Posted on 08/29/2009 11:01:49 AM PDT by Steelfish
Fear of gun limits fuels a burst of demand for bullets
Since President Obama's election, demand for guns and ammunition has skyrocketed. Gun shops have trouble keeping bullets in stock.
A sign at the Los Angeles Indoor Pistol Shooting Range notifies customers the sale of ammo sales is limited. (Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times / August 25)
By W.J. Hennigan August 29, 2009
There's a bull market for bullets.
Stacks of ammo, once piled high at gun shops across America, have dwindled. Prices paid by consumers for much-sought-after Winchester .380-caliber handgun bullets have doubled. At weekend gun shows, trailers loaded with boxes of ammunition are drained within hours.
Budget-pressed police departments, which can't be caught short, have increased their orders just to be safe, and the U.S. military, fighting two wars, has seen its need for bullets quadruple in recent years.
Bullets are in demand as the nation's appetite for firearms has soared. U.S. gun sales are up since the 2008 presidential election, during which the National Rifle Assn. poured millions of dollars into advertisements suggesting that Democrat Barack Obama would move to restrict gun sales if elected
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
Just bullets, or full rounds of ammunition?
Much-sought-after 380s?....it’s just a doggone 9mm short.....Don’t get me wrong, I have a Beretta that shoots’em, but it sure ain’t my go-to-the-mattresses choice of ammo shonuff......
I can see an initial panic to buy depleting the supply, but just how much ammo are Americans prepared to stockpile? At some point you’ve crammed every cupboard full and stop buying, so supply ought to catch up with demand. I’d have thought 7 months would have gotten us to that point.
“Prices paid by consumers for much-sought-after Winchester .380-caliber handgun bullets”
As usual the journo doesn’t know what he’s talking about. I would describe 380ACP as maybe a niche market round, limited to pocket pistols only. A much sort after round would be 9mm, 45ACP, 38 special, 223 remingtom or 308 winchester
I find that 30-30s don't need any sorting after. They all work fine. Just once each though.
But amazingly enough the .380 is still scarcer than hens teeth. Been that way for almost a year at least.
Once again the LA Times misses the mark. How is an 8+ month run on guns and ammo considered a “Burst of Demand?”
“Democrat Barack Obama would move to restrict gun sales if elected”
Did not hear that during the campaign,but I did hear that he wanted to build a force larger than the military.That could be the reason.
Got plenty of guns here in this family,but I would like a 40.
Exactly. I read an article just last week that suggested that that is already the case. The market is near saturation. But this is the LAT. Leave it to them to spur more gun and ammo sales every time they open their mouths, no matter what the market says.
The .380 rounds are the toughest to find around here.
I know one man who has three SKSs and two AKs and a little over 5000 rounds of 7.62X39 to feed ‘em... and he’s looking for more ammo! HYe says he can always trade what he can’t use.
“HYe” should equal “He.” Fat fingers... oh well.
With the exception of 380s, I’ve had no problem obtaining ammo that I need in everything from .22 through 30-06 and 00 buckshot. I have noticed the prices have gone up quite a bit over the past year though.
Of course this type story is designed to enlist a call to disarm the populace. I am prepared to give up mine, ammo first.
Actually the manufacturers of assault rifles have caught up with demand. Many rifles normally on waiting lists are now on the shop racks. Bullet manufacturers are having a harder time, because in order for them to increase capacity they need to literally buy a building and more machinery. Tight credit is preventing them from doing that.
Lot’s of women amd first-time gunbuyers, are picking up .380 pistols. Also some wanting a small concealed carry weapon.
Not my first choice either, but has about a 60-70% one round kill rate with a good hollow-point.
They're not stupid, they're on the other side
“But amazingly enough the .380 is still scarcer than hens teeth.”
Quite true. I have seen a few boxes at recent gun shows, with crazy asking prices, but my local Wal-Mart hasn’t had any since February.
Last pistol ammo I saw in the local WalMart was 380 ACP....the ONLY pistol ammo.
Now I can believe that 380 HPs are hard to find.....
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.