Coronavirus Causing AR15 Shortage?

[Swifty Morgan]

I'm not a huge fan of the AR15, so I haven't bought one, but I feel like I should own at least one to see what the fuss is about. Today I started poking around online, seeing what's out there, and it looks like a lot of the mid-tier rifles are GONE. Is this something new? Is coronavirus driving neurotic people to snap up guns the same way they're filling their vans with toilet paper?

I'd like to have one, but I don't want to bother with a bad trigger or other problems that would make 1 MOA a difficult proposition, so I don't know if a cheap gun will get me where I'd like to be.

 

[Cheapshooter]

Seems not only AR 15s, but all guns, and ammo are way up in sales.
Just bide your time, and there will probably be plenty of used ARs, and other guns flooding the market. But one gamble that there won't be.....results of November 3rd.

 

[Swifty Morgan]

People where I live are cleaning stores out of bottled water. Idiocy. No one is going to shut the water off. I guess it will be a month before gun inventories start to recover.

Looking at AR15's is very confusing. It looks like you have to blow over a grand to get a really accurate gun.

I don't have any plans to use one for defense, but it would be fun to have one to shoot behind the house with a scope.

 

[kenny53]

I know of one AR that was bought because of coronavirus. I don't see roving bands of hoodlums' going door to door looking for water or toilet paper, but that's here in northern Utah.

 

[Swifty Morgan]

I live in the most conservative county in Florida, so you would expect people to behave somewhat rationally. I went to my barber today, hoping he would be open. He said a shop in his strip mall got a pallet of toilet paper early this morning. A lady with a minivan went in immediately and bought the whole pallet. Stuffed her van full of it.

Hoarders should have to eat whatever they hoard. There is a character in the news who has 17000 bottles of hand sanitizer. He drove all over his state, buying all of it up so he could sell it for outrageous prices. He should have to drink every bottle.

 

[Cheapshooter]

It looks like you have to blow over a grand to get a really accurate gun.

I guess "accurate gun" is a subjective term.
You just want one to have one, what's wrong with acceptable accuracy something a little less than a tack driver?

 

[spacemanspiff]

You could spend over a grand on an AR. Or you could spend less.

Then after you buy, you will soon realize you will spend at least as much on accessories/magazines when all is said and done.

For your first, if you are worried about cost, find a S&W M&P 15 sport. Well under a grand.

 

[Swifty Morgan]

Here's how I look at it. I have a $200 Savage .17 HMR that shoots 1 MOA at 100 yards on calm days. If I spend several times as much on an AR15 that can't do the same thing, I will be disappointed. If all a gun is good for is showering a target with rounds at 4 MOA, I might as well stick with an AK47 or Vz58.

 

[jonnyc]

"I haven't bought one, but I feel like I should own at least one"

You and a few million others who have suddenly felt they should own one. No shortage in production or shipping...........just a sudden high demand.

 

[Screwball]

I ordered a PSA AK pistol yesterday... not because of COVID-19, but because I wanted it. Can’t wait to get it.

Had a huge pack of TP before the panic, so good for a few weeks. At least until the time it gets back on the shelves.

 

[jrinne0430]

Have not seen a shortage of ARs here however; good luck finding toilet paper.

 

[rickyrick]

Not interested in ARs, already had some.
Always keep supplies on hand because I live in an earthquake zone near some volcanos.
Things are rapidly degrading here. In the last two days people have found themselves with: no job, no school, no restaurants, nothing on the market shelves, no police unless it’s immediately life threatening, almost zero access to medical care and no answers.
If your government or big tech you have no worries.
If you are not prepared, this one is gonna hurt.
If there’s anything on your wishlist that you can afford, I say get it now.

I don’t know how we got to this place,

 

[FrankenMauser]

You and a few million others who have suddenly felt they should own one. No shortage in production or shipping...........just a sudden high demand.

That. ^^^

Politics. Virus. General uneasiness.
People aren't comfortable, and think guns might help them sleep better.

 

[TXAZ]

I’ve been thinking of getting a nice AR since November but some of this is panic buying is nuts.
I’m guessing I’ll be able to get one at a bargain in 6 months.

 

[Swifty Morgan]

It's barely affecting me. I was able to get everything I wanted at the store today, except for sanitizing wipes, but I shouldn't need a new container for a month or so. I will need toilet paper in a couple of weeks or a month, but by then, it will be available again.

Thank God I don't live in Chicago or some similar place. My cousin near Chicago says the authorities are considering imprisoning the entire population in their houses over 200 cases.

I don't read the news much at all, so I didn't know people were buying up AR15's. I guess they plan to shoot at the virus!

It looks like there are still some good rifles out there, but making the choice is hard. BCM looks interesting. Maybe I should just grab a 16" gun and go from there. I suppose I can always add and subtract parts later if it's not what I want.

 

[dakota.potts]

I had a cheap AR on Armslist for a reasonable price ($500 for an early S&W M&P Sport).

It was buried way down in the listings, very little interest in it.

Today alone I received 3 e-mails from people who suddenly wanted to buy it.

I see that as a pretty good indicator of the market. I've been staying at home since all this started and I've been too busy (and poor) to be internet shopping so I was amazed at prices when I pulled up a couple sites today.

 

[Kreyzhorse]

I believe the time might be past to get a good deal on a used AR. I had a buddy last night wanting me to find him one.

The whole virus thing is going to blow over, but then we head into the election and both Bernie and Biden have made it clear they want your guns.

I'd say the gun and ammo run won't end till after the election.

 

[Swifty Morgan]

I'm reading more about the AR-15, and I'm surprised at the low accuracy of expensive guns. I assumed it was not that hard to get good accuracy, but it looks like people are spending $1300 and getting almost 2 MOA. Maybe it's unrealistic to buy an AR-15 for accuracy.

Maybe I should forget it and get a better trigger for my LR-308.

 

[TXAZ]

I'm reading more about the AR-15, and I'm surprised at the low accuracy of expensive guns. I assumed it was not that hard to get good accuracy, but it looks like people are spending $1300 and getting almost 2 MOA. Maybe it's unrealistic to buy an AR-15 for accuracy.

Maybe I should forget it and get a better trigger for my LR-308.

A new trigger works. So do other strategies:

I just bought more ammo, figuring I'll get a bargain by the time I've gone through the new stash of 50 & 9.

 

[44caliberkid]

The stores around Iowa have plenty of them, from entry level to high end. Many lower priced AR's will shoot under 1 MOA. Ammunition has a lot to do with it, some are as ammo sensitive as 22 LR's.
"I'm surprised by the low accuracy of expensive guns." More than likely the low accuracy of expensive gun shooters.
The only virus related "shortage" seems to be a run on cheap 9mm.