Where are the Ammo and Reloading Supplies? - Merged Threads
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TheNatureBoy
New member
Primer Shortage. Real or Self Inflicted Wound?
Darn near every day I see/read a post from one of our fellow members about not being able to find primers or having to drive a few hours to find them. About a month ago I went to Green Top in Hanover, Va. and purchased 1000 of them. My thought was if I don't get them now they won't be around later. Are local shops not doing enough to keep them on the shelf? Is the shortage due to manufacturers not producing enough to keep up with demand? Are we creating the problem by going to our local gunshops and buying them by the thousands. What do you think?
Darn near every day I see/read a post from one of our fellow members about not being able to find primers or having to drive a few hours to find them. About a month ago I went to Green Top in Hanover, Va. and purchased 1000 of them. My thought was if I don't get them now they won't be around later. Are local shops not doing enough to keep them on the shelf? Is the shortage due to manufacturers not producing enough to keep up with demand? Are we creating the problem by going to our local gunshops and buying them by the thousands. What do you think?
Me too Nature Boy
Knoxville, TN gun show at Jacobs building. They have this thing 3/4 times a year. I looked at every single table......probably at least 200 different vendors there. I found 1 lot (1000) small pistol primers in the entire building. I went in with intention of price comparing but left with the only case that was in the building. I thought this was weird.
Knoxville, TN gun show at Jacobs building. They have this thing 3/4 times a year. I looked at every single table......probably at least 200 different vendors there. I found 1 lot (1000) small pistol primers in the entire building. I went in with intention of price comparing but left with the only case that was in the building. I thought this was weird.
bluetopper
New member
Simply and to the point; from my observations at shows, reading on these forums, and trying to buy primers online from distributors, this primer shortage is caused by people in a buying panic/frenzy scared of what the future holds since our President got elected. And the scarcity of primers just feeds fuel to the buyer panic.
I wouldn't think the manufacturors are making any less of them than they were a year ago.
If anybody else has another take on this, lets hear it.
I wouldn't think the manufacturors are making any less of them than they were a year ago.
If anybody else has another take on this, lets hear it.
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 believe panic buying is driving the shortage. For those on the coast you know what the local liquor store and Home Depot look like when a hurricane is in the gulf.
I suspect that by summer things will be back to normal unless there is a chance of some restrictive legislation getting past first base.
I believe panic buying is driving the shortage. For those on the coast you know what the local liquor store and Home Depot look like when a hurricane is in the gulf.
I suspect that by summer things will be back to normal unless there is a chance of some restrictive legislation getting past first base.
It's been much affected by hoarding, but also the Clinton era budgets let all our military ammo stockpiles run way down. It got to the point that live ammo training exercises had to be cut back to keep ammo available for the troops in the sandbox. Over the last three years that has been being corrected. I think I read the 2007 military ammo order was four times normal for keeping up with the war effort. This was for replenishing the stockpiles. I recently heard via Rocky Raab that his contacts say the stockpile recovery is now nearly complete. Reduction in combat levels in Iraq likely helped speed that up.
I got a newsletter from Sinclair International announcing their new web site. It included mention of the shortage. They say they expect primers sometime in April. They've seen almost no Winchester headstamp brass come in for a year, though they seem to have a few items now. I'd read somewhere that CCI had an order for almost a hundred million mil-spec primers that has kept their production tied up, but, again, if the stockpile replenishing is nearing completion that should be winding down, too.
We'll have to see where the hoarding takes things after that? I've simply elected not to participate. I've kept my usual match shooting stockpiles replenished over the years. (That way I always have a ready excuse to try something new.) I still have enough to get through several seasons of practice and match shooting and that is more than enough for any Armageddon scenario I've been able to imagine, where you won't likely have the opportunity to go through the usual thousands of rounds a year unless you have a private army you are responsible for supplying? Ditto being under the thumb of a police state, where opportunities for practice firing would be few. So I am just coasting at this point. It's like waiting for the stock market to recover, I suppose. If you have your cash savings in order you can hold out.
One thing this experience does suggest is that shooters who believe in keeping a stockpile should establish a number for each major component and maintain it in good times and bad. Just keep replenishing it as you actually use it.
I got a newsletter from Sinclair International announcing their new web site. It included mention of the shortage. They say they expect primers sometime in April. They've seen almost no Winchester headstamp brass come in for a year, though they seem to have a few items now. I'd read somewhere that CCI had an order for almost a hundred million mil-spec primers that has kept their production tied up, but, again, if the stockpile replenishing is nearing completion that should be winding down, too.
We'll have to see where the hoarding takes things after that? I've simply elected not to participate. I've kept my usual match shooting stockpiles replenished over the years. (That way I always have a ready excuse to try something new.) I still have enough to get through several seasons of practice and match shooting and that is more than enough for any Armageddon scenario I've been able to imagine, where you won't likely have the opportunity to go through the usual thousands of rounds a year unless you have a private army you are responsible for supplying? Ditto being under the thumb of a police state, where opportunities for practice firing would be few. So I am just coasting at this point. It's like waiting for the stock market to recover, I suppose. If you have your cash savings in order you can hold out.
One thing this experience does suggest is that shooters who believe in keeping a stockpile should establish a number for each major component and maintain it in good times and bad. Just keep replenishing it as you actually use it.
I was at a gunshow yesterday in Newberrry Fl. ( just west of Gainesville). I only saw one guy that had any primers. I don't need any I have about 5000 but, I was curious as to the price. I asked the guy how much? he said how many do you want, I said 1000 his exact words 'I am embarrassed to tell you but $50 I can hardly get em" then he said "they are going for more on Gunbroker". I also noticed that the local gun dealers (shops I have been in recently) had actually jacked up their prices on guns, mags, etc. for the show stating "Show Specials". I beieve that they are enjoying the sky is faling fear that is going on and using it to hose people. I heard in passing comments like "get it while you can". It is a joke and as long as people keep buying in to this availabilty and price will continue on the current trend. I have said it before and I am saying it again I will enjoy it when all the speculators lose the butts and start dumping their inventory when the fear finally subsides just like the ones that drove oil prices to $150 a barrel did.
I have noticed as time has gone on, it is almost impossible to find them on the net. Luckly I bought about all I needed back last fall and one day I realized I was low on small rifle primers. I lucked up and found some and bought 2000 more. A gun dealer about 60 to 65 miles away has about any kind of primer you would want for about 35 dollars a thousand. He has kept up pretty good, but sold out of Unique a few times but has kept about everything else in stock. He must have some good suppliers because I know he has been selling that stuff like hotcakes.
Mr Odd Six
Moderator
It seems to me that some have horded them over the last year. With the intention of pulling a profit from others.
I guess they use wall street as thier insperation.
I guess they use wall street as thier insperation.
James R. Burke
New member
I believe when people feel they have enough or are broke you will see the supply come back, and at a much higher price. I been finding them at small ma and pa shops, and have plenty for now.
bullspotter
New member
I think its all about demand, right now demand is very high, do to many new reloaders, panic buying and storing ext. I hope the places that make this stuff (primers-ammo-guns) are keeping their profits in a safe place insted of using it wrong, Im pretty sure this (shortage of componets)will slow down, hopefully by the end of the year. What worries me is with the markups, and if the supply gets to big, this will creat a glut of supplys, ammo, relaoding stuff, guns ext, Then as the economy keeps getting worse, and as people contunue to loose jobs ext, we will see many selling this stuff for less and less just to pay their bills. Causing the stock on the store shelf to stay thier, Then the company not selling will soon need to cut back, more people will lose jobs ext... And the company that did the wrong thing now, ( spent tons of money to get more production equipment ext) will not have a use for the equipment, ext they bought when selling was good. I kinda think thats whats wrong now, people were spending alot of money, company owners were making bank, expanding, wasting money because they could then bang sales slowed and now they are in big trouble. just my .02...........
docspencer
New member
Thanks fellas
A billion dollars for Power Pistol....It could come to that. If it does I guess I'll get back into serious fishing or live in South America
Does Gander Mountain Ship?
A billion dollars for Power Pistol....It could come to that. If it does I guess I'll get back into serious fishing or live in South America
Does Gander Mountain Ship?
I honestly don't think that you're going to see purchasing slowing down this time around. We're only two months into the new guy's reign, and the frenzy started long before he was sworn in. Throw in the fact that there's an enormous amount of new reloaders (you've witnessed the thread count), and you have a much larger demand. People who already reloaded for years are very good at squirreling stuff away in quantities- they got into it to shoot more for less, and don't allow stock to go below a certain level in good times, let alone bad. Most established reloaders I know increased their stocks two to three-fold over normal this time around, and did it before the frenzy- they remember all too well what happened the last time. Due to the unsurety of the times, I can well guess that everyone has a high number in mind as to what is enough, and they're not there yet. I know I'm not.
FrankenMauser
New member
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.)
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.
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?
Believe me, the managers at CCI and ATK are already running their plants 24 hours/day.