Ammo for SHTF days

[Rand B. Wilson]

I like to set aside an extra box or fifty of ammo in case the SHTF (major earthquake, financial breakdown, comet strike, etc) - i'm wondering for those that do the same, do you keep the cheap target practice/reloaded stuff or quality HD type rounds?

[emptybottle151]

Both. Any ammo is better than none, but try to invest in quality ammo and store it properly. Try SGammo they sell ammo cans as well.

http://www.sgammo.com/

[ir0nclash86]

Both. For rifle I have my mags preloaded up with m855 and Hornady 556 TAP 75gr.
Id like to swap out the m855 for m193 but ill have to wait until the ammo prices come back down.

For handguns i only use hollow points. I keep them loaded witb 147 gr rds with those Winchester Ranger SXT rds.

[QQQ]

More is better.
If it was good enough for the commies, it's good enough for me.

Then again, my go-to rifle is in 7.62X39. This probably doesn't apply to 556/223.

[surplus-addict]

When I buy centerfire calibers, for prepping I like to stick with the cheapest brass cased ammo I can find, or if I'm using a proven design (aka Glock), I get cheap steel cased. 2K per firearm.

For RIMFIRE, I purchase the best simple because rimfire is finicky. I buy CCI mini-mags, and in bulk. 5,000 rounds is like $400, and that will last me a long time if I buy some Armscor .22 high velocity for $200 for 5,000 rounds. 10,000 rounds will last quite a few years if I space myself out.

[alfred1222]

More is always better, I store cans of both

[Kokopelli]

Both. Any ammo is better than none, but try to invest in quality ammo and store it properly. ...

Are there environmental issues to consider in storing ammo? Mine is in locked cases in my garage which gets pretty cold in winter and pretty hot in summer.

Thoughts?

[CDFingers]

Ammo will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no ammo. (stolen from Freewheelin' Franklin, then abused)

CDFingers

[ramathorn]

Get a mix of good and cheap ammo. If you ever need to barter ammo for other things, trade off the cheap stuff first.

[fighterpilot562]

I store both, sometimes rotate it out.

[DasBoost]

For me, I took 50rds of each of the various weights/types of .223/5.56 I wanted to shoot in my Mini and found which grouped the best and which shared similar POIs. Currently I have mags with 60gr TAP FPD, 62gr M855, and 55gr M193; for the M&P, I have both FMJ and PDX1; the Marlin has 40gr solid nose .22s; the K31 has 174gr SPs.

OP: Something is always better than nothing, just as having any type of ammo (other than blanks/tracers) is better than no ammo. Squirrel away what you can, whenever you can. Also, if worst comes to worst, maybe theres a CGer with some spare rounds for you. I always have extra for my guests.

[Ripon83]

Quality,

If you are truly thinking "SHTF" then you really should put quality way over quantity because you are not talking about barter material for defensive material - you are talking about using your gun to protect your life / family.

In such a situation quantity just isn't going to work because if you ever had the need for volumes of ammo you probably won't be living long enough to use it.

Anyone ever think it through? 300,000,000 people in our country. They say 1% are preppers and if only 10% of those are in to guns like we are its 300,000. Now if everyone of those has just 1,000 rounds there is enough ammo just in that crowd alone to kill everyone in this country. That is 300,000 out of 80 million gun owners? There is FAR more ammo out there than people folks....FAR more.

[emptybottle151]

Are there environmental issues to consider in storing ammo? Mine is in locked cases in my garage which gets pretty cold in winter and pretty hot in summer.

Thoughts?

Moister and oxygen your biggest enemies. Sealed ammo cans, spam cans, and other containers will work better than cardboard boxes sitting in the garage or shed.

[Packy14]

I like to set aside an extra box or fifty of ammo in case the SHTF (major earthquake, financial breakdown, comet strike, etc) - i'm wondering for those that do the same, do you keep the cheap target practice/reloaded stuff or quality HD type rounds?

Just 50 rounds? My bug-out bags have at least 300 rounds of handgun and 300 rounds of rifle. I don't drive in LA without at least that much never know when an earthquake is gonna strand me on the wrong side of town (the wrong side of town is anywhere in LA after a major earthquake).

[223556]

I do both also.
I have about 500 JHP (good stuff) and 500 FMJ (regular ammo/reloads) plus whatever I have in my range ammo can also.