Your Very Own Ammo Dump

Remember Burt Gummer from the film Tremors? Remember that outrageous basement he had and all the guns, ammo and gear to survive the end of the world? Don't you sometimes wish you had the funds to have such a thing?

Suffice to say a lot of people probably do.

Here's the thing - no matter what caliber you're looking to stock up on - it'll probably end up costing you a bit of money. From dirt cheap Russian 7.62x39 ammo costing you a mere 12 cents a round to expensive .308 rounds costing you almost 3 dollars a pop - in bulk it'll cost you.

How much are you willing to spend on a single online or in-store order?

First and foremost have a good place to store it; an attic that doesn't leak, a basement that doesn't flood, a stand-up gun safe (if you own one) and most importantly somewhere where children cannot easily get to it. If you don't have a gun safe and are going the ammo-can route that's perfectly fine. You can get surplus ammo cans in a number of different sizes for very little - either online, gun shops or in your local army surplus store.

Here's a tip: if you don't want to spend 200 to 500 dollars in one go then buy a little bit at a time. Whether you're buying pistol, rifle or shotgun ammo you can get pretty much any of it at your local gun store, or if you feel like living on the edge Wal-Mart will do too, I guess. Buy 20-50 rounds at a time. Maybe a box or two a week on your way home from work or when you're doing your regular around-town errands. It'll accumulate in your ammo cans fast enough. In about a month I was about to amass over 300 rounds of the cheap Russian TulAmmo, one box of Winchester and one box of American Eagle 7.62x39 ammunition.  Did it cost me more than buying in bulk? Yes, a little, but sometimes it's easier to buy in little spurts when you have many other expenditures and financial responsibilities to attend to.

Another note - find a relatively dry and cool place to store your ammo. And yes, most ammo can last quite a while in rather adverse conditions, but wouldn't you rather be safe than sorry? Newer plastic ammo cans have an O-ring that helps protect against moisture, which is nice if you have 20-30 boxes of stacked ammo you're planning on storing for the long run.