Ammo supply - an update

At the beginning of this month I wrote about the 'Great Ammo Drought of 2013', and decided to sell some of my ammo stash (in calibers I wasn't using much) to increase my stocks in other calibers that I use more frequently.  I took some to a local gun show and sold it there, and traded or sold quite a bit more to readers of this blog.

It's been a productive process for me, and (I hope) for those who've dealt with me.   I've now got upwards of 20,000 rounds of .22LR in stock, which is very important for low-cost training and plinking.  This should keep me (and those who shoot with me) going for some time.  Miss D. now has an ammo can full of .22 Magnum for her treasured PMR-30, meaning she also won't have to worry about finding more for a year or two (the stuff's disappeared completely from local dealers' shelves).  I've been able to provide useful quantities of rifle, shotgun and pistol ammunition to several readers and friends.  Hopefully, we all feel like we did well on the exchanges and/or sales.

After a final sale scheduled for the next couple of days, I'll be able to put a couple of thousand dollars in the bank.  That will pay for a large number of bits and pieces to upgrade existing firearms (e.g. scopes, trigger work, etc.), and also contribute towards my truck's new tires and doubling our reserve food supply.  Given the inflation I foresee in the not too distant future, it's comforting to know that if we have a bad week or month, economically speaking, we'll still be able to eat!

I still have several boxes of ammo left for sale, but there are so few (compared to when I began this exercise) that I've decided against paying for a table at the next gun show.  I'll return them to my reserves, and trade them off in future as and when an opportunity arises.

I'm also working on an idea to reduce handgun training costs below even those incurred using rimfire ammo for the purpose.  Now that it's approaching 10 cents per round, it's becoming almost as cost-prohibitive as centerfire ammo used to be!  (Since the latter has also doubled or tripled in price, it's even more unaffordable for casual use.)  I'll put up an article next week with more details, once I've had time to wring it out in practice.  (EDITED TO ADD:  Here it is.)

I'm still looking for a couple of firearms:  a 4" or 6" barreled .357 Magnum revolver (probably either a Ruger GP100 or S&W 686, preferably in stainless steel), and either a Browning Buckmark or Ruger Mk. II or Mk. III pistol in caliber .22LR, preferably one with a longer barrel and provision for mounting a scope, so that it can accept a red dot sight.  If any reader has one of those for sale, or knows where they may be found for reasonable prices, I'd be grateful if you'd please e-mail me.  (Trades for ammo or other weapons might be arranged, too.)  Local sales preferred, but out-of-state transactions can be conducted through a local gun store.

Peter