I am a big fan of Nosler seconds but have been trying to score some for about 8 months in 35 caliber and Nosler never shows any on there web site. They are always, Out of Stock.
Just curious, does anyone know how they determine when there will be seconds for sale?

It appears that everyone is doing a fine job at the factory. They only have seconds when there is an overrun that they cannot move, there is a blemish on the exterior, there is a flaw in the point profile, etc., etc. Not to worry, sooner or later someone will screw up the machinery and there will be a few hundred thousand on the market. The trick is to check back often and order when you find 'em.

Actually, part of the problem is that one individual buys up as many of the 2nds as he can and then sells them through reloadingseconds.com

And, he marks them up to nearly full retail of the "firsts." Nosler is aware of this but has not addressed it.

Also, Nosler batches their bullet runs. Right now, they may be making 6.5s. Next month, it may be .25s, etc.

I use the Nosler 2nds quite a bit and have always been extremely pleased with them. Many times, there are no defects -- not cosmetic or otherwise. Occasionally, Nosler will make a run for a certain company and produce bullets with different color tips, etc., than their set standard. For instance, I have some 7mm 150s (IIRC!) that have an orange tip, but for something like $7 a bag, who cares what the tip color is?

None of the animals I have shot with the seconds have ever voiced a complaint...

What they should do is limit the buyer to two boxes at a time. At least make the reseller work for his profit & pay more shipping. Be nice if they left some for the shooters

fredj338 wrote:

quote:

What they should do is limit the buyer to two boxes at a time.

A limit like that would have to be across the board, and two boxes at a time would put a crimp on my purchasing as well as many others. My most recent purchase was for 7 bags of 6.5 130 ABs.

I don't just buy one box of bullets at a time. I usually wait and do most of my bullet buying at once to get the best deal on shipping (with the Shooters Pro Shop, basic shipping is around $13, but it remains that even when you have multiple items. So the more you buy, the better your deal becomes)

Perhaps not allowing re-sale of seconds would be the only other way, but that, too, would be difficult to enforce and a step Nosler understandably may not want to take as a decision as such would certainly be controversial.

While in MO. I have stopped by Sierra Bullets and bought 2nd they limited it to 25lbs when I was last there.

I have bought Nosler 2nd they should do same.

Nosler is in business to sell bullets. Why would they want to ration them in order to sell them slower? And why should they care if a reseller is pumping his asking price up to near retail? It just helps support the price of their first-line boxed bullets.

quote:

Originally posted by Stonecreek:
Nosler is in business to sell bullets. Why would they want to ration them in order to sell them slower? And why should they care if a reseller is pumping his asking price up to near retail? It just helps support the price of their first-line boxed bullets.

Not to sell them slower but to keep the resellers from buying all of them & selling them again. When I suggested two box limits, that would be per caliber & per order. Someone wanting to buy 100bxs for resale would have to pay extra shipping & that might be a deterent. You see this often in retail, a super good price & someone comes in & buys it all. It's why many retailers place limits on sale merch. So more clients can be happy, not just one. Kind of what is going on @ Nosler, unhappy prospective buyers missing out becasue an entrepenuer bought them all.

The nosler seconds I bought in .30 cal and .277 were federal overruns. They had crimp rings on them. I was told that they were suposed to be bought by Federal but they cut their order short or something.

Stonecreek.....as much as this pains me deeply, I have to agree with you on this one!

That is free enterprise at work.

Bob

quote:

Originally posted by Stonecreek:
Nosler is in business to sell bullets. Why would they want to ration them in order to sell them slower? And why should they care if a reseller is pumping his asking price up to near retail? It just helps support the price of their first-line boxed bullets.

Not to sell them slower but to keep the resellers from buying all of them & selling them again.

Well, Fred, what do you think Federal is if not a reseller? The bullets Nosler offers to the public as overruns and seconds are the bullets that are left over after the bulk resellers have bought all they will take. If you went to Nosler and asked to bid on their lots of surplus bullets and you bid a price that would net them more than they can sell them for bag-at-a-time to individuals, you can bet your Second Amendment that those bullets would never find their way to the web site or seconds store. The reason Nosler markets their surplus is to get rid of them at the highest revenue, not to make some handloader in South Carolina or Labrador feel all warm and fuzzy.

If some guy thinks that Nosler has under-priced their surplus bullets and he can make a profit buying them at the same price as any other schmuck with a keyboard and an internet connection, then that guy has every right to buy as many as he wishes. If he's wrong, he'll lose money. If he's right, Nosler will, over time, adjust their prices upwards to take advantage of whatever the market will bear.

Now, I know that my friend Bob in TX would like to see a government program to give equal access to Nosler seconds, assuring that females, people with disabilities, and gays receive prior notice of all Nosler seconds sales and that no orders are allowed unless those groups are assured prior broadband connections in order to bid on an equal basis with illiterate rednecks; and that those groups, having historically had less opportunity to acquire Noslers must be given first consideration over the rednecks, most of whom already have a tub full of Noslers. But until me and my buddy Obama can get this in place, we'll just have to suffer under the oppressive regime of letting Nosler sell on a first-come-first-served basis. Ain't that right, Bob?

Damn straight!

I'm glad Nosler will sell me as many seconds as I want. I disagree with mandating some form of limit per person. I have a bunch of rifles, many in the same caliber. 100 bullets ain't gonna cut it for working up loads.

That's why I bought over 1000 solid base .277 130 grain bullets. I'm loading for 4 270s, and two 270 magnums.

Nosler is in business to sell their products, not rashion it like fuel at a gas station.

When I asked the lady at the Proshop just how many 180 ABs in 30 cal were available, her response was "probably more than you'd ever want to buy in a lifetime." This held true for the solid base bullets as well. She said they had well into the tens of thousands. I would imagine that this would be common for over-runs.

So, why would they ever tell any buyer they can only have 100 bullets?

I have been using Nosler seconds for years, they are just as good as first line Noslers for killing game...

I'm up on cabelas and shooters pro shop and the 338 225 grain partition are 94 cents more for firsts on cabelas vs. pro shooters. wheres the savings? shipping?

I am glad Nosler does not limit how many we can buy. My last purchase was for 1,000 180gr partions. Being able to purchase so many at one time is very beneficial to shipping costs as Nosler shipped the entire lot in one flat rate USPS box

33806whelen wrote:

quote:

I'm up on cabelas and shooters pro shop and the 338 225 grain partition are 94 cents more for firsts on cabelas vs. pro shooters. wheres the savings? shipping?

WRONG...

These bullets are $19.70 at Shooter's Pro Shop.

They are 45.99 at Cabela's.

I think you must have erred in looking up the prices.

Snowwolfe wrote:

quote:

I am glad Nosler does not limit how many we can buy. My last purchase was for 1,000 180gr partions. Being able to purchase so many at one time is very beneficial to shipping costs as Nosler shipped the entire lot in one flat rate USPS box

That's exactly how I like to buy mine. And when the Shooter's Pro Shop has a sale, it's a darned good one. A few months back (maybe around the end of '07), I picked up 6.5mm, 125 grain Partitions for 9.95 per 50. And they are giving me sub-0.5" groups in fireforming loads in my 26" MGM Contender barrel in 6.5 Bullberry Imp.