7 Factors You Must Consider When Buying Ammunition

Hold your fire! Nearly 1,800 companies manufacture ammunition in the United States. 

The sheer number of companies gives you many opportunities to start buying ammunition. Yet it can be hard to know who to buy from and what ammo you should buy. Before you make your purchase, you should consider a few different factors. 

What qualities does the best ammunition have? How should you buy in bulk? What can you do to save money and avoid legal problems? 

Answer these questions and you can make buying ammunition a cinch. Here are the seven most important factors for buying ammunition.

1. Bullet Size

Bullet size or caliber is perhaps the most important factor to consider when buying ammo. If you put a bullet of a caliber in a gun that cannot handle it, your gun may break or you may get injured while firing your gun. 

Talk to a gun shop or professional about what calibers you can put inside your gun. If you’re interested in training with your gun, you can use 22LR ammo. This is a small round that works well inside most pistols and long rifles. 

If you’re more interested in self-defense, you can try 9mm ammo. These bullets can penetrate targets at a distance, but they do not produce significant recoil.

2. Grain Weight

The grain weight is the weight of the bullet itself. Most high-caliber bullets have high grain weights, but some low-caliber bullets can contain heavy materials. 

The lower the grain weight is, the faster the bullet will travel. However, a light bullet will not produce weight pressure, meaning targets may not be knocked down. 

Try to find a moderate grain weight so you have knock-down power and a fast speed. As with caliber, you should talk to a professional about the right grain weight for your gun. A very heavy round may not be easy to fire.

3. Stopping Power

Stopping power is the ability of your gun to incapacitate targets. The caliber and grain weight of your gun influence the stopping power, as does the location of where the bullet hits your target. 

You want to buy ammunition that will stop an attacker from pursuing you. This leads many people to buy the highest caliber bullets they can afford and fire from their guns. 

However, you do not want a bullet that is too powerful because it can penetrate into other targets. You can get hollow-point bullets that will fragment as they enter a target, preventing the bullet from passing through and hitting someone else.

4. Brand Reputation

Many people focus their ammo options on the top brands like Winchester and Remington. You can go with the major brands, but you shouldn’t buy something just because it is famous or popular. 

You should go online and read customer reviews about the ammo. See how others have used your ammo and assess how you can store your ammo in your home. 

If the big brands don’t appeal to you, you can look for smaller companies. Try to look at companies with headquarters or stores near you, as you may save on shipping costs.

5. Quantity

You can buy however many bullets you want. But buying in bulk can help you save money, especially as many companies offer deals for bulk ammunition. 

You can buy ammunition in loose rounds or in clips. Stripper clips let you load several cartridges at once into the internal magazine. This keeps you from having to open the magazine every time you want to fire a bullet. 

Stripper clips may contain any number of rounds, though most clips have 5-10 cartridges. Take a look at how many cartridges are in your clip before you buy one. 

If you want to load more than 10 cartridges, you can get a box magazine. Some magazines contain a few dozen bullets, including ones for rifles.

6. Ammunition Laws

Ammunition sales are not as regulated as firearms sales. However, some cities and states have ammunition laws, limiting how much ammo you can buy at once and where you can ship your ammo. 

You may need to agree to background checks before you can buy ammunition. This includes providing proof of your age, as some states require you to be 18 or 21 to buy ammo. 

Familiarize yourself with your local laws and stay within their perimeters. When in doubt, buy small amounts of small caliber ammo that you can use for hunting and target practice. Do not bring illegal ammo over state lines, even if you are using it for sports.  

7. Cost

In general, the higher the caliber, the more expensive the bullets will be. Regular range ammo also tends to be cheaper than home defense ammo, as you are more likely to use ammo at the range.

But you can find ways to cut your expenses down. Try to order your ammunition during sales, including ones during the holiday season. 

Compare different brands with each other. Brands are constantly competing with each other to reduce their prices, so keep looking even if one brand seems cheap. You should make comparisons every time you go shopping, as prices can change over time. 

The Important Factors for Buying Ammunition 

Buying ammunition is more complicated than it seems. You need to find the right caliber and grain weight for your gun. You need to think about stopping power and whether your ammo will over-penetrate your targets. 

Feel free to buy ammo in bulk or from well-known companies. But make sure you are following your local laws. Find opportunities to save money by shopping during sales and making brand comparisons. 

You don’t have to visit a brick-and-mortar shop to get great bullets. Target Sports USA connects you to cheap ammo. Browse our store today.