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If you don't know my story, check the new member introductions. After a long absence from the sport, I bought myself a 10/22 after Christmas. As a late Christmas present, my son-in-law gave me a 525 box of Federal from his stash. I soon became acquainted with the new sport of .22 lr hunting. I developed a circuit and even chatted up the clerks to learn the delivery schedule. After a couple months of diligence, I've managed to acquire a little over 1500 rounds. As a hedge and moving on in shooting, I purchased an XDM in 9mm. I now mostly shoot the XDM weekly and take the 10/22 out about every other week and put 100 rounds through it. So simple quick math says I currently have a little over 7 months supply. Enough to be considering getting a .22 handgun next to work on marksmanship and have something for the grandkids to shoot when they get old enough.

The problem? Deciding when I have "enough." While not being as diligent, I still hit my circuit. When I buy 9mm, I never fail to ask if they have any .22 under the counter (you'd be surprised how often they do when the spot on the shelf is empty). I even got twitchy when I saw the thread last week about Fred's in Newberg having some. I didn't realize Fred's there carried ammo so another addition to the circuit. Paying everything from $2.99 a box for Thunderbolt (love that stuff) to $19.99 a 50 box for some English Dijon Hand-rubbed Match grade, only once has priced stopped me from buying. I've only bought retail but will admit to being tempted by ads on arms list and was twitchy when I saw thunderbolt for sale at the Albany gun show for $20 a box!

I guess the long diatribe above is a confession and has me wondering if my own behavior is typical and the reason the .22 lr "shortage" continues. If so, it might be self-perpetual unless we can overcome the hoarding mentality and decide "I have enough."
 
1500 is not "hoarding" and even in times past would have been considered a modest stash having a value of abut $30. Having a circuit that you regularly make in search of ammo is not hoarding behavior, it is how find ammo and powder these days.

In some ways I am grateful for it is what finally got me to start reloading and it has been a big eye opener for gun owners on how useless their firearms are without having a stash of ammo on hand.
 
Owning a (1954 Ruger Standard Pistol) (Ruger 10/22 International with original clear plastic roatary Magazine) ( AK98-T ) (AK98-T/KK95) (WASR 22) ( AR15 CMMG SS 22 conversion unit and BHOA /22 charging handle & sh*tload of magazines that work) = HOARDING 22 AMMO SINCE 2007
 
Im an opportunist. NOT a panic buyer.
With that said:

If I see something at a good price in any caliber I shoot, I buy it.

I DO NOT pay insane prices for ammo due to its perceived "rarity" unless its true AP pistol ammo or some true black tipped AP ammo or some other awesome outlawed item. I also dont sell ammo. I have made an ad selling M855 ammo for a ridiculous price.. Im mean an insane price.. No takers of course but I made my point.

But I too have scored a few thousand rounds here and there of .22. Ive even turned down some down at bimart because I really didnt desire it. I hardly shoot .22 anymore.
 
I too look for .22 every place that might have some that I stop, But if they have some I usually dont buy it but pass the info along to others who might be in need. I have bought a few boxes that I gave away and I did buy some stingers the other day that I intend to shoot myself.

I bought .22lr ammo years ago when it was cheap. And buy bought I mean I bought 50,000 rounds plus. At the time it was cheap and plentiful. I thought to myself "Self, There might be a time when I'd like to have some .22 but its not available" So I bought some. 50K rounds at .02-.03 per round was not a big investment. About the same as a couple thousand rounds of .308 cost today.

I have given away and shot maybe 20K rounds in the last several years that its been hard to get, however I expect soon to be able to buy some cheap again. So if anything I think that should be the lesson, not just with .22 but with everything. It makes sense to put up stuff when its cheap that you know you will eventually use. I look like a flippin genius for buying all that .22 today, but at the time I looked like a nut job. Ive also been accused of being part of the problem. People saying "why in the world do you need all that ammo?" Well, how exactly would you be better off If I had not bought a pile of ammo before the panic? If anything I and people like me have reduced the pressure on the .22lr supply as we are not buying any at .10/rd to add to the pile.

People are funny, dont let them get to you. You want some ammo, are putting in the effort to find it and spending money you earned for it. Buy how ever much you feel like it and store it or shoot it or throw it in the river it doesn't matter.
 
If you have rimfire firearms, I don't think anything under 5K rounds of rimfire ammo is "hoarding" - it is just prudent.

I have more rimfire firearms than I have any other chambering because I enjoy rimfire more than the others, and I believe it is one of the most useful chamberings there is.

I now have somewhere near 10K rounds for myself and two other people that I prep for. I don't think that is enough if suddenly there is no more ammo to be had period, but it is enough to where I don't feel antsy about not having enough right now. I will be getting more when it is available.

I am willing to wait until it becomes more available and let other people get their share, unless I see some sitting on the shelf somewhere while I happen to be in the store. After the post about the Newberg FM I went in their last Friday on my way home to get other stuff, but they had no rimfire on hand. I haven't seen any bulk ammo in stores for quite a while (last I saw was in Cabelas back in 2007 or so). I have seen a few 50-100 rd. boxes of premium or speciality ammo, but not bulk.

There was a guy on another forum that had been hoarding - he was buying up all he could find in his small area, he made a deal with the local store clerk, and he had over 50K rounds. He was willing to sell it for what he paid for it, but then he found out how much it would cost to ship it and backed out.

Someday, hopefully soon, people will decide they have enough and we will see it on the shelves again. I would like to slowly put away another 10K or more - maybe about 500 per week for $20 per 500 for bulk - and put away a few thousand of speciality/premium ammo, and thereafter only pick it up on sale (I remember buying bulk for under $8 per 500 on sale).
 
:s0146:I'm sorry but I just don't get the whole .22 hoarding thing, there not on a upcoming ban list, there not taking them away I just don't get it.
 
:s0146:I'm sorry but I just don't get the whole .22 hoarding thing, there not on a upcoming ban list, there not taking them away I just don't get it.
They are hard to find and the price has gone up significantly.

Even if you aren't into prepping, if you enjoy shooting rimfire, then you want to have some on hand.

So having a significant amount to tide you over between being able to find some on the shelves is prudent.

I am sure that there are some people who are into making a profit from going around buying any and all they can find then turning around and selling it to those who don't have the time and/or aren't lucky enough to be in the right spot at the right time. Hell, there is one for sale thread in the classifieds asking $40 for a single brick of Thunderbolt while at the same time there is another current thread where Cabelas offers the very same ammo for $25 per brick. Hmmm.. should I buy from the hoarder for $40 or Cabelas?
 
If you have rimfire firearms, I don't think anything under 5K rounds of rimfire ammo is "hoarding" - it is just prudent.
1500 is not "hoarding" and even in times past would have been considered a modest stash having a value of abut $30.

Thanks for the reassurance but since this is a hobby for me let me use an analogy from another hobby of mine: I play guitar and bass. Like ammo, strings are essential consumables with a long shelf life. If I had 7 months supply-which is about my current inventory-when I go into a music store, I often don't look at the strings. When I do, I would only buy if there was an incredible price or if there was something new I wanted to try. I would never buy strings just because they had them because I know if I broke my last string and had none in the house, several stores are minutes away that would get me back playing again. My issue with 22 hunting is the compulsive "if I see it, i buy it" and remembering it's Wednesday so I need to stop at Bimart if I have "plenty."
 
I agree with the having ammo on hand and I understand the prepping idea
but I still don't get the whole .22 madness thing ?
I would Never pay the hoarder price never , If I see a brick of .22 at the store
for a fair price I will buy it so I can take my kids shooting but I wont call my
friends and family to go in and clear the shelf either like the lines in front of
the stores waiting to be first in this is what I cant see or get
 
A firearm without ammo is just a wall hanging decoration. I have set aside 3 bricks for each of my 22's. I don't plan on shooting it, rather it helps to guarantee the resale value on my firearms should I ever sell them. I paid around $8/brick. Cheap insurance on rifles that cost much more.
 
Gawd...

If you want to horde it do. If you don't want to pay scalper prices, don't.

The reality is, until there is more .22 then people have extra money, this is the world we now live in...
 
There's a difference between stockpiling and hoarding. Stockpiling is no different than putting money into savings, or canning food. Hoarding is a perversion of stockpiling, and the way I see it there are two (maybe three) things that fuel "hoarding"; fear, and/or greed/profiteering (with mental issues being the third)

During the last two (national) election cycles, I saw the writing on the wall because I look at what politicians DO, and HAVE DONE because that WILL predict what their future actions will be, rather than believe what they say (for the most part).

I calculated how much of what type of "supplies" I needed for a worst case scenerio, then bought "deeply and steeply" when "supplies" were plentiful and (comparitavely) less expensive until I reached those set goals. Outside of replacing mainly .223/5.56 in blocks 100-300, premium .308 hunting rounds in blocks of 100-200, and misc. other rounds at a time (as needed) here and there to maintain those set goals (as my "zero base"), I haven't seen the bottom of my supplies since '09-'10 and haven't needed to buy much of anything.

I have had to SERIOUSLY train myself to say "I have enough of that", and also to say "meh, I can live without it" when I see a good deal on something ranging from guns, bullets, and all around misc gadgetry. (Curse you Fry's Electronics! :mad:)
 
Buy and start to restore a Willys Jeep that will take care of any idea about stocking up or hording ammo. You won't have enough pocket change left to buy beer on the way home from work. .22LR is out of the question LOL
 
A firearm without ammo is just a wall hanging decoration. I have set aside 3 bricks for each of my 22's. I don't plan on shooting it, rather it helps to guarantee the resale value on my firearms should I ever sell them. I paid around $8/brick. Cheap insurance on rifles that cost much more.

I've had a retailer admit that they too hold back a part of their inventory for folks buying new guns from them to sweeten the deal. If I wanted to throw away money, it occurred to me I could buy a new gun with a brick and at the end of the brick, trade it in and repeat. That would be crazy, right? ... Right?
 
If 30,000,000 shooters by one brick of .22lr it would take manufactures 3yrs to meet the demand.
Then ad in the hoarders and the profiteers and you get where we are now.
 
If 30,000,000 shooters by one brick of .22lr it would take manufactures 3yrs to meet the demand.
Then ad in the hoarders and the profiteers and you get where we are now.
This scarcity of rimfire ammo has been going on for some time now - it isn't a short term fad. I know the manufacturers have ramped up production, but I am thinking they could ramp it up some more.

I don't shoot rimfire nearly as much as I used to, in no small part because of the scarcity of the ammo. If there was ammo to be had on the shelves no matter what day or time I walk into a store, I would shoot more often.
 

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