Hey friends. Hope your week is going well.
As 2022 wraps up, I’m taking into account all my expenditures for the year, and thought it might be useful to make a quick writeup on the costs of gun ownership. Let’s dive in
Starting Out: $500 to Several Thousand Dollars
If you don’t yet own a gun and want to start from zero, assuming you live in a freedom loving state (and are an idiot) all you really need is the gun and a box of ammo. Cheap pump action shotguns and some 9mm pistols can be had for less than $300 these days, and ammo is getting cheaper. Buy it at Cabelas, stash it in your closet, and boom you’re technically a gun owner.
But assuming you’re a not a moron, you’ll get practice and maybe even some training right off the bat. You bought a Glock or another gun Black Lagoon recommended for $500 or so, spent another $100 on gear and cleaning material to take care of your investment, and maybe bought some ammo in bulk. Throw in a training class, and you’re set for the year for about a grand.
Taking my wretched state of Illinois into account, we’ll itemize the cost for a Year One shooter
FOID Card, CCW Class, CCW Permit - $400
Glock 19 - $600 (at the high end)
Quality Active Earpro and Eyepro - $100
Cleaning materials + kit - $50
100 large hanging paper targets - $50
1000 rounds of FMJ ammunition for training - $400-500 (Illinois has bullshit taxes on ammo even if you buy in bulk)
10 trips to the local shooting range - ~$250 (this varies wildly)
100 rounds of hollowpoint ammo for defensive use - $100
So even in a Commie state, it’s relatively affordable (~$2000) to become a proficient pistol marksman in a year with solid practice. Bare in mind that over and above your CCW classwork (which you should take even if you live in a state that doesn’t require it), getting training from an experienced instructor can be well worth the money. A $400 weekend course firing 400 rounds of ammo under strict guidance can make you better than 4000 rounds of ammo blasted away on your own.
Special Note on Rifles: You’ll spend more if you’re starting out with an AR-15 as a first gun. You can expect a decent AR to be at least $1000 after getting it set up with a quality optic, sling, and light. Also bear in mind that ammo is more expensive. Expect the cheapest dogshit .223 steel case ammo from a former Warsaw Pact country to cost 30% more per round than quality brass case 9mm.
Recurring Annual Costs
Here it just comes down to how often and how much you want to shoot. Anecdotally, you’ll need to practice pistol more than rifle, as your skills degrade faster with the former. I try to shoot at the very least 100 rounds a month, so between ammo and range fees that leaves me at about $500 a year at the very minimum, which is chump change to maintain a skill that I enjoy and even make money from. Ideally I like to get through 5000 rounds a year in training and amateur competition, so a couple grand is more realistic of my yearly spend on ammo. At more than 5000 rounds a year is where a dedicated shooter should start to approach the idea of reloading his own ammunition instead of buying it wholesale from a retailer, but I doubt I’m ever going to get into this as it’s just a little too autistic (in a Unabomber way) to appeal to me.
If you’re serious about getting good at shooting, I believe you should aim to attend at least one practical shooting class per year (at the least just to have your skills coached from an outside perspective) and go out and compete in a practical shooting match (primarily so you can learn what it’s like to shoot under pressure, but also because…it’s fun)! Budgeting for this is not a frivolous thing for the median income American, but it’s certainly doable. Any hobby worth having will probably cost similar to this: a couple grand a year.
Letting Things Get Out of Control
Now, I know there’s some very high NW people who read this, and to those guys let me just say: if you got the cash, this hobby will come to take it from you. There’s always “better gear” and “more capability”. It all starts out from the guy who wants a “fighting rifle” ($2000) and then it’s on to a night vision setup ($5K-12K) and then he’s decked out in full Navy SEAL kit and driving a $50K 4Runner that he’s starting to consider strapping armor plate to “just in case”.
I’m not going to tell you how to spend your money but just please bear in mind how much you’re prepared to spend on this “lifestyle” vs the chances of actually needing to use any of it.
Are you a competitive shooter and coach others? $10K in ammo per year makes sense.
Do you live out in the woods and wait for The Collapse (Hi BigHorn!)? $5000 on Night Vision is a good investment in a Nightmare World.
But there’s nothing more offputting as the rich guy who gets into tactical gear as some weird cope for not having served in the military. Except maybe the 20-something broke boi that nonetheless has a stockpile of guns he saw for the first time in Call of Duty. Don’t Become a Meme.
That’s all for today. I’m home for a day before getting on another flight back down South, so maybe you’ll see another post on Monday or Tuesday after I get settled in. Have a great rest of your weekend.