Range Ammo

[wtburnette]

Another good online site to get ammo from is TargetSportsUSA. If you buy by the case, the shipping is free. I use them, SGAmmo or AIM Surplus the most, or buy Perfecta ammo at Walmart locally. The only problem with buying at Walmart is availability.

 

[=Josh=]

Josh, have you landed on a particular caliber for this ammo?

I haven't decided on or purchased a handgun, yet, but I am almost certain that it will be a 9mm.

 

[OutdoorDad]

I haven't decided on or purchased a handgun, yet, but I am almost certain that it will be a 9mm.

What handguns are you considering?

 

[sardonius]

One way I manage to buy in bulk, but minimize impact on my wallet, is that I buy with a small group of friends. We all carry/shoot 9, so we split a case 4-ways about every other month. Two of us shoot more often than the other two, and also shoot other calibers, so every once in a while he and I will split a case. We'd been using bulkammo, but just switched to ammoseek. Online will definitely help you stretch your dollar!

 

[sdtech58]

Most likely, the reason some ranges don't allow steel cased is because they make money on the brass people leave laying there...

The steel used for the cases on ammo is MUCH softer and more ductile than the alloy steels used in making gun parts. The damaged extractors, blah blah blah is just a myth.
There would be no way to form the shape of the shell casings if that steel were hard enough to damage alloy steel. Your gun parts are made of steels containing some combination of Cr, Mo, Nb and V to make it harder and have better properties at high temperatures. The steel casings are most likely a plain low-carbon type steel with little to no micro-alloy additions so that they retain their ductility during the drawing process. These cases are manufactured by taking a flat "blank" and cold drawing the case into its final shape. No way physically possible that steel is hard enough to damage gun parts.

Only issue I've seen with the steel case was the Tula in my AR. I did a mag dump, replaced the mag and chambered a round, then slung my rifle to check on my target. When I got ready to fire again, the case did not want to eject. I cleared it, and it was fine after that. I just didn't leave one in the chamber any more. I believe the lacquer they coat them with melted a little bit and locked it up. I always take care to clean and lubricate my guns properly after firing the steel cased ammo, but I'm not worried one bit about if it will damage my guns or not.

 

[ZbornacSVT]

Don't forget......we are a local ammunition manufacturer and would be glad to help any of you guys out.

 

[wtburnette]

Don't forget......we are a local ammunition manufacturer and would be glad to help any of you guys out.

Love to support a local businesses, when possible. I'm looking forward to your website getting ammo pricing some time in the future. If your ammo prices are comparable to ordering online, I'd be happy to buy from you

 

[=Josh=]

What handguns are you considering?

My top choice is a Glock 19 gen 4 at the moment, but I want to get to a range to try it out first before I buy. To do that, I have to get some funds together. Baby #2 is due in a couple of weeks, so we've been taking care of other things financially.

 

[=Josh=]

Love to support a local businesses, when possible. I'm looking forward to your website getting ammo pricing some time in the future. If your ammo prices are comparable to ordering online, I'd be happy to buy from you

It looks like website changes have been "coming soon" for a year now, so I wouldn't expect that to happen quickly. If I were a web developer, I'd offer to help.

 

[aspiringsnd]

Nevada Ammunition and Freedom Munitions are my general go-to. Freedom will give you a brass credit for future orders (not much, but helps offset shipping charges) and they have regular sales. Additionally, If you watch their sire regularly, you'll see ammo prices fluctuate based on component prices -- that's good and bad; but right now it's good.

Nevada is solid ammo and solidly priced. However, in both instances, buying in bulk (500+) is recommended.

 

[ZbornacSVT]

Nevada Ammunition and Freedom Munitions are my general go-to. Freedom will give you a brass credit for future orders (not much, but helps offset shipping charges) and they have regular sales. Additionally, If you watch their sire regularly, you'll see ammo prices fluctuate based on component prices -- that's good and bad; but right now it's good.

Nevada is solid ammo and solidly priced. However, in both instances, buying in bulk (500+) is recommended.

We offer brass buyback as well, fyi.

 

[aspiringsnd]

We offer brass buyback as well, fyi.

What are you currently paying per pound? Where can I get information about your offerings and promotions?

 

[Hohn]

Do you mind sharing some sites to check? I'm a total novice and I'll take any good advice people are willing to share.

I suppose that's fair. I'm looking at probably a Glock 19, but I want to try one before I buy it. I just need to find the time and money. With baby #2 due next month, both have been in short supply lately.

A Glock is the least ammunition-sensitive gun around, imo.

I would rather try a couple different types of ammo to see not so much what the gun likes but what *I* like. I've learned that I really like the heavy subsonic 9mm loads (147gr) as they have a little less snap to them, and they are easy to make good shots with. I would recommend to a novice shooter a lower recoiling round in a heavier bullet weight.

Unfortunately, that will almost always cost more, because the cheap stuff is usually 115gr. 147 gr is hard to find and almost never in steel case--it's almost always brass.

Before you buy a bunch of ammo, wait until your personal circumstances stabilize-- known which range will be your usual location, for example. If the main range where you will shoot doesn't allow steel case ammo, for example, a huge stock of steelcase will leave you frustrated. Some ranges do not allow frangible ammo. Others do not allow magnetic projectiles.

If you buy brass case FMJ or TMJ loads, you can almost certainly shoot them at any range in Indiana.

In small quantities, buying online often doesn't make sense, as the shipping expenses will outweigh any price breaks. There are exceptions (targetsportsusa.com comes to mind).

Keep your eyes peeled and be patient. You'll have plenty of time to figure this out as you go.

 

[ZbornacSVT]

What are you currently paying per pound? Where can I get information about your offerings and promotions?

Currently we are around $1.25/lb.

PMs or our Facebook page are going to be your best bet. You can always swing by the shop as well.

 

[Markus]

A Glock is the least ammunition-sensitive gun around, imo.

I had heard that Glocks were not good with cast bullets?

 

[Hohn]

I had heard that Glocks were not good with cast bullets?

This isn't because a Glock will not feed them, it's because the barrel of a Glock has polygonal rifling.

If you use unjacketed soft lead cast bullets, some leading of the barrel will occur. With traditional rifling, the grooves are deep enough to provide a space for this lead to go as a bullet goes down the barrel.

Polygonal rifling, with much less "dead space" for deposits may create a condition where bullet cannot freely travel down the barrel, possibly creating a dangerous bore obstruction situation.


A Glock can use cast bullets as long as either they are hardcast (i.e., not pure lead or more than 95% lead) OR if you replace the barrel with one that has traditional L&G rifling like Lone Wolf, Storm Lake, Bar Sto, etc.

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Dropping this here, sorta fits.

The cost of the hobby:

 

[Beowulf]

Dropping this here, sorta fits.

The cost of the hobby:

Man, whoever did this is paying way too much for their ammo.

9mm for $.22? .50 BMG for $9.25? I can't identify the two easily on either side of the 12 gauge (I certainly hope they aren't a .300 BLK and a .308, because if so, they are way over paying as well).

 

[wtburnette]

Man, whoever did this is paying way too much for their ammo.

9mm for $.22? .50 BMG for $9.25? I can't identify the two easily on either side of the 12 gauge (I certainly hope they aren't a .300 BLK and a .308, because if so, they are way over paying as well).

Not sure about the .50 BMG, but $.22 for 9mm isn't too far off normal, for retail ammo. About the lowest I see it is $.20 or $.21 but rarely much lower unless you're buying reman stuff, or reloading your own.

 

[Beowulf]

Not sure about the .50 BMG, but $.22 for 9mm isn't too far off normal, for retail ammo. About the lowest I see it is $.20 or $.21 but rarely much lower unless you're buying reman stuff, or reloading your own.

I spent about 20 seconds looking and found Fiochhi 115gr FMJ for $.19 per round. Steel and reloads, as you noted, can be found for as low as $.16 per round. Now, I get that some people prefer first loaded brass, so they can collect the brass and reload, but if you aren't doing that, properly remanufactured brass and steel make way more economic sense (and since the picture is based on buying ammo new). .50 BMG can typically be found for about $2.50 or less per round, brand new.

It's totally possible this picture was made a couple years ago, at the peak of the panic pricing, but even then, I've never seen .50 BMG get that high per round ($5 yes, $9 no).