How much ammo do you need?

[J Rich]

How much will you REALLY need?

These days and times are uncertain for some. I believe the ammo shortage will end shortly. Some may believe that it will always be this way or that the Government will shut off the ammo. Some are having hard times finding ammo. This maybe because you are a new shooter or you were caught with your pants down, but that's not what this thread is about.

Some people hoard ammo like it's the end of days, and it could be. Some have always been this way, and some are just buying into the "hype". I have several hundred rounds of various calibers of ammo some target rounds and some sd rounds. I personally don't see the need to hoard 1,000's and 1000's of rounds.



It's my opinion if the shtf tomorrow, and people lost their minds. They begin looting, taking to the streets, and invading homes. It's my opinion. If you start stacking bodies in your front yard the looters and have not's will not bother your house (I wouldn't). If they had weapons and ammo now you have more weapons and ammo. I don't think you would be using your supply to go out target shooting. You would be using your ammo on a as needed basis.


If you are hoarding ammo, food, and other needs. Then you should fill your garage with lumber as well to board up your home. The looters will bust out your doors and windows as well. Am I off the grid here? I'd like to think not. I just not buying into the frenzy.

[timloomis]

I personally would like a few hundred just so I dont have to run to the store all the time. But when the shtf, the preppers you see on tv will get wasted lol. Those fools show on national tv where they live, what they have, and their security plans. People who are smart need to stock up on supplies, but not tell everybody or put pictures of it on facebook. We had a power outage last summer and people went nuts after 2 days. If some real problems were to happen, there would be a lot of bodies on the street. People were ready to fight over chainsaws and ice. I'd hate to see what hungry people would do.

[Xfuzz]

Never have been a big plinker.
I shoot about 3-4 times a year..maybe 50 rounds just
to stay active with my carry pieces...sight in the deer rifle etc.
Still qualify once a year for the retired LEO federal carry.

That said, I wanted to see exactly what I had on hand since the frenzy.
I counted 8700 rounds in 18 various calibers.
Some I don't have guns for.
That is nothing compared to some...but enough for me.
Your mileage may vary.

[Mike7.62]

Yes, you're off the "grid". People who have prepared for the worst aren't worried. Those who haven't are. The ammo shortage will end, but don't expect it to end anytime soon, nor will pricing return to the same levels as it was prior, especially as .gov isn't about to remove itself from interfering in that market through laws and regulations. Setting aside "zombie apocalypse", simple supply/demand curves, currency debasement, and .gov market distortions are enough to keep pricing high and shortages in place.

You don't have to buy into the "frenzy", but at some point you will have to buy if you haven't "hoarded", and "frenzy" pricing will likely be in place due to the factors mentioned above.

[Hillbilly77]

Originally Posted by J Rich

How much ammo do you need?

Just one more box.


Kind of like a saloon that posts a sign that says "Free beer tomorrow".

[GKC]

I have one round...it's in my shirt pocket.

I lost the rest of my ammo in a boating accident, along with all my guns.

So, all I have is one round...and no guns.

[Ruger Nut]

I am prepared for the Zombie Apocalypse.

[Forester]

Your not shooting enough if you don't feel the need to have 1,000 rounds on hand.

That's not even enough for 22 plinking.

I like to keep at least 1,000 rounds on hand for each centerfire handgun caliber. 300-500 for centerfire rifle. I'm feeling really iffy right now about only having 5,000 22 LR.

I reload, so that has been my priority since the last run on ammo.

[walkin jack]

This is a very good question. It is also a very interesting and thought provoking question. I'm not real sure that there is one correct answer. Rather, I believe that this is a very subjective topic and it is up to each of us to determine for ourselves what the best answer is.

There are some factors to consider to come up with the best answer for YOU (or me or who ever).
. Where do you live. IE urban, rural, low rent, gated, etc.
. Your age and physical condition.
. Your attitude toward fire arms.
. Your experience/capabilities with fire arms.
. Your willingness to shoot another human being.
. How much target shooting/plinking you like to do
. Whether you want to build supplies to protect against future price increase or appocalypse type events
. Others.

My neighbor is not a hater of guns but doesn't have or want any. He told me one time that if it comes to the situation described above that he wants to be the first one killed. He said he had no interest in living in a world like that. I told him he was crazy.....

Myself, I DO want to survive. I'm not a hoarder or a prepper but I have a modest supply of "stuff" laid by. I'll be able to make it for a llittle while at least. See, I have no idea how much I'll need of this or that. Ammo and other supplies are going to run out at some point no matter how much you stock up.

The bottom line is that no matter how carefully or thoroughly you prepare you might need to be saving that last bullet......Me, I'm not driving myself crazy over this. It it happens I'll do the best I can for as long as I can. I didn't come down here to live forever. I'm not really ready to "go" just yet but I'm 68 years old and I've had a great life. It's way too late for me to have to worry about dying young. All I can say here is that I have pretty much lived my life on my own terms and I expect to die on my own terms as well.

Que sara sara.

[spricks]

Being Prepared for when the shtf is a personal choice in regards to how much ammo. It may be worth more than you think? I know i'd buy needed ammo from a neighbor or friend or barter for something I need as well. I know my guns will never be just a club. It's not like it's going to spoil, and I know it won't get any cheaper than it is right now, at least here where there is plenty on the shelves of every cal.
spricks

[BobC357]

How much ammo do I need?

How much have you got?

[gutdoc]

Anybody think ammo might be a substitute currency someday?

Would that prospect change how much you "need?"

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2

[sipowicz]

Originally Posted by gutdoc

Anybody think ammo might be a substitute currency someday?

Would that prospect change how much you "need?"

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2

Oh man, my pants fit funny enough.....

[old bear]

All of my revolvers are .357 Magnum caliber with the exception of my OLD M-60. I've got 2,000 rounds of assorted ,357 Magnum and 38 special +P & +P+ ammo. In reality that's about twice what I feel comfortable with. But I ended up with it so I'm going to hang on to it.

[Alpo]

The question is idiotic. It's like "how much money do you need?" The answer is simple. As much as I can get.

You NEED enough that you won't have to stop shooting because you are out of ammo. If you are shooting the three squirrels in the pecan trees, you NEED three rounds. If you are going to do five-round groups on six different guns, you NEED 30 rounds. If your house is under attack by a rampaging horde of Mutant Zombie Bikers, you NEED a bunch.

What I NEED might change from day to day.

But the question I have is, What does NEED have to do with it?

The fastest you can legally drive in this country is 80. Why do you NEED a car that will go 100 or more?

I thought I had hit the big time, in 1981, when I bought my first Big Screen TV. 19 inches. I could see that from anywhere in the room. Why does anyone NEED a 48" (or bigger) TV?

People all around the world survive on a diet of rice. Why do you NEED Porterhouse steak?

The answer, obviously, is that I don't NEED any of that stuff. I WANT it. And I can afford to buy it. And if you don't like it - well, that's just too bad.

[Faulkner]

How much do I need?

I'm growing weary of the way we're always concerned about what other people need or want. Do you really need all that ammo? Do you really need all those guns? Does your wife really need all those shoes? Do you really need a 16 oz soft drink? Do millionaires really need all that money? Do you really need to drive a full size car?

This is the United States of America . . . I don't really care what possessions people think I do or don't need as long as I come by it legally.

[feralmerril]

At this point in my life I really dont shoot much. I used to reload, experiment and test or rather "dick" with many calibers in both rifles and handguns. I have no idea how much ammo is in the garage. I belive I loaded for about 25 different calibers and still have that many dies.
Much of my ammo both factory and reloads probley is up to 45 years old! For 38s, 357s, 44 special, 44 mag, 45 colt and 45 acp I probley have 500 to several thousand of each. Problem is with all my experimenting there is many different type loads and level of loads in all of them!
I really should get out and shoot them all and start out with just one standard load in each caliber. Golly when you have 7 .44 specials, 4 .357s, 4 .38 specials, its hard to find one favorite load thats good in them all!
I wont buy ANY ammo or guns in these mad insane times. I doubt if I could survive useing up five or ten thousand rounds before they got to me! I think we need a little sanity here. I think a valid answer might be ammo could be a good investment to barter or sell. Not so much reloads though, and thats what I mostly have.

[Xfuzz]

IMHO...
We all complain about the shortage and the crazy prices to the point to where it has become a source of aggravation to some.
The ones that are optimistic say they will wait til the frenzy is over
before they re-stock...good luck with that.

Ammo is not coming down in price until there is a glut of it on the retailers shelves.
When will that be..?
1. Production has to catch up.
2. The buying frenzy has to stop..big if there.
3. Then there will be a"second wave" from the ones that
vowed never to get caught short again.

If you need it...best buy it.

[feralmerril]

I remember seeing a cartoon of the last man alive. It was a solider standing alone on the planet with nothing but ruin and ashs as far as you could see. He is smileing and saying, "I won!"
Not sure I would want to live after that!

[sipowicz]

Originally Posted by Alpo

The question is idiotic. It's like "how much money do you need?" The answer is simple. As much as I can get.

You NEED enough that you won't have to stop shooting because you are out of ammo. If you are shooting the three squirrels in the pecan trees, you NEED three rounds. If you are going to do five-round groups on six different guns, you NEED 30 rounds. If your house is under attack by a rampaging horde of Mutant Zombie Bikers, you NEED a bunch.

What I NEED might change from day to day.

But the question I have is, What does NEED have to do with it?

The fastest you can legally drive in this country is 80. Why do you NEED a car that will go 100 or more?

I thought I had hit the big time, in 1981, when I bought my first Big Screen TV. 19 inches. I could see that from anywhere in the room. Why does anyone NEED a 48" (or bigger) TV?

People all around the world survive on a diet of rice. Why do you NEED Porterhouse steak?

The answer, obviously, is that I don't NEED any of that stuff. I WANT it. And I can afford to buy it. And if you don't like it - well, that's just too bad.

Got it...so around 500 rounds....thanks!

[rimfired]

I have accumulated, over the years and through
circumstance gleaned when to know enough is enough. I
reload also.

I recall a time when I humped more ammo than anybody.
That was combat. My greatest fear was not being shot or killed. It was running out of ammo.

For civilian purposes the current trend affects me not.

Plus all my firearms were lost in a tragic boating accident last year, in a volcano.

[redlevel]

I accumulated about 4000 rounds of .45ACP since 1994. I didn't shoot a whole lot, maybe 200 rounds per year, and I easily replaced those. Since retirement, I have been shooting a whole lot more. I shot about 200 rounds of .45ACP in the last ten days. I intend to shoot about that much every week or so now, not to mention the 300-400 rounds of .22 lr I shot in my new "Shopkeeper." At that rate, my hoard won't last long. A thousand or so rounds per month, per caliber, without replacing them depletes the stash in hurry. I reload .45 Colt and .38/.357. I am going to add .45 ACP. I have a fair supply of primers, about 7K each of sp and lp. I hope to live and shoot a good many more years.

I need lots of ammo.

[J Rich]

Alright then seems some may be taking the question out of context. I'm not debating the need of 30rd mags and car that go 200mph. It's just a question of needing to pay crazy prices for ammo these days.

If you WANT 50,000 rounds I'm ok with that. As long as you aren't one of the crazies that shoot up schools and such.

As far as ammo being currency. It seems it would take long for you to run out of ammo. Then what? One guy in town has all the ammo, and you have eaten all the food, and are now out of food, tp, and bullets.


Please don't take the question out of context. I am also not taking Zombies here!

[ladder13]

MORE, give me MORE

[Cdog]

I have no idea of how much I need? I won't know till I do need it?

I'm a simple guy, thus I believe it's far better to have it and never need it than to ever need it and not have it.

[ImprovedModel56Fan]

I don't see what's so complicated. Average annual use times life expectancy in years equals total need. Most people can't store that. Some can. If you can't, buy as much as you can. If can, you should have bought it all already.

Since the longer you live, the longer you are expected to live (usually), even those who are fully stocked may want to check actuarial tables or doctor's predictions and top off occasionally. You might also want to consider what your ammo bequest to your survivors should be. Don't overdo it! After fifty or sixty years, some of that ammo might not be as good as the day it was born. By all means, rotate your stock.

[Alpo]

There was a movie, many years back (probably made-for-TV). Science fiction. These astronauts went off, and when they came back several centuries had passed. Worm hole? Suspended animation? I don't remember. Anyway, the WAR had happened, and mankind had regressed. Pretty much stone-age, maybe early iron. Long hair and beards and dressed in skins.

One of the astronauts was trying to make a deal with one of the natives. Either "you give me this" or "you do this for me" - whatever - "and I'll give you THIS!!!", and holds up the flaregun from the space capsule.

The native looks at him like he's a moron.

"Shooter? What good's a shooter? Shooters are everywhere.

"Got no brasses."

[retarmyaviator]

Evidently I've got too much. I just finished moving 35 50 cal ammo cans full of 9mm and 45 ACP.

Hopefully that pain I feel is not another hernia.

[spricks]

Be prepared...you just never know when your want could become a need...times change. Just sayin
spricks

[chud333]

I don't "need" as much as a lot of folks. I can only shoot on the weekends,
as i work through the week. My plinking now will be done with a .22LR
due to the cost of replacing centerfire rounds. Be it loaded ammo or
components, the cost to replace is nuts. I do reload for my centerfire
rounds but even the components are getting harder to get and expensive.
So i will just scale back my centerfire pistol and rifle shooting
to a point where i will not significantly diminish my stockpile until this
craziness ends. I have plenty enough for "me" right now. And i feel my
supply is adequate to get me through whatever i might encounter be it
natural disaster/some stupid legislative act/etc...
What's the Hank Williams Jr. song?
A Country Boy can Survive...
I understand what you are getting at Jrich
Keep on keepin' on

Chuck

[sipowicz]

Originally Posted by spricks

Be prepared...you just never know when your want could become a need...times change. Just sayin
spricks

Oh, the s is supposed to be there...carry on.

[yaktamer]

Originally Posted by Faulkner

How much do I need?

I'm growing weary of the way we're always concerned about what other people need or want. Do you really need all that ammo? Do you really need all those guns? Does your wife really need all those shoes? Do you really need a 16 oz soft drink? Do millionaires really need all that money? Do you really need to drive a full size car?

This is the United States of America . . . I don't really care what possessions people think I do or don't need as long as I come by it legally.

The answer to the question about shoes is "no." All the others obviously are "yes."

[labworm]

I'm all set.

[Hillbilly77]

Originally Posted by sipowicz

Oh, the s is supposed to be there...carry on.

I get it.

[feralmerril]

Somewhere I read how much ammo custers troopers were issued, cant remember how much it was but remember it was far less than I used to take to the range for a session. Seems some of them ran out of ammo.
Still, they were something like a week or twos ride from the fort, in hostile country knowinly rideing into trouble. The opinion of the day of what they might need seems like it was a factor of maybe 200 to 1 of what some of us think we might need to defend ourselves right at home in civilization. The same with the civil war. Those guys carried next to nothing compared to what we think we need. I will concead you were faceing single shots, but many thousands of them!

[gregintenn]

I have a lot of ammo and reloading supplies. For years, I've watched store closeouts, want ads, yard sales, auctions, etc., and when I've found a bargain, I bought.

I live in a rural area, and driving to the store is more of an ordeal than walking next door. We have a good stock of food, toilet paper, etc. Each summer we can garden vegetables, and in the winter, we put up meat.

I'm not a prepper; just a country boy. I don't want to have to chase around from store to store all day searching for ammo if I decide I want to shoot a certain gun.

[bricker]

Originally Posted by sipowicz

Oh, the s is supposed to be there...carry on.

I see what you did there!

[timn8er]

Originally Posted by GKC

I have one round...it's in my shirt pocket.

I lost the rest of my ammo in a boating accident, along with all my guns.

So, all I have is one round...and no guns.

Originally Posted by rimfired

I have accumulated, over the years and through
circumstance gleaned when to know enough is enough. I
reload also.

I recall a time when I humped more ammo than anybody.
That was combat. My greatest fear was not being shot or killed. It was running out of ammo.

For civilian purposes the current trend affects me not.

Plus all my firearms were lost in a tragic boating accident last year, in a volcano.

More boating accidents!? If I remember correctly this brings the total to six? WHEN WILL PEOPLE LEARN!! Boats & firearms
don't mix!!

[mkk41]

Just dispose of all the worldly items you have and trust in the Government to provide all that you NEED!

It worked so well under Communism.

[jimmyj]

Originally Posted by feralmerril

Somewhere I read how much ammo custers troopers were issued, cant remember how much it was but remember it was far less than I used to take to the range for a session. Seems some of them ran out of ammo.
Still, they were something like a week or twos ride from the fort, in hostile country knowinly rideing into trouble. The opinion of the day of what they might need seems like it was a factor of maybe 200 to 1 of what some of us think we might need to defend ourselves right at home in civilization. The same with the civil war. Those guys carried next to nothing compared to what we think we need. I will concead you were faceing single shots, but many thousands of them!

1. 60 rounds of .45/60 carbine ammo
2. 20 rounds of .45 colt ammo
3. extra ammo was carried in the supply wagons which were left behind as being not able to keep up with the Cavalry.
4. Extra ammo was also carried on the indiviual horses which the hostiles stampeded with their first attack/charge/rush.
5. at the end of the short battle, the Troopers still alive were searching the fallen Troopers for ammo.

[C.S.63]

First off do I really need any? All my firearms sank with the boat!
Ok How much do you need?
Really, How much can you carry?

Lets start with a good MacGyver Knife/multi tool and a pair of boots for walking and keeping the feet comfy!

[Maximumbob54]

I live in Florida so I already have plywood cut out to fit my doors and windows.

[leswad]

I have found that I can only have to much ammo when I am swimming.

[gdnagle]

As much as I can afford, it's like a a paid off car sitting on blocks in your yard, doesn't eat anything and one day you might need it or could increase in value. This reminds me I think I'm down to about 15K rounds need to start looking Thanks for reminding me

[BJoe]

I shoot once a week and it used to be 90% centerfire and 10% rimfire. Now it is closer to 50%-50%

I USED to buy ammo when it was on sale. Now I buy it when it's available. What used to be 1000 round per month average now is 400-500.

It takes years to get 'good' with a handgun I really hate to loose it. I really don't think they will but IF prices kept climbing I would have to introduce a pellet gun in to the rotation.

[rburg]

OK, the guy who dropped his in the volcano gets a few extra points for originality.

The question really was important to some of us in the past. I even worried about it a long time ago. But I swore I wasn't going to have guns and no ammo. But then I've been known for my excesses. And we were getting together, my gun buddies and I, discussing ammo. And I mentioned we had a gun show coming up the following weekend and it'd been a while since we'd had a road trip. I also pointed out that I'd been counting ammo and was a little worried I needed more.

Of course that set all of them off because if I needed more ammo, they all surely did. So there was also an event at the club we all belong to. It was a Christmasy affair the kids wanted to go to. So we somehow managed to talk the wives into car pooling so we could go to the gun show, promising to be back early. You know how that often turns out, 100 miles each way and us with no concept of time. So we went to the show and the topic was ammo the entire way down. Our buddy drove because he had one of those huge old Cherokees. And the springs were at full sag on the way home!

So our absence at the club party was noticed. One of our on again off again adult beverage drinking buddies asked where we were. And our wives told him at a gun show. So when we arrived we kind of slipped in, trying to make sure no one noticed us much. But the friend came over and asked how we'd done. Then he volunteered he had a bunch of ammo at home. He said if you counted shotgun shells and 22s, he probably had 500 rounds, total. And I'm guessing that was enough for him. And being polite, we all nodded agreement with his conclusion.

But when it was time to leave, the guy who drove pulled to each of our cars/jeeps to help us unload. I guess 500 rounds was significantly less than any of us purchased that day.

Ya know, I've purchased guns from time to time that came with a box of ammo in the gun box. And judging from the condition of the gun, The 6 or 12 gone out of the box was probably all that had ever been fired in the gun, often over 50 years of hard service in the desk drawer. I hate to be too critical of people like that.

This once was a free country. You've just got to accept the idea that a man probably has enough ammo to keep him happy. If he doesn't, its no body's fault but his own. My problem has always been storing enough to keep me happy. Now you can't even buy enough to stay happy.

But a funny thing happened just over 4 years ago. The election didn't go as I would have preferred. So I'm not the panicky type. I just made a cool and practical decision to increase my 22 cal supplies. So I did.

And the only negative result was 3 years ago I had heart surgery. And the crazy doctor put me on a 15# lifting limit for a while. And my more crazy wife decided to knock our house down and build a new one. That required all my ammo to be removed to a son's house. To his credit, he volunteered to haul it all out of the doomed house and to his basement. He had no idea what he was in for. But he also seemed to be tapping my meager supply of 9mm. Only an ammo can or two...

So the rule remains, you can only have too much ammo if you're on fire, if you're trying to swim with it, or you have to hump it uphill.

[loveMD]

I wonder when the last time a well meaning homeowner had to go through 50k rounds to protect his family, home or avoid losing everything to bad guys.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

[kwselke]

One round one kill. How many targets are there going to be? OK, I might need more than one round if it's real windy or the target does not stand still. If I took all the brass that I've used to actually make a critical shot it would be a very small pile of brass. If I took all of the brass I used to practice for those few critical shots the pile would be huge.

[Maximumbob54]

Originally Posted by loveMD

I wonder when the last time a well meaning homeowner had to go through 50k rounds to protect his family, home or avoid losing everything to bad guys.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

Those LA riots weren't that long ago.

[Fir3hawk]

Originally Posted by Walkin' Jack

This is a very good question. It is also a very interesting and thought provoking question. I'm not real sure that there is one correct answer. Rather, I believe that this is a very subjective topic and it is up to each of us to determine for ourselves what the best answer is.

There are some factors to consider to come up with the best answer for YOU (or me or who ever).
. Where do you live. IE urban, rural, low rent, gated, etc.
. Your age and physical condition.
. Your attitude toward fire arms.
. Your experience/capabilities with fire arms.
. Your willingness to shoot another human being.
. How much target shooting/plinking you like to do
. Whether you want to build supplies to protect against future price increase or appocalypse type events
. Others.

Definitely a good point. I think a year or so's supply should be sufficient for the average weekend shooter. Also if you reload it might be a little easier than say someone like me that typically buys his ammo at Walmart.

I got my handgun a few months ago ("pre panic") but just started stocking up ammo around the time of the panic. I've got a comfortable level now but I plan on maintaining that level and just replacing a box here and there when I go to the range, a few times a year.