# Is the Second Panic (gun ammo) just about over? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 12, 2013, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696 "2013-09-12T20:32:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2013, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/41 "2013-09-15T13:55:24Z")
> [@11811](#): > > I suspect they were tied to the last two presidential elections or inaugurations. I’m guessing the 1st recent one was when Obama was elected. The most recent and bigger one was after Sandy Hook when Obama announced he was going to enact sweeping gun control measures. There was also a supply issue with .556 ammo because there were two wars going on. Units training up for deployment use a lot of ammo so the mitary was buying a lot. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2013, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/42 "2013-09-15T14:42:22Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > Hoping so. Just fucking ridiculous how much ammo people are scooping up the split second it appears on store shelves. Then there’s people like me, who can’t even go shooting _ **because there is no fucking ammo available!** _ To be accurate, [every caliber is available, right now](http://www.gunbot.net/). There is not an ammo shortage. There is only a shortage of cheap ammo. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2013, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/43 "2013-09-15T15:46:56Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > To be accurate, [every caliber is available, right now](http://www.gunbot.net/). > > There is not an ammo shortage. There is only a shortage of cheap ammo. Great link. ---
**Author:** ![Lasciel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e79b87/32.png) [@Lasciel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lasciel)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2013, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/44 "2013-09-15T16:43:59Z")
Not in GQ, so anecdote time: Yesterday went to a nice grand opening of a gun store/range in our neighboring “big city” and they had an entire central block-stack of 5000 round cases of .22LR, as well as a head-high shelving unit of 50-round boxes of .22LR. Federal and CCI were the ones I saw. I walked out with 1000 rounds for a relative who can’t find any in their dinky town, and didn’t even \*dent \*the supply on display. Otherwise, I saw thousands of every caliber I’m familiar with, and many that I’ve never seen before (25-06? 45-70? damn, what are these people killing? Elephants?) There was specifically quite a lot of the usually not-in-stock or “limited buy” calibers: obviously the .22 LRs, and notably .222 and .243 that had been a little scarce around here recently. I will say that even in the throes of the “panic” we never truly ran out of anything around here - it might have taken a couple of stops and a few different outlets during a week to be lucky enough to grab a box or two of .22LR, but even then .22S and.22L were often still there. Other than those, everything else we wanted was always there in some form, as long as you weren’t picky about your brand, your grain-count, and your price. Now if prices would only drop down again, but that’s not ever going to happen, sadly. ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2013, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/45 "2013-09-15T16:51:24Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > To be accurate, [every caliber is available, right now](http://www.gunbot.net/). > > There is not an ammo shortage. There is only a shortage of cheap ammo. For the casual shooter there is no ammunition. Few of us order from the Internet, and for those that don’t the shelves are still empty at any price. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2013, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/46 "2013-09-15T17:09:14Z")
> [@Lasciel](#): > > Otherwise, I saw thousands of every caliber I’m familiar with, and many that I’ve never seen before (25-06? **45-70**? \*\*damn, what are these people killing? Elephants?) \*\* Bears, actually. My packing gun in Alaska was a Marlin lever-action .45-70. Fit nicely behind the pockets on one side of my pack, and was enough gun to discourage any bear I was stupid enough to encounter. But bells, camp cleanliness discipline and kimchee made encounters few and fleeting. ---
**Author:** ![River\_Hippie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/river_hippie/32/26_2.png) [@River\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/River_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2013, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/47 "2013-09-15T17:22:29Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > Yes. 22LR is the last to catch up to the demand, but everything else is reasonably well-stocked. This has been my experience lately here in Indiana. I can find .223 and 9mm but not always my prefered brand. Plinking grade is harder to find, pricey personal protection grade is easier. ---
**Author:** ![ducati](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/cc9497/32.png) [@ducati](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ducati)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2013, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/48 "2013-09-15T18:05:36Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Say, is Black Talon worth anything? I picked up a few boxes when there was some controversy about it (‘cop killer’ bullets, or something) back in the '90s. Never used it. I should hope not. It’s a great [defensive round](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Talon#Overview), not a target round. Even though there have been a couple of more advanced/capable rounds developed recently, they’re certainly up to any [del]intruder[/del] task that comes knocking. I still carry it in a couple of my pistols. My shower gun, my lawnmower gun, my garbage can gun… ---
**Author:** ![Glazer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a88e57/32.png) [@Glazer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Glazer)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2013, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/49 "2013-09-15T19:18:20Z")
> [@ducati](#): > > … my garbage can gun… Please tell me it’s strapped inside the can lid. Just in case you ever need to draw down on the garbage man. ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2013, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/50 "2013-09-16T05:41:33Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > To be accurate, [every caliber is available, right now](http://www.gunbot.net/). > > There is not an ammo shortage. There is only a shortage of cheap ammo. There’s a shortage of ammo, that’s why there’s a shortage of cheap ammo. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2013, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/51 "2013-09-16T06:45:34Z")
> [@ducati](#): > > My shower gun, my lawnmower gun, my garbage can gun… You’re done. ---
**Author:** ![SirGalahad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/71c47a/32.png) [@SirGalahad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SirGalahad)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2013, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/52 "2013-09-16T17:30:34Z")
> [@Glazer](#): > > Please tell me it’s strapped inside the can lid. Just in case you ever need to draw down on the garbage man. I could have used one a couple of times when the raccoon family was swarming the dumpster. Never know what you’ll find by trash cans, depending on where you live, from a bear to stray dogs to homeless junkies. ---
**Author:** ![elninost0rm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ed655f/32.png) [@elninost0rm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elninost0rm)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2013, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/53 "2013-09-16T17:46:54Z")
> [@SirGalahad](#): > > I could have used one a couple of times when the raccoon family was swarming the dumpster. Never know what you’ll find by trash cans, depending on where you live, from a bear to stray dogs to **homeless junkies**. Who should obviously be blown away on sight. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2013, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/54 "2013-09-16T17:49:22Z")
> [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](#): > > What was the first panic? And what triggered the second one? The Aurora shooting, and later Sandy Hook, which the mainstrem media won’t tell you were both orchestrated by Obama so he could authorize door-to-door searches without a warrant, to confiscate everyone’s guns. Yes, there are people who really believe this. ---
**Author:** ![SirGalahad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/71c47a/32.png) [@SirGalahad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SirGalahad)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2013, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/55 "2013-09-16T18:03:51Z")
> [@elninost0rm](#): > > Who should obviously be blown away on sight. Maybe pepper spray would be better for you. Or a rolled up newspaper … I don’t think you’ve quite got the temperament for a gun. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2013, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696/56 "2013-09-16T18:05:37Z")
Perhaps pepper spray could be considered a food, and you are actually feeding them by using it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-second-panic-gun-ammo-just-about-over/668696.md?page=2)