Powder and Primer Shortage

Was that the Big Town Show? Used to love going there, now It's not worth the drive...

Unprepared panic buyers are driving the prices up not sellers at gun shows. I can’t blame someone for charging market prices.

FWIW 3 of the big box stores near me have had primers in the last 3 weeks. If your patient you can find stuff at reasonable prices.

And those sellers may have made their last sales if they can't get new supplies

George P said:

And those sellers may have made their last sales if they can't get new supplies

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I just watched this in paducah at a gun show I I help with. The sellers made out like bandit in January however in March only two 50 round boxes of 380 left the show I sa w at the gun check table.

Supply and demand is over rated , people can only be beaten so long before they give up.

That's where the "normal" American is at this moment, they have given up and it's up to us "non normal " who saw the writing on wall to establish a beacon of hope for the new shooter and reloader.

KY DAN said:

I just watched this in paducah at a gun show I I help with. The sellers made out like bandit in January however in March only two 50 round boxes of 380 left the show I sa w at the gun check table.

Supply and demand is over rated , people can only be beaten so long before they give up.

That's where the "normal" American is at this moment, they have given up and it's up to us "non normal " who saw the writing on wall to establish a beacon of hope for the new shooter and reloader.

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Yes, and when they give up demand starts to fade away and so do the high prices. If this was a supply problem then I'd expect the shelves to refill very slowly over the coming months. However, this is a demand problem so as soon as that drops off we're gonna see full shelves again fairly soon.

Reminds me of cheaper than gold oh I meant cheaper than dirt. I remember the sellers that are as bad as them and never visit them. I would expect their cost go up a little and a little more than usual mark up, but pricing primers like gold isn't good. Gave up gun shows back during the clinton bands when magazines went from $20 to $60. I dont see midsouth or powdervalley price gouging

snowman357 said:

Reminds me of cheaper than gold oh I meant cheaper than dirt. I remember the sellers that are as bad as them and never visit them. I would expect their cost go up a little and a little more than usual mark up, but pricing primers like gold isn't good. Gave up gun shows back during the clinton bands when magazines went from $20 to $60. I dont see midsouth or powdervalley price gouging

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And you also rarely find them with anything in stock - a double edged sword

I just paid $50/20 for 450 Bushmaster. Really only $10/box above 2019 prices. I wanted a bit and someone had it.

Were you that desperate for SPP that you had to pay that much? These ludicrous prices won't come back down to reality until people stop paying them. I personally don't understand why people are so desperate for supplies they'll pay 5 times what it's really worth to get it NOW. It's not like primers will cease to be manufactured next month. I've bought a lot the past year and haven't overpaid for a single thing, as I've just been patient and frequented the local stores and got on as many website stock notifications as possible. If you're patient and diligent, you'll find what you need without getting bent over the table.

As long as there are people willing to pay scalpers prices the prices won't drop. Would it surprise anyone to know that LE agencies are paying less than 0.30/rd for 9 mm ammo?

Somewhere the middleman is getting rich off of people who are paying 2 to 3 times the manufacturers wholesale cost.

But it's your money.

Buy powder by the keg when it's on sale and reload primers and there's no shortage.

Maybe not so much desperation as self-awareness? If you have more money then time, to wait for prices to decline, or spending the time on the search....you may want to spend it reloading or shooting. The older I get the more valuable my time is. I want to spend it doing the things I enjoy..... maybe that's one reason people will pay.

I went to a show in Idaho today and found primers priced $150-$300 per thousand. I didn't see even one thousand sell. I spoke to an ammo dealer that had astronomical prices at the last two shows, his prices had moderated a bit today. I asked him if availability was getting better, he said " no, people stopped buying ".

Shooter2747 said:

.$250 for 1000 small pistol primers, $100 for 500 small magnum pistol primers, and $100 on 2-1LB bottles of powder, IMR-4227 and HP-38. That's right I did,

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I have to shake my head vs curse the darkness; however, did you do that because you needed them right now or were afraid they won’t be plentiful in the future?

Eventually if the commiecrats get their way we won't be able to buy ammo, primers, powder, projectiles, brass, ect.
It probably won't be this time around.
Learn to reload. You don't have to reload all the ammo you shoot.
Lean to reload primers, but definitely don't manufacturer every single primer you use. But you could experiment with your own primer mixes for repeaters and mix up your own black powder cap mix to keep up the skill.
We probably can't manufacture smokeless powder so you best bet us just buy a massive load of military surplus smokeless, hey it was designed with a really long shelf life in mind and it's cheap, usually 1/3 to 1/2 the price of domestically produced commercial smokeless.

Yep, sellers are demanding outrageous prices for ammo and ammo related stuff, buyers are willingly paying those outrageous prices. Met a man at the range last week who was contemplating paying over $150 for 1,000 small rifle primers. i gave the man 1,000 small rifle primers.

Shooter2747 said:

Well I have seen where a lot has gone. Went to a gun show today in Mesquite Texas, place was packed wall to wall and after visiting a few booths it was apparent I was going to spend my rathole savings....$250 for 1000 small pistol primers, $100 for 500 small magnum pistol primers, and $100 on 2-1LB bottles of powder, IMR-4227 and HP-38. That's right I did, told the guy that karma is a bitch. Now for loaded ammo, there was ton's of it to be had if you were willing to pay their prices...The mark up is outrageous but understand supply and demand....

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Dang $50 per pound for powder. My LGS had 231 for $33.99 per pound. Almost made me choke. I bought a pound. On the other had the shop had a good supply of various rifle powders. Maybe a good sign.

I just got 8 lbs of Bullseye for 151.25 out the door.

It would be interesting to compare the thoughts of folks complaining about people buying at high prices and are so proud of being tight with a dollar when it comes to shooting to be compared to what they think is fair for alcohol, cigs, weed or whatever floats their boats .

"Supply and demand is over rated , people can only be beaten so long before they give up." - It works out over the long run. People give up, supply builds, prices drop to meet reduced demand.

I sure am glad to see that some see a light at the end of the tunnel. Can't be too soon.

Op- Were the jerky and knick knack prices jacked up also or just the gun stuff?

Very good point. People will go to a sporting event and pay $10.00 or more for a beer. Guess it depends on a person’s priorities