Where Has All the Ammo Gone?: An Update

Following the Sandy Hook tragedy in December 2012 and the subsequent debates about the need for more gun control, the supply of ammunition on retailer shelves pretty much dried up. I wrote about this in the March/April 2013 edition of Random Shots, an article that was subsequently published on the Buckeye Firearms Association website and that became their second most popular posting for that year.

Not only was ammunition in short supply, but when you could find it you were often limited on how much you could purchase and prices were significantly higher, often by a factor of 2-4 times higher! Any of the common self-defense calibers—.380 ACP, .38 Special, .357 Magnum, 9mm Luger, .44 Special, .44 Magnum, .45 ACP, .223 Remington/5.56mm NATO, .308 Winchester, etc. — were all almost non-existent as individuals bought up every round in sight. Even the less common calibers were in shorter supply as individuals bought anything that would shoot in any of the guns they had and manufacturers diverted their materials and efforts to producing the most in demand calibers. Somewhat surprisingly, .40 S&W ammunition seemed to be available but at higher prices than before. Also somewhat surprisingly, .22 Long Rifle rimfire ammunition also disappeared from the shelves and when you could find it a “brick” of 500 rounds rose in price from the $18-$24 range to over $100 in some instances.

There were all sorts of conspiracy theories floated about the government buying up all the available ammunition as a means of imposing gun control without having to go through the legislative process. But of course, all of this is “old news” for those of you that had to live through the shortage.

Then in the September/October 2013 edition, I wrote an article (“It’s Coming Back!”) indicating that availability of ammunition — except for .22 Long Rifle—was improving. Prices were still much higher than before the shortage began and many retailers were still imposing “rationing” limits on how much ammunition an individual could purchase at one time.

Well, by the end of 2014 I am able to report that ammunition availability continues to improve — EXCEPT FOR .22 LONG RIFLE — and prices are now coming back down to “normal” ranges. It is still a little more expensive than it was before the shortage began, but I have seen 50-round boxes of 9mm Luger “range ammunition” selling for just a dollar or two more than what it was selling for back in mid-2012. Hopefully this situation will continue to improve in the coming months and even .22 Long Rifle ammunition will once again be available at reasonable prices. Given this, it’s time to take to the firing ranges once gain and get that proficiency back that has been languishing for a while!

On a final note, one thing that I did notice was that the supply of shotgun ammunition was not really impacted over the past couple of years. If you don’t already have a shotgun as part of your home defense arsenal, you should probably seriously consider adding one. Not only can it fulfill your home defense needs, but it is also a viable hunting and survival tool.

Gary Evens is an NRA-Certified Instructor and Range Safety Officer.