Buy it cheap and stack it deep.
I've been thru this a few times before. After the Bush ban in (I think) the 80s. Prices of ARs went from 250 to 1000 overnight. Never came back down to that level (sort of)
Then the Clinton bans.
First on Chinese imports. I remember being able to get CASES of 7.62 x 39 for 79 bucks. and SKS rifles for 89 bucks. Right after the ban, I watched a mountain of imported 7.62 x 39 melt at one gun show. At that time, I was of the mindset that I didn't need THAT much and besides, I didn't really shoot 7.62x39.
Next came the infamous assault weapons ban. And assault magazine ban. Mad dash and mad scramble. A lot of people, myself included, didn't think it would pass. I remember "preban" Glock mags going for 75 to 90 bucks each. Ruger 10/22 Ramlines were 50 to 75 bucks. During that one, ole Slick Willie was even trying to impose an arsenal tax (10 guns or more than 1000 rounds of ammo or ammo components). You couldn't find primers or projos for months. I remember several stores imposing a 200 primer per customer limit when they did get them in.
Ever since then, I try to save ALL of my brass. And I will admit to being a brass whore at shooting ranges. If no one is controlling it, I am/was not above sweeping as much brass as I could into my pile. Used brass isn't going to go bad in my lifetime, so even when the ammo is/was "inexpensive" I saved the brass.
I like to try to have 10 mags per firearm. Especially plastic mags, like Glock and 10/22. And, if one breaks, you don't get rid of it. At least during the last AWB, if you screwed up a Glock mag, you could send it back to the factory for repair. Ramline wasn't as kind. Even though they had a "lifetime guarantee". If you sent one of the hi-caps back to them, they sent you a 10 rounder as a "fix".
Since those days, I've tried to buy what I could when I could. Never over extend what you can comfortably afford.
Take this scare as a lesson. Learn from it. Buy what you can as you can. 100 rounds here, 1 or 2 mags there. Do not panic purchase. Do not spend more than you can. If things blow over for a while, buy em cheap and stack em deep. And keep doing it.
As to ammo. It depends on what you are stocking up for. Recreational shooting? Personal defense? Repelling the Zombie whores? I mean hordes. I've burned through as much as 3000 rounds in a weekend before. But that was at a semi organized full auto shoot. And I sure haven't done it much!!!
Take a look at the numbers. Let's say you have a Glock 19. So, 15 rounds per mag. 20 magazines is 300 rounds. 900 rounds would be 60 magazines worth of shooting. If you look at ARs, then 30 rounds per mag. 30 magazines is 900 rounds.
If you are talking about "bugging out"? You ain't gonna carry much. 1000 rounds of 9mm is close to 30 pounds (I think). Kinda hard to hump around the countryside with nothing but ammo in your ruck.
If you are talking about "bugging in", then "buy it cheap and stack it deep". Or reload your butt off.
If you don't reload, learn. Even if you don't reload, you can still buy brass and primers for the day that you need to reload.
Heck, I'm actually debating getting a pistol in .40 or .357Sig cause it is apparent that very few people shoot those calibers cause that is all that is ever on the shelves.
Sorry to ramble.
Dave
I've been thru this a few times before. After the Bush ban in (I think) the 80s. Prices of ARs went from 250 to 1000 overnight. Never came back down to that level (sort of)
Then the Clinton bans.
First on Chinese imports. I remember being able to get CASES of 7.62 x 39 for 79 bucks. and SKS rifles for 89 bucks. Right after the ban, I watched a mountain of imported 7.62 x 39 melt at one gun show. At that time, I was of the mindset that I didn't need THAT much and besides, I didn't really shoot 7.62x39.
Next came the infamous assault weapons ban. And assault magazine ban. Mad dash and mad scramble. A lot of people, myself included, didn't think it would pass. I remember "preban" Glock mags going for 75 to 90 bucks each. Ruger 10/22 Ramlines were 50 to 75 bucks. During that one, ole Slick Willie was even trying to impose an arsenal tax (10 guns or more than 1000 rounds of ammo or ammo components). You couldn't find primers or projos for months. I remember several stores imposing a 200 primer per customer limit when they did get them in.
Ever since then, I try to save ALL of my brass. And I will admit to being a brass whore at shooting ranges. If no one is controlling it, I am/was not above sweeping as much brass as I could into my pile. Used brass isn't going to go bad in my lifetime, so even when the ammo is/was "inexpensive" I saved the brass.
I like to try to have 10 mags per firearm. Especially plastic mags, like Glock and 10/22. And, if one breaks, you don't get rid of it. At least during the last AWB, if you screwed up a Glock mag, you could send it back to the factory for repair. Ramline wasn't as kind. Even though they had a "lifetime guarantee". If you sent one of the hi-caps back to them, they sent you a 10 rounder as a "fix".
Since those days, I've tried to buy what I could when I could. Never over extend what you can comfortably afford.
Take this scare as a lesson. Learn from it. Buy what you can as you can. 100 rounds here, 1 or 2 mags there. Do not panic purchase. Do not spend more than you can. If things blow over for a while, buy em cheap and stack em deep. And keep doing it.
As to ammo. It depends on what you are stocking up for. Recreational shooting? Personal defense? Repelling the Zombie whores? I mean hordes. I've burned through as much as 3000 rounds in a weekend before. But that was at a semi organized full auto shoot. And I sure haven't done it much!!!
Take a look at the numbers. Let's say you have a Glock 19. So, 15 rounds per mag. 20 magazines is 300 rounds. 900 rounds would be 60 magazines worth of shooting. If you look at ARs, then 30 rounds per mag. 30 magazines is 900 rounds.
If you are talking about "bugging out"? You ain't gonna carry much. 1000 rounds of 9mm is close to 30 pounds (I think). Kinda hard to hump around the countryside with nothing but ammo in your ruck.
If you are talking about "bugging in", then "buy it cheap and stack it deep". Or reload your butt off.
If you don't reload, learn. Even if you don't reload, you can still buy brass and primers for the day that you need to reload.
Heck, I'm actually debating getting a pistol in .40 or .357Sig cause it is apparent that very few people shoot those calibers cause that is all that is ever on the shelves.
Sorry to ramble.
Dave
