Prepper Myth #2: Stock up on the ammo you’ll need to defend yourself with.

This is one of a series of posts on some commonly held prepping beliefs, and reasons why they may be wrong and possibly dangerous to you and your loved ones.

Their Myth Reasoning (not me talking/writing) – Once again, the math just doesn’t add up on storing a lot of ammo. There is only one scenario where you think you’ll be using a lot of ammunition, and it is the horde scenario. But, there again, you won’t need a lot of ammo – the horde scenario will be over in a few minutes to a few hours, with you the loser, and your stored ammo with go to the winners. Don’t get me wrong – you need guns and ammo, but the idea that you’re going to expend thousands of rounds is just a reflection of people’s erroneous beliefs about what kind of shooting situations they’ll be in. If you’re determined to buy ammo, don’t buy them for just your guns, – buy them for everybody else’s. You’ll actually own a valuable commodity. Better yet, use the money to buy food, which leads us to myth #3.

My Opinion – I disagree with this one. There are a number of scenarios that would require LOTS of ammo. Most firefights don’t last long in non-conventional warfare. But during that brief encounter you could easily blow through 200 – 300 rounds per person. To think a couple hundred rounds is sufficient for grid-down is not such a good idea. Plenty of rifle or carbine ammo (1000 – 2000 rounds per weapon minimum), a good supply of pistol ammo (500 – 1000 rounds) and a respectable supply of shotgun ammunition (250+ rounds of 00 Buck & 100+ rounds of slugs minimum) is extremely important. This is a good starting point. But I also worry about everyday ammo shortages, price increases, eventual ban or limitations, etc. To me ammo, and plenty of it, is just a good investment that makes me feel more secure. And no, I only will store the ammo I need for my weapons. Just so happens that my weapons are VERY common in caliber. You think there is a good reason for that? Any oddball caliber weapons are a recipe for disaster. Get rid of them now while there is still a market for them. If you win the firefight…to the victor go the spoils; which means you get their guns and their ammo. You don’t need to buy and store ammo for everybody else’s guns…worry about your own ammo needs. And lots of ammo equals lots of security.

 

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2 thoughts on “Prepper Myth #2: Stock up on the ammo you’ll need to defend yourself with.

  1. I Think Matt Bracken coined the acronym, BLOAT- (buy lots of ammo today).

    5,000 to 10,000 PER rifle
    2,000 to 6,000 per pistol

    These are planning factors, takes a lot of space to store that much ammo correctly.

    As a new full time RVer there are several concerns and legalities to consider. Some I’ve figured out others not yet. Also how do plan where to be when the balloon goes up? (Or where not to be).

    We still on for dinner?

    Cavguy

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  2. I agree with your myth-busting.

    However, as we proceed further into the latest bouts of Crazed-Democrat (and Some RINO) gun control pushes at state and federal levels, my main concern is just the uncertainties on costs and availability of ammunition in the future.

    Dems are trying to make it impossible to get ammo; failing that, they want to make ammo as expensive as possible, to limit citizens’ ability to purchase that ammunition. A person would be pretty stupid to ignore all that talk (and some successes, as in Oregon).

    Paradoxically, that very Democrat push is probably inspiring more gun owners to purchase ammunition just to take advantage of current low prices and easy availability. Just as Obama came to be known as America’s Greatest Firearms Salesman!!!

    So, even if you think there will never be a situation where you “need” copious amounts of ammunition…it makes sense to consider a future where ammunition is far more restricted and FAR more expensive. If you enjoy target shooting, IDPA, IPSA or any number of other target sports…it will be hard to do when a round of .22 costs $3 or a round of 9mm costs $5.

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