Ammunition cans
Bigstock. The author is jealous.

Ginsburg’s death is merely another “don’t let a crisis go to waste” moment for the ever-ghoulish Democrats.

These hypocrites are fond of blaming conservative “rhetoric” for a host of problems but they’re out there throwing around the word “war” a lot since Ginsburg’s passing. They don’t really mean war, of course. Most of them would soil themselves if ever confronted by any real opposition. No, what they want is the permanent marginalization of the Republican Party and any conservative wrongthink. The entire American Left has become totalitarian fascist scum.

I’m sure a few exceptions can be found but I don’t have time to look. One of Trump’s greatest accomplishments is getting Democrats to be so irrationally angry that they can no longer hide their thoroughly un-American intentions.

People of sound mind and political opinions have only two things to focus on until November 3: working on getting out the vote for President Trump and buying ammo if you already have a gun or five.

– Stephen Kruiser in You Don’t Have Enough Ammo for the Post-Ginsburg 2020 Apocalypse

 

 

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

178 COMMENTS

  1. Do you have enough ammo? For every gun you own? Have you already loaded up your magazines? And speaking of which…

      • I bought plenty of x54 when it was cheap. Is a Mosin my first choice in shtf? No. But it is a working rifle and sometimes that’s all you get.

        • Mosins are party favors for your friends who forgot to bring a dish – that’s why they sold them in crates!

        • SHTF used to be more of an abstraction. But now . . .? My Sub2000 folds up and fits neatly in a pack-pack. A good supply of Glock 17 mags and x thousand 9mm (bought after being blind-sided after Sandy Hook) now makes more sense than ever. Probably should have stocked up on more 7.62×39 for the old SKS, however.

    • I’m locked and loaded already since before Pelosi’s treason via her attempted impeachment of our lawfully elected President.

      • Had plenty to begin with but been buying more pretty much every week, a box here, a box there, all calibers but mostly defense rounds. More FMJ than I could ever shoot, always need more JHP, frang, soft point, green tip, etc. Get on “notify me” lists for ever caliber you need and I’ve found they will notify me.
        Last inventory a couple months ago I was surprised to find I had six figures when I stopped counting.

    • 3200 – 556/223
      5400 – 9mm
      1200 – 40
      25000 – 22
      850 – 12GA
      and enough powder and primer for either 70k 9mm (in a pinch i can us SRP in 9mm ammo) or 43k 9mm and 20k 556, so far.
      So just getting started

    • Nicely done.

      I’m not putting down all my numbers, but I figure I’ll be dead before 10% is consumed.

      Not lucky, I just stocked up below certain prices. Then one day I inventoried and realized 6,000 rounds of 45 ACP with most of my guns in 9mm or .223/5.56… I’m comfortable with my current inventory of ammo.

    • I don’t have more than 10,000 of anything and less than 5,000 of most things, so I’m feeling a little vulnerable right now. 🙁

    • This is great for selling or bartering, but of course you realize that it would be impossible to actually use that much. By one person or a regular size family. If you anticipate that kind of a firefight, you’re doing something wrong…

      • It’s easy to use that much. If you use only 100 rounds per range trip, every 10 range trips is 1000 rounds. If you’re the sort of person who goes to the range weekly that’s about 5,000 rounds per year, so 10,000 rounds is just a two-year supply. Given the recent volatility of ammo prices, someone with that size of a stockpile looks quite wise and forward-thinking to me.

      • What if you had multiple firefights over the course of a few years? I read some stuff years by a guy who lived through the dissolution of the USSR and then the Balkan conflict in the 1990’s. There were years of them hiding at home, gardening, bartering for stuff they needed. And multiple gunfights just to protect themselves and what they had from other ordinary people who didn’t have anything. They weren’t even participating in the war.

    • Unsure of an exact count. I did have to go under the house and brace the floor due to the excessive weight causing it to bow downward. This does not include the various caches placed around the area as well as at Like Minded Friends Locations. Being prepared as a Group is always a good option. Don’t forget people skills in your circle. Especially medical training and old time survival skills. Much can be learned from the experiences of previous generation in regards to surviving the Hard Times. Be Safe Out There

      • Don’t need to cause I’m not Bugging Out. Why leave the one place you have prepared to defend that holds most all of your supplies. Besides where would you go that many other people aren’t already considering. Prepare your perimeter and knuckle down with your group. The real Chaos won’t last long as most of the rabble will die off relatively soon. Either by people defending whats theirs or each other fighting over what left. Very few people have the knowledge or ability to survive once the supply grid goes down which will take about a week. The they’ll be killing each other for the scraps. After 30 days most of those unprepared for Real SHTF Times will be dead anyway. 99.9999% of the population hasn’t got a clue on how to survive without modern conveniences and a supply chain that fills the stores on a daily basis. Keep Your Powder Dry…Maintain OPSEC and Be Safe Out There.

        • “….99.9999% of the population hasn’t got a clue on how to survive without modern conveniences and a supply chain that fills the stores on a daily basis…”

          Can’t they just Google that?

          • “Can’t they just Google that?”

            Classic.

            On the other hand, it took me a full hour to understand the “aendix” riff.

        • “Oh, come on man!”
          It took you that long?
          Heck, I had it figured out after refreshing the page 26 times in only 14 minutes.
          🙃

    • Thing is, … if I get into a scrap where I need more than, say, 30-40 rounds or so, then I have bigger problems than running out of ammo. I.E., I’m probably not going to survive. So, the other 20,000 rounds won’t do me much good.

      • It’s not one scrap. It’s multiple scraps over several years. And training to keep up your skills.

    • Looks like you’re really low on .308.

      I got an email that DS Arms had Portuguese 7.62x51mm for $0.50/round a few months ago. Was busy and didn’t jump on it. Few hours later, it was all sold out. Still kicking myself.

  4. Enough. For what?
    Enough to keep shooting 3 gun? Not for longer than a season or two.
    Enough to go plinking with the boys? Wouldn’t waste it like that.
    Enough to hunt with for the rest of my life? Probably, unless I’m a terrible shot.
    Enough to participate in a armed revolt? Trick question. You acquire as you go.

  5. Not as much as I’d like (another 5k of centerfire pistol would be nice), but I’m not dry. I’m good on .22lr, to the point I’m getting that Taurus .22 with a threaded barrel so I can conserve the 9mm I have sealed up in cans…

    • You finally decided on the TX22?

      About 1K rnds downrange through mine (so far) with nary a problem.

      Even more fun to shoot with a Sparrow attached.

      Best inexpensive .22LR pistol ever!

      Regarding today’s discussion topic…always room for more (at the right price).

      • “You finally decided on the TX22”

        The price sold it to me.

        I’d like a Ruger MK IV, but it’s twice the price…

        • well.
          as long as you’re not buying something, don’t get a cz kadet to pair with a rami.
          way too much monies.

    • Love my TX-22. Well, ok, it’s the wife’s gun but she loves it too!

      Great gun for the money. Zero hiccups in 1000+ rounds. Hope you enjoy yours as much.

    • Not really. If there was EVER a time in modern US history to be armed because of un-certain near future now is that time.

      Wake up and smell the coffee.

      Pandemic, real, fake, mostly real, whatever its here and it has hurt lots of people when it comes to jobs and I bet they are pissed off. Riots, lots and lots and lots of riots, looting. Crime spiking at all time highs. Massive aggressive movements from left/communist/socialist groups in the US pushing to defund the police, open our borders wide, get rid of property laws…have your neighbors homes purchased using eminent domain and then turned into low income housing by the Feds or state governments. California trying to make voting by 16 year old’s legal. Mass mailouts of ballots which WOULD be so badly abused to make any election questionable.

      At every level of government, local, state and federal you have had anti-american people elected and backed by the likes of George Soros (I live near St. Louis look up the city’s DA and who backed her). Major universities are basically lost to the radical left. You have the open calling of violence from Anti-American immigrants like Reza Aslan…”If they even try to replace RBG we burn the entire fucking thing down” was his quote from last Friday. The media, news hollywood, social media is 99% crazy left at this point…and they CONTROL the message.

      I do hope and pray that we have a peaceful election and we move forward past this point in our history without any violence but I am prepared to protect my own.

      • “Mass mailouts of ballots which WOULD be so badly abused to make any election questionable.”

        Yes, they want the want the uncertainty in case of a loss. If they win, however, the People Will Have Spoken and questioning the results will be treasonous.

        • You nailed it!

          I’m waiting for the election results to show 330 million votes for Biden and 106 votes for Trump (it would look chueco if Trump received – 0 – votes).

          For those of you who enjoy reading prescient dystopic novels (1984, Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451, etc)…try reading “The Machine Stops” by E.F. Forster (1909) Available for free on-line with a search – 12,000 word short story. He perfectly portrays today’s (digital) society 100 years before it came to pass.

          • And still the eternal question remains unanswered…. Who fixes the thing that fixes the broken stuff when the thing that fixes the broken stuff is broken?…

        • Youtuber known as Liberty Doll just moved and said she received three unsolicited mail in ballot forms from her previous state. They all had her listed with different last names: maiden, married, and hyphenated. Could she potentially vote four times when you include her new state? How would her old state catch her if they aren’t smart enough to not mail three ballots to the same person? It’s a disaster waiting to happen, and the media is running cover for the democrats, as usual. What if someone else received the ballots, and she didn’t realize it? Who hasn’t received mail addressed to a neighbor or a previous resident?

        • Any bets the total voter turnout will be several times the total of eligible voters in the country?

          In Chicago there are typically more votes than voters.

        • E.M. Forster
          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._M._Forster

          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Machine_Stops

          But the real prophet, Morgan Robertson, didn’t mention any of this;

          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morgan_Robertson

          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wreck_of_the_Titan:_Or,_Futility

          On the mail in ballots, we have not gotten any yet. But based on the fact that we got about 20 census mailing with different iterations of our names and then a visit by an actual census worker who left a note on our door as we weren’t home, I am not confident in government’s ability to conduct a mail in election. I am confident in the democrats desire to steal one.

  8. I have enough ammunition for myself and my immediate family.

    Do I have enough ammunition to supply my neighborhood? Nope — I guess I have some work ahead of me!

    • Don’t worry. When Antifa/BLM decide it’s time for them to emulate the Italian army in North Africa, there’ll be plenty of dropped weapons and ammunition for you to pick up and redistribute.

      • Chris Morton,

        While comical, you actually bring up a good point. The image of ANTIFA and B.L.M. types holding AR-15 rifles, AK-47 rifles, and pump-action shotguns sends shivers down the spines of the uninformed masses. In reality upwards of 99% of those apparatchiks have ZERO training, skills, and aptitude.

        Standing in opposition to those apparatchiks are people with significant training, skills, and aptitude. The patriots standing opposed to those apparatchiks also have superior tactics, woodscraft, and incentive.

        If this cold war ever goes hot, patriots will definitely suffer losses — and those losses will be minuscule compared to the mountains of dead and wounded apparatchiks. The side benefit of that result, as Chris Morton pointed out, will be mountains of firearms and ammunition recovered from those mountains of dead and wounded apparatchiks.

        • “There is no greater danger than underestimating your opponent.”

          ― Lao Tzu

          An example is is

          https://www.warhistoryonline.com/vietnam-war/8-reasons-french-military-disaster-dien-bien_phu-mmm.html

          You can say yes that was the French all you want but we too took second place in the South East Asian war games. Plenty of gang members have gone into the military to learn warfare techniques.and you will have them to deal with too. Once the Antifa and the rest of the rabble discover their techniques do not work they will quickly join forces with the gangs. Remember yet another old saying , The enemy of my enemy is my friend .

        • The Call of Duty Khmer Rouge better understand that when you play Spartacist, sometimes you get to play Rosa Luxemburg… ONCE.

          Freikorp’s coming, hide your heart girl…

  11. Let’s put it this way…democRats don’t have enough ammunition to stop me from voting for…

    TRUMP/PENCE 2020.

  13. In my years on this rock I’ve learned a couple of things:
    You can never have too much ice at a party or Too much ammunition.

    • I recall reading plenty of articles that claimed the same thing during Obama’s second term. They usually mentioned a changing demographic which is probably why we’re seeing so much anti-white angst these days.

    • “Newsom said only last year that the Democrats were permanent and the Republican Party was going extinct.”

      They had better hope that doesn’t come to pass, because the USA will be split up, hopefully peacefully.

      Backing us into a corner puts us right back where we started :

      “When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.”

      Don’t back us into a corner, Leftists, we be fierce creatures (like Possums)… 🙂

      BREAKING NEWS –

      Mitt Romney has announced he will vote for a SCOTUS pick, provided they are qualified.

      Holy fuck! Another vote!

      • Oh, it’s happening. One way or another. Trump isn’t going to stop being president just because it’s election season. That reasoning is absurd. And before the libs complain about Garland in 2016, republicans controlled the Senate, and the current administration was on their way out. It was a different situation. “Elections have consequences.”

        • Democrats are trying to stop a vote before the election, but ignore that the Senate has until January 3 to git ‘er done. That is about 100 days from now, and that is PLENTY of time to vet the candidate. And even if Biden wins, the Senate still can approve Trump’s nominee. That alone is a major league win–and the Democrats know it. I am hoping Trump nominates the Latina from Florida, which would likely assure that he wins Florida. Winning swing state Florida could mean winning the election.

        • Noticed you’ve been gone for awhile did your Mommie the Commie finally give you back your computer privileges. Well isn’t she special, Bless her Heart.

      • “provided they are qualified.” I don’t trust the weasel. I wouldn’t be surprised if he claimed Trumps nominee wasn’t qualified after casting a no vote.

  15. Twenty years ago, I bought 1,000 rounds of M198 to deal with some Nazis. Fortunately, it keeps well if properly stored and works just as well on communists.

    • Oh, you can always get more.

      The Jews in the Warsaw Ghetto and the Armija Kraijowa didn’t get those 98ks, MP40s and P38s from Century Arms.

      Likewise the Bielski brothers in Belorus.

        • Daniel Craig… Hollywood anti gun fake- he even fucked up most of his 007 scenes where was required to be filmed holding a gun. He’s the usual lefty piece of shit that will whore himself out against his ” principles” if the price is right. Screw Hollywood, the genuine good guys can be counted on less than two hands worth of fingers !!!

  17. I have enough for the foreseeable future. It “helps” my eyesight sux. Getting glasses and cataract surgery soon. I’m still good enough to kill lefttards…

    • fww, I had both eyes done when I was in my early 50s. You won’t believe the improvement in your vision. And a friend had one of her eyes done, and her vision improved from 20/400 to 20/20.

      • Thanks again Ralph. I quit driving at night and am “leery” of highways. Supposedly getting glasses next week but Medicare is moving s l ow. We’ll see👀

        • Definitely get the cataract surgery done… I had a detached retina in one eye, and the surgery destroyed my natural lens. Six weeks later I had the implant done in that eye… there was such a huge difference, I paid to have the other one done on my own dime- now I take my glasses OFF to read and look through the scope. You won’t regret it.

    • Dude your going to be amazed. I was blind now everything is crystal clear, front sight sticks out like a silver dollar in a shithouse

  18. We all feel we might not have enough, but if this becomes a shooting war, most of us will not get thru the magazines we have already loaded to have to reload, for a couple of reasons. 1. The war never came close enough. 2. You drive off the criminals with the first volley and they go somewhere else for the duration. 3. You are killed. There may be sub-sets of this scenario, but basically that’s it. All those thousands of rounds will be needed for survival when it all ends, if you survive.

  20. Data point for you all . . . .

    I get e-mail notices of various online auctions in my area (often business liquidations, estate liquidations, etc.). In the past, finding granddad’s ammo stash after he passed away would be disposed of as “Lot X: misc. ammunition,” or maybe “1000 round case, 9mm 115b FMJ,” and it would usually sell for at or sometimes well below current market rates for cheap ammo.

    In the past few weeks, however, now such auctions are having individual auction lots for single boxes of ammo. And the prices being realized are truly nuts.

    For example, over the weekend I was following an online auction in east Texas that had a lot of guns, accessories, and ammo. Individual boxes of cheap range 9mm (Winchester White Box kind of stuff) wound up going for $1/round . . . which after you add the auctioneer’s vig, sales tax, and shipping, probably means over $1.25/round.

    FOR FREAKING 9mm RANGE AMMO !!!!

    Complely nuts. I’m kicking myself for not buying a pallet of 9mm S&B range ammo in January . . . I could have gotten 25,000 rounds for about $180/1000 (including tax and S&H), and I was close to doing so but I guess I saw something shiny and forgot about it.

    • I backed up the truck and bought literally a sum total of 10K+ rounds of Winchester White Box target between 2017-2019 (and that’s just the white box stuff, and only in 9mm, as I acquired much more in all calibers I own). I’m now seeing the same going “on sale” for almost double thru online retailers…and that’s before it sells out. I have enough and won’t be paying those prices, but I know multiple people who purchased their first gun this year and are getting whatever they can.

  21. God I can’t wait for some of you boomers to die so I can pick through all of the unshot ammo in your estates.

    Hoarding like this is what happened with TP earlier in the year.

    I reload about 30,000 rounds/year (and shoot as much) so I typically keep enough components for about 15,000 rounds on hand, and supplement as needed with store bought.

    Not a problem until the last few months when the hoarders started hoarding.

    • Sorry Zoomer, Son In Law gets all mine when I die , all guns, all ammo and all tools and he is even more into guns than me so your Grand kids of whatever they call that generation will have to wait until he dies.
      I’m hoping I’m not the only person who put specifics like that into our will.

  23. Never enough, however I’m in the process of moving. I’m packing guns right now looking at several hundred and maybe up to over a thousand pounds of ammo to carry out.

  24. Let’s see:

    30,000 rounds of XM193.
    13,000 rounds of .22 LR AR Tactical.
    10,000 rounds of 115 gr. 9mm.
    5,000 rounds of 230 gr. .45 Auto.
    5,000 rounds of .38 spl./357 Magnum
    3,500 rounds of 150 gr. .30-06 for the M1 Garand/M1903.
    1,000 rounds of 240 gr. .44 Magnum.

    (5) AR-15s in various configurations.
    (2) .22 LR semi-auto rifles.
    (6) 9mm semi-auto pistols.
    (5) M1911 semi-auto pistols.
    (6) .38 spl./.357 Magnum revolvers
    (2) M1 Garands.
    (1) M1903 Remington modified (between A1 and A3-late 1942) rifle.
    (1) M1917 Eddystone rifle.
    (1) .44 Combat Magnum revolver.
    (1) .44 Magnum lever action rifle.

    Body armor, ballistic helmet, 50 loaded 30-round Pmags, 20 loaded 9mm pistol mags, molle vest, IFAK, (3) large fire extinguishers, house with thick stone walls, etc.

    Plus multiple 12 GA. Shotguns and 500 rounds of shells

    All ready…

    • You forgot the Tannerite for perimeter defenses. I suggest at least 5/5 gallons buckets along with various hollow decorative rocks, planters, garden gnomes and bird houses/feeders along with appropriate media. Placed in/near pre planned choke points and points of cover.

    • Was counting up mine and what all needed reloading. Finally realized that I needed to reorder more Black Rifle coffee. Now I’m prepared.

      • “Finally realized that I needed to reorder more Black Rifle coffee.”

        Try “Smooth Operator” and “Napalm” from Counterstrike.

  25. in 2018 mitch McConnell led the GOP organization to fund and support Doug jones democratic senate campaign to defeat republican roy moore . he won by 1% of the vote and will now be able to prevent McConnell from this done.

    • “it wasnt one of his better moves”
      if it would have came after kavanaugh a lot more people would have seen it for the bullshit it really was
      never. again.

  26. 4000 rounds centerfire rifle
    3000 rounds centerfire pistol
    5000 rounds rimfire
    500 rounds shotgun
    for 6 handguns
    13 rifles
    1 shotgun
    over 60 mags loaded
    hope thats enough

  27. Found 1k rounds for .223 for 430$. Not great but not bad. Still need more 9mm and 45 acp for my m3.

  28. If shit really does slide sideways ammo will be plentiful; all over the ground like manna from Heaven.

    Loads of free footwear and cheapo tactical gear too but you might wanna wash that stuff before you use it.

  29. Since I live in rural Wy, I just need and a have normal skill maintenance amounts (for a few years) because there is no one to shoot at and I ain’t going looking for them either. If y’all super stockpilers do start to get in gun fights just how many rounds do you think you could fire in conflict before the fickle finger of fate decides that you are done? Virtually no one is going to fire thousands of rounds in civilian conflict and live through the experience, not even the few genuine double naught gun slingers here. The world is large and we are all very very small and fragile.

    • Very true. I’ve got more than enough to repel invaders (low on 9mm jhp than I’d like, though). It’s stashing enough to practice and have fun even when the store shelves are bare that’s the problem.

  34. Should have more than enough ammo. But being old, having read lots of books as a kid, and having learned to think like my enemy, ammo is the least of their worries about what may come their way.

    Nature and man provide more tools of the trade than the soy boys could even begin to fathom. I watch their tactics as they have evolved in their rioting. They have learned, and applied what they have learned in a amateurish way. Those are peaceful riots compared to what may happen if they decide to open the gates to a full rebellion.

    Let’s just hope they come to their senses soon so we don’t have to do what they think what they want. A second civil war would be less civil than our first. Not something I want to see, but not something I will run from.

  35. I have got some ammo set aside. What I really need is a chain gun though. Those BLM’ers and Antifa crowds get really big and if they came near my house I would be threatened. No worries though, they seem to be cowards, they attack in packs and never seem to act out one on one, unless they are using a sneak attack like in Portland or when they nailed that old man with a brick in the back of the head.

    In reality I hope I never need my ammo but all this talk of war is disconcerting.

    • We are in for interesting times, no matter how this election comes out. Makes me sick to my stomach, but I think it’s upon us. Just hoping it will be limited and that the country can get through it without totally coming apart. There are no truly good outcomes in this kind of conflict, at least not in the short term. Just different degrees of bad.

      • The crack of a shot coupled with the result takes many by surprise. All.of a sudden what’s on TV right now is more important than a cause.

        That arm wound and body count in Kenosha did more so calm things down than anything else.

  36. Unless you live someplace where there is a huge contingent of basement dwelling Starbucks baristas with worthless “studies” degrees, the likelyhood of post November 3rd Antifa inspired violence is rather low. Of course there is that rather pathetic LARPing bunch down here in Atlanta that thinks dropping the bolt home on an AR is going to cause it to fire. Those folks are up to rioting when the cops are treating them gently, but actual combat with actual icky guns, not so much.

    • I wouldn’t underestimate the willingness of the radical left to engage in violence. In several prominent recent cases they have knowingly attacked armed people. That said, I agree that violence is far, far more likely to occur where the rioters enjoy the full support of sympathetic local governments.

      • Fair.

        The other point was driven home by 9/11. You don’t have to be super sophisticated or a crackerjack pilot to cause a hell of a lot of trouble.

        And there’s the ripple effects. The country is run via distribution hubs. If those hubs or the routes for delivery get disrupted you’re going to have some sort of trouble locally when supplies of something run out.

        The real chaos starts when that “something” is 1) critical and 2) has no domestic production source (or none to speak of).

        Medicines and medical devices anyone?

        • “The country is run via distribution hubs. If those hubs or the routes for delivery get disrupted you’re going to have some sort of trouble locally when supplies of something run out.”

          The bulk of distribution is via surface transportation. There are only six bridges across the Mississippi. Everyone of them unsecured.

          • The bulk of distribution is via surface transportation. There are only six bridges across the Mississippi. Everyone of them unsecured.
            ???… Where do you get your information? There are 5 bridges across the Mississippi River in Tennessee alone… There are are at least 25 Interstate Highway (including bypasses) and major highway crossings through 11 major cities on the Mississippi, and a number of stand alone RR crossings…
            Apr 04, 2020 · Because some of the bridges across the river may be under construction, unofficial, small or in disrepair, the exact number of bridges that cross the Mississippi River is difficult to pin down to a single precise number; however, it can be said that there are at least 130 bridges that cross the Mississippi River.

            • The number of bridges that would carry train traffic is much smaller. Not only because of weight limits, but because of line consolidation trains fun on fewer tracks. Point being, trains are not like motorized transport, with near unlimited alternate routing. Even where trains run through smaller river cuts, they bridges are not up to the amount of wear and tear. And there is still the re-routing to be considered.

              We are not talking about permanent disruption, but just enough to upset “normal” life long enough to generate public panic and chaos.

              • Assuming you are only referring to perishables (food, milk, drugs) 99% travel by truck.. Only 25% of ALL freight is carried by rail in the U.S. which can take up to two weeks from coast to coast, a team in an 18 wheeler can do Ca to N.Y. in under 48 hrs.

              • “Assuming you are only referring to perishables (food, milk, drugs) 99% travel by truck.”

                And in order to get from place to place, fuel is needed en route and at destination. Oil and coal are still carried by trai (I have seen the endless fleets of trains moving coal from Wyoming, through Colorado, and to wherever – non trivial. Disrupt perishables for a week, and things get testy. Look at what happened with toilet paper and sanitizers lately. Plus, non-rail transportation uses the Interstate network, not the backroads and secondary routes through small towns.

                My point is that the supply chain is fragile, much more fragile than in the ’50s/’60s and such. You don’t need to completely destroy transportation, just depend on the ripple effect of diminished choke points. Then there is Just-In-Time delivery schemes. All dependent on no obstructions. Have you seen the service disruptions announced by FedEx and UPS when there are storms that snarl airports and surface transportation?

                We haven’t even touched on utility service fragility, a problem that gets attention from time-to-time, but never gets fixed.

              • non-rail transportation uses the Interstate network, not the backroads and secondary routes through small towns

                But they CAN use backroads etc., US Rt 6 runs from sea to sea and is a viable alternative to hundreds of miles of toll roads … Yes the supply network is fragile but shutting down a couple of RR bridges won’t stop supply (the FACT is that only 25% of ALL goods are moved by rail).. There are trucks that haul fresh goods, frozen and canned goods, live animals, clothing, video games, computers (exclusively), guns and ammo, building materials, fuel, chemicals and yes even coal.. I was under contract with Cincinnati Gas and Electric for several years hauling coal from central Ky to their coal fired power plant in Southwest Ohio 33 tons at a time and kept 4 trucks rolling 24 hours a day.. I agree that any disruption to the “essential goods” supply (mostly carried by trucks) WOULD cause a panic in the major metropolitan areas but having spent over 20 years as an owner operator I know the importance of truck traffic and supply on demand as opposed to rail, companies don’t keep large inventories of parts and materials any more.. Want to get a real grip on the supply chain? Spend an hour at Hunts Point N.Y., shut THAT down for 24 hours and NYC would be total chaos because day two would see every grocery shelf in the city laid bare…. The power grid is much more fragile much easier to disrupt and would also dramatically slow down supply efforts, then truck owners will refuse to haul into big cities which WOULD be the final nail in that pine box…

              • “but shutting down a couple of RR bridges won’t stop supply”

                Stopping supply is not the issue; serious disruption is.

                As to the amount of transport depending rail, I am seeing more and more flatcars hauling containers from container ships, and OTR trailers. Called a local freight company about the flatcar trailers. She said it is becoming more and more economical to use rail for long haul, and truck for local “last mile” service. She also said her company is a bit concerned about the seaborne containers that are showing on rail. Apparently, there is/was a move to build bare structures for those containers that could then be pulled by OTR tractors.

                Since my OP was relying on old information about the rail bridges over the Mississippi river, I contacted Corps Of Engineers (which was the source for earlier exercise regarding the bridges) and asked if they could confirm the earlier information was/is correct; awaiting a response.

                BTW, there is a federal railway agency responsible for safety, including bridges. The agency has been reporting on the crumbling status of rail lines and bridges for at least 10yrs; not much being done to improve things.

        • “There are only six bridges across the Mississippi. Everyone of them unsecured.”

          Maybe not with ‘checkpoints’, but I’m reasonably confident they are monitored, probably electronically.

          It takes some effort to drop a bridge. It’s kinda like the Hoover Dam new bridge built after 9-11, the old bridge was right on top of the dam itself. That sucker is mostly solid concrete. Pack a semi to the gills with an AmFo explosive and detonate it, it won’t breach that dam. Easily repaired.

          The military construction battalions (SeaBees) have ‘instant bridges’ they can deploy in fairly short order. Couple that with the civilian construction companies, traffic can resume in fairly quickly…

          • “The military construction battalions (SeaBees) have ‘instant bridges’ they can deploy in fairly short order. ”

            The bridges for rail transport are more difficult. Once the trains are disrupted, the effect can run completely across the nation. Think of all the schedules that would be involved. Damage all six at once and the snarl could be serious. People think trains are obsolete, and failing; carrying little of importance. Trains carry more commerce that one would think.

            As to bridges, they aren’t bridges built low to the water, but elevated trestle and truss bridges. The terrain doesn’t lend itself to quick throw down bridges. And motor transport would be disrupted while the repairs are in process. Even once the bridges are rebuilt/repaired, the destination hubs have a problem with moving freight in and out, setting up another traffic snarl as delayed cargo is handled and stored. I don’t think this is a two/three day inconvenience.

        • Sam I Am, there are more than 6 in MO alone that I can think of off the top. Hell, there’s 5 in the STL metro alone.

          There aren’t a whole bunch, to be sure. But, 6 for the whole river?

          • “But, 6 for the whole river?”

            Bridges capable of heavy train traffic. Bridges that carry the overwhelming bulk of East/West freight.

            Now, in fairness, my count is based on information available in the ’80s. During a joint forces exercise, we studied a number of ways to cripple surface transportation in the US. The point was to survey the nation for obvious, but unremarkable (at first blush) choke points that would frustrate movement of large amounts of supplies and people in support of a full mobilization for defense of the homeland (no, there was nowhere near enough air transport available, even with the CRAF – Civil Reserve Air Fleet- activated).

            The exercise was a prepratory drill for studying how to put whole nations out of commission as a means of stalling Russian invasion. Then we had to figure out how such disruption would affect rescue/reinforcement forces and equipment movement for friendly military. The Berlin Airlift depended on a huge Air Force that was just short of WW2 levels of air transport. Supporting friendly nations to fend off Russians had a poor cousin capability in thr ’80s.

        • The world has changed a lot since the ’80s.

          Trains are a matter of economy for some goods. Very little actually moves by train anymore, even less *needs* to. In fact , almost nothing *needs* to. I worked near the tracks for a coupla years, and save for wind power blades, a bunches of military vehicles moving for refurb, it could all readily be trucked.

          Taking out the trains would slow things just a bit, and tighten left coast produce shipments. That’s about it.

          • “Taking out the trains would slow things just a bit, and tighten left coast produce shipments. That’s about it.”

            Serious disruption of the national supply chain would create utter public chaos. The grocery supply chain itself has yet to fully recover from the panic of the beer virus. It is not crisis level, but it should have gotten people’s attention about how thin is the line between “modern” life, and crisis. Panic buying hasn’t disappeared. Look how fast the nation went from rising prosperity to nearly 30 million people out of work. The supply chain is fragile.

            Don’t know about everywhere, but I still see 150-200 freightcar trains running through town at least twice a day. Those trains are not all carrying outsized cargo of limited application. The supply chain is not robust. After all these years, I am beginning to think the “preppers” may be onto something, after all.

        • Just about all of the coal and crude oil moves by rail (most pipelines do not terminate at a refinery) at some point during it’s journey. That alone is enough to shut everything down.

        • Madmaxx knows his shit here and makes his point Completely. Sam is belaboring HIS point but is way outclassed on this particular topic,
          But can’t or won’t see it.

          • “But can’t or won’t see it.”

            Not really. The point is the distribution system is very fragile. My example of train bridges was done to alert people and generate thought, which it has done.

            Unfortunately, the Core of Engineers has yet to respond with information about the number of active/usable train bridges across the Mississippi.

  40. This reminds me, I gotta do an inventory of ammo. I had it all nicely laid out in a spread sheet and somehow the dang thing got scrambled. Poof there went my inventory. I’ve got an approximation of what I’ve got but I need to know exactly cause I intend to raise a couple of categories even with the prices so high. So I don’t want to buy what I don’t need right now.

  41. Bad news….I’m out of Brass and bullets…..Good News, I now have thousands of rounds for all of my little friends…(and my my arms sore from reloading….).

  42. I find it incredibly bothersome that a nearly two paragraph article can get so many of you to expose the volume and content of your personal weapons holdings. Mine is bigger than yours. Really? Unbelievable.
    Tactical load out is 300 rounds for an M-4 with 50 pistol rounds in backup. So how many days of 100% consumption are you expecting to fight and survive?

  43. I’ve concentrated more on building a stock of reloading components for the last couple of years. Will it be enough? Who knows. Since I live in Commierado, magazines I could definitely use more of, but tough luck finding them without outrageous “kit” prices.

  44. One of my favorite movie lines was spoken by “Vin” (Steve McQueen) in The Magnificent Seven: “We deal in lead, friend.” While I was stocking up on the latter during the months before $1.20 or more FMJ hand gun rounds (if anyone even has them), I was also withdrawing some precious metals from a safe deposit box before access could be completely barred. The problems and risks relative to securely storing and actually using physical silver and gold during SHTF are well known. Meanwhile, the prices of the those metals have stagnated, while the value of lead–our kind of lead–has gone up by factors of three, four and more. One can profitably barter it while protecting oneself with it. Win-win. Just another one of the many ironies of these times.

    • I used to buy bags of shot for 10 dollars a bag. It went to 43 when the Iraq war started. Beat gold for a while.

      I had 4 bags left I sold at a nice profit.

  45. Do I have enough ammunzion for the next election? Three .22 LR Winchester Wildcats, one of them should go off.

  48. I’m not supplying a marine squad or assaulting a town so a few hundred rounds of each in defensive ammo will suffice.

    If you need 5000 rounds you need to move to a castle.

  49. It is not how many you have necessarily, but rather where you place them. I pray that nothing does take place, but if it does, proper placement is an absolute priority. The majority of the people are not the problem.

  50. I’m probably just paranoid, but I feel it’s unwise if you have a large ammo/gun stash to post your current inventory on public internet so everyone knows exactly what you have.

    Meh, whatever, I’d rather be a paranoid weirdo than be someone’s target.

  51. WOW, WOW, WOW!!!!!
    Loose Lips Sink Ships … Underestimating your enemy is the fast track to defeat…
    “WALK SOFTLY AND CARRY A BIG STICK”

  54. This gives me peace. Because, fact is, there is no way I will use up all of my ammunition before I and everyone I might try and supply is long dead. I am no longer going to search for more ammunition, until this crisis has passed and the prices have returned to normal. Thank you.

  55. If every good American Patriot say 100 Million each shot 1 commie it should only require 1 or 2 rounds to get the job done…remember no warning shots during ammo shortage…or ever…

  56. I have found that storing large amounts of ammo to be problematic. I took over our walk-in closet and bought a second gun safe. I have a steady supply rolling in from Ammo squared but I have stopped trying to buy any. I did get some Federal Gold Metal .308 at Walmart recently

Comments are closed.