why is .380 ammo so expensive?

[Bigfoot]

It's about the smallest package.

L to R 380 - 22LR - 32ACP

 

[One-Eyed Ross]

ok, gosh, I guess all those people who own .380s just need to throw them away, since the important people types have all decreed that the .380 is terrible and worthless and no good for anything...(yes, that is sarcasm)...

If'n you don't like .380, don't buy one. If'n you don't like .22. .25, .32, .380, .38 or whatever, don't buy one. Some people DO, however, like them for whatever reason THEY choose.

It is this wonderful thing we have in this country, FREEDOM OF CHOICE.

The OP was about the COST of .380, not the advisability of it.... the "why not carry a pocket 9?" has nothing to do with the cost of .380.

 

[cyclesarge]

I don't think .380 is terrible or worthless. I just think it's WORTH LESS than 9mm.

Do you have a theory about why it's MORE expensive than 9mm?

 

[Aero Denezol]

I feel your pain, I've been eyeballing a CZ pistol for a long time now but the cost of .380 is discouraging. Around here (Salem) there's no place to get any of the cheaper Eastern-Bloc ammo. It is a supply issue in my opinion, most local shops only stock 1 or 2 types of .380 ammo, and usually that is the $$$ personal defense kind, not the practice kind.

 

[civilian75]

It is supply-demand (S-D), indeed. Popularity may be a contributing factor for the high price, but only partially, in my opinion. I'm going on a limb here ‘cause I can't prove my points with data.

Of the ammunition total available market, military and law enforcement (MLE) are the largest slices of the pie (no brainer). I'll venture to guesstimate the third piece of the pie, the Average Joe & Jane (AJJ) is less than 33%. MLE sectors consume mostly 9mm Luger, 40sw and 45ACP handgun ammo, where ammo mfgs can live and thrive with smaller margins. The AJJ benefits from the economies of scale when he/she buys the popular 3 calibers.

380ACP is a SD/BUG ammo mostly consumed by the AJJ. Ammo mfg command high margins in this segment, to make it worth the while. Materials cost and labor are maybe 50% or less (my guess). Increased popularity is shifting some of the AJJ total available market (TAM) towards 380ACP. AJJ is turning their little BUGs into range guns, because, AJJ knows he/she needs to practice. Increased target practice ammo volume will help reduce some of the fixed costs. Sudden increased popularity (demand) and the Obama Scare had placed upward pressure on pricing, but markets are adjusting, and price should and has been coming down again. Cheaper import ammo appears to be helping put additional downward pressure, too.

All this, though, will be of minimal effect in the long run. Even if AJJ pretty much stops shooting 9x19,40SW and 45ACP and shift to 380ACP, it won't put much of a dent to the pop3 S-D structure, which generates the lion's share of the ammo mfg revenue. Labor/setup cost may drop, but margins will remain high for 380ACP. The only thing I think can change this picture is that somehow MLE adopts 380ACP firearms increasing ammo demands at a significant level, which would change its cost structure.

Bottom line, 380ACP pricing is dropping and may drop somewhat more. If popularity continues to increase and tappers off a bit, it may drop an additional $1-2/50rds in average nationwide. Just don't expect it ever to be at par with 9x19mm.

 

[chemist]

My wife won't shoot a compact nine. She won't shoot a subcompact .380 either.
I love how easy it is to shoot quickly and accurately with my medium- and large-sized .380's. And it's fun, too.
For CCW I carry .45ACP every single day. But under some circumstances I might also grab-'n'-go with a .380, and I am most certainly not undergunned when I do.

The 9mm is a US military round, so there are always manufacturers cranking it out by the ton, and it's relatively easy to accommodate civilian buyers with a little extra production. Not so with .380, which is in wide use among civilians but not in the US military. The margin has to be higher to make it worth their while to produce.

Anyway, the question remains, why is .380 so expensive? The answer is not "because you should be using a 9mm."

 

[salmonriverjohn]

I have many different pistol calibers for one reason, I love them all. If I have to start to reason out if I can afford ammo or not, well I guess I have an issue then. The one reason .380 is more expensive than the 9mm is because the 9mm is a NATO round and therefor there are far more 9mm's on the market. When the economics are factored in, its easy to see why manufacturers are able to mass produce 9mm ammunition at a reduced rate.
Not every one walks into a good steak house and orders a porter, medium rare,, and no Im not comparing the .380 to a porter house. I prefer my steaks at just shy of a half a pound, say around .45.

 

[Chipperxd]

It's not that ammo is expensive, it's that some folks are too cheap, or buy guns that are not economically feasable for them to own. Maybe a .22lr would be more realistic, at close range a very effective cartridge. God forbid that you can't afford to buy thousands of rounds to go into the woods and make noise.If you must go centerfire, reload on a single station press, that will cause you to consider every shot carefully.

are you referring to me when you call "some folks" cheap? Why because I wondered why the .380 costs more? I swear some FOLKS on here act like their bubblegum don't stink some times. that's why the ammo is expensive? because people are cheap? please

 

[hermannr]

Someone above listed a whole string of calibers, all about the same (+/-9mm). I have most of them, I also have 5 daughters..none of our daughters likes either my CZ52, my CZ-85 or my Colt 38 revolver. All the above daughters like the CZ82 (in 9X18 Makarov) and the CZ83 (9mm Browning).

The smaller guns fit smaller hands, and the smaller calibers kick less, it is that simple. Both of those pistols are physically small, but not exceptionally light. I like all of my pistols, auto or wheel, and shoot them all, but the girls have a definate preference. #1 is Their mom's High Standard .22 Trophy target pistol, and then the CZ82 and the CZ83, and you know what, they all work just fine. There is cheap imported practice ammo available for both of them, and also expensive SD ammo.

The Trophy may be a .22LR, but when it can put 10 of 10 in a 1" X at 25 yards, I suspect it could be as deadly (or maybe even more so) as any other weapon, reguardles of caliber.

 

[wrassleman07]

I have two that I carry, a .380 Ruger LCP and a .40 Beretta. My situation and environment determines what i bring. In the summer, i love that they lcp fits in my back pocket and isnt visible. I have looked at compact 9's including Rugers new LC9, the fact is, even that half inch in length increase makes a difference when im wearing summer clothes. Who knows, maybe ill buy that too someday. On the other hand, in the winter with jackets and more clothing on, ill carry a full size handgun. Frankly, if i got shot, whether it be a 9mm or 380 auto, i wouldnt be thinking "omg that was only a .380 auto, guess ill keep attacking" no, getting shot is getting shot. Besides, to play the game, I would argue that 9mm is weak compared to my .40 S&w or a .45.
Back to the thread topic, .380 auto is pretty expensive here too. cheap prices run around $20/box. Thus why i dont shoot it for fun, but just necessary practice to keep up. A real benfit can be made from reloading .380

 

[nubus]

Fiocchi 90gr JHP $13.50 a box of 50.
Not a bad price on any defense ammo.

 

[One-Eyed Ross]

Fiocchi 90gr JHP $13.50 a box of 50.
Not a bad price on any defense ammo.

Where are you able to get the Fiocchi? I would love to get their .380. I use their 9x18 in my Mak and CZ...better than the Bears, which I also shoot...but Fiocchi is cleaner.

 

[Ownerus]

Besides, they never made the Colt Pocket Hammerless in 9mm and I like the Colt Pocket Hammerless

 

[nubus]

Where are you able to get the Fiocchi? I would love to get their .380. I use their 9x18 in my Mak and CZ...better than the Bears, which I also shoot...but Fiocchi is cleaner.

Come to the Centralia gun show this weekend...

 

[chemist]

Here's Magtech 95 gr. FMJ available in case quantity for $0.2626 per round, delivered price to my zip code in OR:
380 Auto 95 Grain FMC Magtech - 1000 Rounds - Surplus Ammo

 

[chemist]

Somebody's about to score a case of Speer Lawman for $0.25 a round delivered...
1000 Rnds Speer Lawman 380 ACP 95 GR TMJ Free Ship : Pistol Ammo at GunBroker.com

 

[hermannr]

I was looking over my Midway flyer today,,,interestingly, they have .380 Hornandy Critical Defence for $0.50 a box of 50 LESS that the same round for 9mm. There was another brand where .380 was $0.50 more than 9mm (for a box of 50) ...I guess the price of 380 is basically the same as 9mm in the good stuff at least. (all the above, boxer primed in new, reloadable, brass)

 

[Grunwald]

are you referring to me when you call "some folks" cheap? Why because I wondered why the .380 costs more? I swear some FOLKS on here act like their bubblegum don't stink some times. that's why the ammo is expensive? because people are cheap? please

At least you were not told to change your screen name to Cheapperxd.

 

[cyclesarge]

At least you were not told to change your screen name to Cheapperxd.

Though, "Thriftyxd" would make more sense. Not liking to pay MORE for less doesn't make you "cheap" it makes you thrifty or sensible.

 

[Chipperxd]

At least you were not told to change your screen name to Cheapperxd.