With what recently happened in Connecticut, expect a flood of state and federal bills/laws to restrict or flat out, outlaw certain firearms, ammunition, magazines and even attachments.
And prior to that horrific incident, the fear of destined gun control by the reelection of President Obama provoked a new single-day record for point-of-sale background checks on Black Friday, Nov. 23. On that day, 154,873 checks were made by the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check (NICS) system. That total was nearly 20 percent more than the previous high of 129,166 set on Black Friday last year, said the National Shooting Sports Foundation NSSF).
According to NSSF President and CEO Steve Sanetti, “Americans in record numbers are choosing to own firearms for target shooting, hunting, collecting and personal and home protection.”
But it’s not just firearms that are being bought in record numbers, but ammunition and magazines as well.
Just recently, Brownells, the largest mail order company for firearms accessories, ammunition and gunsmithing, reported that they sold over three years worth of 30-round AR magazines in under 72 hours, and an even greater number of their regular magazines (not clips as most uniformed media has called them). This high demand came from the potential introduction of stricter gun control legislation.
Likewise, ammo sales have gone crazy, and that’s aside from military sales. I’ve been trying to find my beloved Winchester Personal Protection .45 Auto ammo I need for an upcoming recertification, and it cannot be found anywhere.
With this added demand, the folks at Ammo.net compiled a report called, “Are Guns and Ammo The New Gold? Why More Americans Than Ever Are Arming Themselves.”
Ammo.net spent over 100 collective hours talking to a variety of U.S. guns owners (both old hands and new shooters) and compiled different, hard-to-find data sets. What they found was surprising.
Their survey found that since 1999, the average round of ammo has risen 224 percent. During this same period, the price of a gallon of gasoline rose 318 percent; the average price of gold rose 535 percent; more than 135,000,000 FBI administered NICS background checks for the sale of firearms took place; the official unemployment rate rose from 8.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 1999 (a 30-year low) to 4.1 percent. At the same time, U.S. inflation rose 36.2 percent says the Ammo.net report.
The report emphasizes that while the average round of ammo rose 224 percent, U.S. inflation was up only 36.2 percent during the same period.
Their report notes that the FBI will process an estimated 15,000,000,000 NICS checks this year, which would be the highest yearly total ever recorded. In addition, nationwide self-reported gun ownership is at an 18-year high.
The interviews also discovered that 47 percent of American adults currently report that they have a gun in their home or elsewhere on their property. This is up from 41 percent a year ago and is the highest Gallup has recorded since 1993. And at that number, is the highest it has been in nearly two decades.
Interestingly, 54 percent of southern households report there is a gun on their property; 51 percent in midwestern households; 43 percent in western households; and 36 percent in northwestern households.
This interesting report can be found at Ammo.net’s site under the “About Us” heading.
As for local ammo sales, supplies are low. And perhaps the Winchester rounds I want are low because back in 2009 the FBI chose the Winchester Supreme Elite Bonded PDX1’s as their primary service round. It was engineered, says Winchester, to maximize terminal ballistics as defined by the FBI’s demanding test protocol. And what I like about Winchester’s Personal Defense rounds is that they offer rapid expansion without over-penetration. You don’t want a round going through walls and in another room where an innocent person may be.
From all the aforementioned, it’s obvious why firearm and ammo sales are booming. I’m glad I own some Olin stock.
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