If You Waited Until Now To Buy Guns And Ammunition, You Waited Too Late
BY Herschel Smith
4 years, 8 months ago
The ammo shelves are empty except for the low quality stuff (and some very expensive match grade stuff, going for more than $1 per round for 5.56/.223). 9mm PD rounds are also completely unavailable, although .45 PD ammunition can still be found. But it’s not even a safe bet that you’ll get a gun if you try.
Sales of guns and ammunition are soaring across the US as fears of possible social unrest amid the coronavirus crisis are prompting some Americans to turn to firearms as a form of self-protection.
On the west coast, long lines of customers were queueing up outside gun stores to stock up on deadly materials. At the Martin B Retting gun shop in Culver City, California, the queues stretched round the block throughout the weekend.
One customer told the LA Times: “Politicians and anti-gun people have been telling us for the longest time that we don’t need guns. But right now, a lot of people are truly scared, and they can make that decision themselves.”
Larry Hyatt, owner of one of the country’s largest gun shops, Hyatt Guns in Charlotte, North Carolina, told the Guardian that the scenes of mass buying at his store were virtually unprecedented. “This is only the second time in my 61 years of business that we’ve seen anything like this,” he said, adding that the first occasion was the aftermath of the mass shooting at Sandy Hook elementary school in Connecticut in 2012.
“We are experiencing a massive rush to buy guns and ammunition as people feel the need to protect themselves and their families.”
Hyatt said that the type of guns being bought was reflective of the fear prevalent among customers. There was almost no interest in hunting rifles. Instead, people were opting for target guns and there was big demand for AR-15 semi-automatic assault-style rifles.
Asked why he thought the spike was happening, Hyatt replied: “Financial meltdown, pandemic, crime, politics … you throw it all into the pot, and you have one hell of a mess.”
Sales were especially pronounced in North Carolina and Georgia, which experienced a leap of 179% and 169% respectively. Other states with large increases included Pennsylvania, Texas, Florida, Illinois and New York.
I’ll have to give Larry a wink and a nod the next time I see him for always being the one interviewed on this sort of thing.
Just before Obama’s administration when the issue of gun control came up right after the November election, the Saturday before Christmas Larry’s shop sold over 1000 ARs in a single day to people lined up outside. He armed the equivalent of a Marine Corps infantry battalion in a single day.
Two months ago you could have gotten them for a fairly reasonable price. I’m sure those days are gone now. They may return, but if you waited for whatever reason to buy guns and ammo to protect your family for the near future, you waited too late. You didn’t listen to me and my readers on this.
On March 17, 2020 at 8:44 am, penses said:
“Anderson Manufacturing is one of the largest and most trusted premium rifle, parts and accessories manufacturers in America and ardent supporters of the Second Amendment. On Monday Anderson Manufacturing notified its customers of shipment delays.”
Omaha Outdoors reported:
“First came the panic buying of hand sanitizer. Then, people panic bought toilet paper. Now, food shelves are emptying and firearm and ammunition sales are through the roof. The COVID19 outbreak might be bad for the stock market [down 3000 pts], but it’s certainly been a boon for very specific sectors of the economy. The gun industry, used to such boom/bust cycles, knows how to respond – but other sectors might not be so acclimated.
“Here at Omaha Outdoors, we’ve been inundated with inquiries from out-of-state folks – many from California – asking if we can ship them a gun directly. The answer is, of course, no. Despite what politicians and many in popular media claim, you can’t buy a gun online and have it shipped to your house. Well, you could, if you were a federally licensed firearm dealer (or federally licensed curio and relic collector) and your home was your place of business. Other than that, no, you can’t buy a gun online and have it shipped, especially across state lines, to your home.
“What you’ll need to do to buy a gun from us is order it on our online store and select an FFL, a federally licensed firearm dealer, during the online checkout process. We ship the gun to the dealer near you – presuming the firearm and its accessories are legal in your area – and you visit the dealer to fill out the required ATF Form 4473 and undergo the federal and any applicable state background checks. Some states might require a waiting period – sure to be a sore point at a time when people feel the need for a gun to protect themselves NOW. Only then can you take your new firearm home.”
A Debt Jubilee would be a good idea. I can buy more ammo. I’ll need it a year from now when I go dumpster diving instead of going to the empty grocery store.
On March 17, 2020 at 9:16 am, revjen45 said:
I know a fellow who started acquiring his Boogaloo Guns 30-40 years ago. We didn’t call it by that back then, but he must have known what he was doing because he didn’t rush out to buy anything when the Covid Pendemic became the major news story.
On March 17, 2020 at 1:18 pm, TRX said:
> He armed the equivalent of a Marine Corps infantry battalion in a single day.
I think that’s my feelgood image of the day.
I wonder how many of those ARs were stockpiled in anticipation of Queen Hillary, though… I imagine a lot of places are clearing out some inventory they were despairing of ever breaking even on.
On March 18, 2020 at 7:45 am, SGT.BAG said:
…if it rained $20 dollar bills Monday morning, people would still be hungry Monday night.
On March 18, 2020 at 5:22 pm, penses said:
If we had a king of the universe and he confiscated all the money in the world, gave each individual an equal amount, in six months it would all be right back where it started. You can’t fix stoopid.
On March 19, 2020 at 7:46 pm, ambiguousfrog said:
Didn’t need it but wanted it, so I ordered a pistol online over weekend from Bass Pro (no longer in store), said it would take 8-9 days. No shipping and no FFL transfer fee, just tax. Despite not liking their computer generated forms. I know what computers/browsers cache, but anyway. Local GS was swamped over weekend and didn’t have what I wanted. So, took 3 days of delivery time to get to local Bass Pro. Stood in line with a number for 2.5 hours to pick it up today. Then in another line to get some range ammo that had just arrived. Limit 2 per customer. Got some .308 and 9mm.
I will say I’ve noticed a different clientele purchasing from what I’ve seen in the past.