Posted on 08/17/2007 11:45:28 AM PDT by Abathar
Troops training for and fighting the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are firing more than 1 billion bullets a year, contributing to ammunition shortages hitting police departments nationwide and preventing some officers from training with the weapons they carry on patrol.
An Associated Press review of dozens of police and sheriff's departments found that many are struggling with delays of as long as a year for both handgun and rifle ammunition. And the shortages are resulting in prices as much as double what departments were paying just a year ago.
"There were warehouses full of it. Now, that isn't the case," said Al Aden, police chief in Pierre, S.D.
Departments in all parts of the country reported delays or reductions in training and, in at least one case, a proposal to use paint-ball guns in firing drills as a way to conserve real ammo.
Forgoing proper, repetitive weapons training comes with a price on the streets, police say, in diminished accuracy, quickness on the draw and basic decision-making skills.
"You are not going to be as sharp or as good, especially if an emergency situation comes up," said Sgt. James MacGillis, range master for the Milwaukee police. "The better-trained officer is the one that is less likely to use force."
The pinch is blamed on a skyrocketing demand for ammunition that followed the start of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, driven by the training needs of a military at war, and, ironically, police departments raising their own practice regiments following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The increasingly voracious demand for copper and lead overseas, especially in China, has also been a factor.
The military is in no danger of running out because it gets the overwhelming majority of its ammunition from a dedicated plant outside Kansas City. But police are at the mercy of commercial manufacturers.
None of the departments surveyed by the AP said they had pulled guns off the street, and many departments reported no problems buying ammunition. But others told the AP they face higher prices and months-long delays.
In Oklahoma City, for example, officers cannot qualify with AR-15 rifles because the department does not have enough .223-caliber ammunition — a round similar to that fired by the military's M-16 and M4 rifles. Last fall, an ammunition shortage forced the department to cancel qualification courses for several different guns.
"We've got to teach the officers how to use the weapon, and they've got to be able to go to the range and qualify with the weapon and show proficiency," said department spokesman Capt. Steve McCool. "And you can't do that unless you have the rounds."
In Milwaukee, supplies of .40-caliber handgun bullets and .223-caliber rifle rounds have gotten so low the department has repeatedly dipped into its ammunition reserves. Some weapons training has already been cut by 30 percent, and lessons on rifles have been altered to conserve bullets.
Unlike troops in an active war zone, patrol officers rarely fire their weapons in the line of duty. Even then, an officer in a firefight isn't likely to shoot more than a dozen rounds, said Asheville, N.C., police training officer Lt. Gary Gudac. That, he said, makes training with live ammunition for real-life situations — such as a vehicle stop — so essential.
"We spend a lot of money and time making sure the officers are able to shoot a moving target or shoot back into a vehicle," Gudac said. "Any time we have a deadly force encounter, one of the first things we pull is the officer's qualification records."
In Trenton, N.J., a lack of available ammunition led the city to give up plans to convert its force to .45-caliber handguns. Last year, the sheriff's department in Bergen County, N.J., had to borrow 26,000 rounds of .40-caliber ammunition to complete twice-a-year training for officers.
"Now we're planning at least a year and a half, even two years in advance," said Bergen County Detective David Macey, a firearms examiner.
In Phoenix, an order for .38-caliber rounds placed a year ago has yet to arrive, meaning no officer can currently qualify with a .38 Special revolver.
"We got creative in how we do in training," said Sgt. Bret Draughn, who supervises the department's ammunition purchases. "We had to cut out extra practice sessions. We cut back in certain areas so we don't have to cut out mandatory training."
In Wyoming, the state leaned on its ammunition suppler earlier this year so every state trooper could qualify on the standard-issue AR-15 rifle, said Capt. Bill Morse. Rifle rounds scheduled to arrive in January did not show up until May, leading to a rush of troopers trying to qualify by the deadline.
"We didn't (initially) have enough ammunition to qualify everybody in the state," Morse said.
In Indianapolis, police spokesman Lt. Jeff Duhamell said the department has enough ammunition for now, but is considering using paint balls during a two-week training course, during which recruits fire normally fire about 1,000 rounds each.
"It's all based on the demands in Iraq," Duhamell said. "A lot of the companies are trying to keep up with the demands of the war and the demands of training police departments. The price increased too — went up 15 to 20 percent — and they were advising us ... to order as much as you can."
Higher prices are common. In Madison, Wis., police Sgt. Lauri Schwartz said the city spent $40,000 on ammunition in 2004, a figure that rose to $53,000 this year. The department is budgeting for prices 22 percent higher in 2008. In Arkansas, Fort Smith police now pay twice as much as they did last year for 500-round cases of .40-caliber ammunition.
"We really don't have a lot of choices," Cpl. Mikeal Bates said. "In our profession, we have to have it."
The Lake City Army Ammunition Plant in Independence, Mo., directly supplies the military with more than 80 percent of its small-arms ammunition. Production at the factory has more than tripled since 2002, rising from roughly 425 million rounds that year to 1.4 billion rounds in 2006, according to the Joint Munitions Command at the Rock Island Arsenal in Illinois.
Most of the rest of the military's small-arms ammunition comes from Falls Church, Va.-based General Dynamics Corp., which relies partly on subcontractors — some of whom also supply police departments. Right now, their priority is filling the military's orders, said Darren Newsom, general manager of The Hunting Shack in Stevensville, Mont., which ships 250,000 rounds a day as it supplies ammunition to 3,000 police departments nationwide.
"There's just a major shortage on ammo in the U.S. right now," he said, pointing to his current backorder for 2.5 million rounds of .223-caliber ammunition. "It's just terrible."
Police say the .223-caliber rifle round is generally the hardest to find. Even though rounds used by the military are not exactly the same as those sold to police, they are made from the same metals and often using the same equipment.
Alliant Techsystems Inc., which runs the Lake City plant for the Army, also produced more than 5 billion rounds for hunting and police use last year, making the Edina, Minn.-based company the country's largest ammunition manufacturer. Spokesman Bryce Hallowell questioned whether the Iraq war had a direct effect on the ammunition available to police, but said there was no doubt that surging demand was affecting supply.
"We had looked at this and didn't know if it was an anomaly or a long-term trend," Hallowell said. "We started running plants 24/7. Now we think it is long-term, so we're going to build more production capability."
That unrelenting demand for ammunition will continue to put a premium on planning ahead, said Maricopa County, Ariz., Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who so far has kept his department from experiencing any shortage-related problems.
"If we have a problem, I'll go make an issue of it — if I have to go to Washington or the military," Arpaio said. "That is a serious thing ... if you don't have the firepower to protect the public and yourself."
BS.. I just ordered 500 rounds of .223... Russian .223.
.40 S&W... not many troops using that...
I’ve found that surplus NATO boat-tail .308 projectiles (bullets) are getting hard to find on the internet in just the last few months. Can anyone suggest a good source at a reasonable price?
Old wheel weights are ideal. A lot of garages will give you all you want (buckets full) just to get rid of them. Usually they contain just the right amount of antimony for hardness. Add a little plumber’s tin to make them harder if you like.
What?!?!? Lurker owns guns? I would never have guessed.
My first handgun purchase was a Springfield 1911 in 1999. A box of 50 Speer rounds cost $12 at that time. I could reload the brass from that box for $6.00. A Dillon 550 sold for $299 at that time. Dies were about $30. A scale cost around $50. Calipers about $30. A cartridge gauge, $9. Nominally about $500 to get started with the right tools. At a savings of $6.00/50 rds, the break even is 83 boxes. I later added a 44 mag revolver. Ammo for that was $15.00/50 rds, yet reloads were again about $6.00. My wife and I were shooting almost 800 rds of 38SPL a week in San Diego. That stuff is about $10/50 rd...reloads for about $3.50. Suffice to say we amortized the cost of the Dillon press and dies in about 3 months. I did most of the reloading on Sunday nights while listening to Matt Drudge on KOGO. Sometimes my wife would knock out 400 to 500 rds of 38SPL to help keep the stock even with our level of consumption.
Aside from saving lots of money on large caliber centerfire handgun rounds, the ability to custom load my 38SPL target loads made a big difference in competition. I was able to tune my loads to the S&W 686+ and get consistent scores of 96+ on the 25 yard slow fire target. The flat point of the DEWC bullet (double ended wad cutter) left a hole like a paper punch on the paper target.
So their are cities in the US that are hiring entire regiments of 'practice' officers?
Is there not a single copy editor left on the entire planet who can read standard English? This is just embarrasing.
L
I started out doing .45 ACP, then .44 mag. Naturally .44 Spcl progressed from that and then it was off to rifle calibers.
The money you save loading handgun rounds adds up even faster doing rifle rounds.
L
It definitely does. I have a big Rock Chucker Supreme single stage press for doing the more difficult rounds. The big bottleneck rifle brass and long pistol brass e.g. 45/70 needs lubrication...even with good carbide dies. The larger powder throw of the big cartridges demands a little more than the Dillon 550 can do nicely. I use an RCBS powder measure for that. Recently, I broke down and purchased the RCBS Chargemaster Combo (electronic powder drop and scale coupled to produce dead accurate weights). The new powder drop is still in the box. I've been too busy to shoot or reload for months. Once the lawn stops growing, I'll get my weekends back. Time to do some major league restocking.
I decided to go with a few different .308 caliber cartridges...30-06, .308, 30-30. A box of Speer 100 gr Plinker bullets can be loaded onto any of those calibers. Fine plinking at a very affordable price compared to $1.00/round of the cheapest factory loaded ammo. Reduced recoil so my wife can enjoy shooting it too. There are lots of nice, premium bullets for hunting in that caliber too.
On a similar note, a 200 gr .451 cal plays fine in a 45Auto, 45LC, .454 Casull and 460 S&W Magnum. Choice of a common caliber also allows choice of common cleaning accessories for that caliber.
Horsehockey! Ammo is plentiful.
Let’s see, the police need high cap magazines and special armor piercing pistol rounds because they fear that the criminals will have them, which is exactly why law abiding citizens shouldn’t have them. Typical liberal logic.
>Rock Chucker
I want..
And don’t forget the beeswax for flux.
Are you illiterate? I said, "their most important tool"
If you equate police officers being properly trained in the use of their firearm with shooting people, you should be embarassed.
Being properly trained to use a firearm usually eliminates the need to actually shoot people.
25% of all police are killed with their own weapon. That statistic is due to one thing: poor training.
The computer is a great tool, but not the most important tool a police officer carries.
Running a license check is useless if your opponent is armed.
Likewise, not knowing how to run a license check will not get you killed like not knowing how to propely use a firearm.
This whole article is a load of crap. 5.56, 7.62 x 39, 45, 9mm are all readily available and after prices spiking about 6 mos. ago more affordable. I just picked up 100 rds. of Remington .38 spl +p for $25 at Wallyworld and .38 spl IS NOT a preferred military or police round. 9mm and .45 which are, are cheaper!
Yeah, I would prefer ammunition be available to deployed forces, private citizens, and then police.
Liberal PDs do not have a "can do" attitude usually.
A private reloader can churn out a lot of ammo. in a day.
And if the PD was sharp, they already would be doing that, and have an armorer and a reloading team ready incase of shortage.
And they might actually find they prefer reloads as an improvement over regular ordnance ammo, depending on who they had been buying from.
You can say that again, wifey gasped when I ordered 1000 rds of military surplus .303 ammo, and I told her that 1000 rounds is really not very much.
I also ordered a massive quantity of .22 cal. I also stocked up on 9mm, .44 mag, and 45 ACP, but more moderately.
In some ways I can't believe that I am stocking up either, but like everyone, I just got a feeling and acted on it.
This seems to be a phenomenon that is not spoken about much. People are just going out and buying way more than they customarily do, and locking it away.
Ammoman has plenty, so does www.aimsurplus.com
I just got 1,200 rounds of 45 acp from them.
You know, I hear all these stories about ammunition shortages, but I go to my local Gander Mountain store every other weekend, and they seem to have plenty of ammo.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.