How do you feed your starving War Baby?

[Tired Retired]

Let’s face it, most of us have War Babies that we like to feed on a regular basis. I would like to open a discussion on .30 carbine ammo and its lack of availability. I think the topic shouldn’t be a complaint of the issues (production limits, hoarding, panic buying, etc). It would be more productive to actually discuss the decision making processes everyone uses and how we make decisions about how to feed our beloved carbines.

Let me set some background for a discussion and use my own situation as a starting point - I am sure that it is much like most people’s here.

As a Carbine owner who loves to spend time at the range, I deal with several factors. I have a small stock of factory manufactured .30 carb ammo. I also reload and have a dwindling supply of brass (couple hundred rounds now) that I have long been reloading and is starting to fail due to repeated usage over the years (but at $10 per box). First, everyone knows that ammo, when it can be found, is running $27 or more a box. The market for previous fried brass has dried up. Unfired new brass is running $23 or more per hundred. The use of unfired brass places the cost of a 50 round box of reloads at about $22. I have a couple of pounds of powder and I seem to be able to find 110 gr FMJ easy enough. However, small rifle primers are getting harder to find and I have not seen any (for less than $49/1000) in over 6 weeks.

So this is what I see before me:

1) I can continue to reload the few brass cases that remain, use up the 200 primers I have left and risk not finding more for some time. This allows me to make ammo until components are exhausted at the cost of $10 per box.

2) I can buy new brass, use up the 200 primers I have left and risk not finding more for some time. While I do not know when I will get more primers, this option allows me to increase my brass stock. This allows me to make ammo until I can not get primers and is an investment in brass at a cost of $22 per box.

3) I can swallow my pride and purchase new ammo and shoot it as range ammo. While this puts me at the mercy of locating ammo which is over-priced, this will allow me to keep my basic stock of components for a rainy day. It would also increase my brass inventory. But this is the most expensive option and will cost me over $27 per box.


So what is everyone’s opinion of how to feed a hungry gun?

Information

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[Ed Johnson]

Well Tired Retired, it does seem you have a problem common to many of us. I am still seeing small rifle primers for sale and bought several thousand at a recent Raleigh, NC gun show. My suggestion to you is to buy 1000 new brass cases, go on line and order 5000 or more small rifle primers when you can find them. Start casting your bullets. I started casting carbine bullets for the first time a couple of months ago with good success. (no leading and accurate) Using wheel weights which are free for me at this time, my bullet cost is near zero without gas checks which are a few cents each when adding shipping cost. You might try Pat McDonald for bulk powder although he is several months behind in filling orders now. Another suggestion is to switch to Unique powder with a load of 6.5 to 7.2 grains (from memory so check your reloading books) you nearly double your rounds per pound as opposed to #820, H-110, W-296 etc.

Considering Comrades Holder, Biden, Obama,Shumer,
et al and their anti-gun obsession, I don't count on ammo or components being available for much longer. Hope I am wrong but don't think so.
Hope this helps.
Good Shooting,
ED

[TDH]

last fall after I got my carbine I bit the bullet and bought 2 boxes of Aquillia @ the local gunshop/smith at $17 a box just so I had some on hand. A couple weeks later at a gun show I found 500 rounds of LC for $200. When I shoot it which isn't often I shoot the reloads and retreive the brass. I also pick up all other brass I find which has included about 150 .30 carbine brass that others have left for my salvage efforts. I still have a fair stock of small rifle primers but bullets are getting hard to find. The next step is to buy the mold to cast our own. My buddy and I are currently working on loads for the 7.62x39 and the .308 and .06

[USSR]

Start casting your bullets. I started casting carbine bullets for the first time a couple of months ago with good success. (no leading and accurate) Using wheel weights which are free for me at this time, my bullet cost is near zero without gas checks which are a few cents each when adding shipping cost.

+1. The lack of availability of small rifle primers is a temporary situation. I would suggest a mould that casts a flatbase bullet; simply no need to add another component (gas checks) into the equation. I do not recommend Unique powder, as it is too fast of a powder for the .30 Carbine. With the small powder charges being used in this cartridge, the powder expense is negligible anyways. Suitable commercial powders are 2400, 110, 296, and 4227 among others.

Don

[BHP]

I plan on reloading the 1500 rounds of Aguila I purchased from CMP. Found a local source for small rifle primers. So far, finding 110 gr FMJ's don't appear to be a problem.

[Tired Retired]

I agree that the powder issue is not the primary cost of reloading. The cost difference between using 6.0 Unique and 12.0 of 2400 is about 1.5 cents ($.015) per round. The bullet is my most expensive component. But even with buying FMJ in 100 packs, my reloading costs is still affordable. I wish some HP or SP were available - I wouldn't mind investing a few extra pennies.

I think it is notable that there are differences in what is "running short" in different parts of the country. Here in DFW, the shortage two months ago was powder and primers could be found. Now powder can be found (if you look) but primers are in short supply. You can still find 110 FMJ in a couple of stores (including Cabela's at $10.99 per 100) if you hit after the shipment comes in.

As mentioned above, I wish I could find 1000 brass cases - virgin or used. I did buy one bag of virgin brass for $22 per hundred - that makes 1000 cases about $220. If anyone knows of a better source please pass it along. Right now the best option seems to be to purchase high price ammo to not only shoot but to also an investment in brass.

Right now I am hesitant to order a CMP Carbine - I don't want to stare what I have one to feed a new adopted War Baby !!!

[Faulkner]

To me, the great thing about reloading is I enjoy it almost as much as shooting. So, in times like these I hold back on shooting and I start using up a bit more of my stashed reloading components.

[jimb16]

I just finished sizing, lubing and gas checking another 800 .30 cast bullets this afternoon. While I wouldn't exactly call it fun, its not bad, just time consuming. But I will enjoy my time on the range disposing of them. And since I got the gas check making tool and aluminum cans are free, my cost for bullets is ZIP! I have over a ton of prepared bullet metal from wheel weights and free solder, and I make my own bullet lube. That makes things a whole lot cheaper. Using the right powder, I can keep my carbine reload costs down around $1.75/50 round box!

[Tired Retired]

$1.75 a box????? Ok, thats it.... RANGE PARTY AT JIMB16's House.... we'll bring the food and he'll bring the ammo!!!!!

P.S. Jim, can I play with some of your toys??????????

[thorin6]

I don't reload, so I end up with once-used brass when I go to the range. I no longer leave it for the Range folks to police up, it comes home with me and I try to give it away to reloaders whenever possible (Ed Johnson got some from me about a year and a half ago at the last NC carbine owners get-together in Oxford).
If there were some way to connect all of us who don't reload to those that do, we could at least solve the brass problem.