Crow Busters Forum

Redditch · Guru

RE: National ammo and reloading component shortage

nhcrowshooter · Guru

A little more than 2 months now since my original post. Local dealers in my area include Kittery Trading Post and Cabelas Scarborough, vast majority of powders remain out of stock. Winchester primers are available at KTP but pricey at $46.99. Cabelas had shot for $49.99, KTP almost out of shot. 22 Rimfire remains unavailable anywhere.

Internet dealers seem to have powder available in dribs and drabs but most often sold out of most of the popular shotgun powders. Alliant powders such as Promo, Red Dot and Green Dot are available off an on, IMR 700-x near impossible to find available.

My local guy got some shot in but not much 55 bags of 7.5's and then some 8's, he sells out within a day of it's arrival at $42 a bag.

There is rumor circulating through some shotgun sites about Hodgdon having a fire in a powder fluffing machine and as a result further production of Clays and Int'l Clays will be delayed for up to a year.

I am starting to believe the shortage/scarcity will persist for some time to come.

-- Edited by nhcrowshooter on Tuesday 4th of June 2013 01:17:01 PM

Mainehunt · Guru

My source is still the same and available.

1,000 primers for $33, Powder is $80 for 4# of 700X, shot is $37 a bag. All the wads you want.

-- Edited by Mainehunt on Tuesday 4th of June 2013 01:54:57 PM

needmorebacon · Veteran Member

I tell ya if I found shot at 37 a bag my paycheck would be nothing but lead....but at 50 a bag around here think ill hold on to this worthless US note.

Mainehunt · Guru

needmorebacon wrote:
I tell ya if I found shot at 37 a bag my paycheck would be nothing but lead....but at 50 a bag around here think ill hold on to this worthless US note.

I'm buying some stuff almost every paycheck.

Redditch · Guru

Big problem in the UK is that we are limited n the amount of rounds we can have per calibre. I'm lucky, I can have 1,000 rounds per calibre, but some people can only have say 100, and powder and primers here you need a special icence I. The art of the UK I live in, which is only valid 14 days, takes 28 days to get usually (I'm now waiting 6 weeks since I asked for it) and limited to 1kg powder and 1,000 primers per time

Veteran Member

Maine, how much of what powder do you use for your crow loads?

Mainehunt · Guru

5065 wrote:
Maine, how much of what powder do you use for your crow loads?

18.5 grains of Red Dot. But lately I can't get any Red Dot so I'm buying 4 pound jugs of 700X.

nhcrowshooter · Guru

Well it's now a little more than 3 months since my initial post on the reloading component shortage. I stopped at the Kittery Trading Post again last evening. Almost all reloading powders remain sold out, they did have a few 1lb cans of Red Dot which won't last long. No 22 rimfire ammo, I heard some came in during June and sold out within hours. Win 209 primers are still available at $46.99. One bag of shot left at $49.99. I spoke to one of the long time assistant managers and he told me that all his sources indicate the store will not have a normal inventory of reloading supplies and ammo until November 2014.

I have been keeping an eye on powder and primer availability on a few of the big internet retailers. Alliant brand powders such as Red Dot, Green Dot etc. have shown up occasionally in 1lb, 4lb and 8lb cans. It's a case of now you see 'em now you don't. IMR Powders such as 700-x I have not seen available anywhere.

I did note some loaded pistol ammo is some calibers was starting to be on the shelf, not a lot of it. There was a big pile of Estate brand flats of loaded ammo at KTP that had just come in. They also have a barrel of .223 ammo, 12500 rounds for a mere $6,999.

A friend who runs a landscaping company also has a small gunshop, he had a small load of lead shot come in, 55 bags of #8 which sold out in less than a day for $41 a bag cash.

My conclusion, things are easing up ever so slighty (emphasis on slightly). Components remain scarce, spotty and expensive. Hopefully everyone is stocked up on what they need for the fall. Buy what you can when you see it and long before you need it.

Veteran Member

Right now I'm having trouble finding win 209 primers

nhcrowshooter · Guru

Talked with owner of the little gun shop where we get most of our supplies this evening. He said the one distributor he uses for lead shot told him they don't know when they will be able to ship to him as they presently have 168,000 bags of shot back ordered. This is just one distributor.

-- Edited by nhcrowshooter on Thursday 11th of July 2013 01:07:08 AM

Veteran Member

WOW! That's 4.2 million lbs of lead.

nhcrowshooter · Guru

I went to the Kittery Trading Post again last night, almost all powders out of stock, 100% of shotgun powders out of stock. There were half dozen bags of shot, all #6, price has increased to $54.99 plus 5% Maine sales tax. This is the highest retail price on a bag of shot I have ever seen.

-- Edited by nhcrowshooter on Tuesday 30th of July 2013 10:58:26 AM

Mainehunt · Guru

I worked (volunteered) at Cabelas all day Saturday for their annual Archery Classic. They had shot for $45 a bag, lots of primers and powder. My buddy was getting getting rifle powder, (IMR3031) and it was $27 a pound. I didn't price the shotgun powder. Kev

motiondecoy · Guru

That much ammunition is made overseas it became easier for the gun hating president to squeeze the imports..very very easy indeed! No congress here!

Redditch · Guru

Here in the UK (and probably the mainland of Europe too) the ammo shortages have spilled over from the USA.

Several sizes of ready made ammo are now difficult to get, and often a 3-4 month waiting list of you want a particular brand or bullet grain size and type.

Powder and primer shortages are becoming commonplace too.

I ordered 2lbs of H380 and some Winchester LR primers, and took me 4 months to eventually get some (1,000 primers, but had to do with Remington 9 1/2 instead), and the 2lbs of H380 came too.

The next month ordered another 2lbs and got that, and then supply was gone again, and he doesn't know when he will get more

Add to that the problem we have due to our licencing system. I'm quite lucky as I can have 1,000 of each calibre, whereas some can only have 50 or 100.

We are also limited on what we can buy at any one time, and the amount we are allowed totally for each calibre too. Powder and primers we need to get a special licence each time, and are limited to 1,000 primers and 2-3 lbs of powder TOTAL, to hold, and the licence to purchase is only valid for 14 days, and ONLY at the store you have specified when applying.

If they don't have it, search around for someone that does, and apply for licence again, and HOPE they still have it when you get the licence (can take a month to six weeks to come through)

This is what OBUMMER wants for the USA too

By the way, lead and lead shot has now become so expensive here, casting bullets, or reloading shot cartridges is working about about TWICE the price of buying ready made. Even casting bulletis for pistols is now no longer interesting unless you have a friend that works at a tyre depot and you get lots of lead wheel weights for free.

i now only use the shot presses for recycling shot shells that have become rusted due to the rain here (Shotshells now have copper coated IRON bases, which rust easily).

-- Edited by Redditch on Saturday 24th of August 2013 10:47:33 AM

Redditch · Guru

5065 wrote:
The government can't take our guns, so they make it so we can't have ammo for our guns

Get as much reloading kit and supplies as you can, if necessary stock pile enough for 5-10 years.

best is if you club together with lots of guys, then you can buy in bulk, probably direct from the manufacturers or importers and get some real discount.

OBUMMER is now talking about at least 20% extra tax on ammo, and another tax on top of that.

so get as many cases as you can, as much powder as you can, and as many primers and bullet heads as you can. Stop reloading to make max velocity, and instead load to max accuracy (saves a few grains on each load, and might get you another 15-20 loads per 1 lbs can too)

then bury lots in waterproof containers where it can't be found, just in case they decide to bring in a licencing system like here in Europe.

what they don't know about, they can't confiscate

-- Edited by Redditch on Sunday 25th of August 2013 08:11:55 PM

Veteran Member

The government can't take our guns, so they make it so we can't have ammo for our guns