Rounds for AR?

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howdy
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Re: Rounds for AR?

#16

Post by howdy »

Academy has American Eagle (brass 55 grain) on sale for $5.99/20.
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MaduroBU
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Re: Rounds for AR?

#17

Post by MaduroBU »

A Hornady Lock and Load AP is about $700 (counting the bullet feeder and case feeder), though the various accoutrements that you'll need to really take advantage of it top $1500 all told, plus a decent bench to mount it. That may seem steep, but if you're shooting a lot, it will pay for itself. Note that you cannot take your time into account when making these comparisons, as you'll come out behind unless you're retired. However, the skill is useful. You can make better than factory ammunition (for your rifle), or you can make cheaper ammo if you so choose.

The way that you evaluate a caliber and rifle combination changes quite a bit when the only limit to your creativity is bullet availability and load data. Once you're no longer limited by the dictates of what Federal and Remington think will sell, you can build some really cool stuff. Further, a piece of rifle brass will last between 3 and 9 firings before giving up the ghost. If you're reloading, policing brass is picking up quarters off the sidewalk (possibly much more if you're a masochist who happens to enjoy .300 Blackout, .357 Sig and .300 WSM).

Consider 1000 rounds of .300 Blackout blasting ammo. 2100 150 gr HDY FMJ is $374 ($0.18/ea), 5000 Remington 7 1/2 primers are $152+20=$172 ($0.03/ea) 8 lbs of CFE BLK is $180+20=$200 (7000 gr/lb*8=56,000 gr/18gr=3100; $200/3100=$0.06/ea), 1000 5.56 cases from Everglades ammo is $80+$60 for a cheapo Harbor Freight mini cutoff saw and a jig, $140/(1000casesx6firings=6000, $140/6000=$0.02/ea). That gives you $0.29/round. Sellier&Bellot /300 BLK 147 gr blasting ammo is $0.64/round.

You could spend the hours required to make your ammo working and earn the money required to cover the difference. Depending upon your average remuneration, you could earn the difference and quite a bit extra. However, what you can't earn is the ability to rapidly use those skills to make a variety of other ammunition. Further, if you're into stockpiling, that enterprise becomes a LOT more space efficient and far safer if the majority of your stockpile is in components (presuming that you take basic precautions regarding the safe storage of gunpowder and primers).

I personally can't imagine keeping thousands of rounds on hand for a variety of reasons, not least among them storage. However, the capacity to MAKE thousands of rounds takes up one STURDY shelf once the initial knowledge and equipment hurdles are overcome. The sense of pride and self sufficiency that comes from rolling your own is a great reward, even in the overwhelming likelihood that the benefit remains psychological rather than practical. To anyone thinking of putting thousands of dollars into hoarding live ammo, I'd strongly advise them to look at reloading. You may find that your money goes farther, and farther in ways that you hadn't anticipated, that way.

LeonCarr
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Re: Rounds for AR?

#18

Post by LeonCarr »

Lots of people do not realize that in times of unrest being able to bug out in a hurry is a very valuable asset. You don't just load 60,000 rounds of .223/5.56 in a backpack and bug out. Unless you are planning to shelter in place for a very extended period of time (Google what General George Patton said about fixed fortifications) it just doesn't make sense to fill your garage floor to ceiling with ammunition.

Just my .02,
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troglodyte
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Re: Rounds for AR?

#19

Post by troglodyte »

Not everyone that is stockpiling ammo (or anything else) is expecting TEOTWAWKI scenarios and having to bug out in the dead of night. They instead are hedging against legislation or some other factor that makes the availability of firearms, ammo, or components unavailable, extremely expensive, or in limited supplies. Whether it is for them, or more likely, their future generations they are putting it back against such occurrences.

Frankly, stockpiling x1000s of rounds for TEOTWAWKI is not likely to help much. If it gets so bad that I'm expecting to need to use x1000s rounds in a firefight or several skirmishes my chances, or the chances of any with me, of surviving are pretty slim. The odds of catching a round, I would think, are pretty high and without immediate trauma center care the likelihood of surviving a gunshot gets pretty low. Even if it is a survivable wound then I'm still out of or at least limited in the fight and probably for a long time afterward. If it is one of my companions then they have to be tended to. In this type of scenario it would be evade and escape with as few rounds fired as possible. If I haven't bugged out, which I'm not likely to do anyway, then unless my household bands with the surrounding neighbors I'm probably going to get dry gulched while tending the garden or picking up eggs. One or just a few cannot stand guard 24/7 for long. Even if I had the ultimate bug out location getting there and staying unknown is not to be easy. TEOTWAWKI is a pretty bleak future and I think I'd be better to just go home to my Maker.

How you wish to plan ahead is entirely up to you. Setting back reloading components is good. Storing up loaded ammo is good. Acquiring more parts and mags is good. Getting training, learning how to garden, being skilled at fixing things are all good.

I do a little of all and not enough of any. Just keep chipping away at it. I'm planning more for the legislative disaster or local civil unrest than TEOTWAWKI.

I set 1000 rounds of each of my go-to calibers as a minimum to always keep on hand. Then I have my working stock that I try to replace two boxes for every one shot (although I'm not very consistent at this plan). I mostly reload for my 300BO so it is just a matter of trying to make two rounds for every one I shoot and storing away the extra (also hard to do since it is so much fun to shoot). Any extras goes in the stockpile but the 1000 minimum is never touched. Ultimately I'd like to have multiple 1000s of rounds but it is slow going within the household budget.
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Soccerdad1995
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Re: Rounds for AR?

#20

Post by Soccerdad1995 »

I can fit a heck of a lot of ammo in my SUV. Probably at least 20,000 rounds. More if I also take my car on a bug out trip.

Getting into more detail, my initial plan is to shelter in place. There are a grand total of 3 entrances to my sub-division, so it is fairly defensible, at least against vehicles. Plan would be to identify like minded neighbors, and use houses that have good sight lines to key entry points (or commandeer those houses if the owners have vacated). Then assign sentries, and ideally set up a few patrols, etc.

Most neighbors will be woefully undersupplied with ammo, and likely also weapons, so a lot of any ammo supply will go toward shoring up their needs. Then I will need to have a separate supply ready for a potential bug out should that be necessary. Net-net, I am planning to keep a lot of rounds on hand. Hopefully I'll never need them for anything other than the range, competition, and hunting. But if I do ever need them for a TEOTWAWKI scenario, I'd still rather have 2X what I need than 1/2 what I need.
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