I have been thinking of running an add "swap ammo for toilet paper"....

(just kidding)

I get that we don't like spikes in prices due to demand but how many of you would sell me your gun for it's value 10 years ago? Ten years or ten minutes...prices go up and down...mostly up.

For those who boo-hoo the capitalist system I would remind you that in that fair socialist model where everything is controlled to insure "fairness" ammo isn't available AT ALL in a legal way. And who thinks the illegal price is low? That assumes you had a gun to put it in.

I respect your approach and commend you for it. But would you extend those same professional courtesies to anyone who walks in your door? You said you are picky with your customers but the average retailer doesn't have that option.

You have an outstanding business model and I'm sure you have many loyal customers.

And here you are defending a company with a track record of ripping off their customers. Last shortage, these fine folks cancelled people's orders for AR mags at $10-15 each, then put them back for sale for $100 each. I rather not do business with a shady company such as that and will continue to try to convince people to go elsewhere.

BTW, here is a link to their reports at Resellerratings.com, which is a site that rates businesses and stores that mainly sell online. I have used them to check company backgrounds for close to 20 years for researching online vendors. Read the reviews and then tell me if that is a company you would trust to give you good service. And compare Cheaper Than Dirt to other companies such as Grab-A-Gun, Bud's Gun Shop or Kentucky Gun Co., who are also listed and rated at Resellerratings.

<<<<LINK TO Cheaper Than Dirt ratings at Resellerratings.com>>>>

Since we are here in OK just temporarily, I've decided to run my business from home. I don't advertise locally, it's done via word by mouth and usually military (through my wife) and le (through me) but I do have random people off the streets contact me as well.

And to answer your question, yes, I do treat everyone the same. Except for transfers, I do $10 for first responders and $20 for everyone else.

Appreciate your comment.

Things might change once we move and once we'll have a walk-in store, but I hope I don't have to...

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Jorge

I wasn't addressing their business practices other than the "price gouging". CTD had a brick and mortar store near me, and during the .22lr shortage, they raised the prices. I didn't buy from them, but had I needed the ammo, they had it. All the local stores and online was sold out. You might get lucky, standing in line at Walmart or catch it online at Cabela's... but if you absolutely had to have it, CTD had it in stock, on the shelf.

If more vendors would raise prices when demand spikes, it would flatten the curve of demand... Instead of grabbing 10 boxes, folks might only grab one or two, leaving more on the shelf for other customers.

Well, well, well...I guess .40 ain't dead after all

I just stopped by Cabelas and they were out of everything for handguns.32,380, 9, 40,45,10,357, 44 Mag, 357Sig, .44Sp, 45 LC, .454 Casull, 460S&W, all gone except for a few boxes of .25 acp, and a few other very uncommon calibers. They did have several boxes of 41 Magnum and I just bought a SFPD ex cop gun in that caliber!

Huh, the gun shows always had giant piles of it too. $75/ box 50 Federal 124 gr HST, $100 brick of 500 Remington Thunderbolts. ####'em too. Even at the height of the last ammo panic, folks who knew I had a pile of 9mm offered me wild money for it. Sold a small amount for $20/ box, about what it goes for now. Just today I heard from a guy that I haven't heard from since last "panic." Yep "You got any guns/ ammo for sale?" Told him in 6 mos there will be piles of it for sale again. "Can't wait, aintcha' heard.........." Joe

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Wisdom chases me; I'm faster

I hope your business goes as you desire. If you get a brick and mortar and are like most small business you will do well at times and struggle other times. I wouldn't hold it against you to make a little hay when the opportunity arises. I was born in OK but haven't been there in a long while.

Sure, I have a Python...

I also have a couple of .357's.

And the difference between charging as much as the market will bear and price gouging is...... ?

Had a 15 year old music student who was so proud of his dad.
The fire retardant chemical, in the baby clothing, was banned in the USA..... so his brilliant dad shipped it to a country where they hadn't banned it yet.

Kind of like selling a firearm you broke or found was defective...

Appreciate it, thank you. Same here, I was born in Germany but haven't been there in a long time.

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Jorge

I won't comment on what someone else "should" do. If I were in the business, I would limit purchases to (probably) 2 boxes of any caliber and some total number (less than 10) during any panic/shortage. The first guy in the door is likely to be the panicky hoarder who thinks he needs to have enough ammo to single-handedly hold off the 3rd Marine Division. I'll take his money but unless he wants to buy the whole business for cash, that's all he gets. The guy who tries to game the system by coming back an hour later for another go gets 86'd for insulting my intelligence. My house, my rules.

A week later some guy who has been busy doing his job instead of imbibing Internet conspiracy theories realizes that after his last trip to the range he has less than a box of his SD ammo (or maybe any ammo) left will come in. I'd like to be able to sell him a box. If my supplier raises the price in the meantime, the second guy will pay more, but I'll have something for him.

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I need ammo, not a ride.

Sounds very reasonable.

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Jorge

A few observations...

First, As to price.... Of course the LGS need to raise his price.

Consider, the minute the last box of ammunition walks out his door.... He is out of business.

Where is his next deliver coming from and when. The entire nation is clamoring for product at the same time.

The manufactures could not possibly satisfy this demand in days, weeks, and probably months.

Second.... as to limiting purchases.

People like us are the backbone of business.

We come in week after week, month after month, year after year.

Now some say we should be limited, because the mope that has never owned a firearm before... The guy the store has never seen before... the guy they will probably never see again... he might need ammo.

In my opinion, you take care of your steadies.... The ones you count on to make your monthly bills.

The end.....

There’s nothing to talk about!!! CTD who is always under fire for price gouging is doing NOTHING WRONG!!!

I’m SO sick and tired of hearing people use the term “price gouging” and not the term “supply & demand”

I’m SO sick of stupid people complaining that the prices have shot through the roof when they are in and of themselves the cause of it all!!!

I’m SO sick and tired of people time and time and time and time again not being prepared and waiting till the last damn second in the MIDDLE OF AN EMERGENCY like everyone else to go buy it all at once and then when the prices shoot through the roof look shocked and have the audacity to scream price gouging!!!! MY GOD HOW STUPID is everybody???

If you bought AT&T stock five years ago and the price tripled overnight last night, because everyone bought some at the same time, would you sell it to me for your cost five years ago? Absolutely not. Nobody would.

Everyone who complains about a high price when you didn’t buy when the prices were normal deserves to be smacked on the head!!!! These people are just mad that they waited until the price shot through the roof and are looking for a reason to complain for their own stupidity!!!

I have 100 - 50 round boxes of Speer Gold Dot in 9mm 124, 124+p and 147 which currently is the most sought after ammunition and I will gladly sell it for $100 a box and sleep like a baby. If you all think I tied my money up for five years just to pass it along to YOUR dumbass at cost because you’re an idiot and never stocked up, you are absolutely and utterly insane!!!

It’s NOT a necessity!!!! I’m not selling biscuits and water to the starving masses after a hurricane! It’s a LUXURY to have excess ammo!!!! You don’t need it to LIVE!!! It’s a WANT not a NEED, which is exactly and precisely why you don’t have any at this very moment!!!!

If you want it then buy it if you don’t then shut up, but don’t complain I’m charging too much and save your hate mail it means nothing to me... i’m running an ad now selling federal Lake City 5.56 M855 in the ammo cans, 9 mm, 2- Smith M&P AR15’s, and a slew of other stuff.

Keep in mind it’s ONLY because I can charge more that I’m even considering parting with it to begin with. It’s only the fact that I can charge more that you even have an opportunity to have it in your hands. If not, then why the hell would I want to sell it to begin with? Why would I want to sell you something that I’ve already purchased for the same price I bought it for?

There’s no advantage there. The only and SOLE reason that you even have an opportunity to possess something that no one else has right now is because I’m charging a lot of money for it. You don’t want to pay the money? Simple, don’t expect to have any of my ammo!!!

I’m sick of hearing terms like honor and integrity and all that other **** because the only people that are spewing that rhetoric out are the ones that don’t have a gun or don’t have ammunition right now!!!!

It’s just like a hurricane when someone pulls up with a truckload selling generators and everybody acts like they are scammers and con artists and run them out of town. Why??? Since when does somebody need a generator to live? You don’t need a generator and that’s considered to be an extreme luxury and if you want to buy the luxury from someone who took the time to purchase them, load them up and DELIVER it to your FRONT DOOR in the middle of an emergency then YES you should expect to pay a lot for it.

Somebody does that with water and food? I absolutely agree that’s being ******. But a generator? The way people think is sickening to me as if someone is going to go through all that work just to make $20 on a generator!!!

WAKE UP PEOPLE!!! Stop acting like it’s a community effort when any other time of the year you walk by homeless people and spit on them. I notice it’s only a community effort and you’re only supposed to help your neighbor out with good prices when “they” need something...

Wildman101010, couple things;

I don't think that any fine member of this board fits into the category you just described. Many here are preppers, collectors, handloaders.

Btw, POTUS signed (or is about to sign) an exec. order regarding price gouging. Not sure if that only applies to medical items or everything during this pandemic. I'll have to double check.

I think you should go take a breather, go for a walk, I don't know. And you can keep your ammo too, I think everyone here is just fine.

But, as finishing words to my comment to your post, I'd like to say that it says a lot (and I mean a lot) of a persons character about how they respond to other peoples needs. You don't know other people's needs so don't even start.

My distributors didn't raise prices. My local stores didn't raise prices. So if an online store raises prices I won't buy and I'll never check their website again. CTD is one of those websites.

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Jorge

That's an interesting concept but the additional issue is not just young people but a boatload of first time buyers of all ages. The folks who fit into these categories:

They hate guns - just because
The are anti-gun because CNN or certain Mayors say they should be
They ask "Why do I need a gun? I can call the police."
They say "I live in a safe neighborhood."

So, off they go, they buy their first gun and a thousand rounds of ammunition. Word gets out, like the toilet paper and bottled water thing. The rush begins........

And there are the shooters who don't plan ahead and suddenly they freak out because "OMG!! There's a run on ammo!!!"

Retailers should not price gouge and it is illegal in some places as far as I know. Placing a limit on the number of boxes a customer can buy is a much more well behaved practice.

But the point is clear - people don't prepare properly and then they panic. Retailers SHOULD have an obligation to control the panic but, well, call me Polly Anna, it ain't gonna happen.

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Come and take it!!

I wonder if it matters that unlike toilet paper, most of the ammo purchased will never be used? (At least for it's purported SD application.)

???? Why would you think for even a second this applies to the people on this forum? Seems to me it’s pretty obvious that’s a general comment to the ones that don’t have and are seeking to buy right now. In fact it would apply to almost everyone BUT people on a gun forum as it would be naturally assumed they own guns! You’re misinterpreting...

And no, price gouging laws will never ever be applied to guns or ammo!

And here we go again with the honor & character ****!!! It’s all BS!!!! I just made all of my points very articulately so for you to still carry on about honor integrity is insanity to me! If you didn’t raise your prices then you are a foolish businessman. The first thing you should learn being in business is the laws of supply and demand...

I’ll remind you again, as you try to impress others and promote your own business, when you say ridiculous things like coming together for others “Needs”. GUNS AND AMMO IS NOT A NEED!!!! Food and water and shelter and clothing, those are considered needs. Since WHEN has .357 and five boxes of ammo ever been considered a need!?? ABSURD NOTION

If a woman has reason to believe her ex-boyfriend is out to hurt her, doesn't think the protective order the court issued is going to stop him and desperately needs to buy a gun can she walk into a gun store and buy one? If someone didn't panic and buy a cartload of TP and is now completely out can they walk into a grocery store and find a roll?

The answer to both those questions is no. The reason is price gouging laws the attempt to defy the law of supply and demand. Stores that keep prices low are not doing people that really need their products right now any favors.

They are creating false shortages and allow scalpers that have time to drive around looking for remaining stock with the intention of reselling it to charge far higher prices than what would exist if regular stores charged enough to keep products on the shelves. If every store doubled the price of TP, hand sanitizer and ammo they would be widely available and scalpers would not be able to charge 10 times what it normally costs. If every store raised prices it probably would not even require doubling the price.

Right now if someone who has plenty of those items walks into a store and notices some is in stock at the regular price they will likely think "Why not, its not like it goes bad". If prices were higher they would likely think "$16 for a box of 9mm that sold for $10 last month? I have enough for now and can wait for prices to come back down to normal".

Remember gas lines in the 70s? The government used to regulate the price of gas. When OPEC declared an embargo stations could not raise prices and the result was people waiting in long lines for gas. The government quit regulating the price and the lines went away. Except when price gouging laws create false shortages after a hurricane. The predictions about how the price of gas was going to skyrocket after the government quit forcing people the charge less than it was worth were wrong.

Limiting purchases and raising prices high enough to keep products available are not mutually exclusive. I think this would be the best solution. Limit the amount someone can purchase AND charge enough to not completely sell out. Limiting purchases would make it harder for scalpers and panic buyers to clean stores out and would reduce how much prices would have to be raised to meet demand.

I went through all the panic years ago during the obama era... Our little gunshop tried to keep prices as fair as we could but we had to raise prices a bit simply because we couldn't get as much ammo in as we would normally carry. Rent, utilities still had to be payed and with less stuff to sell we had to make up the difference wherever we could. We managed to hang on for a few years, had to let employees go, looked for anything we could find to sell. Still eventually had to close as there just wasn't enough coming in to cover operating costs.

The last couple years I've been part timing at Wally world in the sporting goods dept. Last week was like deja vu for me.... panic, panic.. Lots of people shocked that we don't sell handgun ammo (it was all over the internet in December, where have they been?) but that didn't stop them from buying up everything else. By friday all 22 ammo, most of the hunting rifle ammo and every box of 12 and 20 gauge shotgun ammo was gone... More came in on saturday and sunday but it sold quickly. No suggestion on ammo limits from management yet but if this keeps up I expect it soon. Our rural store is one of the ones that still sells guns and we were busy with those too........... Lots of self admitted first time buyers among them...... The constant stream of media hype combined with the panic buying of everything else has really got people in a panic. This hysteria really needs to stop soon.......

If I did, I'm sorry. I also apologize for my previously used language.

Okay, in your opinion I might be insane and a foolish businessman. I just live by the standard that I treat everyone like I want to be treated. Does it work out for me every time? No. But I'm not going to change.

I think we can agree to disagree.

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Jorge

I don't know why people think they should put their views on others. The person that owns the goods has the right to set the price. Public has the right to buy or not to buy. Same people brag about doubling their money on a gun deal but if another does it they are a thief.

You just can't fight human nature. There is selfishness. There is greed that seems to affect some people more than others. I've been called a "prepper" and I'm far from it, but I tend to try to have a couple of weeks supply of food and other necessities on hand. With this pandemic, I am likely to run out of things after a few weeks, because others have decided that they wanted enough of everything to last them 6 months when the gravity of the situation hit home. In the next several weeks, I'll run out of OTC drugs, like Tylenol and likely won't be able to find any for sale. I doubt that the supply will catch up with the demand because there are still those who will buy much more than they will ever need. On the other hand, there are plenty of businesses who are helping out, instead of taking advantage of the situation, like a local distillery who has changed over to producing hand sanitizer and is giving it away. We have people in our neighborhood who have offered to help those who are older and shouldn't get out in public. We also have some making masks and giving them away to caregivers that must take their loved ones to doctor offices. I won't forget them when this is over and I won't forget the companies who get all they can, while they can.

I couldn’t agree more!

Its all good! My Italian passion gets the best of me sometimes! My words were harsher than they needed to be to you, I apologize. We just live in a crazy world and it irritates me that for some kind of reason, it is my duty to help out others who consistently remain unprepared through every emergency America has ever experienced.

I made the sacrifice and I took the money that I couldn’t really afford to spend and used it for guns and ammo and a slew of other things as people smirked and chuckled and laughed and asked why I would possibly need so many guns and ammo. Was I expecting to go in the war ha ha ha...now those SAME people are coming to me to buy some of that stuff and scream how I don’t have character because I want to charge more for it that I purchased it for??? NOT HAPPENING.

I am prepared. The fact that my neighbor decided not to prepare and now they are coming to me wanting to use my preparedness to their advantage by purchasing something from ME that currently cannot be purchased anywhere else and for a great price no yet, well that takes a lot of audacity!

Is it greed? ABSOLUTELY!!! But the greed is on the part of the person that doesn’t have it and now they want what I have. That is the definition of greed not the other way around!!!

I'd be POed if I went and paid retail for a new gun and got gouged on ammo prices. OR there was no ammo to be had.

And on Walmart, at least they have ammo for the firearms they do sell. Remember when K-Mart quit selling guns and ammo?

I'd be POed if I went and paid retail for a new gun and got gouged on ammo prices. OR there was no ammo to be had.

And on Walmart, at least they have ammo for the firearms they do sell. Remember when K-Mart quit selling guns and ammo?

Supply and Demand. You have no right to tell people what they should sell their property for. Everyone's got families to feed.

Sell it if they got.

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better than a pointed stick

That's dead on right - attractive young women with guns of that caliber can afford safaris!

So what is your solution? If you are "gouged" on the ammo at least you can still get it. I would rather be able to only afford one box of available ammo than four boxes of phantom ammo.

If the price is too high, then don't buy it. Very simple.

I’ve been reading on here for years how reloading 9MM is stupid and not cost effective. In her time I’ve loaded probably 5000 rounds of 9MM with the ability to load thousands more. Other than .22, everything I shoot I reload. In good times and in bad. Makes me immune to this nonsense.

The other day I was in Walmart and they had just put out some bricks of .22. There were three left. I said I’ll take all three. I hear a groan behind me and turn to see a guy with his 12 year old son there. I took one and the kid brightened right up. I have plenty of .22 but will always buy more when available but will not screw over somebody else if I can avoid it.

Common decency is uncommon these days.

I like your style. I bet you don't leave the shopping cart randomly in the lot, too.

Hell, no. That one of my biggest peeves. Cart corral person is usually a high school kid or an elderly man working there to make ends meet. No need to make their lives any harder. Not to mention loose carts rolling into parked cars. I see people leave them 10 feet from the coral. Lowlifes, all of them.

I don't get upset when I see a fragile, elderly person or disabled person or even a pregnant lady leave one out of the coral, but mostly it is younger people who just can't be bothered.

I was inventorying my bench after having little time to reload the last few years and found my last 300 Clinton-era Winchester Large Rifle primers back in a corner. That was several crises ago.

Me neither. I usually park close to the corrals to make it easier to return them but even if I have to walk I return them always.

Well, to avoid supplying hoarders who buy to flip for profit, as a retailer you can raise your prices so that is no longer possible to buy and flip for profit, or you can limit the amount each person can purchase so that its not worth a flippers time. I think most of us regular shooters/collectors, we are well stocked. I visited a few online retailers website for entertainment purposes only. A few days ago only snake shot was left, you had to get into .44 mag before they had anything and that was only the super premium stuff.

I make it a game
I get close enough to be sure it will go in and then I launch my empty cart into the coral and try to give it just enough oomph so it will stop just before hitting the carts already there

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