Is Uncle Sam buying up all the 22lr ammo??

[Prebanpaul]

Haha. First have you ever seen ammo over a period of say five years go down on a regular basis. Nope me neither. Secondly you can't carry 5 rifles at a time either but most on here have at least that much. So me not being able to carry that much ammo is irrelevant. I have a wife and child as well. Also I have ammo in to diffeent houses. Second a suppressed .22 can be a really good defensive weapon. Those books are written by one of the leading survivalist in the world.

So my ammo will never lose it's value. It will be fun to shoot. If there was a tragedy it will be singular the most important item to barter with. Reading fiction books a lot of time become reality. While people are spending 10's of thousands on gold and silver to off set their 401 k. I will off set mine with 20 k of .22 lr.

 

[Prebanpaul]

Plus it's lots of trigger time.

 

[Trevor300wsm]

With the current cost of (some .22lr ammo), I'd much rather be hoarding .223/.556 ammo. It all around more effective. Put it in a AR and use it for self defense if needed, or put it in a bolt action and use it for hunting if you are needing food. To each their own, but this seems much more logical to me. Also, there is .223/.556 available right now making it much more conducive to "hoarding" versus trying to something that is already very high demand.

I don't agree with "excessive" hoarding.....

 

[shaman]

The price of Rimfire has stabilized and is beginning to drop. The asshats who have been at Walmart every morning at 0400 hoarding it are beginning to realize their investment is diminishing, so now they are coming out to dump it while they can. And the people who legitimately bought enough for a safe cushion (5000 rounds) are deciding they can use that money for something else and are selling in the hope of breaking even. As the panic subsides availability will increase.

Dealers are still buying at 10 cents per round in Kentucky.

 

[DocUSMCRetired]

its about 180$ per 420 round can of XM855 right now. So roughly .40 a round. I am seeing .22lr at about .06-.12 cents a round in town right now.

 

[Charger442]

a suppressed 22 is a really good defensive weapon? sure, if you are sneaking around in the dark and can get within 20 feet of what you are trying to kill, or MAYBE point blank range, and hit it in the head. but if you are doing that, why not just carry your super tactical post-apocalyptic knife? hell, Denzel was beyond lethal with it and he couldnt see shit!

defensive weapon... id rather have a suppressed AR. and IF i need a 22LR as a defensive weapon as defined above, im sure id be fine with a box of 50 in my pocket for a small Beretta 70 series or the like. if my defensive plan requires me to fire 1000 rounds of 22lr, im dead before i get those rounds off anyway.

 

[Prebanpaul]

First I buy my 22 from Walmart, dunhams and rurual king. Secondly I have lots of suppressed 22's. Three 10-22, a Berretta 21a, two ruger mark ii, and a spikes tactical st-22. So I shoot a lot of 22.

Secondly as far as 9, 223, and 45 I keep about 5 k rounds of each at all times. Also I have these wonderfull things called Dillon square deals (9mm and 45) and a 1050 in .223.

I have probably 20 k in brass for each. So I buy 22 and not worried about the other stuff. Again 22 will become the new American dollar if ever a major tradgedy . And if not I will be out shooting it.

 

[Prebanpaul]

And if you think you have to be with in 20-30 yards to be effictive with a 22 lr your crazy. 100 yards easily out of the 10-22's

 

[Charger442]

sure, you might be hitting your stationary paper targets from a bench at 100 yards, but in a "defensive situation" your targets are going to be moving and will have a much smaller effective kill or disabling zone. at 100 yards, some heavy clothing and a helmet make 22lr nothing more than a nuisance in your defensive situation.

come on man, they should have covered all this in some of the zombie books. of course, itll also depend on if they are fast zombies or slow zombies.

 

[marduk185]

i intercepted some scanner traffic that a very reliable source told the excited speaker that he had a friend of a friend that knew a guy what tole him that theres these 22lr eating aliens that live in the inside of our hollow earth and theyre multiplying faster than the gubberment can feed em. might be true who knows. the illuminatti will never tell us the troof.

 

[delixe]

Haha. First have you ever seen ammo over a period of say five years go down on a regular basis. Nope me neither. Secondly you can't carry 5 rifles at a time either but most on here have at least that much. So me not being able to carry that much ammo is irrelevant. I have a wife and child as well. Also I have ammo in to diffeent houses. Second a suppressed .22 can be a really good defensive weapon. Those books are written by one of the leading survivalist in the world.

So my ammo will never lose it's value. It will be fun to shoot. If there was a tragedy it will be singular the most important item to barter with. Reading fiction books a lot of time become reality. While people are spending 10's of thousands on gold and silver to off set their 401 k. I will off set mine with 20 k of .22 lr.

I'll stick with silver bullion for collapse of society currency, thanks.
Northwest Territorial Mint sells 1 oz. rounds and flats that have score marks to easily break into quarters and they sell for a buck fifty over spot shipped for a minimum of 50 ounces.
Regardless of the demise of civilization, I believe precious metals will retain some value, plus silver can be cast into bullets in case of a werewolf apocalypse.
In case that never happens, silver's not an awful investment vehicle, and it's under $20/oz. these days.
I am well stocked and continue to reload more effective chamberings than .22LR, although I do have a few thousand rounds of that, too.

 

[JBNj]

Uncle Sam may not be buying it all but shitheads like this are.
80,000 rds - .22LR - Remington Thunderbolt - BULK : Rifle Ammunition at GunBroker.com

 

[Pilky01]

Uncle Sam may not be buying it all but shitheads like this are.
80,000 rds - .22LR - Remington Thunderbolt - BULK : Rifle Ammunition at GunBroker.com

Not sure shithead is strong enough.

 

[JoeMartin]

Not sure shithead is strong enough. 80,000 rds - .22LR - Remington Thunderbolt - BULK : Rifle Ammunition at GunBroker.com

Looks like the gouger/scalper is at just over .08 cents a round on the bid, but still a far cry from what he/she expects to get. Far as I'm concerned even if I had the kind of money the fool is asking for - I sure wouldn't spend it on this moron's ammo. They can keep it and find another way to pay their bills.

 

[Asperly Aimless]

The evil dragon Smaug is hoarding it all. The only way to get 22lr back on the shelves is to send a quest, staffed by dwarves and a Hobbit, to defeat the evil dragon and return all the 22lr back to the shelves.

 

[JoeMartin]

You know, if people did not bid on any ammo that is put up on an auction such as this one, it would go a long way in ending this shortage and getting things back to a normal cycle of availability. Why encourage these dip-shits. It makes no sense to cut your shooting sports own throat, and encourage higher prices and long shortages.

 

[DocUSMCRetired]

If people would just buy it, on days they are shooting it. Like we used to do, the ammo shortage would end.

 

[JBNj]

If people would just buy it, on days they are shooting it. Like we used to do, the ammo shortage would end.

But then I won't be prepared for the hordes of zombies and the apocylapse. I may need this stuff to bugout when shtf.

 

[DocUSMCRetired]

But then I won't be prepared for the hordes of zombies and the apocylapse. I may need this stuff to bugout when shtf.

While this is true, how certain are you that being a zombie isn't better than being a human? No worries, no bills, no pain, no fear of lack of food, no need to learn survival skills. I mean just look at the walking dead. The zombies have survived for what, 5 years without even a sip of water.

 

[Charger442]

While this is true, how certain are you that being a zombie isn't better than being a human? No worries, no bills, no pain, no fear of lack of food, no need to learn survival skills. I mean just look at the walking dead. The zombies have survived for what, 5 years without even a sip of water.

It's been less than 2 years since the Zombie Apocalypse in Walking Dead

 

[tomcatfan]

Well, I know for a fact the Air Force uses .22 LR for training in basic. Converted M16 platforms. However, I put no stock in the rumor of the govt buying it all up.

I'm not saying this isn't true, but when did they start doing that? I went through basic in 2003 and got out of in 2009 and I never even seen 22lr. We only shot 5.56. It was out of an M16A2 in basic then out of the M4 in tech school and back in my squadron.

 

[anon]

If people would just buy it, on days they are shooting it. Like we used to do, the ammo shortage would end.

The problem is that many of those buying it are not shooters but trying to make a buck on the flip. Too many people between the producer and consumer hurt any market.

My route to the range goes past my local Wal-Mart. For 12 years I'd just stop in and get another bulk box. Then this.

 

[Yote]

Employees at the stores are also the problem. I stopped by Walmart after work to pick some up and argued with the guy behind the counter on whether or not it was stored in the back or on the shelves. He called someone to "get to the bottom of it" and while we waited we were talking about how it was so hard to find. He said he didn't have a problem finding it, he just bought it when it came off the trucks. He said he'd just bought all 3 boxes of 333 round bulk packs that'd came in. "For squirrel hunting". He then said it was "people like you that are the problem". It was like 7:30 in the morning, I'd just gotten off a 12 hour night shift...
So the lady finally made to to the sporting goods section and said that they did keep it in the back and they had some. I told the guy I'd just recently found out they were hiding it in the back too. He said "oh it's not hiding it, everybody knows about it.".... Right after wasting 30 minutes of my time arguing with me that they DON'T keep it in the back.
Then the dipshit brought me 2 boxes of .22 mag rounds. I told him they were the wrong kind and he wanted to argue about that too.

 

[clmayfield]

That was average of the group. But the performance center rifles are twice what you pay for a standard AR .22 or even more so I would hope you don't get 10/22 out the box accuracy, which you don't.

If that was the average group, then why didn't you post a picture without a documented flier? It should be a quarter inch rifle at 100 yards. Those are very common on the Internet. Less common are quarter inch rimfires at 100, but they definitely exist here on the Internet. I still haven't seen them show up at competitions, though.

 

[DocUSMCRetired]

If that was the average group, then why didn't you post a picture without a documented flier? It should be a quarter inch rifle at 100 yards. Those are very common on the Internet. Less common are quarter inch rimfires at 100, but they definitely exist here on the Internet. I still haven't seen them show up at competitions, though.

I am planning to go out for another shoot with it. However I will when the weather calms down for better .22 shooting. 20mph winds and thunderstorms for weeks now, tornados twice. But I will get back out on the range when the weather is more cooperative to .22 shooting.

 

[sentry1]

I'm not saying this isn't true, but when did they start doing that? I went through basic in 2003 and got out of in 2009 and I never even seen 22lr. We only shot 5.56. It was out of an M16A2 in basic then out of the M4 in tech school and back in my squadron.

I believe ole Kenny there is getting his facts through the Tooth Fairy/Easter Bunny intel network.

Well, I know for a fact the Air Force uses .22 LR for training in basic. Converted M16 platforms. However, I put no stock in the rumor of the govt buying it all up.

No, you don't know that for a fact Kenny, don't be an asshat. A minimal amount of curiousity/research would have told you that this is bad info.

 

[JG26_Irish]

For a thread about a BS account told by a 3rd party about where all the 22lr may??? be going, it has sure hit a nerve. I have heard in recent days that the annual dollar sales volume of guns and ammo have doubled since 2008. Now part of that could be higher prices, but if it is true, then all them new rifles need ammo and I am sure that some of them are 22's.

Good news, I actually walked into a gun shop that had ammo on the shelves. 22lr in several flavors, as well as centerfire fodder. I was so pleased to be able to ask for certain products and actually find them sitting on the shelves, available on demand. Sweet. Got two boxes of CCI 22 match pistol ammo and a box of 44spl. Maybe we are starting to turn the corner? Last week I walked into Wally World and found 7 boxes of 17WSM rimfire on the shelves. Have not seen that stuff since November. Nice to score some more.

Irish

 

[Yote]

Our bass pro has (had?) .17 and .22. Max 2 boxes. Our wally world was stocked up on 9mm, 45 colt, 45 acp, 30-30 etc. .308 and .243 was a bit scarce, but they showed up occasionally. Few weeks ago all the shelves were full, ton of 7 mag. Then two weeks ago the shelves were completely bare. The only thing they have on display now is a big ammo can of 5.56 for 3x what it cost before sandy and a big can of 9mm for the same price... And 3 lonely boxes of 30-30 that have been hiding in a corner for 4 months.

I know they're still keeping some in the back, last time I went and asked for .22 LR they brought out a box of .22 mag which I couldn't use. Dunno what happened to the full shelves though. I severely doubt a mad craze of people came through and bought it all.

 

[clmayfield]

The NRA had an article in the American Rifleman pretty much debunking this whole idea that the government and DHS is buying up all the ammo. It is consumers driving this. The thing is, I go to the public ranges and they are not all that crowded. It is casual shooters buying up all of the ammo and components. I read one guy saying he had 100 pounds of Varget at home. Good for him, but that is enough for 15,000 rounds (for 308). How long will it take him to use all that up? A serious competitor would spend 2 or 3 years shooting up that much powder. A casual shooter would take much longer. Does everyone need 5 years of components sitting around? And then, because there is no availability, the shooters who actually are using a lot of these components are having to stock up more to leave more ammo to last the drought. I have had WIN 231 on backorder since February 3, 2013! That's 1 year, 4 months for a garden variety powder. I can't tell you how many years I have been waiting on Varget. Thankfully, I buy the good rimfire, so I have been able to get it with some wait, but it is still harder to find than it once was. Of course, the good stuff is for hardcore competitors, and, as I pointed out, this core group of shooters has not grown much.

 

[jakelly]

Whether it happens or not, I don't know. It does strike me as odd, however, that so many people profess to.

 

[kennyhollingsworth]

I'm not saying this isn't true, but when did they start doing that? I went through basic in 2003 and got out of in 2009 and I never even seen 22lr. We only shot 5.56. It was out of an M16A2 in basic then out of the M4 in tech school and back in my squadron.

Well, I was in from 87-91. I guess I should've said. "I know for a fact the Air Force was using .22Lr for training in basic from 87-91."

You may be correct with a changover after 9/11.

 

[NWnewguy]

The Navy also uses 22lr for boot camp small arms training. Not every group gets the opportunity, but most do, and I would imagine the use adds up, but still isn't responsible for the problems we are currently having. I would say most of that is from people being willing to pay crazy prices for it. I think the other shoe is going to drop soon though, and hopefully the knuckleheads that paid twice retail value to add to their hoarding collection get stuck with a bunch of ammo they can't sell.

 

[valkyries]

They failed trying to take the guns. Whats the next best thing? Taking the ammo. While it is still available, it's harder to find and the prices have gone up. So most are buying and shooting less. .22 is super cheap to produce and the manufacturers can pump them out by the billions.

 

[Desert_Racer]

Well, I know for a fact the Air Force uses .22 LR for training in basic. Converted M16 platforms. However, I put no stock in the rumor of the govt buying it all up.

I call bullshit on this. I have never once heard this from anyone. Not friends who are CATM Instructors or any of the new Airmen rolling into the squadron.

Also, this is the best worst thread I've read on the Hide to date. ARFCOM must not be taking memberships anymore.

 

[JG26_Irish]

I found rimfire ammo at my local Sportsmans Warehouse this week. They had CCI 17hmr, CCI 22lr SV and Aquilla powderless pistol rounds. That last one must be a primer only round that I would find to be totally useless. Limit 3 boxes per customer. This ammo was not on the shelves. It was semi-hidden back in the Customer Service Dept. No idea why. I found Winchester 17hmr at the local Wally World this past week also. That adds up to three times in the last month. A huge improvement since 2013. Hopefully, this drought is beginning to pass?? I have never had a shortage of match grade 22 (Eley Lapua). The CCI SV 22lr ammo was about $4.39/bx plus tax. That is the best I have seen since May of 2013.

Irish

 

[Dan M]

I call bullshit on this. I have never once heard this from anyone. Not friends who are CATM Instructors or any of the new Airmen rolling into the squadron.

I went through Lackland in 1983... and we used M16s with .22lr adaptors. I didn't qualify with 5.56mm until I was in the 2nd BW.

ETA-Who knows what they are using now, but 30 years ago that info was factually correct.

 

[yoteman]

First I buy my 22 from Walmart, dunhams and rurual king. Secondly I have lots of suppressed 22's. Three 10-22, a Berretta 21a, two ruger mark ii, and a spikes tactical st-22. So I shoot a lot of 22.

Secondly as far as 9, 223, and 45 I keep about 5 k rounds of each at all times. Also I have these wonderfull things called Dillon square deals (9mm and 45) and a 1050 in .223.

I have probably 20 k in brass for each. So I buy 22 and not worried about the other stuff. Again 22 will become the new American dollar if ever a major tradgedy . And if not I will be out shooting it.

well good for you, what ever you say
who's to say you might be a zombie,if that shit ever does happen.
an what would you like for me to shoot you with, 22lr or 5.56, hell maybe a shotgun
just asking in case.

 

[RicosRevenge]

This has to go down as one of the dumbest threads in the history of the Hide.

.22LR is in low supply because after Sandy Hook all of the large ammo manufacturers in the US ramped production of center-fire cartridges like 9mm, .45 ACP, .223, .308 and .30-06 which are their most popular cartridges in production and let the rimfire loaders go silent choosing to push their personnel to that side of their market. This is evidenced and witnessed by people shooting other 2nd tier and below calibers - anyone shooting .243, .270, .30-30, 7mm Mag, .300 UM? You can attest to the difficulty of finding these popular hunting rounds. Not to mention the more obscure calibers which prices have sky-rocketed on... BTW, this info was given to me first hand by factory representatives from Remington, Federal and Jason Hornady.

They never expected a run on .22LR because historically it has never been at issue... not with the AWB, not with Columbine, not with Obama being placed in office, etc... in those cases the run(s) was on the above mentioned varieties. You are now starting to find .22LR start to slowly become more available because they have re-opened the lines. Unfortunately, their reserve stocks have been depleted and it takes time to catch up completely. In the interim all of the Chicken Little "Sky is Falling" types are stocking up - which has never been seen before and slows down their "catch up" efforts. This, in turn; has the secondary brands over-loaded as well which perpetuates the insanity as the Aquilla(s) of the World are experiencing the "benefit" of the Remingtons of the World trying to catch up on supply.

Bottom line is hoarding .22LR is a misguided guided practice which will make these peeps look foolish in the months to come as the supply catches up - which is already starting to happen.

 

[Dark Angel]

Back in the late 50's early 60's, the US Army in their infinite stupidity designed a M-22. Identical to the M-14 except it shot .22 cal. ammo. One the worst mistakes they ever made.
Young kids with no or little shooting experience trained on the M-22's, when the got the M-14's firing 308's, it scared them to death. Couldn't handle the recoil, some if not most
developed severe flinches. And NOW, they'er doing the same stupid thing? Seriously? Even as light as the recoil is on a .223, there is still a great deal of difference. When will our military learn? You cannot teach marksmanship with sub-calibers, the expect young men to shift to heavier calibers and not be adversely affected.

 

[sentry1]

They failed trying to take the guns. Whats the next best thing? Taking the ammo. While it is still available, it's harder to find and the prices have gone up. So most are buying and shooting less. .22 is super cheap to produce and the manufacturers can pump them out by the billions.

What is this douchebaggery? THEY are taking all the .22LR because they couldn't take your guns? Take your tinfoil hat off. I'm tired of hearing schmucks say crap like "The Post Office is hoarding all the .22LR!" That's an actual line from some old geezer at work.

And you know what? .22 may be cheap to produce, it's also incredibly thin on the profit margin. I'd bet the bulk of the profiteering now is being done at point of sale to the end consumer, not by the bulk production companies. Maybe a learn a little bit about upstream business practices before you assume someone's just trying to screw you out of what you think you deserve.

 

[Gunfighter14e2]

Just so you know this same shit happened in the late 70's early 80's do to Ray-Gun. 22lr was not as bad as it is now but it was close, and primers/powder/jacketed bullets was worst then now. It's about perception, trump up XXX and product XXX gets sold quicker. If it gets scarce that in it's self, fuels the perception and the dog just chases it's tail faster. This time there is some truth, as many think times/things well deteriorate at a later date and like in the past are hedging their bet. Many like me have more than a life time supply but are not shooting it as much as the past, because no one knows what will happen at a later date. Yes some of us give away 22lr so the youth of this country can shoot, ie Hunter safety, Boy scouts ect. I find it funny one can/will spend big money on high dollar toys but never sees a need to stock up on expendables just in case.

 

[yoteman]

This has to go down as one of the dumbest threads in the history of the Hide

so true, so true
you said it brother,

 

[RHunter]

This has to go down as one of the dumbest threads in the history of the Hide

What it has done is showed me how many stupid people participate in this forum. It was a feeling I had for awhile.. But now, this thread has thoroughly confirmed it.

When I take the neighbors kid out, I swing by the gun shop, they have some stash in the back for the guys that are not nut cases, I grab a box of CCI mini mags for $7 and the kid has a good day. The rest is lunatic fringe.

"Lunatic fringe is a term used to characterize members of a political or social movement as extremists with eccentric or fanatical views."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunatic_fringe