Elkhound 91 Posted June 6, 2009 Report Share Posted June 6, 2009 This is not about a SHTF world crisis, or the Zombies are coming. This question is about a normal, regular, common six month period. During that time, there is no world collapse, no food shortage, no invasion by humans, sub-humans or aliens. So, during this hypothetical period of normalcy, if someone inventoried your ammo cache, how many 12 gauge shells would they find in your possession? Do you have slugs and buckshot and birdshot? What do you think is the proper mix? <EDIT - poll closed... I think we have collected enough data to KNOW how many we need > 1 Link to post Share on other sites
scoutjoe 276 Posted June 6, 2009 Report Share Posted June 6, 2009 Roughly 2 to 2 1/2 cases of birdshot (7 1/2 or 8) 2 3/4" loads. The rest is mixed buckshots and slugs. Primarily though I shoot birdshot since that's all I can afford to feed the gun for now. Link to post Share on other sites
mscottrogers 56 Posted June 7, 2009 Report Share Posted June 7, 2009 When I wash shooting every weekend I was going through a minimum of 150-200 a day. I had to start reloading so I figure about 1000 a month, especially if you bring friends. Las tweekend I went through about 40 birdhot and 35 buck in a 20 minute period just testing my promags that I had to adjust. Link to post Share on other sites
Bvamp 604 Posted June 7, 2009 Report Share Posted June 7, 2009 I keep only 3" 15 pellet buck, and 2 3/4" slugs in reserve. This is a saiga, if i have to hunt puny birds when the time may come, Ill "get it", trust me, prolly with one of my .22s..... I keep about 150-250 "high brass" rounds usually, but you can never have enough....I figure 100 or so is the minimum for if somethign happens....or as many as I can carry....I will note that this is an AWFUL LOT of .22lr at the weight that they are to "pack out". as for six month span? well, NORMALLY it ran thousands of rounds used, but now that I cant shoot in the county I live in, that has dropped to almost none. The only shotgunning I have done in six months was testfiring warranty repairs and conversions last time I was in OH. Link to post Share on other sites
gunfun 3,931 Posted June 7, 2009 Report Share Posted June 7, 2009 (edited) I put 500, because that is enough to keep a few friends busy for a while if we go out to bust up some clay impromptu. That is on hand. I would certainly buy way more over a 6 month period, so my vote isn't accurate for the purposes of your poll. Sorry about that. But my real answer is however many you want. I could see myself getting a few thousand if I got a very good deal or if I started doing 3gun or similar. practice with the same stuff and you get more consistent... Edited June 7, 2009 by GunFun Link to post Share on other sites
csspecs 1,987 Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 I probably have 2500 or more... Mostly reloads. Link to post Share on other sites
Twinsen 86 Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 (edited) 2,500 and I'm talking hulls, in whatever stage of reloading. Go to a shotgun combat event, they're free and they're everywhere. Hulls hulls! I don't know how many reloads I should get out of my hulls, but I know one day a bunch of them are going to be bad and my pile will diminish. I probably have 3k hulls just sitting there unloaded. A lot of them I don't like though. They cost me nothing to sit there in a bag though and are reloadable even if they're not my favorite. 12ga hulls are too versatile to not keep in gigantic amounts. As for loaded amounts, I could not tell you how many loaded shotgun shells I have. Somewhere between a thousand and five thousand. They're in two places in the house and I never count them. I spray painted all my boxes white and none of the reloads are in them, they're just laying around or in cans. Edited June 8, 2009 by Twinsen Link to post Share on other sites
Azrial 1,091 Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 I try to keep a thousand in reserve and about 500 for shooting as I get time to do so. Link to post Share on other sites
TR Young 175 Posted June 9, 2009 Report Share Posted June 9, 2009 I'm reloading enough to build a 10-room home out of..... I like to have 1,000-2,500 on hand. I have a BAD habit of "blazing" just for the fun of it, and I tend to go through a LOT of rounds when I'm "playing". Link to post Share on other sites
vbrtrmn 167 Posted June 9, 2009 Report Share Posted June 9, 2009 If you're not paranoid of Y2.01k (yes I'm a geek), why keep any on hand? Just buy them when you goto the range or buy a case the week you goto the range. Personally, I have three 50-caliber cans full of ammo. One is bird shot, which I got as a Christmas present, not sure when I'm going to get a chance to shoot it. One can is full of low brass 00-buck, which I got for a good deal. The other one is mixed slugs. I use the slugs as grab-and-go .. as in go .. to the range. Link to post Share on other sites
csspecs 1,987 Posted June 9, 2009 Report Share Posted June 9, 2009 Because I'd empty a walmart of shells per range trip. I love reloading more then shooting these days.. So I have piles of ammo sitting around. Link to post Share on other sites
gunfun 3,931 Posted June 9, 2009 Report Share Posted June 9, 2009 If you're not paranoid of Y2.01k (yes I'm a geek), why keep any on hand? Just buy them when you goto the range or buy a case the week you goto the range. Personally, I have three 50-caliber cans full of ammo. One is bird shot, which I got as a Christmas present, not sure when I'm going to get a chance to shoot it. One can is full of low brass 00-buck, which I got for a good deal. The other one is mixed slugs. I use the slugs as grab-and-go .. as in go .. to the range. because I shoot on the weekends.... If I just feel like shooting on a Sunday without prior planning, I would have to swing by a store in addition to getting freinds to gether. that takes time. I spend maybe an hour and a half running around and waiting in line, and the same amount of time shooting. If I have 3-5 bulk packs, I just grab my friends, grab my stuff and go. Especially with lines at walmart on the weekend. If I want heavier stuff, I like to get it on sale. I can't shop around if I have friends waiting on me. Also lately most of the more economical stores where I live are pretty much always out of stock of anything larger than birdshot. I could go to gun shops and pick up defense buck at premium prices, but I couldn't afford to shoot much. I buy a 100 pack of slugs from B&P's website and it is $55 to my door. At the bi-mart or Walmart they almost never have any in stock around here, and if they do, they have 2 -6 boxes that work out to about $60 per shot. Everywhere else in town sells slugs that are around $2 a shot, because this is rifle country, and because they can. Buying in bulk saves me time and money, and it is way more convenient. Also, sometimes I can get much better prices by order and can shoot heavy loads I couldn't afford to shoot otherwise. $10/ 20 seconds of blazing with buck is just too much. I am not into all of that survivalist stuff, it is just way easier. Link to post Share on other sites
ChileRelleno 7,071 Posted June 10, 2009 Report Share Posted June 10, 2009 As part of my reserve stockpile, I keep 350 rounds of 00 & 150 slug, 500 was just a nice number and fits nicely into two ammo cans. For target & GP, I keep anywhere from 100-500 on hand, mainly Winchester #7.5/#8 100rnd value packs and Winchester Super X 00/slug 15rnd value packs. Link to post Share on other sites
Elkhound 91 Posted June 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 11, 2009 I keep shells on hand not because of being a "survivalist" or some such concern, rather, I like to buy brands that most stores do not stock. I like the Centurian shells, Winchester military grade buckshot, Brenneke, etc., and these are not easily available locally. Also, it is just easier to order on line or over the phone and have the magic brown truck conveniently leave them at my front door. WJ Link to post Share on other sites
SoulStorm 0 Posted June 24, 2009 Report Share Posted June 24, 2009 I buy a Value pack whenever I happen to stick my head into wallmart, I also use to buy alot of slug and buckshot, however I found that is it much cheaper to simply reload your own. That being said I roughly keep anywhere from 1k birdshot and around 500 of slug, and a mix of 00,000 buckshot around. I have no problem sitting infront of my melter and kicking out 200-300 slugs at a time just listening to the radio. It enables me to shoot as much as i want, and accuracy is up there with any slugs I've bought from wallmart. Link to post Share on other sites
IndyArms 10,186 Posted June 25, 2009 Report Share Posted June 25, 2009 As a director of a local gun club I have access to garbage bags full of hulls every week from trap leagues... The only problem I have is that some hulls do not reload properly with the components that others will... So I find I will have to stockpile a dozen different wad styles, and gas seals and powders so that I can load all the hulls properly... Otherwise they dont like to stay crimped, or you run the risk of odd pressures... Other than that... I have more hulls than I could load in a week... I need to buy a few 25 pound bags of shot too... LOL to get enough to make some interesting loads out of... not just trap loads... Link to post Share on other sites
gunfun 3,931 Posted June 25, 2009 Report Share Posted June 25, 2009 As a director of a local gun club I have access to garbage bags full of hulls every week from trap leagues... The only problem I have is that some hulls do not reload properly with the components that others will... So I find I will have to stockpile a dozen different wad styles, and gas seals and powders so that I can load all the hulls properly... Otherwise they dont like to stay crimped, or you run the risk of odd pressures... Other than that... I have more hulls than I could load in a week... I need to buy a few 25 pound bags of shot too... LOL to get enough to make some interesting loads out of... not just trap loads... At the risk of thread-jacking is there a decent recipe for 00 buck and for slug that can be made cheaply from walmart federal bulk hulls? I would like to make up a bunch once I figure out where my father stashed his reloading stuff. Link to post Share on other sites
IndyArms 10,186 Posted June 25, 2009 Report Share Posted June 25, 2009 I do not know... I would check the web for potential loading data... the problem is getting wads that fit the hulls properly. I am sure you could figure something out after trial and error... but its the error you want to keep away from. LOL Link to post Share on other sites
gunfun 3,931 Posted June 26, 2009 Report Share Posted June 26, 2009 I do not know... I would check the web for potential loading data... the problem is getting wads that fit the hulls properly. I am sure you could figure something out after trial and error... but its the error you want to keep away from. LOL I want to avoid a trial too. Link to post Share on other sites
IndyArms 10,186 Posted June 26, 2009 Report Share Posted June 26, 2009 I also just learned that some hulls, such as RIO's will reload very well... but MUST have RIO primers as they are a few thousandths oversized compared to a U.S. style 209 primer... SOMETIMES a 209 will work... but most likely it would be too loose in the case. Another thing... when priming fiberwad based hulls you want to use a re-priming tool that supports the INSIDE of the casing while the primer is being inserted. The MEC presses are like this. My Texan progressive is not... and I can attest... it will pour a whole can of whoop ass on them hulls if you go reefing on the handle too hard... sometimes popping them right out of the loader!!! Link to post Share on other sites
Doc Holiday13 0 Posted July 1, 2009 Report Share Posted July 1, 2009 If you're not paranoid of Y2.01k (yes I'm a geek), why keep any on hand? Convenience. I have maybe 20 rounds 3 1/2" 12 gauge 00 buckshot, 100 rounds 3 1/2" #4 shot, Then about 300 rounds of birdshot I have one slug that I randomly found in a barrel of used brass. I have a shotshell press but haven't bothered to setup yet Link to post Share on other sites
SELFDEFENSE 2 Posted August 30, 2009 Report Share Posted August 30, 2009 300 slug 300 buck 400 bird Then replace what you shoot after that level. I'm almost there (reduced my cache function testing my MD 20 and Surefire 12 ) Link to post Share on other sites
lvjeffro 30 Posted August 31, 2009 Report Share Posted August 31, 2009 250 ranger slugs 250 ranger 00 250 #7 1/2 250 #6 couple boxes of some 3" slugs Link to post Share on other sites
IndyArms 10,186 Posted September 10, 2009 Report Share Posted September 10, 2009 I actually reload the federal Top Gun hulls... ( walmart federal cheapies ) for trap loads... I use 17.5 grains of Promo, pretty much ANY 1 1/8 oz. wad you want... although I find that he ACTIV red wads work really well to get the best crimp height, for an ounce and an eighth load... and a Federal 209A primer. The remington figure 8 wads give good crimp height too... WAA12, and WT12 wads work, but the crimps are a little bit low... Link to post Share on other sites
gunfun 3,931 Posted September 10, 2009 Report Share Posted September 10, 2009 cool. I was wanting to start reloading those for buck and slug, since I make a lot of them. Problem is that I can't seem to find any of the reloading stuff and I am afraid dad might have sold it. Link to post Share on other sites
dlcjr1973 24 Posted September 10, 2009 Report Share Posted September 10, 2009 I try to keep a thousand in reserve and about 500 for shooting as I get time to do so. +1 - Same numbers, same reason. The 1k reserve is 200 buck, 200 slug, +/- 600 various size bird. The 500 shooters are mostly Wally World target loads. I'm not a survivalist either, but my dad was a firm believer in keeping 1000 rounds minimum for each weapons system at ALL times. I guess it was one of the few things he taught me that actually sank in. Regards, Sapper Link to post Share on other sites
Shandlanos 1,470 Posted October 4, 2009 Report Share Posted October 4, 2009 I don't know about the "right" number, but wally world value packs are cheap enough so that cost isn't the limiting factor, but rather space. A box of 100 12-gauge shotshells takes up roughly the same volume as 1500 rounds of .22LR, and I fire a lot more .22 than 12-gauge. I like to keep four wally-world value packs on hand, and normally 100-150 rounds of buckshot/slug, although at the moment I have no slugs and several hundred rounds of 00 buck, due to a few good deals at Cabela's... Link to post Share on other sites
mgconnor13 206 Posted October 5, 2009 Report Share Posted October 5, 2009 I tend to just stop at walmart and get a few cases befor going to the range. I don't have that much 12 gauge ammo on hand at any given time but I do have a lot of wolf 7.62X39 filling up my safe. Can't seem to keep my ak feed. Suspect my saiga's appitate will grow once I start using mags bigger then the 5round factorty mag. Link to post Share on other sites
IndyArms 10,186 Posted October 6, 2009 Report Share Posted October 6, 2009 Suspect my saiga's appitate will grow once I start using mags bigger then the 5round factorty mag AND... That is inversely proportional to the size of your wallet... Link to post Share on other sites
volkov 318 Posted October 6, 2009 Report Share Posted October 6, 2009 right now I'm going through about 600 a month.. I keep about 500 on hand in case I'm in a hurry/with friends in a hurry, otherwise I just up a pack or two of wally world 100 rds on the way to the range.. Tend to shoot once a week between 75-200 shots depending on how many clays I can find plus what I bring to the range (normally 50) and whether or not I have something cool I want to destroy. Usually burn through less back home, but at college theres no range that will allow me to shoot my AK at more then 1 round per 3 seconds.. but they have no rules against semi auto fire on the shotgun range.. woops! just means I use my shotgun a ton more.. Plus the guys up here are fricken wierd.. Bring an AK to the local rifle range and everyone gives you funny looks.. and occasionally some flat out leave.. Rifle range is mainly filled with guys in their 60s with bolt action rifles.. a lot of them .22s.. I think they must be part of some AK hating club... don't know, it's just wierd to find so many people in one age group using all the same rifles.. Back home in Charleston the majority have semi autos and a wide range of age... and I'm rambling.. I should drink less.. oh well Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts