Ammo availabilty affect next gun purchase?

Anyone else reconsider a gun due to not finding the ammo for it?
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Nope. I handload for every centerfire chambering I shoot. Last count I think I had 17 sets of dies in my loading room.

All I do for a new cartridge is order dies, cases, and loading components if I happen to be low on what I need.

Life is good.

Daryl
 
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No problem getting ammo here in Ohio.
I support the local gunshop in my area it's usually about $1.00 more on the box than Wallyworld, but it's allways in stock.
I'm just about setup to start reloading as well. A few more items and i'm good to go.
 
I am with the reload group. I reload .380, 9mm and .45 ACP. I personally find the .45 the easiest or simplest to reload of the three. This is not to say the other two are difficult by any means.

I am thinking about buying a .40 just to have a different round to reload. Sort of a twist on the thrust of the thread starter. (LOL) Many of us derive pleasure out of reloading and find it relaxing and rewarding. There are times I would rather reload a couple of hundred rounds than watch bad TV or surfing the internet.
 
I def consider it. I just bought a 380, but I know a place that always has some in stock for a very reasonable price out in the boonies. I think they have had the same big pile of 380 WWB throughout this whole ordeal. I guess rednecks don't shoot 380.
 
Ammo availability is the sole reason I don't have a .380 right now (I really want an LCP). But .380 around here is just about non-existent and if you do find it you can expect to give up your first-born to obtain it. Just reinforces my love for the 9mm.
 
I am considering a Ruger New Vaquero for my next purchase (either that or a Colt 1911, depends on the funds available at the time of the purchase). While I would love to get it in .45 LC for authenticity reasons (I realize the Vaquero is not a very authentic gun), .357 magnum is just a much better choice at this time.

.45 LC ammo is hard to find in my area, and it's not cheap. By comparison I can find .357/.38 just about anywhere and have a much wider selection. For a person who doesn't reload, it's the cheaper option. I also already have 3 guns chambered in .357, and it's nice to be able to share ammo between a few of my guns.

I'm still not very certain though. I don't intend for the gun to be more than a range toy. I would have to make another trip around my various ammo suppliers to see what they have going in .45 LC to make a solid decision. .45 LC is a cartridge I would love to add to my collection, just because I'm attracted to large heavy bullets at medium velocities. It's also a great cartridge to have for if I do start reloading one day.
 
Yes and No.

I do weigh the availability of ammo, but I haven't bought factory ammo for a pistol in more than a decade. (Except for 3 boxes of SD stuff.)

What I care about, is the availability of reloading components.
-Can I get brass? How many suppliers are there? Is it a seasonal run, or continuous production?
-Can I get bullets? What's available with a jacket? What's available in cast lead? What weight range is most common? Will I need to get an extra crimp die?
-Are the dies common? Are there different versions? Are they stocked locally?
-Can I get a shell holder without it being a special order?



For example:
I've been watching the component and tool market for the .327 Federal for the last year, or so. With Federal being the only supplier of brass, it's horribly expensive to buy actual .327 brass. .32 H&R works; .32 S&W Long works; and .32 S&W is acceptable, but slightly undersize. No one made 'official' .327 Federal dies until February, and the .32 S&W L and .32 H&R dies were backordered months out.

Recently, more components have become available (or the backorder times are shorter). So, my wife picked up her .327 BlackHawk a couple weeks ago. It's just too bad we haven't been able to shoot it yet.... still waiting on dies (they've been in my local UPS warehouse for 7 days now - waiting for their 'scheduled' delivery date)...
 
Anyone else reconsider a gun due to not finding the ammo for it?
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Nope! Not me, anyway. Been a handloader for over 35 years, and I really don't give a rip about what's on the shelf at Walmart. I have 15 calibers that I shoot out of handguns, and a couple of them are currently not having brass produced, and one other that NEVER had commercial brass made for it. Doesn't stop me (although it does tend to slow me down a bit), I make my ammo, form cases, do what I need to do to shoot what I want to shoot!

If you are considering not getting a particular handgun caliber, because Walmart doesn't have ammo in stock, I suggest you re-examine your priorities.

Grow up, bite the bullet (so to speak), open your wallet if need be, and realize that not everything worth having will be found on the discount store shelves!
 
Not when you reload. So to answer your question, no.
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I'm with you guys (Don P, 44 AMP, and others) that pay almost no attention to loaded ammo for gun purchases.

But you do need to know what you're getting yourself into for reloading components and equipment.

Buying a Russian Nagant revolver 15-20 years ago would have meant for some seriously frustrating endeavors in tracking down affordable dies and loaded ammo as a source of brass.

Even today, buying an 1886 Lebel rifle means for some extra steps and/or equipment in the reloading process. The original chambering used .323-.325" hollow-base projectiles in a .329" bore. To load for it now, you need to cast custom lead bullets, or swage down .330-.338" jacketed bullets.

Buying a Mini-30, SKS, or AK is easy, and reloading components and equipment are easy to find. However, the rifles toss your brass 900 yards while beating the crap out of it. If you want to reload for one, you need to be willing to chase the brass, and figure a 25-50% loss rate. If you chose to try a brass deflector, the brass won't go as far. But the ejection speed will beat the hell out of the cases, when they hit the deflector - I figure that's worth a 20-25% damage loss rate, and still 5-10% loss rate for brass that doesn't want to be found. (Much of the "can't find it" losses depend upon where you choose to shoot, of course.)

What about those Wildcats? Knowing that commercial brass had never been produced for it, I went on a search for quotes a couple years ago. I needed .30-06 x 1.550", made from '06 basic brass, and fully reamed for a slightly thinner case wall. It works out to an elongated .45 Win Mag (or really long .45 Auto), and needs the thinner case wall to be able to expand in the chamber. The '06 case wall is too strong at its normal thickness, and prevents expansion (and the process cannot be done with your average case trimmer/reamer). The only company to give me a quote told me they hadn't produced the brass in more than 10 years, so a run of 5,000 cases would be required to make it worth their time. It would have run me more than $2,500 for the brass. Between the custom dies and the huge lot of brass - the price was too steep.


Even if we reloaders ignore the commercial ammo market... We still weigh other factors.
 
It would (and does) affect my purchase of some calibers but I don't think twice about 9mm, .40, or .45. The amount on the shelf comes and goes but one thing for sure, if the shelf is empty, there will be more soon. Buy a couple of boxes ahead of what you need and you should be fine. Between a couple of Walmarts and a Fleet Farm I can find what I need and gander always has stuff (for a bit higher price). Better news lately, the shelves have been filling up pretty well. Hope that trend continues!
 
I can find any of the major calibers I want on line easily .45acp included. There's a lot of retailers.
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Ah yes, and from your statement money does NOT matter to you having plenty of it.
Personally with todays ammo prices, if I were just getting into shooting I would not consider buying anything above a 22lr caliber JUST because of the price of ammo.
 
I see .45 ammo all over the place. Gun shows, flea market, and I just purchased some at WalMart. The stuff isn't cheap, though. I recall paying $30 for a box of 50 FMJ .45 and about $20 for a small quantity of hollow point defensive ammo.

Still, the unavailability / high price of ammo has curtailed some of my firearms purchases. I just don't shoot as much as I used to. Also, there are only a few handguns that really interest me right now: STI LS40, Sig X-5 9mm, and CZ75 polished or satin stainless. The only rifle I want is a PTR-91...but I'm reconsidering based on what I've read recently concerning some problems they have/had with their barrels.
 
I can't answer about my "next" gun purchase because the future isn't here yet. But it has affected by recent purchases. I passed on an LCP because of the scarcity of .380, and I recently purchased a used Beretta Neos because .22 is so cheap to run through a plinker.

If you are on any sort of budget at all, you have to give at least some thought to the cost of running your toys before you buy them. I am happy for those of you who don't have to consider the costs when purchasing guns and ammo.
 
Not at all. I bought my first handgun, a Ruger KP90, when .45ACP was VERY hard to find. While the hunt for the gun was on, I picked up ammo when I spotted it. Had 600 rounds stashed before I even bought the gun. :cool:

THEN... I got a .357 wheelgun. No secret about ammo availability for THAT caliber.

Good thing I reload now...:D

...and NOW it's the .22lr that's impossible to find...:confused:
 
I have sufficient firearm numbers where buying something different makes little difference in my shooting regardless of how expensive or difficult to find ammo in that caliber. I just shoot something else. No biggie.

Lots of 22LR around now compared to 6 months ago. Lots of just about everything except for the less popular calibers which are still hard to find.
 
I only owned one .380, an old AMT S/A backup I bought 15 yrs. ago and never shoot. I have always wanted a Bersa .380 but have passed on them for years because of the ammo issue. Finally broke down and put one in layaway and commenced looking for ammo. Ran across two 100 rd WWB at wally world $35 a box, so two boxes came home with me.

The local shop where I bought the gun has so much trouble getting .380 they sale 6-12 rounds in a bag with each .380 they sell. Hope this doesn't turn out to be an expensive mess.
 
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