Do you think there will be resupply on ammo if the end really comes?

[ebb]

Everyone on the boards tells the nubees to get a gun in 7.62-39 or 7.62-51 or some military caliber so you can resupply after TEOWAWKI. I can see where some .223 might fall off the back of the truck in some guard unit or other militay unit. But i dont see any chance of resupply buy retail sales, with food, medicine, and all the other things people need to get along. I cant see any way for ammo to get into our hands. I belive that if you dont have it at the onset, you arent going to get it , or at least not much. I do see the common calibers being easier to scrounge as they are the most common. But if a person were to want a real oddball caliber i think all he would have to do is to make sure he had enough. In all reality you would only have to survive your first gunfight to have a choice, cause you will have your gun and the loser of the fights gun also. I know a guy that has chosen 243 as his go to caliber, he has a bolt gun that really shots and a couple of AR10s, and a lot of ammo. I dont think he has made a mistake, what do you all think? Ebb

[GAGLOCK]

Not very long ago when we had a mad rush to buy guns and ammo it was the "common" calibers that disappeared fastest and were hard to resupply. I wouldn't count on being able to get more ammo from anyone if some event disrupted the normal supply lines. In other words - you only get what you brought to the dance.

[Matt In Oklahoma]

I cant see counting on "resupply" at all regardless of caliber. If you are shooting that much, for what you should have on hand as a survivalist/prepper, you will probably be killed unless you just have magical black art teir level one tactical ninja skills because you are getting in way to many fights.

[brokedownbiker]

How is this resupply going to happen? In a worst case scenario, what you have is all you are going to have unless you are involved in a large community where commerce is still occurring and you can trade for more ammo. I don't plan for having any access to ammo beyond my onhand stock plus my stock of reloading materials. The last thing you want to do is expend a ton of ammo in a gunfight, best to avoid it and save the ammo for feeding yourself and family.

The only ammunition that is going to be available in any quantity is going to be .223, seeing as it is the primary ammo for the U.S. military. Methinks they will be keeping an eye on that inventory.

Of course, like a guy at the local gun shop says, "With a cheap gun and a couple of rounds, you can get a better gun and all HIS ammo".

Your best bet is to stockpile whatever amount you feel is appropriate for your peace of mind.

[Bearman202]

If you read the blog from the guy named Selco, who went through the pits of hades in Bosnia, he says that you need to plan on at least twice as much ammo as you think you'll need, because you use it for a variety of reasons, only one of which is an actual fire fight. His blog is:

http://shtfschool.com/

It's well worth the read. He also has some decent comments on owning PM's during a crisis. As he says, they're valuable early on, but as the situation continues, they become more and more worthless. It's a good eye-opener if you haven't read it yet.

[1Admin]

I'm not counting on anyone but myself for ANYTHING material I need when something happens.

"Uncle Jack is stocking all the ammo"- booom! Failure if "Uncle Jack" doesn't show or is eaten by zombies on the way to the BOL.

This year we are currently rotating cases of x39 that came in the cardboard boxes and cases. A lot of E. German stuff from the late 90's before "Wolf" got plentiful and cheap. They did not fare too well in humidity. Have not seen a failure to fire yet in approximately 7,000 rounds now, however the boxes showed signs of damage from humidity. Yes I know I need more ammo cans. However when this was put up damage from humidity was never thought to be a potential issue and I used up all the cans I had. Easiest to use the humidity damaged boxes up in training and replace with ammo packed for long term storage.

If it isn't in your "war room", loaded in magazines or buried in your backyard, DON'T COUNT ON IT.

The ammo fairy isn't going to be dropping pallets in the back 40 for you in the PAW.

[Klayton]

"eaten by zombies" I LOVE IT!!

I also would not rely on "others" to restock you with ammunition. Work on your stockpile goals along with your food and water. Do NOT count on "gathering" ammo from downed agressors. Why? Because one that means you have to leave your safe shooting position (you're now the target) and two, he may have fired his last shot at you, and three he may have been carrying an AIR-SOFT to pretend he was armed...

[Grinnan Barrett]

Reloading supplies are your only real hope if it all falls apart. For one thing in a real SHTF experience whatever "Government" takes over will not want to arm the population. You have two options and you need to practice both of them. First you need to stock up on ammo of your main calibers. (Reloadable brass when possible) and second have a loader and loading supplies as much as you can. Extra brass is an absolute along with Powder, primers, bullets, lead, and media for your tumbler.

[xdpatriot]

I'm not sure if you'll be able to find ammo or not. The old saying: 'I'd rather have it and not need it, than need it and not have it' comes to mind. I think you'd better stock up now.

[PerryJeff]

I agree with all resupply isn't going to happen for several reasons and you might be able to barter but it will be a very risky deal to attempt. In my mind the even worse situation is when "Uncle Jack" shows up without anything plus "Aunt Jane and the 6 kids". And to get there they had to promise his neighbor with the 4x4 that he and his family would be welcome as well that you have been storing for years and if they could just get to your place all their needs will be met.

[AGreyMan]

Here's something I wrote to shortly after Obama was elected, during the ammunition craziness that ensued. A bit dated, but hopefully some may find it at least food for thought.



The Myth of "The Myth of the Common Caliber"

It has been an interesting couple years for gun owners.

For years a standard axiom of preparedness folks was to buy a common (preferably mil-spec) firearm in a common caliber. AR-15s, Garands, Lee-Enfields, Remington 1100, and Ruger 10-22s seemed to dominate the survivalist's arsenal in .223, .30-06, .303, 12 gauge and .22 LR respectively. This advice seemed sound. Go into any rural hardware store and odds are you can find the above calibers, along with the ".30-30 Russian" caliber 7.62 x 39.

With the election of the anti-gun President Barrack Obama, many gun owners and even non-gun owners went on a spree to buy a deeper stock of ammunition. President Obama outlined his gun control plan in a newspaper called Chicago Defender Dec. 13, 1999. In it, he advocated a 500% tax on firearms and ammunition. Although the Second Ammendment is quite clear regarding firearms, it is silent in regards to ammunition. Some thought -and still think- that this may be the next attempt at backdoor gun control.

Gone were the shelves full of cheap Winchester White Box 50 round cartons of 9mm. Gone was the surplus .223. Gone were the ammo cans full of $0.18/round .308. even .30-30 was gone. All that could be found on the shelves were cartons of .357 Sig and .45 GAP. .243 and .270 remained. Suddenly, the validity of the axiom was called into question. Some survivalists began to crow that the "Myth of the Common Caliber" was wrong. Why, the current situation proved it, didn't it? I mean, where was the .223? Where was the .40?

I submit the following scenario, however:

In the middle of the post-election ammo panic, a massive F5 tornado goes through your town. Services are gone, medical facilities are overwhelmed, along with the remaining police, fire and EMS. Roads are -on the whole-impassible. The tornado has thrown and/or buried the portion of your house that contained your ammunition, though your "Car Gun"survived. Without services, looters have been seen in your area. In your neighborhood, residents have banded together to protect the contents of their damaged homes, and affect repairs. Which situation is more likely to yield ammunition?


"Hi Neighbor Bob. Listen, I found my rifle. Do you happen to have any .697 Belchfire Express Magnum rounds?"

or

"Hi Neighbor Bob. Listen, I found my rifle. Do you happen to have any .308 rounds?"


Now, Bob may be a bark-chewing, tree-hugging, salad-eating liberal. He may confine his shooting to skeet. He may have lost all his ammunition too. However, a common caliber is more likely to be bummed, bartered or bought from those who may have some to spare. Bob may not have any .308, but Neighbor Sam or Neighbor Darrell might. The odds are far greater that your neighbor has a box or two of .308 than he does .697 Belchfire Express Magnum


So, at times ammunition on the shelf may be difficult to find, but due to it's very commonality, it will be around. I think it comes down to this: If you expect to resupply via a store, then a oddball caliber might have some advantages.However, if you anticipate possible resupply through barter, trade or scrounging, a common caliber is where it's at.



The above having been said, the best scenario is to buy ammo when it's available by the case, and not to store it all in one spot!





Stay Safe,
AGreyMan

[Bear4570]

The only way to be sure you have sufficent ammunition is to depend on noone but yourself. The old saying of buy it cheap and stack it deep, still pertains but unfortunatly it is not as cheap as it once was, but it is still a heck of alot cheaper then if it becomes scarce or not available at all due to resupply problems.

A close friend was over the other day and while in my gun room doing some trading he asked how much I had in ammo stocked in there, when I made the comment not enough, he laughed and said alot more than he had, but he was working on it. What he does not know is that what he saw is only a small portion of what I keep at the house, he should see what is stored in my other two locations. I never keep all my eggs in one basket so to speak. :)

I make it a habit to purchase one 550 box of Federal .22's at least once a month, usually twice. I know have over 12,000 rounds of .22 available to me. This will not only allow me to hunt, can be used for defense in a pinch, but will probably be reserved for bartering should it become necessary. I also keep a modest reloading supplies and equipment available. Better to have it and not need it...then to need it and not have it.

[Not_Yet_Prepped]

I am a simple guy, and I have simple view points on many things (and I know life is not so black and white). Caliber choice is one of those. I want a common caliber and perfer "NATO" Calibers (the China/Russian rifle rounds would also work).

If you survive a gun fight then most likely those that were fighting with you did not make it through. That means they no LONGER have use for their supplies. Again if this fight was a gun fight then there could be AMMO there. A common calibar weapon means possible resupply of said ammo. This could be JOE Zombie (who was not a prepper) from down the block (I hope not) or some random "BLUE HELMET" (following zombie orders to put you in a camp) either way a NATO round is common and will be next to any blue helmets that has holes and maybe common enough for zombies to carry.

Now common calibers means more people/companies are "manufacturing" supplies (tools/equipment/bullets/casings) and that those are more likely to "stock piled" for those common rounds too. So re-loading supplies will be more common and I would guess easier to come by.

Now lets talk about things breaking... If your Super Fancy new rifle chamber in the newset "elephant Death magumn" breaks that you have 1,000,000 rounds of ammo for stock piled for... Well how hard is it going to be to find another replacement rifle?

But say you shoot a SIG 550 and it breaks well your neighbor has a few AR-15s that shoot your same round... Maybe you can trade him 5,000 rounds for one his ARs. Or maybe talk him into giving it to you for your Neighbor Watch program. If you did not have common caliber stock piled it would not be worth it.

I suggest just as in food you stock what you shoot and shoot what you stock... and because of the above possible conditions I choose COMMON NATO rounds. This gives you the widest possible resupply ability.

You can make the same scenerio for the 7.62x39 rounds. If China/Russia or one of their rouge buddies happens to be the ones invading then those work just as well. But not many people reload the 7.62x39.

[woofe]

AGreyMan:

Good analysis. Your comments clearly show why it is manditory to have a secondary stash nearby "just in case".

Many of us have the vault bolted to the floor. It won't blow away, so access to a gun will only take as long as clearing debris away unless the vault is somehow damaged......... For those of us who have bulk stored ammo, I don't see it being blown away although it could possibly be damaged like the vault.

As far as the primary subject of this thread, barter economies (black market) always pop up to fill a need. Ammo won't be cheap, but it will be available as will firearms. And like it or not, in case of open hostilities, battlefield pickup is a way of life as well. Yes it is very dangerous, but it is a limited source to satisfy a need.

Of course as mentioned above, the only way to be absolutely sure is to prepare for yourself and yours.

woofe

[tech]

"Common" calibers are all fine and good to a point. By having a wide variety of firearms to take advantage of both common and not-as-common (but not obsolete) ammo, I figure I'll be long gone before we run out. Keep in mind too, that several calibers common today were originally designed for black powder propellant - .45 Colt jumps to mind imediately...important if post SHTF reloading is high on anyones' agenda. But that's just my outlook.

Now battlefield pickups are great... in PAW fiction. Don't count on it. What are you going to do...tell the winner "Hang on, I wanna grab a few things first." Or to any of the defeated force trying to recover gear "Nope, I've got dibs on what hit the deck???" Good way to catch a serious case of dead.

If you need more ammo, then get it. Now. If you think you may need more ammo, get it. Now.

Don't forget the parts and tools to repair your weapons, along with gathering the info to perform the repairs.