There is the interminable debate about whether, for the sake of SHTF scenarios, to consolidate calibers for greater interoperability, or to diversify in order to allow for as many ammo choices as possible.

 

Well, the S has HTF, so I think we have our answer.

 

Having just seen the Cabelas link with .22 WMR available, I've definitely shifted towards diversify. This allows for more opportunistic buying in ammo droughts.

Not really definitive. I stockpiled well in advance of the election, and it was made much easier and fiscally possible by sticking to 2-3 calibers. Which of us has more ammo to shoot?

I own guns in 6 calibers for that reason. I usually can find ammo for one of them.

Conversely - only having 3 primary calibers to stock between rifle and pistol gives you twice the purchasing power over someone with 7 calibers. I've been a buyer of opportunity since 2007 when I realized the prices would never truly come "back down". So I would buy a case of 1k rounds of 5.56 if it was under $300 shipped, every time I saw it on sale or with $5 shipping. Same with .45 ACP. What that means is I'm sitting on enough rounds to last quite a while, and even to restock at today's prices I only have to worry about 3 calibers.

 

Just my opinion.

Not really definitive. I stockpiled well in advance of the election, and it was made much easier and fiscally possible by sticking to 2-3 calibers. Which of us has more ammo to shoot?

How does sticking to 2-3 calibers make it more fiscally possible? I'm not suggesting diversifying into .458 Lott.

If you like rimfire, .17, 5mm, and .22WMR would have all been nice to have, as they've been much more available than .22LR.

 

For centerfire, .223, .30-06, .308, and a couple of flavors of 7.62 would be nice.

 

None of these calibers are particularly expensive, and with this combo of guns, ammo for one of them would have been available at almost any given day in these past couple of months.

 

Stockpiling is good, but unless you're talking 100,000s rounds, it will run out at some time.

 

And if you're part of the tinfoil crowd, if things go really sour, it will be good to be able to take advantage of any barter opportunities that might arise.

i think its good to be well rounded for me. i have plenty of ammo to hold me off with everything i have for about a year. at pre panic prices. it was nice that when this first started i was able to buy .40 ammo at normal prices when 9mm and 45 sky rocketed. .40 was cheaper than 9mm. So it is nice to have that option. i now wish i had an ak so i can get reletively cheaper ammo than 5.56 if this ever happened again and lasted longer. as i see 7.62 in stock more now and much cheaper than 223/5.56. but you should stock up on ammo at all times.

How does sticking to 2-3 calibers make it more fiscally possible? I'm not suggesting diversifying into .458 Lott.

If you like rimfire, .17, 5mm, and .22WMR would have all been nice to have, as they've been much more available than .22LR.

 

For centerfire, .223, .30-06, .308, and a couple of flavors of 7.62 would be nice.

 

None of these calibers are particularly expensive, and with this combo of guns, ammo for one of them would have been available at almost any given day in these past couple of months.

 

Stockpiling is good, but unless you're talking 100,000s rounds, it will run out at some time.

 

And if you're part of the tinfoil crowd, if things go really sour, it will be good to be able to take advantage of any barter opportunities that might arise.

 

1) guns. I have to buy more guns and more safe space to have the basic gear for the household. my household, your hosuehold, whatever. It might be one pistol one rifle, might be more.

 

2) ammo. By focusing on 22lr, .223, and .40 which are what I primarily shoot at matches, I was able to sock away a multi year supply of powder, primers, and components for the rate at which I shoot. I'm the least stocked up on 22lr as I started shooting OBRAMS matches, and honestly negelected it somewhat thinking it wouldn't get this bad.

 

Now lets say that I went the diversify route, and got a 10/22 magnum and a 17hmr barrel. I'd be out the cost of a gun, which when I stocked up would have been about $500-600. At the time about 6000 .40 bullets, 15,000 pieces of once fired .40 brass, 6500 55gr JSP .224 heads, or about 6000 pieces of once fired lake city brass, or about 14,000 rounds of bulk 22lr.

 

What would I have gotten? A rifle I can't get ammo for right now except for the random in stock setting at a LGS for about $10-15 a box of 50. Not very gougy, but also about the same odds and price of snagging 22lr. Had I done that and wanted to stockpile say 2000 rounds, I'd be out $800. So diversity on the off chance someone has some 22 WMR or 17 HMR around costs me $1300 in addition to what I spent (couldn't afford that), or it means I would have had ot buy $1300 less of what I did buy, which would mean I would be running out WAY, WAY sooner.

 

Now 9mm would have been cheaper than .40, and I have guns in that caliber already, but I prefer .40 as it is more versatile for what I do. I already have the makings for a couple thousand rounds of that already just form leftovers after moving to .40 for comeptition. .45? I have a gun for that too, but lets say I didn't. At least $550 for the gun, and each 1000 bullets would have cost me about 25% more than the .40 bullets. That's a 25% (greater due to higher brass prices too) premium to cover the same amount of shooting on top of that $550. without the gun, that'd mean to split between .40 and .45, for every round of .40 I replaced with .45, I'd get about .8 rounds of .45. If I had to buy the gun, and could afford to do that AND stockpile, I could have just gotten about 4000 more .40 heads, a couple pounds of powder and 5000 more small pistol primers leaving me with 1000 to flip for profit or hold onto.Or once again, fgor the cost of the gun, 14,000 rounds of .22lr.

 

I have one rifle in a less common caliber. Pre-panic you were talking about $1.10 per round for ammo. Can't find it now either esxcept for cor bond and buffalo bore. The former is $119 a box of 20, and the latter is $60. So......

 

5.45 upper for my AR? You see any 5.45 around? .300 blackout? Each upper if done cheap would have swapped even for about 2-2.5 thousand rounds of m193 equivalent..

 

The only thing I was kind of wishin I HAD done was build the 6mm-223 upper that I have been perpetually contemplating. Even now I can still find SOME components for that, it's really accurate, and it's easy to find bonded core bullets for. It's also a wildcat, but at least it is built off of .223 brass necked up a teeny tiny bit. Still, 2-2.5 thousand rounds of LOADED ammo, even more of components.

 

a .308 AR? $1200. Heck I SOLD mine to pay for some stockpiling because I don't want to pay to feed it and I don't want to carry it's 10lb weight without optics, magazine, or ammo around (mine was an older model with a bit heavier profile barrel). The cost to buy in if I didn't have it? To lay in the rifle, 5 mags, and 1000 rounds of ok ammo would have set me back the majority of my money spent on laying in my supply of what I did buy.

 

20 ga shotgun? You see the pattern, same applies.

 

It's basic math.

 

If you are going to burn money to solve the problem, burn it as far ahead as possible and stockpile when stuff is cheap. It'll save you a bunch.

 

You can say they aren't expensive calibers, but they don't have to cost $5+ a round to not make sense if you plan ahead. They just have to cost 150% of the cheaper more popular cartridges to not be worth it. If you have to buy the gun to boot, and you don't have infinite piles of money, the opportunity cost is staggering.

 

100,000 rounds? No, but I have three years left to wait for everyone else to cry uncle financially.

 

For REAL SHTF, if I would consider trading ammo, what's more likely to be in demand? .223, .308, or 30-06? If things are that bad, would you hand someone a rifle and some ammo in trade for something and feel comfortable about it? Even just ammo?

 

Avoiding the TEOTWAWKI scenarios, there's also the matter of aiming into the recovery. When people do cry uncle, or production catches up to orders and the distributors, retailers, and customers are all holding lots of inventory, which do you think is going to dip more? .223 or 30-06?

 

Do I have other calibers? Yes, mostly in oddball guns I found interesting but don't shoot much.

 

I can play .22lr bingo. Or I can trade for stuff I have more than I need for my 4 year plan.