ammo ammunition feat
Dan Z. for TTAG

The first federal Chinese virus stimulus payments went out yesterday and already our friends in the media are recoiling in horror at how Americans are choosing to use their own money. The urban sophisticates at the New York Post silently shake their heads in disgust while relaying the news that some people are using their cash on stripper poles, dildos, tigers and — GASP! — guns.

Americans began receiving the first batch of coronavirus relief funds this week, and now many are taking to social media to brag about the assortment of purchases — both strange and savvy — they’ve already made with them.

While many are using the emergency cash to pay bills for necessities and living expenses, others are putting the money toward wild splurges.

The great thing about America — at least for now — is that no one has to give a damn what anyone else thinks about how we choose to spend our money, particularly during a national emergency.

local gun store LGS
(AP Photo/Seth Perlman, File)

If you’re fortunate enough to be among those who are financially unaffected so far by the shut-downs and don’t have to use your $1200 to pay for food or rent, a firearm is a perfectly rational use for the money, particularly if you don’t already own one.

The firearms industry has a $60 billion impact on the economy and employs well over 300,000 people. Supporting those businesses is just as important to the economy as buying a new dryer, a lawn mower, or yes, a stripper pole (people are employed to design, produce, and sell those, too).

So the question at hand is, if you don’t have to dedicate (all) of your money to feeding your family and keeping a roof over your head, what gun or gear are you planning to buy with your coronavirus cash?

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

263 COMMENTS

  1. Mine went directly into my savings account where it will, hopefully, earn enough interest to pay the taxes on it next year. Y’all do realize that it is taxable income, right?

        • I doubt he’ll feel very good about paying other people’s share – however small – of the National Debt next year if he doesn’t know. But that’s the price of ignorance combined with vanity.

      • You are right. I was mistaken. My wife is a pro tax preparer and she just corrected my assumption. Thanks.

        • Your wife is a pro tax preparer and you didn’t ask her? She did give you a well deserved dopeslap for proclaiming that without asking her, right? Mike’s Wife, if your reading this, and haven’t given him one, or whatever your equivalent is, I encourage you to do so.

        • I don’t know if you got the memo, but if you post incorrect information on an online forum, you are required to double down and insist it is correct. Doing the honorable thing and admitting you were wrong is strictly forbidden on the internet.

          • “…if you post incorrect information on an online forum, you are required to double down and insist it is correct.”

            It’s just plain common sense.

      • Early on, they said it would effect the taxes next spring. I hadn’t heard they changed that.

      • Thanks, got 3 1911’s in 45ACP already and a 45LC wheel gun. Seriously, now that I have been corrected there are a lot of things that I am thinking about.

        • Buy a Rock Island 1911 chambered in 9mm/22tcm. It holds 18 rounds. It will cut down on how many spare mag you carry. Its a double stack and shoots like a dream right out of the box. I picked one up last year and it has slowly become my favorite.

        • Kracker, if you don’t own one you should buy a Randall knife. All true Florida Crackers should own one. After all, they are hand made in an orange grove. I called Capt. Chris and ordered a 7″ stainless #1. Saw teeth grind/no saw teeth. Nickel silver hilt. Leather commando shaped handle. Radiased nickel silver butt cap w/wrist thong. “C” style sheath. That ate up $735. I’ll decide what to do with the balance later.

      • Put $1200 in the right bank account, and it could be $18 in a year. Not great, but if you don’t have a rainy day fund, should keep a small amount.

        I’ll spend my check on…nothing…I don’t get one…

    • I invest mine is stocks since the market has dropped. I already bought and sold some for a small profit of 110 dollars and repurchased again when the market dropped out.

      I think I keep day trading since I still working and getting paid. That the benefit of working in an essential business. Plus the extra OT not bad due to increase demand for our product we produce.

    • It is not taxable income.

      Even if it were, inflation will hit harder than the taxes, so spend it while you got it. I’m drawing out a seven year IRA because I foresee hyper inflation as early as Christmas and my money is still a year away from today. You don’t add six trillion to the national debt in one year like its nothing and expect your currency to be worth anything.

      Also, don’t forget about God when you get that $1,200 of taxpayer dough.

      As for what I’ll be buying: Paying off a small debt first, followed by tidying up business expenses for the rest of the year. ($600-$900) With what is left over, I’ll stock up on dog food and treats, get myself a new game and a headset. If I’m lucky, a pair of work boots that have soles attached.

      • $6 trillion to the debt should not cause inflation. The strength and resiliency of the American economy allows our politicians to engage in financial behavior that would sink many other countries. This is a bad thing ultimately, as it reinforces bad behavior.

    • I bought a new AR with my stimulus check! And this one will go towards more ammo!!!!
      I want to have at least 5,000 rounds at my disposal!!!!

  2. With my $96.75, not much. The safe and the pantry are well stocked, so maybe I’ll get something nice for the Misses?

  5. I’m too old for that stimulus stuff, but a nice, cold craft beer would be good right about now.

    • “I’m too old for that stimulus stuff, but a nice, cold craft beer would be good right about now.”

      It should be near-free very shortly, as kegs of draft beer have a shelf life, and the bars are closed.

      There’s talk of them just dumping it down the drain when it expires…

      • “There’s talk of them just dumping it down the drain when it expires…”

        Maybe we can get some of the bar owners to dress up lie 1930s revenuers, and take pictures of the bar owners pouring demon rum down the drain.

          • “I hope you’re drinking one bourbon, one scotch, and one beer.”

            One part bourbon, one part scotch, and one part beer. Think we uses to call that a “MIg-21”. Or maybe is was a “Crash and Burn”. I get them mixed up.

        • You just reminded me that many Russian jets have crashed due to icing. Not because they aren’t properly equipped, but because the deicer is ethanol, and the tanks are often emptied out.

    • No ammo purchases for me, going to wait until the panic (hopefully) dies down, already have some ammo so will wait. Same with guns, while there is always something on the list, but not a lot is in stock, and trying to go to a FFL doesn’t sound like much fun right not, and they may it may not want to bother with a transfer so I am holding off. Could start a silencer transfer but nothing I need. Basically unless a crazy deal pops, just waiting.

    • Same here. Why on earth are we giving our money to the poors? If they knew how to manage income they wouldn’t be in this position in the first place! Ungrateful cretins.
      ; )

      • I know this was /sarc, but the dole is going out to folks you’d hardly classify as poor. The cutoff is six figures.

      • The reason “we’re giving this money to the poors” is CASH FLOW. Politicians see the Little Peeps’ money as their to skim, scam, squander, and with which to buy votes. First driver is…to buy votes. Second, the more the cash flow, the more opportunity to skim, scam, and squander. The hit on the economy is just the illusion the Great Illusionists (politicians) use to distract from their intentions.

        • America is Rich. We have the fattest poor people in the world. They are very well taken care of.

    • JWM,

      You are retired and you still made too much money to qualify? Wow!!! I hope my retirement is as successful as yours!

      • I worked 2 jobs for over 20 years. Debt free is the way to live. I buy the car that I can pay cash for and don’t buy high end guns. It adds up quickly.

        It’s a lifestyle choice. Jay Leno banked every dollar he made from hosting the tonight show. He supported himself with side gigs as a comic. He’s got a warehouse full of vehicles and money in the bank.

        I married a like minded woman. That helps a lot.

        • Similar for me, wife and I raised as frugal Christians. We don’t buy fancy stuff, max out our contributions, not retired yet, but our combined incomes wre enough to disqualify for a stimulus check. Hopefully these checks help folks out.

        • I definitely went the other way, I only buy high end guns or M/G’s as fun investment toys

      • My windowed mother makes to much to get a check too. I joke with her she did her tour of 40 years married to that hard headed hard smoking alcoholic SOB. He had the decency to die quickly and leave her a pile of cash to retire on. So yes it happens.

    • Maybe I’m just bitter about never getting stimulus checks, but I view it as a huge waste of money. Lots of people are still working or retired. Their income hasn’t been affected, so they don’t need the money to survive. If they spend it, they’re patronizing companies that are already open and generating income, so those companies don’t need it. I think they should have loosened unemployment rules for those who aren’t earning, or aren’t earning as much (underemployment, like salaried workers who lost overtime or hourly workers who were cut back). Give the checks out after the stay at home orders are called off, and people can spend the money at all the stores, restaurants, bars, theaters, etc that have been closed down for months.

      • Back to the original topic, I’d really like to buy a clear ATI receiver set that was shown off at SHOT, but they won’t send one to my dealer. Maybe something to use during muzzleloading season too.

  9. Wife’s and mine went to my daughter and her hubby. She’s laid off and he is getting 2 to 3 days a week of work and they have a 15 month old. We’ve been slipping them money and he sayshe’s going to pay us back. I just tell him remember this and pick a nice old folks home for us someday.
    We are doing OK, not quite as good as a few months back but SS and a small pension ( and real low bills ) are keeping beans on the table. So I do not mind helping them a bit.

    • Well done. Taking care of family is paramount.

      I myself am furloughed due to CA’s shutdown, which started Mar 20 and lasts through May 15 (eight weeks). And my wife’s hours have been reduced to part time, though we’re grateful her employer is still open. What really bothers me about this whole debacle is the gall of our Dear Leaders telling me (via my employer) I’m not allowed to earn a living and feed my family, while the guys next to me on my right and left are.

      • Haz,

        We have moved from capitalism to a planned economy. The protesters in Lansing have the right idea. I hope you, and everyone who has been furloughed, can get back to work, soon.

        • Yes, and I hope everyone remembers how awesome this sojourn has been. See those store shelves? This is how Bernie and AOC want you to live forever.

    • Similar deal. my father in law is on a fixed income and barely scraping by, I love the guy so me and the wife send him money each month and due to stimulus are sending more. He helped us out a lot when we first started out in this world, now its time to give back.

  10. The only gun I can afford with it is a Glock 7. I’m not getting a check, just a few hundred thousand dollars of extra government debt on my shoulders.

    • find the equivalent 75. the safety is on the frame and it switches off in the correct direction.

      • I don’t have tiny little hands, so the 92 safety works just fine for me.

        • Depending how you rack the slide you may accidentally turn the safety on with the 92 pistols. I replaced the safety on my M9 with Beretta’s aftermarket decocker to eliminate the risk and have been very happy with the mod.

          That being said the CZ 75 is a very good option as well. I’ve got one of the BD variants, so again a decocker rather than a safety. With a DA/SA pistol I don’t think a safety is a big necessity anyway.

        • I had a 92fs, and I usually used the front of the slide to rack it unless my hands were sweaty or something. The serrations at the back are practically useless so you end up using the safety lever when racking from the back. That would really only be an issue if you’re carrying Israeli though.

        • large paws too, it just bugs me.
          guys i know with 92s love them; durable, dependable.
          but frame in slide is something.
          got a hi- power?

        • The LASD switched a few years ago from the 92F as duty issue to the M&P. A couple of deputies I know said a lot of guys kept their 92s because they still like them too much to part with them.

        • Nothing against the hi-power or CZ, never had either but I know they have plenty of fans. I liked my 92 though and the INOX is prettier. I’m a revolver guy so the DA/SA pistols make sense, even if the triggers kind of suck in comparison. (The PX4 Storms actually have better triggers.)

      • the “right direction” is purely subjective and based on the firearm.

        I own both a Beretta 96A1 (same systems as the 92 series) and I have a CZ 75B in .40 from the last (2018) production run. I NEVER confuse the “right direction” because it is easy to tell the guns apart. The slide mounted safety can help with racking as you can use that to help get purchase for your hands. The safety on my Px4 storm also helps in that manner. Racking the CZ75 is a little harder, likely stiffer springs and the narrow slide. When I use the CZ the only time the safety is engaged is if I am on the range and need to put it into safe for a moment (cocked and locked), otherwise the hammer is down and ready for DA first shot. Same for all my Berettas, the hammer is always down with a round chambered ready for DA first shot

        It isn’t hard or terribly difficult to use either safety system, just train and practice so you’re familiar with each gun. On a different note, while I love my CZ I do find myself shooting the 96A1 more accurately as it is more comfortable for me to grip. The CZ is more slim and also quite a bit heaver, which does help with felt recoil.

    • Look at the 92X variants. They are better overall in function out of the box. They are also available in “G” models (meaning decocker only vs safety/decocker). I picked up a Centurion G model. It takes the same full size mags as the rest of the full size 92 series and has a shorter slide/barrel. Very nice and will probably replace my 92A1 as my go to.

    • Bills…that has a very familiar ring to it.

      Fortunately, my federal “never mind the Chicom plague” money isn’t likely to get eaten up by bills like the tax return always does. I’m debating between that 820-round can of 5.56 greentip that Midway USA has, or maybe getting set up to reload all that brass I’ve been saving since I picked up shooting 10 years ago; I could partially immunize myself against these panic runs. Or maybe I’ll see if one of those .357 mag leverguns I’ve been coveting is still available (oh, wait, no…the LGS is actually part of a larger store that has shut down amidst the panic).

      Or I might actually just put it in the savings account…but I don’t know if that’s allowed in this new world.

      It’s really weird having options. Maybe someone from the government should tell me what to do. 🙂

        • 😀 I’ll keep that in mind if whenever I’m at a loss. Actually, I technically worked for the government too, if a .edu branch counts. Maybe I could tell *myself* what to do.

      • Your “savings account” could just be a place to hide a bunch of 50 and 20 dollar bills in your house. Surely, the interest paid by banks is not enough to pay for the fuel in your car to go get the cash.
        In these days, having some bug out cash could be a good thing.
        A wall safe(the kind that goes between studs) could also be a good thing. They are a good place to store medicine, cash and an unregistered handgun. These safes mount flush to the wall and can be put where hanging clothes or a dresser can hide it.

        • I do have a safe with cash, silver and important papers and a few handguns. But off the books firearms I store off site.

        • Same here. I store cash, silver, and guns/ammo at two physically separate addresses several miles apart, in a 60/40 split, with the larger part in a standing safe.

        • You guys are way ahead of me. You’ve got to HAVE assets before you can hide them. (Or store them with caution, if you prefer.)

          Although the thought had occurred to me that just keeping the cash on hand could be a prudent option. There have been several times when having a couple/few hundred or even just 50 bucks stashed away has helped me fill the gas tank or make some small supply run when the debit card wouldn’t function or some other circumstance gummed up the works.

      • ING- SGA has a better deal than midway. 1000 rounds of the same green tip for 400$.

  14. My LGS has a MAK 90 in stock for only $600. The other half is probably just going to my Etrade account with half of my tax refund.

    • If you are thinking about spending some of it on a flashing sword, you might as well put the other half towards a shield, aka some good multiple hit rifle plates. I prefer steel in the front with a soft vest insert to catch fragments, and ceramic in the back, where I won’t take multiple hits.
      I fastened 6 to my wife’s side of the bed with some old steel bed 90 degree frames. If a junkie comes in the house, that is where the wife and kids go, and I go opposite of them to draw fire from behind my safe, while putting my 9mm rounds through my hallway wall at them. A rifle would be grabbed if the home invaders were yelling police, since armor and police jackets are common organized home invader gang tools.

  15. Won’t be on firearms or ammo. Got more than enough for a least a squad and possibly a platoon. May replenish some food stores. Start the garden and add a new pressure canner and jars to the storeroom. Maybe upgrade the Med Kits and buy new filters for the gas masks. Haven’t really used much yet but, You can never be to prepared. Keep Your Powder Dry.

    • Same here. I’ve been going over lists, checking inventory, filling voids here and there.
      Inishing most of the gardens today. Going to make some horizontal HDPE pipe “hanging gardens” for strawberries. Pretty neat.
      Got a notification I’ve got masks coming in today. Ordered more yesterday.

      Should be a really nice garden this year. Missed last year due to moving in the spring.

    • I’m not getting a check, and i have these already, but a few suggestions would be: $400 emergency med and gunshot trauma kit, $200 plate carrier with at least level 3 plates, $300 worth of freeze dried food which has a 25 year shelf life, $250 power bank and $150 portable solar panels.
      Earthquake with grid down is my most likely SHTF senario. But thanks for gas mask filters reminder. This is one of the areas I’m least prepared for.

      • Which power bank/panel source are you looking at? I’m also in earthquake country near you, and my concern is the power going out for several days or more during our hot-as-blazes summer months when the temps reach up to 110 during heat waves. I’m looking at a Delta bank ($1500) with two 400W panel arrays (another $1000) to allow for enough pass-thru power to run the fridge and a couple of fans.

        Your source?

    • Lots of those out there now but guess what is hard to get. Filament, I’ve been giving some of mine to a couple kids who want to run theirs nonstop making mask frames. The exotics and hard to print with stuff like ABS is still out there but PETG and PLA are not as easy to find at decent prices. I

  17. Considering that the vast majority of guns and ammunition, that people are buying, are made in the US, it seems that, in purely economic terms, they are an excellent thing to be spending money on.

    • I bought that same RO Elite Operator in 9mm. Be advised that it can be a little picky with some defense ammo. Mine does not like HST 147 grain but works fine with the 124 gr. Been thinking about polishing the feed ramp. Also may switch to Hornady Critical Defense or Critical Duty for that one firearm. The polymer tip may solve the problem. (The 147 HST will jam on the feed ramp rather than feed into the chamber. Right now at least 1 out of 10 rounds.) I’ve got about 750 rounds though it so far, so it’s not a break-in issue. We had some discussion about that on the Springfield Armory Life forums. I think it was in the thread about “Mastering the 9mm Ronin” or something like that.

      All that said, I like it a lot and will be pursuing this issue to a resolution. I added a Wilson Combat Shok-Buff just to see if I like it, and picked up a few 10 round mags while I was on their website. Also added a Chen SI “shooter installed” magwell and am currently looking at some grips without the beveled bottom to fit flush to the magwell.

      Oh, and one more thing. It was tight enough at first that it did not fully cycle with standard loads. I handloaded a few hundred rounds with a tenth grain more powder than usual and after running them, it’s a lot happier with standard pressure FMJ ammo.

      • Thank you. I don’t really plan on using it as a defensive weapon as I have plenty of glockish guns for that. I just love the look of the classic 1911. So mainly it will be a beautiful range toy.

    • Fortunately I have saved up for that, but it will be nice to replace a small part of that income.

  20. I bought a little more freedom from the slavery of student loans. Don’t go to college, kids, unless you have a set career at the end (doctor, lawyer, teacher, if you’re really interested in being the scum of the earth, an engineer).

    • Loving my job as a metallurgical engineer! Still working full time, although the labs are shut down at the moment.

      • I don’t know about his beef, but mine is that they tend to have me check non-sensical dimensions when I’m doing quality control checks on the things I build that they design.

      • “What’s your beef with engineers, Dan?”

        (door open, walk thru)

        Yeah. Without engineers, who’s gonna drive the trains?

    • Handy Dan,

      I discourage people from most school teacher and engineering career paths simply because their resulting income does not justify the relatively huge investment in education to get there.

      Sure, there are some specific instances where school teachers and engineers make enough money to justify investing $60k in college and foregoing meaningful income for four to six years while going through college. By and large, young adults will fair far better financially if they invest that $60k AND make at least $40k per year for the four to six years that they would have been earning basically nothing while going to college. (In other words: good luck making up for the $240k in tuition and lost wages after your college years.)

      • Everyone in engineering that I’ve ever heard of makes *very* good money. Grad school may not be worth it, but the basic bachelor’s degree probably is. Of course it’s ALWAYS better to do college without the loans…if it’s possible anymore, that is. The cost is ridiculously high now.

        One thing nobody should ever do is get a degree in the humanities with student loans. Go ahead, ask me how I know. (No, wait, don’t; I don’t like showing off my own financial idiocy.)

      • Average salary for engineers (a hugely broad category) is over $75,000. A few engineering disciplines pay much more. It’s one of the few things worth going to college on student loans.

        • I am a senior lead engineer and I can tell you good engineers, even at the junior level, are sought for and hired quickly. In the place I contract into (I have my own firm), they are continuously short of engineers and are in constant hire mode. As far a education is concerned – when I do my presentations to high school students, I tell them to go to community college the first two years making sure they coordinate with a university counselor so the credits transfer. Community college is a bargain yet and you don’t have to go to Harvard to get an engineering degree. And, if you are a savvy graduate, you can get your employer to pay for your Master’s degree. With an eye for doing education smartly, applying yourself, and shooting for the top 25% of your class, engineering is probably one of the few professions where a graduate could actually pay off their loans in couple of years if that is their goal.

        • A few things potential engineering students need to ask themselves, do you love problem solving, love organizing and making thinks more efficient, love applying science and math? If you like but don’t love, like MrMax menditoned, take first 2 years at a community college, that will give an idea if persuing an engineering degree is the right move. When I attended CalPoly I met several kids (was fresh out of the military), that changed majors after their freshman year of engineering. BTW, 2/3 of the engineers I know are gun owners, had to make it gun related. 😁

      • What a lot of people don’t realize about engineering is that the pay isn’t really that great right out of college, especially if you’re paying student loan debt. After you have your degree, you’re known as an “EIT” (engineer in-training). You don’t get paid the big bucks until you get your stamp, which means taking and passing the Professional Engineer’s exam, which is a very difficult test. When you see a set of blueprints, most of that work is done by an EIT, then a PE checks them, and puts their stamp on it. EIT’s work long hours producing those plans.

        • Most engineers never need a Professional Engineer license, or a graduate degree. OTOH, those are vital for other disciplines.

        • NO – REAL engineers – that make useful products from raw lumps of metal/plastic/etc. Not bridge jockeys

      • I did my undergrad engineering degree at Florida International University. With in-state tuition rates, a few federal grants, and working well-paid engineering internships every summer, I graduated with zero debt and only a few thousand of my own money sunk into tuition. I had a full time job offer before I graduated with full benefits making over 75K/year. Employer also offers to pay us to get any relevant master’s degree including engineering and MBAs. PE licenses are not relevant in my field (they mostly seem to be vital to civil engineers). Engineers are always in demand, everywhere in the world, in any economic condition. There are also a LOT of different things engineers can do. If it’s something you find interesting, it’s one of the few undergraduate degrees that is almost always a good value proposition. That said, if the analytical thinking isn’t your style, trying to beat your head against the wall for years just in hopes of a good paycheck is probably futile.

    • College costs are nuts and if you live on campus at a University it’s even more of a nightmare, dollar wise. My youngest is doing just that and majoring in criminal justice. She learned at an early age to apply herself. Instead of goofing off she worked hard, studied and now has a full ride with the help of elective subject scholarships. She now sees the benefits of not being a slacker. So, no college loans to worry about.

      • Female “criminal justice” major – career as a school “resource officer”.

        Dad, have a talk with the girl.

        • Explain to us why there’s an issue with a female majoring in it. What makes you think that a school resource officer is the only job she would get? There are many fields/job paths that branch off from this degree. Law school is the current idea but subject to change. There are also military law careers, like in the Air Force, that are very good and pay for everything and have a great retirement. What is it with you “experts” that always come here trying to cut down or slickly bash on what others have to say?

        • Billb, I don’t share nieowa’s attitude but I will say this as someone who did the same and my career has been in CJ.

          There’s definitely plenty of job opportunities. That’s not an issue. She’ll have plenty of career and opportunities to make money. Using it as a stepping stone isn’t an issue either, as you said, it can be used to step into law. The problem I have with it, is it’s a pretty rough field. You get tired of the bullshit. You get tired of the criminals, you get tired of the cops, you get tired of the courts, the lawyers, all of them, and you begin to hate and distrust everyone.

          Personally for me, I’m still kind of glad I went into the field because I *really* learned how the world truly works. I know how all the crooks, gangs, skeazeballs, corrupt cops, corrupt judges, child molesters and serial killers… I know how they all work, what makes them tick, what their motives are, and how to spot them from a mile away. I in turn can teach that to my family and friends to help them avoid such people… However I also regret going into this field and often wonder if my ignorance was bliss. I could’ve had a much more normal life, less stressful, less jaded view of humanity… And this is coming from someone who is a combat veteran before I went into this field. I knew before hand the world could be ugly… but just how ugly, how much, and how close to home it could be changed me as much, if not more then war did. It’s a career where there’s a lot of two faced, back stabbing, lying, sex, drugs and shit tons of illegal money.

          If there’s any advice I’d ever give to anyone going into CJ is: Do Not Trust Anyone.

          • “If there’s any advice I’d ever give to anyone going into CJ is: Do Not Trust Anyone.”

            If there’s any advice I’d ever give to anyone…Do Not Trust Anyone.

            To mangle a phrase: “Be courteous to everyone, and have a plan to kill everyone in sight”.

    • Not sure what engineers you know. Engineering and a hard science are several of the few things worth spending big bucks on college to get. I know because I have two engineering degrees and two math degrees. I’m not a snob either – if someone asks me, I advise them not to waste their time and money on college – unless it is a hard science or engineering.

      Engineers are in high demand. After over ten years in my field, I make well over six figures with 40 hours/week. If I changed fields to something more hip, I could make double what I do now (I like what I do). I get offers from several head hunters every week. And, I’m constantly searching for engineers to hire.

      Additionally, if you are a USA citizen and are an engineer, you will be in more demand in the defense industry. A lot of defense engineering jobs require that you be a citizen, at least. With a glut of foreign engineers and few American engineers, you would be a highly sought after minority.

      If you pay for a graduate degree in engineering or a hard science, you did it wrong. An employer or the graduate school almost always will pay you to get your graduate degree. This is what I did.

      The only way to perhaps make it more lucrative is to join the military, become and officer, and have the Air Force or Navy pay for your schooling. Do your time to get some retirement, and get out. Then start your engineering career. You’ll have a second source of income, zero school debt, and the military service credentials will carry weight in many engineering fields.

  21. too old too care about new bang utensils with feeding materials, a good beef BBQ and a cold Beer would do it for me then a nap after

    • Beef BBQ ready to heat and eat, best on the planet! Franklin BBQ, Austin, TX. We’re supposedly getting the stimulus, I’ll believe it when I see it. Got plenty guns, more ammo might cause my house to sink, figure if money shows up I’ll kick my tips from 33% to 50% for a year or so, there’s people out there need that $$ more than I do.

  22. I already have more guns than I can shoot so I’ll be packing a couple of short barrel, high capacity shotguns & my 460 S&W magnum & my long slide
    Para Ordinance 45, & head for my place in Montana for the summer, I’ll be dredging gold living in the woods & drinking beer & Fireball… thanks for the moola…M A G A…🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

    • Now that sounds like a really good use for the funds! Hanging out on a prospect in Montana would be a great way to stay away from the infected masses, enjoy the sunshine and critters, and maybe even show some color in yer pan.

  23. Dead hooker. Someone mentioned one was missing from my EDC 😉

    Probably brakes for the car and maybe a poly 80 G43 build if I have enough left.

    My profession is finally getting some love in the media and there is plenty of work for me right now, so the stimulus is just extra.

      • Thanks.

        I did some checking around and they do seem to have the best deal.

        Back in the early 90s I got into collecting cheap ‘ring of fire’ mouse guns. The last couple of years it seems I am collecting single stack 9mm’s.

  24. Mine went straight into savings. Really want to buy a house sometime in the next couple years and need to stop struggling to save money. :p

  25. Already ordered and have waiting for me at my FFL (as soon as they re-open) a Danger Close Armament Sig Sauer P365 signature pistol in tactical grey/TiN for conceal carry. My present carry is a Walther PPQ 9mm stainless match pistol that is a bit bulky and not concealable in alot of cases. Call me extravagant, but its my damn check. 😉

  26. Job is at risk so stimulus funds stay in the bank until my employment fate is clear.

    If everything works out for the better, perhaps some more reloading equipment and supplies.

  27. i’ll get no stimulus and like it.
    work requires calling in to periodic corona safety huddles. i don’t bother, huddles make me sneeze.
    i’d much prefer a horona cuddle. but not a dead one, at least for starters…

  28. I’m going to build myself a 30 BO PDW with a side charging upper receiver set from Gibbz. The whole thing should take my half.

  29. Not much available around me, unfortunately. Everything’s still sold out from the panic buying. I’m looking for a “nightstand 9MM”, something along the lines of a Ruger Security 9, Taurus G3. Or I might pay-up for a G19, M&P 2.0, or CZ P-10. I know I could get them online, but I’d like to at least put my hands on one before I buy.

  32. Lol… What “stimulus check”? Thanks Demodouches, the professionals who work our assess off to keep the country running got jack and shit.

      • Once again, the single white male who is responsible with his money gets to pay for other people’s irresponsibility and other people’s kids.

        • Hey. I’m a married white male, no kids, working my butt off in my essential profession. I’m over retirement age and will continue to work for probably another 6 years to get my house paid off, so I can finally retire. They sent me a check. Want me to send it back?

        • “Means testing” is always a crock, the exact point of communism. The people who pay for the government (including handouts) are not allowed to benefit from them. If you earn enough to pay taxes, you’re not eligible for, let’s say, food stamps, right? Not getting aid to families with dependent children.

          If the government offers a benefit, that benefit should be just like Interstate highways, available to each and every American citizen.

    • You do know that Donald Trump is claiming credit for the stimulus checks, he has insisted that each one bear his name.

      “Fools’ names, like fools’ faces, are often seen in public places.”

        • I’m a retired teacher from the 4th largest school district in the nation. Took me 30 years of teaching to hit the highest pay scale at about $77K per year and that includes a Master’s Degree that I’m still paying off after retirement. My wife got more but she retired earlier and then went to work at a charter school for 10 more years.

        • Great, you might be qualified to get my coffee. High productivity people are paid proportional to what their labor is worth. Being a glorified babysitter is not a high productivity job. You should have known that going in.

          What the Demokkkommies did is ensure that all the highly qualified professionals that out economy needs to keep running got jack and shit.

      • What provisions did the Demokkkommies add to the bill? Oh, yeah, the limit that people who worked hard their entire lives now get screwed for being successful.

        • Are you really getting bent out of shape at not getting a mere $1200?

          Maybe instead of getting all egotistical about who’s important and who’s not, you should be angry about WHY they’re handing out money instead of the fact that some kid from down the street got 5 bucks and a pat on the head from Uncle Sugar.

          Yes, I got mine…but I’d rather have a functioning economy and my freedom. I don’t *want* their damn handouts. The whole scheme makes my skin crawl.

        • Because it’s just more proof that the Demokkkommies don’t give a shit about the parts of society actually useful. You don’t actually have to have had a job to get the money. Hell, you could have been on welfare your entire life with a bunch of welfare swilling kids paid for with my tax money and you still get a check. I work my ass off and don’t get jack. Not even the sick days because the Demokkkommies decided that only certain companies had to actually give a shit if their employees got sick from their CCP palls’ bio-weapon. (Yes, the virus has been confirmed as artificial which makes its existence a crime against humanity.)

          I don’t give a shit about the money. $1200 is a rounding error in my annual income. That’s not the point and you know damn well that’s not the point.

        • Wait…has it really been confirmed as artificial? I’ve seen speculation, but no info from anybody I’d trust. How do you know and where can I find out the same?

          Now, for the rest of it, yes, fair enough.

          I’m with you re: the Democrats, but let’s not forget the Republicans aren’t covering themselves in glory, either. Most of this “stimulus” BS was their idea. The Democrats just added some fatty virtue signaling around the edges. The Republican party is on the same road as the Democrats; it’s just that being cowards, they’d prefer to do it slower, so’s nobody will notice.

        • Ing, as much as I hate it, I must agree about Republicans being as bad as Dems these days, but there is a valid reason!! They were being handed their asses by Dems who continued escalating their giveaways. The GOP got control, cut back, lowered taxes, etc, returned the country to fiscal sanity, and then the Dems howled about the children and promised free everything, and the American people tossed out responsible legislators for the Maxine Waters’ of the world. Neither party is gonna save us, we’re going to have so save ourselves.

  33. In terms of guns: A Black Aces Tactical 12 ga semi auto non NFA short firearm. Capacity 5+1, to be used as a “truck gun” maybe add a CT laser targeting system.

  34. Money showed up in my checking a couple of days ago. I instantly scheduled the full amount in my bank’s online BillPay to go to my car loan.

    That’s it, all stimulus money spent!

  35. Putting into savings. I have several months of income set aside for emergencies but nothing is guaranteed and things could change.

  36. I doubt we will receive a check. If we do, we will use it to employ an out-of-work neighbor to continue helping me with landscaping. My budget for that is almost exhausted; I dread having to tell him there is no more work because I am out of money.

  37. Yeah, like you can find guns or ammo anywhere at a reasonable price.
    Mine, like all of my income, will go towards paying off my wife’s medical expenses.

    • I’m still buying ammo even before this stimulus and I’ve gotten some fantastic deals from Natchezzs and other bulk outlets. Learn to ammo shop! Even Buds Gunshop online has some great ammo deals.

    • Pete,

      Full sympathy!! We lived on borrowed money for 14 years due to med bills. Still paying it down, every month.

      Best wishes for you and your family!

    • deals on harmfist around here. ammo mongers are scalping, but some out of work folks are leeching stuff back into the pool reasonably…

  38. What check? And forget unemployment, been out 6 weeks now and nothing, cant even log in and no call backs, I’ll be living in a cardboard box under a bridge in a few more weeks, state gubbermint is borked!

    • Florida? My daughter damn near lived on the computer and phone for 12 days before she finally succeeded in filing. Still has not had the first check arrive but she does have a promise of one . The son in law would probibly be better off if they just shut down as she is only getting 24 or so hours a week most of which seems to be going to health insurance and diapers. Slick rick aka Batboy fixed the unemployment system good if the object was to prevent it ever being used.
      Hopefully people will remember that when reelection comes up. It would be good if Putnam knocked his ass out of office.

  39. I’ve got a couple things on my wishlist like a new Jericho 941 or finally building an AR-10 but I’m sitting on mine in savings for the time being. My 16 year old car is definitely starting to show it’s age and I’m dreading having to pay for a large repair before I can afford something new so I have to be responsible, it’s no fun at all.

  40. Not of all of us got the stimulus. BS since I paid taxes I should get some of my own money back.

      • Tony the Phony certainly is…. even though the WI Supreme Court slapped him and was followed by SCOTUS. To get even he extended the fake lockdown until May 26th. In response the restless natives started circulation RECALL Petitions en masse’… last time I checked there qwere over 650,000 signitures. Oooops!

  42. After Tithing 10% and offering for
    church benevolence fund I’ll have exactly enough to cover the mortgage for The month of May.
    Besides I started buying guns and ammo back during G.W. Bush’s second term, about the time B.H. Obammy had a full head of steam.
    I have what I need.

  44. I doubt I will get any stimulus checks and to be honest I don’t want or need one. I still have my job and I’ve worked from home for the last 6 years so my family is doing fine. I would hope that the people who do get the money spend it on things they need (based on thier own unique situation). My major question is how we are going to pay for it and I can’t help but wonder what the true cost is going to be. There is no such thing as a free lunch and with the amount of money that is getting thrown around the final bill is going to be a rude awakening I fear.

    • Agree 100%. We keep kicking the can down the road. I fear that the 2030s could be a repeat of the 1930s..

    • Thru all the buildup noise, I got the distinct impression that the plan was for the Fed to print the money. I took a bunch of finance classes 50 years ago, but that concept exceeds my knowledge of what might happen as a result. As a long term plan for a Dem, for example, the end result would be rampant inflation, eventually being justification for wage and price controls, resulting in massive corruption requiring the efforts of a secret police force, spiraling down the drain to 3rd world anarchy. But as a short term rescue package, where extreme unemployment and halted production of many consumer goods seem to point towards *deflation*, I am not certain we cannot get away with it, at least for a while. More popcorn over here, please!!

  45. Some would say if you make too much to qualify for a check count yourself lucky.
    I think this check should be matched with a lull in SSI taxes so the people still working can put more money back in the economy

    • Yeah… I’m lucky… The fact that I worked my ass off for almost two decades has nothing to do with it. Just “luck”. Got it.

      • During that 20 years, you did not get run down by a bus, maimed in a car crash, shot during a robbery, shot by a jealous husband OR a jealous wife….. You are still healthy enough and able to type all manner of WHINING on this site. Shut yer pie-hole and GROW the F up! Seriously! Lest you end up disabled, broken, mentally incapacitated, and suffering from old-timers. I worked my arse off for over 40 years, I still got little. but I have more than you! Because I, Thank God!, am not a whiny witch! Jeeze!

        • Oh go fuck yourself.

          Tell that shit to the titanium pins and shrapnel scars in my leg.
          Or the scar tissue covering 20% of my lungs.
          Or the TBI damage.

          I came to this country as a kid with barely the clothes on my back. I went to school, never got a penny in handouts, now worked my ass to the top of my profession.

          There was no “luck” involved. Just hard ass work. The fact that welfare guzzling vermin and illegals are getting my money when they weren’t doing shit to begin with is infuriating.

  46. I’ll probably put it toward my mortgage. Not much fun, but very useful. I WILL own my home by 36 years old, so help me God.

    • Mortgage interest is usually lower than other types of interest, I would pay them down first. Keeping that $1200 on hand would be a good idea if you have to bug out.

      • Excellent advice sir, but I already have a bug out stash. And a back up, lol. Thank you for the friendly concern!

  47. My short list as of now is an X series Henry if I can find one or maybe a couple of quality red dots.

  48. We bought a boat early last month. In other words, already spent ours.

    If didn’t have extra bills to pay, would save for a rainy day. This virus will be an issue until herd immunity prevents new epidemics. Don’t know how long I’ll have a job, so we’re watching our pennies.

  50. I am not getting much back but it will help to purchase a nice Leupold I have had my eye on.

  52. ridiculous….the payroll protection program is supposed help keep workers on the job.
    on top of the this 1200$ welfare check plus and extra $600 a week, I cant keep my essential employees.

    1. My pay rate cant compete with the welfare + unemployment + $600.
    2. I pay a crap load of taxes, and do not qualify for my “welfare” check.
    3. I stop paying myself so I can keep paying 20+ employees because its the right thing to do.

    I’m ranting, its not the money, its the principle.

  53. A nice semi-auto shotgun for bird hunting. I’ve been pumping long enough. Need to decide between the “3 B’s” (Beretta, Benelli, and Browning) and also whether I really need a 3.5 inch chamber…

    • I bought the Benelli m2. With 3 inch chamber. The exact same gun with the 3.5 chamber was another 500 bucks. I don’t need that extra long chamber that bad. But I’m also not an avid waterfowler or turkey chaser.

      • Eventually I’ll move back to WA and go after geese, and the honkers up there are are like pterodactyls… plus I kind of want a 3.5 just to say I have it.

        • Cool. I’ve been buzzed by those honkers while I was hunting other critters. So I get my tags every year for those spur of the moment shots. Few and far between and they’re always up close.

  54. Always good to see people who hate the government willing to take government cheese. We all know what you are. We are just haggling over the price.

    • Yeah, whatever. Tell me all about how you’re giving yours back. Or maybe you’re not getting one, and that’s why you’re bent out of shape?

      • Whether I get one or not is none if your business but if I am not getting one that would mean my income would be North of $200k and I wouldn’t GAF about $2400.

        In today’s world nobody cares if you are a whore.

        • Try $99k, which, despite what the Demokkkommies would tell you is NOT a lot of money if you actually work for a living.

        • There are two of us so the offset starts at $150k. I own my 4200 sqft house which I paid cash for. I own my cars one of which is 3 years old. I have no other debts. My dividend income is greater than the median salary. Tell me why I should GAF about $2400?

          But that’s not the point. For all this talk about an oppressive government why are you taking government cash? I understand if you have become unemployed or temporarily lost income but if your financial situation is unchanged you should not get a dime.

        • It’s not the money, it’s the principle and you damn well know it. I have no problem giving cash to people who are suffering, but the program doesn’t do that. For crying out loud, the Demokkkommies wanted to include ILLEGALS in the distribution and are actually doing it with a separate program in Commiefornia. The way I see it, means testing the payout was a scam. Just because you made good money LAST year doesn’t mean that you will continue to do so THIS year and don’t need a hand.

          After this, anybody who says one word about about “income inequality” in my presence is going to get throat punched.

        • I was going to be upset about this socialist handout but then I realized I paid more in taxes. This is just me getting back some of what was taken from me without my consent.

        • Well, you’re not wrong about all that. I wouldn’t mind not getting a check if I knew the money was going to people who needed it because they would’ve been working if the gov’t hadn’t sledgehammered them out of business.

          What I really want is freedom and a functioning economy, not a fucking handout. This whole thing stinks.

          But again, I’m not *taking* government cash. They’re actively throwing it at me. How am I going to give it back when they just put it right in my bank account? And why the hell would I? Every year the government wastes billions on things that are a LOT less productive than putting a couple thou in my bank account; it’s not like they’ll put it to better use, even if I could give it back.

          Plus, while I can pay my own bills, $2400 for me and the wife is *not* just a drop in the bucket. You and Serge are well-off, and that’s great, but some people who also work hard at productive jobs still don’t get paid that much. We can put that extra money to good use.

        • TDI, you should GAF about $2400 because you may need it to escape VA and get yur but down to TX, those fools are getting worse every day.

    • If it was up to me, I would refuse the check. But since they dumped it straight to my account, I will just turn around and pay my 2019 or 2020 taxes with it, and donate the rest to charity.

  56. If I ever get mine, it’s going into savings. Then it will go towards paying my taxes in July. That is if they can figure out where to deposit my check. Great job IRS on your garbage website!

        • “LarryinTX commented on What Will You Buy With Your Coronavirus Stimulus Check?.

          in response to Sam I Am:

          “Gold” Copper jacket.

          Either is good!”

          Here is my thinking (OK, bad choice of words, Here is my reply)….

          If you have only gold, I will demand all of it in trade of a loaf of bread you can use to feed yourself and family. If you refuse, I can use my conical shaped copper to take your gold, and keep my loaf of bread.

          Gold is useless in the apocalypse, but having a huge stash after will change lives.

  59. What will I buy, or what will I pay off . . . . just finished paying off the car a month ago . . . this is turning out to be a great year so far . . . except my 401K lost value . . . but it will rebound eventually, always does.

  60. 1. When the government gives you $1,200 and you’re a real taxpayer, you will eventually give them back at least $1,500. 2. I’m looking at a Marlin 1894csbl.

  62. Hesco multicurve 4400 plates and a Velocity Systems Scarab.
    Also ordered a Blue Alpha Gear Shooters belt and a new ALS holster for the G19.

  63. All the local and online retailers are plumb out of home defense shotguns, EXCEPT the first HD I see offered in stock by Rural King is a Stevens 320 LMAO ironic, huh? Manufactured in China.

  65. My spouse and I are adding ours to our down payment on the lot next to ours. As I commented earlier, I fear that dollars are not something one wants to be holding too much of there wealth in these days. Being old fashioned and not a very educated or creative investor I generally invest in land

    • Agreed. The dollar’s value is going to take a big hit over the next couple of years. Tangible assets will be preferable over dollars. And debts of any kind (mortgage, vehicle, credit cards, et al) are best avoided. We’re going to see the next “leg up” in the historical inflationary chart, akin to the FDR, WWII, and LBJ (silver/gold-decoupling) eras. Now that we’re at $24 Trillion in debt and climbing, with “money printer go brrrr”, we’re well past the bingo point.

      No return.

      • I am no expert in finance but it sure seems like expanding the money supply takes wealth from people with dollars and transfers it to, among others, people owing dollars. My wife and I have very little debt now however If the dollar is going to lose value doesn’t real debt shrink as well? One thing that has always bothered me is that people think price inflation is natural and not a result of modern monetary theory being put into practice. They have never looked at price inflation graphs of before the New Deal. 1913 seems to be when price inflation became dominant.

      • Haz, you seem to be talking apples and oranges, here, eventually ending up hiding. If you really see the dollar being devalued (I don’t), what you want to do is borrow every high value dollar you can, in order to pay them back later with low value dollars, holding them in the meantime in real estate or similar.

  66. The wife and I are both still working, and the daughter has scholarships lined up for this fall, so we’re ok. Some of ours will go to our church, most to my brother-in-law and family who are having a rough time down there in Parador, and anything left will go into the tax payment fund.

  68. I don’t have any particular confidence that the program will function as advertised and I’m not going to go out of my way for it.

    If it drops into the bank account then it will get used for normal, boring stuff like utility bills.

  69. Hey, U.S. Gov: keep all the Stimulus money you intend to send my family. In turn: DON’T EVER RAISE MY TAXES to pay for all these handouts and demorat pork!

  71. Not guns or ammo, at least right now. Maybe when prices settle. Buy in good times, sit on it in bad.

    • Or sell the stuff you don’t much care for in the bad times.

      That range toy you never use will prolly go fast and fetch a good consignment price these days.

      • I sold a few hundred M855A1 projectiles at an evil profit taking price. I still have hundreds more than I will ever need since I don’t even have a 5.56 rifle. Still it was hard for me to sell such treasure at any price and I will probably keep the remaining even if I never get a 5.56. If only I had a few boxes of Mk211….

  72. I probably won’t buy anything with it, and put it towards my debts instead. IF I do anything else with it, it’ll be refinishing my shotgun and getting some work done on my pistol.

  74. My vote is for sale and I’m proud of it. Trump is currently leading in my book thanks to this fat stack so if you Democrat’s want this vote you better pay.

  75. Turn around and pay my 2019 State Taxes with it. As for the remaining amount, not sure. Ammo prices are still too high right now. Probable charity and some cheap stock.

      • Actually, that was satire. I could spend up to half and she would not question it because she knows it will be used for things that matter to our safety and security. If I spent the whole thing I would feel like I should tell her why, but she wouldn’t squawk. She knows that I am prepared to stand between her and all the evil out there and she understands the value of having the tools and training.

        With that said, I’ll probably use some of it to replace the ammo supply drop I made to our adult kids to keep them from feeling like they needed to join in the panic. Beyond that, if I see a super price on something I’d like to own I may indulge myself with another firearm. They will all eventually go to the kids and grandkids anyway so I need enough to go around.

  78. What am I gonna buy with my TrumpBux? A CNC gantry router, a good enough camera for Bitchute/Youtube, and enough for a bunch of projects to base my new channel around. Lots of gun stuff, some non-gun stuff, some stuff that is both.

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