I'm writing this on my kindle so bear wit me.
There are major manufacturers and small manufacturers. Major manufactiurers make components and ammunition. Small manufacturers buy components and make parts. One of the largest manufacturers are atk. Atk makes the majority of the civilian rounds on the market if it is made stateside. They do not warehouse anything. They make it, then sell it to distributors. They make runs of a single component like primers or a single round like 556 several weeks at a time, stop, then retool for the next production run of whatever they're making. So essentially if you do not have an order in before hand to a distributer for the rounds you need ahead of time, then you don't get anything. Also distributors limit the quantities a single retailer is alloyed to guarantee continued buisness during off production runs. That being said, distributors are being inundated with orders for specific calibers and must fill backorder before they fill new orders. Primers were one of those components that ran in intervals. For a couple of weeks a year then weren't made again so other things could be made. A large portion of the blame falls on the distributors.
The remark earlier on demilled ammunition holds water. The army never throws anything out. They maintain stocks of everything. If you're seeing "surplus" ammunition then you're buying a manufacturers excess ammunition that wasn't bought by the military during that quarter. If the military buys it all, there is no surplus. What were seeing on the market currently is the results of the most popular rifle in America being shot by everyone at the same time. I don't have the numbers of ar15 rifles sold during the last four years, but if you multiply each of those rifles by 30 rounds and then extrapolated how many rounds that was, I'm guessing you would see some sticker shock on how many rounds that actually is.
What can we do about it.? Reloading, purchasing the equipment to make components and getting the liscencing together to make said components. This is a need of the people. A demand of the people. It is a niche market waiting for enterprising citizens to take the lead and make some bread while servicing the community. Every year at shot show there are equipment suppliers and materials suppliers lining up to sell us the tools, raw materials and expertise needed to do just this.
If given the opportunity to co-op funds into an ammunition plant, would you do it?
