Small Regular Pistol primers shortage? (March-'17)

[JBinMN]

Has it just been bad luck for me in the last two weeks? I have traveled quite a few miles in the last couple of weeks & everywhere I have stopped to look, they are out of Small Pistol primers, but have everything else. And in the 4 brands of Win., Rem. CCI, & Fed.. I was lucky today & bought 4 boxes of the Rem.,( which I have never used before) since I could not find any of the other 3 in Small Pistol.

I have looked in SE Minn at the larger stores( like Fleet Farm) & even stopped at a type of Tractor supply in Ashland Wisc. yesterday in my travels to see if any were available with no luck. Everything else well stocked, but no Small Pistol primers...

I don't know the where abouts of many of the small "Ma & Pa' LGS that might have them, so I can't say they are not available at all, but in the bigger stores things are not looking good around here.. Has me worried, anyway.


Anyone else having a similar trouble?

[BNE]

All are available here.

[scattershot]

If you have a Cabela's up there, they carry Sellier and Bellot, which work fine and are pretty inexpensive. You can also get them online.

Good luck!

[emorris]

Sometimes your forced to do the mail order thing. As always the key is a bulk order to spread out the shipping fees. I don't have a local shop that I can source out reloading components, so I don't feel bad about sending money to non local venders. Cabelas actually has Winchester Small Pistol primers on sale right now and you can get $5.00 shipping (plus hazmat).

[C. Latch]

Powder Valley has three different SPPs in stock right now.

[JBinMN]

Thanks! I will try to call Cabelas & see tomorrow morning.

I don't buy them online though, the costs with the hazard fee & shipping means a sleeve of 1000 would be like $65.00., when most of the time locally they are $38-42 for that same sleeve. Can't afford that cost right now.
;)

Thanks for the replies though folks! It appears that this might just be a fairly local thing then... I hope it ends soon.

[JBinMN]

Powder Valley has three different SPPs in stock right now.

I will check these folks out also, but when I see those haz mat fees & the shipping, I choke.
;)

[Dpmsman]

The willmar runnings had federal and remington for sure maybe cci. The willmar gun show is this weekend you could make a trip out of it.

[shoot-n-lead]

I will check these folks out also, but when I see those haz mat fees & the shipping, I choke.
;)

You have to order more than 1K primers and 1lb of powder.

[JBinMN]

Yes. I understand. I have no need for any more dies, molds, brass , etc. right now though. I am just a small time caster & reloader, with just me & the missus with the occasional 2 sons & DIL to shoot with us. I am sitting now with aprox. 800+ small pistol cases to finish & I only have 4-500 primers. Just got the 400 today. Been looking for them for about 10 days in the areas I have been, with no luck.

I am also limited in $$ to afford to buy much in bulk for the future, so I have to get what I can when I can. Thus, the "choking" on those fees.
:)

Thanks though.
:)

[JBinMN]

The willmar runnings had federal and remington for sure maybe cci. The willmar gun show is this weekend you could make a trip out of it.

Just got back from Ashland, Wisc. on a 400 mile roundtrip & am wore out. And.. None to be found where I checked there also. had to leave to early for the last LGS/Range to open for them...
I do have a buddy going to Superior/Duluth who is going to look for me also, though. He will buy some & save them for the next trip one of us makes...
Thanks for mentioning the Wilmar show though. Like I said, maybe it is just local to me down here in the lower right corner area.
;)

[Reddirt62]

I just ordered 10k from xtreme to see how they work.

[retread]

Grafs has CCI on sale for $135.99 for 5000.

[rototerrier]

Surely a 400 mile trip costs more than the $25 hazmat fee?

[JBinMN]

That trip was to get tires for my sons car at an old friend of mines tire shop. Tires installed for cost rather than full price. The fuel cost was $40. Saved a couple hundred $$ & spent time with a guy I have known for 40+ years & do not see as often as the years pass. Priceless....
;)

I am going to save up to buy some primers & powder in bulk. Apparently that is the better way than searching for what I am looking for. Now I just need to locate some 2400 powder, LOL.

Thanks for the help!
:)

[reddog81]

Weird. Down in central Iowa SPPs are easy to find. Scheels, Sportmans Warehouse, Mills Fleet Farm all have most brands.

[Mytmousemalibu]

Pretty much everything is available around here..... EXEPT FEDERALS!

Drives me crazy. I primarily run Federal primers since most of my ammo is for competition and I have multiple gun that only eat Federal primers. Plus I just prefer them, they are the tippy top for reliable ignition. Nobody else makes anything on par as far as sensitive goes. And I can't get any of the damn things. Neither SPP or SPM. Heck id run the Fed small rifle but I haven't seen them either. Federal doesn't seem interested in supporting handloaders it seems. Wished someone else would step up to the plate and make a competitive product.

[toallmy]

Yep can't even order fed small rifle primers . Checked midway , mid south , nanchez .......

[JBinMN]

Yep can't even order fed small rifle primers . Checked midway , mid south , nanchez .......

You might have missed this page when searching:
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/953179134/federal-small-rifle-primers-205

G'Luck!
:)

[dverna]

JB,

At times, I will go in with a bunch of guys from the gun club and/or friends to justify a group buy to spread the cost of shipping and Hazmat fees. One caution, get the money up front if money is tight. I had one guy back out and had to eat his share but it was stuff I was using anyway; so I got more inventory and learned he was a jerk...win/win.

[JBinMN]

JB,

At times, I will go in with a bunch of guys from the gun club and/or friends to justify a group buy to spread the cost of shipping and Hazmat fees. One caution, get the money up front if money is tight. I had one guy back out and had to eat his share but it was stuff I was using anyway; so I got more inventory and learned he was a jerk...win/win.

Thanks!
:)

I do not know anyone else around here who reloads, nor casts, but I am going to start asking around about any local reloaders anyway. I try not to let folks know too much of my "business" in some matters & sharing what I have on hand/storage is one of those things. Particularly in regard to the subject matter we discuss here. ;)

I appreciate your suggestions though & will keep them in mind.
:)

Thanks again for the tips!
:)

[Mytmousemalibu]

You might have missed this page when searching:
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/953179134/federal-small-rifle-primers-205

G'Luck!
:)

Thank you for the link, they were out last I looked.


Unless its a sample test, I order my primers by the case. I will use them, might as well take advantage of the hazmat fee and stock up, never know when the supply will dry up. As is with the Federal situation, I think the last time I saw any small pistol primers on the shelf is nearing 6 months ago. The competition guys are hurting for them. Im about ready to sacrifice trigger pull weight and stick heavier springs back in my guns that will reliably set off other brands.

[toallmy]

Just ordered thanks for the heads up JBinMN . Yes shipping costs as much as 1000 but I don't like riding around chasing components .

[Dpmsman]

If you sigh up for sites like midway or midsouth sometimes they will wave the hazmat fee if you order over a certain $ amount. I think Natchez just had one of those sales. Spent over $150 no hazmat fee.

[bouncer50]

You can use small rifle primer instead of spp. I have and they work fine.

[375RUGER]

For some odd reason I haven't see LR primers in Albuquerque. Magnum yes but not standard.

[Ed_Shot]

You can use small rifle primer instead of spp. I have and they work fine.

+1 , several threads on the subject here. Cabelas has S&B SR primers right now for $22.99 a brick.

[fatelk]

I just bought some Winchester sp primers at the local Cabelas. They had them on sale for $26/k, and I used the $100 Cabela's gift card that my wife bought for me on ebay for $80. I figured that 80% of $26 was a pretty good price.

[JBinMN]

I just got off the phone with my oldest son at Mankato, Minnesota Fleet Farm, since he was there n that area for work. He also said that all of the Small Pistol Primers (SPP) are gone there , except for 8 of the Federal. He said there were some Fed. Small Mag. Pistol Primer boxes, but that was it as far as SPP. He told me there were plenty of all the other primers for other weapons...
I told him to buy at least 4 boxes for me @ $4.69 ea. right now til I figure out what else to do, & if he wanted to shoot a larger pistol we have around here, he might want to pick up some of those large magnum ones too. ;)

I appreciate the responses here very much. In reading the posts here, I am thinking it is a local thing to S.E. Minn.. I have been waiting to see if Shiloh stops in here, as he lives just 50 or so miles South of me & may have a different perspective on things.

IMO, Something is going on around these parts as far as not having those SPP available, and since I was up 200 miles North & they seemed to have the same trouble with SPP for some reason... I am thinking something is up.


Maybe, as I think I just read here... Competition shooters? But, I was under the impression those folks used "High end" primers like "Bench rest" for their doings. Maybe not, & if the season has started, could be part of the issue... but it is making me wonder..

An addition thought is , there are more SPP users than the others using large pistols, considering the purchases of pistols in past 10 years +, as most folks use Smaller pistols than Larger pistols, so that could be a factor is what I am trying to say..


Thanks again for the helpful answers/posts!
:)

[FergusonTO35]

If you shop around you can find any small pistol primer you want EXCEPT Federal. That sucks, because Bullseye and Federal primers go great together.

[RogerDat]

Shortages and bountiful supply seem to be regional in many items. Even within the state some locations will have certain powder, primers, brass or bullets that another part of the state hasn't seen in months. I recall a member in Arizona saying the shelves were well stocked with Bullseye when I hadn't seen any here for a month of Sundays. And at that only one store with a few 1 lb. cans. Local gun show small rifle primers were scarce for awhile, then small pistol, then all abundant, then all scarce.

Outdoor shooting season is approaching, auto loader pistols eat ammo, even us revolver people might load up an extra few hundred in anticipation of better weather. I also think people are more inclined to buy "extra" than they might have been in the past, a couple extra bricks of 1k primers being bought by a few people can slam the supply on a store shelf. Which means the customers that don't get them go looking and when they find them buy a few extra themselves. Don't take many people to create a localized shortage. Especially in an area with few outlets.

[Mytmousemalibu]

Maybe, as I think I just read here... Competition shooters? But, I was under the impression those folks used "High end" primers like "Bench rest" for their doings. Maybe not, & if the season has started, could be part of the issue... but it is making me wonder..

An addition thought is , there are more SPP users than the others using large pistols, considering the purchases of pistols in past 10 years +, as most folks use Smaller pistols than Larger pistols, so that could be a factor is what I am trying to say..


Thanks again for the helpful answers/posts!
:)

As far as competitive shooters go, at least speaking on behalf of most of the guys I know at least, not a ton of us "require" Federal primers. Maybe a 1/4 of us and that is mostly us guys with really lightened ignition systems that required the sensitive Federal's to keep reliability up. As far as "benchrest" grade primers go, for the go fast types and gun racers, a premium primer is pretty much just extra costs. The guys at the top ranks of the sport might see a difference in performance but to the vast majority, no. The standard Federal Champion primers do fine. I'll buy the Gold Medal Match at this point if it's all I find and really Federal is the only one making specifically a "match" pistol primer to my knowledge. The bullseye guys and other high accuracy based pistol shooters might prefer the Gold Medal's, but I can't speak to that. In general, most of the competitive pistol shooters out there run the same primers the rest of the reloading public uses too, nothing fancy. Competitors probably do account for the exhaustion of Federal's though. All my local suppliers have PLENTY of other pistol primers, CCI, Winchester, Remington, S&B, etc, just not my beloved Feds...

There has been a lot of new pistols sold in past years and lots of people getting into reloading so that probably adds a lot of additional strain on supplies as it stands.

[FergusonTO35]

I prefer to use Federal in my ammo that absolutely has to work because they are the most reliable primers I have ever used. I can count on one hand the number of them that have failed.

[GONRA]

bouncer50 sez - "You can use small rifle primer instead of spp. I have and they work fine."
GONRA reminds ya'll that (some manufacturer’s) Small Rifle primers
are exactly the same as their Small Pistol MAGNUM primers.

[JBinMN]

Thanks for the comments.
:)

I went to Fleetfarm in Lakeville,Mn. last Saturday & they said that the Winchester SPP were "in" as far as the computer he had said. But he had none in the back room to put out. So , he did told me he did not understand why they would be "in", unless the comp. meant they were in their "distribution" center/warehouse,but not on the shelves yet. So, I left without any SPP of any maker that day, although they had some Rem SPP., I only wanted the Win. stuff or CCI right now, since they are about $3.89 & 4.19 each rather than $4.40+.. I did get some Win. Shotshell primers. They did not have any LPP at that store either, btw, although they did have a stock of much of the other stuff.

Yesterday I went to the Fleet farm in Rochester & they also were out of the Winchester/Rem. & had a couple boxes of Fed. SPP. They had 3 boxes of CCI SPP also, so I bought 2 & left one for someone else who might be in the same situation as I am.

I have had my oldest son pick up some primers for me over in the Fairmont, Mn. area , but their supply of SPP was vary small also. He bought CCI in that size. He also bought me some Mag. LLP while he was there. My son pays for them & I return in boolits & stuff. :)
And while an old buddy of mine was in Superior WI, he stopped in & got me a 1000 Sleeve for when he & I get together next time.

As of yesterday, Midwestshootersupply had a sale on CCI primers if ya buy 150 bucks+ the hazmat fee is free, & now today they also have a sale if ya buy 150 bucks or more free shipping. I do not know if you can combine the offers..

I am probably going to go ahead & buy 5000 in mixed lots of SPP LPP Mag SSP & mag LLP plus some LRP & maybe shotgun, just so I do not run into the situation of plenty of the other components & nothing to set the doggone cartridges off with.

I am kind of fed up with the lookin hard, not finding & having to go online to buy. When I do get around any city I try to stop & get what I might need while I am there to be efficient, but now my time & patience are wearing thin & I am going to have to make a change. Kind of like the Mom & Pop local stores not carrying the stuff ya want, so ya have to drive around looking for it & the $$ go to the big stores/online instead of locally. To me that is a shame.
:(

I think I already said that I do not have the income to be buying in large quantities like some folks, & don't seem to shoot as much as others either, at only about 250-500 rounds a month if that, so this outlay on primers will keep me busy for a while, but limit my ability to make other buys of things I might end up needing. I now have done enough searching around that it is becoming more worth my while to just buy them online & pay the doggone hazard ripoff fees, instead of the time & gas going searching.

Sad thing is, is that Lead is becoming an issue locally for me now also, so I may start buying from the vendors here on this forum. I built a box trap & some bucket traps so that will help, anyway. {For some of you folks who don't know, I was told that Minnesota passed a law prohibiting lead in WW about 3 years ago & now they are mostly steel & zinc. The last small ice cream size bucket of WW a buddy of mine gave me, was only about 50% lead, 30% steel & 20% zinc. }

If many of ya don't seem to be having this SPP issue, I am glad for ya, but it sure makes me wonder why it just started happening all of a sudden around these parts..

Well, After I decide what to buy online, I won't likely be needing anything for a while. I just hope this is just a local type thing for us here & not going to spread all over.

Thanks again for your suggestions & comments.
Have a great one!
:)

[jonp]

If you have a Cabela's up there, they carry Sellier and Bellot, which work fine and are pretty inexpensive. You can also get them online.

Good luck!

They were on sale online at cabelas with free ship to store. Make sure to check. I didn't and paid store price as no-one there told me different.

[JBinMN]

Well, I just dropped about $190 frogskins at Midwestshootersupply using the "no Hazmat" promotion.

I am fixed for what I think I will use in the next year using the same shooting habits.

G'uck to you that don't have any issues in finding SPP! Or, whatever you are looking for..
:)

Now that I am "ahead" of the game. I don't plan to ever be on the "short end of the stick" on them again.

Pay it out once, & stay ahead...So, I did what some of ya told me...

Cost me a bit, but it got done...
;)
Thanks again! & G'luck to ya all!
:)

JB

[TexasGrunt]

I got lucky yesterday. My right knee is having problems and is all swollen and I can barely walk on it. My wife was feeling sorry for me and took me to Cabela's. I picked up 5000 each LP and SP S&B primers. Spent my pity allowance for the month.

[mjwcaster]

They were on sale online at cabelas with free ship to store. Make sure to check. I didn't and paid store price as no-one there told me different.
Does cabelas actually do ship to store on primers?

Last I checked that was not available, at least not at the Hammond, IN store.

It would make my life easier, as no one around me carries primers, and even if I drive 40 miles to cabelas half the time they are out of what I need.

And even cabelas has been more expensive on spp, the only ones I really need now that I just got a working 9mm cast load worked up.

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