Bullets are speeding faster out of gun shops in U.S.
 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...rss=rss_nation

By David A. Fahrenthold and Fredrick Kunkle
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, November 3, 2009

In a year of job losses, foreclosures and bag lunches, Americans have spent record-breaking amounts of money on guns and ammunition. The most obvious sign of their demand: empty ammunition shelves.

At points during the past year, bullets have been selling faster than factories could make them.

Gun owners have bought about 12 billion rounds of ammunition in the past year, industry officials estimate. That's up from 7 billion to 10 billion in a normal year.

It has happened, oddly, at a time when the two concerns that usually make people buy guns and bullets -- crime and increased gun control -- seem less threatening than usual.

The explanation for the run on bullets lies partly in economics: Once rounds were scarce, people hoarded them, which made them scarcer.

But the rush for bullets, like this year's increase in gun sales, also says something about how suspicious the two sides in the gun-control debate are of each other, even at a time when the issue is on Washington's back burner.

The run started, observers say, as people heeded warnings from the gun-rights lobby that a

new Democratic administration would make bullets more expensive or harder to get. Now that the shortage is starting to ease, gun-control groups are voicing their own dark worries about stockpiled ammunition.

In between, in the 12 months since last October, gun shops sold enough bullets to give every American 38 of them.

"We've had people buy ammunition for calibers they don't even have the gun for: 'Oh, I want to get this gun eventually. And when I get it, ammunition may be hard to get,' " said Michael Tenny, who runs a Fort Worth-based Internet sporting goods store called Cheaper Than Dirt.

Tenny said some of his ammunition tripled in price, but he still sold it: "It's just like playoff tickets."

The Obama factor

It was already a political truism that Democrats prompt sales of both guns and ammo. The U.S. government taxes both to support wildlife conservation, and those receipts jumped after Bill Clinton was elected in 1992 and after Democrats retook Congress in 2006.

Re: Bullets are speeding faster out of gun shops in U.S.
 

The guy who owns my local shop has serious supply issues on ammo.

Re: Bullets are speeding faster out of gun shops in U.S.
 

The ammo rush is pretty much over. Most websites have anything you want in stock and ready to ship.

Re: Bullets are speeding faster out of gun shops in U.S.
 

Just got back from *whispering tone* walmart.
They got an ammo shipment this morning. 50 boxes of 22lr and only about 8 or so boxes left. I picked up 6 since that's the max they will sell you.

On another forum they sell ammo for mark-up prices especially the 22lr. It's been rather hard to find in L.A. at the pre obama prices.

Re: Bullets are speeding faster out of gun shops in U.S.
 

Most all prices for U.S. manufactured ammo are higher. Especially hollow point pistol ammo...

Re: Bullets are speeding faster out of gun shops in U.S.
 

Wonder what the demand would be for a repackaged 'Obamma-Ban' brand special edition 9mm - sorta like Billy Beer only with more punch! Anyone got a printing press ?

Re: Bullets are speeding faster out of gun shops in U.S.
 

FRICKEN A they are.

Re: Bullets are speeding faster out of gun shops in U.S.
 

I've noticed that the ammo shortage in my neck of the woods is over; I can go to Scheels now and find whatever I need... was getting so bad for a while that I was tempted to pay the premiums at GunBroker.com!

Re: Bullets are speeding faster out of gun shops in U.S.
 

Keep up the good work.

:ok:


T

Re: Bullets are speeding faster out of gun shops in U.S.
 

my local WM has had a few boxes of the 'harder to find' stuff lately. not stocked, by any means, but they've not been bare, like they have been for the better part of a year... I got some 9mm yesterday for the first time in quite a while.

Re: Bullets are speeding faster out of gun shops in U.S.
 

I have many gun shops, Wal-Marts, Dick's, etc. around so I've actually been able to find just about everything I want.....but of course I have to pay the price.

Re: Bullets are speeding faster out of gun shops in U.S.
 

:confused_ma:

I've checked a dozen websites and can't find any good 9mm JHP (Cor-Bon, Federal Hydra-Shok, Winchester Silvertip, etc.). They're all out of stock.

What sites are you looking at? I need to stock up badly.

Re: Bullets are speeding faster out of gun shops in U.S.
 

It's definitely NOT OVER.
It is however getting better.

Went to one of are larger places yesterday. Quite a bit of powder in stock, even some I could use. No primers.

.223 and 50 BMG in stock, plenty of .40 S&W. No .45 acp, no 9mm, no .380, no .22. No decent SD ammo of any flavor.