But, in TEOTWAWKI, they won't be making parts for an F150 either. They'll be coming from existing stocks, and then from junked cars. And when all the parts off of junkers are gone.....they'll be gone. You can at least reload your own ammo. However, 74novaman is right. Don't count on stockpiles being available then, because they will have all been "privatized" by those with the quickest access to them. Stockpile now. Stockpile plenty. Pretty much any time I buy 5.56 ammo, I always buy at least a couple of more boxes than I'm going to need for that day's shooting, and I occasionally buy a bulk box. For now, I buy loaded 5.56 ammo, and save the spent brass. To date, the only thing in that caliber (actually .223) that I've been reloading is match grade loads. At some point I'll load bulk ammo too.Vic wrote:I agree wholeheartedly with this. However, there is a limit to what one can do, no matter what. For example, imagine for a minute that they stopped making cars. Parts from certain very common vehicles would be much easier to come by than others. It would be easier to get a part for a Ford F-150 than it would be to get the same part for a Honda Ridgeline. It is easier to get something when there are more of that thing.74novaman wrote:
But in the end, unless you're planning on stocking a lot of 5.56 yourself, I think it is very poor planning to count on supplies you THINK you'll be able to scavenge, buy, or steal in the end. Anything you want to have in a bad situation, you honestly need to already own.
Again, this is all just one guys opinion.
My son wants to get himself a 4x4, and he has the notion that his future in-laws' TEOTWAWKI preparations (yes, they are preparers) are good because they involve eventually decamping the entire clan to an existing sanctuary in the Colorado Rockies via a rallying point in Abilene. I pointed out to him that this is a nearly 1,000 mile journey, by a largish group of people, with lots of stores on hand. They'll never make it.....not just because they'll be a target for every group of bandits and "toll-collectors" along the way, but because there will be no more commercially available gasoline. In TEOTWAWKI, those with the gasoline are going to keep it for their local economies, and sell it dearly. No gasoline stockpiles. No ammo stockpiles. No food stockpiles. No medicine stockpiles. None of that.
Far better to plan for that reality and stockpile now what you think you're going to need then, and actually have it on hand when it is needed. And who knows? Maybe you'll be lucky and have access to more later....
....or, you could just give up and enjoy your new rifle and not worry about it too much. I fall somewhere in between the two extremes.