Luckily I had enough ammo when the well went dry. I will perform dry fire exercises and use my GSight laser system to practice. I don’t want to burn ammo at the range until there is a supply available again.
I understand JIT inventory and how hoarding (unplanned demand) effects supply. There is LOTS of demand but stores order months in advance sometimes based on sales forecasts. Manufacturers and retail outlets can predict seasonal trends and plan accordingly. In the example of toilet paper, there is little or none on the retail shelves now but warehouse inventories are probably good. They just need to ship more than planned. Over time supply and demand intersect again.
So… is there a “shortage” of manufactured ammunition, or is there an abundance of product that just needs to be moved to the retailers? How long might that take?
I just learned enough Economics in college to be considered dangerous.
I guess we need to hear why the ammo shortage is happening? Is it nothing more than the supply chain has not caught up with the unexpected demand (very likely). I have not heard of any other reason like the Social Security Administration suddenly ordering a billion rounds of ammo. So we may see some shortages while supply catches up but I don’t think the current administration is making an effort to keep the shelves empty.
I am not saying the government has anything to do with this current shortage. BUT… when I retire the SSA sending ammo is as good as cash to me. 
I agree. This is just the demand, exceeding the immediate supply. Now, the price gouging isn’t right, be it for ammo, gas, TP, or anything else. Most of us, had a good supply of ammo in hand already, and can weather this storm. Time to get reacquainted with draw practice, and dry fire.
I think that it is all a PANIC BUYING ISSUE. And preppers that are going over board. And ALL of the NEGATIVE REPORTING by the MSM , CNN, MSNBC, and other liberal media outlets just doesn’t help put peoples mind at ease.
I don’t think we are talking prepers here. I think we are looking at a sub species of the Toilet paper hoarders. Almost all the people I know that are preppers have way more ammo than most and have food and water for a number of months. It was through their insistence that I got 30 days supply of Wise Company dry food, 4 weeks supply of butane and a butane stove. I need some more water storage but I could say I easily have 20 gallons set aside. But then I am maybe 1000 steps from a lake. I need more buck shot and slugs but that isn’t in short supply at the store yet.
But looking at who I see buying guns at the sporting goods stores it looks like panic buying more than anything else. But that is only my take. Like 45IPAC I simply will have to curtail my range time till I can restock some of the ammo I shot last week. I still have more than I had in the military.
“Just In Time” inventory system is a model used for efficiency and less company money sitting on shelves as unsold product. It has become very popular, and the logistics/delivery company booms can attest. However, rare occurrences that spike demand can mean short term backlogs. Additionally, infrastructure issues, or reduction in human resources related to the production, assembly, and/or delivery could negatively affect supply, exacerbating the supply/demand intersection.
I was a production line supervisor in the mid-80’s when JIT was the latest buzz. We tried it with mixed results at first. We then realized we needed to order more of everything than “planned”… so we didn’t run short of raw materials or pre-production components. It went from JIT (Just In Time) to what we referred to as JIC (Just In Case).
Did you notice any changes in the inventory management of the stores that bought from you?
@Scotty These were large standby/ prime generators (25KW to 1MW). So we generally built to customer specifications. We also built “standard” generators for our own warehouse that we could quickly modify to customer requirements. We could generally turn those around in a couple of days. It was difficult to plan in certain circumstances. So, we had to keep an inventory even though there was an associated cost. An example would be a weather disaster that significantly increased demand. We needed units that were ready to go at a moments notice.
Ironically one of the arguments (of which there are many, but that’s another thread) for selecting 9mm over 40S&W is availability. I’ve noticed there is plenty of 40 S&W available. 
True enough, @JamesR. But the only reason that 9mm is sold out and .40 is still on the shelf has to do with popularity. If consumers had jumped on the .40 offerings in place of 9mm then the situation could be reversed. Or, even worse, both calibers would be sold out.
This is one of those rare times when being part of the unpopular crowd can pay off!
Since my days of watching Star Trek, playing Dungeons and Dragons, being a Boy Scout and being in JROTC…I’ve always been part of the unpopular crowd…
It’s always payed off in the long run. 
Amen, brother! I’ve been playing that “it’ll pay of in the long run” game for a long, long time.
Except for the whole .40 thing; didn’t sign on with that one. -sigh- Can’t win 'em all.
James, love your post! I’m one of those penny-pinchers who shoots 9mm Luger because it’s economical. It’s also the first off the shelves when people panic!
Come on over to the short, fat, and slow side. We’re a loving bunch of boomers.
@45IPAC
I came over and it is a rather friendly group. They are a lot of fun to shoot. I was expecting something more like my 357 mag but it is more mellow if that is the right word. still I will have to stock up when the panic clears.
I do that all the time with laser targets and snap capt,no better way to train your motor memory and I can truly when the time comes your motor memory will take over and later you will wonder how you did that,it does work,sure i do go to the range but not that often,to me the motor memory takes precidence over to actual firing,but I also have lasers on all my weapons and they are zeroed in and I practice point shooting and where the laser hits is where the round will hit.
A little insight into the supply chain…
… and a little extra regarding 22LR specifically
Well…I’m going to the range tomorrow…limiting myself to 50rds of carry pistol ammo…20rds of rifle.