Can't sell nor buy .22lr.

P

Pahoo

New member
Now then I have a pretty good supply of all ammo that I shoot and that includes .22LR. I really don't need any at this time and refuse to pay GS prices. My timing sucks so most guys beat me to it when it comes into the stores. More than once, a friend will phone me looking to buy some .22LR. When I tell them about the current going prices, they have fits. Because they are friends, I make them a deal. I certainly can't sell them any at these inflated prices so, I have offered to loan them a reasonable amount of .22LR, say a brick. Then at a later date when pricing goes down, they can just replace it. Now that one really throws them for a loop and most have not taken the offer because they say it's not fair to me. So, for the most part, I'm stuck with my .22's. ..... :cool:

Life is not suppose to be fair ..... :eek:

Be Safe !!!
 
This is simply too much pressure to handle. Surely this will cause problems and jealousy between you and your friends. I will be the stand up guy and come take the "problem" ammunition away for you. :)
 
ATK is manufacturing 7 BILLION rounds of .22lr a day (here in Lewiston, ID). That's just under 13 million bulk 550 bricks. They are contractually back ordered for 2 years for .22lr. It's like the toilet paper shortage from Johnny Carson's stunt in the '70's. It's not on the shelves, it must be real!
 
I sold every single round of rimfire I had about four months ago... .22LR, .22WMR and .17HMR. All total something like 18K rounds. I sold the rifles about a year ago. I grew tired of the persistent shortages and hugely inflated prices. I also tired of "friends" who wanted me to sell them ammo at prices from three or four years ago. I did sell a few bricks but... what am I? The friendly neighborhood ammo supplier willing to take losses?:confused: Nope.:(
 
The demise and extinction of the .22 is surely on the horizon.....I'm hanging onto the ammo so it'll be easier to sell my rim fire collection. "Buy an antique .22 and I'll throw in two bricks of extinct ammo." (heehee):)
 
I feel your pain ...

My wife shoots in local leagues and during the peak, she would go through almost 7-800 rounds a week. Consequently, we kept a generous amount of 22LR on-hand.

Now, many of the leagues have folded because shooters can't find ammo or find it at reasonable prices.

I have stacks of 375 round bricks of CCI 22LR Tactical (not exaclty sure what is so tactical about it) and the wife shared with a select few shooters but we had to draw a line when it became obvious that reasonably priced 22LR was a thing of the past. The stash we have is finite.

The wife has scaled back her league and practice significantly, but we will eventually run out.

I personally think the new "norm" for 22LR is $.08-10/round and that's where it will stay. I hope I'm wrong ...
 
No more good-old-days !!!

I personally think the new "norm" for 22LR is $.08-10/round and that's where it will stay. I hope I'm wrong ...
Click to expand...
I think you are spot on current pricing. This past weekends GS was showing $50.00 a brick for the common rounds and this is a little down from a few weeks back. Now, that was on Saturday and Sunday, I inquired at two local chain stores, only to the, "What do you think look and comment". Another store is running an ad for them and there in the paper but none on-hand ... :(

Be Safe !!!
 
I personally think the new "norm" for 22LR is $.08-10/round and that's where it will stay. I hope I'm wrong ...
Click to expand...

Nah, even now it can be had for 8-10 cents and the prices have been declining slowly for several weeks. It is periodically showing up online for 5 cents or so. Bulk packs are arrving in stores and selling at $19.95 or so. That's 4 cents.

The best evidence of all is that this is not the first (or second or third) panic and prices always stabilize and return to pre-panic levels.

weedwacker said:
ATK is manufacturing 7 BILLION rounds of .22lr a day (here in Lewiston, ID).
Click to expand...

I'm curious what is your source of that information? It sure seems impossibly high.

It is also hard to imagine that they would be back-ordered 5,110,000,000,000 (5.1 TRILLION rounds).

According to the NSSF, as of 2012, the total ammunition consumed in America (all kinds of center-fire and rimfire) was 9.5 billion shells. I don't think ATK is producing that much .22 rimfire every 32 hours.
 
Last edited:
Yes there are islands of bulk showing up at big box stores and the bulk of the bulk is being scarfed up by resellers.

As long as that trend contiues ....
 
That trend isn't the problem.

The resellers are only buying because the end-user is buying from them.

THAT is what has to stop.

It's just the good ol' free market at work.
 
This has been going on for 18 months. At what point does this go from a "temporary shortage" to "how things are going to be"?

If the flippers are selling everything they are buying, that means that supply still hasn't met demand. It doesn't matter who makes the final sale. If the shelf is cleared out, that means there wasn't enough on it, whether the shelf was at the store or a flipper's house. We will know supply has met demand when the flippers can't sell what they buy before the next shipment hits the retail shelves.
 
This past April I came back from a month in Florida to find TWENTY INCHES of water in my finished basement.
Soaked were SIX THOUSAND rounds of CCI Sub. h.p. & CCI std. vel. along with much SK match rifle.:eek::eek:
Another 6K in G.I. ammo cans were just fine.
Ins. will cover my losses (many & lots of ammo) but how does one replace 6 K rnds of .22 r.f these days?
I was lucky coming home & found 2K I bought in Ocala at a Cabelas for retail price.
So fare I've replace 4K of the 6K lost but not with CCI.
Could only get Blazer & Champion ammo.
(sniff)
Now have 14K or so hi & dry.
.22 ammo is getting available at some local shops but only a trickle.
 
Last edited:
If the flippers are selling everything they are buying, that means that supply still hasn't met demand.
Click to expand...

A lot of it isn't "flippers", it's hoarders. Even if the flippers are selling, it's still the hoarders who are buying. Yes, it means supply doesn't meet demand but the demand is artificial. It's self-induced... the shelves are cleared by panicky buyers who are only panicked because the shelves are clear. Round and round it goes.

This is the longest such shortage I can recall but it's certainly not the first, or the last. This too will end.
 
I haven't bought 22LR in almost 2 years now. I just stopped buying due to my refusal to pay the outrageous prices. I actually gave away my last few bricks because we needed some to do a group shoot last winter. It doesn't bother me, i just shoot other guns instead. Obviously i don't shoot as much as i used to(i instead do my other hobbies more. More reloading, more hiking, more camping, ect.) Eventually this shortage will end.
 
Nah, even now it can be had for 8-10 cents and the prices have been declining slowly for several weeks. It is periodically showing up online for 5 cents or so. Bulk packs are arrving in stores and selling at $19.95 or so. That's 4 cents.

The best evidence of all is that this is not the first (or second or third) panic and prices always stabilize and return to pre-panic levels.
Click to expand...

It seems that some areas get it, but certainly not all stores in get the same amount of 22lr. If you are fortunate to find 22lr ammo in your area, consider yourself lucky.

I have not seen one brick of 22lr at any walmart in my metropolitan area since Jan'13. Some LGS are slowly getting them back in, but at $.10/rd

here is a stack of 22lr 525-rd bricks at my LGS for $50 taken last week.


There was more on another counter, and no purchase limits.
 
22LR is still essentially unavailable here in Rockford, IL. I guess Walmart does get some but I don't want it enough to be standing in line at the crack of dawn every day, just in case some came in. I find I can generally buy some, with limits, at G.A.T. in Elgin, IL. I have about 3,000 rounds so I am good for a year or more.
 
We have an equal amount of flippers, hoarders, and those starved for any 22lr ammo up here in Alaska.

All that gets on the shelves of the retailers is gone in less than an hour. Some stores are now randomly stocking shelves thru the day to stop the mad rush of buyers when they open the doors.

One local gun store is trying to convince people that with bulk orders of ammo, the best price per brick he can get right now is $65. And that all the stores selling their stock at $20-25 per brick currently, are only able to do so while the current orders are being filled. He insists that in a few months, after the current orders to all the retailers have been filled, the cost per brick from the manufacturers to the distributors will be $65 per brick.

No one is buying into his story though.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top