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PB Clermont Evacuation And Clearing Underway. Ammunition Industry Remains Ominously Silent.
Bearing Arms ^ | 3-14-14 | Bob Owens

Posted on ‎3‎/‎16‎/‎2014‎ ‎11‎:‎38‎:‎23‎ ‎PM by smokingfrog

One week after an explosion at the world’s second largest small arms propellant factory leveled a building, Belgian authorities have evacuated an area 350 meters out from the edges of an “explosion exclusion perimeter.” A French hazardous materials recovery company is now on-site and has tackled the dangerous process of attempting to recover existing propellants and begin the clean-up and evacuation of materials.

PB Clermont SA provides small arms propellant (gunpowder) to most ammunition manufacturers in Europe and many in the United States. Last Friday at about 5:00 PM local time after most workers had gone home for the day, an explosion leveled a key building used to manufacture propellant used for rifle cartridges. Two employees were injured.

The cause of the explosion is still unknown.

Clean-up efforts began yesterday, after the necessary initial investigative work had been completed and the area was saturated with water to help prevent the possibility of a follow-on explosions. The recovery of explosive materials is expected to be completed today.

Sabine Huc, the communications manager at PB Clermont, said that 20 nearby homes were evacuated for the duration of the clean-u

This is all we need for more panic buying to occur. Thankfully this last year was a blessing in discuise for me. I grumbled at having to buy larger quantities of my powders instead of my usual 1-2 lb containers. I figure I have many years worth of reloading ahead of me.

Maybe I could get some Glad bags, weigh some out, and sell them in the parking lot at gun shows to suppliment my retirement. Just kidding.

Just vote for conservatives.
Get liberals out of the White House and out of Congress and we will have plenty of powder.

Western Powders get their Accurate & Ramshot from that Belgium factory. A buddy just found me 4 cans of TAC, it'll be a good hunting season.

After "O's" first election and the shelves were full the nx summer; I went into sportsmans and bought 3500 bucks worth primers & powder & brass. They gave me 10% discount too. Trouble is I have used up the flavors I really like and don't want to use my backup unless I have to.

So this year, I'm concentrating on just my favorites. Couple of us got together and bought over 100 lbs, had it shipped. I got me 20 lbs RL-22, I use that in all my magnums. I went through 8 lbs in 4-5 years. Maybe half dozen favorite powders I really like. I want to have between 8-15 lbs of those varieties. THen no worries and I ain't looking everywhere for powder no more.

Actually, Western powders is the US distributor for Norma Powders as well. Norma is made at Bofors in Sweden. They are not effected by the Clairmont blast!

I might be wrong, but once remember somebody from Western tell me their powder comes from Belgium. They probably get it from anywhere they can, with one company putting many names & labels on the same powder; like so much that is manufactured today.

Zhurh, you are correct about the Western powders. Rusty was just pointing out that Western is ALSO the US distributor for Norma.

Hmmm . . . let's see. There is ADI (now under another name) in Australia, the IMR producer in Canada, Bofors in Sweden; Nobel in Britain; Rotweil in Germany; St. Marks in Florida; Vhitavori in Finland; Somchem in South Africa; IMI of Israel; Vectan, Scot, and a Czech plant that I can name offhand. This doesn't include powder plants in Russia, China, or South America. And it doesn't include smaller contract producers scattered around the U.S. and various European countries.

I doubt that one plant going offline in Belgium will have anything like the impact that hoarding has had on powder availability. Once the hoarders are saturated the market will return to its normal state. In fact, with the hoarders saturated it is easy to predict significantly less retail powder demand in the future -- it is just that no empirical data exists to reliably predict exactly when "the future" is.

What some people call "hoarding" I call "maintaing an adequate stock of components."

I reload A LOT. Long ago after the Clinton scare I swore that I would keep an "adequate stock" of components on hand -- to include powder -- to support my reloading/shooting habit. So I spent 8 years slowly building up supplies, and when the Obama "gun and reloading salesman of the century" came in, I had what I needed ON HAND. So now I just replace what I use, while still maintaining an "adequate stock."

I take the time to check the local shops 2 or 3 times a week and pick up what I need to replace supplies -- but if supplies complete dry up I am set for quite some time to include the ability to mold my own bullets if need be. That is called "being prepared" not "hoarding."

It looks to me that the Belgium accident will have an impact or provide an excuse for other suppliers to jack up their prices again -- Law of Supply and Demand. And the "hoarding" will continue until 2016 changes the political climate.

Does no good to bitch about it.

Barstooler

Before everyone went paranoid 2 years ago, I'd try to keep about a years worth of each powder, primers and reloading components. Now it is more like 2 years for primers. Powder jumped to 4+ years, not by my choice, just the only size I could find powder in was 8 lb containers. I use 3 different pistol powders and 2 different rifle powders.

I use to no worry about the limits on what a person was allowed to keep without a magazine but I do now.

As I said, hoarding was not my choice for powder.

Maybe I could get some Glade bags and sell smaller wts out of my trunk at gun shows. Me the powder pusher instead of drug pusher Just Kidding.

Call it what you may, it feels awful good to not even thinking about needing anymore powder. Honestly, Me thinks the powers that be will tax or restrict reloading components down the road. Remember back in the 90's before metal price increases? Wish I had bought supplies way back prior to the increase. I'm sure we'll see more increases down the road.

Good idea on hoarding. I have been looking for Federal 215(M) for months now. The last gun show I was at, the doors opened at 9AM. I was at the start of the line by 9:15 and they were sold out already.

I might have to pay the outrageous prices on Gunbroker if I can't find any in the next two months.

If you check the big online sites on a regular basis you can find any powder you like. In the last month I purchased the following from online retailers:
6 pounds of VV 310
7 pounds of Unique
3 pounds of Bullseye
3 pounds of VV 105

Tanks,
Call Graf and Son. I think they still let you put in a back order. Order some primers. They will let you know when it is ready to be filled!

quote:

Originally posted by deltam:
This is all we need for more panic buying to occur. Thankfully this last year was a blessing in discuise for me. I grumbled at having to buy larger quantities of my powders instead of my usual 1-2 lb containers. I figure I have many years worth of reloading ahead of me.

Maybe I could get some Glad bags, weigh some out, and sell them in the parking lot at gun shows to suppliment my retirement. Just kidding.

I did the same, I won't be buying much in the next 5 years.

quote:

Originally posted by Rusty:
Tanks,
Call Graf and Son. I think they still let you put in a back order. Order some primers. They will let you know when it is ready to be filled!

Actually, I have a back order of 10K primers and 8 lbs of Unique with them. Email and text notification with Midway as well.

Someone's tag line reads:

"Just because you are paranoid doesn't mean they aren't out to get you!"



friar

My local supplier told me today that he has 7,000 pounds of powder orders on back-order. He also said that his distributor is not taking anymore orders for Trail Boss. I did manage to pickup 8 pounds of IMR 4350.

I was reading, no more Russkie firearms or ammo coming into USA, by EX Ord. Also that the Feinstein Lady wants Ex Ord on all foreign made semi autos, probably will cover ammo & powder too like with the Russkies. Now folks, that would hurt everybody as most powder comes from off shore. I don't know if I could live without Lapua Brass either?

Call me paranoid, but just seems everything is going in the wrong direction to my liking.

quote:

Just because you are paranoid doesn't mean they aren't out to get you

It should read, “Just because you don’t feel paranoid, doesn't mean they aren't out to get you”.

Paranoid people do have "real" enemies from time to time.

quote:

Originally posted by MickinColo:
My local supplier told me today that he has 7,000 pounds of powder orders on back-order. He also said that his distributor is not taking anymore orders for Trail Boss. I did manage to pickup 8 pounds of IMR 4350.

Trail Boss?? Kind of funny considering my choices last summer. Last summer that was one of the few powders that I could find locally. I bit the bullet, so to speak, and bought a 5 lb container. It is actually an 8 lb container with 5 lbs of powder in it. I was looking for something to load sub-sonic rifle rounds. Since it only takes 6-7 grs per rifle load, I was fussy about so much powder. Since I got it, I've found other uses. It works especially well for .38 spec. I can actually see the powder level in the case.

Trail Boss is a real popular powder. His distributor doesn't want to add anymore orders to their back log.

quote:

I doubt that one plant going offline in Belgium will have anything like the impact that hoarding has had on powder availability.

I guess that depends on whether one uses powders that came from this Belgium plant or not.

Here is a list of Weatern powders that came from this Belgium plant.

Magnum
BigGame
Hunter
Tac
X-Terminator
Enforcer
True Blue
Zip
2230
2520
4100

That's a big chunk of Weastern's line-up.

I've learned to buy my powder and primers between scares and at low prices. The funny thing is, we get all kinds of warning when panic buying starts in the States but people still seem to be astonished when the shelves are empty 6 months later.

quote:

Originally posted by Greg K:

quote:

Originally posted by deltam:
I grumbled at having to buy larger quantities of my powders instead of my usual 1-2 lb containers. I figure I have many years worth of reloading ahead of me.

I did the same, I won't be buying much in the next 5 years.

My point exactly. Here are two reloaders who have years of powder (and presumably other components) on hand and are only in the market for more if it is a bargain. More and more of us are in the same position (I know that I am). It doesn't take a rocket scientist (or a macro economist) to figure out that the long-term outlook for the price of any commodity in such a situation is bearish.

Short term, some low-information/panic buyers will continue to buy at inflated prices, but their chances of the market turning against them (in a speculative sense) are very high. Some other buyers who envision reselling the commodity at a higher price may or may not continue to profit in the short term, but are at risk of being caught with the commodities they are holding as inventory in a downward price spiral. Why do you think that retailers have quit backordering many components? Simple: Because they don't want to get caught with thousands of dollars in inventory for which demand is softening and prices declining.

Checking around my household I find that I have about a 1-week supply of milk; a ten-day supply of other foodstuffs; a three-week supply of underarm deodorant and toothpaste; a three-day supply of auto gasoline; a four-week supply of water softner salt; an automobile which will probably go about 40,000 more miles (or two years) before requiring replacement; a one-month supply of firewood; and I have no reserve at all of electricity, which in turn means that my supply of water in my holding tank is less than two days worth.

In contrast, the jug of WC 844 which I am working on is over 15 years old, and there's another full one sitting in the cabinet behind it. There may be a couple of powders that I could run out of in a couple of years, but I have others which would adequately substitute. In other words, I have years of powder on hand and like most reloaders, I'm not in the market for more of it so long as prices are inflated.

It is plain to see that a shortage of Colgate Toothpaste would have much more impact on my lifestyle (and also for those of you who regularly brush your teeth) than the fire at a powder plant in Belgium.