Where are the Ammo and Reloading Supplies? - Merged Threads - Page 4

FrankenMauser · March 29, 2009, 02:28 PM

Quote:

If I were the CCI primer factory manager, I would be running double shifts and buying more equipment. I suspect that is what is happening....

Leasing more equipment, maybe.

Buying, no. That wouldn't be the best business move, with suspicion of a market slump ahead. (Hoarders will run out of money {and credit} eventually.)

Scorch · March 29, 2009, 02:56 PM

The same thing happened when the Clinton "assault rifle" ban was passed back in the early 1990s, but we didn't have a war going on to boot. A lot of it is hoarding. I bought 2 sleeves of large pistol primers a few weeks ago, and the store was limiting customers to 2,000 primers/person because they had gone through their whole previous order in one day with folks buying 50,000 and 100,000 primers at a time.

Quote:

It seems to me that some have horded them over the last year.

I overheard a guy at the gun show last weekend saying he has 100,000 primers "just in case they decide to ban guns". Really? If they ban guns, what use are the primers?

Quote:

If I were the CCI primer factory manager, I would be running double shifts and buying more equipment.

Believe me, the managers at CCI and ATK are already running their plants 24 hours/day.

BobMcG · March 29, 2009, 03:26 PM

TIFWIW: A friend knows an employee at Federal who said they are not only running flat out but are expanding production facilities and installing more equipment just to try to catch-up with demand for primers and ammo.

cunanse · March 29, 2009, 03:32 PM

This must be self-inflicted. I went to Sportsman's Warehouse in August and they were fairly stocked in everything. I go there now and it looks like they're having a liquidation sale.

cumminsX · March 29, 2009, 04:30 PM

They might be having a liquidation sale, ours is closing its doors.

R.Childs · March 29, 2009, 04:38 PM

Federal has a 100 million primer military contract to fulfill. Between that, people panic buying/hoarding, the shelves are left empty. Hopefully things will get to those shelves soon but every vendor out there has a long list of backorders to fulfill first.

**Shane Tuttle** · March 29, 2009, 04:42 PM

Quote:

What do you think?

Self inflicted. Pure and simple.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hodaka

If I were the CCI primer factory manager, I would be running double shifts and buying more equipment. I suspect that is what is happening.
I suspect that by summer things will be back to normal unless there is a chance of some restrictive legislation getting past first base.

Glad I don't work for CCI...

James R. Burke · March 29, 2009, 04:50 PM

I have been able to get lucky finding some stuff at some small ma and pa shops. There about the only places your going to find anything. Try the small shops, and good luck.

a7mmnut · March 29, 2009, 04:55 PM

I guess I'm somewhat of an oddity. I buy several different calibers' supplies, and have done so on a regular basis for many years. I've also always believed in picking up a few bricks of .22 ammo every time it is on sale. What's the big rush now? Our neoghbors are simply screwing the rest of us by their foolish and selfish actions.

-7-

**Unclenick** · March 29, 2009, 05:14 PM

Sinclair International's newsletter came by e-mail yesterday and had this to say:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sinclair International

I feel I need to add a few words about the component situation. Ammunition sales and component stockpiling have continued to exhaust component manufacturer's production capabilities. This is a much greater demand than we experienced during 1993 and 1994. In 1994, primers were the major component in short supply just as they are today and many customers have been calling to inquire about component availability. Regarding primers, we have had a few primers come in and go quickly back out of stock, but we hope to see quite a few more in early April. Brass supplies are in fairly good shape except for a few of the more popular cartridges. The supply of 308 Winchester and 223 Remington unprimed brass has been a hit and miss situation. We haven't seen any 308 Winchester brass (with a Winchester headstamp) in almost a year now! As I write this we have a small amount of Lapua 308 Winchester brass in stock. We are occasionally seeing some 223 Remington brass (right now we have Winchester headstamp in stock). Powder supplies are in pretty decent shape with one big exception being the supply of Hodgdon Varget. Bullet deliveries have been intermittent; our champion in regular delivery has been Sierra Bullets. They have continued to keep us supplied with most of their bullets. Berger Bullets and Hornady are doing their best as well to keep up with an unprecedented demand. Thanks Guys!

Gypsysteel · March 29, 2009, 08:11 PM

I think you can order online from Gander, if not let me know. I don't mind grabbing it for you and shipping.

docspencer · March 29, 2009, 08:16 PM

I suppose that it is mostly due to the new government and panic. I work two jobs like most folks I know, and reloading small orders locally helps pay for gasoline, propane and Firewood. What small client base I have is reducing because components aren't there and these same clients are trying to stockpile for what ever phobia (real or not). I do this also as a hobby because it is fun and very relaxing and gives me a sense of building something useful that people value and appreciate. I get the same satisfaction I get from designing a new bridge or structure.

I don't get whole sale rates so it's tough to be competitive, but my clients like the quality they get from me. I enjoy the sense of fulfillment and paying my bills. Right now it's just plain hard. I will keep looking for primers and powder and hope I can continue my quite ma & pa buisness.

olddrum1 · March 30, 2009, 12:37 AM

The last really good shooting war that went on in the middle east caused pretty much the same situation. First all the 7.62 dissappeared, then it started effecting the reloading supplies. It took a couple of years for things to get back to normal if I remember correctly. Now we have three.

mbreitba · March 30, 2009, 12:57 AM

How much are you guys shooting that you need to pick up 5 and 10,000 primers at once?

Personally, I load 223, 30-06, and 45ACP. When I pick up primers, I typically pick up about 2000 of each. 2000 rounds of 223 lasts me at least 6 trips to the range, 45 ACP will usually last me 10-15 trips to the range, and I've never had to buy more LR primers since my first purchase. Granted, I've only been reloading for about 3 years, but in that time I've only had to pick up primers for the 45 and for the 223 3 times. Maybe I'm on the low end of the spectrum as far as shooting goes, but I'd much rather spend my time out in the field stalking a coyote than plinking away at the range.

As far as real or self-induced, I'd say a little bit of both. The next time I go out and pick up primers, I may pick up an extra thousand of each, but I'm certainly not going to buy 10 or 20 thousand "just to make sure".

There are obviously more people reloading now judging by the emptiness of even the die section of Scheels and Sportsmans Warehouse, but I can't imagine that just new reloaders are causing the shortage. Sooner or later the demand will drop off and we'll be back to being able to pick them up whenever we need them. Until then, I'll probably step up the field work and dial down the range time. I can spend 3 hours in the field and take 5 shots and have just as much fun as 1 hour at the range blasting off a few hundred rounds.

762 shooter · March 30, 2009, 06:13 AM

I predict that reloading components will again be available at reasonable prices by June 14th, 2009 at 2:31 PM.

Magnum Wheel Man · March 30, 2009, 07:22 AM

personally... I've been researching the powder burn rate charts, & putting together a 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, ... in some cases up to 10th choice on powders & primers, & plan on spending some time this summer putting together 4-5 "best reciepes" for each caliber / bullet choice... just to not get put in this position again... ( I have several new cartridges I'm loading for this year, some are Wildcats like 17 K Hornet, some are newer cartridges like 5.7 X 28 ), but often there are anywhere from 1-2 up to a handfull of published reciepes, so I'm doing much expiriementing this summer on new loads

Sevens · March 30, 2009, 07:31 AM

MWM, I think that's a great idea, but the amount of time it takes is quite an investment. Yes, it's fun, it is what we do, so it's not like work. But when your range time is a very limited quantity, it's a lot tougher to do exactly that.

I have a lot of time to devote to the load bench, but not a heap of time that I can spend testing loads.

Magnum Wheel Man · March 30, 2009, 07:44 AM

I have my own 300 yard range... I plan on spending a lot of quality time with the chrony this summer...

with the hopes of doing 8-10 calibers per summer ( I have somewhere between 40 & 50 calibers I currently load for ) & a goal of 4-5 real "good" reciepes per caliber, using a couple different primers & powders, so that if anything should run short again in the future, I'll have options... of course if things settle down, I'll have to make note of those "favorites" & keep a little extra of those components on hand as well... it should be fun, & I might even learn something, & will likely find a better combo of components than some of my current "best" reciepes that I have right now...

part of the trouble is that often we are talking about up to 4-5 guns that shoot the same cartridge, so there could be multiple "best" loads I keep for each... one "best" for the Contender, one "best" for a revolver, one "best" for a semi auto hand gun, one "best" for a rifle ( 30 carbine for example... which I won't even likely work on this summer )

Dustin0 · March 30, 2009, 07:58 AM

I just got 2000 large pistol and 2000 shotgun primers the other day. Only one store had any. They where around 26 per 1000.

Al Norris · March 30, 2009, 08:16 AM

Two similar threads merged.

rclark · March 30, 2009, 09:48 AM

Quote:

I suppose that it is mostly due to the new government and panic

And things like the following by the government :

http://www.nraila.org/Legislation/Fe...d.aspx?id=4671

Just makes a lot of people 'nervous'. Our own government working against us ....

Primers still in short supply here....

**Unclenick** · March 30, 2009, 02:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mbreitba

How much are you guys shooting that you need to pick up 5 and 10,000 primers at once?

Most all active match competitors I know buy primers and .22 LR ammunition by the case, which is 5,000. Normally it's done because you get the best price break there. But right now, with prices so high, it isn't so. If you have to buy primers now at high prices, I would go for the minium needed and wait out the storm.

How much people shoot is another issue. Top practical pistol competitors probably shoot the most ammo. 2,000 rounds a week in practice isn't uncommon for them, though they usually have sponsors providing loaded ammo for them if they are top tier. I don't really know what the most active reloaders shoot? When I get together with friends for a week of practice we all go through about 750-1000 rounds of .45 ACP apiece in the daytime and reload it all at night and go back and do it again the next day. Take a week of that times four or five people and do the math. The Dillon 1050 is kept going all evening long during those sessions. Probably wear us out if it lasted longer than a week a year.

BigAl · March 30, 2009, 06:06 PM

I was in a local gun shop today and they had no powder or primers. I went over to Sportsman's Warehouse and the shelves were empty of primers. They only had a few pounds of certain powders available. The selection of bullets was pretty slim also. The guy at the counter said Hodgon was at 130% capacity just trying to keep up with demand. I called another Sportsman's, Gander Mountain, Reloaders Corner, Big Five and Bass Pro Shops and neither had powder or primers. Anyone in the Denver area having any better luck finding any supplies?

James R. Burke · March 30, 2009, 06:15 PM

I was in Green Bay, Wi this weekend visiting the Grandkids. There Sportsmans warehouse is shutting down, and they had everything marked down. I could not believe it there prices on all items were more than double with the mark down. The place was packed, and nobody was buying anything. I went to a small gun shop there, and bought the powder I needed for 23.00 a pound. Sportsmans wanted 55.00 with a ten percent mark down. Glad I never done any business with them in the past, and I sure wont do any in the future. This whole thing is crazy. I have about 3,000 Large CCI Rifle primers, and that will last me for awhile. I have the same in small and large pistol. For some people thats not very much, and I can understand that. They do alot of shooting, and it is a nice clean sport. I feel sorry for the people who are just getting into it. I am sure the supply will come back but like I said at a much higher price. Hope it is soon. I started using CCI and pretty much stuck with them so I am glad so far I dont need to rework the loads I have worked up. Most of the primers I believe are good ones just dont like redoing things that are already working. Just my two cents. Done!

tunein · March 30, 2009, 08:53 PM

I was lucky enough two weeks ago to find a local shop that had @2500 small pistol primers, so I grabbed 2000, and then without my step son knowing I had picked them up he went to the same shop and wiped out the rest of his stock.

He then went to another small store and they had 500 more, so he grabbed them to. So I know have 3000. It should keep me good to go through the summer as I already have 3000 rounds of 9mm loaded and will only reload as I shoot. Luckily I have a good source of brass, but now I am trying to get a good lead on some cast bullets for plinking.
I think that some of the manufacturers are taking advantage of the nervousness of consumers and not increasing production at all, just raising prices to fill their already fat wallets. Just look at how gas prices are going again, it is the American way..... screw thy neighbor and get as much money as you can while doing it!!!!
Just my 2 cents worth.

March 29, 2009, 08:16 PM	#87
docspencer Junior Member Join Date: March 28, 2009 Location: El Dorado County, ca Posts: 4	Primer panic I suppose that it is mostly due to the new government and panic. I work two jobs like most folks I know, and reloading small orders locally helps pay for gasoline, propane and Firewood. What small client base I have is reducing because components aren't there and these same clients are trying to stockpile for what ever phobia (real or not). I do this also as a hobby because it is fun and very relaxing and gives me a sense of building something useful that people value and appreciate. I get the same satisfaction I get from designing a new bridge or structure. I don't get whole sale rates so it's tough to be competitive, but my clients like the quality they get from me. I enjoy the sense of fulfillment and paying my bills. Right now it's just plain hard. I will keep looking for primers and powder and hope I can continue my quite ma & pa buisness.

March 30, 2009, 07:22 AM	#91
Magnum Wheel Man Senior Member Join Date: July 26, 2006 Location: Southern Minnesota Posts: 9,333	personally... I've been researching the powder burn rate charts, & putting together a 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, ... in some cases up to 10th choice on powders & primers, & plan on spending some time this summer putting together 4-5 "best reciepes" for each caliber / bullet choice... just to not get put in this position again... ( I have several new cartridges I'm loading for this year, some are Wildcats like 17 K Hornet, some are newer cartridges like 5.7 X 28 ), but often there are anywhere from 1-2 up to a handfull of published reciepes, so I'm doing much expiriementing this summer on new loads __________________ In life you either make dust or eat dust...

March 30, 2009, 07:31 AM	#92
Sevens Senior Member Join Date: July 28, 2007 Location: Ohio Posts: 11,756	MWM, I think that's a great idea, but the amount of time it takes is quite an investment. Yes, it's fun, it is what we do, so it's not like work. But when your range time is a very limited quantity, it's a lot tougher to do exactly that. I have a lot of time to devote to the load bench, but not a heap of time that I can spend testing loads. __________________ *Attention Brass rats and other reloaders:* I really need .327 Federal Magnum brass, no lot size too small. Tell me what caliber you need and I'll see what I have to swap. PM me and we'll discuss.

March 30, 2009, 07:44 AM	#93
Magnum Wheel Man Senior Member Join Date: July 26, 2006 Location: Southern Minnesota Posts: 9,333	I have my own 300 yard range... I plan on spending a lot of quality time with the chrony this summer... with the hopes of doing 8-10 calibers per summer ( I have somewhere between 40 & 50 calibers I currently load for ) & a goal of 4-5 real "good" reciepes per caliber, using a couple different primers & powders, so that if anything should run short again in the future, I'll have options... of course if things settle down, I'll have to make note of those "favorites" & keep a little extra of those components on hand as well... it should be fun, & I might even learn something, & will likely find a better combo of components than some of my current "best" reciepes that I have right now... part of the trouble is that often we are talking about up to 4-5 guns that shoot the same cartridge, so there could be multiple "best" loads I keep for each... one "best" for the Contender, one "best" for a revolver, one "best" for a semi auto hand gun, one "best" for a rifle ( 30 carbine for example... which I won't even likely work on this summer ) __________________ In life you either make dust or eat dust...

March 29, 2009, 03:26 PM	#78
BobMcG Member Join Date: February 27, 2006 Posts: 81	TIFWIW: A friend knows an employee at Federal who said they are not only running flat out but are expanding production facilities and installing more equipment just to try to catch-up with demand for primers and ammo.

March 29, 2009, 03:32 PM	#79
cunanse Member Join Date: February 15, 2006 Posts: 37	This must be self-inflicted. I went to Sportsman's Warehouse in August and they were fairly stocked in everything. I go there now and it looks like they're having a liquidation sale.

March 29, 2009, 04:30 PM	#80
cumminsX Junior Member Join Date: March 28, 2009 Posts: 4	They might be having a liquidation sale, ours is closing its doors.

March 29, 2009, 04:38 PM	#81
R.Childs Senior Member Join Date: June 11, 2008 Location: S.Georgia Posts: 164	Federal has a 100 million primer military contract to fulfill. Between that, people panic buying/hoarding, the shelves are left empty. Hopefully things will get to those shelves soon but every vendor out there has a long list of backorders to fulfill first.

March 29, 2009, 04:50 PM	#83
James R. Burke Senior Member Join Date: January 3, 2009 Location: U.P. of Mich/Quinnesec Posts: 1,897	I have been able to get lucky finding some stuff at some small ma and pa shops. There about the only places your going to find anything. Try the small shops, and good luck.

March 29, 2009, 04:55 PM	#84
a7mmnut Junior member Join Date: February 27, 2009 Location: NC Foothills Posts: 1,150	I guess I'm somewhat of an oddity. I buy several different calibers' supplies, and have done so on a regular basis for many years. I've also always believed in picking up a few bricks of .22 ammo every time it is on sale. What's the big rush now? Our neoghbors are simply screwing the rest of us by their foolish and selfish actions. -7-

March 29, 2009, 08:11 PM	#86
Gypsysteel Junior Member Join Date: March 22, 2009 Posts: 8	I think you can order online from Gander, if not let me know. I don't mind grabbing it for you and shipping.

March 30, 2009, 12:37 AM	#88
olddrum1 Senior Member Join Date: March 23, 2008 Location: Mid Missouri Posts: 807	The last really good shooting war that went on in the middle east caused pretty much the same situation. First all the 7.62 dissappeared, then it started effecting the reloading supplies. It took a couple of years for things to get back to normal if I remember correctly. Now we have three.

March 30, 2009, 12:57 AM	#89
mbreitba Member Join Date: September 30, 2008 Location: Des Moines, IA Posts: 41	How much are you guys shooting that you need to pick up 5 and 10,000 primers at once? Personally, I load 223, 30-06, and 45ACP. When I pick up primers, I typically pick up about 2000 of each. 2000 rounds of 223 lasts me at least 6 trips to the range, 45 ACP will usually last me 10-15 trips to the range, and I've never had to buy more LR primers since my first purchase. Granted, I've only been reloading for about 3 years, but in that time I've only had to pick up primers for the 45 and for the 223 3 times. Maybe I'm on the low end of the spectrum as far as shooting goes, but I'd much rather spend my time out in the field stalking a coyote than plinking away at the range. As far as real or self-induced, I'd say a little bit of both. The next time I go out and pick up primers, I may pick up an extra thousand of each, but I'm certainly not going to buy 10 or 20 thousand "just to make sure". There are obviously more people reloading now judging by the emptiness of even the die section of Scheels and Sportsmans Warehouse, but I can't imagine that just new reloaders are causing the shortage. Sooner or later the demand will drop off and we'll be back to being able to pick them up whenever we need them. Until then, I'll probably step up the field work and dial down the range time. I can spend 3 hours in the field and take 5 shots and have just as much fun as 1 hour at the range blasting off a few hundred rounds.

March 30, 2009, 06:13 AM	#90
762 shooter Member Join Date: March 15, 2009 Posts: 18	I predict that reloading components will again be available at reasonable prices by June 14th, 2009 at 2:31 PM.

March 30, 2009, 07:58 AM	#94
Dustin0 Senior Member Join Date: May 15, 2008 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 701	I just got 2000 large pistol and 2000 shotgun primers the other day. Only one store had any. They where around 26 per 1000.

March 30, 2009, 08:16 AM	#95
Al Norris Moderator Emeritus Join Date: June 29, 2000 Location: Rupert, Idaho Posts: 9,660	Two similar threads merged.

March 30, 2009, 06:06 PM	#98
BigAl Member Join Date: December 27, 1999 Location: Colorado Posts: 30	I was in a local gun shop today and they had no powder or primers. I went over to Sportsman's Warehouse and the shelves were empty of primers. They only had a few pounds of certain powders available. The selection of bullets was pretty slim also. The guy at the counter said Hodgon was at 130% capacity just trying to keep up with demand. I called another Sportsman's, Gander Mountain, Reloaders Corner, Big Five and Bass Pro Shops and neither had powder or primers. Anyone in the Denver area having any better luck finding any supplies?

March 30, 2009, 06:15 PM	#99
James R. Burke Senior Member Join Date: January 3, 2009 Location: U.P. of Mich/Quinnesec Posts: 1,897	I was in Green Bay, Wi this weekend visiting the Grandkids. There Sportsmans warehouse is shutting down, and they had everything marked down. I could not believe it there prices on all items were more than double with the mark down. The place was packed, and nobody was buying anything. I went to a small gun shop there, and bought the powder I needed for 23.00 a pound. Sportsmans wanted 55.00 with a ten percent mark down. Glad I never done any business with them in the past, and I sure wont do any in the future. This whole thing is crazy. I have about 3,000 Large CCI Rifle primers, and that will last me for awhile. I have the same in small and large pistol. For some people thats not very much, and I can understand that. They do alot of shooting, and it is a nice clean sport. I feel sorry for the people who are just getting into it. I am sure the supply will come back but like I said at a much higher price. Hope it is soon. I started using CCI and pretty much stuck with them so I am glad so far I dont need to rework the loads I have worked up. Most of the primers I believe are good ones just dont like redoing things that are already working. Just my two cents. Done!

March 30, 2009, 08:53 PM	#100
tunein Junior Member Join Date: March 23, 2009 Posts: 13	I was lucky enough two weeks ago to find a local shop that had @2500 small pistol primers, so I grabbed 2000, and then without my step son knowing I had picked them up he went to the same shop and wiped out the rest of his stock. He then went to another small store and they had 500 more, so he grabbed them to. So I know have 3000. It should keep me good to go through the summer as I already have 3000 rounds of 9mm loaded and will only reload as I shoot. Luckily I have a good source of brass, but now I am trying to get a good lead on some cast bullets for plinking. I think that some of the manufacturers are taking advantage of the nervousness of consumers and not increasing production at all, just raising prices to fill their already fat wallets. Just look at how gas prices are going again, it is the American way..... screw thy neighbor and get as much money as you can while doing it!!!! Just my 2 cents worth.