Shotgun ammo prices high, supply low, in Springfield ahead of spring turkey season
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) - Spring turkey hunting season starts on Monday, April 18th in the show-me state. With the beginning of the season just a few days away, it may be harder to find the ammunition that you need for a reasonable price.
“The ammunition is a little bit harder to come by,” says TJ Taylor, owner of All About Guns in Springfield. “They’re making a lot more defensive rounds in 12 gauge and 20 gauge, but, not so many turkey rounds. So, your shot that you need to use to kill the turkey is a little bit more scarce and harder to find.”
“And the shotguns, they’re difficult to get,” says Joe Goade, owner of STS Outdoors Guns and Archery in Springfield. “The manufacturers are just... they just can’t seem to get all the parts they really need to keep up with the demand.”
Supply chain issues have been hitting the firearms industry since the pandemic began. Manufacturing plants were shut down at the beginning of the pandemic. At the same time, gun sales spiked. According to the National Shooting Sports Foundation, 8.4 million people became first-time gun owners in 2020. 2021 saw a drop in that number -- 5.4 million -- but first-time buyers still made up 30 percent of gun purchases last year.
Taylor says certain parts of the industry are starting to level out though. He says many manufacturers are focusing on ammunitions used for self-defense and that are purchased in bulk. For example, he says 9 mm rounds are more readily on hand. But with the lower supply of hunting ammunition, prices are higher than normal.
“Normally there’s a three to five percent increase and this year it was more 10 to 25 percent, straight across the board,” says Taylor. “So, the normal increase that we normally have every year is cents on the dollar and we can usually absorb that, but this particular time around, now that they are coming back into play, the price has gone up exponentially compared to previous years.”
He also says entry-level rifles for first-time hunters are more expensive and harder to find. Here’s what Taylor and Goad say hunters can do if they are having a hard time finding what they need.
“Go to a shop that you like and let them know what you’re looking for,” says Goade. “I have a list, I will take your name, and your phone number, and I will put you on my list and I will keep looking.”
“If you are in any sort of store, whether it be a local small business like myself or even Bass Pro, and they have the hunting caliber that you are looking for in stock ready to go, pick it up,” says Taylor. “Buy it right then because it might not be there in an hour.”
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