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PRS Talk Ammo Shortage

viper42

Sergeant of the Hide
Full Member
Minuteman
Aug 1, 2010
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U.S,
I’m not really finding a lot of information on the ammo shortage right now other than covid related. I know I’m like 7 months late on this, but does anyone know why 556 is super short? All I’ve been able to get is frontier 556. American Eagle, Remington, etc have been non existent for months along with many other cartridges as well. Appreciate the feedback and hopefully this is in the correct thread.
 
I’m not really finding a lot of information on the ammo shortage right now other than covid related. I know I’m like 7 months late on this, but does anyone know why 556 is super short? All I’ve been able to get is frontier 556. American Eagle, Remington, etc have been non existent for months along with many other cartridges as well. Appreciate the feedback and hopefully this is in the correct thread.

Pretty simple. People buy cheap ammo in bulk anytime there is some sort of large scale event or panic.
 
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In California, it’s been no more than two boxes for months, the same shit ammo, and we can’t buy bulk online. Good times for a while I suppose.
 
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If you waited until now to stock up you deserve to fight to get your ammo....

If you live in a state that controls how much you can buy and are currently looking for ammo....you are a product of exactly what commiefornia intended for you to be....

If trump is re-elected next February/March that will be your friend. If we loose to the Democrats I suggest finding a friend much more prepared than you
 
In California, it’s been no more than two boxes for months, the same shit ammo, and we can’t buy bulk online. Good times for a while I suppose.
not true. i can walk into LAX Ammo OC and buy as many cases of ammo as i want (if they have it in stock).
admittedly i have not actually bought more than 2 cases of FGMM at one time there.
i can also have ammo from online stores ship to an FFL (but typically the FFL will charge you a fee, unless he is your buddy).
we even had a judge put a stay on the FFL requirement a few months ago, and i had a couple cases shipped to my door.

perhaps some retailers might put limits, but it isn't the law.
 
not true. i can walk into LAX Ammo OC and buy as many cases of ammo as i want (if they have it in stock).
admittedly i have not actually bought more than 2 cases of FGMM at one time there.
i can also have ammo from online stores ship to an FFL (but typically the FFL will charge you a fee, unless he is your buddy).
we even had a judge put a stay on the FFL requirement a few months ago, and i had a couple cases shipped to my door.

perhaps some retailers might put limits, but it isn't the law.

Yeah not law. That stay lasted literally hours. Good deal you can get bulk at LAX. Locally not allowed for me. I have plenty of Ammo and have for years. I’ve just never seen only one mfg available for this long and a 2 box limit. This one is new for me...
 
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I just ordered a case of .556 and a case of 9mm from SGAmmo today. I am not short on ammo, but I try to buy more whenever it is feasible. Ammunition is more valuable to me than the "funny money" I trade for it.
 
I’m not really finding a lot of information on the ammo shortage right now other than covid related. I know I’m like 7 months late on this, but does anyone know why 556 is super short? All I’ve been able to get is frontier 556. American Eagle, Remington, etc have been non existent for months along with many other cartridges as well. Appreciate the feedback and hopefully this is in the correct thread.
I'm sure my Dillon 650 is thinking I need to be spending more time surfing porn. I've been cranking on that handle a couple hours every night. 5.56, 9mm, 6.5cm, 308...
 
I'm sure my Dillon 650 is thinking I need to be spending more time surfing porn. I've been cranking on that handle a couple hours every night. 5.56, 9mm, 6.5cm, 308...

Yeah, I’ve got a ton of 556 reloading supplies. That’s going to commence soon I believe..
 
Thankfully I have a bunch of ammo for the rifles and pistols. I order bulk kind of have to with this state and them taxing everything to death. The ammo I do see for sale is much higher than what I typically pay.
 
All this makes investing in casting or swaging equipment seem to be a reasonable investment. Powder is relatively easy to come by IF, one is not looking for max performance. (Then of course what you want to achieve best velocity or accuracy is never available even in good times) and the big sticking point is primers.

If memory serves; (and this was from a report I read a long time ago) During the Soviet years in backwoods Russia, they would take shavings off of matchstick heads and stuff it in old primers to ignite thier rounds. Praying we don’t come down to this.
 
Ammo shortages, new gun laws, etc, etc, etc. Just more inspiration to practice with my Bo'narrow
 
After the major shortages we went though in 2013 being fairly recent to the countless infringements threats to the second amendment ever since and the last few years of some of the best pricing we may ever see again in our lifetimes anyone who shoots often and doesn't own a stockpile of ammo man I just don't know WTF to say about that............
 
Covid bull shit, BLM/Antifa riots, election year, all time high of gun sales(new gun owners). Don’t expect it to get better unless Trump is re-elected.

Exactly what he said. If a Dem gets elected you are going to see shit dry up for a long time and it will be a lot more than just ammo.
 
Just call your LGS every couple hours and ask if they have any 9mm/556 they love that.
 
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I seem to recall somebody who used to spend most of their time on the forum here exhorting people to BUY MORE AMMO
People laughed because ammo was cheap......... They aren't laughing anymore......
 
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I seem to recall somebody who used to spend most of their time on the forum here exhorting people to BUY MORE AMMO
People laughed because ammo was cheap......... They aren't laughing anymore......

It pays to invest in precious metals. I'd probably list some of GB if 9mm/556 commercial brass FMJ hit $1/round I could turn the profit into an DT HTI in 375 CT.
 
If a Dem gets elected you are going to see shit dry up for a long time and it will be a lot more than just ammo.
If a rat gets elected, there will be no more ammo or guns being built. However don't fret,... S-4 will be strong via the street an houses where the owners thought just owning a gun implied ability, in operation or tactics,...
 
He isn't telling us anything that we really don't know.



He mentioned that the majority of lead comes out of China. I was a bit skeptical on that because we always seem to hear that everything comes out of China. So I checked that information out.

According to the International Lead Association, China mines 52% of the world's lead as opposed to 6.9% by the US. We use 14.3% of the world's lead and recycle 19.1%.

What is not clear is how much we import.

Here's the article from the International Lead Association.

https://www.ila-lead.org/lead-facts/lead-production--statistics
 
USA shut down its last lead smelter 5-6 years ago.

I think for time being thought is recycling will meet demand.

I know my range gets a pretty good buck letting recyclers mine and maintain berms.

And my club throws lead.......
 
Two ideas about lead.

Not to be too political here but we had a pretty decent operation in Missouri before it was shut down during a previous administration. Maybe its time we review the mining safety, and find better (and safe) methods to extract and use our own resources.

Of course during the energy crisis of the last century, one attitude was “Use up all thier oil first.” Just another thought. Use up all theirs while making sure we have good access to ours when we really need it.
 
It is interesting that lead is used for so many other applications than just bullets. If China were to cut off the west from having any lead, there might be crisis bigger than an ammunition shortage. Think of how it would go for the battery industry.

End-Uses-of-Lead.jpg


https://www.gravitatechnomech.com/Lead-Metal/usesofLead.html
 
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Good to see some other information here. I’m not a big conspiracy guy, but it seems like something more is going on.
 
Probably not as much a conspiracy but a headlong rush into environmental safety. Rather than find safer ways to obtain needed resources, we utilized the quick and “dirty” method of, lets not fix it, lets just quit it. .
 
Due to the high volume of 9mm range quality I use I find myself a bit short.
What are the opinions on Reman, I would normally not consider but at today's cost per round I am.
 
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Due to the high volume of 9mm range quality I use I find myself a bit short.
What are the opinions on Reman, I would normally not consider but at today's cost per round I am.
Only as a last resort would I shoot any reman ammo. I’ve seen first hand how shitty the quality control is with Midwest ammo.
 
Midwest was the ammo ive seen numerous problems with.
There are many more ammo makers out there that cater to USPSA and IDPA shooters who choose not to reload. Malfunctions in those sports have to be cleared on the clock and so they are death to a good score, so those who cater to those sports make reliable ammo.

And WTF is "remanufactured ammo" anyway? The only thing that is "remanufactured" is the brass, and that's more accurately described as reconditioned.

The problem is usually not the materials. The problem is usually the poor process control that some companies use.
 
By the time I thought about it it sold out. Must not be too bad. It was .50 per which still seems obscene to me.
Thanks for the input guys.
 
Earlier this week my so said there was a handgun ammo shortage back east, so I called my local Scheels and sho 'nuff, they didn't have any. So yesterday was a nice little smoke in the air (live in Sparks/Reno) and decided to drive around to the smaller LGS. Shelves were empty at the first three I tried, but then I tried a local gun range not expecting to find much, but surprise, surprise they had all the ammo I wanted to get in the first place, plus two boxes of .357 Mag my son wanted for his new Henry Big Boy X. So it looks like early 2013 all over again. Now for early 2021 when I clear all my debts, I may have to put a 2nd safe on the list of things I want to burden my credit cards with.
 
My ammo levels were good when this all started. but my boredom has increased my shooting. and my increased shooting, the shortage, and the increased prices has made in increasingly difficult to keep up my stores. so ya I feel some of you guys pain. and I hope shit changes. expensive hard to find ammo sucks. I like shooting.
 
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My ammo levels were good when this all started. but my boredom has increased my shooting. and my increased shooting, the shortage, and the increased prices has made in increasingly difficult to keep up my stores. so ya I feel some of you guys pain. and I hope shit changes. expensive hard to find ammo sucks. I like shooting.
I got into precision shooting during covid...at first 6.5CM wasn't hard to find, even up to two weeks ago. Now it's all vanished, or overpriced.

S&B 140gr FMJ was like 70 cents a round, now it's 84cents to a dollar in a matter of weeks.
 
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Perfect time to sell my 480,000 rounds of assorted ammo. Who needs some?
 
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I have 2 hobbies. Gun Shooting and Gun Collecting. and what hobby I'm currently enjoying is largely dependent on ammo prices.

I just wish I didn't pick up the long range addiction right as this shit show started. Same happened with Sandy Hook. Just turned 18, got my first AR then boom shooting and gun ban talk.
 
Covid is the go to excuse for any delay now a days,real or not. I'm glad someone else mentioned Sandy Hook, ammo dried up in two weeks after the shooting, no Covid back then? A friend of mine had told me that the ammo plants were still producing as normal, but the Feds had told any distributors that shipped ammo, would have their FFL pulled. I don't know how true that statement was, but it sure fit the bill at the time. Makes you wonder now??
 
Covid is the go to excuse for any delay now a days,real or not. I'm glad someone else mentioned Sandy Hook, ammo dried up in two weeks after the shooting, no Covid back then? A friend of mine had told me that the ammo plants were still producing as normal, but the Feds had told any distributors that shipped ammo, would have their FFL pulled. I don't know how true that statement was, but it sure fit the bill at the time. Makes you wonder now??
Maybe it's because people parrot ridiculous rumors.
 
it was pretty common to be mocked when i said i had supplies for a zombie invasion years ago.
of course by "zombies" i was really referring to a whole list of things, including being cut off from supply (not impossible here).

if you ask me, this shortage isn't from more people shooting, it is from more people hoarding (besides us dumb zombie conspiracy types).

/i just wish i thought i would need match ammo for zombies instead of m80 ball.
 
I thought everybody learned from Sandy Hook, I sure did. That’s when I got into reloading.
 
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if you can make trips into Canada they seem to have powder , primers , and brass you could smuggle a few tons back and make your self rich . I believe in you , you can do it . just watch out for moose and squirrel if you see them run for your life .
1610840887145.png
 
if you can make trips into Canada they seem to have powder , primers , and brass you could smuggle a few tons back and make your self rich . I believe in you , you can do it . just watch out for moose and squirrel if you see them run for your life .

From what I'm given to understand, you might not be able to buy reloading supplies in Canada without a Canadian firearms license.
 
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Covid is the go to excuse for any delay now a days,real or not. I'm glad someone else mentioned Sandy Hook, ammo dried up in two weeks after the shooting, no Covid back then? A friend of mine had told me that the ammo plants were still producing as normal, but the Feds had told any distributors that shipped ammo, would have their FFL pulled. I don't know how true that statement was, but it sure fit the bill at the time. Makes you wonder now??

Thats the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.