How much is enough ammo?
- Thread starter Jscb1b
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QuickNDirty
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If you have to ask, "Is this enough?", it's not enough.
I bought more 308, 223 and 12 gauge last night. I don't know how much is enough. I hope it doesn't come to that, but these fucking commie's in Washington are out of control.
Depends on what you are looking to do with said ammo. If you want to hoard 6.5 so you can shoot for fun or comps even when ammo is scarce it’s a great goal. Problem with hoarding 6.5 is you run the risk of burning out barrels in a “ end of days” scenario. I try to amass .223, .308, 12 gauge, and 9mm. Any guns I would fight for my life with take those. My off calibers are more for enjoyment so if I don’t have 10,000 rounds of it I’m not concerned.
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That's a nice caliber in an ideal environment that doesn't mind you punching paper and steel, so long as you're willing to afford yourself an extra barrel and can guarantee a means of swapping the old one out. It's been said by others, and I'll repeat it: get a .308.
Your age x 1,000 is a good starting point (.22 doesn't count).
Haha imagine all your people inheriting a metric shit ton of ammo in the future. Like getting 20,000 obsidian tipped arrows in 1930 when Chief Whatever finally died...
Hoard gold like a normal psycho and your kin will thank ye very much on their way to the Space Casino guarded by laser wielding snipers (perfect BC on that bitch)
Hoard gold like a normal psycho and your kin will thank ye very much on their way to the Space Casino guarded by laser wielding snipers (perfect BC on that bitch)
You need to get out and shoot some more lol
2' of wind with a 308 = what wind hold with a 6.5. It's like shooting a 7 mag. Makes things easier
#switchbarrel
Dta/ai/lmt any system that lets you easily change barrels and shoot 308 or 6.5
I'd imagine my recreational bolt gun usage exceeds any shtf bolt gun usage I might see.
Lol rofl
If you preparing to for history to repeat itself or other problems you need 10s of thousands of rounds.
Palmetto state, target sports, et al are your friends.
Well, Sarge, 3,000 rounds is what you might have in an obscure caliber that you don't shoot all that often or plan to depend upon, unless you have a few options for long distance, centerfire. Most of us are pretty cagey about talking numbers, but 3,000 rounds is strictly dilettante territory.
No such thing.
I break it into 3 parts:
Ammo; military grade ammunition designed for defense
Training Ammo: cheaper ammo for practice so I can save money and don't have to shoot my military ammo at paper/steel
Components: This can further be broken down into components for precision rifles, components for defense rounds and components for training rounds but is primarily for precision/defense.
I'll buy military/defense ammo on a monthly basis and/or when I see deals on it. Training ammo is bought basically 2 cases at once and then when running through 1 case, you always replenish. Over the years I consolidated components and was smart about what powders/primers I use to get the maximum benefit and redundancy of not having to buy 50 different powders. Additionally, I have components on hand, and continue to buy more, for specific defense rounds that can be made en mass if needed.
It's a marathon, not a race.
You also need to look into spare parts. For example, on an AR, you need to grab firing pins, bolts (not the entire BCG but a few carriers wouldn't hurt) and other assorted parts like cam pins, cotter pins, etc. Nothing would suck more than having all that ammo and then not being able to use it because your bolt sheered a lug.
I break it into 3 parts:
Ammo; military grade ammunition designed for defense
Training Ammo: cheaper ammo for practice so I can save money and don't have to shoot my military ammo at paper/steel
Components: This can further be broken down into components for precision rifles, components for defense rounds and components for training rounds but is primarily for precision/defense.
I'll buy military/defense ammo on a monthly basis and/or when I see deals on it. Training ammo is bought basically 2 cases at once and then when running through 1 case, you always replenish. Over the years I consolidated components and was smart about what powders/primers I use to get the maximum benefit and redundancy of not having to buy 50 different powders. Additionally, I have components on hand, and continue to buy more, for specific defense rounds that can be made en mass if needed.
It's a marathon, not a race.
You also need to look into spare parts. For example, on an AR, you need to grab firing pins, bolts (not the entire BCG but a few carriers wouldn't hurt) and other assorted parts like cam pins, cotter pins, etc. Nothing would suck more than having all that ammo and then not being able to use it because your bolt sheered a lug.
I havent shot store bought ammo in 30 + years
175 gr Nossler cc or Sierra smk 41.7 gr imr 4064 in a LC case, of imr 4895 and your 155 fmjhp from hornady in LC cases, just buy used brass or virgin if you can find it, get in teh habit of loading 100 rounds every morning before i head out to work until all my brass is gone or one other component runs out.
175 gr Nossler cc or Sierra smk 41.7 gr imr 4064 in a LC case, of imr 4895 and your 155 fmjhp from hornady in LC cases, just buy used brass or virgin if you can find it, get in teh habit of loading 100 rounds every morning before i head out to work until all my brass is gone or one other component runs out.
I guess by that logic it’s better to have a case of Tul than to have the same cost worth of match grade BTHPs if you are trying to build up numbers.
I have two calibers in which I have different expectations from different equipment, and therefor I can feed them differently. One set of tools gets fed unobtanium, and the other eats more or less range fodder.
D
Deleted member 113831
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If you aren't going to cache it in different places, it won't matter much. How much can you carry out when your living room or your roof is on fire? You might be able to fight your way out the door, but the ammo will be a loss.
If you are counting on nothing "in extremis" happening, and you just reason to yourself that "This shit won't be cheaper next year" then have enough to burn out barrels.
3,000 rnds for a creedmoor,
10,000+ rounds for a .308....which is why Veer said get a .308.
10,000+ rounds for each 223.
Just my opinion.
If you are counting on nothing "in extremis" happening, and you just reason to yourself that "This shit won't be cheaper next year" then have enough to burn out barrels.
3,000 rnds for a creedmoor,
10,000+ rounds for a .308....which is why Veer said get a .308.
10,000+ rounds for each 223.
Just my opinion.
Never gonna be a better time to buy then now. I'm a 10k minimum of battle calibers-308-556-9mm. Still adding. Other calibers-10mm-357-44-6.5cm I have at least 1k of each-and still adding.
It's surprising how well quality guns shoot good mil spec or non match ammo.
That's the problem with withholding. People think it's not their money. That was your money to begin with. .gov just stole it for a while like a non interest paying loan
You can never have too much rimfire ammo. Hell, anytime I come across old pants or shorts I wore as a kid and teen, there's always loose rimfire ammo in the pockets. 
Gotta love how the pocket lint always permanently fuses itself in the HP cavity.
Gotta love how the pocket lint always permanently fuses itself in the HP cavity.
If you are a competitive shooter, you need enough to cover possible market shortages. Consider the recent .22 debacle. Remember when large rifle primers were unobtainium? In 2013 I was able to sell thousands of primed .308 Berdan brass because I had a fixture to deprime Berdan cases and only Berdan primers were available. The NRA had to change their rule requiring factory ammo for Distinguished Revolver competition because little to no 158 gr. .38 ammo was available. Those of us who stocked up on ammo for our target guns did OK.
The idea is that you can wring more out of better rifles, but why run them on mediocre ammo so long as you have the good stuff.
My ammo plan goes like:
Milspec standard stuff in common military semi-auto calibers, use for shooting practice and storing good quantities of. (Cheap)
Match ammunition for precision rifles (More expensive)
Hunting specific ammunition (More expensive)
Overmatch ammunition for when your life is on the line in a two way situation. Ammo that will go faster, further, hit harder, punch harder, have enhanced terminal effects compared to what most other ammunition in it's class will do (Very Expensive).
Study what rounds go through what armor. Good to know shit, most of us been trained on but good to refresh. Video out there are great aids on what can defeat what.
1,000 rounds of match grade ammo in your possession is a nice place to be. 6.5 CM is still an exotic. Have 200-300 rounds for it and call it good.
Get a 308. Everybody should have at least 1 308. Ammo is everywhere. Having the best wind defeating cartridge isnt worth shit if youre out of ammo and there is none to be found. I have an exotic. A 6.5-284 Norma. Have about 100 rounds for it. But my REAL rifle is a 308.
Get a 308. Everybody should have at least 1 308. Ammo is everywhere. Having the best wind defeating cartridge isnt worth shit if youre out of ammo and there is none to be found. I have an exotic. A 6.5-284 Norma. Have about 100 rounds for it. But my REAL rifle is a 308.
I stopped buying ammo when I ran out of places to put it. Now I restock what I shoot. Stashing a case here or there in the hills is an excellent idea — hadn’t thought of that before.
Geez if the whole world is a place to put ammo now I’ll never be done buying...
Geez if the whole world is a place to put ammo now I’ll never be done buying...
I think it's highly subjective depending on how one recreationally shoots and/or one's particular outlook on "SHTF" scenarios.
For instance, I can't remember the last time I went out and just shot cheap (rimfire excluded) rifle ammo to have fun. If I'm shooting there is a 99.99 percent chance it's strictly precision, and it's going to be with my own hand loads using top-notch components. Why would I take my supreme ammo to the range or a comp but take a bunch of sub-par crap into a critical situation? I haven't bought retail ammo (outside of rimfire) in over 20 years. Load everything, and load it like your life depended on it.
Quantity be damned - doesn't matter. Load as much as you can until it becomes a burden. When an inch counts - truly counts that is, "Gold Match" or surplus isn't going to cut it. At the same time, it's good to have a NATO chambered banger handy too to eat that surplus stuff up. Don't get me wrong - I'd rather have something rather than nothing.
For instance, I can't remember the last time I went out and just shot cheap (rimfire excluded) rifle ammo to have fun. If I'm shooting there is a 99.99 percent chance it's strictly precision, and it's going to be with my own hand loads using top-notch components. Why would I take my supreme ammo to the range or a comp but take a bunch of sub-par crap into a critical situation? I haven't bought retail ammo (outside of rimfire) in over 20 years. Load everything, and load it like your life depended on it.
Quantity be damned - doesn't matter. Load as much as you can until it becomes a burden. When an inch counts - truly counts that is, "Gold Match" or surplus isn't going to cut it. At the same time, it's good to have a NATO chambered banger handy too to eat that surplus stuff up. Don't get me wrong - I'd rather have something rather than nothing.
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If Der Deutschmann does something like I have, I only keep a significant stock of 4 different powders. I have developed loads for multiple calibers and multiple weapons utilizing only those powders. It makes it much easier to keep track of what you need/use etc.
I will occasionally buy a pound of something different to try out in a gun if i haven't seen acceptable results with what i keep on hand.
8208, 4350, 4064 are all you really need, you can switch varget for 4064 also or you really could switch varget for 8208 and 4064 and be down to varget and 4350. or 8208 and 4350. that will cover 300 wm down to 223 although the varget 4350 will give you more flexibility in the heavier 308 class bullet for 308 vs the 8208 powder.
This is just my experience, resulting from an exercise I did a few years ago to separate my war supplies from silly shooting game supplies.
This is just my experience, resulting from an exercise I did a few years ago to separate my war supplies from silly shooting game supplies.
