Stockpiling Ammo

[gbw]

I think I'm seeing a lot of folks buying / stockpiling ammunition lately, in really large amounts.

Just an opinion, of course. I understand keeping enough around to keep shooting for a month or two - until there is time to buy or reload more.

Beyond that, maybe a couple of hunderd rounds. But if what I'm seeing is correct folks are accumulating many many thousands of rounds.

This is very expensive.

Why do you stockpile ammo?

I can think of 2 answers that sort of make sense:

1. To hedge against future price increases. OK, but given the huge runup in costs lately that strategy may no longer be economically sensible, if it ever was.
   
   
2. Expected future need v. future unavailability. Given the political and economic landscape this may be a reason. But I don't get the huge quantities - is this so one can keep shooting for sport or pleasure? Or for some other reason? (I have seen a couple of times reference to SHTF, but I can't think of any sceneario where large quanities of ammo would be of much value. If one is apprehensive enough then a case might be made for storing medicines, food, fuel, spare parts and the like, but why large amounts of ammo? Perhaps I'm missing something).

Anyhow, just curious about it.

 

[ThrottleJockey]

Ever wonder how much ammo a revolution takes?

 

[AllAmerican]

Yeah, what the ThrottleJockey said.

 

[gbw]

Yes, that did occur to me. But it's unrealistic, a Walter Mitty dream. I mean this very respectfully, because I am curious about how folks are thinking these days. Unless you are quite wealthy, it takes far more than you would have any hope of buying and keeping around, presuming you ever had a circumstance where you could actually to use it. That seems to me very doubtful.

 

[Jorg Nysgerrig]

Ever wonder how much ammo a revolution takes?

None, actually. It's just that it is much easier to pile up ammo then actually getting involved and making a difference. Let's nip this revolution nonsense in the bud. This sort of chest-thumping on the internet does nothing for the for RKBA movement or the mission of THR.

 

[kirklandkie]

I am kind of guilty of stockpiling but not like some of these other nuts are doing.... i have an ar 15 and got an amazing deal on 1000 rounds of 5.56mm (210.00 bucks ). so you might say i'm stockpiling yes
oh and i already had 150 shotgun shells before any of this nonsense, bought those well before we knew obama was a candidate (had gift card to cabelas).
then the typical 300 or so .22's i have
that covers all of my edges, though i am running low on .22's. but i shoot 100 of those in a range visit at a bare minimum

-kirk

 

[gbw]

Hi KirkLandkie: You're really not the guy I'm asking about. Good deals justify themselves, and I'd jump on one too. But at the last gunshow I attended, I saw folks literally buying multiple cases of thousands of rounds. And they were not good deals at all - at least not in recent historical pricing.

Mr. Moderator: If this is too out-of-bounds for the forum, lock or delete, my apologies.

 

[TimRB]

I just wish people would slow down a bit. I haven't been able to find any powder, primers, brass, or boolits for months.

Tim

 

[azhunter122]

I didn't really stockpile but I have about 5,000 rounds on hand right now and about 600 rounds of .22 LR with no .22! lol. Those rounds are mostly from before Obama was elected. I haven't bought ANY ammo lately becuase I don't want to pay a bunch more than I normally would and I don't want to encourage any more buying (I really want the panic buying to stop).

 

[jlg]

I bought 100,000 rounds of 5.56 and I've been practicing shooting with my toes so when the government comes to take my guns away I can shoot all 4 of my AR's at the same time.

I even made make-shift claymores out of marbles and bottle rockets.

The way I figure, I can take on at least an Army regiment or two if not the entire US military.

 

[jr45]

I am with azhunter. I have several thousand rounds of various calibers that I accumulated over the past 5+/- yrs (I stopped buying around the Sep 08 time). The deals were too good so I bought them when on sale (mainly online). Since I also reload, I have not purchased any new ammo for the past 5-6 months. I'll use what I have and hope the cost will come down.

 

[mcdonl]

Wow.... This is about the first "gun nuts" thread I have seen on THR....

Revolution, give me a break.

I just need some large rifle primers so I can enjoy my hobby and they are just about imposible to get.

Leroy

 

[rbernie]

For all of the concern that I've been reading for the last couple/three months on the Internet about how folks are stockpiling ammo and EBRs - I have to admit that I'm just not seeing that.

There are several gun shops in my area that I visit at least once a week to socialize and browse. I have repeatedly and specifically asked the owners and key store personnel if they were seeing 'bulk' purchases of ammo or EBRs, and both said no. In both cases, they indicated that their sales uptick was large but driven by numbers of customers. The average customer was spending more (since EBRs cost more than BDLs) but on the ammo side they're not seeing any tendancy towards large purchases.

At all.

I dunno why folk feel the need to conclude that 'folks are stockpiling' - that's just not happening in the shops that I frequent.

These shops (North Dallas area) also have been able to maintain a decent ammo supply despite the fact that WallyWorld evidently cannot.

 

[HoosierQ]

FWIW the only reason I have done anything like stockpiling at this point is simply because so many others are doing it, I want to be sure and have sufficient rounds on hand to go to the range and shoot when I want to.

I am not stockpiling because I think the stuff is going to get banned. I can't imagine the price dropping though even though the price of commodity metals has dropped like oil...ammo prices are not as dynamic as gas.

It's like back in Y2K. I knew that the S wasn't going to HFT but I also knew that lot of people were worried so...yes...I got out $500 in cash because I figured the ATMs would be empty...I bought some bullets indeed...I filled up the gas tank.

I wonder then how many people are stocking up...rather than stockpiling...for this simple and fairly practical reason?

 

[jr45]

For all of the concern that I've been reading for the last couple/three months on the Internet about how folks are stockpiling ammo and EBRs - I have to admit that I'm just not seeing that.

In my area, I do not see any significant increase of the number of shooters at the ranges however; I do see many bare ammo shelves at Wal-Mart, Gander MTN, and a few other places. If there is not a large increase in the number of people shooting the ammo, no significant increase in hoarding, than why are the shelves empty? Manufactures withholding ammo drive up prices?

What really is confusing me is the lack of primers and powder. I can understand that some shooters will turn to reloading due to cost but the lack of supplies is strange.

 

[Afy]

Jlg:
Not sure how legal your Claymores are.
Its dangerous talk like this that could have the ATF knocking on your door.

 

[30 cal slob]

obvious concerns aside, ammo is arguably some of the best tangible barter you can come across. (assuming economic SHTF happens, which IMO is not out of the realm of consideration).

 

[jlg]

I buy ammo in bulk only if it brings the cost down. If it's $0.50 a round whether I buy 100 or 500, I'm only going to buy 100.

Generally, the cost savings for me buying in bulk are reduced freight costs. I normally buy ammo with a couple of friends from Natchezss.com and we split the freight.

 

[lesterg3]

Even if this is not a SHTF scenario or TEOTWAWKI, I suspect that there will be in the near future some sort of civil unrest, or uprising, or more terrorists, or something out of the ordinary.


We have solar heating, and solar electric panels for water pumps, med kits, and many other survival items, and surplus parts for their maintenance. And, even if we don't get there (a SHTF scenario or TEOTWAWKI) the solar stuff makes me independent. We plant and raise about 60% of our vegetables, and are growing only heirloom vegetables so we can use our own seed, and hunting fills the meat locker with everything else we need (the solar stuff also keeps the freezers running). One thing we have not done yet is to grow wheat or any other grain that we can use for bread, that's the plan for next year, just bought the neighbors 25 acre parcel giving me 75 acres. We can clear 10 to 15 acres of that for grain, should be enough for us and extra to barter with.

And most of this stuff is well hidden from view, buried or in a hidden cellar or bunker. A real good outdoors man could probably find it, but not some suburban yokel.

If you believe that everything is hunky dory that's fine. I would rather be prepared and surprised that nothing happens, than not be prepared and surprised that something does.

Am I nuts, maybe, and I hope I am wrong, but what we are doing is become self sufficient, and in the long run that can't be that bad.

 

[longdayjake]

I sell bullets for a living now and my personal purchases have been in higher quantities simply because when I find primers that I need, I know they wont be around for long and when they come in again they will be marked up. Thats how it has been every week for the last 3 months. The more bullets I sell it seems the more people want. It is getting crazy and its hard to keep stock. manufacturers cant make them fast enough. Its sad.

 

[dirtdog]

Even if this is not a SHTF scenario or TEOTWAWKI, I suspect that there will be in the near future some sort of civil unrest, or uprising, or more terrorists, or something out of the

This has been said again and again for years , when will people see it is just never going to happen.

 

[ccsniper]

i would be if i could find ammo for a reasonable price. all those nuts out there bought all the .22, 9, .40, .223, 7.62x39, that existed! i go to the local gunstore almost 2 times every week, im always met with "sorry that one guy has already been here" every week!

 

[lesterg3]

Good work man, keep it up!!!

 

[jlg]

Jlg:
Not sure how legal your Claymores are.
Its dangerous talk like this that could have the ATF knocking on your door.

I hope everyone realizes that my post was tongue in cheek. I don't own 4 AR's and I certainly can't shoot them with my toes.

I'm not sure of the legality of taping marbles to a bottle rocket. But legal or not, it would be a very dumb idea. I doubt seriously that a bottle rocket has enough power to even move a marble much less throw it with deadly force.

 

[Hungry Seagull]

I have a 6 month shoot chart with X rounds to shoot times two people per weapon each month.

On the 4th month I order 6 months worth of ammuntion plus 25% extra.

There is a small envelope that we call the ammuntion fund. X dollars goes into it from spending money as part of the budget first of the month.

We expect a net gain of a small amount of ammuntion each year stockpiling, but nothing extreme.

So bottom line, we buy ammuntion three times a year and gain about a year ahead of the regular shoot ration. From time to time, we will buy a box or three of the stuff when it is availible locally as we are passing through.