With the recent ammo shortage, I saw this question come up a lot as it became increasingly harder to find ammo in stock. I’m sure that most of you know that the shelves were barren of common ammo. 22LR was worth its weight in gold and stumbling across a cache of the mythical round was like finding the fountain of youth.
Luckily, the levels have balanced out and most ammo is available on the shelves again, but during this time I heard a lot of talk about people hoarding and storing ammo. I compared my stash to other people and realized that I did not have nearly as much as they did. So I wondered if there is a certain ammo level that someone should be at.
There is not. There is no rule about how much ammo someone can or should have. Everyone has different ideas about how much ammo they need to have stored away. Some people stock high levels in case of another shortage of supply, while some people worry about SHTF scenarios, or others just buy it to have it. Because, why not? It really comes down to what you think you need.
How Much Ammo Should You Have?
There are people out there with tens of thousands of rounds buried in a bunker and people who only have what they keep in their CCW. I like to fall somewhere in the middle. I am a little more paranoid than the average person, but not paranoid enough to have a car’s worth of ammo buried in Nevada (bear with me here).
It’s important to think about potential situations that can happen. Sure, the zombies aren’t coming anytime soon, but there is always civil unrest brewing and anyone is susceptible to a natural disaster.
So, while you may not need piles of ammo you should have enough to make you feel comfortable if you were ever to need it in a bad situation. Obviously, this will vary as different people have different ideas ranging from 0 to 1000 on the crazy scale.
It is also a good idea to stash some rounds away so that you can shoot. You never know when demand will skyrocket again and the supply will run out. I consider myself lucky that I had a bunch of ammo stocked up at the beginning of 2013, or else practicing and having fun at the range might have been put on the back burner. So here are some rules to hoarding ammo that I follow.
Ammo Storing Recommendations
First, decide the minimum amount of ammo you want to have at all times. There is no rule about what you should keep. Just find a number that you are comfortable with whether it is 5000 rounds or 5 boxes. Put a little thought into it instead of just selecting an amount. Ask yourself why you would need “X” amount.
Second, build your supply up to that amount. You don’t have to buy it all at once, but you should try to keep more ammo flowing in than you are shooting.
Third, keep it at or above your minimum. This is easy. If you are going to the range, make sure to either buy ammo beforehand or restock ASAP. I always cycle mine out. If I’ve had some ammo for a while I will shoot that and then replace it with new stock just to keep things fresh.
Parting Words
This may seem like another simple and boring post, but it is vitally important if you want to shoot and be prepared. You never know what will happen tomorrow or next year. Another school massacre could happen – followed by harsh regulations, which could dry up every last bullet for half a decade.
Or maybe the doomsday preppers will get their wish. Regardless of what happens, be it catastrophic or not, there will come a time when ammo is a scarce resource, so why not be prepared?