Category: Weapons

Hi. As a long-time reader, I’ve always felt that you do a good job of seeing the truth through whatever smoke is being put out, but I’m surprised to see you swallowing the “it’s the hoarders” excuse for our continued shortage of ammo. Simple supply and demand explains that when demand is higher than the supply, the price goes up. If demand and price remain high, then the supply will surely increase. Eventually, supply is increased to meet demand and the price settles to its “natural” level. The story we are repeatedly told is that ammo manufacturers have maxed-out their …

The M1 Garand, as a modern day tactical rifle, has many alleged faults. You can find that they may be only perceived faults. Here are a few alleged faults: No detachable magazine, obsolete, too heavy, and limited magazine capacity. I think that these perceived disadvantages can be actual advantages. It has no magazines to lug around. It is easily obtainable, especially from the CMP, with sturdy construction, and a great set of sights. Also this rifle is cost effective and reliable with available ammo. The 30-06 is one of the most popular cartridges. An eight shot clip may not be …

Hugh, I am a firm believer in what JAG is advocating. I, too, have built different AR15 platforms. The first was an FFL registered stripped lower receiver and a full kit (shipped through UPS with NO FFL paperwork) from Model 1 Sales. Everything went together smoothly. Anyone with any mechanical aptitude can do this. I next bought an EP80 and drilled and milled the lower with a drill press and Dremel tool. This, too, is easy if one works carefully. I have since bought two 80% aluminum forged lowers and a jig. I don’t mind the extra expense of the …

The purpose of this article is not to make the case for the single action (“cowboy”) revolver as the ultimate survival handgun. Nor do I suggest that the prepper select one as a defensive handgun for long-term survival. Realistically, a Glock or other modern semi-auto handgun is a better defensive tool for the vast majority of people. Instead, I am arguing that the single action revolver not be disregarded by someone who already owns one, is new to prepping, and is probably on a budget. Huge numbers of single action revolvers are out there– many of them in the hands …

Hugh: I was a little surprised at your comment “It is tough to reload cheaper than bulk ammo for pistol though” in your reply to CR’s letter. As an example, I reload .45ACP under 15 cents a round using 200 grain lead bullets from Missouri Bullet Company. The bullets are under 10 cents each, add a primer for 3 cents and 2 cents of powder, and there you are. I crank these out at 300-400 per hour on my progressive, at a leisurely pace. I checked on ammo prices at the local farm store this afternoon and .45ACP is running …

Gentlemen; I have a question about storage of reloading supplies in relationship to total ammo storage. On page 236 of “How to Survive The End of World As We Know It”, JWR recommends certain inventories for each weapon category. He goes on in the next paragraph that three times those level makes some folks more comfortable. In trying to reach those levels, do you gents recommend a ratio of ready ammo to an amount of reloading supplies to achieve the three times amount? Given the current ammo shortages and the expense associated and the fact that reloading supplies are still …

Regarding the “Odds ‘n Sods” column from March 22: This is an “old husband’s” tale. Tumbling loaded ammo will not make it prone to detonation. Geoff Beneze, formerly of Dillon Precision, tumbled loaded rifle rounds (ball, flake, and extruded powders) in a vibratory tumbler for six months continuously and had zero issues with any of it. His emails are archived on the Yahoo handloading group. Unfortunately, you have to be a member of the group to read the archives, but here are a couple of the relevant emails I’ve saved: “First off, I would strongly urge that are so inclined …

I am 74 years old and have always been a little bit of a prepper. I was not into firearms and especially not hand guns, which I had never owned. I had rifles and shotguns from my youth, but never used them much after I got married. I had barely purchased a box of ammo for each. I even give them all away to my son a number of years ago. Then in the middle of 2009, I felt that everything was starting to fall apart and I needed to balance out my preparations by getting some firearms for protection …

The article on ammunition, shortages, and government purchases was very informative and well written. Here is a very simple way to look at the shortages that occur from a mathematical perspective. Assume that 20 million rounds of .22 are available every single day. That would be 40,000 boxes of 500 rounds each. Fifty states get 800 boxes each. Fifty retailers per state get 16 boxes each. I cannot tell you how much ammo the U.S. can manufacture or import, but I do not think it is anywhere near the level of demand created by our current government’s stance on the …

Dear Editor, This email is in response to the R.I.P. bullet paragraph seen on your blog. It is, as you suspected, limited in performance due to the nature of its design. I imagine the developers of the RIP theorized they could take the principles of bullet fragmentation (effectively demonstrated from 5.56mm ball ammo within certain distances) and apply them to a pistol caliber. The lethal effectiveness of bullet fragmentation relies heavily on its velocity upon impact. Since pistol rounds don’t travel nearly as fast as a rifle round, they depend on the summation of bullet mass, rather than speed, to …