Variation on Show us your "ammo hoard" question

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larry_minn

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I didn't want to hijack the thread. But it got me thinking. (run for cover) :)

With the huge increase in ammo prices, the lack of ammo,etc How has your situation changed in regards to firearms?

I.E. do you shoot much less? Have you cut down buying any ammo unless you find it on sale? Are you shooting the ammo you stocked up 5 yrs ago when it was (compared to now) dirt cheap?

I have heard some now shoot what they considered "junk ammo" 6 yrs ago. (I.E. Wolf, HSM, RGS, Agrulla,Remington, etc,etc (not that there is anything wrong with any of them.) Its just that I have run into folks that detest with a passion a certain brand (often because ONE TIME it was not perfect)

Other changes I have seen. People much more willing to buy ammo from private parties. (sometimes including RELOADED ammo)........

so what changes has this made for you?


I will start. I have only taken one pistol class in 2009. Not a single rifle/shotgun course and don't have one planned. :(
I have not done a "mad minute" in a couple yrs. (To me that is where after some aimed fire you load at least 10 rds and spray the target) Not just as fast as you can keep it ON target but in target area safely.
I have shot much more .22lr then any other. I almost bought a .22lr converter for my AR. (I bought a 10/22 last yr but wish I had bought conversion kit instead/can't $$$ justify both)
I don't buy ammo unless its on a real sale. (offhand 20 rds in 2009) and each range session half as much ammo shot.
 
:cool:I am shooting more 20g and .22lr than ever before, but I am a broke college kid:scrutiny: I still have a pad of 50 for each one I own and all the magazines are full.
What really helps is that I reload shotgun, so I shoot sporting clays the most.
 
There are definitely some anal people out there when it comes to their ammo. Some refuse to shoot reload; some refuse anything except from the big 3 (Win, Rem, Fed); some refuse to shoot any lead; only fmj or hp; and the worst are the ones that refuse to shoot in practice anything except what they plan on shooting in "Real Life". I saw a guy at the range that ONLY shot his hydra-shoks and golden sabers. His logic was that the accuracy will be different between the "Good Stuff" and regular plinking type ammo. Technically, he is correct, but he couldn't understand the concept that at 20-25 feet, the margin of error on accuracy is almost non measurable. Plus, he refused to believe that if he ever needed to shoot in "Real Life", his adrenaline, heartbeat, and breathing was going to affect his accuracy more than any ammo he was using. But if he wants to shoot $20-$30 a box for 20 rounds ($1-$1.50 per shot); then that's his business.

Me personally; I haven't changed the type of ammo I've ever shot. For my 45acp, I shoot lead round nose from a reloading company in Pennsylvania that I can get for $11 a box. ($7.50 if I return my own brass). I'll also shoot some Winchester fmj if walmart has some value-packs on sale for $29 for 100. There is absolutely nothing wrong with shooting lead in a gun. I buy bulk LRN or SWC or WC for my 38spl/357mag. I buy bulk Fiocchi or Sellier&Bellot FMJ for my 32acp. I buy a lot of bulk Silver Bear Russian for my 9mm Makarov. And I'll buy military surplus in 7.62x25.

The only real difference in my shooting habits since the paranoia and price hikes has been that I shoot MORE 22LR now as well as the CHEAP 9mm Makarov or 7.62x25 Tokarev. Ammo can be bought for $10 a box of 50 and $6 a box for 50 respectively. For the $200 you spend on one of those highly reliable military pistols; it will pay for itself in 10-15 boxes of ammo, compared to buying 45acp or 38spl ammo. Of course, 9mm luger ammo is still pretty cheap, but I don't have any real use for that caliber, unless I found a German Luger Pistol. That would be cool.

Anyway, there's a lot of calibers that are cheap (CHEAPER) to shoot; a lot of brands that are cheap to shoot; it won't mess up your guns; and you get just as good of practice and proficiency.
 
@Christcorp. I'm one of those anal people. I only reload certain brass.. .LOL

I like Win, Rem, FC, Speer, CCI, Blazer Brass, WCC. I give my buddy anything else I pick up. No reason other than being picky. Well, I had some reloading issues with some brass so I decided to discount a few cases. I reload 125g RNL 9mm.

Interestingly enough, the Blazer Brass works great in my pistol, reloaded, but I have all kinds of fits buying it commercial. I get stovepipes almost with each shot. Like they aren't loading it hot enough to eject properly.

I tend to buy Winchester, if I buy.. but really whatever is on hand. I have Winchester JHP in there for my defensive rounds.
 
I have been using snap caps a lot more. When I shoot my 442 or model 10, I load at least 2 snap caps per cylinder and the rest live rounds. This allows me to work on trigger control, and make sure I'm not flinching. It also "doubles" your ammo supply. I vary the number of live rounds and caps each time I reload, and give the cylinder a quick spin before shutting it. Sure, you can see if the next round is going to be live or not before you fire it, but that's cheating :D

I found that this practice gives me a good 30 minute range session with one box of ammo. If I wasn't using the caps and just doing regular aimed fire, I could burn through the same box in 5 minutes.

Other than that, I buy whatever is reasonably priced. I don't shoot lead bullets indoors though.
 
I shoot a bit of everything, just to spread it around and not run low/out of something. But I've shot more .22 in pistol than most anything this year.

With hunting season getting close (30 days) I've been shooting a bit more rifle.
 
Well for Xmas I am thinking of using a freight company to ship stuff from the inlaws as air travel has gotten so "FUN". And since I'm shipping freight, I might as well have the stock pile that I am sure to accumulate shipped at the same time and still will pay the same charge for the shipping.
 
Agree on the broke college kid note. I find myself being most stingy on the 9mm, less stingy on the 8mm, and trigger-happy with .22LR.

I've been buying when I have some cash and when I see it for cheap. For example, I found the last two boxes of 8mm Mauser for $25 and $30 (fed and winchester power-point), left over from the 2008 stock. The 2009 stock, he said, would be closer to $40-45 per box...ridiculous. So I opted out of 40 rounds of clean ammo for 340 rounds of dirty ammo (same price).

When I can buy in bulk and save money, I try. I pass on paying pawn shop prices, such as $18 for 50 rounds of 9mm Wolf ammo, and just try my luck at wal-marts.
 
I buy more ammo and shoot less. Shoot more 22LR than anything else and even it is hard to find at times.
 
lobo; I use a few of them. But the best I've used is mastercast.net . Currently, they are only doing work for those who will send them brass to reload. They've been having a tough time buying new brass. But if you supply the brass, they are reloading from 380 to 9mm to 38/357 and 45acp. Lead or FMJ. I bought some about a month ago. I also stocked up on a case of 230g LRN about March before the brass started getting low. Very reputable company. Hopefully they are still producing. They have an info website, but you have to call them to place the order.
 
I'm finally gearing up to reload my expensive calibers (.44mag/sp and .308) and saving the defensive ammo indefinitely. For a while I've been shooting less.

Would like to get a .22LR conversion kit for the AR and good basic .22LR guns (rifle and practice pistol).
 
can't find primers so any center fire is short lived. Was shooting .22 a lot but I'm down to my last brick and can't find that stuff anymore. Dry fire and snap caps are my new hobby. CA is getting rough
 
I've been shooting less, but only because of work and a busy summer schedule.

I'm taking a new shooter out this weekend, and made it out a couple weekends ago myself for the first time in a few months.

I do want to get a P22 or mosquito, but haven't had time to swing by the guns store recently.
 
I shoot a lot of .22 and reload anything else I shoot.
I pretty much never shoot "good" factory stuff in centerfire rounds.
 
I seldom shoot my big bores any more. I burn through a lot of rimfires now days. As far as shot guns go, nothing has changed exect I buy all of the 3" 12ga buckshot I see. I seems 2-3/4" is all I can normally find.
 
i purchase boxes of ammo when i find it. i just purchased a .22lr for more economical shooting and shoot the big guns when the budget and ammo supply allow. i find myself shooting more clays with the shotgun though.
 
Ironically, I shoot more centerfire rifle and less 22LR. I have a ton of cheap 7.62x39, 7.62x54R, 8mm and 7.62x51 stashed from about 5-8 years ago when it was cheap, but only about a case of 22LR. So instead of shooting a few thousand rounds of 22LR and a few hundred rounds of centerfire like I used to do, I shoot a few mags of 22LR, a few mags of pistol ammo and a few hundred rounds of surplus rifle stuff. If I rotate through the calibers, go easy on the handguns and shoot something different every time I go to the range, I'm set to ride out the storm for quite a while. This is the time to appreciate those surplus C&R commie guns.
 
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This is the time to appreciate those surplus C&R commie guns
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Absolutely! Unfortunately the Mosin is probably not worth reloading for, but I do want to try bedding one, shimming, and every other accuracy enhancing modification I can do. (translation: I don't have dies and a chronograph yet, and LR primers, and appropriate powder. Yet)

Besides, that 70s Hungarian ammo is great stuff (for a Mosin, that is)
 
+1 on the broke college student deal.

Because of that, I'm not particularly picky about what I shoot so long as it works properly. For handgun ammo I stick to Blazer Brass from Wally World... at $8.97 a box, you can't beat that anywhere. And I have never experienced any FTF with it. Rifle ammo... Wolf, Brown Bear, Federal, whatever. I don't have any reloading equipment - much less a place to put it - although I do save brass and sell off the calibers I don't use. (I do intend on reloading... someday.)

"Good enough" is generally fine with me. I own one box of Hydra-Shok. That's expensive enough. Anything else, and minute of bad guy will work just fine.
 
I feel sorry for some of you people. I started stocking up when I first started buying guns. That being said I was in the locally owned gun store the other day and they had several cases of just about every type of ammo you could want. The only thing I didn't see was any inexpensive 357. Everything else that I would be interested in shooting they had plenty of. I didn't buy any but I don't need any right now either.
 
Interestingly enough, the Blazer Brass works great in my pistol, reloaded, but I have all kinds of fits buying it commercial. I get stovepipes almost with each shot. Like they aren't loading it hot enough to eject properly.
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I have noticed that too. I also notice the factory blazer seems to have a lot of soot on the brass after firing. I think they cut corners and don't get a good "seal" between the bullet and the casing thus lowering the pressure in the chamber.
 
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