Posted on 04/26/2013 6:46:18 PM PDT by frankenMonkey
Just noticed on www.556RECON.com that some 556x45 55 grain FMJ has dropped to 65 cents per round.
Link to report here.
Link to ammo: here.
I hear ya FRiend, CTD will reap the whirlwind along with several other ammo/firearm outlets. I’ll never forget.
I’m thinking of hitting the gun show tomorrow, Washington Arms Collectors at the Puyallup fairground in Washington state. These guys ALWAYS have boatloads of ammo... not sure of the recent price, I have about 1000rds of .223 so I never got any there. They also sell tons of 7.62X39
Supply and demand. A thing is worth exactly what another will give for it. If its selling at that price it’s worth that price. At least it’s available! Those whining “price gouging” fail to see: if it were cheaper, it would be gone.
Don’t complain they’re charging too much, berate yourself for not getting when the gettin’ was good.
Yes. Could be a mad rush to dump ammo. It would serve some people right to sustain a loss after outrageous price gouging. However, I think the supply will gradually increase and prices will slowly decline. There’s still a lot of pent-up demand for some calibers of ammo, specifically 9mm and .22lr.
There is such a thing as stupid business practices. If someone charges very high prices during market scarcity, they will lose the good will of long-standing customers when market conditions return to normal. Everyone understands that prices are linked to supply and demand. However, just because you can charge more due to scarcity, is it a wise long-term business strategy to do so. The restraint of many vendors during this ammo/gun shortage will be favorably remembered and rewarded by their customers and the excess of others will also be remembered and responded to accordingly.
I got some last year. Brass, reloaded.
Amen!
Pricing includes recouping enough to buy the next batch to sell. CTD isn’t the only one in the supply chain marking up.
If you want to pay more, nothing is stopping you from making a contribution to the Underpriced Ammo Fund, Mr. Buffet!
Or did you mean that price is still twice what we should be paying?
Not having any to sell doesn’t help retain customers either.
Old joke:
Customer - “You charge too much! The butcher down the street is selling pork chops for $5/lb! You are charging $10/lb!”
Butcher - “So go buy from him.”
Customer - “But he has none!”
Butcher - “Fine. When I sell out, I’ll charge $5/lb too.”
Everybody’s definition of what is a reasonable price “mark-up” is entirely subjective. In the case of CTD, the consensus, I have seen from visiting ar15.com and other gun forums, is that they went too far. It will be interesting to see who the market will favor as things get closer to normal.
Economic decisions are rarely made solely on dollars and cents. I'll pay a premium for good service.
Sending out catalogs without printed prices so that the price can be as high as possible when you order is the inverse of that service.
Interesting. I wonder if things (and people) are starting to calm down a little.
Then they received a bunch of nasty grams; near immediately. Then they tried to say they were just reviewing their sales practices/policies to make sure they were still in line with the various laws.
Then they blasted all their prices through the roof; not just on ammo. This was well before the prices really started to soar. They were selling AR mags (USGI made by the lowest bidder) for around $60 each when they were available elsewhere for anywhere from $15-30.
The one not entirely stupid thing they did, was donate to the 2d Amendment Foundation. But, by that point they had already pissed off a good portion of their customers. I know several people (myself included) that will not purchase from them; and I WAS a pretty frequent customer prior.
centerfiresystems, and sportsmansguide are awesome and I will continue to be their customer. They were continuing to have sales; while their prices increased, they were still offering lower than everyone else.
Yes. CTD angered its customers by some of its business practices and they will have a hard time trying to fix that perception.
Personally I’ve been waiting for .223 and .308 to come down ... just ordered 1,000 rds of .223. Paid too much, but I’m running low and wanted it so I could take the kids shooting.
I backordered ammo from Cabela’s in Jan. It took three months to ship. I was fortunate to get it. The cost, while high by last year’s standards, .50/round is better than most places now-a-days. The price of .223 and .308 is coming down and the supply is becoming more plentiful. I see a light at the end of the tunnel.
In the next couple of months, as things return to something like normal, I will resume my normal bulk purchases of ammo. I will slowly build my stock again. This time I will keep twice as much as I had last time. I got through this ammo panic better provisioned than most of my friends. I even sold some of my ammo at pre-panic cost to these friends. However, I learned an important lesson. I will stack it deeper in the future.
Far as ammunition goes, I'll never buy from CTD after the gouging they did.
Calm before the storm.
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