# I thought I thought of Everything.....



## Chuck R. (Apr 24, 2008)

So, having gone through the past election cycles and associated shortages, I made a vow not to get caught short again. I've ensured that my stock-age of powder, primers and bullets exceed my annual consumption and even set new minimums for keeping OH. I've got enough CCI Mini-Mag HPs on hand to eradicate the squirrel population in NE KS, probably a couple times over.

All is well in that regard.

What I didn't foresee, and should have, is the shortage of AR15 parts, just when I want to put together an SPR build. The barrel, an 18" White Oak Armament Fluted SPR, was on back-order, which was to be expected, but it arrived last week along with a matched bolt. The upper and lower receivers (Aero Prec M4E1s) are both on back-order with unknown arrival estimations. The FF handguard, and AGB (SLR Rifleworks), are also on back-order. IAW Optics Planet I should have AR15 parts arriving sometime between 15 AUG and ..........TBD, as at least 1/2 of each of my last 3 orders are awaiting items.

Normally when I build a gun I sit and wait for the big sales; Memorial Day, 4th of JUL, Labor Day, Veterans Day and finally Black Friday. Now I'm just ordering it when I can find it, screw the sales. At best I might get this gun done in time for late coyote season at his rate.

Normally my favorite part of building an AR15 is the research phase, figuring out what the task/purpose is, then trying to get there the best I can within budget (resource informed as we call it at work). Now it's adding an additional challenge of locating and or substituting the parts. A lot of the normal suppliers have stopped taking calls, so there's an additional lag.

It sucks, but it could be much, much worse I suppose. I've got other projects and maybe the extra time will allow for some upgrades in parts. 

Anybody else having their best laid plans go astray?


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## CKelly78z (Jul 16, 2017)

Chuck R. said:


> At best I might get this gun done in time for late coyote season at his rate.


 I didn't know that coyote season wasn't 24/7/365 ?


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

They certainly don't take a break sitting and peering from the edge of our treelines.

The nearby forestry offered a "hog hunt" last fall to help eradicate and keep the wild pig numbers down.
They were charging $5 a person for an all you can hunt Saturday. They drew enough folks in to make a little money, but the sentiment was that if nobody showed up and they just let a few hogs breed into a lot of hogs, and started running across the Mayor's yard or a rangers porch, they'd be paying for the service.


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## Chuck R. (Apr 24, 2008)

CKelly78z said:


> I didn't know that coyote season wasn't 24/7/365 ?


 It is, but we don't normally mess with them till post deer season (late doe), too many edible things to focus on till then.


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## Cornhusker (Mar 20, 2003)

I've got a new stripped lower sitting in the safe waiting for prices to settle down.
I want to make it into a 10.5" pistol, but barreled uppers are about $100 higher than they should be, and pistol kits are a little high too.
I guess I could knock it together with odds and ends, but I want what I want and I can wait.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

I was just thinking about another build lower in hand and then covid and then riots insanity 

my son wanted a 12 ga for his birthday couldn't even find a pump gun in stock online hardly , there are a few at local shops but not a lot.

it is really sad looking when you bring up a major online gun retailer put in 9mm handgun and sort price low to high and there is nothing under 600 dollars in stock there are normally pages of 299-450 dollar 9mm handguns from a bunch of different manufacturers.

same with shotguns a few single shots then 500 and higher


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## random (Jul 23, 2020)

Chuck R. said:


> Anybody else having their best laid plans go astray?


I recently bought a revolver and decided it would be good to get into reloading with the simple straight brass - but apparently my timing is really bad since there are no primers to be found anywhere.


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## Chuck R. (Apr 24, 2008)

random said:


> I recently bought a revolver and decided it would be good to get into reloading with the simple straight brass - but apparently my timing is really bad since there are no primers to be found anywhere.


Post up where you're located and maybe someone can help, if you were local to me I'd spot you some. I picked up 8000 primers on Monday (5K in WSPs and 3K in WSRs) from my normal supplier. Also 8lbs of HP38 and 4lbs of H4350. My guy normally just sells at gunshows, so he's cash or postal MO and he doesn't ship.

There's stuff out there, but it's tough to find and often high $$. Sucks for the guys starting out, or the ones who don't buy in bulk.


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## random (Jul 23, 2020)

Chuck R. said:


> Post up where you're located and maybe someone can help, if you were local to me I'd spot you some. I picked up 8000 primers on Monday (5K in WSPs and 3K in WSRs) from my normal supplier. Also 8lbs of HP38 and 4lbs of H4350. My guy normally just sells at gunshows, so he's cash or postal MO and he doesn't ship.
> 
> There's stuff out there, but it's tough to find and often high $$. Sucks for the guys starting out, or the ones who don't buy in bulk.


I'm near Raleigh, NC. Would love to get ahold of even 100 or so (need small pistol magnum) just to get started learning. And I'm not quite willing to pay $300+ for 1k like I've been seeing on GB. Surprisingly, ammo has been easier to find than primers...


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

here in southern WI Magnum pistol primers is about all I can find. as well as being what I don't use , I don't get into magnums rifle or pistol.

smaller local shops call around you might find some that way that you can drive to.


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## GunMonkeyIntl (May 13, 2013)

random said:


> I'm near Raleigh, NC. Would love to get ahold of even 100 or so (need small pistol magnum) just to get started learning. And I'm not quite willing to pay $300+ for 1k like I've been seeing on GB. Surprisingly, ammo has been easier to find than primers...


I know of a shop in Eden, NC that is pretty low traffic, but pretty decent on reloading supplies for what it is.

Last I was in there, he still had primers of all four major types. Still reasonably priced- I think $40/k. I don’t recall if he had SPMs, but he had most, at least in 5-10k quantities.


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## Cornhusker (Mar 20, 2003)

I picked up 1,000 primers last week. Kinda pricey but if I wanted to keep loading .45s, I needed some large pistol primers.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

Friday I hit the local store , he had just gotten some SP primers in and they were already sold out in a day. Just have to go often and catch them when they come in.

he did have LP SR LR MSP MLP in stock even 2 brands of some of the Magnum

normally they have everything in Rem , Fed , Win and CCI

I picked up some more powder , ouch on the price paid 32.95 for a pound of H4895 the last one they had I look at it this way it costs something to keep a reloading supply source 5 minutes away

out of the bullets I was looking to get more of.


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## Chuck R. (Apr 24, 2008)

It appears that some guys are gouging, luckily my supplier is a straight shooter and hasn't raised his prices, Primers are still going for 29.50 per 1K.

Since we're all in the same boat, the guys in my IDPA club have started doing group buys to cut costs some. As I said earlier. powder & primers I'm set on, hunting bullets and defensive bullets I'm also GTG. Match & practice bullets, I'm OK till the end of the season, but I'm looking to buy for next year. .223 FMJ, Hornady 62grn in particular is scarce.


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## Chuck R. (Apr 24, 2008)

I finally got my SPR upper built, complete with WOA 18" .223 Wylde fluted barrel, still waiting on a lower receiver and parts, took it out yesterday to work on some load development. It's on my 3Gun lower, which has a Geiselle SSA-E trigger, so not much of a detriment performance wise:



















Loads tested were Sierra 77 HPBT, TAC 23.5-24.5, PMC brass and CCI BR4 primers. First 3 shots from a clean barrel to zero the load for testing:









Looks like it might shoot OK!

All the loads tested stayed sub MOA for 5rds. Settled on 24.5 TAC and headed up to the house to load some for distance testing and zeroing.

5 shots at 307yds off the bipod with rear bag on an 8" plate, a little under 3" in 4-7 MPH quartering :










Took a couple shots at my favorite "accuracy test" target; turkey swinger head at 307yds, two rds:










Looks like I'm out a carriage bolt! The combination is doing what I was looking for; sub MOA with thrown charges and no painful brass prep. The other load I'm developing for it is based on the Nosler 60BT and Varget for a coyote load. It's already shooting sub-MOA with the load I developed for my 3Gun rig, just needs a little tweaking. I will get an additional optic for it at some point in the 1-8 or 1-10 range for coyote hunting. The 4-16x50 Vortex PST works great for ringing steel, but is a little large/heavy for hiking from stand to stand.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

those carriage bots are so tempting I have to keep a few extra in my truck I should probably hit the bulk bolts at the hardware store again I might be running low.

nice looking rig , I just finished a build also went shorty 10.5 with a pistol brace build.
while not exactly a bolt head shooter at 200 it is more because I have't got the optic to see it with the 1x red dot. I am kinda tempted to put a 4-12 on it and see how small a groups I can get from it.


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## Chuck R. (Apr 24, 2008)

I've got a bucket of them in my target shed. My friends think it's fun to shoot them off, so I now charge $1.00 per.....

All of my ARs have QD mounts on them, either Larue or ADM Recon mounts. The scope I mounted on the SPR built was my "load testing scope" that I just moved from AR to AR for load development. Looks a little funny on my .300AAC pistol, but it's a lot better for checking loads than an RDS or irons. Both the Larue's and ADM's have great return to zero when re-mounted. 

The hay is out on my back 40, so I've got a couple guys coming out SAT to shoot some mid-range on steel out to 500yds. I put about 6 plates out from 250-500 going across my pond and up the back hill. Forecast calls for 7MPH out of the south, so it will be pretty easy to keep the .223s on tgt. I'll give the SPR a whirl along with one of my bolt guns to see how it does.


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