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American Rifleman | Keefe Report: ?Why Can?t I Find .22 Ammo!??
Bruce
American Rifleman | Keefe Report: ?Why Can?t I Find .22 Ammo!??
Bruce
Why there is no 22 to buy.
- Thread starter bcp
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davesl708
Elite Member
Interesting story. I do not have a problem finding 22 ammo but at $50 a brick I am using my existing supply. With the military using less ammo (largest user) then the supply should be going up. The manufacturers had no problem supplying the US military for ten years of war but can't seem to keep up with public demand.
I think not. A marketing approach in the last 15 years has been to limit the supply to drive up the price. Why produce more at a low price when you can produce a few at a higher price. Foreign suppliers see this and provide theirs at a higher price to cash in. Also import cost are higher.
It seems the only low cost center fire is full metal jacket. A surplus supply from over production for military ammo.
If consumers stop buying in bulk prices will drop considerably.
I think not. A marketing approach in the last 15 years has been to limit the supply to drive up the price. Why produce more at a low price when you can produce a few at a higher price. Foreign suppliers see this and provide theirs at a higher price to cash in. Also import cost are higher.
It seems the only low cost center fire is full metal jacket. A surplus supply from over production for military ammo.
If consumers stop buying in bulk prices will drop considerably.
k0ua
Epic Contributor
All I know is there hasn't been any .22lr ammo to buy locally here in Wal-Mart since January of 2013. So we are 3 years in to this .22 drought. Sure you can find it in gun stores locally at an inflated price. But the prices for the raw materials have dropped a lot. Copper, Tin to make brass and even Lead prices have fallen from recent levels. Yet the prices of ammo have not fallen. I would have to ask myself though, if Wal Mart had lots of stock of 550 round brick for $25 on the shelves, would I buy some? Yeah, I think I would. I don't need it, yet I would buy it. Some posters here have reported good supply's at good prices. I haven't seen it. Maybe people locally here are more into hoarding/prepping. I don't know. If we have a progun president take office on January 20th 2017, maybe things will change. I just don't know. The article says the ammo companies are not expanding their production, because they don't think the demand will justify the costs of opening another plant. OK. But guys it has been 3 years. You could have built the dang plant by now and have the production. Or is it just best to keep prices high?
charlz
Elite Member
I have seem more on the shelf lately then in the last couple years. Pretty much all the imported stuff though and spendy. Online I have seen it on a farily regular basis. Seems like the days of $25/500 bricks are gone though... $35/500 seems to be the 'new' price. At this point with a presidential election less then a year away I anticipate anonther run on guns and ammo so... stock up while you can. I plan on having a supply of reloading components and .22 well before Fall of 2016.
tractorshopper
Veteran Member
I recently bought a .22. Dad always had them and were fun to shoot, but I never had one of my own.
Anyway, when I bought it at Cabelas, I told the rep I needed some ammo too. They had 300 round boxes on a pallet on the floor for $27 and some change. I should have bought more than one having heard about the shortages for quite some time now. The rep even told me that pallet wouldn't last long and to buy more, but in 2 months, I've only shot 100 rounds and most of that was spent really dialing in the scope and teaching my daughters how to safely handle and shoot a firearm. I have a hard time buying too much more than I need. When it gets low or runs out, I'll tend to buy another.
I'm afraid I'm not a very good prepper when it comes to ammo. I have a friend that must have 50,000 rounds of all kinds of stuff, but I just don't see the need. I actually worry about it going bad and some point, then I would have just wasted a ton of money.
I love my guns and all. Am 100% pro 2nd Amendment. Totally not against preppers in any way at all, but I wonder how many rounds is enough?
This may be a good thread to get an idea of what is normal. I assume it would be a higher number for people that shoot more often and/or own or collect more guns, but when is it reasonable and when is it over the top?
I'll go first. I probably have about 350 rounds of various ammo right now including the 200 left from my recent purchase and about 18 arrows (I like to bow-hunt). For me, I think that 100-1,000 rounds is reasonable and 2,000 or more seems excessive unless you buy in bulk and shoot that many in a year to 18 months or so. I have no problem with those that have a lot more, I just don't shoot enough to store that much.
Anyway, when I bought it at Cabelas, I told the rep I needed some ammo too. They had 300 round boxes on a pallet on the floor for $27 and some change. I should have bought more than one having heard about the shortages for quite some time now. The rep even told me that pallet wouldn't last long and to buy more, but in 2 months, I've only shot 100 rounds and most of that was spent really dialing in the scope and teaching my daughters how to safely handle and shoot a firearm. I have a hard time buying too much more than I need. When it gets low or runs out, I'll tend to buy another.
I'm afraid I'm not a very good prepper when it comes to ammo. I have a friend that must have 50,000 rounds of all kinds of stuff, but I just don't see the need. I actually worry about it going bad and some point, then I would have just wasted a ton of money.
I love my guns and all. Am 100% pro 2nd Amendment. Totally not against preppers in any way at all, but I wonder how many rounds is enough?
This may be a good thread to get an idea of what is normal. I assume it would be a higher number for people that shoot more often and/or own or collect more guns, but when is it reasonable and when is it over the top?
I'll go first. I probably have about 350 rounds of various ammo right now including the 200 left from my recent purchase and about 18 arrows (I like to bow-hunt). For me, I think that 100-1,000 rounds is reasonable and 2,000 or more seems excessive unless you buy in bulk and shoot that many in a year to 18 months or so. I have no problem with those that have a lot more, I just don't shoot enough to store that much.
jack707
Veteran Member
There none to be found here!
wal mart
fleet farm
dicks sports
wal mart
fleet farm
dicks sports
davesl708
Elite Member
I have to wonder if speculators are not buying by the truckload to keep prices high and sell online.
Helzburg jewelry does this with the worlds supply of diamonds to control prices.
Why not with ammunition to cash in on the hyp of hoarding.
Limiting quantities bought by individuals will force the price down as demand goes down. No different that oil prices. Demand for oil has gone down so prices collapsed.
charlz
Elite Member
The 'universal answer' (it depends) applies. My hunting calibers I only put a few rounds per year through... a box of 20 lasts quite a while. My pistol that I take to the range and plink with? If I set up a spinner or something challenging (want to try one of the spinning plate racks) I can go through 500 rounds in an hour or less. My kids can go through a 525 box of .22 in a hour or two at the range. So 9mm I reload a keep a few thousand on hand....same for .223 for plinking. For gopher hunting and my kids, .22lr, I keep a few thousand on hand. My hunting calibers... I might have 40 or 60 of each.
If you had the chance to buy more than one .22 brick and didn't... well... you blew it. Not likely to see that again anytime soon. However, it sounds like you have a local Cabela's so you can watch their webpage and when it is available buy .22 and have it 'shipped to store' for no extra cost. That is what I do.
charlz
Elite Member
I don't know if 'speculators' can buy by the truckload.... they would be in the same purchasing channel as your local sporting goods store... or even in line behind them. What has happened is new distribution channels have opened up. I am on the board of a local range and we can order 30-50k rounds of .22lr and have it delivered in a few weeks..... but only as part of a shooting program. If you shoot in the program you can buy the ammo at our cost. This is a new channel that has been created so that the shooting sports (especially ones using .22 where numbers of new shooters are coming into shooting sports) can continue to operate and attract new shooters.