Cheaper Than Dirt ultimate retail Gougers!!!!

I ran across this ad while looking for some 22LR today.

http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/product/AMM-0762

We can buy the best ammunition that ELEY offers for $.40 a round.

I have never purchased anything from Cheaper Than Dirt, and am proud to say never will.

I realize that most people would say, "If you don't like it then don't buy it!" which I agree with.

My response would be that when all this is over we should remember ads like this because there are plenty of

other companies that are not gouging their customers that deserve our business.

Unbelievable!!
You have to be either on drugs or unbelievably arrogant to actually put an ad like that out to the public.
I believe I will exercise my right to NOT buy from CTD. Luckily I have sufficient supply in reserve to take care of matches this summer. And enough blaster ammo to practice with, it won't shoot as well but it will allow for some ball and dummy sessions.

cheaper than dirt are gougers, they send me emails and all the stuff they have is ridiculous overpriced, last week it was 300 rds of 223 for 359.00! screw them, i would never order anything else ever.

On another forum they are referred to as "Dumber Than Dirt" :-)

Chip

I agree. To bad these guys are the main sponsor of American Rifleman TV. NRA should drop them in my opinion.

ChipEck wrote:On another forum they are referred to as "Dumber Than Dirt" :-)

Chip

That's kinder than some others I've read. I refer to CTD as Choose To Dump, as in they are no longer on my list of suppliers to buy from. What's sad is, folks are paying the prices for whatever reason.

It would be great if people would post other places that have stock on hand at better prices. As Wingshot mentions, folks are buying at the listed prices. If not, prices would drop.

Here's some CCI 1070 FPS in stock at Cheaper than Dirt:
http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/product/AMM-0762
Only a BUCK A ROUND!!!

This is the best thing I see available in stock right now. It's not quite double what it should cost...
http://www.ammunitiontogo.com/product_info.php/pName/50rds-22lr-colt-standard-velocity-40gr-solid-point-ammo/cName/22-long-rifle-solid-point

Eley Club is in stock at Champions Choice for ~$600 a case.

I thought 300 rds of 223 for 359.00 was bad, check this out this "Great Deal" ( said with extreme sarcasm) from cheaper than dirt. i wish i knew where the cheap dirt they refer to is, gouging at its best, the absolute cheapest 22 crap on the planet. buy it here!!! We all should remember these AH's when things get back to normal.

http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/product/AMM-0551

I bought locally a few Armscor SV boxes of this crap ammo to try a couple years ago. It was cheap....then. But not worth it for BE at any price.

Wow, you all sound like socialists.
Ever study "supply and demand?"
Nobody is forcing any one to buy from them. If they sell at that price, they have money to buy more stuff.
I wish the school systems would teach Economics--but given that they can't teach any thing any way...

You miss our point. Because "cheaper than dirt" has abused shooters by using their volume to get product that others cannot get and selling it at the highest price the market can bear, we resolve not to buy anything from them when supply and demand returns to normal.

We totally understand the dynamics of the "cheaper than dirt" business model. We simply want to attempt to make it backfire for them. We will continue to favor sellers like Champion's Choice who don't profiteer off of us.

Wow! I should have stocked up when Able Ammo was selling the exact same item for the bargain price of $33.95.

noylj wrote:Wow, you all sound like socialists.
Ever study "supply and demand?"
Nobody is forcing any one to buy from them. If they sell at that price, they have money to buy more stuff.
I wish the school systems would teach Economics--but given that they can't teach any thing any way...

I understand that cheaper than dirt is not paying more for this ammo than they did 6 months ago but they choose to gouge those who are willing to buy it. Not supply and demand my friend its just called taking advantage of its customer base that has built their business to the huge thing it is. If you think its alright to take advantage of your loyal customers then you will never make in retail business. All this is going to settle down and the guys that gouged will feel our retaliation in the form of no longer buying from them. There are plenty of great retailers that are selling their ammo as it comes in and not taking advantage, they will get our business.

When I was young, living at home with my parents near a small town, we experienced an intense blizzard that closed things down for a week+. There were (2) grocery stores in town. One, a family run business, kept prices the same and helped via snowmobile volunteers get necessary supplies to people. The other store, saw an opportunity for the quick buck and increased all of there prices. The first store is still in business after more than 30 years. The other went out of business a long time ago.

I understand supply and demand, but.......I also understand that competition is strong. When things settle back to normal I believe the companies that kept there prices within reason, will keep customers. It's important to look at the long run if you want to stay in business.

Just my 2 cents.

Steve

noylj wrote:Wow, you all sound like socialists.
Ever study "supply and demand?"
Nobody is forcing any one to buy from them. If they sell at that price, they have money to buy more stuff.
I wish the school systems would teach Economics--but given that they can't teach any thing any way...

I understand supply and demand very well as a sales manager for a product that is very close to a commodity. They have limited supply so which is reflected in their price. CTD works off of a volume model that means in a normal market they move large volumes at small margins to be successful. The only problem with this model is when there is no volume to sell they fail.

Our local gun stores operate on less volume and higher margins so in today's environment they are better able to adapt and keep prices close to normal selling prices.

This brings me to the reason for my post. We need to support our local gun stores going forward because they are the suppliers that have been there for us consistently.

And no this is not a socialistic philosophy, it is still a capitalistic model just not the Walmart model that CTD uses.

If the market is currently in a shortage, prices aren't at equilibrium.

I am all for supporting my local gun store. They haven't had .22 or 9mm for months. This reinforces the idea that prices aren't in equilibrium. It's tough to buy at prices that don't exist any more.

Asking a high price and getting it for a commodity isn't gouging. If CTD starts forcing people to buy at above equilibrium prices, that would be gouging.

Price of Gold over the last 10 years

Are gold sellers gouging? Gold is rarely lost. And, more gold is found everyday. So, while supply is increasing, prices have continued to rise. What gives? Is this caused by gouging?




I found this ad online, but it appears all the rifles are sold. That sucks. I really wanted an AR-15 for $229.50. Prices are silly these days. People want $1000. Gougers.

Perhaps, it is the rising demand. It could be somewhat related to the value of the dollar being lower. That sounds vaguely familiar since December.

I hope at least a few people here are able to see the humor in this post.

Before Newtown, you could get a slick side M&P-15 for $399. Considering the age of your ad, I would say the M&P-15 is cheaper.

Dewey, sure prices vary over time, and tend to follow supply and demand curves. It's "gouging" when a seller significantly increases their margin in a time of limited supply beyond that intersection of supply and demand. Cheaper than Dirt is gouging. They have increased their MARGIN beyond what is courteous.

I don't recall courteous margins in any of my economics classes. Gouging simply cannot exist. If you don't like the price, don't buy.

I get the point of these posts. It's all a bunch of rabble rousing so that people don't buy from CTD when prices return to normal. Supply will again outpace demand. Prices will return to a new equilibrium.

Actually, my ad was from 1971. The price in today's dollars would have been $1,310. So, even $1,000 ARs are a bargain based on 1971's market. But, that's just it. You cannot base a market on a time and condition that doesn't exist anymore. When it comes to .22 ammo, we don't have a market in equilibrium as it existed pre-Newtown.

The "intersection of supply and demand" only occurs when a transaction actually takes place. If no one here is buying, no one is being gouged. The people paying these prices are free not to pay them. So, they are doing it by choice. Therefore, they aren't being gouged. No one would choose to be gouged. Right?

As long as people keep rabble rousing, I'll keep pointing out that their arguments aren't valid in terms of economics. Open forums like this one are meant to have this exchange of ideas. I have yet to see anyone here offering up a large supply of CCI-SV at November prices. If I miss it, please someone PM me.

Recently I spoke with a veteran Camp Perry vendor. He said industry stats show 20 million customers new to shooting are participating in this market. How long will this continue? How many of the 20 m will be active 2 to 3 yrs from now? Possibly there will be a lot of supplies available in time. The other side of the coin may show then.
Ron

Well for those who have no problem with CTD trying to sell 33.00 bricks of 22 for 200 bucks thats your choice, but for me i will deal with those that didnt try and bend me over.

When did CTD "try and bend" anyone over? Cheaper Than Dirt has never tried to put a move on me. I guess I'm just lucky. I get their catalog some times, but that's been the extent of it for me. Thank goodness.

Were forum members big CTD customers before? Had you been ordering from them a long time?

With the huge influx of new consumers, demand could outstrip supply for a long time. I bet every person on this list can name a handful of people that have recently bought a first gun. Like many of us, I advise people to get a .22. What if many of these new people actually got a .22? They need ammo. The toughest ammos to find seem to be .22, .38 special, 9mm, and .223. These would be my top choices for new shooters. If these new shooters enjoy it like we do, they will keep needing ammo.

However, ammo companies fearing demand may slow could choose not to make the capital investments required to supply a higher level of aggregate demand. This would cause prolonged shortages and start wholesale prices rising. We have yet to see that happen en masse, but it could.

Prices will stay high if the market remains at higher aggregate demand unless one of two things happen. First, demand would have to slow. Second, investment in more machinery would have to be made. I don't see either happening for quite some time.

To lower prices and boost supply, we could each sell some of our ammo. If each person here that actually believes ammo is no more valuable than before would sell down to a minimal amount for practice and matches and resupply when non-"gouging" prices return, that would boost supply and lower prices. From each according to his ability, to each according to his need seems to be a key although unstated phrase in these threads.

Secretly, there's enough doubt in people's minds about prices returning to "normal" that we won't do it large scale. So, instead people complain on the internet instead of actually adding to the ammo supply.

I'm sure a few of us are giving ammo to people or selling at pre-shock prices. To those others doing this, I salute you. You're being good stewards of your passion.

Yes i bought from them before and yes the two examples i listed were sent to me in a email. So to me that means they are targeting their true customer base.