thought that if you have to shoot it out with anyone more than a two or three hundred rounds you are probably gonna be more concerned with a smooth guide into the great beyond. It gets pretty heavy trying to carry 500 or 600 rounds of x39 on foot if you have other gear to deal with so it's not like you can waltz off with a few k rounds into the wilderness if you have to leave your location.

From a practical point of view if you have a whole garage, room, or large closet dedicated to ammo and components that you can no longer enter because it is to full you should probably consider building a second garage, room, or large closet haha. That or just go shoot more often or find a 2nd hobby...
This is what I tell the gun neutral/ uninformed folks in the lunchroom at work who seem shocked whenever the news mentions that thousands of rounds of ammo were found at an active shooters house. That ammo didnt hurt anyone. The only dangerous ammo is the couple hundred rounds you can carry.

I dont talk to the leftists or antis. Theres no point. Contact with them is best avoided.

As far as myself, I tried to rationalize my calibers a few years ago and eliminate some of the most difficult to find in North America. 8mm Mauser, .30-40, .303, and 6.5 Swede all went bye-bye.

My war fighting calibers get priority, of course- 5.56, 7.62x39, 9mm. But dont forget that when the balloon goes up, these calibers are going to be in high demand and get consumed the most quickly. They will also be valuable trade goods.

Its never a bad idea to have a few second-tier calibers. I keep fair amounts of .30-30, .243, and .38 spl. on hand as well.
 
I just recently went from 3 cases of each popular caliber to 5. Some I shoot without any concerns for replacement, like WWB. Others like wolf match target are a little harder to find in stock. So when I see them I buy as much as my wallet allows.
 
For those of you willing to share,
How much is enough?

I think it really depends on the shooter. If you're someone who shoots competition, league or just target shoots by themselves regularly, you are going to need more than the average one gun deer hunter, that shoot 3 rounds before season, just to make sure his rifle is still sighted in. One is talking the difference between having a few thousand rounds on hand to having a box of 20 or two on the shelf. Both are quite appropriate for each scenario. Like others here, most of my shooting is done with my reloads, so instead of boxes and boxes of ammo on hand, I have a fair amount of components. Part of the premise I see for "stockpiling" ammo is the incidence of shortages lately due to "Bannics". Some is just the personality of some folks to hoard. Sometimes I see it as almost a "hafta keep up with the Jone's" thing. If GunGuy@ has three thousand rounds he brags about on the internet....I better have 4 thousand! Years ago, when ammo was readily available virtually everywhere, almost nobody stockpiled or hoarded. They just went out and bought a box when they needed it. Now the fear that "I may never be able to get anymore!"(remember .22LR ammo a coupla years back) has some folks buying ammo they will never be able to shoot in their lifetime. Still it's their choice and their monies. Me, I don't feel a need to tell others what I may or may not have when it comes to ammo. I'm comfortable and confident with what I have.
 
"6000-7000 rounds"

Is that total, or for each caliber? I have a few hundred each of some calibers I shoot rarely (.30 Carb, 38 SPL, 38 S&W, etc), but lots more for my regulars. I probably have at least 25,000 .22LR, and 6000-8000 each in 5.56, .308, .303, 9mm, etc.
I want to shoot for the next 15+ years, and then have some "gold" to sell for my twilight years.
That’s total. I don’t really shoot any rimfire anymore so I’ve probably only got 1000 rounds of it. The rest is all centerfire.

So like I said, considering I shoot 38 Special, 357 mag, 9mm, 38 Super, 10mm, 45 acp, 45 Colt, 454 Casull, and 460 S&W mag, I’m very understocked. Working on my horde of components. Got around 30,000 primers now and enough brass for quite awhile. When I hit 40K primers, I’m going to focus on bullet stockpiles. Got around 20 pounds of powder too but that’s not enough.

The next year will be all about accumulation.

I need to do a real inventory.
 
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Yeah I think about the fact that if I ever had to haul A outta here on foot, I would never in a million years be able to pack more than a few mags as food and other supplies would take favor over 150lbs ammo.

I think about it more in terms of children, grandchildren. There may be a time where ammo cant be accessed. So I want them to have a good supply should they ever need it. Same with guns.

I have had some trepidation in sharing amounts and guns I have, but I think sharing on here is more like sharing with voices in the great beyond, pretty much anonymous. Chances of this stuff being earthed up in any measure is pretty much nil...
 
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I have a 3/4 ton Dodge.

If I put all the ammo I have in the bed the truck would ride a lot better.

If I put all the components in the bed with the ammo I'd be a rolling bomb.

Normally when going to the range I have somewhere between 5-7k rounds in the truck.
 
I have a 3/4 ton Dodge.

If I put all the ammo I have in the bed the truck would ride a lot better.

If I put all the components in the bed with the ammo I'd be a rolling bomb.

Normally when going to the range I have somewhere between 5-7k rounds in the truck.
They ain't gonna be trying to catch you "ridin dirty" lol. "Don't shoot, you'll kill us all"
 
.........he said right up until he moved. :D
I DID move - across country. The back of my pickup had everything the moving company wouldn't take - 50K in primers, 60# in powder, about 100K rounds of ammo from .22lr to 12 gauge, PLUS gas cans, chemicals, etc. Quite a fun trip. The moving company DID take about a ton of lead in the form of bullets and shots
 
I DID move - across country. The back of my pickup had everything the moving company wouldn't take - 50K in primers, 60# in powder, about 100K rounds of ammo from .22lr to 12 gauge, PLUS gas cans, chemicals, etc. Quite a fun trip. The moving company DID take about a ton of lead in the form of bullets and shots
Rock paper scissors on who had to drive to rolling bomb or? Lol. That's quite a haul.
 
For those of you willing to share,
How much is enough? Do you keep a certain amount and then rotate it out after a certain amount of time and how do you store it? Do you stockpile brass or steel cased?

I used to keep 1k rounds of my primary defensive calibers but I've changed my thinking lil bit. I'm going to buy and store brass and buy and shoot steel, for the most part. I've settled on a number of 5k for ea 9mm and 5.56. That sounds like a good healthy store for rainy days.....
During the last ammo shortage, I never ran out, but I did cut back on my shooting. I had a bit of anxiety leading up to a Gunsite class when I was going to need a couple thousand rounds. I ended up locking into a few thousand rounds a couple months before the class, and all was good.

I also carried a few friends through it with some .22 ammo. One with some 9MM. The one thing that would usually get me to fess up some of my dwindling stash was friends who took kids out shooting.

Fast forward to post ammo drought. I’ve been trying to determine how much is enough now myself. My numbers used to be about the same as the OP. Now, they’re somewhat higher.

Long term plan is simple...I’m retiring from work in 5-7 years, and don’t want to ever buy range ammo again. Reloading is a no-go (per my wife) so I buy factory rounds. Not sure how high the stacks will get, but they are growing...
 
I consider this question under the "Don't ask. Don't tell" category. Especially in the climate we are in today. ;):D
I generally feel the same. I wouldn't discuss these things openly with neighbors, etc... but I feel fairly confident what I say here is pretty safe. Not like someone is scanning the web logging IPs, names, amounts, etc... I think the government wants us to "think" they are that efficient. Like some omnipotent boogeyman force but all this, I'm pretty sure is only going to ever be seen by very few...
 
I consider this question under the "Don't ask. Don't tell" category. Especially in the climate we are in today. ;):D
I'm more worried about theft or fire then the Dems. At least for a few more years. After Trump's reelection I might reconsider my stance. Who ever comes after him might try to do some of our rights some damage. But you cannot worry only prepare.
 
I buy military ammo because it is sealed (primer and bullet to case) for longer shelf life. The so-called "battle packs" and spam cans are sealed too. OTOH, I also have "civilian" ammo whose shelf life I have no clue. Nor do I know the shelf life of primers and gunpowder. I did read Wolf no longer coats their steel case 7.62x39 with lacquer. Is it a good thing or a bad thing; I don't know.
I do know that everything has a "shelf live", but I don't know what it is, does anyone here know??? I did run a few magazines of 1980s reloaded 9mm through my S&W M59 and it went bang-bang.
The way I see it is simple. I have health insurance, vehicle insurance, home owner's insurance; as the garage is separated from the house, I have garage insurance. I have pistols, rifles and shotguns; IMO, they are the only "insurance" we can have fun with.
 
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