Shotshell prices have been going up for a while.....started the last two years around here. If you can get promo shells for $5-$6/box, my recommendation is BUY 'EM!!!! You ain't gonna see those prices for very much longer!
Prices started to skyrocket a couple of years ago....China was on a building boom and was buying anything and everything on the scrap metal market (sound familiar?
) including lead, copper, brass, and other metals. The Olympics were being held in Beijing, and they had the whole world to impress.
Shot went (literally) from $14-$15/25lbs to over $50 for a bag! .30/30 shells were running around $30/box, and .30-06 ammo was around $45-$50/box of 20. This was not the Superduperkiller ammo that the companies want you to buy......this was the 'standard' soft point hunting ammo that cost $7.99/box at most places just a year before.
Prices have come down a little bit....last box of .30/30 ammo I examined at the local Gander Mountain was around $15/box, and promo shotshells are running between $8-$10/box. Clay pigeons took a hit, too....used to buy 'em on sale for around $5/box; now they are near $10. Shot is running around $30/25lbs, and that is the bottom of the line stuff.
My advice? If you find a good deal, don't think twice and scoop it up...........