Why so much ammo for SHTF?

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MrWesson

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I have been reading around and the common suggestion is 1000 rounds per caliber.

In what situation can you see yourself shooting more than 50rds of ammo at at time without either yourself or the bad guy being dead?

Assuming you are the good guy then the other guy had to have a gun and be shooting at you right? Why not just take the ammo/firearm after the fight?

Someone school me on this
 
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Spats McGee

Administrator
You could take the BGs ammo and firearm(s) after the fight. That is true. What you don't know is whether the BG will be using the same ammo as you, or if he'll have enough to make it worthwhile to keep his. Besides, if the SHTF really hits the fan, you don't know how long your ammo will have to last you. Besides, you might need it to hunt, for barter, or for charity for other Good Guys.
 
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Nitesites

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Buy as much as you can when cheap so you won't have to when it skyrockets. Best reason that I know of. Seems to fluctuate like mad every 4 years *wink*.
 
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horseman308

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I think this gets debated pretty often. 1000 rounds seems like a pretty arbitrary number - maybe its just because that's how many rounds are in X number cases of ammo. Still, I think about it like this:

No matter what the situation, you can only survive alone for a limited amount of time. If you're moving around a lot, good luck carrying 1000 rounds of anything except .22lr. If you're stationary, you'll run out of stuff to shoot at (critters for food or bad guys) long before you run out of bullets. Either way, you've got to move or your gonna die.

The only way this works in anyone's long-term favor is in large groups. So, I'm more worried about getting out of the danger area w/ my wife and loved ones, and finding a safe place with other (mentally) stable people who can work together. In that scenario, the gun and its ammo is just a tool, to help get that done. I'd only carry enough ammo to get that job done. But that's just me.

Think about Katrina - a real life survival issue. No one could stay put, but it was really dangerous. So, you get out any way you can. Lots of ammo would only weigh you down, but having a gun could be useful, so take a few magazines worth and get out of town. Heck, in that event, I'd be willing to trade a gun for a good boat.
 
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Darren007

New member
I think this falls into that "Better to have it and not need it, then have 50 rounds and need more."

Taking a bad guys gun is fine if yours is out of ammo or if you never had one to begin with. But what if his is a piece of junk? What if his ammo is bad? Too many variables unless you have no choice.
 
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SPUSCG

New member
Having a thousand of each isnt for SHTF fantasies, its a good idea though. Remember the shortages? The whole buying craze in 08? Yeah, good to have some on hand when the stores are out.
 
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C Philip

New member
I see your point. In many cases, like Katrina, a magazine or two on your hip is all you are likely to need if you even have to shoot at all.

When people recommend 1000+ rounds it's for long term survival, trading, getting through shortages due to panic buying, etc. Maybe some people are imagining getting raiding parties together to take over supply caches, or protecting supply caches against someone elses raiding party and spending several magazines a week, but that's the extreme.
 
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Doc Intrepid

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horseman308 said:
"...Heck, in that event, I'd be willing to trade a gun for a good boat."
Click to expand...

No, you wouldn't. (Assuming you were only carrying the one gun...and as you said, how many rifles would one guy be carrying anyway?)

If you have a boat, and I have a gun, I have a boat and a gun.

If you have gold, and I have a gun, I have gold and a gun.

If you have food, and I have a gun, I have food and a gun.

Lets be realistic.

The US is not Japan - given sufficent desperation over scarce resources, there may be confrontation.

Heck - in Katrina there were morons shooting at the firemen as they attempted to put out fires. No particular animosity, apparently, unless they just preferred to watch things burn - no, it was more your garden variety intermural recreational anti-social types just taking advantage of the chaos.

And you can bet there are more where they came from.

I don't think it matters much whether your SHTF roscoe is a Marlin lever action 30-30 or some M-4gery with all the gadgets, but I suspect having one would be a prudent move.

YMMV.

;)
 
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C Philip

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The US is not Japan - given sufficent desperation over scarce resources, there may be confrontation.
Click to expand...
This is a very good point, and something that I've been thinking about recently. The way people in the US handle a disaster (Katrina) is so much different than the solidarity being displayed in Japan. If a disaster like that in Japan happens here, I will be very happy to be armed.
 
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45Gunner

New member
As suggested, it is always a good plan to buy ammo when you can find it relatively inexpensive, sort of hedge for when the prices go up.

As a combat Veteran (Vietnam) my biggest fear in the midst of a firefight was running out of ammo. As a result, I humped a lot more ammo and a little less food, figuring I could always survive missing a few meals but not without ammo. That has haunted me right up to today and I keep lots of ammo stockpiled in my own fort.
 
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Bud Helms

Senior Member
Just for clarity ...

Forum Rules.

Rule #5. Topics and conduct that will not be tolerated: bullet #6: The End Of The World As We Know It (TEOTWAWKI), AKA: SHTF or Doomsday threads and Zombie threads

Nothing personal. We learned from experience.
 
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