how much ammo per caliber do you keep on hand

[Lj1941]

Amount Varies

My amount of ammunition varies greatly for my weapons from less than 100 rounds to a number that I will not say. It is nice to have several basic loads for my "combat" rifles. I have the most for one caliber that while reload-able it is not practical to do so. My hunting rifles are an entirely different story. I have sufficient components for hunting rounds but seldom have more than 40 or so rounds assembled. My hand gun calibers vary by their popularity with me. I tend to replace what I expend after a trip to the range. My 22 rim-fire cache is empty but will be stocked when this madness is over. I Have not expended any factory ammo except for my carry weapon and then only to check how it shoots. I carry strictly factory loads for CC and use hand loads for all of the rest!

 

[taxiflyr]

AMMO Per gun

45acp 5k, 223 5k, 308 4k, 22 2k, 8mm 1k, 12ga 200, 3006 2k need more
alot of brass 20 pounds of powder need to stock up on lead and primers to make more

 

[billymarr]

450 minimum per caliber. 308 is split 150 for bolt gun and remainder is for the Saiga.

 

[CSG]

My safe is full but it's not enough in this political climate. I reload and have plenty of makings for .45ACP.

I noticed I had about 9k rounds of .22 (none bought recently) and enough of 9mm, .223, and .38 to not be worried about running out soon.

What I am worried about is the cost of replacement and a government that hates the second amendment and is doing whatever it can to make it obsolete.

 

[VTmtn.man]

1.) I think that this should first be approached from a civic, responsibility stance... what could you bring to the table in a SHTF senario...

2.) What are you recreational desires? Me... I like to shoot several times / wk. various cal.

If you have a gun but just have it for the sake of having it, my personal stance is 1K / gun

If you enjoy gaining proficency w/ your firearm, treat ammo like an investment in gold or silver. Not a bad investment, as times have proved. & by all means think about reloading your own!

 

[TanklessPro]

Ammo? Lost all of that with my firearms in that terrible boating accident.

 

[wally]

My investments in ammo and reloading components have done way better than my 401K these past ten years!

Will it be enough? Like with my retirement $$$ who knows? but ammo will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no ammo

 

[PabloJ]

Would appreciate some info on how much ammo you guys and gals try to keep on hand per caliber. I know everyones answer will probably be different but im just wondering about how much everyone elses numbers are and how they compare to my goal which is 2500 per (im not quite there yet)....this is quite a bone of contention between my wife and I..imagine that. lol

Two hundred fifty rounds should be sufficient.

 

[VTmtn.man]

'Wally' Very well said!

When you have local dealers calling you up for cases of cal. they can't get... there is a problem! We should all be comfortably set w/ what we use to protect our families & property. I don't know what the aprox. x 2 billion rounds of gov. hollow point bullets has done in the market place to affect availabilty / prices? .... hmm? .22 rimfire uses about the same powder as .40 s&w... Why does the gov. require hollow point rounds for punching paper, "training"? Just lots of questions on my end...

 

[CSG]

Two hundred fifty rounds should be sufficient.

Sufficient for what?

 

[huntsman]

1k per pistol cal, I'm about 200 light in .45acp and about 400 heavy on .380acp
.22lr no real goal but at 2k, 12gauge components for 5k and 10lbs of buckshot 75lbs of pellets.

 

[clutch]

I'm a handloader so ammo per caliber is sorta sketchy. I also cast my own pistol and rifle bullets so it gets more sketchy. I have >15,000 primers, a few pistol calibers loaded in the 1000+ count range, lots of empty brass, and a lot of commercial bullets for my centerfire rifles.

So lets say 14,000 for rimfire, ~4000 or more cf rounds loaded and 15,000 I can make of some cartridge given time and desire with out going to the store for components.

I have 34 varieties of powder with some varieties having multiple canisters. I'm fat on unique, 748, 4895, lil gun, 4831, and a few others.

I have 500 #11 caps, 5# of FFG, two cans of Pyrodex RS, and a pile of soft lead. Don't want to forget the front stuffers.

I'm a student of 1994. My 2013 refresher course is going to have me amp this up by 3x or more before I retire.

 

[rgwalt]

Before this situation went down, I kept the following:
1000 rounds 9mm
800 rounds .45ACP
500 rounds .380
whatever was left in the last bulk pack of .22LR

This was what I thought would be sufficient based on my experience from the 2008 election. I was not prepared for current environment. My future plan is going to be:

~1000 rounds loose pack 9mm in an ammo can
1500 rounds 9mm in 50 round boxes in an ammo can (capacity of the can)
2 cases 9mm in 50 round boxes

800 rounds .45acp in 50 round boxes in an ammo can (capacity of the can)
2 cases .45acp in 50 round boxes

1500 rounds .380acp in 50 round boxes in an ammo can (capacity of the can)
2 cases .380acp in 50 round boxes

2000+ rounds .22LR in an ammo can (capacity of the can)
2 1600 round cases of CCI

When life gets back to normal and ammo is readily available, I will likely go back to the shoot 1 buy 1 routine. If supplies get tight, I will shoot through the ammo cans, refill them with the cases, and then buy new cases when time and availability permits.

I found that it quite easy to go through 300-500 rounds at a range session, especially when breaking in a new gun. I also found that it became quite easy to sell/trade my ammo in the current climate. As long as ammo is bought at reasonable prices, keeping a healthy shooting stock on hand isn't a waste of space or money. I am getting tired of lining up at Academy Sports each morning to buy ammo. At first it was fun, but it stopped being fun about 6 weeks ago.

 

[joeschmoe]

Several years worth or ammo, plus enough reloading components to last for decades if I'm careful. Even shooting a few hundred rounds per year, I have enough to make something go bang for the rest of my life. ( Are you gun grabbers listening?)
A few thousand of factory (brass) ammo, then a few thousand more of primers, bullets and lbs of powder to reload the quality factory brass. This is why I only buy quality brass, not steel cased ammo. (Not counting .22lr)
It's not a big pile. It didn't cost a fortune. I'll probably buy more, when prices come back down, but if ammo were never again available, I will get by.

 

[VTmtn.man]

'Joeschmoe',

I think that many of us out there can identify with the ardor & frustration that you have when it comes to matters of self protection/food on the table/ self viability... We just have to vote at the ballot box & pester our legis-F'n-lators, constantly & consistently! My 2 cents...

 

[JohnBiltz]

I figure it like this. I figure out what I want for basic load in a quality SD load. That is generally enough to fill my ready magazines twice. Then what I shoot in range ammo for a year. At the last moment back in November I added 2 cases of 9mm and a case of .223 to that on a whim and have not regretted it.

 

[joeschmoe]

'Joeschmoe',

I think that many of us out there can identify with the ardor & frustration that you have when it comes to matters of self protection/food on the table/ self viability... We just have to vote at the ballot box & pester our legis-F'n-lators, constantly & consistently! My 2 cents...

"Hope for the best, prepare for the worst."

 

[thump_rrr]

2,000 rounds per centerfire pistol.
1,000 rounds per centerfire rifle.

I reload so my next goal is to have components for 5,000 rounds per centerfire pistol and 2,000 rounds per centerfire rifle.

I've been shooting for less than 3 years so I am also acquiring more firearms all the time.
If this shortage ever goes away I'll reach my component goal.

 

[JohnBT]

I'm recently retired and over the years have spent a lot of money on ammo, beef jerky, bore cleaners and lubes.

I was thinking about selling my one AR two months ago (the guy decided not to) and discovered that I had 1700 rounds for it. I don't even shoot the dern thing much.

28 ga. - I have 2 or 3 big Rubbermaid bins full of everything from Win AA target loads to Fiocchi hunting and target loads.

.22 LR. - I'm down to my last 28 bricks of Wolf Match Target and Extra. The WMT was only $15/brick in 2004 and my guns liked it, so I bought a bunch.

I don't buy toilet paper one roll at a time either.

John

 

[Agsalaska]

I hardly ever shoot. I tend to buy on demand. So if I am going to shoot I just go to the store and buy ammo before I go. So I will have whatever is left over in the box at the end of deer season for whatever rifle I use, and maybe 100 rounds combined for 38, 9, and 40. I also will have a couple of hundred rounds of 7.62x39. And anywhere from 0-1000 rounds of 22. So not that much. In fact I could go months with just a couple of loaded magazines for my Glock and 5 in the hole for my snubby.

That worked great until the shortage. I will not continue this strategy in the future and will be more diligent in my supply.

 

[horsemen61]

not enough

 

[silicosys4]

when I get up to about 1500 rounds, i generally break down and buy a gun that shoots that particular kind of ammo.
Thats how its been working lately, anyways

 

[Sauer Grapes]

Factory ammo? 100-500
I handload, so I have all I need. 22 caliber? :banghead:

 

[wally]

Why does the gov. require hollow point rounds for punching paper, "training"? Just lots of questions on my end...

"Practice with what you carry" is advice we'd all like to abide by if funds permitted, but since the gov is spending other peoples' money its easy!

 

[Geno]

I don't get too carried away. I agree with bikerdoc. Try to buy two of whatever quantity of ammo I am purchasing. I use one and save one. My concern is to have enough reloading supplies to make high-quality hunting ammo. If I have a couple of boxes of factory ammo for each cartridge, I'm good, because I reload. My advice, don't break the bank. Be realistic, and purchase what you can, as you can, on a regular basis.

Geno