Powder $$

[Walt]

I just bought a 1 pound can of powder at Cabelas. The price was $70 inc tax. A shooter's pastime is fast becoming a rich man's game. It's probably still cheaper than buying factory ammo but I'll admit I was shocked.

[JimT]

If you watch online you can get some fairly good deals (by today's prices). Some dealers at times offer specials .. buy a certain amount and shipping and hazmat fees are waived. Sometimes if you buy a certain amount fees are waived. I have gotten together with others and made orders that way. You just have to catch it when it's happening.

[GunnyMack]

Mid South Shooters supply is having a SALE now.
Cabela's has always been more expensive but that's ridiculous.

[Keith D]

Over a month ago I bought a 1 pound can of a powder I have never used before. Paid $47 at Cabelas. Found same powder in 8 pound canister online, including HazMat charge, came out to $43.53 per pound. They didn't offer 8 pound cans at Cabelas. If they did, and I could pick it up locally, it would have been $35.75 per pound...less shipping and HazMat.

[Walt]

There's little doubt that reloading components will become harder to find and more expensive when you do find them, so over the past month I have ordered about 20# of powder from Powder Valley and bought another 3 or 4 more pounds from Cabelas and Sportsmans. Over the past year primers in my area have become more readily available, mostly from Cabelas so I have gradually increased my inventory by about 30K primers, mostly large pistol but others as well.

The old powders that I've used for decades have become impossible to find so I have decided to find others that will work as well or maybe even better than the ones I've historically used. Searching through reloading manuals is one way of finding alternate powders. Among other gun magazines, I subscribe to Handloader and Brian Pearce offers many suggestions for utilizing newer powders that meter better than the old ones, that are less position and temperature sensitive, that are cleaner, less expensive and most important are much easier to find these days.

[Bill in Oregon]

Seventy bucks is painful indeed! I sold most of my powder recently ahead of moving, and some of the labels still said $21.99 ...

[Walt]

Bill, when do you plan on moving and do you already have a new home picked out in Silver City?

[Bill in Oregon]

Walt, I have to be out of this house by October 5. Been haunting Zillow and Realtor.com for months but no obvious favorites.

[Walt]

Time is getting short....good luck1

[horsesoldier03]

Yes, I thought my local suppliers were insane and then I made a trip to Cabela's. The locals are not that much higher and certainly dont deal in the volume Cabela's does. Prices have been high for some time; my question is are the being artificially stimulated or is the supply and demand still creating the crisis?

[Bill in Oregon]

My local Academy in Abilene had BLC-2, Titegroup, Longshot and CFE Pistol in stock yesterday for $46-$58 a pound. They also had Winchester large and small rifle and large and small pistol plus CCI small pistol and small rifle primers for $8.99/100, limit four.
Progress.

[6pt-sika]

About four years ago we were consigned to liquidate the stock of a guy that just sold reloading components at gun shows and had passed . We were doing it mainly for the widow . Anyway over time I personally bought about $6k worth of the stuff . That comprised powders I wanted initially then as time went on and it sat there I bought stuff that could be made to work in my applications . I’m not gonna lie I bought everything right , I was not the one setting prices . Anyway after awhile I knew I had way way way more than I could ever use so I began selling some off . And typically I sold none for more than $35 a pound . I’ve got my own supply down to let’s say a more manageable quantity .

[pcmacd]

I just bought a 1 pound can of powder at Cabelas. The price was $70 inc tax. A shooter's pastime is fast becoming a rich man's game. It's probably still cheaper than buying factory ammo but I'll admit I was shocked.

That's a bit spendy. I'm seeing stuff for around $50 locally per pound, and some VV for ~$350/8lb.

[Ray Newman]

I started reloading with the ol’ lee loader and a mallet ‘bout 1968-69. Back then heard reloaders complain about the price of cast and jacketed bullets, primers, and powder. They said it was turning into a rich man’s hobby and there was no reason why the prices should not at the 1950’s level.

Did not do any reloading due to other more demanding issues in the 70’s. Started up again the in the early 1980’s and heard and still hear the same complaints.

Around here the local Cabela's and Bass Pro always had and probably still have higher than some of the local shops.

[Rimfire McNutjob]

At $70/lb it must have had the letters I, M, and R on the can. Hodgdon is getting crazy money for the IMR stuff these days.

[JimT]

As my friend John Taffin says, "It's only money. And six months from now you won't miss it."

[Scott Tschirhart]

I bought 8 pounds of 231 this morning for $35 a pound and free hazmat and shipping.

Shop a little bit and you can make a deal.