$10.00/1000 CCI 500 Primers!

[hps1]

Started to clean up the loading room yesterday and not a minute before it needed it. Wouldn't ya know, first rattle out of the box, I found 400 MT 357 Mag & 38 Spl brass....and that did it; the housecleaning went off the tracks.

I knew right where to find a box of 150 gr. SWC hardcast bullets on another shelf, so went to the ammo cans for some primers, and LOOK what I discovered there! A full carton of.........

Look at those price tags!

I don't shoot a lot of .38's, and haven't shot the .357 in years, but do carry my Mod. 60 whenever hunting. Most of the brass was from a lot of 500 rounds of factory reloads I got a deal on years ago and that's getting thin, so, that settled it.



Turned the 450 around for .38's and cleared the deck. Couple hours later.....



Then, right next to the MT .38 brass was a box marked, in big red letters, DO NOT FIRE....OVERSIZED! Opening the box I found 78 rounds of 7.62 NATO Match brass loaded w/150 gr. SMK's from old competition days (ended in 1999)???? Don't recall the details, could have been for service rifle or bolt gun, but sure enough, wouldn't chamber in the Scout either, soooo. Set up the old Herter's to pull the bullets, resized cases and transferred the powder/bullets case to case on the Dillon.

All in all, a productive afternoon, but still have to get in there and clean up the loading room and, wouldn't ya know, I'm now out of the mood . Wonder what I'll uncover next to distract me; doesn't take a lot nowadays.

Regards,
hps

 

[whughett]

1980’s prices, they predated the first primer shortage to this guys memory. Price doubled then doubled again over the next three decades. I’d bet a weeks pays your not alone in having/finding in storage components like that. Wouldn’t surprise me if there are more primers setting in home storage than in the pipeline at any given time.

My oldest is a union plumber. He and his partner did a side job in a house that was part of an estate sale. The found an old G&G cap and ball revolver and 5000 rounds of 22’s in a basement cupboard. The agent told them to take it. My son took the Ammo his partner the revolver. I’m still shooting some of the 22’s four years later.

 

[Walkalong]

shortage to this guys memory.

Yep, I still have few pre Clinton $10 or less per 1K primers.

Some folks here have them older than that.

When I started and primers were under a penny a pop I hardly even considered them in the cost of a reload. Powder was cheap too, your bullet by far decided the cost of pistol reloads.

 

[Steelworker]

!!!!! Per 10k????


The lowest cost primers I’m still using are $11/k Winchester stuff.

 

[Walkalong]

Whoops. Yep, $10 per 1K.

 

[Blue68f100]

The oldest I had was $7.50/k from the early 70's late 60's. May still have a few but the carton is gone. Powder was $5.40/lb but found a pound of Herco that has a $2.99 on it that's never been opened. Seal is still in tack with the metal square can.

 

[LiveLife]

Whoops. Yep, $10 per 1K.

I tell you, I wish I had bought more $12 per 1000 Wolf primers when Powder Valley was selling like 10 years ago.

Thank goodness I stocked up for retirement when S&B primers were $20/1000 and Winchester primers were $25/1000 just a few years ago.

Hopefully we won't be saying, "Dang, wish I had stocked up when primers were $30-$40/1000".

 

[hps1]

Whitman's closed in late '50's; I just loaded some 38/357 shot shells from this can recently.

Regards,
hps

 

[Walkalong]

My first 700X was purchased in a paper bag from a guy getting out of reloading. I shot a lot of lead in .38 Spl, .44 Spl, and .45 ACP with that stuff, very accurate, although W-231 beat out the 700X for me when I bought some of it (Metal 3 pound cans on sale at a gun show). Paid $50 total money for a 5Lb metal can of 700X at a show as well. I forget what the W-231 costs, but it was cheap, under $10 a pound, like $10 or $15 per can.

 

[Dead Eye Duck]

Glad I picked up primers when I saw them go on sale in the past. Hopefully after the election and the virus passes us, by prices will come back down.

 

[Steelworker]

I think that’s wishful thinking. Many people after sandy hook couldn’t find .22 because of the panic. It took years before I saw .22 ammo (besides shotshells) in my area. Years.

Now we’re in the worst primer panic in forever. It’ll take a long time before it evens out.

I hope I’m wrong.

 

[Erief0g]

I've still got about 15k of the Remington SPP that powder valley had on sale just last black Friday. $20 per 1000.

 

[Walkalong]

Now we’re in the worst primer panic in forever.

I'm not sure it is as bad as 2008, at least not yet, time will tell.

 

[Sistema1927]

I was digging around the other day and came upon a plastic shoe box that was full of all kinds of primers. I probably put them in there 10 to 15 years ago. Christmas in September!

 

[Bush Pilot]

The oldest I had was $7.50/k from the early 70's late 60's. May still have a few but the carton is gone. Powder was $5.40/lb but found a pound of Herco that has a $2.99 on it that's never been opened. Seal is still in tack with the metal square can.

I still have some I paid $7.89/1000 for and thought I was doing well. A month or so ago I was at a gun show and there was a guy selling Winchester small pistol primers for $20.00/1000. He said they came from a basement that had some mold. Although they looked fine, I passed. Iim kind of kicking myself now.

 

[dcarr]

I think that’s wishful thinking. Many people after sandy hook couldn’t find .22 because of the panic. It took years before I saw .22 ammo (besides shotshells) in my area. Years.

Now we’re in the worst primer panic in forever. It’ll take a long time before it evens out.

I hope I’m wrong.

so do i, so do i .

 

[Jim Watson]

The last primers I bought pre Covid/Floyd, Winchester was paying a 25% rebate.
Wish I had pushed it to the maximum $100 Instead of settling for $75.

 

[748]

When where primers 1 penny each?

 

[Sistema1927]

When where primers 1 penny each?

I am thinking that I bought my first box of small pistol primers circa 1972 for around $0.79.

 

[Walkalong]

When where primers 1 penny each?

Early 80's they still were around here.

 

[hps1]

When where primers 1 penny each?

I started reloading while in high school in 1952 and the gunsmith sold the only reloading components in town. His price for primers was $1.00/box. That was the going price for many years.

In the mid- late 80's, I was shooting competition and purchased primers by the case of 5000 for around $75-80 IIRC, or about $2/box. I was in charge of the HP rifle competition for our club in the 80-90's and set up group buys for components in order to cut shipping/hazmat fees, which helped a lot. I'm pretty sure 168 gr. SMK's were under $20/box...thinking about $16-17 in quantity??

Best recollection, in the 80's we were paying less than $100 for 8# jug of 4895 or H 450. We were buying Sierra Match Kings in sufficient quantities that they were drop shipped free from Sierra. Fortunately, at that time, I stocked up (according to then current shooting habits, which have since diminished considerably).

Regards,
hps

 

[crest117]

It might be of interest to all of you to take a look at our US Bureau of Labor and Statistics chart showing how inflation of our currency has affected our buying power. As an example, paying $7.00 for 1000 primers in 1970 would be equal to paying $47.19 for the same 1000 primers today. Does that $7.00 per thousand still sound like such a good deal? You can find the inflation calculator on line. Check it out. It will shock you how our government is stealing our savings by inflating the value of our currency.

 

[Swampman]

...It will shock you how our government is stealing our savings by inflating the value of our currency.

They are actually DEFLATING the value of our currency.

 

[Random 8]

It's amazing how much stuff is out in stockpile. I have a reputation amongst my shooting friends for using up "random stuff" willingly if the price is right. I do a lot of casual plinking in the back yard where precise loadings and testing for accuracy don't really apply. Currently working on 500 or so of those CCI 500s I traded some old fishing tackle for. They're loaded into .38s with some second-hand unique from the cardboard can that was given to me for free.

Last year, I finally finished some 4500 Federal factory bulk (for sale to employees) small pistol primers I got for about $5/thousand. They were in brown paper cartons !LOOSE PACKED! with only a size and lot number written in pen. I believe they are from the 1970s. All went "bang," the last 500 or so are loaded into 9mm cast loads. Widow of a long time bullseye shooter was happy to hand them off to somebody who would use them in exchange for a little coffee money. She said he bought literally a hundred pounds or so of them before he retired from FC with the intention of shooting them all up in his retirement. I believe if bullseye shooting had remained popular at our club, he would have succeeded. Unfortunately her grandson had taken all the brass and bullets to scrap, or I would have had a lifetime supply of .38/.357 stuff.