New Pricing. What are you seeing in your area?

[twarr1]

One of my 2 LGS has been getting ammunition in stock faster than it is selling and so are building up some stock. But... The least expensive rifle ammo is $2.00 per round. Pistol ammo is $1.00+.
I suppose the fact that a lot of it is still sitting on the shelves between restocking cycles means a lot of other shooters are refusing to pay these prices as well.
I think the prices will come down a little, but it will never be 2019 levels. I've seen the letters from Hornady, Winchester and others detailing the rise in commodity prices.

Curious what are pricing and availability are looking like elsewhere around the country.

 

[CoalCrackerAl]

I dunno but walmart sells pre-pandemic prices. Shotgun and rifle ammo.

 

[gobsauce]

My LGS sells ammo at cost. If people don't believe him, he'll show you the receipts.

 

[Bazoo]

My buddy came over with a new LCP the other day. He said he was lucky to find a box of ammo for it, kind I excitedly. I asked what it cost. His tone changed and he reluctantly said he paid $40.

 

[e rex]

I bought a pound of Unique last week for $37.26 + tax. A couple of bucks higher than I used to give last fall.

 

[WheelGunMan]

The same question is in the Hallelujah post.

 

[vintovka]

Just got a love note from FedEx. Seems they are very busy so adding a new surcharge to all shipments. Bet UPS does same. Cost of everything seems to be going up fast!. OSB was almost $70 last week and now there's none at any price. Just paid .73/ft for Rough cut 1 x4. Ouch!!!

 

[George P]

My LGS sells ammo at cost. If people don't believe him, he'll show you the receipts.

He can't pay the bills doing that; no business can

 

[gobsauce]

He can't pay the bills doing that; no business can

Sells a lot more guns though. Been in the business for 6 years or so, sold a lot more since the pandemic.

 

[George P]

There is still an added cost besides what he paid for the ammo. SOMEONE had to sign for it, unload it, stock it on the shelf, add it into inventory, and enter that into his computer inventory system. NONE of that is free or costless, even if he does it all himself. Rent/mortgage, shelf space, etc. has to be paid for. If he sells at his actual buying cost, he is LOSING money on every box he sells. If he is not selling for what his next replacement cost is, he is losing money.

 

[Skeptic13]

mostly empty shelves. that is what i am seeing.

 

[1942bull]

Today I bought 50 rounds of Federal HST 124 grain JHP for $59.00. My LGS had lots of it. I just checked some online sellers of the same ammo, and I think Ingot a good price.

 

[gobsauce]

There is still an added cost besides what he paid for the ammo. SOMEONE had to sign for it, unload it, stock it on the shelf, add it into inventory, and enter that into his computer inventory system. NONE of that is free or costless, even if he does it all himself. Rent/mortgage, shelf space, etc. has to be paid for. If he sells at his actual buying cost, he is LOSING money on every box he sells. If he is not selling for what his next replacement cost is, he is losing money.

Dude, I'm telling you how he does his business. It works for him, it makes him money, that's that. This is a gun forum, leave the analysis of his business for another forum.

 

[Agsalaska]

While the prices are still sky high, like a lot of other goods, supply is coming back rather quickly. All major cartridges are now available online and not just at Gunbroker.

I am always looking at prices and availability for LOTS of different cartridges. Seems to me that the two common cartridges that are struggling to recover the most are 30-30 and .243. Every other common caliber was widely available this week on the internets. I honestly have no idea why the other two are further behind. I guess the volume is there but the demand is overwhelming. I can see both of those being in high demand. Thee manufacturers could also just be maxed out on everything else and just delaying production. I hope they get caught up by deer season.

Locally, it is a complete hit or miss. Fortunately we have a few local shops that have raised their prices to the point where you are only buying it if you absolutely need it right now. So I have always found ammo, but have only bought maybe two boxes from them, both oddballs(.257 Roberts & .300H&H)

I have bought a lot from Academy this year. I make it a point to go there on a truck morning at least once a week. Usually about an hour after it opens. This morning I got a box of Hornady .270. But the only thing that makes it more than the morning is usually 5.56 and 7.62x39. Everything else is gone by the next day.

 

[George P]

Fortunately we have a few local shops that have raised their prices to the point where you are only buying it if you absolutely need it right now.

WOW, imagine that! A business responding to market conditions of supply and demand and pricing accordingly - who'da thunk?

 

[Frankl03]

Bought a couple box's of 9mm 124 gr fmjs for $18.99 a box of 50 at bass pro the other day. 5 box limit. Not pre pandemic prices but not $.70 a round. $.40 per round.

At Walmart I have bought 22lr for typically about $.05 per round recently.

National chains will still get the best pricing.

 

[AK Hunter]

I'm glad just to see ammo sitting on the shelf for more than a few minutes.
The longer it sits on the shelf the quicker all this ammo panic will be over.

 

[Riomouse911]

It could be the Biden bonuses have been spent, so the extra money used for buying high cost ammo isn’t around anymore. Without the extra $$, those prices look a lot more outrageous so more folks could be passing on it.

I’m seeing a bit of a slowdown on high bids on GB for some handguns (single shots, target revolvers, other non ccw-auto types). maybe some sanity will return there, too.

Let’s all hope these are signs that there’s some light at the end of the tunnel!

Stay safe.

 

[JR24]

Local farm store had some in stock today. 9mm was $19/50 for range ammo, 7.62 x 39 was $12/20. More quality HD and hunting ammo was around $1/round.

A bit more than before, but not all that much worse.

No primers though.

 

[Pat Riot]

I haven’t been pricing ammo in my area. I did buy some .45 ACP a couple of months at $40 a box. Mostly I have been reloading my own, but I went to the range Friday and they have their target reloads priced from $30 to $40 per 50 depending on the round. This guy at the counter got all flustered about it and was complaining to range staff about their prices. Then he proceeds to go from person to person complaining.
I was putting on my ears to go into the range as he walked up after I put my muffs on and started yammering about the price of target ammo.
I took my muffs off but still had my earplugs in so apparently I talked really loud and said “Buddy, there’s a simple solution. Give them back the ammo and go home or go shoot it and have a good time. Your call.”
I put my muffs on and went to my lane to shoot.
When I left the guys behind the counter didn’t charge me for my targets and asked if I wanted a job. I just laughed and declined.

Ammo is expensive right now. If you want to shoot, pay the price…or don’t. Simple.

 

[reloaded_in_pa]

LGS has more and more powder on the shelves. I picked up H4350 today. $5.00 more than last summer. $42 per pound.

 

[TheBruce]

I stopped at Scheels today on my way home from work. They had quite a bit of shotty ammo, though I didn't look at the price since I have more than enough at home to last many years. They also had a couple full shelves of 5.56 ball ammo, but $105 for 125 rounds. I sure don't need any more of that at that price! I have components to roll my own for less than 40 cents per. They also had plenty of 7.62 but it was even more stupid. I'm pretty sure the free money is running out. Pretty soon stores are going to have to lower their prices or they will run out of shelf space. Many people are no longer buying at these prices.

 

[FROGO207]

Well up here in Ellsworth ME WM we were able to go in maskless for the first day and that was good but still nothing, nada on the ammo shelves still.

 

[lsudave]

I'm sure the manufacturers would love for you to believe the new price of raw materials forces them to sell at very high prices.

So, how much has the price of materials risen, I would ask? Because $10 a box of 9mm range ammo is just a convenient round number... truth is, I wouldn't buy a case of ammo unless it was somewhere around $160 ($8 a box). $10 was the "you can find it anywhere" price. And yeah, it was good ammo- S&B, Fiocchi, MEN or Geco, etc. PPU was always bouncing around at that number, too.

Now, things are beginning to settle, and someone is going to try to set a new higher price- at first. Federal will say they have to charge $20 for Blazer Brass, or else they will be forced into the poorhouse. But then Fiocchi will come in at $18, then S&B at $16, then PPU will come in at $14... and then Tula will start flooding the market at $9 for steel cased (which has shot just fine for my guns this past year). Same for the retailers- there will be a high rate, then SGAmmo will come out with a lower rate, and Targetsportsusa will match them with free shipping.
Might be a year, maybe 2... but the forces of capitalism will push things down again (assuming there's no trade restrictions). There's simply too much competition for our dollars in play.

There was a big panic due to covid and the semi-related riots, and everyone cashed in. Now that the surge is over, things will catch up, prices will go back down, ... and people need to be smart about it. If you still have a case in reserve, don't feed the fire buying things now. Let it settle down.

 

[twarr1]

You have to look at the supply side of things as well. Pre-2004 copper was less than $1 a pound. In 2006, it was over $3. It's been in the $2-4 range since.
Yes, prices are inflated right now, and will eventually drop. I figure at some point there'll be a big dip when the weaker new players, both suppliers and consumers, get shaken out, then prices will stabilize. But probably not to 2019 levels. That's barring a black swan event like an early WW3 or an asteroid impact.