Bullet Run Leaves Many Low on AmmoThe rush on ammunition sparked by fears of new firearm controls has left gun owners scouring the shelves for bullets.
Across the country, demand for ammunition is outstripping supply, causing retailers to ration sales, police departments to alter training practices and some gun owners to shelve their weapons for the time being.
Enlarge Image
Associated Press
Fear of gun curbs spurred demand for ammunition, depleting supplies.
The heightened demand for ammunition, and for firearms themselves, began shortly after the December school shooting in Newtown, Conn., largely in response to concerns that the government would introduce new restrictions.
Since then, popular models of guns, such as the AR-15 semiautomatic rifle, have flown off shelves, causing shortages, according to retailers. But the shortages on ammunition are even more severe, they say.
"Firearms are starting to bounce back—you can find them," said John Powell, the manager of a Wholesale Sports Outdoor Outfitters outlet in Federal Way, Wash. "But with ammunition, it's a famine."
Statistics on ammunition sales are hard to come by. Industry giants such as Alliant Techsystems Inc. ATK -1.43% subsidiary Federal Premium Ammunition, don't reveal data. And Michael Bazinet, a spokesman for the firearm industry's trade group, the National Shooting Sports Foundation, said the organization doesn't track ammunition sales.
Even retailers are struggling to quantify the surge. In December, Bull's Eye LLC, a gun store in St. Louis, saw about a 20% jump in ammunition sales from a year earlier, said owner Jim Stevens. But since then, sales have ebbed, largely due to the shortage in supply. "It's hard to get a good measure," he said. "The spike in sales was so fast and so steep."
In January, Wal-Mart Stores Inc., WMT +1.12% the largest gun seller in the country, started rationing ammunition, limiting sales to three boxes per customer per day. The policy will remain in place for the foreseeable future, said spokeswoman Ashley Hardie.
Some manufacturers say they are adding employees and running extra shifts. "We're paying a good amount of overtime to try to keep up," said Jeff Hoffman, the co-owner of Black Hills Ammunition, a manufacturer based in Rapid City, S.D. Still, Mr. Hoffman said it is going to take months before his firm can meet demand. "For the most popular calibers, we're quoting delivery times of early next year," he said.
Gun owners are feeling the squeeze. Noah Lemas, an owner of several semiautomatic handguns, rifles and shotguns in Bend, Ore., said that after learning of the rise in demand, he decided to restock his ammunition supply.
"I've been looking since December, but can't find it anywhere—everything is out of stock," he said. Mr. Lemas said he finally found a box of 500 rounds of 40-caliber ammunition at a local gun show last weekend, for the "slightly inflated" price of $210. "I felt like the luckiest guy in town."
The industry has seen less pronounced jumps in demand before, such as after the passage of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban of 1994 and more recently in late 2008, after the election of Barack Obama as president triggered fears of new gun laws.
Those episodes had police departments nationwide taking note. "We learned that you can't go below a six- to eight-month supply," said Tim Fitch, the chief of police for St. Louis County, Mo. Some police chiefs say they have ample supply for officers in the line of duty. Still, others are cutting back on firearm training and replacing live target practice with shooting simulators.
The police department in Rollingwood, Texas, typically hosts four firearm-training sessions per year. But that has stopped. "Our last training session was in October, and we don't have any more scheduled," said Dayne Pryor, the department's chief.
Retailers and manufacturers say there are worse problems than an unprecedented surge in demand. But it poses challenges. "Look, we'll get a shipment in and it'll be gone in three or four hours," said Mr. Powell, of Wholesale Sports.
Black Hills Ammunition's Mr. Hoffman said the demand hasn't necessarily helped profits. "We're just taking orders on stuff that we likely would have sold anyway," he said.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323293704578332561074939182.html?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_News_5
