Woo Hoo!!!

Looks like the drought on .22 of all types are finally over!

After almost half a decade, the long-standing drought of 22 Lone Rifle ammunition is finally behind us. Confirming this triumph is good old Wal Mart who announced internally that any and all restrictions on purchasing 22 ammo in bulk have been removed.

The Firearms Blog broke the story, HERE.

That is good news for instructors and others that practice with .22s in various forms. It may also presage the increased availability and lowering of prices on other calibers. I’ve been buying 100 round CCI packs for $7-9, depending on availability, while waiting for the backorder to be filled from CMP.

So maybe, just maybe, that logjam will finally break loose too!!!

Of course with every upside, there is also a downside…

Various ammunition manufacturers have announced layoffs and furloughs as demand for ammo has decreased rapidly while manufacturing capacity has continued to increase.

There seems to be a secondary effect happening, with the resurgence in interest in rimfire weapons. Smith & Wesson, Ruger, and others have been quickly pushing new 22 LR models and innovations including the latest Ruger Integrally Suppressed 10/22 Takedown model.

Let the fun begin! 🙂

Comments

Woo Hoo!!! — 22 Comments

  1. my favourite toy along those lines is my Henry lever action in .22LR. Great fun. Followed closely by my Colt buntline, ditto.

      • LL – I saw on various blogs that there is a problem with the safety not engaging fully or something similar. Following the 4 Rules ‘should’ preclude any unintended damages/injuries…………

      • The new Ruger MkIV has a problem with the safety. There have been reports that if you pull the trigger while the safety is on, the sear has enough slop to disengage, but the safety holds the firing pin back. When you disengage the safety to shoot, it releases the firing pin and you have an accidental discharge.

  2. I start my new pistol shooters on a suppressed 22/45 LITE, the a standard MKIII, the a Model 19.
    With that and shooting a steel match every month there were some lean .22 months.

    The other thing is the pistols are a little finicky on what the want to feed on. They all hate Remington ammo and CCI lead nosed.

  3. Sooo, to support a growing economy and promote jobs, we should all go shooting on a weekly basis? Works for me! 🙂

  4. While not a big fan of the cartridge, and no longer owning my Ruger or S&W .22, I applaud the freedom of the marketplace!

    gfa

  5. After almost half a decade, the long-standing drought of 22 Lone Rifle ammunition is ….

    LONG RIFLE.

    My local Walmart has had increasing regularity on having some on the shelf. When the boxes of .22WMR started staying a few months back, I knew the end was approaching. Now, for a period of continued supply so we can go purchase what we plan to shoot for a weekend and have a realistic chance of finding it…..

  6. oh, hell. Not your error but theirs. Sorry for the erroneous chastisement.

    Grumble grumble…

  7. Found Federal Automatch at the local Walmart for 16.99, bulk pack/325 rounds. No limit, so I bought all four boxes. With several .22 rifles and handguns, it’s nice to be able to feed them

  8. My brother-in-law works for Federal in Minnesota. They have been running 24/7 for the last 7 years. They even curtailed making .22 ammo for a few years because of the demand for other, more expensive calibers. Last month they cut back to 24 hours, 5 days a week shifts and will cut back to 16 hours 5 days sometime this summer.

  9. My local Academy(tm) had no limits on either .22LR or .22 WMR, even had it stocked on an end counter display instead of stashed behind the sales counter (like it was gold or something). Prices weren’t too bad either. Yes, and (again)no limits, unless you tried to buy ALL of it ;-). And of course the bulk boxes were the best buy.

  10. all those folks who convinced themselves 22LR would be the new currency after the crash, and stood in line waiting for this weeks delivery so they could buy every round are finally seeing the error of their ways. the rest of us are now able to buy over the counter at reasonable prices instead of at the gun shows at jacked up prices demanded by scalpers.
    all I can say is…about time.

  11. Hey Old NFO;

    I am glad, I have been very frugal with my .22LR uses and range time due to the cost. I will be able to plink with my AR with the .22 adapter installed and improve my skill. Also I need to buy a .22LR pistol Perhaps I can pick up a Ruger real cheap 😀

  12. Not in my area yet. We have one store selling ammo locally and only one – Wal-Mart. For whatever reason, they have been receiving about 300 rounds every week or two only, and that is it. It appears that.22 ammunition has been relegated to a “low demand item” for this area in their computers, so they don’t bother stocking it, as they only sell 300 rounds every week or two. ( It probably doesn’t help that it’s always the same guy buying it every time too)
    Meanwhile, those 3 boxes always sell out as soon as they hit the shelves at 6 a.m., and centerfire ammo is a constant seller.
    We literally cannot find any .22 ammunition for sale within 60 miles, and there is no indication the status quo will change any time soon.

  13. Kermit- that truly sucks. It’s almost worth it to get there before he does and buy it out from under him!

  14. Not just .22. Recently purchased 50 rounds of cowboy action .44 Special for $26. My 72 year old wrists appreciate the lower recoil when practising.