Ammo Please!!

If you have tried to purchase ammunition in the last year, you will know that it is becoming a challenging task to accomplish. In my community, there are two main suppliers and small shipments seem to be coming about once a week. Last week I received a “heads up” that a shipment had come in so my daughter and I loaded up and stood in line for thirty minutes to purchase our allotted two boxes per caliber. The shelves were soon as bare as they had been an hour prior. The other local store only allows two boxes of any caliber, total. What’s to blame for this madness?

Some may say a shift in our national leadership. Others may say the madness of 2020 is spilling into 2021. An article posted on Gear Ammo (https://www.petersenshunting.com/editorial/whats-behind-the-ammunitionshortage/387187#:~:text=The%20ammunition%20shortage%20of%202020,more%20ammo%20than%20ever%20before.&text=A%20pandemic%2C%20civil%20unrest%20and,sales%20to%20skyrocket%20in%202020.) nods to both of these as reasons for the shortage as well as individuals who believe that the only way to purchase ammo is to buy it by the pallet (think TP shortage a year ago). Buyers begin to believe a true shortage is occurring but manufacturers are pumping mass quantities into the supply chain. This process continues to cycle and while suppliers are working at maximum capacity, shelves continue to stay bare.

The NRA (https://www.nrafamily.org/articles/2020/3/26/why-ammunition-is-hard-to-find-right-now/) offers that these hoarding tendencies are not from fear of running out, but rather, fear of supplies not being available when we want them. In addition to reasons noted previously, massive amounts of citizens became first-time gun owners in the last year; Mossy Oak notes between five and seven million individuals (https://www.mossyoak.com/our-obsession/blogs/news/where-is-the-ammo) bought their first gun in this time frame; and notes that it may be late 2021 or early 2022 before we see a return to “normal” ammunition supplies.

Dry Fire

What does that mean for those of us who need the ammo to hunt, or for recreational purposes? Dry fire practice makes the most sense. Dry fire (https://frontier-justice.com/learning-how-to-shoot-during-an-ammo-shortage-dry-fire-training/) provides a safe way for gun owners to continue to practice handling and training and also increases the number of locations where these can be safely done.

Reloading

Some gun owners have started reloading to counter not being able to buy ammo. This is not a solution though, Forbes (https://www.forbes.com/sites/aaronsmith/2021/03/04/gun-owners-take-up-reloading-to-sidestep-ammo-shortage-but-it-may-be-too-late/?sh=7e14b19e2161) notes that reloaders run into the same supply options not being able to find necessary components. A lack of primers (https://www.pewpewtactical.com/ammo-shortage-continues-summer-2021/) has been noted as the most significant issue for small ammunition companies and reloaders. This creates an issue of having to stop production even if all other materials are on hand.

Staying alert to shipments is probably our best bet at this point. Be thoughtful with the ammunition you have on hand. Practice with dry fire to be sure you are using your live fire as efficiently as possible and hang in there. Hopefully this will not last forever.

Written by: Amanda O'Brien ReelCamo Girl Newsletter Content Contributor/Write