How much ammo should one have on hand at all times?

Read a recent "study" that recommended the following by firearm types.

Rimfire Cartridges - 10,000 minimum.

Shotgun - minimum of two cases per shotgun owned. (5 cases if 3 or fewer owned.)

Pistol - minimum of 2,000 rounds per handgun owned. (5,000 rounds if 3 or fewer handguns owned.)

Rifle - minimum of 500 rounds per hunting caliber. (2,000 rounds if 3 or fewer owned.)

Semi-Auto, high capacity magazine type rifles, (black rifles).
2,000 rounds per rifle owned. (5,000 rounds if 3 or fewer owned.)


Hmmmm?

I need more ammo by those figures

Just one more round...

Was the study funded by an ammo maker?
What possible credible parameters could a study use, to come up with those numbers?

This would be my question as well.. for what purposes would one want to retain and maintain these kind of amounts? Are we talking for WSHTF or TEOTWAWKI kind of eventualities?

I am close, but only because I am a bit excessive!! I never knew there were set numbers or even studies?

Oh well, better to be prepared and never need it! Than to need it and not have it!!

Sounds like survivalist type stuff

There's absolutely nothing wrong with being prepared. Some of us prepare for economic hard times. I have ammo stacked pretty deep as well as reloading components. This ensures that I can enjoy my hobby for a long time without fear of being priced out of doing what I love.

Well, I think I'm pretty well prepared. The last time I inventoried, I had over 30 cans of powder and over 60 boxes of bullets plus a Large ammo box of primers. Probably over 1,500 pieces of brass and enough dies to get confused about what I do have. I only have one rifle (6BR) that I don't have dies for. Bought another 100 bullets last week.

However, only 4 or 5 boxes are loaded for different rifles.

I don't load them because I never know what I'll want to try next.

One case for everything you own and a room full of 22 for when the zombies come

I try to keep 1000 rounds per gun. I never dip into my reserves and only shoot what I purchase for the occasion. I keep everything in 50 or 30 cal ammo cans. There are a few guns that I don't hoard ammo for: revolver, shotguns, hunting rifles.

Just bought another .45 and .308 so I've gotta pick up a bunch of ammo.

Looks like I need to stop on the way home and get more......I usually keep about 1-2K and have about 4 different cal. Most of that is for my ar.

more

Seems a little conservative to me.

all you can afford

That much ammunition is useless if you don't have it load3d in magazines.

I keep enough pistol ammunition to load all my magazines in caliber, and about 100-200 rounds extra at a time in case I want to go to the range.

Black rifle, same story.

Hunting guns I do buy case at a time just to ensure same lot numbers so I don't have to resight, but I aslo shoot about 100rds a year through both my go-to rifles.

I have a little over 40,000 spread between 223,308,243,7mag,9mm and 45.

That's a lot of ammo.

Wife wont let me buy any more powder until I shoot down the pile..

I'm now developing loads for .40 S&W, .308 Win. and 7mm-08 Rem. I have plenty for .38 Special, .357 Mag., 9mm, .45 ACP, .22 Hornet, .223 Rem., .30-30 Win., 7.62X54r, .30-06 Springfield, .303 Brit., and LOTS of 8mm JS Mauser.

I don't have as much rifle ammo as I'd like to have but have a decent amount of pistol ammo. Once I finish tweaking my loads then I'l start to really turn up the ammo count

How is that? So if I have 10000 rounds of .223 and only have 100 AR mags, I have 7000 rounds of useless ammo? Last time I checked, my magazines weren't one time use. If you're in a bug out situation that may apply, but even then...I have all my ammo in cans ready to roll.

Whats your average reload time on a 30rd magazine for your AR ? 10 seconds with stripper clips ? 30 without ?

The reason I laugh at all the ammo stock piles is most people have 100X the ammunition than they do magazines, which is really pointless.

If something was to happen where you needed what you have, do you really want to be a static target locked down to one location ? because if you are you will have to defend what you have, and at some point you will lose when you run out of loaded magazines.

Most trained survival experts all have the same POV the key to survival is being mobile, don't keep more than what I can move out on foot with. Just my 2 Cents. Does not mean I'm right and your wrong, just my answer to the stated question.

This is why you have children.. Their little fingers are perfect for punching ammo in the magazines.. Yall know I am just kidding..