Gunpowder and Lead… Bullet Shortage Increases in America, Fear of Democrat Anti-Gun Legislation Stokes Demand (update)
Posted By Vicki McClure Davidson on September 30, 2009
UPDATE, September 30, 2009: Associated Press: Guns allowed in Arizona bars starting Wednesday
Suppliers can't keep up with the increased demand for bullets, causing a long-term shortage in America
Original post: September 24, 2009
The demand for handgun and rifle ammo in America exceeds the supply as more Americans stock up… this trend has been going on for months.
Lou Dobbs, CNN: Bullet Buying Frenzy, The Obama Effect? | July 2009
From Chron, Houston & Texas News:
Bullet makers can’t keep up with demand
By Mary Foster, Associated Press
September 23, 2009NEW ORLEANS — Bullet-makers are working around the clock, seven days a week, and still can’t keep up with the nation’s demand for ammunition.
Shooting ranges, gun dealers and bullet manufacturers say they have never seen such shortages. Bullets, especially for handguns, have been scarce for months because gun enthusiasts are stocking up on ammo, in part because they fear President Barack Obama and the Democratic-controlled Congress will pass antigun legislation — even though nothing specific has been proposed and the president last month signed a law allowing people to carry loaded guns in national parks.
Gun sales spiked when it became clear Obama would be elected a year ago and purchases continued to rise in his first few months of office. The FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System reported that 6.1 million background checks for gun sales were issued from January to May, an increase of 25.6 percent from the same period the year before.
“That is going to cause an upswing in ammunition sales,” said Larry Keane, senior vice president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, a trade association representing about 5,000 members. “Without bullets a gun is just a paper weight.”
The shortage for sportsmen is different than the scarcity of ammo for some police forces earlier this year, a dearth fueled by an increase in ammo use by the military in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“We are working overtime and still can’t keep up with the demand,” said Al Russo, spokesman for North Carolina-based Remington Arms Company, which makes bullets for rifles, handguns and shotguns. “We’ve had to add a fourth shift and go 24-7. It’s a phenomenon that I have not seen before in my 30 years in the business.”
Americans usually buy about 7 billion rounds of ammunition a year, according to the National Rifle Association. In the past year, that figure has jumped to about 9 billion rounds, said NRA spokeswoman Vickie Cieplak.
Jason Gregory, who manages Gretna Gun Works just outside of New Orleans, has been building his personal supply of ammunition for months. His goal is to have at least 1,000 rounds for each of his 25 weapons.
“I call it the Obama effect,” said Gregory, 37, of Terrytown, La. “It always happens when the Democrats get in office. It happened with Clinton and Obama is even stronger for gun control. Ammunition will be the first step, so I’m stocking up while I can.”
So far, the new administration nor Congress has not been markedly antigun. Obama has said he respects Second Amendment rights, but favors “common sense” on gun laws. Still, worries about what could happen persist…
From Williamette Week News Online:
Police Cancel Marksmanship Qualifications Due to Bullet Shortage
By James Pitkin
September 10, 2009Americans are used to shortages of affordable health care, public art and sex. But now bullets?
That’s the situation facing the Portland Police Bureau now that Chief Rosie Sizer and her three assistant chiefs decided Wednesday to cancel fall marksmanship qualifications because of a nationwide ammo shortage.
“We normally qualify three times a year,” says Commander John Tellis of the bureau’s Training Division. “On this current round of qualifications, we’re just going to pass on that and pick up again in January.”
As previously reported, the Police Bureau in March ordered 50 cases of practice ammo with 1,000 rounds in each case. But those bullets are still on back order.
Tellis says he now expects the shipment to arrive in November.
From nbc4i News Columbus:
Fear Of Tax Increase Leads To Bullet Shortage
By Denise Yost
April 3, 2009COLUMBUS, Ohio— A race to stock up on ammunition is causing a bullet shortage.
Doug Vance, owner of Vance’s Shooter Supply, said that federal agencies and the military are using lots of bullets and many people are stocking up because they fear that the president’s administration will put a higher tax on bullets or reinstate the assault weapons ban.
The fear is affecting consumers and local law enforcement agencies as well.
“We’re trying to tell most of our agencies to plan out, if they can, six to eight months in advance of their needs because some of these loads … are eight months out from date of order,“ Vance said.
Depending on the bullets, Vance said he’s had to put limits on how many boxes of ammunition customers can buy.
Vance said he anticipates the shortage to last throughout the year.
Reno gun owners recovering from ammunition shortage
By Steve Timko
September 22, 2009Ed Yenick of Reno usually keeps an adequate supply of ammunition at home, but noticed some shortages this year.
“Earlier this summer I recall I had a problem finding .22 long rifle ammo just to go plink with,” Yenick said.
Yenick isn’t alone as the Reno-area recovers from what some call an unprecedented shortage of ammunition, mostly for handguns but also for some rifle calibers like .223 Remington or 7.62x39mm.
It seemed to be at its worst in late winter and early spring, Yenick said.
“It was just terrible. The shelves were empty,” he said. “I went to one gun show at the Grand Sierra and there were people coming with boxes and bags of ammunition.”
The shortage didn’t affect any plans by Yenick, including for hunting. But it was an inconvenience.
The crunch seems to be easing, said Bill Foster, hunting manager at the Sportsman Warehouse. But as big game hunting season approaches some rifle calibers may have limited selection of ammunition.
“We’ve seen more in this shipment on hunting ammo than we’ve seen in the last couple of months, but even at that we’ve got bare spots on our shelves,” Foster said. “It is getting better, but we’re just not up to the volume distribution yet.”
KXLY News – Ammo shortages leading some to stockpile bullets | March 2009
CBS News Online: Ammunition Low In Texas | March 2009
Related reading:
Gateway Pundit: It Begins… Democrats Schedule Senate Meeting to Regulate Gun Sales and Chicago Mayor Blames Fort Hood Massacre On America’s Love of Guns and You Betcha!… Sarah Palin Honored By NRA With Assault Rifle and US Can’t Control Border- Mexico Can’t Either… Team Obama Solution: Ban Assault Weapons in US
Riehl World View: FBI Wants More Gun Data
Frugal Café Blog Zone: Michigan Militia Has Resurgence: Distrusts Where Nation Is Going, Lack of Adherence to Constitution (video)
Pajamas Media: Nationwide Ammunition Shortage Hits U.S.
Lagniappe’s Lair: California gun owners just got screwed
The Patriot’s Mind: What the Media won’t tell you about Judge Sotomayor
N.U.G.U.N. – New User of Guns: California proposes solution to ammo shortage crisis
Deadline Live: There’s still a major ammo shortage in the U.S.
Bad Trip’s World: Ammo shortage in US
Just Americans Making Ethical Statements Weblog: Gun Dealers are Reporting AMMO Shortage
Snarky Bytes: On the Ammo Shortage
Say Uncle: The good from the ammo shortage
Murphy’s Bird Dog Blog: Ammo shortage?
Red Alerts: Ammunition Shortages Affecting “Oddball” Calibers as Gun Owners’ Hoarding Spree Continues
Bullet Boy on Shooting Sports: CNN Says “Ammo hard to find as gun owners stock up”
About the author
Glenn Beck’s TV show has a guest tonight, a lawyer that has been successful in bringing a case to the Supreme Court concerning the gun laws in Chicago.
The laws in Chicago are draconian to say the least.
It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
The 2nd Amendment is under attack, and the next one will be the 1st.
Sarah has a new book, not yet published, but the libs are already denigrating her audacity to publish a book.
I gotta read her book.
I will guarantee it will be a best seller.
Just watch it happen.
Too funny! Liberals attack that which they fear. To attack BEFORE the book is available is positively PRICELESS.
Based on my newly established, non-scientific “Liberal Attack Scale,” they’ve now, thanks to their hit jobs on Palin, guaranteed the book will be a runaway hit.
And its success will be accomplished without NY Times doing a piece on it, nor any of the MSM reporting it or interviewing Palin. They will ignore it unless it’s to denigrate it.
The book will be a hit no matter what, but the more viciously and blood-thirstily the liberals attack it, the more the conservatives will want to read it. Free publicity!
So, BRING IT ON… don’t hold back, libs! The more bile spewing you all do will keep Palin’s book on the charts longer. Thanks, you statist liberals!!!!!!! Help Sarah pay off her huge lawsuit bills that other statist liberals brought on her with their frivolous lawsuits.
[...] Story: 100 new militia groups since Obama elected; watchdog alarmed Frugal Café Blog Zone: Gunpowder and Lead… Bullet Shortage Increases in America, Fear of Democrat Anti-Gun Legislatio… and Obama’s Infamous 2001 Interview: Criticizes US Supreme Court for Sticking to Constitution [...]