How are your ammo stocks? Do you have what you need? If not, you should be aware of a looming global gun- powder shortage which is driving up prices. Adding a .22 LR into your practice, training and recreational shooting is one easy way to cut ammo costs.
August 11, 2024
By David M. Fortier, Executive Editor
Over the last 16 years, American shooters have dealt with a number of ammunition shortages. These drive up prices and make ammunition hard to find. Often, if you did find what you were looking for the price was prohibitively expensive. During the “Great .22 LR Shortage” cheap bulk pack rimfire ammunition was being sold at sky-high scalper’s prices. Prices jumped during COVID, and today, rifle ammunition is still substantially more expensive than it was just a few years ago. Checking my notes, I noticed 1,000 rounds of Wolf 7.62x39mm only cost $200 in 2018. Wolf .223 Rem was about the same. Now, they are over double that. In the not so distant past, a shooter could choose from not only new domestic production ammunition but also economical Russian steel case and inexpensive military surplus. You could save a bit of money shooting either Russian steel case or military surplus. Unfortunately, like the Chinese ammunition before it, Russian commercial ammunition has been banned from import. The ban removed a staggering amount of economical ammunition from the American commercial market. It’s not just sold out, it’s gone for good.
What about military surplus? Well, I have more bad news for you, as the days of cheap military surplus ammunition are also over. The vast warehouses filled with popular and not-so-popular obsolete military calibers are gone. Surplus 7N6 5.45x39mm is banned from import. Various wars around the world, like the one in Ukraine, are consuming surplus ammunition which might have found its way onto the US market. While some will trickle in, the glory days are over. So, that leaves just new production ammunition, either imported or produced domestically, for American shooters to pick from. With the demise of military surplus and Russian ammunition banned from the US market, the ammunition supply for American shooters was already in a precarious position. Basically, you have more gun owners in the US than there has ever been before. But, you have less ammunition available than in years past, a lot less. Now, we have even more bad news, a looming gunpowder shortage. This is not only driving up prices, but it will lead to shortages as well. This will affect both powder for reloading ammunition as well as factory ammunition. Unlike the false Lake City Army Ammunition Plant rumors of 2023 though, the powder shortage is verified by multiple major US ammunition manufacturers. It is not limited to the US either, and is a global shortage. Brett Nelson, the Vice President Sales, Sporting Products at Vista Outdoors stated, “Due to world events our suppliers have notified us of unprecedented demand for and an anticipated global shortage of gunpowder, and thus has increased our prices substantially, we must therefore raise our pricing to help offset those increases.” Reasons for the shortage? These include the war in Ukraine and Chinese companies not selling Nitrocellulose to the US.
So, with a gunpowder shortage looming on the horizon, what is your best course of action? If you have planned in advance and bought ammunition while it was cheap and stacked it deep, perhaps you can weather the storm. However, if you do not have a year or two of ammunition stuffed away, now is the time to act. I suggest sitting down and carefully go over how much ammunition you expect to shoot in 2024. What calibers do you shoot? Do you reload? If so, what powders do you primarily use? How much money can you realistically budget to spend on ammunition? Use this information to form a plan. While everyone’s situation is different, most will want a mix of ammunition for practice, recreational shooting, and training as well as high quality expanding loads for hunting and/or personal protection. As I write this, .22 LR and 9mm FMJ are reasonably priced if ordered online in bulk. When it comes to rifle ammunition, .223 Rem tends to be the most economical. You can save a lot of money training and shooting recreationally with a .22 LR pistol and rifle. I suggest, at the very least, covering your basics. If you need some ammunition for personal protection and hunting, then better grab them now. If you need some ammunition for training and practice, grab that too. Just use your head, do not over-extend yourself financially and spend your money wisely. How long will the gunpowder shortage last? It’s impossible to say, but I doubt it will go away quickly. Plan accordingly, buy what you need and be prepared for whatever may come. If you have any thoughts or comments on this article, we’d love to hear them. Email us at FirearmsNews@OutdoorSG.com.
