Ammo prices...

[HKMadness]

I was at my local wally world and was shocked, saddened, and angered that .40,.45, and 9mm ammo price has gone up quite a bit. The sad reality is that it will probably never go back down. .45 federal is now $18.97+ tax for 50 rds. Ive been reloading 223 for a while now, and have the dies for .45 acp.

Have y'all noticed this at your local wally world as well?

Also, for those who reload .45 acp, how much does it cost you per finished round? We can leave out the cost of brass, since i have about 500 rds of factory ammo i can shoot 100 of and have 100 cases to reload a fewtimes. Imterested to hear from those who reload 230gr fmj rn and use it for plinking as opposed to competition loads. TIA

[damndave]

Depending on what bullets you use, you are looking from $0.12 - 0.15 a piece if you have your own brass.

[Turo]

I have noticed it, especially with .40 and 9mm. Almost 17 bucks for 50 rounds of .40 and 14 or 15 for 9mm.

Luckily I just got some dies for .40 and plan to start reloading soon, but just buying initial components is going to be $150+! Luckily I can still shoot some of the .22lr stockpiled up in the garage for the time being.

[NotEnufGarage]

I was at my local wally world and was shocked, saddened, and angered that .40,.45, and 9mm ammo price has gone up quite a bit. The sad reality is that it will probably never go back down. .45 federal is now $18.97+ tax for 50 rds. Ive been reloading 223 for a while now, and have the dies for .45 acp.

Have y'all noticed this at your local wally world as well?

Also, for those who reload .45 acp, how much does it cost you per finished round? We can leave out the cost of brass, since i have about 500 rds of factory ammo i can shoot 100 of and have 100 cases to reload a fewtimes. Imterested to hear from those who reload 230gr fmj rn and use it for plinking as opposed to competition loads. TIA

Costs to reload -

Primer - $.03 each
Powder - $.01 to $.02 each round (5 grains = 1400 rounds per pound)
Bullets - $.11 to $.15 for lead or plated
$.15 to $.25 for jacketed
Press and accessories - $100 to $1000 or more, depending on what you get

If you look for sales/closeouts on bullets, you can save more. Bullets are the biggest expense. To save, you have to buy in bulk (1000 or 3000 or more). You pay a premium when you buy in small quantities.

I load .45ACP LSWC for my 1911 and Plated RN for my Glock at about 14 cents per round, or $7 per 50.

Next step to save even more is casting your own bullets. If you can scavenge lead (range, tire shops, divers, etc.) you can drop your cost way down.

[bumpo628]

Here are my bullet sources:

$0.119 ea for FMJ
1000 pcs of 230grn for $119 delivered.

http://www.precisiondelta.com/detail.php?sku=B-45-230-FMJ

$0.088 ea for Lead
2000 pcs of 230grn LRN for $176 delivered. ($43/500 plus ship up to 4 boxes for $13, saving $8.60 with the 5% discount)

http://www.missouribullet.com/details.php?prodId=59&category=5&secondary=13&keywords=

Use promo code "THR-Original" for the 5% discount.

[grant22]

Yes, I've noticed the price going up at my local Wally World also. It's what really got me thinking about reloading.

My Dillon setup arrived a few days ago at home and I can't wait to get home from work (here for 5 days in CA) and start assembling. I did the math and to reload the same brass 10 x (.38spl) is literally going to cost me less than HALF of what I was paying at Wally World.

[BajaJames83]

Berrys bullets are good, you can order them through their web site.

[HKMadness]

Thanks y'all for that great info! 1,000 for $120 delivered sounds great!! Ive been looking for 230gr rn fmj since id like to stick with the std or "typical" projectile. I have a classic lee turret that ive been using for the 223, but the progressive presses ive seen in use on youtube just make me druuuuuueeeeelllllll!!!

Whats the difference between plated and fmj?

[CK_32]

I was at my local wally world and was shocked, saddened, and angered that .40,.45, and 9mm ammo price has gone up quite a bit. The sad reality is that it will probably never go back down. .45 federal is now $18.97+ tax for 50 rds. Ive been reloading 223 for a while now, and have the dies for .45 acp.

Have y'all noticed this at your local wally world as well?

Also, for those who reload .45 acp, how much does it cost you per finished round? We can leave out the cost of brass, since i have about 500 rds of factory ammo i can shoot 100 of and have 100 cases to reload a fewtimes. Imterested to hear from those who reload 230gr fmj rn and use it for plinking as opposed to competition loads. TIA

Sorta... I only buy 22lr there... And that's gone from $20 for 550 to $25 for 500.... Still makes me say WTF come on!


Soon I'll be reloading 22's if this keeps up

[Fishslayer]

Have y'all noticed this at your local wally world as well?

Not really. I might give prices a cursory glance when I'm buying rimfire ammo, but other than that...

Also, for those who reload .45 acp, how much does it cost you per finished round? We can leave out the cost of brass, since i have about 500 rds of factory ammo i can shoot 100 of and have 100 cases to reload a fewtimes. Imterested to hear from those who reload 230gr fmj rn and use it for plinking as opposed to competition loads. TIA

Depends on the bullets. Using Bear Creek 230gr I'm looking at maybe 12 - 13 cents a round. Plated goes to around 18-ish a round.

I chuckle at the idea of shooting and loading 100 at a time.

Listen. This is a disease. It starts out innocently enough. You want to shoot more, save a few bucks. Excellent. Noble intentions. But then....

You will start spending time on Castboolits.com swap & sell searching for deals on pickup brass.

You will be scrounging brass like a coke ho crawling around on the carpet looking for "just one more."

You will be buying boxes of bullets and stashing them "just in case."

Same with primers.

Same with powder(s).

You will need to buy ammo cans to store your thousands of rounds.

It really gets worse. I know.

[Dark Mod]

Yeah, i doubt prices are ever going back down, by the time the recession ends and the component costs decrease, inflation will have caught up with it. this is a good time be a reloader.

[ODJR1]

I went to Costa Mesa over the weekend and was shocked/impressed over the prices. I have to admit Ive missed the last 3 shows there, but the prices looked damn great to me compared to what they were a year ago