Primer prices-the new normal

[chief38]

Buying local and casting your own lead, its 8 cents + 3 cents + 3 cents = 14 cents per, or $7 / box.

OK, not factory, but BETTER because it works well in all even a P38.

Now, if you don't have access to a local store, or melting lead is not your thing, then then home brew might not be the way to go.

Lead casting is something I won't ever do again! Yes, I guess it's a cheap alternative to purchasing bullets, but getting lead poisoning is not fun - ask me how I know! The thought of casting no longer even enters my mind! Even if you wear protective clothing and do it all outside, it's too much work for me to shoot reduced price bullets. The bullets I use now are Polymer coated and do not have exposed lead - much safer and cleaner. Also, no lube is needed with coated bullets so smoke from the wax is gone when shooting.

 

[cracker57]

About those cheap Norma primers . A friend of mine bought some and he says he’s getting around 1 failure to fire per 15 round magazine.
That’s with a tried and true Glock . So OK for range fodder .

seating the S.A. primers can be a little bit hard to get the FEEL for it. I will get a FTF about 1 in 50-75, they have all gone bang with the second firing, great way to practice ones FTF drill, slap, rack and roll, back in the game. Beats dummy rounds as one never knows when you will get one and you just load them in the next mag.
one needs to know where the deals are, watch for sales and stack deep when you find a price you are willing to pay.
I also use the fisherman mindset, hate to say it here but I don't tell people where the fish are biting and I don't tell where the deals are on the WWW, sorry.

 

[BE Mike]

I save money on reloading, even a couple of bucks (probably much more) on 9mm and a lot more on .45 ACP. I've been reloading for a very, very long time and have accumulated more than all the necessary equipment and free brass over the decades. Since I shoot between 150-200 rounds of centerfire pistol (9mm and .45 ACP) nearly every week, I save quite a bit of money, but I also have personal satisfaction that I'm shooting quality ammo that I made myself. Having said that, I'm long retired and reloading is a good pastime between shooting sessions. Reloading isn't for everyone, but saying that 9mm isn't worth reloading, like most things, isn't a blanket true statement for everyone. Just like the blanket statements people make for not shooting beyond very close distances with a handgun. Sometimes those statements are merely attempts for some people to be lazy.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

It was a couple of years ago - was at Cabelas closely examining the Ammo.
Another Dude comes up and starts looking.
I ask him what Caliber he’s looking for.
He replies 25-35. Say what?
He getting a Custom Rifle built in 25-35.
I’m thinking, I don’t recall seeing that round when you could find everything !
I recall seeing a few Lever Guns chambered for it, but it’s not a round that I ever saw a lot or heard that much about.
I told him you need to look online. And if you find some, buy a bunch!
And consider Reloading!
I never did ask him what is this new Custom 25-35 ?
Different Strokes for Different Folks!

 

[GypsmJim]

Lead casting is something I won't ever do again! Yes, I guess it's a cheap alternative to purchasing bullets, but getting lead poisoning is not fun - ask me how I know! The thought of casting no longer even enters my mind! Even if you wear protective clothing and do it all outside, it's too much work for me to shoot reduced price bullets. The bullets I use now are Polymer coated and do not have exposed lead - much safer and cleaner. Also, no lube is needed with coated bullets so smoke from the wax is gone when shooting.

When I first started casting I was hesitant. Lee funded a study to analyze air quality around a casting setup. They sent me a reprint for free. The test data and protocol interested me because one of the departments in my Engineering Group did that very thing in our company factories. Based on those results I went ahead.

My casting is done in the basement with no ventilation. I also shoot weekly at an indoor range. The ventilation system has now been upgraded to meet standards, but it wasn't always perfect.

Anywhoot, been shooting indoors for 53 years, and casting for 50. Two years ago I got to thinking about this very subject, so I had my doctor add a lead screening in my yearly physical. My body's lead contact was not detectable.

Lots of ways to get lead poisoning, but I'm confident that casting has not done it to me.

 

[Roofuss]

Just picked up a couple bricks of primers at the local gun store.
CCI small pistol : $74.00
CCI large pistol : $76.00
And no sales tax .

 

[Huskerguy]

Well, reading this confirms I am blessed. I am 71, several years ago I started thinking about retiring and wanted to stock up on components so I when I went on a "fixed income" I wouldn't feel guilty about the costs. I scanned web sites for overstock bullets for rifle and pistol and if it wasn't a very good deal, I didn't do it. One bullet company had some specials and even free items that started at midnight one year so I stayed up and made an order. It took me years before I used the free stuff up.

I would often stop in at shops and ask what they would sell case lots and multiple case lots for. Made some good connections and now I don't even know if I can shoot all I have laid up which is a good problem to have. I am probably going to move some large pistol primers as I don't shoot large much.

Now to the current prices. I picked up some Winchester Small Pistol primers (they had all large and small) for $59/1,000. I have an old case of Winchesters but haven't shot many of them but I hope they are better that the unfired Winchester 22's that liter our range floor with a mark where they were struck and didn't go off.

 

[johngalt]

Reloading is no longer a money saver for many popular calibers due to the high cost of components. A box of 50 rounds of 9mm practice ammo can be purchased for under $11.00 now and most could not reload with newly purchased components for that price. YES, if you have components that were purchased years ago at 1/3 the cost, it would still a money saver. If you already have thousands of primers, bullets and tons of powder - reload!

Many reload for the fun of it and yet others reload because they want certain velocities, spec's or specialties that can not be purchased in factory ammo.

In older calibers that are no longer popular anymore the cost of factory ammo can be astronomical! Not only is the cost a factor but many of the old time calibers and chambering's are all but impossible to find! That is mainly where reloading shines these days.

I have the same thoughts - I don’t reload much any more. I still have pre-panic components, but instead of reloading everything, I save it for hard to get loads - primarily target wadcutter stuff. At the current price of components, I question that it makes sense to reload for easily obtainable ammo such as hardball .45 auto. I also don’t have the time to shoot as much as I used to, nor as nice a range. I miss the outdoor range in Cincinnati.

 

[Claymore33]

Academy in Waco has CCI primers at 79.95 per 1000

 

[Skeet 028]

After dealing with all the shortages etc over the last 60 years or so I thought that primer prices would have settled out to about 65 by now...but no joy. This shortage/price increase is different than any previous happenings...but the basics have changed. One company owns 3 primer makers...One company owns at least the distribution rights of 5 powder companies and the other company is making military powders for other non US companies

 

[stansdds]

After dealing with all the shortages etc over the last 60 years or so I thought that primer prices would have settled out to about 65 by now...but no joy. This shortage/price increase is different than any previous happenings...but the basics have changed. One company owns 3 primer makers...One company owns at least the distribution rights of 5 powder companies and the other company is making military powders for other non US companies

It has almost become a monopoly.

 

[SLT223]

I just ordered 4000 of the SA small primers. Will report back when I get chance to run some. Just got my Dillon 650 bench set up last weekend after having moved three years ago....back in saddle!

 

[GypsmJim]

After dealing with all the shortages etc over the last 60 years or so I thought that primer prices would have settled out to about 65 by now...but no joy. This shortage/price increase is different than any previous happenings...but the basics have changed. One company owns 3 primer makers...One company owns at least the distribution rights of 5 powder companies and the other company is making military powders for other non US companies

Now it just got worse. The US company that owns 3 primer makers just got bought out by the Czechs.

The WORST part of that is that we approved the deal. You can't make this stuff up, can you?

 

[BE Mike]

I just ordered 4000 of the SA small primers. Will report back when I get chance to run some. Just got my Dillon 650 bench set up last weekend after having moved three years ago....back in saddle!

I hope that you have better luck than I have had with them. With Winchester small pistol primers, according to ammoseek, selling at $50/ 1,000, I won't be buying anymore SA small pistol primers. That's the best part of foreign primers; they've driven down prices of good 'ole made in the USA primers.

 

[H Richard]

SEE REVISED FIGURES, TO CORRECT FROM MY MATH ERRORS.





The majority of my shooting is Skeet & Trap. I was lucky to have bought a supply of primers for $113 per 5,000 at the start of Covid. I still have about 1/3 of those primers.
With current cost of powder about 39.95 per lb
Primers at 22.60 per 1000
Wad's at 14.95 per 500
Shot at 52.00 per 25 lbs
(I'm loading a 1 oz load)


MATH ERROR: Shot is .13 (not .013) and that makes it 6.85 per box of 25.





I can still load for just 6.85 per box of 25. When I run out of primers it will go up to about 8.17 per box of 25. That's still below the price p/box at the Farm Store. Plus less recoil with the 1 oz load.


I know I didn't include the hull cost, because I have many thousand hulls, several 5 gal buckets full to load, and I figure 4-5 loading's per hull.

 

[youngolddude]

I reload to shoot more and because I can't afford to buy factory ammo for everything we shoot. I buy powder by the 8 lb. container, bullets by the thousand and as many primers as I can afford when I find them on sale. I reload 9mm because the bullet has to be lead where I shoot. I just ordered 6K primers for an avg. of 6 cents (large and small), no shipping.

 

[SLT223]

I hope that you have better luck than I have had with them. With Winchester small pistol primers, according to ammoseek, selling at $50/ 1,000, I won't be buying anymore SA small pistol primers. That's the best part of foreign primers; they've driven down prices of good 'ole made in the USA primers.

Uh oh. Well, we shall see. I still have about 12k of cci Winchester, so don’t worry about me too much. My primary concern was fit with the foreign components bc I’ve had issue with primer pocket dimensions of foreign brass in the past.

 

[Alton]

The biggest difference since 2020 has been the large price variation from regular primers $54 a 1k to BR2 $190 a 1k MSRP and that is from the CCI website Shop products in Primers today | CCI Ammunition
I load for fun, for accuracy, for making sure I don't have to search every time I need a new box of ammo. Example my sons each have a Ruger Target 25-06. They have always shot Federal Premium 100 grain BT's. Well Federal Premium dropped 100 grain and moved to 115. I was able to purchase 100 grain from Midway. They now have enough ammo to last them a lifetime.

 

[glenwolde]

All true, cast 38 special can be loaded for about the same price as cast 9mm.

However, you aren't going to find any commercial 38 special for anywhere near the price of 9mm. And you're not going to find jacketed HP 9mm bullets for 12.5 cents each either.

Precision Delta's 124gr JHPV2 are $.11 (plus tax and shipping) and less if you're willing to buy more.

 

[glenwolde]

seating the S.A. primers can be a little bit hard to get the FEEL for it. I will get a FTF about 1 in 50-75, they have all gone bang with the second firing, great way to practice ones FTF drill, slap, rack and roll, back in the game. Beats dummy rounds as one never knows when you will get one and you just load them in the next mag.
one needs to know where the deals are, watch for sales and stack deep when you find a price you are willing to pay.
I also use the fisherman mindset, hate to say it here but I don't tell people where the fish are biting and I don't tell where the deals are on the WWW, sorry.

I had a big problem with misfires when I first tried them. Turned out it was more the gun, though that gun didn't have problems with WSP prior to the SA primers. But the SA primers went off in every other gun I had, even the striker fired ones.

The strain screw was backed out a ways. So I guess they are a little harder than WSP. Loading with my Dillon I don't get any misfires anymore. My first ones I loaded on my single stage.