That depends. When Obamasuits come to collect them how many cheapos do I have to give them before they think, "He must not have any more, lets go to the next house." Then I can turn around and get out my good ones.

F those guys. Don't give anything to anybody. "From my cold dead hands!!!", Charlton Heston.

A .45 Semi-Auto, a .357 Magnum, a .38 Snub, and a .22LR Semi-Auto.

These comprise 4 of the 5 that I used to own, before that bizzare smelting accident last week.

Two big ones, and two little ones. Beyond that, give me a 12 Gauge Pump Shotgun and a .22 Rifle.

Right now I have all the handguns I need but if I visit a gunshop and see something that pushes my buttons, my needs will change

It's almost never a question of need but rather one of want. Gun people usually wind up owning a number of handguns because they are always looking for that elusive perfect gun.... or just want something because of its novelty or interest. So need rarely enters the picture with us. Need opens the door to a world of opinions and you know what they say about those.

So think "want", not "need". Besides the word need feeds into the agenda of the anti's. How many times have you heard one of them say something like, "Do you really need all of those....?" or "Do you really need an assault....?" Do give them food. Think "want".

Thirty.

Don't know how many I need yet, so I guess I may need more...however, I have
-Springfield 1911 .45
-Springfield XDM .45
-Sig Sauer 1911 .380
-Walther PPK/s .380
-Beretta 92FS 9mm
I may buy a wheel gun next.
BTW, anyone have an opinion on the quality (or lack thereof) of Walmart's ammo? The white box Winchester seems to be really dirty to shoot and my range guy says the last Federal he bought there was "poor quality". Hope this isn't to far off the subject, apologize if it is.

I use the WWB 'Personal Defense' in .45 ACP from Walmart as my carry ammo. A 50 round box costs about what 20 of the premium stuff costs, somewhere else. I've had zero failures to fire, or feed, and the accuracy is good in my carry pistols. Expansion tests I've seen show it to be comparable to the pricey stuff, but without the pretty' flower' design you see in the advertisements. The advantage is that I can afford to do more function testing and rotate my carry ammo more frequently. I tend to 'hoard' the pricey stuff and try to keep using it past a reasonable time, before shooting it up and buying a new box.

I have had issues with the Winchester bird shot loads from Walmart being too low powered to cycle my recoil operated shotgun, and I've bought bulk packs of Remington .22's that the bullet would actually rotate in the cartridge case (they still shot OK), but the WWB in .45 has been OK, for several years.

Needing and wanting are two different things. We only need one good quality handgun that we are proficient with, but to have two or three is more fun.

Originally Posted by Bisley

I use the WWB 'Personal Defense' in .45 ACP from Walmart as my carry ammo. A 50 round box costs about what 20 of the premium stuff costs, somewhere else. I've had zero failures to fire, or feed, and the accuracy is good in my carry pistols. Expansion tests I've seen show it to be comparable to the pricey stuff, but without the pretty' flower' design you see in the advertisements. The advantage is that I can afford to do more function testing and rotate my carry ammo more frequently. I tend to 'hoard' the pricey stuff and try to keep using it past a reasonable time, before shooting it up and buying a new box.

I have had issues with the Winchester bird shot loads from Walmart being too low powered to cycle my recoil operated shotgun, and I've bought bulk packs of Remington .22's that the bullet would actually rotate in the cartridge case (they still shot OK), but the WWB in .45 has been OK, for several years.

i get the impression that you consider ammunition to have an acceptable shelf life. how long is that, and why?

on the humourus side
you need 8 for the SHTF scenario
2 for each ankle holster
2 for left and right pocket holster
2 for left and right belt holster
2 for left and right shoulder holster
that's a well armed concealed carry citizen

Originally Posted by Broondog

i get the impression that you consider ammunition to have an acceptable shelf life. how long is that, and why?

It has nothing to do with shelf life.

Loading and unloading causes one round to be slammed into the chamber, which works approximately like an inertial bullet puller. Good ammo should probably not be affected by this. Still, there is a possibility that doing it enough times could unseat the bullet. I rotate the cartridges in the magazine, so the same one isn't being slammed into the chamber every time, but you lose track of that after a while, so I like to shoot those rounds and start over. It never hurts to function test your SD ammo occasionally, anyway.

To be honest, want and need are the same thing to me. That being said 60+ handguns and 20+ long guns and still looking for more that I don't have but need.
Also, FROM MY COLD DEAD FINGERS should somebody try to take my firearms.
If you have not yet, please write to Reps. in DC and your state and fight for your God given rights as confirmed by the constitution.

And as always shoot safe and have fun doing it.
JT

Originally Posted by Bisley

It has nothing to do with shelf life.

Loading and unloading causes one round to be slammed into the chamber, which works approximately like an inertial bullet puller. Good ammo should probably not be affected by this. Still, there is a possibility that doing it enough times could unseat the bullet. I rotate the cartridges in the magazine, so the same one isn't being slammed into the chamber every time, but you lose track of that after a while, so I like to shoot those rounds and start over. It never hurts to function test your SD ammo occasionally, anyway.

i have heard that theory before but i personally don't hold much stock in it. i'm not saying that you are wrong but in my experience it has never happened. when i first heard about the potential for bullets to "work themselves loose" i non-scientifically tested the theory by mic'ing various rounds of my own. some had been chambered, some not, and using various brands and configurations (weight and/or bullet type) that i had on hand, even my own handloads, and nothing that I measured came up out of spec.

does that mean it can't happen? no.
does that mean it wont happen? no again.
does that mean i am just lucky? unknown. (i'm not really that lucky in other things )

it just means that it hasn't yet happened to me. besides, there are other reasons to burn ammo IMO....like it's just frickin' fun!

and i was really hoping it wasn't a shelf life issue since i have some Nazi marked 8x56 Hungarian circa 1938, and some 7.65 Argie (date unknown, probably older) that both still go bang, and accurately to boot. in fact that older mil-surp stuff is loaded WAY hotter than any current production ammo and would like to take your shoulder off. ammo well stored will outlive us all!

Originally Posted by claimbuster

You did say NEED and not WANT....is that correct?

Yes, that is the key word. I hope my NEED is always ZERO, but WANT is a much larger number. It's no different than most things in life in that respect.

I guess need is meant as a way to cover all reasonable uses of a handgun. This is kind of like how many Phillips screwdrivers do you need.

I still see:
1 big revolver of use "in the bush".
1 full frame semi for home defense and can be carried.
1 smaller semi or revolver for carry under circumstances that prevent carrying a full frame
Some kind of 22 for cheap plinking.

Since I am not a hiker or hunter, I will stick to the bottom 3 and spend the leftover cash on a nice 12 gauge. I have rifles covered.

I guess I'll answer this question the way I answer it when/if asked by my wife: at least 2 more than I have at any given time.😃

Originally Posted by paratrooper

I've got that list covered......several times over.

Me too!!

How many do I need?

More than I have!!

Originally Posted by Tip

How many do I need?

More than I have!!

Tip, I like the way you think.

As taught by now departed dad, an NRA instructor, Boy Scout leader, and buget conscious (but NOT cheap) fiscal Conservative no more than one handgun per family member excluding a .22 target pistol to keep practice economical should suffice. Rifles and shotguns can be chosen while considering the situations and environment ie. terrain/topography/geographical location you might face, again a .22 caliber rifle allows economical practice. In my case unless a person lives in rural N.J. where is one going to engage a "target" at 100 yds, it's densely populated even in suburban areas (should I have to face a situation while at our barrier island condo in Florida my choices will be tailored to that location).

I'll NEVER understand those who insist on multiple handguns (revolvers/semi-autos) in a variety of calibers. There will be too much confusion in a natural disaster or SHTF scenario when selecting what to take and sorting through ammo. I think ones money will be better spent on extra recoil springs, spare cylinders, magazines, etc. and firing pins) in addition to an ample supply of a common caliber of ammuntion.

As someone who grew up in "the city" how grateful I am to my dad for getting me involved in Scouting back in 1971 cannot be fully expressed, it allowed me to learn so much that has been helpful over the years, the time at camp on weekends, summer camp, and Waterfront then later Program Director has been invaluable. As an example during Hurricane Sandy my wife was becoming increasingly frantic each day prior to the storm due to the constant "media-hype", she seriously considered evacuating. We live in NW N.J and our home is surrounded by large oak trees (thus her concern of damage to our home or us being injured). I saw the size of the storm and asked her "where do intend to go, the whole East Cost is under threat even Pennsylvania". After much thought and some heated discussions she decided to stay put though chose to ride out the hurricane two doors over in my neighbors home where there are no trees close to the house. I stayed in our 1950's fieldstone home (with thick walls) with our dog (our neighbor and his wife have cats) but I was prepared.

Days before the storm hit I had filled both car and Grand Cherokee plus a 6 gallon can with gas, used the extra fridge in the basement to freeze gallons of water (which we used to keep food cold once the power went out), stock up on bottled water, adding an extra 12 to make a total of 24 gallons (we're on a well), purchased extra canned goods, batteries of various sizes for the radio, flashlights & police scanner (though I always keep extras on hand), small propane cylinders/mantles for Coleman stove and lanterns. I filled all four of my 5 gallon jugs usually used for camping with water and did the same with my large pots, living on the shore of N.J.'s largest lake allowed me to use 5 gallon buckets of lake water to flush the toilet.

As soon as the storm passed my wife came back into our home (she was gone 2 days). Though we lost power early in the storm which left us without running water, heat (oil furnace), electricity, and other amenities like TV and internet we survived. The temps plummeted but I was able to keep one room barely tolerable using the fireplace (I wish we had a wood stove & generator) with all the trees on the property we have plenty of split wood. Thanks to the frozen gallons of water we didn't lose any frozen food due to spoilage and had a hot meal (cooked on the propane stove) each night in addition to coffee and soup during the day. Being without power for six (6) days is trying, we had been through it before during the 100 year flood in 2000 when the lake rose 11 ft (we evacuated my elderly in-laws from the lakefront house below us by boat and brought them into our small home for 2 wks), severe storms and blizzards (even an F-0 tornado that swept across the lake leaving us without power for 7 days), nerves get rattled, tempers get short, and with the bone chilling cold everyone (me, my wife, and dog) is "on edge".

The Boy Scouts and my father taught me to "Be Prepared". Keep things simple, don't overthink a possible scenario even when it comes to firearms. Stick to the basics, it'll make things much easier should you have to endure a situation like I've described above.

All of them

Originally Posted by BigCityChief

I guess I'll answer this question the way I answer it when/if asked by my wife: at least 2 more than I have at any given time.��

That about sums it up for me.

Originally Posted by JerseyJubal

As taught by now departed dad, an NRA instructor, Boy Scout leader, and buget conscious (but NOT cheap) fiscal Conservative no more than one handgun per family member excluding a .22 target pistol to keep practice economical should suffice. Rifles and shotguns can be chosen while considering the situations and environment ie. terrain/topography/geographical location you might face, again a .22 caliber rifle allows economical practice. In my case unless a person lives in rural N.J. where is one going to engage a "target" at 100 yds, it's densely populated even in suburban areas (should I have to face a situation while at our barrier island condo in Florida my choices will be tailored to that location).

I'll NEVER understand those who insist on multiple handguns (revolvers/semi-autos) in a variety of calibers. There will be too much confusion in a natural disaster or SHTF scenario when selecting what to take and sorting through ammo. I think ones money will be better spent on extra recoil springs, spare cylinders, magazines, etc. and firing pins) in addition to an ample supply of a common caliber of ammuntion.

As someone who grew up in "the city" how grateful I am to my dad for getting me involved in Scouting back in 1971 cannot be fully expressed, it allowed me to learn so much that has been helpful over the years, the time at camp on weekends, summer camp, and Waterfront then later Program Director has been invaluable. As an example during Hurricane Sandy my wife was becoming increasingly frantic each day prior to the storm due to the constant "media-hype", she seriously considered evacuating. We live in NW N.J and our home is surrounded by large oak trees (thus her concern of damage to our home or us being injured). I saw the size of the storm and asked her "where do intend to go, the whole East Cost is under threat even Pennsylvania". After much thought and some heated discussions she decided to stay put though chose to ride out the hurricane two doors over in my neighbors home where there are no trees close to the house. I stayed in our 1950's fieldstone home (with thick walls) with our dog (our neighbor and his wife have cats) but I was prepared.

Days before the storm hit I had filled both car and Grand Cherokee plus a 6 gallon can with gas, used the extra fridge in the basement to freeze gallons of water (which we used to keep food cold once the power went out), stock up on bottled water, adding an extra 12 to make a total of 24 gallons (we're on a well), purchased extra canned goods, batteries of various sizes for the radio, flashlights & police scanner (though I always keep extras on hand), small propane cylinders/mantles for Coleman stove and lanterns. I filled all four of my 5 gallon jugs usually used for camping with water and did the same with my large pots, living on the shore of N.J.'s largest lake allowed me to use 5 gallon buckets of lake water to flush the toilet.

As soon as the storm passed my wife came back into our home (she was gone 2 days). Though we lost power early in the storm which left us without running water, heat (oil furnace), electricity, and other amenities like TV and internet we survived. The temps plummeted but I was able to keep one room barely tolerable using the fireplace (I wish we had a wood stove & generator) with all the trees on the property we have plenty of split wood. Thanks to the frozen gallons of water we didn't lose any frozen food due to spoilage and had a hot meal (cooked on the propane stove) each night in addition to coffee and soup during the day. Being without power for six (6) days is trying, we had been through it before during the 100 year flood in 2000 when the lake rose 11 ft (we evacuated my elderly in-laws from the lakefront house below us by boat and brought them into our small home for 2 wks), severe storms and blizzards (even an F-0 tornado that swept across the lake leaving us without power for 7 days), nerves get rattled, tempers get short, and with the bone chilling cold everyone (me, my wife, and dog) is "on edge".

The Boy Scouts and my father taught me to "Be Prepared". Keep things simple, don't overthink a possible scenario even when it comes to firearms. Stick to the basics, it'll make things much easier should you have to endure a situation like I've described above.

No.

Originally Posted by Broondog

i have heard that theory before but i personally don't hold much stock in it. i'm not saying that you are wrong but in my experience it has never happened. when i first heard about the potential for bullets to "work themselves loose" i non-scientifically tested the theory by mic'ing various rounds of my own. some had been chambered, some not, and using various brands and configurations (weight and/or bullet type) that i had on hand, even my own handloads, and nothing that I measured came up out of spec.

does that mean it can't happen? no.
does that mean it wont happen? no again.
does that mean i am just lucky? unknown. (i'm not really that lucky in other things )

it just means that it hasn't yet happened to me. besides, there are other reasons to burn ammo IMO....like it's just frickin' fun!

and i was really hoping it wasn't a shelf life issue since i have some Nazi marked 8x56 Hungarian circa 1938, and some 7.65 Argie (date unknown, probably older) that both still go bang, and accurately to boot. in fact that older mil-surp stuff is loaded WAY hotter than any current production ammo and would like to take your shoulder off. ammo well stored will outlive us all!

I've never had it happen, either. But I have bought factory ammo that had loose bullets, from an improper crimp, and I've handloaded ammo with an improper crimp. So, no matter how much I think it probably won't happen, I find myself 'freshening' my ammo, anyway, for the weapon I'm depending on for self defense.