Ammunition Shortage?

[WJP9]

I was in Dick's Sporting Goods today (large corporate chain), and inquired the sales clerk in the "Lodge" about why there was a such a limited selection of 9mm ammo. He told me that 9mm and .45 ammo is getting harder to secure because of the war efforts. He went on to say that the small mom and pop gun stores will still be able to fulfill their need since they buy in small quantity. However, Dick's, which purchases 10,000 cases at a time and then distributes to all of its stores, is having challenges with having their orders met by manufactures.

At which point, I wonder, will this snowball and begin to affect ammo prices for civillians.

Also, does anybody feel that it would be a good time to stock up on these loads?

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[Rock and Glock]

At Academy in Plano, TX Blazer 9mm 115gr FMJ went from $3.86 to $4.97 per 50 inside of two months.......

I have two cases sitting in my closet.....

[P95Carry]

We did discuss this not too long ago - and the trend does appear to be continuing. Rising prices and yes, sometimes availability problems.

Some folks have noticed even 7.62x39 is less freely available.

I have cut back a bit on some cal useages - to ensure I keep a good ''float'' of various cals - if I can buy I can shoot, or reload and shoot but, I am less keen to use ''stock''.

[rocky]

Yep, seems 7.62X39 is getting scarce, as is the 5.56X45. I imagine some pistol ammo might be a bit harder to find, or more expensive to buy.

[Team American]

It's always a good time to stock up on ammo

[joe/OH]

The only real problem I've noticed is with 7.62. Surplus .308 is supposed to start drying up as well - but it's available now. I haven't noticed any shortages or price hikes on pistol ammo. I have a suspicion that some shops may be boosting prices due to 'ammo shortage' rumors. I just can't imagine the military uses that much pistol ammo except for subguns - and that's not common. Wars are waged with rifles - not pistols.

[Roadrunner]

I just can't imagine the military uses that much pistol ammo except for subguns - and that's not common. Wars are waged with rifles - not pistols.

I'll second that. 7.62x39 is definitely in short supply, that's a fact. .45 and 9mm are still easy to find and I haven't noticed any big price hikes recently on the target grade stuff. Honestly I think he was probably feeding you a line of BS, I know one of my coworkers does it all of the time.

[HighVelocity]

I wandered in to my local shop today and they had 5x 50 round boxes of RA45T on the shelf at a very good price. Now it's sitting on my shelf instead of theirs.

[.45acp]

My gun store that I deal with informed me this past weekend of an upcoming 20% increase in price on the Fiocchi .45 ammo is coming up once his current stock is gone.

[joe/OH]

Don't dismiss the possibility that prices may increase because of the increased price in shipping costs - especially for foreign ammo suppliers.

[sixgun]

Ammo prices are on the rise. Thats why Im trying to stock up on all my calibers. Have a good one everyone.

Sixgun

[cmidkiff]

Don't dismiss the possibility that prices may increase because of the increased price in shipping costs

You got it Joe...

There doesn't seem to be any shortage that I can see of 5.56, I'm buying bulk Lake City at good prices. Then again, I'm sitting 10 miles from the source :) If there were a shortage, you'd think 5.56 would be the first to show it.

With current fuel prices, _everything_ is going to go up.

[RSSZ]

Hey,let me know when you guys will gladly pay $.20 per rd. for 5.56(223),7.62X39, or7.62X51. I might have a "few"rds. extra that I could let go. ---------

[JT]

There has been a shortage of 7.62x39 for a while, but it is getting better. At it's worst, you had to wait 1-2 months to get a case. Part of the problem is Wolf dominates the market, and they are behind. Rumors are that they have been supplying military needs (Iraqi Forces for example), but that is hard to confirm.

[ExSoldier]

I was in Dick's Sporting Goods today (large corporate chain), and inquired the sales clerk in the "Lodge" about why there was a such a limited selection of 9mm ammo. He told me that 9mm and .45 ammo is getting harder to secure because of the war efforts. He went on to say that the small mom and pop gun stores will still be able to fulfill their need since they buy in small quantity. However, Dick's, which purchases 10,000 cases at a time and then distributes to all of its stores, is having challenges with having their orders met by manufactures.

At which point, I wonder, will this snowball and begin to affect ammo prices for civillians.

Also, does anybody feel that it would be a good time to stock up on these loads?

Yeah I'm SURE "DICK'S" is hoping you'll fall for it and buy a couple of cases EACH of your fav calibers. It's bull. Mil-Spec "ball" ammo is loaded in different plants from those that load civilian ammo. You can tell this by looking at the base of a military round. You'll find markings that indicate lot # but nothing linking it to a specific civilian manufacturer, like Remington. This is for the bulk combat ammo. Specialty ammo is different. Example: Military sniper rifles in .308 are all calibrated for 168gr BTHP Match ammo and are typically supplied by either Winchester or Federal. Some Special Ops units who fight terrorists (specifically) will use 45 JHP loads. They can do this because the Hague Convention doesn't put terrorists into the category of uniformed soldier, IIRC. Anyway, I know that SOME SpecOps use 45 hollow points.