Is the ammo shortage ever going to end?

[vito]

It's been a few years now that we are suffering through an ammo shortage, long enough that it has become the new "normal". I used to buy a few boxes of whatever I needed at the local MC Sports on my way to the range, and literally have gone over a year without finding any ammunition that I can use at this store. The local Gander Mountain has shelves full of 45acp, but nothing else in the way of handgun ammo.

I had stocked up pretty well in all of the calibers that I normally shoot, but over time my stock has gone down considerably. I'm almost at the point where I dare not shoot any 38 Special for fear that I will be done to the rounds I carry. I used to keep 4,000 to 5,000 22LR around all the time, and now I think I have one box of 525 on the shelf.

If things don't start getting better soon I guess the anti-gunners will achieve what they have been aiming at all along, just based upon shooters running our to things to shoot!

This has all gone on for way too long.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

Yes. No. Maybe.

 

[Lee in Quartzsite]

Saw this a couple of days ago:

U.S. Postal Service Joins DHS, Social Security Admin, NOAA in Ammo Purchases

 

[vito]

I'm not normally a believer in conspiracy theories, but the increased Federal buying of ammunition sure seems like a deliberate effort to reduce available civilian supply levels. I wonder how many other government agencies are buying up the production of the manufacturers? I just recently became aware that the U.S. State Department has its own police force, with weapons, full body armor, etc. and SWAT-like teams to fulfill its mission of investigating passport fraud and theft.

 

[ChattanoogaPhil]

Centerfire ammo of all kinds is plentiful around here. Maybe folks in Illinois are gobbling up handgun ammo because they able to carry a concealed gun for the first time in their lives?

 

[venomballistics]

Nope ... wont be over for a while.
it don't seem to take much to rejuvenate the crisis.
a lead plant, unrelated to ammo production closes, it starts all over.
the latest cup of gas on the fire is the Ukraine thing which will probably lead to sanctions against Russia.
The result, everyone is flipping out about 7.62 comblock .... never mind the fact that nearly every nation on Earth cranks this stuff out, to include our own.
Prices on this stuff are going nuts, because so many are too stupid to figure out its a mere fraction of the market share.
add to this the fact that some of the 5.45x39 was recently designated "armor piercing" and thus deemed unimportable.
Big deal ... Hornady seems to have it covered.

The trick to the solution is figuring out how to make the voice of reason loud enough to be heard amongst the unwashed masses, so that they can calm down. The moment that happens, the crisis is over

 

[H Richard]

I'm in IL and the only shortage is 22RF and reloading supplies (powder, pistol or handgun, and shot). There seems to be plenty of 38, 9mm, 40, 357, 45, 44, .223, etc on the shelves now. There is no .22RF and when it comes in a case at a time it is gone before it hits the shelves.

 

[feralmerril]

It seems to me as long as there is a demand some company will be putting people to work to fulfill it. I cant understand why that hasnt fully happened yet. Must be there are certain ingredients that are hard to get? But even then, the same formula should work.
Along the same thinking is the price of anything else. Take gas. Now if they say some factor drives the price up, why is it there still is gas available as long as there is money.
Peoples greed take over. Whether its ammo or toilet paper, if all of the sudden there is news accounts that says there is a big shortage coming up there is always people that will look for it and hoard it. Even if they already have a garage full of it.
I have ammo, some of it is 40 years old. Yet once or twice I thought I would check if they had it when I was walking past the area at walmart or whatever, and they had some and I found myself buying a box I didnt need as I had opened my big mouth out of curiosity.

 

[MY15-22]

NO, I don't see a shortage on the ammo I use.

I have a LOT.

 

[pownal55]

Reloading is a must for most calibers. The shortage of 22's is what has me baffled. If it were a conspiracy the lowly 22 would be all you could find.

 

[Mule Packer]

I find it interesting that the U.S. Postal Service is now stock piling .357 hollow points.

It used to be that mail carriers would use pepper spray on barking dogs...or maybe even just throw them a treat. Now I guess they're really going to show 'em who's boss. Better keep your Chihuahua on leash or some mailman is going to settle its hash with a 158-grain hollow point to the brain!

 

[Smitty357]

This is why some of us bought more back in the day. Because it was cheap and now days we dont have to look for ammo any time soon. We dont know what the new normal is because we are still living normal.

 

[ChattanoogaPhil]

The shortage of 22's is what has me baffled. If it were a conspiracy the lowly 22 would be all you could find.

Rimfire shortage is due to demand. Tons of rimfire replicas have hit the market in recent years, particularly "black guns"with 30rd mags dangling underneath, that had never existed before. Folks are blowing though bricks in a shooting session. Add to this a poor economy which pushes more folks into cheaper rimfire shooting... and demand for rimfire has probably doubled/tripled or more. So it makes sense to me when I see centerfire ammo piled high and dusty rimfire shelves.

 

[mc5aw]

I figured the ongoing shortage of .22 was due to a national increase in the bear population.

 

[kudzu3]

Why can't we do a "don't buy ammo" week/month and let everything catch up. I believe that if most shooters could refrain from buying any ammo for a period of time, the shelves would be full again. Thoughts? Sorry, didn't intend to hi-jac.

 

[Murphy's Law]

Be glad you're not a reloader's trying to find powder!

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Here in NM, I am seeing greater availability of center fire, 22 still not on the shelf.

 

[ChattanoogaPhil]

I find it interesting that the U.S. Postal Service is now stock piling .357 hollow points.

It used to be that mail carriers would use pepper spray on barking dogs...or maybe even just throw them a treat. Now I guess they're really going to show 'em who's boss. Better keep your Chihuahua on leash or some mailman is going to settle its hash with a 158-grain hollow point to the brain!

Funny.

It wasn't that long that there were postings about Alex Jones and others hyperventilating over the Feds buying all the 5.56 to starve the market. FastForward a couple months... 5.56 is everywhere. SGammo is selling 55gr brass $339/k and M855 62gr with ammo can for $339/900. Tons of steel case too. When I was in Sportsman's recently they had pallets on the floor stacked nearly waist high with 5.56 (way overpriced)... folks just walk right by it. Alex, are ya out there?

 

[hsguy]

Hopefully Alex has removed the paper bag from his mouth and his breathing has returned to normal. He better keep the bag handy though, the Post Office thing could cause him and his followers a serious bout of breathlessness.

 

[SW_shooter]

I'm certainly not Nostradamus but I don't see the ammo issue getting better fast. I see it taking many more months (years...gulp) to catch up. Why? Because people keep panic buying and stockpiling. This goes for pistol powder as well. We all are smart enough to know that until demand softens, supply won't catch up.

I stopped looking for 22LR months ago, had to stop shooting it as well. I miss it, but I just got tired of driving all over the place looking for my one box allotment at increased prices. Gas prices didn't get any lower either and the expense of not finding ammo became glaringly clear.

I hope I'm wrong and the shelves are full of ammo with huge discount prices because no one is buying......oh ahh dang that dream seams so unreal.