I had some family visit for the weekend. During their stay we headed out to the range for some fun with guns. They are novice shooters with only a handful of trips to the range. I've got three 9mm, a Shotgun, AR and an AK. I keep my closet with a rotating stock of ammo (1000 9mm, 1000 .223, 1000 7.62x39 and 500 12 ga.) i'll go through 300 9mm rounds easily during a trip to the range.


They seemed surprised/freaked out with the amount of ammo I have on hand. I've always though I need to build up more inventory.


The question is....How much is too much?

I've not found the answer to that question yet.

You have too much when your stockpile affects normal usage of your living space.

Maybe if you have to pay and extra monthly stipend for storage...

I don't know where the line lies, but I hope I'm able to reach it someday.

Given the possibility of upcoming ammo restrictions and rising prices, I don't think you CAN have too much.

N+1

There is never too much.

It depends on if you are afraid of:

1. Shortages
2. Price increases
3. Government Purchase Limits

If you aren't concerned about any of these there is really no reason to stockpile ammunition, other than convenience.

what do you mean by too much? I don't get this question....

I haven't reached that point of too much ammo. If I do, I'll be sure to tell you, but don't hold your breath.

Gundude answer: never can have enough

Real answer for a scenario where you might actually need it: I keep five 30 round magazines of 223/5.56, 500 rounds of 9MM, 1,000 rounds of 22lr and 50 12 gauge shells( various shots) in a ammo can that is my grab n go stash. If a situation did arise where I needed that can I wouldn't be shooting it unless I needed to.

But your right, having a 1,000 rounds of 9mm is nothing when you go to the range a few times a month.

"the only reason you would want a stockpile of ammo is if there is a shortage"

This thread reminds me I need to reorganize my ammo stash. Used to be super organized but now its chaos.

Enough would mean if you could never again buy ammo you would have enough for your great great grandchildren to shoot every day and never run out. That should come to right at 3,642,301 rounds. Dont expect your girlfriend, wife, mom, or any hippy family members to understand.

I buy cheap or in bulk, and stockpile.

At any given time, I have ~500 rounds per firearm, with the exception of shotshell, since it is so application specific.

Pistol 9mm I have 2,000-13,000 at any time. I usually order components for 10k at a time once I get down to a 2 or 3 month supply left. Rifle .223 about the same thing but 1,500-7,000. 12 ga. 200-1,000 rounds birdshot and 50-500 slugs. I have 200-500 rounds each of several other calibers.

I buy in bulk to save money and try to keep a supply a few months ahead of what I need. Economic and practical reasons, not worried about the zombie apocalypse or anything silly. Last election cycle there were extended periods of time where certain calibers and reloading components were not available. I've got enough on hand at the moment to last me a year and a half in case that happens again so I won't get screwed on prices or have everything back ordered indefinitely.

I need to start. Where do y'all usually use for bulk purchases.

Always smarter to stockpile. Think about how much ammo has gone up. Buying a ton now saves you a lot of money vs continually buying in the future.

For me, my main two calibers are 7.62x39 and 9mm.
I dont believe I can have enough of these rounds.

Quagmire, try http://www.ammoengine.com/ and http://gun-deals.com/ammo. These sites catalog multiple ammo deals and provide the ability to sort based on pretty much any variable you want ($/round, grain, type, etc).

I try to stockpile but always end up shooting it instead. I do have aaround a hundred rounds each of 30-06 and 223, but handgun ammo always seems to disappear.

Oh yeah I have the obligatory bricks of .22LR that seem infinite.

ammotogo.com is a pretty good source and if you're near Brenham you can pick it up in person and waive the shipping.
I hope to start once I have the funds.

How do y'all store your ammo? Closet, top/bottom of gun safe, its own safe, buried in your backyard? I'm just curious as to what kind of precautions you have in place in the case of a scenario where you couldn't relocate it fast enough - fire, flood, etc.

+1 ammunitiontogo.com
Website is easy to use.
Ordered a bunch of different ammo and got it in the mail the next day.
They are located in Brenham,TX

Man you guys have some real stockpiles. I've got about: 500 5.56mm, 100 .45auto, 50 each for 30-06 & 30-30, 100 7.62x54, and up to a case of 12 gauge.

+2 ammotogo.com, been getting 5.56 in bulk from them pretty regularly now and never had a problem

I like ammotogo as a Texas Company but order factory ammo from SGAmmo in Oklahoma to avoid sales tax sometimes. ;/

I also order reman ammo from Freedom Ammunition.

[This message has been edited by atmhockey (edited 7/24/2012 1:18p).]

Thanks for the input....Looks like its cut off the cable, No A/C, and eating ramen noodles for a couple months to get my stockpile to a much more respectable level.

KLOL101?

You are old...

[This message has been edited by TXNative (edited 7/24/2012 1:45p).]

One round after your barrel melts is "too much"

Let My People Rock!!

I thought i had a respectable amount on hands, but it seems i've fallen short.
7.62/AK - 1000
5.56 - 500
.45 acp - 200
.40 - 300
9mm - 250
.357 mag - 150
.38 100
12 gauge - 500

I need to start buying

My piles are limited as well:

9mm - 2,000 +/-
.308 - 200
12 ga. - 400 +/-

Still waiting on another 1,000 9mm reloads from Jack Ross, but I'm not sure that will ever show up.

KLOL? I had a KLOL bumper sticker on my 71 Ford Sport Custom pickup. That's been a while.
I have many thousands of rounds for all manner of firearms.
There is no way to have a maximum in our current and forseeable political climate.
I'll relax a bit when we elect a Libertarian president. Until then I just keep buying and reloading.

quote:

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N+1

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When the movers showed up to move us out of the old house, it was a couple of huge Aussie rugby players and a few company guys. I had already moved my pistols and rifles out of the safe, but my shotguns were in cases on the bed (closed, of course) and all of my ammo was on the shelves to still be packed.

When the big guys saw all the gun cases and ammo they were stunned. "OY, You're ready for the zombies, mate!"

Yup, still not enough, though.

I think as long as you can rotate through it to keep it somewhat fresh and store it smartly - stock it up! It sucks to want to go shooting with friends and you can't buy a few boxes at Wally World... much less for more serious reasons.

There is no need to keep ammo "fresh". It does not expire. Store it halfway decent and it will last for decades and still function exactly the same as a brand spanking new round.