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Posted: 2/6/2006 9:10:38 AM EDT
I was at the gun show this weekend and one of the ammo dealers told me that surplus 7.62x51 is getting ready to get much harder to find. I bought 600 rounds of Port. linked ammo and will consider buying more if I need to.
I've heard on the boards that it is drying up, but do you guys actually see a shortage, or is this just what all the dealers are saying. Man, wish I hadn't sold all of that Aussie and Hirt along with my FAL and M1A. Should've known I'd get another 7.62x51 sooner or later. 
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Posted: 2/6/2006 12:22:04 PM EDT
[#1]
Yes I believe it is, but always take what the sellers at gun shows tell you with a huge grain of salt. There was a thread on this very topic around here the other day, and as a matter of fact after reading all the replies I ran to AIM and bought a case of the South African 7.62.
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Posted: 2/6/2006 12:34:57 PM EDT
[#2]
I have heard something second-hand from a reliable source as well - all the SA .308 there will ever be is already in-country. Buy it now or forever hold your peace.
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Posted: 2/6/2006 12:50:27 PM EDT
[#3]
I called AIM the other day and chatted with them a bit. They said they have a pretty good supply of SA. [pretty much the exclusive seller of it] As for the rest of the surplus stuff in 7.62 nato, I do believe that it will not be as plentiful as in the past. Sure, some will still be surplussed but I'd bet it won't be in the quantities as in the past. Since the laws of supply and demand remain constant, that means it won't be priced as low as it has been in the past either. I've stocked up on well over 15 K of it in the past year and have assured myself of a goodly amount to shoot in the future. At 3 bucks and change I can afford to shoot it. at 8 bucks + for new it gets harder to shoot as much. Buy what you want now, it ISN'T going to go down in the near future.
BTW. I heard that there won't be any more imported because of the UN BS, and I do believe it tho I hope to heck I am totally wrong. |
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Posted: 2/6/2006 2:44:44 PM EDT
[#4]
A guy I work with was born in SA and was in their military years ago. I asked him if any of their current weapons use 7.62x51. He said he is pretty sure they still have one gun using this ammo and 3 or 4 other variants using 5.56. So.... hopefully there will be a supply of 7.62x51 for a long time. Though anything can change and for any reason the importation could stop.
Just buy lots now and stack it tall and deep. |
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Posted: 2/6/2006 4:15:43 PM EDT
[#5]
With all the talk I am not waiting to find out I have 5 of the SA 1260 round cans and will continue to pick them up when I can.
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Posted: 2/6/2006 4:59:09 PM EDT
[#6]
www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=6&f=7&t=192406
Templar posted: German DAG-gone Austrian Hirtenberger-gone British Radway Green-gone Portuguese FMN-gone Spanish Santa Barbara-gone Swedish and Danish surplus-gone Australian-gone South African-still here for a while See the trend. |
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Posted: 2/6/2006 5:05:41 PM EDT
[#7]
YOWZA!
Buy it now before it dries up. The 7.62 I bought years ago for "storage" is now worth more than my blasted 401-K! Go figure! |
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Posted: 2/6/2006 5:08:26 PM EDT
[#8]
That cinches it. I'm buying a case or two of SA at the next gunshow.
*starts saving money now* |
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Posted: 2/7/2006 8:07:06 PM EDT
[#9]
Then again, it was only a couple years ago that one could find greek and danish 30-06 surplus on the market. Talk about an obsolete military round. Plenty of belt-feds still using 308. Definitely a slump in the market right now, though. Made to look all the worse because we just had an all time high in the availability of quality 308 surplus couple years back. Things will probably never be that good again, but stuff will come along again, sooner or later.
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Posted: 2/7/2006 8:20:37 PM EDT
[#10]
It is kind of spotty too. I went to 2 gunshows, and didn't find a single vendor with SA surplus. Then the next one, the 1260 rd cans were 205 out the door. Took enough for a couple of cans to this last show................nada.
Keep some cash handy, but don't count on it being there. Doc |
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Posted: 2/8/2006 12:42:59 PM EDT
[#11]
The thing that irks me and causes me some concern is the damn UN. I am SURE there is plenty of surplus 7.62 nato out there. Problem is the un with G Soros's "help" is getting Countries to sign on to the un non proliferation treaty which, while not a death knell for surplus, will definately cause some major shifts in the surplus ammo market. Every time they get a Country to sign on, it limits whats out there to us. It also causes new ammo to increase in price due to the increased demand for it from shooters. I am not betting that the market will once again have huge amounts like in the past, and prices will spike and stay high for a while. Also, the unstable situation in the Arab world will cause Countries to hold onto ammo they would have surplussed in the past unless there is a problem with it.
Buy not so cheap, stack it til the floor creaks. |
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Posted: 2/8/2006 3:19:00 PM EDT
[#12]
I laid back 10k rounds of Radway Green a few years ago when it was plentiful and cheap. I use reloads for blasting fun. My Dillon XL650 cranks out all I need for fun ammo.
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Posted: 2/8/2006 6:58:35 PM EDT
[#13]
Buy it up now!
5-10 yrs ago many shooters scoffed at the idea that ought-six would dry up... the only milsurp for that now is the corrosive Korean KA headstamp stuff. |
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Posted: 2/9/2006 4:35:03 AM EDT
[#14]
You won't be seeing any Radway over there for a while, as there is currently none (VL) being released.
Something about a spot of trouble somewhere sandy and needing to keep the GPMG's (M240) fed 
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Posted: 2/9/2006 6:13:10 AM EDT
[#15]
I just ordered 1,000 rounds of federal M80 ball for $208 shipped from sportsman guide. It isn't foreign surplus, but still a good buy.
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Posted: 2/10/2006 7:09:08 AM EDT
[#16]
I have been trying to tell ya!!!
The stuff at AIM is going to run out. Sure, they have a great supply now.... but when it is gone, it is gone. I DONT think we will see any more *quality* 7.62x51 in the $.015/round area. I think we will see it creeping up to $0.20-$0.25.... but I base that on nothing but opinion.... from watching what ammo has done over the past 10 years or so. Sure, there will be more 308 surp coming in at some point. Will it be as cheap as it is now? Will it be as good as SA surplus? I dont know. But I DO know... that if I bought a TON of the .308 SA today.... I wouldn't be paying too much, and I could always sell it later at even (or a profit) if I had to. I just wish it was boxer primed, and I could afford to put more back. If you have to put it in a credit card, and pay interest on it.... it probably isnt that great of a deal people. |
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Posted: 2/12/2006 7:10:32 PM EDT
[#17]
I bought 200 round cans linked last weekend at the gun show for $35 ea.. This weekend same stuff was $45 a can! Wish I had 400 more rounds!
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Posted: 2/12/2006 7:27:09 PM EDT
[#18]
Dude - what are you doing buying less than 1,000 at a time?
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Posted: 2/12/2006 10:24:39 PM EDT
[#19]
Yes, all .308 is drying up. It will never be here again. Buy it all now. Buy it. Buy it.
 I've been around the milsurp market since the mid-80's. I've seen EVERY caliber come and go with availability....and some were obsolete to begin with. .308 is not obsolete, so it's not going to dry up. It might become scarce for a short time, then flood back in country when countries let their stores go to the surplus market. No reason to panic. |
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Posted: 2/13/2006 5:11:19 AM EDT
[#20]
This isnt about panicking. It is about being prudent. Financially, you are right.... it is better to invest your money, let it grow, and buy ammo as time goes on. However - good quality .308 has rarely been less than $0.15 per round. When the next stash comes in from somewhere, and prices have gone up to 0.25 per round, will you be subsidizing the rest of us? Will you be providing a written guarantee that something will be coming in before I run out and need it?  Sure, there is always something???? Like 5.56ammo, right? Oh wait... there is nothing on the market right now. I am out. If I would have been smart, I would have stocked up on South African when it was $0.11 per round. That is all I am saying. Sure, there maybe somethng coming in the future.... but maybe not when you need it, or at the same prices. |
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Posted: 2/13/2006 6:05:31 AM EDT
[#21]
No need to get hostile, partner. Buy all you want, stock up, loot the warehouses, have some fun. I was addressing the people who think this is the last .308 we'll see. Like I said, I've been playing the surplus game for a long time, and I've seen .308 scarce and expensive, then come back into the country in droves. What will determine the price the next flood is how much comes in. Look at 8mm. 15 years ago it was hard to find, everyone was out of quality ammo. At that time, .303 was everywhere and it was good stuff (and cheap). Flash to today, .303 is gone and 8mm is cheap....cheaper than its ever been. How is that possible? How is it cheaper than its ever been? Because it came into the country in huge numbers from mulitiple sources. The same will happen to all surplus ammo, eventually. Like you said, imported .223 is hard to find. But that will change too....it's still a used cartridge so it will come in again, and be cheap again. |
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Posted: 2/13/2006 6:18:22 AM EDT
[#22]
Who is hostile? Why would you assume a simple response to your post is hostile?
Which is why, if people are smart.... now is the time to buy. It is cheap. I agree - I dont think all the .308 will go away and we will never see it again. But I do know that the UN is trying to block this market, and that the US govt, with a stroke of a pen, no longer allows surplus of their stuff. Imports of ammo will get more scarce over time, I believe, and prices will rise accordingly. Since there is good quality .308 on the market right now, and it is priced very nicely, that is the time to stock up. That is all I am saying. Stock up for the rest of your life? If you want to, I guess. I just mean stock up enough to get you by the next dry period.... since it IS going to be dry.... we are already seeing that. (Oh, and please dont take this as "hostile")
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Posted: 2/13/2006 8:42:59 AM EDT
[#23]
It's just another commidity. If you think the price is going to go up, buy now. If you think it will be available later for the same or less, don't buy now. Either way you take a risk of paying too much if you make the right decision. It's nothing more than a guessing game. My personal opinion is that .308 will be real cheap and in plentiful supply (as will .223) in the future, but I don't think it will be cheap or plentiful in this country because as soon as we get another Klinton or similar in the whitehouse they're gonna throw a ban on imported surplus ammo. The .223 SA didn't dry up, they caved to UN pressure and stopped selling it to the civilian market. Take your gamble either way and in about 10 years we'll see who was right. I hope swingset is right, but given the futher reaching arm of the left and the UN I think we'll see more of what falarak has predicted.
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Posted: 2/13/2006 11:11:32 AM EDT
[#24]
Look at 8mm. 15 years ago it was hard to find, everyone was out of quality ammo. At that time, .303 was everywhere and it was good stuff (and cheap). Flash to today, .303 is gone and 8mm is cheap....cheaper than its ever been. How is that possible? How is it cheaper than its ever been? Because it came into the country in huge numbers from mulitiple sources. agree 110% ..I can remember a case of IMI M855 @ $326 about 15 yrs ago,then I picked it up @$235 about 5 yrs ago....because of only one US supplier...you never know prices may decrease as well as increase....however its a good idea to keep a nice stash in your bunker just in case....I keep a stash of 10 sealed cases of Port. 7.62x51 for long term and shoot my Aussie and SA or whatever else is currently available Longhunter |
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Posted: 2/24/2006 5:20:37 AM EDT
[#25]
I agree Longhunter, I have 1000rds of Portigal 308 left, and say 4000rds of the South African, debating on buying more... Aim Surplus wont have SA available forever.
I look at the prices of Wolf 308 currently at around $3.49 for 20rds, others between $12 to $19 for 20rds. |
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Posted: 2/24/2006 12:17:36 PM EDT
[#26]
I would be buying right now.
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Posted: 2/24/2006 4:44:22 PM EDT
[#27]
No it's not. Have you ever heard of the CMP? But I agree it wont last forever. |
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