Are surplus ammos drying up soon?

c4snipar · Aug 23, 2014

I have a few crates of 7.62x54r in stocks, but kind of asked my self, should I get another crate or half? Just curious how soon are these ammo is going to dried up.

We can easily get them now for under $225 shipped per crate and especially the recent deal at sportsmans guide for $193 per crate with free shipping. I didn't get a chance to get those .308 surplus when they were widely available, just don't want to look back and say "damn, wish I had buy more!"

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Jimbob2.0 · Aug 23, 2014

Supply seems fairly good and the Ruskies will just move it through proxies (Romania and Bulgaria) they may get their $20 cut but still available.

Never hurts to get another case though.

Bertfish · Aug 23, 2014

Always buy it if you can afford it.

I wish I was born 10 years earlier and I could have gotten in on it when ammo was a lot cheaper. Sadly I came of age right about the time the Obama panic was getting fired up in earnest

budman93 · Aug 23, 2014

Bertfish said:
I wish I was born 10 years earlier and I could have gotten in on it when ammo was a lot cheaper. Sadly I came of age right about the time the Obama panic was getting fired up in earnest

Same here and I'm pretty sure I'm younger than you. What really gets me is missing cheaper prices on surplus guns. Especially the M1 carbines and 1903's and other U.S. mil-surps.

Pinecone · Aug 23, 2014

It doesn't matter WHEN you were born, prices 10 years before now were ALWAYS cheaper.

fivepointstar · Aug 23, 2014

Supply and demand are about even right now.

but to answer your question....you can never have enough ammo

Jimbob2.0 · Aug 23, 2014

To follow-up on my earlier response a good solid rule to live buy is - buy modestly and frequently. Over time you will build up a good stash and the highs and lows of the market will even out.

If I didnt have higher priorities id order an extra 2 cases.

namrelio · Aug 24, 2014

I'm not rich so I just pick some up now and then. I'm 61 and figure I have enough to last me my lifetime, so now I'm putting it away for the kids and grandkids. They are the ones that will really need it.

When it comes to ammo, get it while you can.

Alphabrew · Aug 24, 2014

Can't have too much 54r

Bertfish · Aug 24, 2014

Alphabrew said:
Can't have too much 54r

I've seen the pictures on here. You really practice what you preach :lol2:

c4snipar · Aug 24, 2014

seems like I will get some more, at least a can.....................

c4snipar · Aug 24, 2014

btw, how much ammo do you guys bring/shoot on a range trip average? I am kind of stingy so to speak, so usually bring about 200 rounds of 54r (love shooting my scoped mosin 91/30), 100 rounds of AKs, 100 rounds of 223 and 100 rounds of 40s if I shoot handguns. I usually go with my brother, and we usually have about 20% left over. Anyone?

4095fanatic · Aug 25, 2014

c4snipar said:
btw, how much ammo do you guys bring/shoot on a range trip average? I am kind of stingy so to speak, so usually bring about 200 rounds of 54r (love shooting my scoped mosin 91/30), 100 rounds of AKs, 100 rounds of 223 and 100 rounds of 40s if I shoot handguns. I usually go with my brother, and we usually have about 20% left over. Anyone?

For me it depends... Last trip was just a quickie to verify my new front sight on my glock was good to go, 100 rounds and done. Trip before that was about 400 5.56 and 5.45 rounds. It varies. UsuAlly no less than 100 centerfire rounds.

c4snipar · Aug 25, 2014

4095fanatic said:
For me it depends... Last trip was just a quickie to verify my new front sight on my glock was good to go, 100 rounds and done. Trip before that was about 400 5.56 and 5.45 rounds. It varies. UsuAlly no less than 100 centerfire rounds.

Damn 400 rounds of 5.56 is balling to me. Bet u had lots of smiles on your face!

4095fanatic · Aug 25, 2014

c4snipar said:
Damn 400 rounds of 5.56 is balling to me. Bet u had lots of smiles on your face!

Should have seen the look on my friends face doing,a mag dump. His first-time shooting an AR.

IMBLITZVT · Aug 25, 2014

Well it looks like we are just through the 70s production 7.62x54r. That means we have about a decade of USSR surplus ammo left. So we should be good for a while.

The real question is not surplus being available... the question is IF it will be allowed to be imported. There are tons of surplus ammo out there. However even back when the 308 was cheap... the South African 308 in perticular, if I remember correctly, was suppose to be demilled. Well rather then demilled, it got sold as surplus and thats how you can 13 cents a round for NC 308 in good quality and quantity. You figure the 8mm really has not been used by a major nation since WWII and we only recently ran out of surplus on the world market and even then someone found some Iranian 8mm. 30-06 is the same way, not really used since Korean but the Koreans still have surplus. So we should still have 50 years worth of 308 and 223. The question is if it will come to market with the new restrictions on the gun trade. You think sales to the US to be used up at gun ranges would be preferred over finding its way into Africa and being used on some innocent woman or Child... but then again, they don't really care about that either. If you look at the new ITAR stuff and how its getting labeled on everything... Then have been clamping down hard on imports really since the Bush Barrel ban around the mid 2000s. At that time you would buy a $100 AK47 kit with a matching original non-demilled barrel and you could buy Good quality 308 for 13 cents or so a round! I remember seeing Turk 8mm for a Penny or two a round or less and not selling! It was not even worth reloading components at the time.

Also, we just saw a good jump in price with the ammo crunch after the school shooting. Prices are just starting to drop back down. I would wait a little longer unless I need it. 54r has been dropping pretty steadily the last few months and will get back to its $80 spam cans I think.

c4snipar said:
btw, how much ammo do you guys bring/shoot on a range trip average? I am kind of stingy so to speak, so usually bring about 200 rounds of 54r (love shooting my scoped mosin 91/30), 100 rounds of AKs, 100 rounds of 223 and 100 rounds of 40s if I shoot handguns. I usually go with my brother, and we usually have about 20% left over. Anyone?

I usually take 880 or 1320 of 54r and average about 1000 rounds shot a trip to the range when shooting 54r. It goes quick. Last shoot was about my lightest shoot yet. Took 880, maybe shot 600ish.

OrbitalEllipses · Aug 25, 2014

IMBLITZVT said:
The real question is not surplus being available... the question is IF it will be allowed to be imported.

Ammo supply is the weakest link and the one they will go after, eventually.

IMBLITZVT · Aug 25, 2014

OrbitalEllipses said:
Ammo supply is the weakest link and the one they will go after, eventually.

They have been going after it for a long time. Chinese ammo is long gone. 223 with steel core is gone recently. I mean what surplus are we still getting besides 7.62x54r? I mean maybe some 5.45 but I think that is now gone too? I don't shoot enough 5.45 to make it worth buying corrosive, so I did not follow that but I think they got that with the steel core in pistol caliber ammo too. With all these pistol in these calibers... its means only full size rifle is going to come in. The 30-06 from Korea seems ok I guess too but not super cheap compared to the ole days...

Frankly, out of all the gun laws, the import restrictions are as close as I come to agreeing with them. I would like to see an American version of Wolf putting out cheap, satisfactory quality steel case ammo. I know some hate steel case but I have shot 1000s of round of it and its fine for bulk purchase ammo. However with cheap imports, I am sure it puts a hurting on US production of ammo. Now I don't agree with the bans, but heavy import tax with the purpose of protecting US labor would be fine with me if the other gun laws went away. I think they are the only constitutional ones on the books as the Federal Government can put a tax on imports. However a Ban is also not appropriate.

Vile Shadow · Aug 25, 2014

Tula and Wolf 7.62x39 are both made in Russia. Now I'm worried about that.

c4snipar · Aug 25, 2014

IMBLITZVT said:
Well it looks like we are just through the 70s production 7.62x54r. That means we have about a decade of USSR surplus ammo left. So we should be good for a while.

The real question is not surplus being available... the question is IF it will be allowed to be imported. There are tons of surplus ammo out there. However even back when the 308 was cheap... the South African 308 in perticular, if I remember correctly, was suppose to be demilled. Well rather then demilled, it got sold as surplus and thats how you can 13 cents a round for NC 308 in good quality and quantity. You figure the 8mm really has not been used by a major nation since WWII and we only recently ran out of surplus on the world market and even then someone found some Iranian 8mm. 30-06 is the same way, not really used since Korean but the Koreans still have surplus. So we should still have 50 years worth of 308 and 223. The question is if it will come to market with the new restrictions on the gun trade. You think sales to the US to be used up at gun ranges would be preferred over finding its way into Africa and being used on some innocent woman or Child... but then again, they don't really care about that either. If you look at the new ITAR stuff and how its getting labeled on everything... Then have been clamping down hard on imports really since the Bush Barrel ban around the mid 2000s. At that time you would buy a $100 AK47 kit with a matching original non-demilled barrel and you could buy Good quality 308 for 13 cents or so a round! I remember seeing Turk 8mm for a Penny or two a round or less and not selling! It was not even worth reloading components at the time.

Also, we just saw a good jump in price with the ammo crunch after the school shooting. Prices are just starting to drop back down. I would wait a little longer unless I need it. 54r has been dropping pretty steadily the last few months and will get back to its $80 spam cans I think.

I usually take 880 or 1320 of 54r and average about 1000 rounds shot a trip to the range when shooting 54r. It goes quick. Last shoot was about my lightest shoot yet. Took 880, maybe shot 600ish.

Nice long comments and can't agree enough a lot of points. I do see that the price of 54r is dropping or seem more stocks popping up recently (other cal overs are dropping too). I ordered a few crates average $207 shipped two months ago, then now it's around $195 shipped. Whether or not it will be $80 a can, I am not confident on that. The question is, there's conflicts in Russia/Ukraine why all the sudden there are more Russian surplus of 54r available? From old stock in the us or how was the prices/availability been driven?

Are surplus ammos drying up soon?

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