Firearms on shelves, but no ammo

[Magoo541]

We, gun owners, are causing this ammo shortage. People hoarding ammo and components in fear of potential laws that may or may not get passed or even proposed.

Fears that may be well founded but if everyone would just stop buying what they don't shoot and allow the supply chain to fill back up  would be fine.

[alfsauve]

Some of the bigger retailer , like my local Adventure Outdoors have .223/5.56 ammo.  They are e en starting to get in .22lr.

Have you checked with Shoot Straight?

[jnevis]

Just ask jnevis, he always has a "reasonable" explanation for what the government is doing. I wonder why?

I'll be more than happy to answer that...  Simply put, they are required to by law.  
That amount is not what DHS says they need to have, it's what Congress says they have to have on hand.  Now for SHOW, they want to amend the requirement so they can look good at "Stopping DHS's excess" before an election.  Works for both sides of the aisle.

How much ammo do YOU have stockpiled?  Probably more than a years worth, I did until recently.  Do they need two years, probably depends on how its allocated.  Unlike civilian ammo though, by regulation they are required to surplus any ammo that is more than five years old.  Why, not really sure, we usually tried to shoot it and not have any "extra."  A unit, whether military or otherwise, is required to have a certain allocation on hand at all times, plus what they are required for training and duty use.  Any extra in the training allocation must be used before the end of the year, while the duty ammo becomes training, and the "ready" allocation becomes training.  It's more bean counting than anything else.  This pot to this pot, and so on.  The bulk of the stocks are not kept at individual units/locations.  The Navy for example houses all small arms ammo in Crane IN, and sends a quarterly shipment to a base that in turn divides it to the units it supports.  

I also work on gov't projects, including a LOT of procurement.  The other reason I know how this works is that while on Active duty I assisted with weapon and ammunition management.  Now I'm on the budget/contracting side so I see how the process works and the hundreds of pages of contracting law that goes into how any organization, military or civilian, is required to do business with the Feds.

Even before BHO became President, there was always more shotgun than anything else especially here where I'm at, or any of the places I shoot at.  The only 223 I could find reliably was the Russian stuff.  9 wasn't any easier either.  Part of it may be location, I was in the FL panhandle. SoCal and here before.  

As far as the article...It has been a trend in LE training over the last couple years to start doing more force-on-force and airsoft is MUCH cheaper and easier to maintain than Simunition.  It has nothing to do with the cost of other training.  Having more ammo than the Army is a bit misleading too.  If you included ALL of the ammo the Army ordered and used, not training allocations I'd bet the number would be much closer.  Also DHS has to provide ammo to all of the classes it offers to outside agencies which wouldn't be included in the 70K personnel llisted, although the ammo is still part of DHS's allocation, again changing the ratio.

BTW Tom- I'm NOT a Govt employee.  My paycheck and bennies come from the private sector.

[brushmore]

At my local sporting goods store the ammo shelves are bare except for bird shot/target shotgun ammo.  In fact cases of it are often on sale cheaper than before the panic! 

I am still trying to figure this one out.  People are snapping up all the rimfire, mainstream center-fire, and any pistol caliber they can but aren't touching the shotgun ammo, besides buckshot.  So far the only thing I can come up with is that the ammo shortage MUST be a government conspiracy since the VP all wants us buying shotguns. 

[bluesman001]

Here in Central Texas you'll be hard pressed to find any kind of AR/AK or pistol ammo (especially JHP).  Academy only sells one box per customer when/if ammo comes in, and Wal-Mart is empty.  Cabelas in Buda (South of Austin), barely has ammo.  But they have tons of bare shelves (so weird).  Mostly they have shotguns shells, some overpriced Mosin ammo and oddball calibers (45LC, etc).

[Sponsor]

[TAB]

I really don't understand all this panic buying.  The mags and the guns I can kind of understand( a little bit, but not alot), but things like 22 ammo.  I just don't get.

[rojawe]

Walley World is getting more ammo in by the week so just hold on a little longer and you will have ammo

[tombogan03884]

Here's another thought .
Guns are selling like never before, millions since Obama took office .
Even at 1 or 2 boxes per that is a butt load of ammo .

[Bill Stryker]

Starting to see PMC .223 at rediculus prices. $13 for 20.
I happened to stop at Brown Bear..   He was unloading cases of 9mm PMC and charging $19.99 per box of 50. Despite lots on the shelf he would not sell it except for range use at his store. I will remember this treatment for a long time.
My friends bought 525 round boxes for $21 up north. They were limited to one box each, but they found .22rf on shelves.
I have not shopped for anything at Walmart.
What is going on elsewhere?

[icemanii]

Went to Jay's in Clare on Saturday. Shelves were looking better, still sparse but better than empty. Prices were good.