Why is it so hard to get .22 ammo anymore ?

[tommy-t]

Why is it so hard to just go to walmart or rural king and get .22 ammo anymore ? Seems like everytime i go to find .22's they are either out or only have the small 50rnd boxes for like $6, i'm looking for the bulk packs but can never find them. Ya i know you can go online and find .22's on cheaper than dirt but even some of the good bullets on there are sold out !! I remember awhile back you used to go to walmart and they always had tons of .22's. If i was loading my gun and dropped a few in the process it wasn't a big deal. just kicked around in the dirt looking for a sec and then said oh well and dug some more out of the box. Now they are like little gold nuggets. I have got rid of a couple guns i really liked cause of the shortage like my Walther P22, loved that little gun but was no good if i couldn't take it to the range and play. And what really makes me mad is the people who buy it all up and rack up the price just to make a few bucks and prob dont even own a .22 cal gun . I could go on and on but i will stop there...

 

[17 squirrel]

Where are you shopping for ammo ? The stores I go to have shelf's full.

 

[tommy-t]

Walmart,Dicks Sporting Goods, Rural King to name a few, The largest quantity boxes i have found lately are 100rnds for $9.25 and they had several but i'm looking for the 500rnd boxes like that and can never find any anywhere

 

[pudly]

This is actually the best period for finding .22s since Sandy Hook three years ago.

 

[Ruffnek]

This is actually the best period for finding .22s since Sandy Hook three years ago.

This is the sad truth.

 

[bwframe]

 

[Mgderf]

Supply vs Demand

 

[Bfish]

I feel like there isn't any problem finding 22 to a certain extent. However, it's hard finding it @ a price I am willing to pay. I can find it all day for 10 cents a round, it's not too often though I'm finding it for 5 or 6 cents a round.

 

[churchmouse]

I feel like there isn't any problem finding 22 to a certain extent. However, it's hard finding it @ a price I am willing to pay. I can find it all day for 10 cents a round, it's not too often though I'm finding it for 5 or 6 cents a round.

This will be the norm.

Ammo is up across the board so just buck up my friend. That is what we will be paying.

 

[singlesix]

Avon G.M. has 22's. Are you looking in the Ammo Thread? There been some great deals on 22's last few weeks. Picked up 5K for 389.00 and free shipping just last week.

 

[HKUSP]

It's supply and demand for sure. Demand rises every time there's some sort of panic. There are a lot of new gun owners coming into the fold every time it looks like another stupid ban is going to happen, or there's a catastrophe. Many of the newbies buy a .22 first thinking it's a training wheels gun. .380 is another example of that mentality.

THEN there's the supply side. There have been several humongous government orders for ammunition in the last 10 to 12 years. Some constituted the world's annual ammunition production. There are only so many ammunition manufacturers, and some of them shifted production lines over to larger, NATO spec calibers to fill those orders. They're not shifting the lines back to .22.

The days of a brick of .22 for $14 are long gone, and unless someone wants to start making it in dedicated massive proportions they're not coming back.

Chris

 

[Cameramonkey]

There is also a weird dynamic in this state. I struggle to find any real quantities here. Yet I go over to Ohio and I find CASES of it on the shelf (and places like Meijer and walmart with a few bulk packs) and when I mention to the clerk that its hard to find he looks at me like I am crazy.

 

[Ruffnek]

I feel like there isn't any problem finding 22 to a certain extent. However, it's hard finding it @ a price I am willing to pay. I can find it all day for 10 cents a round, it's not too often though I'm finding it for 5 or 6 cents a round.

I got into guns right around the time of Sandy Hook. At that time I didn't see the value of a .22 and wrote it off. Before then, I was too young to buy it and therefore never cared. I got a .22 rifle on a trade in early '13 and ended up selling it because I couldn't get ammo. The point of all that was that I guess I never knew what good prices were.

I'm to a point now where I'll settle for $.10/rd. I also snap up any bulk packs that I can find. I've got a little over 1k rounds right now and I'm not touching it, just waiting to get a better stock.

 

[Ngdonut]

Check out gun shows as well. The 1500 usually has a variety of the higher quality .22 ammo for decent price. Find the cheapest table there and buy some cases.

 

[churchmouse]

I have managed to fill the .22 shelf in the ammo locker with no real effort. Just snatch it when you find it.

 

[308jake]

I've bought plenty in the last 3-4 months at Dicks, GM, Walmart and couple of gun shops. Even the elusive 22shorts seem to be relatively abundant. The most I've paid for bulk is 6.5 cents and the least is right at .05. The shorts were 8.9cents.

 

[jspy5]

I have managed to fill the .22 shelf in the ammo locker with no real effort. Just snatch it when you find it.

I agree with this, just this past Sunday I was able to pick up 4 packs of 325 count Federal at GM.

 

[nipprdog]

There have been several humongous government orders for ammunition in the last 10 to 12 years. Some constituted the world's annual ammunition production.

There are only so many ammunition manufacturers, and some of them shifted production lines over to larger, NATO spec calibers to fill those orders. They're not shifting the lines back to .22.

Internet myth. The lines and equipment used to make 22 are completely separate from centerfire lines.

 

[Broom_jm]

It is not hard to get 22 rimfire ammo anymore...it's just hard to get at the price per round we were used to for many years, and it's not available at every single sporting retail outlet, all the time.

The number of guns and shooters has grown tremendously. Those shooters want ammo for their guns, so they buy it...being n00bs, some of them buy a LOT of ammo. For whatever reason, some folks feel like if they own a couple guns chambered in 22, they need to stockpile 10,000 rounds of the stuff. They act like it's rice, or something.

Whatever the case, the true 22 ammo crunch is gone because the price has gone up enough to slow down purchasing. If a conservative (notice I didn't type "Republican") wins the POTUS election a year from now, you'll see guns sales slip and ammo availability increase. This may eventually lower the price of 22 ammo...but I wouldn't bet on it.

 

[tommy-t]

I guess my town just has alot of .22 owners then cause i cant find bulk packs at all, 100rnd boxes is most ive seen on the shelves . I know the days of buying it cheap are gone and don't mind paying the prices now if i can just find it. It was nice when you where out plinking and ran out of ammo just to run down to closest walmart or gun store and grab up few bulk packs & get right back to shooting. Now days i have to run all around town just to get the small boxes and waist half the day..