Ammunition Stockpile- Auto vs Revolver

Sure, I guess.
Depends on the shooter, doesn't it?

I have significantly more 9x19 on hand than 357, sure.

But I will tell you another fella I know shoots his revolvers more than anything else.

So he naturally has more revolver ammo laying around.

Everybody has to make their own assessment.

I can't keep 1k of 45 colt on the shelf, personally. It's just too much fun to shoot.

Well 9x19 NATO and .22 LR, along 5.56x45 are the best ones to stockpile...

Depends on what you like to shoot. Personally I own 8 revolvers and 2 semi autos and one of them I hardly ever shoot. I'm a revolver guy. I have a lot more revolver rounds loaded than semi-auto rounds loaded. Always will. I go through revolver ammo much faster than semi-auto ammo.

That is going to be far more driven by the particular uses and activities than the firearm type. I shoot as much through a double action revolvers as I do through semi-autos when competing. A USPSA match requires the same number of round independent of the handgun used.

I shoot 4 types of guns weekly.(90%) Pocket 380's, 9mm Micro's and a LCR9mm and LCR22. So I stock a whole lot of 9mm and 22.cal. Yes, I keep plenty of 38, 357 etc.
For rifle, I shoot Bolt action or Single shot. Ammo goes at a much slower pace and I like the one shot one kill approach for those weapons.

I buy ammo based on my shooting habits, which is mostly based on my training requirements. Due to various reasons, I have dropped back my 9mm usage as of late to about 70 rounds a week, but 22 LR from my S&W M&P 22 gets about 150 a week. I seldom carry a 1911, but I generally shoot 50 rounds of 45 a month. All shooting with autopistols is scrutinized with a pro-timer. I have several 357 magnums. They may get a couple of boxes through them a year, at most. These guns are fired just for fun. I don't even have a holster for my python, 19, or blackhawk.

Hi...
I try to keep a .30cal ammo can full of each of the major handgun calibers. That includes 9mm, 10mm, .40S&W, 45ACP in autoloaders and .357Mag, .41Mag., .45Colt and .44Mag.
I keep lesser amounts loaded of ..45AutoRim, .44Spl and .38Spl...usually250-500 depending on how much my son and I shoot.
Usually only load about 100 of .375SuperMag at a time.

Rifle ammunition is usually loaded in quantities of less than 100 each except for .223 which my son keeps stocked up in the thousands.

Mr. Mosin said:

... For the two platforms listed, (throwing out random numbers here), if one goes through 5x the amount of ammunition in the same time frame, wouldn't it be perfectly adequate to stockpile 2k of one, and 10k of another ?

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IMO & IME, ab-so-lute-ly!

One of the primary reasons why I made a decision in the late '70s to never buy any FA-capable firearms (at the time a fellow in a local LGS was trying to persuade me to buy a .45acp Ingram SMG + Suppressor) was the prodigious amount of fodder that I would eventually have to acquire to feed the things.

I learned early-on that with the single-shot bolt rifle on which my Dad started me, I could have a nice time with one 50rd box of .22 ammunition. Later, after "Santa" gave me the semi-auto rifle for Christmas, I discovered that it required much more ammo to provide the same amount of "fun".

Same with my revolvers and bottom-feeders. I shoot them differently, as well, and, usually, until empty prior to reloading, so that I will expend quite a bit more ammo with the pistols than with the revolvers ... unless, o'course, I am shooting the small single-stack pistols.

just depends what your goals are.

I almost never shoot my personal guns. So I tend to slowly accumulate ammo. Do I have the amount that I want for each gun? No. (I'm thinking 1000 to 2000 per each gun is minimal.)
But I love it when I find ammo I didn't know or forgot I had. Always a nice surprise.
It's the reloading I do for the guns my family regularly shoots that is overwhelming. Never have enough .38 special or .357 brass, but plenty of 9mm. Usually when my dad takes the extended family out shooting, they usually shoot .22 LR, 12 gauge and .223. Calibers I don't reload for.
This year I've just been focusing on being more tactically squared away for myself. A holster for every gun, and any additional mag/speed loader pouches I may need.

We all know what our preferences are so stock what you shoot most.

I always believed that revolvers and reloading went hand in hand and while I never got to that level I still save .45C brass while leavIng the 9mm in the grass.

.22lr is something I have no interest in anymore so I have the same can full that I started filling for Y2K.

by far 9mm is what I shoot most with .40 S&W next and finally.45C, .45acp .All total about 3k which is the most I’ve ever stocked.

When I go shooting with a auto most of the time I only load up 5 rounds in a magazine just so I pace myself

I carry a .45 and .357 daily, I keep roughly the same amount per gun since they both get shot about the same amount. Btw a guy that shoots single actions daily will run out of ammo quicker than a semi auto guy that shoots when his wife let's him.

Mr. Mosin said:

Discussing this with my buddy, and I can't get him to understand (using random numbers here). 1000 rounds of .357 Magnum will last a heck of a lot longer for a SAA platform (or even a DA/SA platform) than 1000 rounds of 9x19mm would for a Glock 19. Sheer rate of fire and rounds on immediate tap for usage. Question in all of this- is it worth stockpiling the same numerical amount of ammunition for a platform that you know your either (1. Not going to use often.) or (2. Has a slower rate of fire and load/unload rate than almost any modern cartridge handgun in existence.)

For the two platforms listed, (throwing out random numbers here), if one goes through 5x the amount of ammunition in the same time frame, wouldn't it be perfectly adequate to stockpile 2k of one, and 10k of another ?

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I don’t know if that’s true for everyone. But if it’s true for you then yes it would be adequate to stock different amounts for each. Good even. Stocking enough to get you through a certain time period (with a bit to spare) is completely reasonable IMO.

In my personal experience, ammo consumption is proportionate to availability, not action type. Back when I could buy 550rds of .22lr for $6, 550rds was the standard amount I shot every time I went shooting. When .22lr became harder to find than leprechauns, I would shoot 50rds from my stash and switch over to something else or call it a day. The gun didn’t change. But even with that, I stocked more ammo for the guns I shot more.

I have a lot more factory 9mm on hand; BUT I reload as much 38 as I have of factory 9mm

Since my last name is not Miculek, if I'm shooting a 1911, I usually do about 300 to 350 rounds in a range session. In the same amount of time, if I'm doing .38 or .357, it's more like 200. Much as I like revolvers, they make my hands tired faster. So my stockpile reflects that-- I usually have 1200-1400 .45ACP ready to go, but only 500-600 .38 or .357. (I like to have enough around to support three or four shooting trips, just in case I can't immediately get to reloading for whatever reason.)

AZAndy said:

Since my last name is not Miculek, if I'm shooting a 1911, I usually do about 300 to 350 rounds in a range session. In the same amount of time, if I'm doing .38 or .357, it's more like 200. Much as I like revolvers, they make my hands tired faster. So my stockpile reflects that-- I usually have 1200-1400 .45ACP ready to go, but only 500-600 .38 or .357. (I like to have enough around to support three or four shooting trips, just in case I can't immediately get to reloading for whatever reason.)

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Really now? I find It easier on my hands with revolvers than my Colt. Different strokes though

My largest quantities of ammo are: 1) .22LR, 2) 9mm., 3) .45 ACP, and .223. Why...because these are the guns I shoot the most. The fact that they're mostly semi-autos, with a number of them having high capacity magazines, would account for the greater ammo usage.

For revolvers I stock: 1) .45 Colt, .38 Special, .357 Magnum, and .44 Special because again, I have more guns chambered for these cartridges. Now quantities of these rounds are nowhere near the numbers for the semi-autos but then I don't shoot my revolvers as much as my semi-autos.

Yes typically I go through a lot more auto loader ammo than revolver cartridges. But if I’m shooting specials that ratio is much narrower. I don’t find magnums as fun as I used to.

I don’t keep a set amount as a stockpile though. I just load a bunch, shoot a bunch, and repeat.

I would contend two points:

1) Stockpile what you use - it’s the only logical method. For example, a cowboy action shooter may not have any use at all for a single round of 9mm, but might shoot a thousand rounds per month of 45 colt. They’d practice regularly with revolvers, but might never practice with a bottom feeder.

2) Practice methodology for most less experienced folks varies based on capacity, not “sheer rate of fire”. A revolver holds 6, most bottom feeders 10-17. Most neophytes will design their practice courses of fire around their reloads. So each practice string will be designed around whatever the handgun holds. Reloading is what takes the most time, so folks end up shooting about the same number of reloads in a common practice session - relatively fixed time - so when you stoke them all to the max, you’ll shoot about 3 times as much from the pistol as you did the revolver. If a guy then practices the same with each, a pistol needs more ammo on hand. If folks are practicing focused drills rather than total Mag dumps, the field becomes more level.

Personally, I can say I have far, far, far more revolver ammo than pistol ammo. I shoot them more. I also do much of my pistol practice with 22LR, which decreases my inventory burden of CF pistol ammo considerably.

I shoot at an outdoor range in the woods (behind my house). It is far easier for me to keep a substantial collection of components for revolvers than semis. I reload and cast for my revolvers, 9mm is expensive when you buy it in stores.

I mostly shoot out in the country and brass recovery is a big issue. Because of this, I shoot more through my revolvers than my autos. I also enjoy shooting my revolvers more than my autos (at least in part because of my first point). Because of that, I stock way more revolver ammo. Heck, I shoot such little 45acp that I haven't gotten around to acquiring the dies and such. It's a rough time to start reloading a new cartridge anyway...