Ammo availability/prices in your area

A

American Eagle

New member
I live in South Florida and most Walmarts are starting to run dry on ammo.

Most gun shops in the Miami area have no .38 special or .357 magnum to sell, are running short on 9MM and have very few of any other caliber ammo. There is only one shop (a rather large gun shop) which is fully stocked with every single caliber constantly and the prices for the calibers I buy the most are as follow:

9MM ($17 - $22) for a box of 50
.38 special ($22 - $27) for a box of 50
.40 S&W ($23 - $27) for a box of 50

*prices vary within the ammounts quoted above depending on name brand of the ammo

I know the prices are ridiculous but around here is usually either them or go empty since Walmart which used to be a reliable source is now being raided by 1 or 2 people which will buy everything in all handgun calibers every time they come in. According to the employees, they always see the same 1 or 2 people buying everything up every time ammo comes in (dealers sending employees to case Walmart's ammo supply I guess)

The other option is midwayusa.com but to get a shipment of .38 special from them you have to wait 3 - 4 weeks in "backorder". Even there the prices for .38 special are not that great nowadays (usually from .24 cents to .36 cents per bullet) :(

How much longer do you all think we will have to wait before the panic buying ends and ammo prices go back to more reasonabke levels? At more than 40 cents per shot, 9MM and .38 special are not the bargain shooters they once used to be. Almost having to cut back some on range time due to the crazy prices and unstable supply availability.:barf:
 
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ammo

I stoped by gun store this AM to see if the had any .38+ for snubs, first off it took me repeating 4-5 times i wanted .38 +P as the clerk kept tring to offer me target .38 and even that had $37.95 price tag for box of 50 WWB. FINALLY gave up as became clear the clerk had no idea what i wanted and i was not about to pay $38.00 for WWB target. Not only any ammo seems available, but now they cant seem to hire help that have a clue what they are selling
 
AMMO

Hey Eagle,
I ordered some .38 Special Hornady Critical defense ammo from Midway on 3/27/09 and it was delivered to my home in Tennessee on 3/31/09. CHRIS
 
Around here (and I suspect just about every where else as well), it just depends on where you're looking. The same box of ammo can be +/- $10 depending on the shop you're at. I think the worst I've felt after buying ammo was the $40 I spent on a box of 50 Winchester .38+p LSWCHP, but it was at the only store anywhere near me that I've seen them at. Cheap FMJ .40s&w still runs me around $14 to $16 depending on brand and store.

I really haven't been shooting much ammo up though, and haven't bought any handgun ammo in a month or two. Only ammo I've bought recently has been .22lr and .223, the latter of which I paid $10.99 for 20 rounds (PMC Bronze 55gr. FMJBT).
 
Here in north Mississippi the only thing I seem to have trouble finding is .380 and 9MM. Just bought 2 boxes of .38 SPL+P for 15.96 at wal-mart, they had more but only needed 2 so i left the rest for someone else.
 
Never believed I`d see the day when PMC .380 fmj ball ammo went for $29.95/ 50 ct. box. Saw it for my own eyes. Friend of mine paid $24.95 for same and it was rationed to two boxes/ customer at another gun store. Just hard to comprehend that price for .380:rolleyes:. I`ve heard alot of excuses(the war,people hoarding,the election,ect...) for the ammo shortages but it just makes me wonder if the ammo company CEO`s may be thinking about this ammo serial # business there was talk about and don`t want to get caught with a bunch on the shelf they can`t sell to the public and the ammo won`t meet military specs thus not producing to keep up with the demand :confused:. Whatevers going on I`ll be glad when things get back to 'somewhat' normal. Not to steal the thread but that brings up a question: if things do slow down do you think ammo prices will go back down to what they were before the shortage(if thats what you want to call it)?
 
Price and Availability Elasticity

Once everyone who has recently purchased firearms and those who have many has reached their personal protection/hunting requirements to cover the attack of the zombie hordes, SHTF scenarios, EOTW scenarios, and trading commodity item things will get back to "normal".

if things do slow down do you think ammo prices will go back down to what they were before the shortage(if thats what you want to call it)?
Click to expand...

IMO, yes. Conditionally assuming metals don't go through the roof again.

This too shall pass.
 
.380 doesn't exist here. However, I did find it at one place that sold 50 rounds of FMF for 20 bucks. They kept it behind the counter, hidden, only to be sold if asked for. It was one box, per person, per day.

Can anyone explain why this is happening ONLY to .380? I don't know why it would disappear. If anything. .223 or 7.62x39 would be disappearing, because that's what may be banned (assault rifles), not handgun ammo.
 
I can still get about all the ammo I want here, but of course not at Wal-Mart. I have to go to local gun stores and pay more. About $21 for 50 .45ACP, $17 for 9mm.
 
Well maybe production levels were not so high to begin with, for .380. You know, that caliber that everyone talks down and many fewer production guns use it as compared to the 9MM or larger. I would like to see a graph of all calibers sales before the big panic. Maybe it is just demand outstripping supply and they are not gonna ramp up production by adding production lines that will set idle after the surge is over. I bet the makers look at the long term and are trying to figure out what will sell 2 years from now, and in what quantity, and looking at the history of the volume of sales. Probably consider this maybe a aberration and may not invest more capital into gear to make rounds that historically can be supplied by what they have now.
 
Dick's Sporting Goods has Remington green box on sale. I got three boxes of 50 230gr 45 auto for $18.95ea. :D

It's funny because right next to the Remington boxes were the "cheap" generic LRN re-manufactured boxes of 150 rounds for $65.
 
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From Maine here, close to the NH border and ammo is pretty scarce now. At the new Cabelas store, the self defense shelves are pretty bare. Their 2 shelves of 9mm were pretty much wiped clean. Saw a couple boxes of CorBon (20 Rnd) for $31.99, and 3 boxes of Speer (115 grn) for $21.99. Also, about 6 boxes of the new Winchester black box think they are DPX1 for around $20. Best deal I saw there was on Remington UMC green box .223 ammo for $8.99. Wally World in No. Conway NH was almost completely wiped out of handgun ammo. Couldn't find any 9mm, saw 3 boxes of 44, and about 4 boxes of 45 ACP in Blazer Brass guessing they were (50 rnd) boxes for $15 something. Suprisingly there were several boxes of 357 Mags on the shelf. Local gun shop had some 50 rnd boxes, and some personal defense ammo, but the prices were steep--guessing that is why they still had almost full shelves.
 
I've only checked on 9mm lately, and it's been tough to find. I live in Central VA and Walmart has been out for the last two weeks. Twice they said they just had some in and a couple of guys just bought 6-8 boxes each and that was it.

I found some American Eagle 124gr at Dicks for $14 two weeks ago. I went back yesterday and they finally had some Winchester White's but had it priced at $19.99.
 
Same thing here in Central Indiana, no .380 to be found and 9MM is scarce as well. Still plenty of .38 and .357, but, limited choices. I shoot .44spl/,44mag and the choices are even fewer and ALL ammo is getting pricey.
 
In response to the person above who asked about .380 ammo and why it is so hard to get right now. There are a few reasons for this.

First off, the .380 became a popular caliber about a year ago when more manufacturers started making them. It is the "gun of choice" now for women who carry including my wife. It is a small gun without a lot of recoil that will get the job done.

Next you have the production. Not long ago .380 ammo would sit on the shelves for months at a time because it was not a popular round. Therefore the manufacturers didn't run as much ammo. Now that it is becoming a more popular round, the manufacturers are still trying to run enough to catch up.

Then you have the Obama panic or whatever you want to call it. This combined with the first two reasons I listed and you have a genuine shortage.

I have witnessed people buying up stores entire inventory when they see it on the shelves. Personally I think this is stupid but to each his own. In a year from now when the nuts have wasted thier life savings on ammo and the manufacturers have caught up, ammo will be plentiful again.

It is already starting to happen. 9mm, .40, and .45 is in about every store I walk into here in Salt Lake including most of the Walmarts. Just yesterday Cabela's here had well over 500 boxes of the "cheap" .380 ammo Magtech brand. I bought 2 boxes for $17 each. I am sure it is gone today. Even bulk .22 is just about everywhere I look except the Walmart and Federal brand is nowhere to be found but who cares, Blazer and Winchester work just as good for me.
 
I just bought 2 boxes of .357 Winclean target ammo for 24 bucks each here in michigan from walmarts and (sadly) felt fortunate to get it, I was actually looking for .38 just for target shooting but couldn't find any. I'd rather shoot the .357 any how but usually the cost turns me at the .38 special instead.
 
Over this last weekend Cheaper Than Dirt wanted over $50 for a box of 380 Blazers...no kidding. 50 rounds. :eek: I hope it was a type-o. I normally order from them or Midway, but lately...
Local gun shops still have quite a bit of everything in stock, but they are (and always have been) around 30-40% more per box than what I paid online.
The NRA range is here, in their National HQ, and amazingly I found 380, 9, and .38 there for $12-15 per box. They had a 200 round per caliber limit, but the 9 and 380 were American Eagle, which is my normal brand.
I'm glad I stocked up last year before this panic buying started...but my supply isn't going to last forever.
 
Oops, almost forgot to mention, Bi-Mart is one of those socialist institutions where the employees own the company, so guess most would not want to buy there. :D
 
blazer brass .40 cal $11.87 a box of 50
federal classic 125 grain .38 jhps $19.00 a box of 50
Remington 125 grain .357 jsp's $23.00 a box
federal 180 grain .40 cal hst hp's $28.50 a box of 50
 
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