The closer we get to the November elections, the more gun and ammunition impulse buying we may expect to see from a nervous general public. Industry insider Jason Hornady is suggesting that smart retails and wholesalers should start stocking up before the inevitable run on ammunition.
If you need to restock on ammunition or other firearm supplies, there’s no better time to buy than right now. That’s according to a firearm industry insider who says political uncertainty driven by the election year could cause ammunition and firearm shortages.
Jason Hornady, vice president of Hornady Manufacturing, told the National Shooting Sports Foundation that 2016 is already showing signs of being a “surge year” for firearm industry sales. And a similar surge in 2013 caused a nationwide ammo shortage.
He said:
If I was running a firearms retail store, I’d make sure I had strong relationships with multiple vendors and distributors. You’ve got to “feel the love” from as many as you can, and you’ve got to talk to those partners frequently. We judge much of what we do by the purchase orders we see, so if you haven’t got it on paper, we can’t project accurately. And again, remember that 60-day, 90-day or even longer restocking period I talked about that some can expect to encounter later this year if they don’t stock up now? The reason for that is that the process of taking metal to finished product is long—our average is 90 to 120 days. So if I’m out, you’re out, and there isn’t a quick solution for that. As I often say, it’s easier to handle a cancelation than to handle a panic I’m-out-of order.
Hornady’s advice works just as well for the end purchaser: Too much ammunition on hand during a shortage is always better than not enough.
At the moment, most common ammunition is relatively easy to find if you know where to look, though not at “pre-surge” prices.
I’d suggest that gun owners use the next few months to move pro-actively and amass the ammunition that you will expect that you’ll need between this summer and the summer of 2017.
Look at round counts for the training classes you intend to take over the next year, the amount of practice ammunition you intend to shoot, your carry ammo requirements, and what you would like to have in reserve to come up with an idea of where and how you should be allocating your ammunition dollars.
There will be panic gun and ammunition buying heading into November, especially since Democrat frontrunner Hillary Clinton is essentially running as the first openly anti-gun candidate in American Presidential history. Republican frontrunner Donald Trump’s tendency to constantly flip-flop on issues isn’t reassuring to gun rights supporters either.
The August-November panic-buying is easily predictable. Be smart and get what you need before the rush sets in.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member