Where Has All The .22LR Ammunition Gone?

[HorizontalMike]

Snagged 500rds.

Well I managed to snag 5-100rd 22LR Winchesters for $10/box (after tax). Still a bit high, but I settled for it, this time. A friend of mine who works at Academy told me about a really small and new gun shop in a 'burb outside of San Antonio.

Anyways, the guy at the shop was just unloading today's delivery and had to call me back after inventorying what came in. When he did, he said that he only got the 5 boxes, but would sell them to me over the phone if I wanted them.

Nice to know that at least SOME folks (the independent ones) don't impose that "one box" policy on sales. And the best part is that my better half can pick them up, since the shop is just 10mi. from where she works. That alone saves me a ~85-90mi round trip for such a small single purchase. Leslie and I are always combining errands/trips since we live so far out of town.

So things are looking up for the short term at least. Now I can head out and pop a couple hundred of these at the range and not feel like I am running on empty.

 

[rwsmith]

That's my point.......

Well lets start with some facts. The ammo companies claim to be producing at full capacity. They even suggest they're producing more than last year. But if that part is true, then each and every retail store should be receiving at least as much as last year. But we know they aren't.

That's just what I've thought. How come nobody ever even SEES it???? I think it all is just going into a big hole somewhere.

 

[steamloco76]

In western and central PA .22 LR and .22 Mag have been nearly non-existent since January. My LGS has backorders still unfilled from before the the elections in 2012! Our largest regional gun store used to buy complete eighteen wheeler loads of Federal, Remington and CCI .22 every year-they have NONE and can't get any. The only .22 available is Eley Club, Eley Match and Eley Tennex at $8.99, $13.99 and $18.99 per 50 rounds. Another larger store is expecting a large order of CCI Standard. In 2012 they sold bricks for $28.99, when the stock comes in they are going to sell it for $49.99 per brick and you have to be on their waiting list to get any. I stocked-up in 2011/12 so I don't need to buy, but I can't shoot the 500 rounds per week I used to either.

 

[varmint243]

I used to believe all the logical explanations.

Panic Buying
Hording/Prepping
Profiteers
The new crop of large scale 22 users that came from the release of all the .22LR black rifles not long ago using very large quantities of ammo
The speed of communication on the internet and phones affecting the availability.
Imported ammo being held up in customs

I don't believe it any more
There is something else going on here
It has been too much for too long
No other shortage has even come close to this one

 

[old&slow]

I have a friend that started shooting a few years ago.
A while back he called and said the LGS 's didn't have any 22's.
And he wanted to know if they had stopped making 22 ammo.

Now, he can go into irate / panic mode sometimes rather quickly. Not that I would exploit that or anything.

So, I told him, Yep, they quite making 22 ammo !! And were never going to make it again.
After a short pause, probably a brief cardiac arrest, and a small string of profanites. I told him No, they haven't stopped making 22 ammo. And asked if he was out of .22 ammo ?
I figured if he was in dire need I'd give him a brick.

He said, No, he still had 3 or 4 bricks. Now, I have a pretty good idea how much he shoots. 3 or 4 bricks will probably last him at least 4 maybe 5 years.

I've seen at least 3 ammo / reloading component shortages over the years. So, I don't know if it's a government conspiracy, a gun store group conspiracy, global warming, or panic buying / hoarding.

But I see people that buy a box or two of ammo every year or two, buying ammo by the case. People buying ammo in calibers they don't even have. People paying ridiculous prices for ammo. People 40 + yrs old buying firearms that have never owned a firearm before.

So, I'm going with Global Warming..

 

[dw1911]

22lr is making a slow comeback. just have to be at the right place n at the right time.

 

[Wes Smith]

I have not been able to find 22LR or 357 ammo

 

[millisec]

There may be other factors involved but underneath it all I still believe it is economics driving a caliber shift down. So many have shifted down from 45/40/223 etc. to 9 and 22 to make it more "affordable" to shoot a lot. Just look at all the people scampering to get conversion barrels for their 40's or grabbing up 9mm pistols, 22 pistols and 22 black rifles (not to offend anyone but what a tacticool joke). To me the scope of the 22 was an old rifle in the closet occasionally used to snuff vermin, maybe some squirrel and rabbit or some plinking and teaching kids to shoot. I owned one S&W 22 target pistol which I never really liked and sold. Now of course with all that no or overpriced 9 and 22. With the abundance of 40 its starting to look really appealing to me to go the other way and get a 40 M&P. I still love the 22 magnum (no ammo there either) but at least in FL hunting regulations frown or outright prohibit it for small game. Never quite figured that one out.

 

[varmint243]

I have not been able to find 22LR or 357 ammo

Ummm.... I thought 357 was mainly a roll your own kinda thing ?
I don't think I ever actually purchased 357 ammo ?
That would be waaayyyyyy too expensive if you shoot more than once a year or so.

 

[rwsmith]

Ya darn.....

Ummm.... I thought 357 was mainly a roll your own kinda thing ?
I don't think I ever actually purchased 357 ammo ?
That would be waaayyyyyy too expensive if you shoot more than once a year or so.

Ya darn tootin' it's waaaayyyy to expensive.

 

[blujax01]

Cheap .22LR bulk pack was getting more difficult to find well before Sandy Hook. With economic hard times, lots of folks shoot more .22s. Gun manufactures have been putting out tons of new .22s, particularly centerfire replicas. The S&W M&P 15-22 has been hugely popular (as well as a dozen other "black rifles" by different manufacturers), and there's lot's of new centerfire pistol replicas. Shooting suppressed has also become much more popular in recent years. This ain't your daddy's Marlin 60 and 10-22 rimfire world anymore and I think that's a significant part of the shortages we're seeing.

I don't buy the notion that the ammo manufactures are purposely limiting .22LR production to less than capacity in order to increase price. If that were the case, they could have done the same with centerfire pistol ammo which is plentiful in many retailers around here.

Absolutely agree.

How many new shooters are there since the election of '08?

And how many of these new shooters are females?

And what's the first piece of advice well-meaning (but maybe misguided) souls give to new shooters - particularly females?

That's right - "Get a .22 and when you're all growed up you can have a Man's gun!".

One Hundred Million gun owners in the USA. No matter how you slice it, that's a lot of folks and a lot of ammo.

 

[blujax01]

...
I don't believe it any more
There is something else going on here
It has been too much for too long
No other shortage has even come close to this one

The only thing we learn from history is that we learn nothing from history. It has been a scant 11 months since Sandy Hook.

You want to talk shortages? Google "WWII".

 

[Wes Smith]

Ummm.... I thought 357 was mainly a roll your own kinda thing ?
I don't think I ever actually purchased 357 ammo ?
That would be waaayyyyyy too expensive if you shoot more than once a year or so.

For your information I just got my 686-1 back after having it done for the modification recall and the issue was with .357 not 38 special.So have you been able to find powder or primers for reloading?No place locally sells it and Midway is always out.

 

[blujax01]

There is a thread in the reloading forum titled "Daily in stock reloading notices" that has had 571 responses in the past 8 months. You will find your .357 supplies there.

 

[S&WIowegan]

The shortage is due to a number of coincidental factors. First, and foremost, is the gun grabbing terror inculcated in all of us by these massacres.

Next is the appearance of all of the .22LR caliber "assault rifle" look-a-likes and all the clones of many semiauto pistols. Shooting of these .22s is very different than the old-time, plinking, vermin control and target shooting that I grew up doing. I am a very active shooter and competitor and see casual shooters come to the range with their clone guns. They go into their favorite "gun fantasy games" mindset, load the 25 round mags and just pour bullets down range as fast as they can until they run out. Their target looks like a sieve, not a group. They pack up and leave and start frantically buying more ammo. There is no doubt in my mind that consumption is way up from what it was even 10 yrs. ago.

Third is all the new .22LR shooting games that have sprung up in recent years, i.e. Ruger Rimfire is very popular in my area. This is way different than the old Bullseye game which emphasizes ritual and accuracy.

Last are the hoarders and the gougers. I don't really know how much is a hoard, but I had a stockpile of .22 ammo before the panic. I am using that ammo up and refuse to buy during this panic. The gougers are trying to make a business out of scrounging up ammo and reselling at inflated price. I fervently hope they end up eating that ammo!!

 

[ditto1958]

In western and central PA .22 LR and .22 Mag have been nearly non-existent since January. My LGS has backorders still unfilled from before the the elections in 2012! Our largest regional gun store used to buy complete eighteen wheeler loads of Federal, Remington and CCI .22 every year-they have NONE and can't get any. The only .22 available is Eley Club, Eley Match and Eley Tennex at $8.99, $13.99 and $18.99 per 50 rounds. Another larger store is expecting a large order of CCI Standard. In 2012 they sold bricks for $28.99, when the stock comes in they are going to sell it for $49.99 per brick and you have to be on their waiting list to get any. I stocked-up in 2011/12 so I don't need to buy, but I can't shoot the 500 rounds per week I used to either.

I hear ya on that last part. I have a fair amount of 22 LR, but since I know I can't readily replace it, I cant shoot a brick a week like I did in the past.

Also, Iowegan's point about the proliferation of semi-auto 22 firearms is an excellent one. When the shortage hit, I pretty much stopped using my 10/22, and switched to shooting my Henry lever gun instead. Why? Well, the Henry holds 15 in its tube. If I fill it up 4 times, that's only 60 rounds,.and I can actually shoot for a fairly long time with it. With the 10/22 is tended to shoot at least a couple hundred rounds each time out with it.

 

[Will2]

Midway is accepting back orders on Winchester and Federal Eagle 22s, with expected delivery (to them) this month thru Feb of next year... hopefully they are correct !!!

Will

 

[jimmyj]

.22 Rimfire ammo is plentiful if you want to pay $10.00 per box of 50 rounds

 

[rburg]

I've now found and purchased some 22lr! This afternoon my wife an I were out running errands. I had a $20 certificate from Field & Stream, a new store here. So we went in looking for something else and low and behold, they had a pallet on the floor with Winchester 333s for $17.99 each. So we found a pair of employees, flirting and chatting. She was a babe! But I interrupted (rude, I know) to ask what the purchase limit was. He said 2 boxes per person. So I picked up 4, handed 2 to my wife, and we paid and left. It feels good. Now I've got to decide if I should haul them to the gun show and try to double my money, or toss them in an ammo can and forget them.

Maybe I should show up at 5:00 AM on Friday and try to score 2 more. My wife may be easy going, but getting her out of the sack early enough to drive there would be very risky.

 

[YeshuaIsa53]

Funny, .22 used to be the caliber of choice for people just getting into shooting. Now people have to go out and learn on a 9mm -45ACP while they wait for .22 ammo to free up !

Maybe the gun grabbers don't want you teaching your kids to shoot...