Maybe some of those scarce shipping containers are becoming available, and/or are finally being offloaded from the backed up ships at U.S. ports. Is the availability of air rifles actually starting to improve?
I use Pyramyd Air's inventory as an indicator of the market. They don't carry all brands I am interested in, but they are a big outfit and one would think that they have the purchasing power to get rifle inventory when available.
Some have complained about the revision to PA's web site last year, but I find at least some of the new features to be very handy. My comments are related only to PCP air rifles, as I have not been tracking springers, CO2, etc. But you can set a search on PA's site to the type of rifle you are looking for, and check a box to show 'In Stock Only.'
Their inventory sometimes show the rifles in up to 3 different configurations - the rifle alone, the rifle in a basic kit (like with a hand pump) and the rifle in a more deluxe kit (like with a pump and scope). Also within the different inventory item, there may or may not be multiple calibers available. Many times an inventory item will only show 1 or 2 units available, in a single caliber choice.
For PCP air rifles in 2021 their inventory has been showing sometimes as many as in the mid-80's, and sometimes as low as in the mid 60's. This morning when I looked, it had cracked the 100 mark for the first time I have seen this year - 106.
Supply is still pretty tight and demand pretty high, so desired items may not last long. When I looked back at the inventory page about 10 minutes later, the figure was already down to 102.
But maybe this is an indication that supply (or the actual delivery of rifles which may have been shipped months back, but have been stuck on a boat) is easing. I sure hope so because it really seems like a lot of potential new shooters want to get into airguns, but have found the gun they decided they want to be unavailable to purchase.
Now if some of those shipping containers with pellet inventory could just reach our shores and get unloaded! Being able to get your chosen air rifle is only half the equation if there is no ammo available for it.
I just placed my first pellet order with Krale when I saw that they had JSB varient FX branded pellets in stock which I needed. Almost anything you buy from Krale and have shipped to the U.S. starts out with about a $35 shipping cost. For 36 tins of pellets about another $50 was added to this cost (or about another $1.40 per tin) of shipping. It kind of hurt when I pressed the buy button, but if I am still shooting as much as I want to and the pellet shortage hasn't improved, that extra $50 I spent to buy these pellets will be long forgotten.
I use Pyramyd Air's inventory as an indicator of the market. They don't carry all brands I am interested in, but they are a big outfit and one would think that they have the purchasing power to get rifle inventory when available.
Some have complained about the revision to PA's web site last year, but I find at least some of the new features to be very handy. My comments are related only to PCP air rifles, as I have not been tracking springers, CO2, etc. But you can set a search on PA's site to the type of rifle you are looking for, and check a box to show 'In Stock Only.'
Their inventory sometimes show the rifles in up to 3 different configurations - the rifle alone, the rifle in a basic kit (like with a hand pump) and the rifle in a more deluxe kit (like with a pump and scope). Also within the different inventory item, there may or may not be multiple calibers available. Many times an inventory item will only show 1 or 2 units available, in a single caliber choice.
For PCP air rifles in 2021 their inventory has been showing sometimes as many as in the mid-80's, and sometimes as low as in the mid 60's. This morning when I looked, it had cracked the 100 mark for the first time I have seen this year - 106.
Supply is still pretty tight and demand pretty high, so desired items may not last long. When I looked back at the inventory page about 10 minutes later, the figure was already down to 102.
But maybe this is an indication that supply (or the actual delivery of rifles which may have been shipped months back, but have been stuck on a boat) is easing. I sure hope so because it really seems like a lot of potential new shooters want to get into airguns, but have found the gun they decided they want to be unavailable to purchase.
Now if some of those shipping containers with pellet inventory could just reach our shores and get unloaded! Being able to get your chosen air rifle is only half the equation if there is no ammo available for it.
I just placed my first pellet order with Krale when I saw that they had JSB varient FX branded pellets in stock which I needed. Almost anything you buy from Krale and have shipped to the U.S. starts out with about a $35 shipping cost. For 36 tins of pellets about another $50 was added to this cost (or about another $1.40 per tin) of shipping. It kind of hurt when I pressed the buy button, but if I am still shooting as much as I want to and the pellet shortage hasn't improved, that extra $50 I spent to buy these pellets will be long forgotten.
