Ammo: How much do you stockpile? (Anonymous poll)

[blues]

Was just curious about how much ammo most of us keep on hand for practice, training, and carry.

Rather than break down pistol vs. shotgun vs. rifle, let's just give a ballpark figure...not including .22 which would probably skew the results.

Thanks for your indulgence. I hadn't seen anything recently and I was wondering what the average P-F member might keep in his or her inventory.

(Your poll selection is not associated with your forum identity.)

[KhanRad]

I will stockpile reloading components(important stuff being powder and primers). For me it isn't as critical to stockpile bullets as they are always readily available(even during the Obama scare), and if need be I can easily cast what I need from materials such as wheel weights. I have access to more brass than I will ever need. So, generally I will keep enough components on hand to reload approximately 10k rounds of 9mm, or 5k rounds of .223. For defensive ammo, I will usually keep around 1k of 9mm on hand, and 2k of .223 on hand. Again, I can always reload if things get desperate.

[walker2713]

Blues: how about you add a category for: Don't Have None: Lost it all when my pirogue turned over in the bayou. :rolleyes:

[ranger]

Primers are key for me - especially as a competitor who shoots in volume or and therefore loads in volume. I actually changed the way I set up pistols based on lack of "normal" primers and switch to "harder" primers. Second is powder - I was surprised how short powder was a year plus ago.

[Hambo]

Most of my ammo is stuff I reload. I don't keep inventory but I could say that I probably have a lifetime supply of .338WM because I loaded an ammo can full of it in 2015. With 9mm I'm lucky if I can stay two months ahead of what I shoot. In oddball calibers I might have only 20-40 rounds on hand.

[hufnagel]

damn! my last outing put me outside the bottom radio button choice. oh well, i'm gonna lie. :D

[blues]

Blues: how about you add a category for: Don't Have None: Lost it all when my pirogue turned over in the bayou. :rolleyes:

We ain't buyin' it. ;)

[HCM]

With good quality 9mm ammo at $180 ish per thousand now is the time to stock up,

My understanding is most ammo is sold / spoken for on the wholesale market a year in advance. I'm sure many ammo dealers ordered extra last year in anticipation of potential a hildabeast victory. I expect once that overage is corrected price will go up.

Now is the time to buy cheap and stack deep.

[blues]

With good quality 9mm ammo at $180 ish per thousand now is the time to stock up,

My understanding is most ammo is sold / spoken for on the wholesale market a year in advance. I'm sure many ammo dealers ordered extra last year in anticipation of potential a hildabeast victory. I expect once that overage is corrected price will go up.

Now is the time to buy cheap and stack deep.

You hit the nail on the head, H, which is the primary reason I posted the poll.

I was wondering if I was outside of the norm, (among folks like us, not the population at large), in terms of stocking up while prices are low and product is available.

I have found myself in the past couple of weeks ordering a case each of S&B, Lawman and HST to add to what I already had on hand. You never know when the next clusterfuck in Washington is going to lead to a shortage and rising prices and I also wanted to match my training and carry ammo more closely than the ubiquitous and generic 115gr FMJs which I already have enough of.

[HCM]

You hit the nail on the head, H, which is the primary reason I posted the poll.

I was wondering if I was outside of the norm, (among folks like us, not the population at large), in terms of stocking up while prices are low and product is available.

I have found myself in the past couple of weeks ordering a case each of S&B, Lawman and HST to add to what I already had on hand. You never know when the next clusterfuck in Washington is going to lead to a shortage and rising prices and I also wanted to match my training and carry ammo more closely than the ubiquitous and generic 115gr FMJs which I already have enough of.

After Sandy Hook 9mm was running $330 to $380 a case if you could find it. I hope we don't see that again but I can see the $180ish cases of 9mm going back up to $210-220 next year.

[ranger]

Yes ammo is very affordable now. Even long range rifle target ammo for 308 and 6.5CM is available at a good price point - especially when you run the cost of components for quality bullets and the price of cases.

[punkey71]

I think you need a 20-50k, 50-100k, and Over 100k choices added. :-)


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[okie john]

damn! my last outing put me outside the bottom radio button choice. oh well, i'm gonna lie. :D

Same here.

I don't track prices on a year-to-year basis. If you look at it over a much longer period, then you see that the price is always climbing. For instance, I remember selling boatloads of 9mm at $6/50 when I was running ranges. Those days are gone forever.

That said, I'm going to stock up over the next four years. I'd like to see a minimum of 10k 9mm, 2-3k 45 ACP, and as much 308 and 30-06 as I can get my hands on. Ideally, I'd double that. Once I hit those levels, I'll use that inventory as a buffer and continue to add what I need for monthly consumption.

Also, I try not to buy single cases when I can avoid it, and I rarely if ever have ammo shipped. I'm fortunate enough to find myself in Oregon now and then, where ammo prices are low and there is no sales tax. I make it a point not to buy anything in Washington that I can buy there, so I grab several cases at a time, along with clothing, computers, etc. The amount I save on shipping and taxes more than makes those trips pay for themselves.


Okie John

[blues]

I think you need a 20-50k, 50-100k, and Over 100k choices added. :-)

16571

"I think we're gonna need a bigger vault!"

[mtnbkr]

In just loaded ammo, I've got right around 5k rounds (not including 22). I have enough clean led and reloading components to get me into the next category up. :)

Chris

[Drang]

I voted how much I have, not how much I want. Factors that impact that include available storage space and (mostly medical) bills. :(
okie john, I know where to buy bulk ammo up here, where do you shop in Orygun? I find myself down South Of The Border from time to time, and may be making a trip at the end of the month...

[Bigghoss]

If your floor can support the weight of your ammo stockpile, you don't have enough ammo. :D

[JBP55]

Blues: how about you add a category for: Don't Have None: Lost it all when my pirogue turned over in the bayou. :rolleyes:

I lost Many Cases of ammunition and much more when my house in LA. which had no flood insurance flooded 0n 08/13/2016. Moved back in April 2017.

[okie john]

okie john, I know where to buy bulk ammo up here, where do you shop in Orygun? I find myself down South Of The Border from time to time, and may be making a trip at the end of the month...

Try Northwest Armory, Curt's, or Keith's.

Where are you buying up here?


Okie John

[walker2713]

I lost Many Cases of ammunition and much more when my house in LA. which had no flood insurance flooded 0n 08/13/2016. Moved back in April 2017.

I know what you mean.....we lived in the 5800 block of Bellaire Drive in the Lakeview neighborhood of NO in Aug of 2005....much, much worse than a capsized pirogue in the bayou. :(

[Beat Trash]

I like to have the ability to reload every magazine at least three times. Or at least a case of ammo per shooter (one each, pistol and carbine). Which ever number is greater. This is the advice I to people who ask for my advice on the topic.

As for myself, for the last several years, when I buy ammunition, it's at a 2/1 ratio. I buy twice the amount I expect to shoot. The new ammunition goes in the rear of the shelf and the older stuff goes in the front. Over time, it's not hard to build up a respectable amount of ammunition.

It's much cheaper to buy by the case. And cases stack so nicely.

Lets just say that my kids will be shooting some of my ammunition when I'm gone.

When my kids were young, they could go through a brick of .22lr in an afternoon of plinking. So every payday, I'd swing by Walmart and pick up 2-3 of those 550 round value packs. I was paying around $7.25-7.50 per 550rd pack. My supply of .22lr would need a larger selection within your poll.

Within the last 10-15 years, we've all seen periods where ammunition in the common calibers (9mm and 5.56mm) dry up and become difficult to find. People standing in line at 6:00 am at Walmart waiting for a truck to be unloaded so they can fight over a 50 rd box of 9mm WWB FMJ. When the war on terror started, even agency contracts were backlogged 12-18 months.

While I would never recommend going into debt to buy ammunition, but I would strongly recommend stocking up now if you have the means and if your inventory is less than what you would like it to be. Price and availability is one the side of the buyer right now.

[Beat Trash]

If your floor can support the weight of your ammo stockpile, you don't have enough ammo. :D


That's why you use the basement foundation as your ammo room. . .

Leaving enough room for the fork lift to turn can be tricky though.

[Tamara]

Any guess I make is most likely off, because I have so much churn. I generally shoot at least a hundred rounds of centerfire most weekdays, plus any specific work projects I have that might necessitate more.

There's probably a couple thousand rounds of nine in the living room where I can grab a couple boxes on my way to the range in the AM. Oddball rifle ammo in the attic? Couldn't tell you. Probably at least another two or three thousand rounds of assorted stuff, ranging from maybe a couple boxes of Trapdoor-compatible .45-70 to maybe as much as 800 rounds of 8x56R I'll likely never shoot.

I try and keep a "class-worth" (basically an unbroken case) of 5.56 and 9x19 on hand and set aside specifically to serve if I wind up getting an assignment on short notice, so we'll call that the stuff I'm "stockpiling". :D

[RJ]

okie john, I know where to buy bulk ammo up here, where do you shop in Orygun? I find myself down South Of The Border from time to time, and may be making a trip at the end of the month...

Ditto. :cool:

[RJ]

Representing the ah...mobile lifestyle: I am with the 8% of folks who are in the 1,000 category. I have two .30 cal ammo cans, which fit in the truck. They are more or less full.

At this particular time, I have 100 rounds of SD ammo, and enough 115/124 training ammo on hand enough for a class (one upcoming, say 800 rounds) as well as enough for a match (say 200). For my situation, I have to follow the dollar cost averaging for ammo. Picked up another four boxes of Federal wms199 at WalMart today in Hurricane UT for $9.99 a box.

Definitely in awe of those up above 20K rounds. Wow.

[Bart Carter]

When I find a great sale, I buy what I can afford at the time. I don't have to stock up on as much 5.56 anymore because I get to shoot my PCC. Built my PCC as an AR, so my practice does double duty. Only the mag changes are different.

I have plenty of .45, although I don't shoot it much anymore. Only two .40 pistols left and don't shoot them.

So, now I can find 9mm all the time under 20 cents and life is good. :o

[critter]

I keep exactly one box on hand whether I need it or not. :p

[cclaxton]

The details matter:
9mm practice: about 5000 commercially reloaded
9mm match: about 5000 new for matches
45cal: about 4000 commercially reloaded
380ACP: about 3000 commercially reloaded and new, mixed
38 Special: about 800 new and commercially reloaded, mixed
223: about 4000 new and commercially reloaded mixed
20ga- bird/clay: about 500
9mm SD-HP: about 500
380 SD-HP: about 300
38 Special SD-HP: about 200
223 SD: About 1500
12ga- bird/clay: about 2000 new
12ga- SD slugs: about 250
20ga- SD slugs: about 100
12ga- Less Lethal: about 150

[JAD]

I am currently packing crap to move house. It's not enough, but it's a lot.

If I palletized it I think I'd need three.

Maybe four.

[Drang]

Try Northwest Armory, Curt's, or Keith's.

Where are you buying up here?


Okie John
Because it's easy to run to Sportsman's or Sportco and pick up a box or two.

[Bigghoss]

That's why you use the basement foundation as your ammo room. . .

Leaving enough room for the fork lift to turn can be tricky though.

The rule still applies.

[PD Sgt.]

When asked, I usually tell people, "Enough to make the news." It could be 200 or 200K rounds, depending on the network.

I must admit to stealing the line from somewhere, though.

[Appalachained]

I didn't vote in the survey because I'm on a smartphone. I have about Four years worth (40,000) of 9mm made up and about that much more waiting.

[nate89]

I will stockpile reloading components(important stuff being powder and primers). For me it isn't as critical to stockpile bullets as they are always readily available(even during the Obama scare), and if need be I can easily cast what I need from materials such as wheel weights. I have access to more brass than I will ever need. So, generally I will keep enough components on hand to reload approximately 10k rounds of 9mm, or 5k rounds of .223. For defensive ammo, I will usually keep around 1k of 9mm on hand, and 2k of .223 on hand. Again, I can always reload if things get desperate.

I was going to type up almost the exact same thing. 95% or more of what I shoot is 9mm, with a small amount of .223. I keep as many small pistol primers as I can afford on hand. The nice thing about loading 9mm is one 8 lb. jug of powder will load 10k plus rounds, and even when powder was scarce, getting 1-2 individual pounds of powder would tide you over long enough to wait for more. Rifle obviously uses a lot more powder, but I don't shoot .223 enough to need a huge stock. I have enough powder for about 5k rifle and 20k pistol, and primers for 10k rifle and about 10k pistol. I have equipment to cast should it come to that, but I have a local guy who makes coated bullets commercially, so getting bullets is fairly easy.

[KhanRad]

I was going to type up almost the exact same thing. 95% or more of what I shoot is 9mm, with a small amount of .223. I keep as many small pistol primers as I can afford on hand. The nice thing about loading 9mm is one 8 lb. jug of powder will load 10k plus rounds, and even when powder was scarce, getting 1-2 individual pounds of powder would tide you over long enough to wait for more. Rifle obviously uses a lot more powder, but I don't shoot .223 enough to need a huge stock. I have enough powder for about 5k rifle and 20k pistol, and primers for 10k rifle and about 10k pistol. I have equipment to cast should it come to that, but I have a local guy who makes coated bullets commercially, so getting bullets is fairly easy.

Yep, the freedom and security that reloading gives you is comforting. Heck I even have some recipes for reusing primers and scavenging components for making black powder if things REALLY got bad. Loading up some .38 Special with black powder is actually pretty fun. Occasionally I will take some 158gr black powder .38spl loads to the range smoke everybody out.

[nate89]

Yep, the freedom and security that reloading gives you is comforting. Heck I even have some recipes for reusing primers and scavenging components for making black powder if things REALLY got bad. Loading up some .38 Special with black powder is actually pretty fun. Occasionally I will take some 158gr black powder .38spl loads to the range smoke everybody out.

I haven't gotten into actually trying out the re-using primers and trying black powder, but I have certainly read up and watched some media about it. But I think for most people, the idea of storing a quantity of ammo is more to allow you to still practice and train at the same rate should ammunition go through a high supply period again. Granted I still have my much smaller stock of carry ammo and bonded soft point 5.56 ammo, but I digress.

I agree that reloading has totally changed my mindset when shooting. I used to be the person who bought ammo a box or two at a time, and always had that cost in the back of my mind when shooting. It also really limited my ability to go to the range and just shoot until I was finished practicing. Now I take a 30 cal can full of 9mm to the range, and I shoot until I am finished.

[ShooterM9]

I was absolutely convinced the Hildabeast was going to win last Fall and I was taking NO chances on anything. I doubled or tripled on all my handguns and longuns and bought nearly enough ammo to require a forklift to get it in my ammo storage area in my basement. I keep it in a climate controlled area, that is locked and sealed and have shelves of the stuff. I spent a year buying it cheap and stacking it deep.

I replenish what I shoot as soon as I shoot it.

"Be prepared."

[MSparks909]

Got about 20,000 rounds of 7N6 on hand, 15,000 rounds of 7.62x39, 5,000 rounds of .223/5.56, couple thousand rounds of 9mm, few thousand .22, about 2,000 .45. Working on building up my 5.56 stock and my 9mm stock. I'd like to have 10,000-12,000 rounds of 9mm on hand at all times, which is about how much 9mm I shoot a year.

I've got a boatload of AK ammo because it's sealed in spam cans and it's cheap; I was also on a big AK kick 2-3 years ago so I really stocked up. I'm working on shooting up some of my 7N6 supply.

[Appalachained]

I've been stocking up since W Bush was up for re election and he was being mum about whether he'd reinstate the AWB or not. I have a little pile.

[Wake27]

I'd like to have between 10-20k, but not really feasible when you're in Hawaii for a few years. I plan on adding a significant amount once I get back to the mainland.

[PhillySoldier]

I dont know about stock piling but I do buy about one to two thousand round cases per month. I usually shoot most of it during the month so the only stock piling might be just having a bit for each of the different calibers I use

[Screwball]

Right now, 17,042 rounds. Thanks AmmoBase app. [emoji106]

Is skewed by .22, as I include it in my total. If you wanted to exclude that, pull off 4,500 (Long, LR, and Magnums).

I usually hover around that number. When I go lower on a certain caliber, I try to stock it up with Cabela’s cash.

[Unobtanium]

Blues: how about you add a category for: Don't Have None: Lost it all when my pirogue turned over in the bayou. :rolleyes:

Well you didn't have shit to begin with. :P

[blues]

Blues: how about you add a category for: Don't Have None: Lost it all when my pirogue turned over in the bayou. :rolleyes:


Well you didn't have shit to begin with. :P

Now you've gone and done it. You've given me a hankering for pierogies and it'll probably haunt me the rest of the day.

[hufnagel]

Right now, 17,042 rounds. Thanks AmmoBase app. [emoji106]

Is skewed by .22, as I include it in my total. If you wanted to exclude that, pull off 4,500 (Long, LR, and Magnums).

I usually hover around that number. When I go lower on a certain caliber, I try to stock it up with Cabela’s cash.

only 4500 in .22? are you communist or something? :D

[Screwball]

only 4500 in .22? are you communist or something? :D

I bought 6,200 rounds in bulk packs prior to .22 LR going extinct for a few years... rarely shoot it (Cabela’s sales, which they include those plastic cases). Have a few .22s, but none that I carry. Rather put rounds down range in one of my carry guns over .22 through my CZ Kadet kit. Hell, rather shoot 9mm through my SP-01 than it with the Kadet kit.

.22 has barely any use for me anymore. Maybe I have to use it for pest control, but again, very rare. If anything, I’d shoot my NAA Sidewinder more. And whenever the Ranger II is sold regularly (not the early bird stuff), it will be right next to it as a fun toy.

[Cypher]

I don't have an upper limit. If I could swing 100,000 rounds I'd have that much. Reallistically I try to have more coming in than going out. We have an ammunition envelop and my wife watches the sales and when she can she buys another case.

[Darth_Uno]

I buy 9mm, .45 and 5.56 by the case and dump it an ammo can for the range, and keep 1000 in reserve. So when I open a new case, I order another one. So there's always whatever's in the ammo can (could be almost nothing to nearly 1000 rounds) and another case on standby. I've realized I don't have the time or inclination to be a One Man Freedom Force. I can always get more ammo, and 1000+ will easily get me through the heaviest of range days or classes.

Plus there's SD ammo, buckshot, birdshot, and other random calibers that come and go. Heck I've got 100 rounds of .40 that I'll never use, came with a Glock 23 that I only wanted for the frame (I converted it to a 19).

9mm I buy fairly often, but since I got away from 1911's I've been sitting on my .45 for a while...

[RevolverRob]

Somewhere in the neighborhood of 12,500 rounds.

But I've got it spread out between three safes and two states. So...I could be a little off on my estimate.

Long story short - not enough.

[ralph]

A couple months back I bought a Dillon 650 from a friend who fell on hard times.. The press is about a year old and wasn't used that much. I now have two 650's. I got one last xmas. In addition to the press, casefeeder, .223 dies, was the strong mount, 33lbs of powder, (24 of that in unopened 8lb jugs), 20,600 primers, small rifle, small pistol, lrg pistol, (in addition to what I already had stashed) and 1200 5.56 cases, all L.C. all had been cleaned, sized, trimmed, deburred, primer pockets swaged, and about half were already primed(I've since loaded all of these cases up) So, I figure I'm set for awhile in the powder/primer dept. In addition to that I compleated a project yesterday, that took some time, I now have a square bucket that at one time held 18lb 4oz of laundry soap,(not quite as big as a 5gal bucket, but close) full of 5.56 cases that have been cleaned, sized,trimmed,deburred, primer pockets swaged ready to load..

[Rex G]

Before or after Hurricane Harvey?

I think I am under one thousand now, of usable ammo, and that includes 500 rounds of 5.56 that was safely inside a sealed ammo can. I have yet to count what is still on hand. It is about time for another road trip to GT Distributors, once I sort-out what I will really be shooting/carrying in the future. (Now that shooting a G19 is aggravating my gimpy thumb/hand/wrist, my daily carry equation may soon change, substantially.)

Lesson: Buy more sealable containers, before stocking-up on ammo!