The ammo shortage?

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oneounceload

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I didn't need the ammo and was doing the trips 'cause it's something to do at lunch (yeah - I know, I need a life).

So why did you buy them and then have the store run out for someone else who might have needed them? This is what helps perpetuate the whole mess
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Er, yeah - 3 half bricks perpetuates the shortage... If I was truly perpetuating the shortage, I would go back after work and visit every day, twice a day and then list the goods on Gunbroker. Just because there's a shortage means that a person should not buy any ammo if they don't *need* it? Tell me, do you do that with food? You don't have a pantry? How about a 'fridge? Do you go shopping for your food every day instead of maintaining some kind of supply at home?

BTW, I use to shoot about 2 to 3 bricks at each range visit. My current 22LR ammo in the pantry is about 10K rounds and has been constant. I also have enough SD calibers to last the next 5 years of casual shooting. Did I hoard this panic, hell no. I bought in small quantities regularly since 2009 and haven't stopped.

You ever think that buying ammo is a part of the hobby of shooting?
 
On a very tight budget, how about an MN 91/30? 7.62x54R has been .20/round for months. AK-74 ammo:
5.45x39 at .18/rd. SKS ammo at .25/rd. These prices are approx. pre-panic, and have been valid for over a month, if not approx. three months. There are vast heaps of cheap, centerfire rifle ammo!

Some people never bought the right Type of centerfire rifle, for which the country was fairly quickly flooded with ammo again following the two recent panics.
Obama's new ATF guy has been voted in by the US Senate.......therefore If you have the cash for a stash of imported ammo, the time might be now.
 
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Those "rats" are the people that line up every ammo shipment day. Some to hoard and some to resell at gun shows. Every conceivable ammo was available at the gun show I went to a couple weeks ago. Just as long as you were willing to pay twice what it cost them to buy it at Wal-Mart.
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Now, now, I've been informed more than once its all a free market, and these "retailers" who have no retail license, and are using retail establishments for their main supplier, are only trying to make a few bucks.
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They're also not price gouging by the dictionary term because ammo isn't a necessity. They're just ripping you off.

I'm lucky enough to be working outside the country currently and haven't bought ammo since late summer 2012 (with the exception of some 8x56R that finally came in stock on aimsurplus.com).
 
Perhaps a telling sign is all the ammo that is not being sold on GB currently. There seems to be a lot a sellers getting goose egg bids on their overpriced ammo.
 
Be prepared...

I used to be a Boy Scout. ;)

Once the current ammo panic ends, be wise about your ammo purchases. Every once in awhile, go to your source and get a box or two of what you want to have on hand the next time some mental defective gets his hands on a gun and decides that mass murder is a great idea. Because it's just a matter of time until it happens again and we repeat this cycle.

After the the 2008-9 panic finally blew over, I made sure I had several thousand rounds of 22LR and a several hundred rounds of each centerfire caliber, just in case. Man, am I glad I did that.

It's sad, in a way. Used to be I could just stop by Walmart or some other sporting goods place and grab a box or two of ammo before going to the range. No need to keep a supply of my own, because the retailers could always be counted on to have what you needed. This current "just in time" fad of managing inventories leads to what we're seeing now, as any blip in the public's buying habits throws the whole system way out of balance.
 
Ignition Override said:
ZVP: What shortage? Our gun show two months ago had every regular ammo type.
Gunbroker has had all types for quite a while, and some sellers found naive people to buy it at any price.

There have been almost all varieties, available for over two months. Do most people out there not use engines such as "Gunbot", "Ammoseek"? Some centerfire rifle ammo has been .18-.20-.25/round for about two months, if not longer.

Some of the people who talk about ammo shortages need to be more frank in their questions, and title their threads "Walmart ammo shortages" or such.
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What I think people are ignoring is those stores like Academy and Walmart were not getting their regular orders. If anything only a couple of single boxes would arrive at their store for them to sell. Who above them cut their supply off. Who diverted the ammo from these big retailers?

The lines formed just to get the few boxes that showed up and there were days no ammo was delivered. None. Not a single box. When it did show up there was a one box purchase limit imposed. It wasn't us folks waiting in line to get our one box of ammo that was causing the problem. That problem occured between the manufacture of the ammo and the big retailers like Walmart, Academy, Cabelas and others. Someone cut the supply to them. That's what caused this mess.
 
I have about reached the point where I no longer see the situation as a true "shortage". I'm not sure exactly what we have going on in the ammo business right now. I have spent 40 years working in an industry where shortages are commonplace and gluts are just as common. We dig holes for three months losing money hand over fist and then make tons of cash for a few weeks and hope the income is greater than the losses. It's agriculture so I understand it. I don't always like it-but I understand it.
I understand supply and demand and such but I think we are currently at a stage where supply is available-as long as you are prepared to do some digging or pay a premium. The definition of shortage is a demand exceeds situation so technically we do still have a "shortage" but this is unique in that people are buying way more ammo than they need, including me, as they are scared we will have another issue soon. This isn't like a gas problem where we simply can't buy much because of storage as ammo doesn't take up that much space and has a long shelf life. It isn't like a shortage of wood that is localized due to a hurricane. I really can't find anything in my experience that equates to the ammo situation as we see it now. 2008-09 was not as bad as this. Maybe the people in Somalia feel this way about food? The closest I can think of is probably the beef industry where there can be a glut for many reasons followed closely by an extended shortage because beef cattle don't grow overnight. Inevitably the cattle growers will build up their herds because of the high prices and in two years there will be another glut. It happens all the time in the world of agriculture because farmers never figure out that they are causing their own problems. I keep thinking it won't happen again but it always does.
With the exception of rimfire ammo I have been able to purchase every type of pistol and long gun ammo I need at or near pre-panic pricing. This doesn't mean it is like the old days where I could walk in any Walmart, Academy or LGS and buy what I need today. It means that I have walked into stores 10 times and found ammo 2-3 times. 300 rounds of 9mm here and 200 there have helped me out and that was from Walmart and Academy. A couple of boxes of 45acp helped me replace what I had shot.
With the exception of .22 LR bulk I am where I want to be on ALL my ammo. If I find 9mm Federal at Walmart I will "hoard" as much as they will sell me because I shoot a lot of it. I don't buy the .40 or the .25 just because they have it because I don't need it. Same with .357 since I have a few boxes and don't run through it very fast.
I check Gunbot every day and have watched the fall in price on every round I follow and, with the exception of .22 LR, prices are at or approaching pre-panic levels. The supplies just don't last very long.
Glad to see that the flippers aren't getting what they want on Gunbroker any more. Tons of ammo and "assault rifles" with no bids that 3 months ago would have been snapped up. I don't blame the sellers if it is an auction and the buyer sets the price.
 
I still do some selective buying.

I just bought Fiocchi .45ACP for under $20 box on-line. Not cheap, but not crazy high either.

Gun show last month had tons of centerfire ammo and not crazily priced.

.22LR still not readily available locally.
 
Meijers still no handgun or rifle ammo on the shelves except for 7 mm and 30.06 and it has been like this since December 2012.

Wallyworld, went there fairly recently. No handgun ammo on the shelves except one box of .25 , man behind the counter said come back at 8 pm...maybe then...(and wait in line).
 
Some of you will not agree, but the entire panic was self induced by consumers. As mentioned in many posts above, just look at the line of people waiting to buy, and yes all of you that said "I have or I will buy thousands of rounds are part of the problem. I have spoken with some of the component manufactures and they have all stated that it is a consumer driven issue. Yes the government has purchased ammo, but they always do, the issue was the normal government purchase was hit the same time the consumer rush and guess what, the government gets priority because it has a contract. I dont think the Zombie Apocolypse is coming anytime soon. Or do i beleive that a civil unrest will happen. But for all of you that have stock piled "thousands" of rounds, I hope that after things turn to normal, you continue to buy rounds as normal to keep industry competitve and keep prices low. Just my 3 cents worth. It used to be 2 cents but with inflation i had to increase the thought price. LoL
 
It might be getting a wee bit better,,,

It might be getting a wee bit better.

I've actually seen handgun ammo at Wal Mart,,,
In the afternoon no less.

Two days ago I bought the limit (three boxes) of TUL-Ammo in .380,,,
Yesterday there were still some left on the shelves,,,
But I bought three boxes of TUL-Ammo in 9mm,,,
The price was the good $9.97 as before.

Not saying it's over,,,
but it might be easing up just a bit.

Aarond

.
 
Those "rats" are the people that line up every ammo shipment day.
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I have to disagree. The "rats" are the... <searching for a High Road term> foolish people who willingly pay 3-4X retail for their ammo. If people would just stop paying so much, it would stop being worthwhile for people to line up at the places like Walmart every morning to scoop up all the ammo that gets delivered each day and their would be some on the shelves for others to buy.
 
mdauben said:
The "rats" are the... <searching for a High Road term> foolish people who willingly pay 3-4X retail for their ammo.
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I would say that the "rats" are the foolish people whining about what other people pay for their ammo.

If they can afford it and want to shoot, why shouldn't they pay whatever they feel is fair for ammo? Same thing with fancy jewelry, wine, Ferraris, yachts, mansions on Miami beach, etc.

Just because the current market price isn't low enough for you to buy doesn't make anyone "foolish".
 
They're also not price gouging by the dictionary term because ammo isn't a necessity. They're just ripping you off.
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Better reread your dictionary again, per my Webster's New World Dictionary-----
gouging, to defraud or overcharge.

per Wikipedia go to this link
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price_gouging

per the Merriam-Webster on-line dictionary see this link
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gouge

Nowhere does it say that the goods need to be essential or a necessity.
 
Just because the current market price isn't low enough for you to buy doesn't make anyone "foolish".
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And that works out well for the new shooters, the young shooters, and the kids going to summer camp where they may be introduced into the shooting sports.

Furthermore, just because someone may have a difference of opinion than you does not make them a WHINER.
 
LeftyTSGC said:
Some of you will not agree, but the entire panic was self induced by consumers. As mentioned in many posts above, just look at the line of people waiting to buy, and yes all of you that said "I have or I will buy thousands of rounds are part of the problem. I have spoken with some of the component manufactures and they have all stated that it is a consumer driven issue. Yes the government has purchased ammo, but they always do, the issue was the normal government purchase was hit the same time the consumer rush and guess what, the government gets priority because it has a contract. I dont think the Zombie Apocolypse is coming anytime soon. Or do i beleive that a civil unrest will happen. But for all of you that have stock piled "thousands" of rounds, I hope that after things turn to normal, you continue to buy rounds as normal to keep industry competitve and keep prices low. Just my 3 cents worth. It used to be 2 cents but with inflation i had to increase the thought price. LoL
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The problem with what you say is it just doesn't wash with real life. In the begining I believed as you that it was the demand but I have changed my mind.

I've watched these last 7 months every single box recieved by my local Academy(22lr,22mag, .380, 38sp, 40 cal, 45acp,9mm, .223/5.56, 7.62, .308) as it was placed on the shelf for sale. There were days that no ammo came in. Somewhere between the manufacturer and the first rung of distrbution chain the ammo was diverted. It went somewhere as the big retailers were only getting a fraction of their orders to distribute to their stores.
 
LeftyTSGC said:
Some of you will not agree, but the entire panic was self induced by consumers. As mentioned in many posts above, just look at the line of people waiting to buy, and yes all of you that said "I have or I will buy thousands of rounds are part of the problem. I have spoken with some of the component manufactures and they have all stated that it is a consumer driven issue. Yes the government has purchased ammo, but they always do, the issue was the normal government purchase was hit the same time the consumer rush and guess what, the government gets priority because it has a contract. I dont think the Zombie Apocolypse is coming anytime soon. Or do i beleive that a civil unrest will happen. But for all of you that have stock piled "thousands" of rounds, I hope that after things turn to normal, you continue to buy rounds as normal to keep industry competitve and keep prices low. Just my 3 cents worth. It used to be 2 cents but with inflation i had to increase the thought price. LoL
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the consumers rushing out and buying ammo is the symptom, not the cause. just as if you throw a rock into a crowd, they all go running, its the rock throwers fault the panic started, not the crowds.
 
JohnBT said:
"Funny thing, it's my understanding Canada has NO SHORTAGE. Tell you anything?"

Small population, not very many guns, and a very long winter.

John
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They can also import Norinco ammo. We can't. When you have China producing your ammo, you won't run out.
 
skoro said:
I used to be a Boy Scout. ;)

Once the current ammo panic ends, be wise about your ammo purchases. Every once in awhile, go to your source and get a box or two of what you want to have on hand the next time some mental defective gets his hands on a gun and decides that mass murder is a great idea. Because it's just a matter of time until it happens again and we repeat this cycle.

After the the 2008-9 panic finally blew over, I made sure I had several thousand rounds of 22LR and a several hundred rounds of each centerfire caliber, just in case. Man, am I glad I did that.

It's sad, in a way. Used to be I could just stop by Walmart or some other sporting goods place and grab a box or two of ammo before going to the range. No need to keep a supply of my own, because the retailers could always be counted on to have what you needed. This current "just in time" fad of managing inventories leads to what we're seeing now, as any blip in the public's buying habits throws the whole system way out of balance.
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it all depends if your a shooter, or just have guns to protect yourself whether you ought to keep just in time ammo for shooting. if your a shooter, the best idea is to stock up even if for price sake alone. everything goes up and you protect your price by stocking up. Another benefit of this is there is more stock in the system, you wont contribute to buying up ammo when it becomes hard to get. then there is the factor of being able to get exactly the ammo your gun likes to shoot. I have certain 22's that like cci stingers and even when you could get them they could be hard to find, if you have a particular ammo you like for a particular gun stock up on that so you wont have to be like the average joe now being satisfied with the first crappy box of bulk 22's that come to the shelf.
 
I would say that the "rats" are the foolish people whining about what other people pay for their ammo.
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Nice to see others keeping their replies "high road" :rolleyes:

Just because the current market price isn't low enough for you to buy doesn't make anyone "foolish".
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First, the "current [secondary] market price" is not too high for me to buy, I just chose not to spend 3-4x the actual value for ammo. Second, yes they are foolish becuase if they didn't pay the current inflated prices the secondary market would collape and they could buy ammo for normal retail pricing. I would argue that spending more than you have to for an item is pretty foolish.
 
Be prepared...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I used to be a Boy Scout.

Once the current ammo panic ends, be wise about your ammo purchases. Every once in awhile, go to your source and get a box or two of what you want to have on hand the next time some mental defective gets his hands on a gun and decides that mass murder is a great idea. Because it's just a matter of time until it happens again and we repeat this cycle.

After the the 2008-9 panic finally blew over, I made sure I had several thousand rounds of 22LR and a several hundred rounds of each centerfire caliber, just in case. Man, am I glad I did that.

It's sad, in a way. Used to be I could just stop by Walmart or some other sporting goods place and grab a box or two of ammo before going to the range. No need to keep a supply of my own, because the retailers could always be counted on to have what you needed. This current "just in time" fad of managing inventories leads to what we're seeing now, as any blip in the public's buying habits throws the whole system way out of balance.
Click to expand...

Tell this "Be Prepared" motto to the pre teen or young teenaged kid that just got his first .22 for Christmas or Birthday.
 
As of today, 01 August 2013 at about 10:45 EST I declare the current ammunition shortage drought, shortage or whatever over. That is until the next time because this was not the first and it won't be the last.

Moving along this thread has the usual percentage of post where a member post "My LGS hasn't had ammunition for the past 7 months" but fails miserably to give their even approximate location. The same is true for "My LGS has everything". Post like this just plain suck as other members have no clue where ammunition is or is not. If you are that concerned with posting your even approximate location why bother to post stuff like that?

Finally large retailers like Cabela's and Gander Mountain have had plenty of ammunition including .22 LR in many flavors both at their retail stores and online for at least the past 6 weeks. There is no shortage of ammunition out there for those willing to look for it and put some effort into finding it.

Keep something in mind. Think about what caused the latest and greatest knot in the chain of supply and demand. Think about what caused it. The root cause of the entire fiasco was Sandy Hook which caused the buying frenzy. Savvy shooters and shooting enthusiast were on the phone or online hours after that incident buying every round they could get their hands on. They know what was going to follow. Just let another mass shooting like Sandy Hook take place and see how fast the ammunition slowly returning to the shelves disappears again. You think this sucked? Just wait till it happens again. It's a very, very fragile chain!

Just My Take....
Ron
 
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