Is this how it's going to be for .22LR owners?

Every place I've shopped in the last 3 months, except Walmart, has had plenty of 22LR at very reasonable prices

You are wasting your breath. Guys like them don't want to hear facts. They operate on emotion, which means; blaming others for their self-proclaimed victimhood is the only comfort they can find.

I read in one of these forums that a brand new 22LR manufacturing plant was opening up soon, this year, in Indiana. This is important because someone finally decided to invest in a brand new plat instead of just upgrading or moving one.

Alec, I'm pretty sure 38 spl/9mm will meet just about every single one of those criteria.

yugorpk said:

A guy at work who has about 1/2 Million rounds in his basement explained it to me this way...."When the government collapses .22LR will be like currency"...

As in seriously?

I researched it a bit and thats when I sold off my .22 guns and essentially gave up on the caliber. It has nothing to do with supply and demand or .22 shooters buying up the stock. Its into the realm of the looney's and you can't fight that without stooping to their level. People are buying this stuff up who have no intention of ever using it as ammunition and they will buy all they can afford to buy.

Click to expand...

You and I must work with the same guy.

I wasn't even going to mention that, because you're right, it's in the realm of lunacy, but that's from the book "One Second After" and, yes, people are taking it seriously.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a prepper. I prep for things that actually happen, like storms and power failures.

I think the .22 situation is getting better, except in my state. Unfortunately for other .22 shooters, I think I have hoarded most all of it coming here. I bet if I gathered up all my little 50 and 100 round boxes, I'd have close to 1/2K rounds ready to barter after the coming apocalypse;-)

The thing the peppers and long term bulk buyers are going to get burnt on is 22lr doesn't store indefinitely like centerfire ammo without lubricated bullets.

I have some 22 ammo from 30 years ago. If 50% go off its one of the better boxes from this particular lot b

Supply and demand...........

Start stocking up now - even at the $50 / brick prices. I don't even want to think about 2016's prices for 22LR.

Sav .250 said:

Supply and demand...........

Click to expand...

^^^^^ This. Complaining about it isn't going to change it. School and movie theater shootings changed things, because it motivated the hoarders. And just like all paranoids, it is difficult to break them of the notion that they have to buy all the 22lr because they'll never find it again.

If the demand is high, as threads like this demonstrate, then the price will stay high. Why wouldn't it?

$10 per box of 50 REALLY? That's $100 a brick, far more then the $60-65 brick I can order mid range match ammo for (wolf) almost any day of the week. You should be able to order online basic .22 for $ .10 rd / $50 brick all day long. I've seen case lots recently at .08 / $40 brick. Still more then I'd pay, I just ordered Blazer at $30 brick. You need to expand your searches beyond GunBroker

I made a tidy profit selling .223 ammo in the first half of 2013. People were paying $1 a round for anything they could get their hands on and I just "happened" to be sitting on a boatload I bought at $.17 a round. Good for me!

I have a two year supply of .22 LR and virtually every round was purchased online at relatively "normal" prices. I no longer even pay attention to Remington as I have quite a bit of their cheap stuff as well as the Federal bulk but I do buy other types when I see them offered. It's not really all that hard to keep a good supply of ammo with just a little bit of computer time and a credit card.

it is difficult to break them of the notion that they have to buy all the 22lr because they'll never find it again.

Click to expand...

I believe it goes beyond that or instead it more inclusive.

Yeah you got the hardcore who believe they'll rule the wasteland with a 10/22 and a billion rounds but there's also "normal" gun guys who get caught up in the gun forum round count game, when .22lr was cheap stacking deep was a way to gain bragging rights on their Stash.

Now I strongly believe in putting up ammo for a rainy day but I want that ammo to be something that I can use in SD and hunting or a least just plinking. For me .22lr isn't my first choice in any of those needs and that's why I sold some .22lr and used the money to buy .45acp, Because that's some fun shooting.

jrdolall said:

I made a tidy profit selling .223 ammo in the first half of 2013. People were paying $1 a round for anything they could get their hands on and I just "happened" to be sitting on a boatload I bought at $.17 a round. Good for me!

I have a two year supply of .22 LR and virtually every round was purchased online at relatively "normal" prices. I no longer even pay attention to Remington as I have quite a bit of their cheap stuff as well as the Federal bulk but I do buy other types when I see them offered. It's not really all that hard to keep a good supply of ammo with just a little bit of computer time and a credit card.

Click to expand...

I understand...you are a scalper and part of the problem.

ford8nr said:

$10 per box of 50 REALLY? That's $100 a brick, far more then the $60-65 brick I can order mid range match ammo for (wolf) almost any day of the week. You should be able to order online basic .22 for $ .10 rd / $50 brick all day long. I've seen case lots recently at .08 / $40 brick. Still more then I'd pay, I just ordered Blazer at $30 brick. You need to expand your searches beyond GunBroker

Click to expand...

I think most of the people that are complaining about no 22LR are one or both of two types:

1. They don't buy anything online so if it isn't in their local store it doesn't exist
2. They set an arbitrary price above which they will not pay

I understand...you are a scalper and part of the problem.

Click to expand...

I would contend that you are unprepared and MOST of the problem. If you read the thread you will see that there are haves and have-nots. The have-nots complain about scalpers and gougers and hoarders while the haves try to explain how they manage to keep inventory.

A friend and I bought 100k rounds of .223 right before SH. When everyone started scrounging for 223 we sold a portion and paid for all of ours. If that makes me a scalper then so be it.

I have GIVEN away over 10k rounds of 22 LR in the past two years to friends that couldn't find any. In 2013 I sold several thousand rounds of 9mm to my local sheriff at exactly what I paid so that he could run his women's shooting class. Most people couldn't find any ammo so his classes were thinning out and he sold the ammo to people that registered for the class.

Scalp on that!

fpgt72 said:

I understand...you are a scalper and part of the problem.

Click to expand...

That's total hog wash. It's called a free market, and it's what makes capitalism work.

Ammunition is a commodity the same as any other. If someone buys an ounce of silver at $15.00 and turns around and sells it a few years later at $30.00 because the market demand is there, does that make that person a scalper? No, it makes them someone who chose to invest in a valuable material or item, and sell it later at a profit. That's called having business sense, not scalping.

Buy low, and sell high. It's how the stock market works, it's how investing in commodities works, and it's why a lot of people will be able to retire some day.

If you can't see that, then I suggest you move to a socialist or communist country where you will receive your yearly allowance or quota of .22lr ammo. Complaining that someone else had the foresight to purchase supplies and be prepared for a shortage is only demonstrating that you did not have the same foresight. And for the record, I only have about 2000 rounds of 22lr on hand. I am not reselling any of it, and I'm not a hoarder. It's all I need to keep on shooting.

I used to shoot a lot of .22LR until I started reloading. When there was surplus powder and bullets it was almost cheaper to shoot center fire. Now it's turning into a rich mans pass time.

Awhile ago I was going to get a Ruger 10/22, but ended up getting an Advantage Arms .22 conversion for my Glock. When I can't find .22 ammo, I just shoot my regular Glock.

You should be able to order online basic .22 for $ .10 rd / $50 brick all day long.

Click to expand...

He can, but I'd choke on those prices.

I usually pay around six cents a round for all the 22 I've managed to squirrel away (since buying a number of 22 guns over the last few years).
I was paying a little more for standard velocity CCI bricks for silencer use - I was paying $29.99 / brick at our local shop $.05998 / rd., but his supplier went up and the last few bricks I paid $39.99 for $.07998 / rd.

That's about my limit - I ain't paying more than $39.99 / brick for the standard velocity, and won't pay anywhere near that much for supersonic ammo. I shoot about anything supersonic out of suppressed pistols, as it loses enough velocity thru the short barrel to remain subsonic.

Our local shop is still taking any and all 22 ammo he can get from any of his suppliers, but he has started refusing some of the high priced target 22 as he has trouble moving it.

I've always managed to avoid all the panics, shortages, etc. with all my centerfire ammo, but got blindsided by the 22 shortage.

As stated earlier, I didn't even own a 22 until a few years ago when all these nice big gun clones came out - I've had to hunt over the last few years for ammo for myself and friends (who have also bought AR / 1911 style 22's).

I know the preppers are reportedly buying ammo as possible future currency, but I still believe the biggest reason for the 22 shortage is folks like myself (and friends) that didn't shoot (or even own) a 22 until the last few years.
We ain't your usual single shot squirrel shooters - folks with AR / 1911's are burning a lot of 22 over the last few years.

I sold the semi auto .22's and have single shots now. Really helps on the ammo consumption.

460Kodiak said:

That's total hog wash. It's called a free market, and it's what makes capitalism work.



Ammunition is a commodity the same as any other. If someone buys an ounce of silver at $15.00 and turns around and sells it a few years later at $30.00 because the market demand is there, does that make that person a scalper? No, it makes them someone who chose to invest in a valuable material or item, and sell it later at a profit. That's called having business sense, not scalping.



Buy low, and sell high. It's how the stock market works, it's how investing in commodities works, and it's why a lot of people will be able to retire some day.



If you can't see that, then I suggest you move to a socialist or communist country where you will receive your yearly allowance or quota of .22lr ammo. Complaining that someone else had the foresight to purchase supplies and be prepared for a shortage is only demonstrating that you did not have the same foresight. And for the record, I only have about 2000 rounds of 22lr on hand. I am not reselling any of it, and I'm not a hoarder. It's all I need to keep on shooting.

Click to expand...

It does beg the question of what happened to ammunition supply to allow prices to become volatile enough to start standing as an investment?

It hasn't always been that way.

basicblur said:

.

We ain't your usual single shot squirrel shooters - folks with AR / 1911's are burning a lot of 22 over the last few years.

Click to expand...

This x1000

And there's more people shooting these ammo hungry guns than ever with no real increase in production capacity

That's IT period. I'll wager that production capacity hasn't even kept up with baseline population growth for 20 years.

This x1000

Click to expand...

Yup, but I think some folks still don't get it, or their idea of the typical 22 shooter these days is "old school".

Heck...cruise on over to YouTube and see how many folks are burning 22 with all the new 22's offered over the years.

Now look at the date the videos were posted and remember when the 22 shortage got so severe.

I think you'll find a correlation there...

But how can people be shooting more when they can't find it and it is not affordable?:banghead:

I am guilty of this. If I think back 10 years or so I had several semi 22's but I really don't think I had a mag that held more than 10 until a few years ago. I don't recall when I got my first "hi cap" magazine for the 10-22 but it has been maybe 8 years? Now I have multiple 25 round magazines for several 22 rifles. It takes about 10 minutes to blow through a brick with these guns, With a revolver it takes about two weeks.