To shoot, or not shoot

[SportsmanCDA]

Same as mentioned earlier in the thread, I’ve consolidated to shooting just two calibers to save on supplies.
That said, I have two kiddos that are just starting spring sports. Reloading and Range time cut way back… I’m lucky if I remember to keep the brass tumbler running.

 

[jimmymac]

Inflation is out of control. When it costs more and more for the basic necessities of living, eventually there is a tipping point and the expensive fun stuff goes by the wayside as expendable income gets diverted to feed the needs instead of the wants. This is an ongoing issue and depends on how bad things get. Right now I'm shooting as normal. Match plans have not changed. Practice plans have not changed. I'm good for now, but who knows what the future will bring.

On the plus side, I have a nice little fishing boat with a 4 stroke 60HP motor that sips gas. I really like catfishing. I am 7 miles from the river. It is a metric shit ton cheaper to have fun on the river than dumping money in to components and running around to matches. Won't cost me much to have fun and make great memories, so shifting gears for me wouldn't be hard. I'd miss the matches and the people but it wouldn't be the end of the world. Adapt and overcome.

 

[unclefish]

I have cut way back. I have also noticed alot less shooters at the club. It's very sad to see cause I do enjoy shooting. But I am going to do some other hobbies. I will leave it at that cause I could go on for ever about our new society.

 

[Fuj]

I got me a bad case of cabin fever, and 6 clean rifles. What's
a man to do ?? At this point, I have no desire to cut back. I'm
actually going to increase my range time from 2 match's a month
to three, plus I have another wild cat on paper that needs a look.

 

[Downeast]

I made the mistake of getting into F Class two years ago and was planning on going to my first match next month. About 100 miles one way and will probably stay overnight. But at least I can say I went to a match before the bottom fell out.

I do have a range in my backyard and lately I've been shooting 5 shot groups and maybe burning 10 or 15 bullets in a session. I was shooting standard 20 round practice "matches" with sighters but those days are long gone. Kind of sad knowing that every bullet sent down range cannot be replaced.

I have a few nice .22's but it's just not the same and I enjoy reloading as much as shooting. And with .22's you are even more at the mercy of the ammo manufacturers. Unless things change a lot of shooting sports will fall to the wayside. And in this day and age with so many fickle people out there it won't take long for them to walk away and never look back. They will find other pursuits and hobbies.

 

[Fuj]

And in this day and age with so many fickle people out there it won't take long for them to walk away and never look back. They will find other pursuits and hobbies.

That's what I'm afraid of. We had a nice monthly steel match
at our range, and less and less shooters came. It got to a point
that 3 of us setting up the match were the only ones. The match
was shut down, and range opened back up to the casual shooter.

 

[jpx2rk]

I haven't been to the club range in about a month since gas hit $4/gal, it's a 95 mile round trip for me. I've found some components here and there, prices are higher but it is what it is. I do have a RF range about 2 miles from the house, so I've been spending some time over there, and the BR season starts today. Weather liars are calling for 10-20 mph winds with gusts up to 30+ mph, so it should be a day of high scores I'm in better shape on RF ammo than others, but hate to shoot in crappy weather, seems non-productive to me.

 

[jackson1]

Remember during the obummer years and the great primer shortage, I heard the words; the new normal. The current time of shortages and the inflation of shooting related products in my opinion are far worse. Wish I had some great pearls of wisdom to share, but I don't. How about this: Buy what you need to keep shooting, and when and if conditions change invest in your rainy-day inventory, because bad weather will return. I see another possibly greater problem on the horizon. The extinction of the American shooter. I look around my own sportsmens club and see a whole lot of gray hair and what new members joining the club are also plus 50. I coach a high school trap team that is 1/10th the size of 10 years ago. Kind of hard to recruit new shooters when you scratching to meet your own ammunition needs. As a longtime member of my gun club we always had the available cash to meet our needs and many wants. Today we debate the cost of a half load of clay targets. Wish I could be more up beat, but war and rumors of war, could be just another straw on the camels back.

 

[sqrlgtr]

primers at $120/brick

Care to share location lol.....

 

[Downeast]

It might be time to fall back and reassess.

 

[drop_point]

My range is 1.5 hours away. The cost of fuel hurts my shooting more than reloading components.

Really?

Assuming 10 mpg, it would cost about $72 a trip now vs $54 a year ago. A difference of $18.

If you shoot 100 rounds per range session at todays prices, that 100 rounds costs about $15 more in powder, $8 more in primers, and $10 more in bullets than it did before the situation we are in.

 

[Fuj]

Blow gun.....

 

[markT]

Pellet rifle time. Way less $ and way less noise, way less regulation and still pokes holes.

 

[6fatrat]

I will be shooting as many matches as I fit in.
The western hunting draws have taken some soul searching, if gas hit $6.00 gal my suburban would burn apx.$1800 in gas for a elk hunt in the Gila NM.
Steve Bair

 

[JEFFPPC]

The matches I normally attend average 1.5 hours drive time each way.I jumped on the springer air gun wagon and just found a club 12 miles away with matches. There is also a club at the same distance with long range .22 bench shiloutte matches. So even though I am well stocked with components I plan to cut my monrhly 4 to 6 centerfire matches to 2 or 3. Unfortunately the club closet to me allows you to shoot multiple rifles in one class, an option I can only protest by not attending. I plan on having an enjoyable season with some new competition. I will not be held hostage with price gouging components but as I am well stocked that is not a concern for 3 or 4 years. By then I will be looking 80 in the eye and might be ready to slow down.

 

[Chocdawg]

Getting a duck boat and surface drive motor is looking like a lot of fun right now.

 

[CharlieNC]

My fclass matches start in April. Over the last few years I found training with a 22 at 100yd using my same bipod and setup is more effective in getting the trigger pull and follow through refined than shooting with the center fire. The pellet rifle at 50yd is even more challenging. With the longer barrel times, these highlight minor inconsistencies that are otherwise not so evident. As a result I will try to shoot more matches via cheaper, effective training.

 

[Mark W]

Really?

Assuming 10 mpg, it would cost about $72 a trip now vs $54 a year ago. A difference of $18.

If you shoot 100 rounds per range session at todays prices, that 100 rounds costs about $15 more in powder, $8 more in primers, and $10 more in bullets than it did before the situation we are in.

Yea really! Most of my reloading supplies were purchased well before the prices skyrocketed, so my average cost on components isn’t that high. On the other hand, I do really think twice before jumping in the truck for a 3 hour round trip when I can’t even get a full tank of fuel for $100.

 

[drop_point]

Yea really! Most of my reloading supplies were purchased well before the prices skyrocketed, so my average cost on components isn’t that high. On the other hand, I do really think twice before jumping in the truck for a 3 hour round trip when I can’t even get a full tank of fuel for $100.

When new components get you, you're going to cringe! For me, I have enough I can shoot for a while, but I think about replacement cost. Ouch!

 

[JimPag]

Probably fake wood at that!!

Frankie especially if you shoot at Bell City in CT or Caledonia in VT. You should see the wood you receive if u win. It looks like someone stole someone's scrap wood that u use for kindling out of a woodpile in someone's back yard. Then they laser etch it. I mean it's hideous. They vary in thickness from 1/4" to a tad thicker. When Jim Cline came up to CT at the end of October he did ok in the Hunter class and won some wood and he said here goat daddy, take these and use them for your wood stove, They are that bad. And it's not like they can't afford it. A lot of shooter's have said to me they ought to be ashamed at giving out plaques like that.