Gun dealers report shortages of ammunition
But retailers say much of the demand is from gun owners who are stockpiling in case certain weapons are banned, who believe that economic chaos may be coming, or who are driven by rumors of inevitable background checks or rising taxes on ammunition. Gun sellers and owners say a run on ammunition began shortly after President Obama was re-elected, and has intensified in the gun-violence debate since the December mass killing of 20 children and six adults at a school in Newtown, Conn.
“We absolutely are in uncharted territory,” said Larry Hyatt, of the family-owned Hyatt Gun Shop in Charlotte, N.C.. “Our store is 53 years old, and we have never seen anything like this. We have had some spot shortages and busy gun times in the past. This is a level (of demand) never before seen.”
He adds: “The political turmoil is intensifying it. People feel like this administration is very anti-gun, and they are going for the legal gun owner.” Among the rumors he hears, he says, are that taxes on ammunition are going up and that background checks for ammunition purchases are coming.
Blowback
Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.
Trackbacks/Pings
Trackback URL
Comments
good. it’s a tax on the ignorant.
sesquipedalian on February 18, 2013 at 8:05 AM
I blame Bishop. We know that hes hoarded it up. lol
tommy71 on February 18, 2013 at 8:06 AM
Mr cmsinaz keeps checking at Walmart and cabelas…. nada on 9mm….unbelievable
cmsinaz on February 18, 2013 at 8:08 AM
If they start doing background checks on ammunition sales that will be the precise moment I start my black market reloading business.
HondaV65 on February 18, 2013 at 8:09 AM
I went to the Reynoldsburg Gander Mountain reopening on saturday. It was the only place I could find .45 ammo. Stood in line for an hour. It was nuts.
loudmouth883 on February 18, 2013 at 8:12 AM
People feel like that because it is true. Unlike the low information folks who support Obama, normal people have the instincts to know when their interests are being threatened. When tens of millions of Americans starts stockpiling weapons and ammo it is not because they don’t want to pay some higher tax on these things later. This is happening because of a deep and intense distrust of their own government. Everything Obama does builds on this “them and us” perspective, because that is who and what he really is.
MikeA on February 18, 2013 at 8:13 AM
try ammoseek.com
they don’t sell it .. but can point you to where it is and how much it is.
conservative tarheel on February 18, 2013 at 8:14 AM
Obama is the worst President in the history of the United States.
albill on February 18, 2013 at 8:19 AM
Thanks con tarheel
cmsinaz on February 18, 2013 at 8:23 AM
^^^ dunce
darwin on February 18, 2013 at 8:24 AM
Most ammo in the common loadings is very hard to find, either online or in the stores.
.22 LR is darn near impossible to find.
I managed to get 20 boxes of CCI MiniMag CPRN .22 online last night before they were all snapped up and was happier than a kid on Christmas morning.
justltl on February 18, 2013 at 8:27 AM
BTW, it looks like Magpul will leave Colorado because of the pending restrictions.
And I see that Cheaper than Dirt is trying to repent of their recent idiocy.
justltl on February 18, 2013 at 8:29 AM
If he’s right, and there’s nothing to fear, why does it bother him that you spend your money on ammunition that you have no use for?
OldEnglish on February 18, 2013 at 8:30 AM
I believe that is pronounced douche.
loudmouth883 on February 18, 2013 at 8:33 AM
I thought that was the lottery…yet I still play that too.
Then again maybe the both partially serve the same purpose, they give us hope.
NickelAndDime on February 18, 2013 at 8:41 AM
Thanks Tarheel! That’s an excellent resource until Holder closes it down.
Dingbat63 on February 18, 2013 at 8:44 AM
Have we figured out why the DHS has purchased enough ammo in the past couple of years to shoot each American a few dozen times?
karenhasfreedom on February 18, 2013 at 8:48 AM
Watching ‘The Walking Dead’ the last few episodes, the zombie apocalypse is less far-fetched than the ammunition usage. Dude, we can’t find nearly that much ammunition NOW, much less after killing zombies for a year and no production. What happened? they come across Homeland Security’s massive ammo dump?
michaelo on February 18, 2013 at 8:52 AM
.223 I can understand, but I don’t get why everyone is stockpiling 9mm. I guess it’s just the fears about new taxes and maybe ammo that has a required micro-stamp. One thing is for sure- finding inexpensive .223 is just nuts.
Also, I won’t use cheaper than dirt again after their gouge-a-palooza.
Free Indeed on February 18, 2013 at 8:55 AM
For tar heel and dingbat:
Check it out.
justltl on February 18, 2013 at 8:56 AM
I know nothing.
Bishop on February 18, 2013 at 9:15 AM
Here’s a little ditty:
Walmart’s Out of Bullets
Fallon on February 18, 2013 at 9:25 AM
Also, the government is doing it’s best to dry up the supply of ammo for civilians. They just purchased another 21 million rounds.
Free Indeed on February 18, 2013 at 9:29 AM
Gouge-a-palooza is right.
Glock Model 17 17 round 9 mm magazine $79.97 !
Glock 9mm 33 round magazine $189.97 !!!
Magpul PMAG 30 round AR 15 magazine $99.97 !!!!
I believe firmly in a free market and the law of supply and demand.
However, I’m still pissed at Cheaper than Dirt for their shenanigans and sheer market stupidity and will likely not buy there again.
Who the hell is running that company, Feinstein?
justltl on February 18, 2013 at 9:31 AM
That was excellent!
ThePrimordialOrderedPair on February 18, 2013 at 9:32 AM
It’s my right to have cheap magazines, dammit!!!
Curses on you Cheaper than Dirt!!!
Say, how much is dirt going for these days?
justltl on February 18, 2013 at 9:42 AM
I have no problems with CTD’s prices. I think that business is business. If they have stock then they should be raising the prices. I said the same to the guy at my range about the prices of range ammo. I don’t blame him for adjusting to the market. The problem I have with CTD is that pathetic cowardice and idiocy they showed when they decided to stop selling guns (before they reversed themselves, though I stopped caring at that point).
Gouging is fine with me. If the market will bear the price then it is a fine price. I see nothing wrong with supply and demand ruling. I cannot abide, however, by a company that acts like a little girl and closes the store just to score some popularity points with people who don’t care what they do and just want to put them out of business, anyway.
CTD should rename their site, Slimier Than Pondscum.
ThePrimordialOrderedPair on February 18, 2013 at 9:46 AM
I guess we’re on the same page. I was still typing while you posted that.
ThePrimordialOrderedPair on February 18, 2013 at 9:47 AM
Yep. Same page.
I’m not very good at satire or whatever.
They can charge whatever they want. That’s fine by me.
Their shutting off weapons sales and trying to claim it was some re-organization thing? Not so fine by me.
justltl on February 18, 2013 at 9:53 AM
It is almost like the American citizens are preparing for war?
trs on February 18, 2013 at 10:00 AM
good. it’s a tax on the ignorant.
sesquipedalian on February 18, 2013 at 8:05 AM
I passed my TX CHL class on Saturday. I’m 5’2 and around 120 and walk everywhere. I guess it’s ‘ignorant’ that I dare believe that I have a right to protect myself against the criminal element. ///
annoyinglittletwerp on February 18, 2013 at 10:09 AM
Here’s a little ditty:
Walmart’s Out of Bullets
Fallon on February 18, 2013 at 9:25 AM
I work there and I keep checking for .38+P or just plain .38. Never anything.
annoyinglittletwerp on February 18, 2013 at 10:11 AM
These kinds of posts scare me for you conservatives and explains why you are continually outplayed by your political opponents.
Karen the answer is the article itself. Since the government cannot immediately ban guns they are using the purchasing power of the fed to artificially inflate the ammo market and either dry up supply or price many citizens out of the market.
If anyone thinks the government is arming up to take on citizens then they are too politically ignorant to fight the issues. While I would not put it past the neo-comm filth that occupies half of this country they know they have to be more subtle in their power grabs.
ClassicCon on February 18, 2013 at 10:13 AM
Also try gunbot.net. It is pretty good about alerting on new ammo stocks.
stvnscott on February 18, 2013 at 10:23 AM
Are you kidding? Has there been anything subtle about Barky or his junta’s actions, at all? Anything??
There is no subtlety in the left. They’re too stupid for that. They have only made it this far because the GOP leadership and people in the House are cowardly azzwipes who have acted out of nothing but fear of being called “raaacists!” by people who do nothing but call everyone “raaacists!” anyway.
This power grab by the left has been as ham-handed and error-ridden as anything in history, but without anyone to push back against them they have been allowed to run amok. The left is not subtle in anything they do – nor are they clever or smart about it, either. They tell transparent lies and muck up everything they touch but without an opposition they are free.
No, the government is not just buying ammo to corner the ammo market. Far from it. They are doing exactly what it looks like they’re doing.
ThePrimordialOrderedPair on February 18, 2013 at 10:30 AM
I support gun/ammo dealers who refuse to sell to federal and state governments that restrict gun/ammo sales to the public.
Group of Second Amendment-Supporting Gun Makers Now Refusing to Sell Arms to Law Enforcement in New York (And Other Gun-Restricting States)
petefrt on February 18, 2013 at 10:31 AM
Why does squishypudlian hate women?
Oh, I know. Because they never call him back.
Can’t imagine why.
CurtZHP on February 18, 2013 at 10:44 AM
It’s getting so that the poor can’t afford to defend themselves. We need an Obama-gun program.
“You’n git Bama-gun!”
slickwillie2001 on February 18, 2013 at 11:10 AM
I was at the Dunes Rifle and Pistol Club show in Valparaiso,IN yesterday. I was on a back up list for tables, and didn’t get to set up until Sunday morning due to and exhibitor’s no-show .(Trying to thin the herd of firearms-related books that are taking over my shelf space). I didn’t get to shop around much, but I did talk to a lot of folks, including a friend who has a reloading supplies business. He and his partner sold astounding amounts of powder, primers and bullets, and are having problems getting supplies from distributors.
Everyone was complaining about the shortages and high prices of ammo and ammo-making supplies.
And the crowd is changing. Lots of newbs interested in high-cap semi-auto pistols and ARS. They substantially outnumbered the collectors and just regular gun folks who normally attend.
I was next to some guys from Ducks Unlimited selling raffle tickets on an AR-15 type rifle. They sold hundreds of tickets, and told me they had sold a couple several thousand tickets last week at a table set up at the local Cabela’s. The odds on that raffle must be approaching Powerball odds.
If this goes on I may have to start reloading again. If I took some of my stored ammo out of the bunker and sold it, I could buy reloading supplies and replace it and still come out ahead.
novaculus on February 18, 2013 at 11:27 AM