Your ammo supplies: reload or stockpile?

[Catskillkid]

Stockpile, though I haven't been hoarding nearly as much as I used too since the Gander Mountain near me closed down (it was the closest most convenient place for me to buy ammo). When Gander Outdoors opens up that may change. We'll see. If I had more space I'd like to get into reloading, but more as a hobby. I don't ever see myself as being the Eugene "Bullet Maker" of the post-SHTF world. lol

 

[SmallGameAddict]

I live in the country. Homeowner. Acreage. Grew up here. Military veteran, regular Army. The National Guard doesn't exactly motivate me to wet myself. Come and get me. Look behind you. Quiet, private lifestyle. Low profile. Pretty much do as I please. Those idiots in Albany or DC start passing Full Retard laws, I will ignore them, and keep my mouth shut. All on them. I am a law-abiding citizen-to a point. If and when they go Full Retard, all bets are off. It's on them. All they will ever hear is thunder from the mountain. NEVER shoot more than once. Your exact position will be very difficult to pinpoint. Never expose yourself for more than 3 seconds. Know the difference between cover and concealment. Veterans, remember your combat training. Ask no quarter, and give none. May the best man win.

 

[Patriot]

affordability has nothing to do with how much I have on hand. It boils down to how much I can carry when the SHTF. You can have 10K rounds on hand, if you can only carry 1K rounds, whatever is left is a waste.
Unless you're going to shelter in place, then you never have enough LOL

Agree with this completely. I stockpile, but have thought this through quite a bit and believe that in a true SHTF scenario at some point you will be on the move on foot or two wheels. Roads will be too congested and unnavigable. I have personally selected 3 guns that I will be taking with me and ammo for those three guns has been factored in. Sheltering in place long term for anyone who lives near a major metropolitan area will likely not be feasible long term.

 

[livingston]

anyone who lives near a major metropolitan area
So how far out would be safe ? I believe many of these folks will not leave the city ...

 

[freddy]

anyone who lives near a major metropolitan area
So how far out would be safe ? I believe many of these folks will not leave the city ...

How far? Mel Tappan would say: 'one tank of gas'.

 

[Podmonkey]

Again, why is the only use for an ammo stockpile for a SHTF situation? Everyone should stack away what they can to tide them over during panic times.

 

[gun_slinger_boy]

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say not as much as you think. Unless you're gonna use it for trade, if you live long enough to shoot enough people to use up 10s of thousands of rounds of each caliber I think you could pick up a whole bunch of ammo and guns as well lol.

 

[livingston]

How far? Mel Tappan would say: 'one tank of gas'.

That would mean almost every square inch in the eastern United States is at risk . Many cars have a range of 300-350 miles . and there is a major city somewhere within that 350 radius

 

[freddy]

That would mean almost every square inch in the eastern United States is at risk . Many cars have a range of 300-350 miles . and there is a major city somewhere within that 350 radius

Exactly! Have plenty of 'ballistic treatment' on hand.

Ammo will only get more expensive.
Ammo will only become harder to get.

 

[livingston]

Once a group is assembled during a shtf situation ... Some will have no gun background ... Having a good supply of ammo would give practice time to the folks that would need it. I can see having a window before things get dire

 

[cgrutt]

I seem to have 1500 rounds of 12 GA target loads that nobody wanted for a smoking deal... Yeah, maybe a few more here and there, lol...

 

[Uzi]

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say not as much as you think. Unless you're gonna use it for trade, if you live long enough to shoot enough people to use up 10s of thousands of rounds of each caliber I think you could pick up a whole bunch of ammo and guns as well lol.

This is the case.
Surviving constant firefights using thousands of rounds of ammo as a lone defender over and over again is pretty far fetched. Someone will die sooner than later or suffer fatal gunshot wounds in urban close quarters. It's like some sort of video game like fantasy or something for many. You're not going to be carrying hundreds of pounds of ammo with you on foot. If you're getting fired at by more than one person or small groups over again, good luck surviving without relocating because they'll forward their position eventually and it won't matter what guns or how much ammo you have when you're getting fired back at from 4 different angles.
Word gets out that you're the guy that has food, water, resources, ammo etc. You're target number one and your persistence to stand your ground on your property will get you killed long before you run out of ammo. I also don't think people analyze too much about killing other people when these discussions arise. Are you prepared to kill and dispose of dead bodies around your property if you're fortunate enough to have won a firefight? You're not going to want to kill people in any event most likely, and it will be difficult killing people that just needed water and food for an example. Is it all fine and dandy because you have 150,000 rounds of 9mm? I just don't think in reality it'll be like people think these hypothetical events might go down.

Personally, I have too many firearms and I have no where near 10,000 rounds of anything. I can't carry all my firearms or ammo anyways, but I believe I'd have more than enough ammo to endure the limited amount of firefights I could survive. For this reason, I end up shooting at the range and generally just try to buy back what I used for next time.

 

[freddy]

10,000 rounds for 30 years is less than one round per day. - Per person.

If you have 10 armed people drawing from that 10k then you have less than one round every 10 days. Better make that one shot count. That has to cover trade, defense, offense, losses, training, etc.

A firearm without ammo is damn near useless. Some say a 'mag a minute' in a gunfight. A 30 round mag that is.

Never hear someone say after a gunfight "Jeesh, I had too much ammo!"

 

[freddy]

This really speaks to a big advantage from living in an anti-gun part of the country. Few people have guns relatively - a significant benefit compared to living in Texas for example, in a shtf scenario.

But this applies only if you have the ammo.

 

[cgrutt]

Well I fully expect to properly dispose of 400 - 500 rounds of .40 CAL at Fry's next class, LOL. Doing what I can. For the children...

 

[Robin]

I seem to have 1500 rounds of 12 GA target loads that nobody wanted for a smoking deal... Yeah, maybe a few more here and there, lol...

All my ammo is 'target loads'. Wish I was closer.
Robin

 

[Marine Cpl]

10,000 rounds for 30 years is less than one round per day. - Per person.

If you have 10 armed people drawing from that 10k then you have less than one round every 10 days. Better make that one shot count. That has to cover trade, defense, offense, losses, training, etc.

A firearm without ammo is damn near useless. Some say a 'mag a minute' in a gunfight. A 30 round mag that is.

Never hear someone say after a gunfight "Jeesh, I had too much ammo!"

And you'll find out that a firearm with that much ammo will be equally useless after you lose your first firefight.

 

[freddy]

And you'll find out that a firearm with that much ammo will be equally useless after you lose your first firefight.

Brilliant.

 

[GOPerfect]

I seem to have 1500 rounds of 12 GA target loads that nobody wanted for a smoking deal... Yeah, maybe a few more here and there, lol...

Not exactly true C, I would have taken much of it, but you are so damn far away,.

 

[GOPerfect]

When it comes to stockpiles of anything, it depends on what your outlook is and why you are stockpiling in the first place.

 

[Jmac00]

First off, you really don't need that much ammo. If the SHTF goes on long enough, there will be plenty of guns and ammo laying on the ground. Your ONLY JOB here is to stay alive, do whatever it takes to stay that way.

If and when the SHTF, and you have to shelter in place, you should go dark. Barricade the doors and windows, use one or two candles at night and stay quiet.

If you have to evacuate or go to your BOL (which is what I would do if possible) is take as much ammo as I could carry comfortably and move fast. My BOL is already stocked, so no worries there

 

[Marine Cpl]

First off, you really don't need that much ammo. If the SHTF goes on long enough, there will be plenty of guns and ammo laying on the ground. Your ONLY JOB here is to stay alive, do whatever it takes to stay that way.

If and when the SHTF, and you have to shelter in place, you should go dark. Barricade the doors and windows, use one or two candles at night and stay quiet.

If you have to evacuate or go to your BOL (which is what I would do if possible) is take as much ammo as I could carry comfortably and move fast. My BOL is already stocked, so no worries there

Yep. If you have to expend that much ammo to defend your home, you are dead. Plain and simple. If on foot, the same applies.

About the only good enormous amount of ammo is good for is trade. That's it.

Even if there was a shortage in a non SHTF situation, are you still going to be going out and burning a thousand rounds at the range in one sitting? No. That would be foolish.

 

[Jmac00]

Yep. If you have to expend that much ammo to defend your home, you are dead. Plain and simple. If on foot, the same applies.

About the only good enormous amount of ammo is good for is trade. That's it.

Even if there was a shortage in a non SHTF situation, are you still going to be going out and burning a thousand rounds at the range in one sitting? No. That would be foolish.

and what would be the point, if your rifle is dialed in, most rounds after that is kinda wasted? Once I get a rifled dialed in I'll take it out on occasion just to send a few 'cold shots" down range.

 

[freddy]

A case of 5.56x45 at 1,000 rounds is but three to five loadouts. Not much at all if you are looking at any length of time or supplying more than an individual.