Thursday, October 18, 2012

Q and A

Reader JohninMd(help?) had a question in comments yesterday:
Question- just talkin' basic on-site ready locker, not fancy Crimson Trace night shoots or gun skoolz, what would be considered "standard supply quantity" in the ordinance bunker at Roseholme cottage? for the "serious" stuff, not nessarily the odd-ball collector's stash...
I have ".30 cal" ammo cans for .22LR, .32 H&R Mag, .38 Spl, 9x19, .44 Spl, .45 ACP, and 5.56 that I try to keep at least half full of general purpose range ammo. I start getting itchy if there are less than a thousand rounds of deuce-deuce on hand, so I keep a couple 500-rd bricks of cheap unplated stuff stashed away for a rainy day (like the Great Ammo Drought of '09.) That's twelve magazines through the 22/45 a weekend for two months' worth of range trips, which should keep me going until shelves start to refill.

As far as the two real calibers I use, 9mm and 5.56, a few hundred rounds of real ammo for each is set aside, in addition to whatever plinking ammo is on hand at the time.

14 comments:

aczarnowski said...

20 minutes and nobody has presented their inventory spreadsheet yet? Sometimes the internet still surprises me. ;)

Joseph said...

RE: serious stuff. How many loaded mags? I have at least two for each and a couple of speed-loaders for each revolver RTG.

I reload, so I start getting itchy if I don't have a full 50cal can of .45ACP, .45Colt, .38 Spl or 9x19mm and enough to make 1k more of each, at least. I have the obligatory couple of bricks of .22lr too, but I shoot far less of it than I should.

I'm woefully under-prepared on the serious 9mm front after proofing two new 9x19mm slingshots recently, though I have a .30cal can full of 124g Gold Dot reloads, so I'm not broke out in hives just yet.

Robert said...

5.56??? B-b-b-b-but that's just .22 caliber! Surely you wouldn't use that for self defense! ;)

Tam said...

Robert,

Pistols are pistols and rifles are rifles, and reality has proven this over and over.

I'm not at all interested in endless caliber wanking here.

Robert said...

Tam, I know this. Just pulling your chain. Sorry.

Scott J said...

Joseph, how much does your 50 can full of .45 weigh?

I recently made it to about 1/3 full on one with my 230gr cast reloads. It weighs 30 pounds.

If each loaded round weighs 250gr and I deduct a pound for the can there should be around 800 rounds in there.

Tam said...

Robert,

"Tam, I know this. Just pulling your chain. Sorry."

I'm getting way too cranky and sensitive lately. My bad.

Bubblehead Les. said...

"I start getting itchy if there's less than..."

Know how you feel. Last few weeks, I've had the urge to take Calamine Lotion Baths. Something tells me that I should go to the Fun Show with a Hand Truck and a Wad of Cash very soon, like BEFORE Election Day.

paulinmordor said...

You all made me go look. I may have enough .22 LR to stock all of the local Wally Worlds. I am however woefully understocked on 9mm and .40. Looks like a side trip on the way home from the office tonight. Thank you!

jetaz said...

Reading this post made me go buy 1600 rounds of ammunition. Recoil therapy, here I come. Thank you!

Steve Skubinna said...

I kept .22LR, .45 ACP, 45/70, 5.56, .30 Carbine, and .30-06, and thought I was doing very well in keeping calibers restricted. Then I got a K31 because I couldn't resist, so now I have a bunch of 7.5 Swiss on hand as well. Oh, right, there's the .410 and 12 gauge too (slugs, 00 and birdshot).

Not going to get into quantities, except to say that whenever home on leave I look for decent prices on stuff in bulk and buy a bunch. Suffice to say that while an ordinary shooter would not find anything excessive in my gun safe or my ammo closet, the ordinary media ignoramus would have a meltdown over my "arsenal" of "assault rifles" and "stockpile" of ammunition.

JohninMd(help!) said...

Damn. I make the big time, and start a rush on ammo to boot. Back in the day, I competed in Bullseye matches. Me and another fella would split a 5,000 rnd. case of .22, that got me thru a season of matches & practice with a little left over. Not like I was going to Camp Perry, but it sure focused ya on the basics. breath, sight alignment, trigger press. And no one's shot a perfect score in over a hundred years of competition.

global village idiot said...

I have about as much ammo as I reckon I'll need for the number of firefights I'm likely to be able to survive.

I know people who think 10,000 rounds for their "go-to" gun is a bare minimum. Bless their hearts but this is foolishness.

gvi

JohninMd(help?) said...

Also, shot .45 acp for the rest of the matches.... Bullseye match is 3 stages, .22, centerfire, and .45, all shot one-handed. lotta folks shot double .45, as I did. 200gr. LSWC on 3.5 of Bullseye powder. Shootin' 50 yd. slowfire stage (10 shots, 10 min.) WILL make ya talk to yerself....