New firearm depends on ammo?

[WebRat]

Two weeks ago I got an itch to get out the old Ruger 10/22 and do some plinking so I got online and started reading about indoor places to shoot around the Portland area on Yelp. From there I was scanning YouTube on 10/22 videos and different things to customize that rifle. That's when I started seeing videos and reading online about the .22lr "shortage". That's how I ended up here at NWFA while on my quest to acquire 22lr ammo.

I would like to purchase in the near future a new firearm of some sort. I like to buy things new and trusted brand name items. Purpose of weapon would be home defense first, having fun plinking/target practice second. I would not be reloading my own ammo and would like to have about 1,000 ammo in inventory.

I wanted to buy another .22 and was thinking of another Ruger 10/22. Even started looking into the Ruger 22 pistols but if I cannot find any 22 ammo for under 30 cents per shot then I don't feel too enthusiastic about 22s right now and might as well buy something of larger caliber. So that brings me to a couple of questions for you and from there that would narrow down my choices for the next purchase.

1) What brand name ammo is good to buy and what should I stay away from?
2) What is the best size and available ammo for pistols, rifles or shotguns and again what size (hard to find) to stay away from?

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[ZA_Survivalist]

Rifles:
7.62x39, 5.45x39 .223/5.56, 270 and 30-06 all are available every time I look.
Pistols:
40S&W and .45ACP those by far ive found every time I go at various stores.

And of course almost all 12g.

In my opinion the best platforms right now:
An AK in either 7.62x39 or 5.45x39
An entry level AR

Or the cheap seats for rifles:
A rem 750, 7400... Etc,
A mosin, SKS.. Etc

And any pistol in 40 or .45

 

[deen_ad]

Rifle: Sig556R 7.62X39 but as accurate as a AR.
Pistol: 1911 type .45 (Kimber for me)


Deen
NRA Life Member, Benefactor Level
Defender of Freedom Award
NRA Recruiter
Second Amendment Foundation Member
Washington Arms Collectors Member
Arms Collectors of SW Washington Member

"A gun is like a parachute. If you need one and don't have it, you'll probably never need one again!"

 

[samuelm16]

7.62x39 is plentiful so is .40

 

[SVT-ROY]

In my opinion for a fun rifle.....
An AK in either 7.62x39($250-300 for 1000rds and mags are cheap!) or 5.45x39($175-200rds for 1000, but mags aren't cheap). But......For home defense Glaser safety round would most likely be needed, and no matter the cost (with HD ammo price really isn't a factor) I'm not sure if there available. But another plus is a decent AK is cheap to buy and cheap to feed.

22s are avaliable for under 10c a round for cheapo upto 10-12c for goods

 

[oneharmonic]

In my opinion for a fun rifle.....
An AK in either 7.62x39($250-300 for 1000rds and mags are cheap!) or 5.45x39($175-200rds for 1000, but mags aren't cheap). But......For home defense Glaser safety round would most likely be needed, and no matter the cost (with HD ammo price really isn't a factor) I'm not sure if there available. But another plus is a decent AK is cheap to buy and cheap to feed.

22s are avaliable for under 10c a round for cheapo upto 10-12c for goods

My friend here makes a lot of good points.

To answer your questions:

1) I don't pay too much attention to "brand" names when it comes to factory new ammunition. For target practice, whatever's cheapest works just fine. For self-defense pistol ammunition, look at Hornady Critical Defense/Duty, Winchester Ranger, and Federal HST (you can look at ballistics gelatin tests on YouTube to do your own research). For self-defense rifle ammunition, most people just go with military ball ammunition, but you can also use soft-points or ballistic tip ammunition (like Hornady TAP or Winchester Ranger). It's critically important to always shoot a couple of boxes of whatever self-defense ammunition you choose, just to make sure it feeds/functions fine in your firearm.

2) You can find any caliber ammunition if you're willing to pay the price. But if you're looking for widely available, relatively inexpensive to shoot ammunition, your best bets are still:

.22LR
9mm
Russian rifle calibers, such as 7.62x39, 5.45x39, and 7.62x54r

Even though prices of .22LR and 9mm are higher than normal, they are still less expensive to shoot than 40S&W, .45ACP, and larger calibers. Russian rifle calibers are also much less expensive to shoot than .223/5.56x45 and .308/7.62x51; 20-25 cents per round.

If you want to save money on ammo, keep your eyes peeled for deals online. In the "Great Deals" section of the classifieds on NWFirearms, there is a thread about 7.62x39 ammunition for $225/case online. Locally, this ammunition is typically $250-$300/case. Also scout the "Ammunition" classified section, because people occasionally post good deals there. Or stop in once in a while at your local Bi-Mart/Walmart; if you happen to luck into a brick of .22LR or a value pack of 9mm, you'll be set for a bit.

If I was in the market for a new firearm (and I always am ), I would be looking at Russian caliber rifles right now. Quality AKs, like the Zastava Yugo O-PAP, are around $550. Or get a Mosin and some spam cans of 7.62x54r.

 

[Skier]

The two main guns I have are both 9mm (a sub2000 and. Glock 19) and 9mm has been about the most scarce of anything other than possible 22LR. For a while, a few months ago, there was wasnt much of anything on the shelves, especially any of the popular handgun ammo, but if there was any handgun ammo, it always seemed to be 40. Latesly shelves fairly nicely stocked at Bi-Mart, but 9mm and 22LR are still I'm short supply and sell out quickly (usually within hours of hitting the shelves). I've found myself wishing I had a 40, just so I could get ammo, so if supply is your main concern, that's what I'd go with in handgun Cal's. That said, I recently got lucky (after frequent calls and drop-ins to my local store) and score a 525 round box of 22LR for about $20 and only a day or two later, picked up two 250 round 9mm bulk packs (ran about $135 for both), so persistence pays off!. Score! Couple final thoughts: rifle ammo stock hasn't been too bad, 380 can be hard to find, and there's usually been plenty of 17 (HMR?).

 

[PiratePast40]

9mm is the most common pistol caliber in the world. I don't know why people are saying that it's in short supply, I've bought thousands of rounds in the last few months, and at a reasonable price. The argument of 9mm vs .40 will probably go on forever. It's similar to the Chevy vs Ford argument. For those that want to shoot a lot, and get proficient, 9mm is the least expensive way to go.

 

[WebRat]

Great feedback guys, thanks.
Sounds like maybe I should lean in the direction of these because of ammo:
1) .40 cal S&W or Glock?
2) AK47 instead of a AR15?

 

[mrblond]

Great feedback guys, thanks.
Sounds like maybe I should lean in the direction of these because of ammo:
1) .40 cal S&W or Glock?
2) AK47 instead of a AR15?

Don't shy away from 9mm just because of ammo. (mm is out there and there is alot of it at this moment. If you want to get a good overview of ammo costs check 9mm luger ammo handgun In stock ammo, guns, magazines, and reloading supplies[/url]

I almost always just buy my 9mm from Freedom Munitions. they have quite a bit in stock at the moment. Now im just waiting for them to load up some 556

 

[GrpCapMandrake]

WebRat,

Reading through this thread and at the conclusions you reached because of the responses please allow me to be the dissenting opinion here. The most appropriate advice to you, in my opinion, would be to go to your local gun store. Check out the latest offerings. Pick up the pistols, see what feels best in your hand. Go to a local range where you could rent a firearms and try a few of them out. Again seeing what feels good to you. A .45 Auto is great unless it is not the right gun for you and a 9mm feels better and you can control it better. Size does not always matter inasmuch as, if you can't hit the target, then all your doing is making noise and possible putting yourself or others in danger. What brands are well built and will fit your needs? The list is very very long. You could do well with any number of things from Beretta PX4 to a HK P30 to a Ruger LC model to a S&W (fill in model # here). The question is going to come down to what fits you best and in what caliber feel the best for you.

Secondly leaning towards an AK over an AR is again just like I stated above. Again go try things out and see how they fit. Determine your needs and purchase to that need. AR's are high customizable and many people spend a ton of money doing just that and then fail to hit the broadside of a barn. Whatever you purchase you need to safely practice, practice, practice. Some great advice given to me some time ago was that until you can outshoot the equipment you have all the customization in the world will not make a meaningful difference. There are many many offerings in the rifle market that are fantastic, and your decision will really be dependent on what feels best and in what caliber you can control best.

Lastly, and probably most importantly, it seems from your original post that perhaps you are not as familiar with many of the firearms on the market and with functionality of many of those firearms. Perhaps a good course of action would be to take a basic pistol course and or rifle course. As well as a personal protection inside the home course. There are a number of good classes in the local area. Knowledge is power. Before you buy a gun simply based on the opinions of a few folks on the internet, you will be well served to educate yourself further. If you buy a gun you are not familiar with and not entirely sure how to operate you simply increase your safety concerns and risk factors.

Just my opinion. Take care.

 

[Gaucho Gringo]

SG Ammo has new steel cased 7.62x39 for around 25cents a round shipped. Been thinking about buying an SKS for awile, but the ammo prices held me back. I might do that now the price of ammo is more reasonable before the prices on the guns start climbing again.

 

[Flopsweat]

Listen to GrpCapMandrake. Best advice in this thread so far.

 

[Skier]

9mm is the most common pistol caliber in the world. I don't know why people are saying that it's in short supply, I've bought thousands of rounds in the last few months, and at a reasonable price.

Maybe I should qualify my comment a little better. From my point of view, if you want a decent price (which for me is roughly $13 for a box of 50 rounds of FMJ) at a local store, then I haven't seen it in-stock very often at any of the stores in the Beaverton-Hillsboro-Cornelius area where I do most of my living/working/shopping. The way that I have been able to find it is to look OFTEN. It does come in, but if you don't check often, then your probability of finding it is fairly low, as you just have to get lucky on the occasions that you do check for it. Fortunately, I have a fairly flexible schedule, and a couple stores on the way to work, so it's not too much effort to check-in or call semi-often when I want some, and grab it when I can. The last time I went to a gun show (a few months ago, maybe Oct or Nov), there wasn't a lot of 9mm there either, except one company who had 1000 round boxes, but it was more expensive... Maybe $16-20 per 50 round box if you did the math. Given that, I wasn't all that impressed, so I decided to wait and just keep checking because it's fairly convenient for me, I wasn't in a rush to buy, and across 20 boxes (1000 rounds) it saves me nearly $100. I haven't made it to a gunshow again since that last one, but a couple friends who went said it wasn't much better. They liked the fact they could walk out with a 1000 rounds, if you wanted to (nice to see it was at least available), but still weren't impressed with the prices. Likewise, many of the web sites I've looked at were either out of stock, or expensive, or expensive when you add in shipping. So, that's my more specific experience. If you don't mind buying bulk at a gun show at >$16 box, then I guess you could consider that relatively plentiful, and if you don't mind calling and/or driving all over the place, including outside your normal living space and/or travel for work anyway and can thus cover a lot of area, then I guess you could consider that plentiful too... Finally, if there's some other secret cool store in my local area that anyone would like to point me to for good prices/availability, I'm certainly open to hearing about it.

 

[Skier]

Don't shy away from 9mm just because of ammo. (mm is out there and there is alot of it at this moment. If you want to get a good overview of ammo costs check 9mm luger ammo handgun In stock ammo, guns, magazines, and reloading supplies[/url]

I almost always just buy my 9mm from Freedom Munitions. they have quite a bit in stock at the moment. Now im just waiting for them to load up some 556

How much is 9mm from Freedom Munition running? Are they reloads?

 

[redhippie]

I add a different point.

If you get another .22 beware that alot of .22 handguns are sensitive to the velocity of the ammo. If you buy one, get a pistol that eats everything. Ultimate is a .22 wheel gun but Ruger Mark i-IV are great. So is the M&P .22 pistol.

 

[Skier]

WebRat,

Reading through this thread and at the conclusions you reached because of the responses please allow me to be the dissenting opinion here. The most appropriate advice to you, in my opinion, would be to go to your local gun store. Check out the latest offerings. Pick up the pistols, see what feels best in your hand. Go to a local range where you could rent a firearms and try a few of them out. Again seeing what feels good to you.

...

Knowledge is power. Before you buy a gun simply based on the opinions of a few folks on the internet, you will be well served to educate yourself further. If you buy a gun you are not familiar with and not entirely sure how to operate you simply increase your safety concerns and risk factors.

Just my opinion. Take care.

In my posts I just stuck to answering question 2, regarding my experience with ammo availability.

I didn't try to answer question 1, as I just don't know, especially when it comes to FMJ rounds (I've looked into HP rounds, but opinions, and even some ballistic tests, inevitably vary). With both FMJ and HPs, I've been buying a large variety and just trying them to see if any of my pistols have issues with any particular manufacturer, and so far I haven't had any issues, with the possible exception of Blazer Brass in my Sub2k, but I need to test that again sometime, as in retrospect, I think it more likely the quality of the 50 round drum magazine that I was trying out at the same time, so for now, my verdict would be, I don't have anything against any certain brand at this time.

All that said (after sticking to the original questions), if I were to go outside the original questions, I'd echo what GrpCapMandrake said, as that's good advice. You CAN find whatever ammo you want, it may just take time, so buy the gun that works best for you, and THEN worry about trying to get ammo (especially if you're going with something that is a "common" caliber, with common meaning "lots of people have them", not "easy to find all the time."). Yes, 9mm and 22LR have been a bit hard to find, but its usually only a matter of time before you can find them somewhere, so when you do stock up a bit. Those are both easier to find than my 7.7mmx58 for my Arisaka Type 99. That took my a while to find, as most MFGs only make it every so often. Fortunately, I eventually found Tactical
Ammunition out out in St. Helen's has it in sometimes ($31.50 for a box of 20); If I keep an eye out, I can find it online for closer to $26 per box, but like I said, it only comes up every now and then.

 

[Gaucho Gringo]

CMP has Federal Blazer 9mm for $.29 a round shipped to your door. How much money do you spend at $.50 a mile in car expenses looking for ammo you may or may not find? It adds up very fast. All it takes are 2 or 3 dud outings for ammo to make the overall cost a lot more.

 

[Skier]

CMP has Federal Blazer 9mm for $.29 a round shipped to your door. How much money do you spend at $.50 a mile in car expenses looking for ammo you may or may not find? It adds up very fast. All it takes are 2 or 3 dud outings for ammo to make the overall cost a lot more.

Not a bad price...

Yeah, I know it would add up if I had to actually drive around to find it, but I have 2 Bi-Marts on my way to work; I drive right by one of them, the other is only 1 block out of my way, and I have the numbers in my cell phone, so I can voice dial via my cell phone to check availability just before I drive by, so virtually no extra gas spent driving, and the only effort is a phone call or two. I'm lucky it's so convenient and that why I find myself not wanting to pay much more unless I get really low on what I have at home. If I'm just replacing a little I shot, I'll just keep an eye out for it, which as I said can take a little time, but that's fine, as long as I'm not desperate, and I don't like to get to the point where I get desperate. ;-)

 

[RK600]

I buy my ammo from a place in Longview. Blazer Brass 9mm and .40 S&W. 9 MM is 13 a box $0.26/rnd...don't remember what the .40 is. It's been a while. Only 1/2 hour form home too! Until today I had no idea CCI and Blazer were made in the same place in Idaho.