A Morrow
Active Member
looking to buy some ammo in bulk since its so hard to find any right now and didn't know where everyone else is having luck buying it at. I'm look for 9mm and .40
ammo
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Jacob Dryer
Well-Known Member
I've been buying White Box Remington at Walmart.. seems to be the cheapest I can come up with. $20 for 100 rounds of 9mm, with no shipping.
JD - You state at Walmart then mention no shipping. You mean since you go to Walmart B&M you avoid shipping cost or you mean you buy it online with free shipping?
Don't see it online but thought I'd ask anyway...
Don't see it online but thought I'd ask anyway...
Jacob Dryer
Well-Known Member
I go and buy it B&M, all the online places sell other brands for roughly the same price and then tack on shipping, not that I blame them ammo is heavy. I priced out buying 1000 rounds of 9mm and it was going to be within $20 (if I remember correctly) between white box and ordering it online. I figured for the extra $20 I don't have to buy it all at once. So it hasn't felt like a huge hit because I just pickup a box here and there whenever we go to Walmart.
A Morrow
Active Member
went to walmart today and they had no ammo on the shelf
A Morrow
Active Member
i just got 500 rnds of 9mm and 500 rnds of .40 online and spent just under 300 bucks but it seems like the only way right now, every shop around here has nothing on the shelf and every time i want to shoot its more of a hassle to find ammo
A Morrow
Active Member
well i have a few choice words for that change but for the better of the forum i'll keep them to myself
:blink:Gavin Allan
Well-Known Member
Join the US Army. They still seem to have a bit left. :banana:
A Morrow
Active Member
seems like a lot just to target shoot lol
Gotta love mass hysteria without any substance behind it.
Still trying to find that change the NRA said was going to come.
Tom
Still trying to find that change the NRA said was going to come.
Tom
Ryan Schaecher
Well-Known Member
9mm and .40 is still cheapest to buy locally for me. Even steel-cased wolf and the various bears online are more than Winchester White Box at Wally World (when it's in stock). .40S&W will be one of the first rounds I reload for though....
i also agree there is some hysteria to it but in the end it may be for good reason.
Caymen how can you say you are looking for the change the NRA said was coming?
are you a member? do you get the state by state legislative reports of the bills that were introduced right after the first of the year?
only time will tell if there is substance to it, as people
keep saying " he has only been in for a few weeks give him time"
in his defence Obama claimed while campaigning that he wasnt going
to touch guns which may be true but a super large tax on ammo and
serialization of the same will amount to a ban in the long run. as only the very rich
and politicians will be able to afford it.
Caymen how can you say you are looking for the change the NRA said was coming?
are you a member? do you get the state by state legislative reports of the bills that were introduced right after the first of the year?
only time will tell if there is substance to it, as people
keep saying " he has only been in for a few weeks give him time"
in his defence Obama claimed while campaigning that he wasnt going
to touch guns which may be true but a super large tax on ammo and
serialization of the same will amount to a ban in the long run. as only the very rich
and politicians will be able to afford it.
I have my fair share of ammo here. All I am saying is that we are in panic mode right now. Go to a gun store. The shelves are empty. This is not just the ammo, but also the guns and related items.
All a result of fear.
Tom
Rich Stern
Well-Known Member
Our local Walmart is out of most stuff, but does have some 22LR, shotshells, 9mm, and a few hunting calibers.
In a gun forum I frequent, a member who is a Walmart sporting goods department manager said Walmart is in a stare-down with the ammo makers, who are trying to raise prices as much as 40%. Apparently, Walmart's buyers won't have any of that, and are refusing to buy at the new prices. I have no way to confirm it.
In the meantime, if you don't reload your own ammo, I highly recommend it. A $250 investment in equipment and supplies can get you set up for a a few calibers. I'll be happy to list what you need if you are unfamiliar with the process.
In a gun forum I frequent, a member who is a Walmart sporting goods department manager said Walmart is in a stare-down with the ammo makers, who are trying to raise prices as much as 40%. Apparently, Walmart's buyers won't have any of that, and are refusing to buy at the new prices. I have no way to confirm it.
In the meantime, if you don't reload your own ammo, I highly recommend it. A $250 investment in equipment and supplies can get you set up for a a few calibers. I'll be happy to list what you need if you are unfamiliar with the process.
A Morrow
Active Member
rich i've thought about it and a buddy is willing to go halves with me on it but don't know much about it? what would i need to start reloading my own?
Gavin Allan
Well-Known Member
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Rich Stern
Well-Known Member
red, it's not hard. You do have to be willing to pay attention, follow instructions and work careful to repeat the same steps many times over. The reward is, you get ammo that is cheaper than factory stuff, and can often be tweaked to shoot better in your guns.
What you need:
- Reloading press
- Priming tool
- A powder measure and/or powder scale (having both is good)
- 1 set of dies per caliber you plan to reload
- Some case preperation tools
- Supplies: Powder, priimers, bullets
- A manual or load guide that indicates what combination of powder weight and bullets are safe to use
The Reloading Steps
For the sake of simplicity, let's assume we are going to load for 9mm Luger. Everything I describe is applicable to other pistol cartridges. Bottle necked rifle cartridges are a bit more involved, so we'll leave that aside for the moment.
The reloading (or handloading) process involves the following steps. They don' always occur in this order, and some steps can be combined.
1) Clean the empty brass (optional). This is usually done in a vibrating parts cleaner or tumbler with media like corncob or walnut shell. It can also be done by washing with dish detergent (and allowing time for drying, since the brass can't be loaded wet).
2) Deprime the brass. This step pops out the spent primer. This is often done in combination with step 3, which is:
3) Resize the brass. The brass is forced into a die that resizes it back to it's original dimensions. The resizing die will usually have a center pin that punches out the spent primer (step 2, above).
4) Reprime the brass. Pushes a fresh, new primer into the primer pocket. Some presses have a tool mounted to them for this. There are also hand held tools for doing this step "off press." 9mm Luger requires the use of a Small Pistol Primer. Many of the smaller pistol calibers (32acp, 380acp, 38 special, etc.) use this size primer.
5) Charge the brass with powder. Based on a known safe load, an appropriate amount of powder is dropped into the primed case. This can be done by weight from a scale (labor intensive) or by volume from a powder hopper (far easier).
6) Flare the case mouth to easily accept the new bullet. This is sometimes done in combination with a single die as part of step 5, above.
7) Seat the bullet. The bullet is placed (by hand) in the mouth of the case and seated to a proper depth by the bullet seating die.
8) Crimp the bullet. The mouth of the case is tightend around the bullet, holding it firmly in place. This is sometimes done by the the seater die, described in step 7.
Choosing the Tools
The most important piece of equipment is the reloading press. There are three types:
1) Single stage: A single die is put into the press, adjusted, and then all of the cases are batch prepped with that single die (for example, sizing). Then the next die is put into the press, adjusted, and the next step is done to all of the brass in batch. Etc.
2) Turret press: This is a press with a rotating head that holds all of the dies. You work on one case at a time. Size...prime...load powder...seat bullet...crimp. The head of the press moves the proper die into position for each operation. You start with a piece of spent brass, and three to five steps later (depending on setup), you have a loaded piece of ammo.
3) Progressive press. This is a heavily automated press that does a lot of the steps itself. You feed it cases and bullets, it takes care of the rest.
Single stage presses are a great way to learn, but they are slow. They are particularly suited to rifle cartridges, since rifle cartridge reloading tends to naturally be batch oriented.
Turret presses are a great compromise. They aren't complicated, but they greatly speed up the production of ammo, which makes them ideal for pistol reloading.
Progressive presses do a lot of things at once, and can be tough on a beginner because a mistake can be difficult to see, and have catastrophic consequences: A destroyed gun and/or personal injury from malfunctioning ammo. If you are mechanically inclined, and have a bit of experience under your belt, it's possible to use these to make many hundreds of rounds of ammo per hour with minimal effort.
Best bet for a beginner is a turret press. I am huge fan of the Lee Classic Turret press, which is extremely well built, reliable, makes ammo quickly, and can be changed over to another caliber in less than a minute for minimal cost. This kit has most of what you need to get started:
<a target=_new href="http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/links/link.jsp?id=0044122216337a&type=product">Lee Classic Turret press kit at Cabelas</a>
The above press has the priming tool on the press. A scale is included for verifying the weight of a load by volume (you measure the first one to make sure it weights what you expect it to weigh)
Add to this:
- A set of Lee dies (the deluxe, four die sets they sell are the best match for the above press) for the caliber you want to load. Cost is about $25 per set.
- Powder...cost is typically about $20/pound. For 9mm, depending on the powder, a pound will yield between 1000 and 1800 rounds of loaded ammo.
- Primers...cost is typically about $20 per 1000.
- Bullets...FMJ bullets for 9mm go for about $35/per 500.
For consumables, you are looking at about $6 per 50 reloaded round. That's ok savings for 9mm. For 40 S&W, 45acp, and other pricier calibers, the cost per reloaded round isn't much diffent, so the savings are even bigger. With some experience, using the above tools, you can comfortably, safely produce about 200 rounds per hour.
If you have questions, I am happy to answer. Oh, and one more thing: You always wear some type of eye protection while making ammo.
What you need:
- Reloading press
- Priming tool
- A powder measure and/or powder scale (having both is good)
- 1 set of dies per caliber you plan to reload
- Some case preperation tools
- Supplies: Powder, priimers, bullets
- A manual or load guide that indicates what combination of powder weight and bullets are safe to use
The Reloading Steps
For the sake of simplicity, let's assume we are going to load for 9mm Luger. Everything I describe is applicable to other pistol cartridges. Bottle necked rifle cartridges are a bit more involved, so we'll leave that aside for the moment.
The reloading (or handloading) process involves the following steps. They don' always occur in this order, and some steps can be combined.
1) Clean the empty brass (optional). This is usually done in a vibrating parts cleaner or tumbler with media like corncob or walnut shell. It can also be done by washing with dish detergent (and allowing time for drying, since the brass can't be loaded wet).
2) Deprime the brass. This step pops out the spent primer. This is often done in combination with step 3, which is:
3) Resize the brass. The brass is forced into a die that resizes it back to it's original dimensions. The resizing die will usually have a center pin that punches out the spent primer (step 2, above).
4) Reprime the brass. Pushes a fresh, new primer into the primer pocket. Some presses have a tool mounted to them for this. There are also hand held tools for doing this step "off press." 9mm Luger requires the use of a Small Pistol Primer. Many of the smaller pistol calibers (32acp, 380acp, 38 special, etc.) use this size primer.
5) Charge the brass with powder. Based on a known safe load, an appropriate amount of powder is dropped into the primed case. This can be done by weight from a scale (labor intensive) or by volume from a powder hopper (far easier).
6) Flare the case mouth to easily accept the new bullet. This is sometimes done in combination with a single die as part of step 5, above.
7) Seat the bullet. The bullet is placed (by hand) in the mouth of the case and seated to a proper depth by the bullet seating die.
8) Crimp the bullet. The mouth of the case is tightend around the bullet, holding it firmly in place. This is sometimes done by the the seater die, described in step 7.
Choosing the Tools
The most important piece of equipment is the reloading press. There are three types:
1) Single stage: A single die is put into the press, adjusted, and then all of the cases are batch prepped with that single die (for example, sizing). Then the next die is put into the press, adjusted, and the next step is done to all of the brass in batch. Etc.
2) Turret press: This is a press with a rotating head that holds all of the dies. You work on one case at a time. Size...prime...load powder...seat bullet...crimp. The head of the press moves the proper die into position for each operation. You start with a piece of spent brass, and three to five steps later (depending on setup), you have a loaded piece of ammo.
3) Progressive press. This is a heavily automated press that does a lot of the steps itself. You feed it cases and bullets, it takes care of the rest.
Single stage presses are a great way to learn, but they are slow. They are particularly suited to rifle cartridges, since rifle cartridge reloading tends to naturally be batch oriented.
Turret presses are a great compromise. They aren't complicated, but they greatly speed up the production of ammo, which makes them ideal for pistol reloading.
Progressive presses do a lot of things at once, and can be tough on a beginner because a mistake can be difficult to see, and have catastrophic consequences: A destroyed gun and/or personal injury from malfunctioning ammo. If you are mechanically inclined, and have a bit of experience under your belt, it's possible to use these to make many hundreds of rounds of ammo per hour with minimal effort.
Best bet for a beginner is a turret press. I am huge fan of the Lee Classic Turret press, which is extremely well built, reliable, makes ammo quickly, and can be changed over to another caliber in less than a minute for minimal cost. This kit has most of what you need to get started:
<a target=_new href="http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/links/link.jsp?id=0044122216337a&type=product">Lee Classic Turret press kit at Cabelas</a>
The above press has the priming tool on the press. A scale is included for verifying the weight of a load by volume (you measure the first one to make sure it weights what you expect it to weigh)
Add to this:
- A set of Lee dies (the deluxe, four die sets they sell are the best match for the above press) for the caliber you want to load. Cost is about $25 per set.
- Powder...cost is typically about $20/pound. For 9mm, depending on the powder, a pound will yield between 1000 and 1800 rounds of loaded ammo.
- Primers...cost is typically about $20 per 1000.
- Bullets...FMJ bullets for 9mm go for about $35/per 500.
For consumables, you are looking at about $6 per 50 reloaded round. That's ok savings for 9mm. For 40 S&W, 45acp, and other pricier calibers, the cost per reloaded round isn't much diffent, so the savings are even bigger. With some experience, using the above tools, you can comfortably, safely produce about 200 rounds per hour.
If you have questions, I am happy to answer. Oh, and one more thing: You always wear some type of eye protection while making ammo.
Last edited by a moderator:
