$500 for 1000 9mm?!

[RonRC]

In just the first six months of 2020, approximately 19 million firearms have been sold. Firearms sold in March through July 2020: March 2,600,000; April 1,800,000; May 1,700,000; June 2,400,000; July 1,960,000
Total for March through July: 10,500,000 firearms sold based on background checks.
If each of the buyers also purchased a significant amount of ammo, then the shortage and high prices starts to make sense. If each bought 10 boxes of 50 rounds, then that is 105,000,000 boxes and five billion, 250 million rounds 5,250,000,000! That's more than I shoot in a month!
There are an estimated 400 million guns in circulation for a population of 330 million. If owners bought a box of cartridges for each gun, that 400 million boxes. That's 20,000,000,000 or 20 billion rounds.
Twenty billion plus 5 billion is 25 billion rounds. That's enough to fill a few ammo closets.
Ron

 

[drax05]

Old Smoke, have friend owns several Pawn shops, at one of our gun club meetings (just prior to last election) he said that, at that day, he had a customer come in and try to buy all his .22's and .380's. My buddy said "man you're going to do a lot of shooting" or something to that effect, guy said no, he just wanted to "save" it because of the impending shortage, he didn't even own a gun of either calaiber, well he didn't get any! buddy lost the customer but said he'd rather save it and sell it to his "regular" customers and new handgun buyers.

At a business where I buy certain supplies, I noticed one day (prior to last election) that they had the walls lined with cases of Wolf 7.62x39, two to three cases high. I had to ask, and they said they were planning the demand and prices to go way up (and they did, for a while), but last year I got a call to see if knew anybody interested in buying the whole lot. Trouble is- you could buy it a lot cheaper at that date (from say, TargetSport, where I get 90% of my 9 and 5.56) than they originally paid for it. They closed the store and went out of business and I don't know if they sold it all or not, but if they didn't, well they certainly can now, for quit a profit. Anyhow a lot of ammo is going to folks "hoarding' for whatever reason they have. You see this prior to all elections in the last 10-15 years. As my 2 sons and I usually go through a combo of as much as 2-4000 rds. of /223/5.5/9mm/.40/.45 acp., a year, each, in training or competition, I hoard it myself if one wants to call it that, however, I do, and intend to, keep shooting, training or,,,,,,,,,,,

 

[Hanshi]

For years everything I fired was handloaded and still is. Can't recall the last time I bought any ammo, only powder, bullets and (once in a great while) brass. I haven't fired any cf ammo in years. My stash of ammo and components still reside in Virginia, cared for by a friend. But I shoot only flintlocks, anyway.

 

[afishhunter]

$500 for 1,000 rounds?
That's only 50 cents a round.
Price some (standard, not "Plus P") factory .45-70 or even .308 and .30-06 sometime.
Last time I looked, several years ago, .45-70 was $1.50 a round. (I had a Marlin 1895 SS in .45-70)
Even a brick of .22LR has gone from around $5 or so to around $75. -- if you can find one.
I'm old. I remember going to Wally's and getting a box (50 per box) of 9mm; .38 Spcl/.357 Mag, and .45 ACP for under $20 each.
A box of 25 shot shells or slugs (12 ) for under $5 ...
Going to the gas station and getting full service leaded regular for 15.9 cents a gallon. A regular candy bar for a nickel. (same candy bar today is $1.29 to $1.59)
a 12 ounce bottle of Pepsi or Coke for a dime (plus 5 cents bottle deposit if you didn't have an empty with you)
A gallon of milk AND a loaf of Wonderbread, PLUS a candy bar and 12 ounce bottle of soda (and deposit) for under $2 ...

What hasn't significantly gone up in price?

By the way, you can expect prices to at least quadruple by the end of the decade.

 

[RonRC]

You are correct afishhunter. Prices do go up. But it is exceedingly rare for prices to increase 300% in less than a month (unless you live in Zimbabwe). If everything went up 300% a month, then it is called hyperinflation. That isn't the case here. Ammo prices are just a classic case of supply and demand.

 

[Hanshi]

And not only what Ron said but inflation will continue causing misery.