To shoot or not to shoot, that is the question

[rimfirematt]

Well, Luckily I stocked up on some of my most used items when prices were skyrocketing. So I got a little pile of stuff.

Well I went out shooting last weekend and burned through 200 rounds of 10mm. I have roughly 500 bullets left and enough powder and primer to make all 500 of them turn into cartridges.


But with the current and possibly much future situation of dry sources I wonder If I ought to practice anymore? maybe just reload what I got and sit on them?

Same with my 300 win mag and 270. Got enough for 100 rounds apiece but thats it.

Id really like to get out shooting but im afraid Ill burn it all up and then miss that last delivery truck.

What are you guys doing? just sitting on a pile and reloading what you can scrounge up for practice?

[JOAT]

'Tis a very good question. I have reduced my range time a little bit and spend more time working on dry fire drills at home instead. When I do go to the range, I've been sticking to the drills. If there's a desire to just plink away, the 22 comes along and I'll expend a bunch through either the 22 pistol or rifle instead of the Glock or AR. The prospect of getting 22LR conversions is looking even more appealing.

In the past, I've often just let my brass go (especially in the winter), but these days I'm being a total brass hound and pick up everything I can find, even if I don't have that caliber. Still have several thousand 40S&W once-fired and maybe a thousand 223 one-fired that I've got stockpiled for the last few years, but in this climate more is better. Powder, primers and jacketed bullets are going to be the commodity.

[akspecialus]

Same here, the shelves have been bare just about everywhere. did i mention I got the whole reload setup, this winter. common ask me if I can find powder.:mad: .22's have been getting a workout as well as 17hmr which seem to be in good supply. Untill these shortages work out, the big boys are staying in the safe.

[Dan in Alaska]

Bullets aren't that hard to come by, and many online vendors will ship via flat-rate boxes to save you some shipping costs. Mail order bullets, shipped via flat-rate, often beat local prices anyway.

Unless special shipping arrangements are made, powder and primers must be purchased locally, and finding powder and primers has been spotty, at best. I have been lucky enough to find my favorite primers and have enough to get me by. I have bought some powders, that aren't my first choice, but they work. If nothing else, I'm getting to experiment with new components that I wouldn't have otherwise tried.

It's getting better, by the way. Stores are slowly starting to get stuff on the shelves. Timing seems to be the key, so regular stops at the gun shops helps increase your odds of finding what you want/need. I recently picked up a 5# jug of RL-15, which is a favorite of mine. I just happened to be at the right place at the right time.

[Amigo Will]

If you don't shoot its kinda like not haveing ammo.You can save your ammo for ever and then your bride can sell it in the big garage sale for a buck a box.Best bet save a box or two back for the maybe hard times and enjoy the rest as normal

[martialcanine.45]

I stocked up over time on ammo and reloading supplues before the current shortages were an issue and at levels that allow me to practice regularly without worrying about having to ration if the market doesn't improve or legal constraints worsen.

If you're not stocked for the long-term, you're wise to ration a bit on the larger calibers and/or stick to the rimfires, but in the mean-time, keep your eyes on the store/online shelves and purchase as your budget permits. You may not like to do that, but it's the reality of the present.

I definitely wouldn't just sit at home idle. Dry-fire routines are excellent practice whether you have 100 rounds or a 100,000...and practice with 22/17s can still keep you fresh on principles of handling, shooting, and pistol defense.

[Seawolf]

Stock piling

I have been stock piling most of the winter. I have shopped around picked up around 7000 primers. What powder I can find. bought a new 221 fireball for shooting it gets around 350 to 400 reloads per lbs. I also joined in with a few guys here on the forum and we ordered 50 lbs of powder from natchez. the powder will come to around 25 per lbs not to bad. My hope is to be able to shoot and shop around as I go now that I have a small hord to get threw the next 4 years or more.

[Northernl]

Reloading

Something else that you may want to consider is casting your own bullets. I cast for any revolver, some auto pistols, any slower rifles (like my 30-30). This cuts the cost of the bullet out of the equation. You can use almost any lead for casting.

[mnfish365]

Paranoia is the reason for the shortages. When people see that stuff is getting bought up, they jump on the bandwagon. After all this settles down, prices will go down, and supplies will go up. All you stockpilers and paranoids are the root of the problem. Are you seriously afraid you won't be able to get .300 winmag, or 30-06 in the future? Yikes. Look at the prices of AR15's and AK47's lately. In a year or two, they will be back to there old prices as TONS of people will sell their stockpiles.

[Porterwagner]

Paranoia is the reason for the shortages. When people see that stuff is getting bought up, they jump on the bandwagon. After all this settles down, prices will go down, and supplies will go up. All you stockpilers and paranoids are the root of the problem. Are you seriously afraid you won't be able to get .300 winmag, or 30-06 in the future? Yikes. Look at the prices of AR15's and AK47's lately. In a year or two, they will be back to there old prices as TONS of people will sell their stockpiles.

One word: ditto

[mnfish365]

I realize my thoughts are not the most popular opinion around here, but do you really think that in a year you won't be able to get a can of Varget or Bullseye? 7.62x39 going to be an extinct cartridge? .22lr? Don't kid yourself, they are not going to be banned.

[rimfirematt]

Yeah but they seem to be pushing that serial number thing for ammo quite a bit. And the people that are in charge now are pretty anti-gun.

You just never know. Shoot for the past year already this stuff has been hard to get. There is no sign of people slowing down on the buying frenzy either. My guess is that they will keep at it till we get a new administration.

[JOAT]

While there certainly was a run on shooting stuff starting right after election day, that "panic" was well founded. Might want to take a look at all the anti-gun bills that have been introduced since then and take a peek at the published Whitehouse anti-gun policies, which includes renewal of the AWB in a much more restrictive and permanent form.

Sure, stock levels of supplies should start to come back up in the next couple months. I haven't seen where prices really went up, except on a few select firearms (such as AR's, which are at the top of the ban list). Ammo prices are more tied to the metals markets than political pressure.

And quite frankly, I think it is a good thing to have the gun sales up. The more people are buying, the more inventory will be in private hands. If the AWB were renewed, we want to have as much inventory already out here as possible since it would immediately halt new production. A lot of private inventory will help keep the prices from spiking too high (look at the full auto market for a good example of what happens when there is very little inventory available). Plus, it is keeping the manufacturer's busy, which is keeping people employed, which is good for the economy. Everyone should go buy a new gun.

Just because we are paranoid, doesn't mean they aren't out to get us.