This hasn’t been a great past few days for the world.
That’s likely as understated a description as would be imaginable. But “the world’s lost its ever-loving mind” would be more inflammatory than helpful. Doesn’t seem we need any more inflammation.
“Are we headed for another “Ammo-geddon?”
That’s the question a friend stunned me with over the weekend. Honestly, there’s no real way to answer that.
Ammunition makers have been going at what’s described as close to “full steam” for months.
But as demand on the most popular calibers has lessened, they’ve been able to get back to making some of the second or third tier calibers that might not be as popular, but have very dedicated users. That, along with some softening in retail pricing, had been reason for many of us to believe the ammo supplies were getting back to sustainable levels. Some, in fact, were beginning to glut the supply chain.
That was before the Hamas attack on Israel. Before the administration pledged it’s “unconditional, full support of Israel” - including restocking their “Iron Dome” and other defenses. That started tongues wagging.
On Thursday, rumors began circulating that Remington’s Lake City ammo facility, primarily a supplier to the military, had quietly canceled “several” civilian contracts. We haven’t been able to confirm those reports, but they’re certainly growing in number and frequency. If Lake City’s stopping sales to civilians, that might indicate a future point shortage in military caliber ammo produced there. That’s predicated, however, on their actually having cancelled orders.
But as news broke Friday that there had been an explosion - with casualties - at a Hornady Manufacturing chemical compounding building in Wood River, Nebraska, fears of an ammunition shortage quickly started spreading.
Subsequent news reports from Wood River confirmed the accident, along with a single fatality, and two other injuries. With an investigation ongoing, information hadn’t advanced much since then.
Until last evening when Jason Hornady responded to our request for information.
“We’re devastated for our employee, their family and loved ones,” he told me. We’re hurting along with the entire Hornady team.”
“We are working with all agencies to investigate the cause,” he continued, “this incident was isolated to our primer facility and did not impact any of our manufacturing facilities.”
He also asked that we let everyone who has reached out to Hornady know how much they appreciate the messages as “we grieve the loss of one of our own."
We can, sadly, confirm that we’re missing two more names from our industry.
Word over the weekend that longtime gun writer Dick Metcalf had passed away. For decades, Metcalf’s columns in Guns & Ammo inspired, informed and ultimately, infuriated, readers. “Infuriated” isn’t speaking ill of Metcalf, but does accurately describe the furor he caused with a single phrase in what turned out to be his final column: “I don’t think that requiring 16 hours of training to qualify for a concealed carry license is infringement (referring to the Second Amendment) in and of itself. But that’s just me.”
A column expected to “generate a healthy exchange of ideas on gun rights” resulted in a firestorm that ultimately ended with Metcalf exiled from the industry where he’d been a fixture for decades.
As Metcalf told Tom Gresham afterwards, “We expected we would generate a conversation. We didn’t think we were going to incite a riot.”
Finally, another of competition shooting’s gracious and soft-spoken champions has passed.
Retired Mississippi Highway Patrol Captain Philip Wayne Hemphill, 71, died Thursday, October 12 at his home in Meridian. Hemphill’s thirty-plus year Highway Patrol career ended in 2011, but most shooters remember Hemphill for his championship performances in pistol shooting.
A ten-time National Police Pistol Combat Champion and two-time NRA Precision Pistol Champion, Hemphill shot his first NPSC in 1985 in Des Moines, Iowa. He competed every year (with the exception of 2005 when Hurricane Katrina forced cancellation of the matches in Jackson, Mississippi) until he served as a referee in 2008.
In 2008, he returned to the range in Albuquerque as a shooter to compete one final time- and captured his tenth title.
Following his competition career, Hemphill represented Team Zero, Rock River Arms, Lapua and AimPoint. He remained one of the few people who drew the attention of competitors, fellow vendors and spectators at shooting events.
Funeral services will be held this morning at Cross Mountain Ministries in Porterville, Mississippi.
As always, we’ll keep you posted.
— Jim Shepherd