Over the last couple of days I've been organizing my ammo and transferring into 50 cal boxes with several assorted smaller boxes. I realize I probably need another four 50 cal boxes. Where are you guys buying your ammo boxes these days?

I also would like recommendations on a lockable storage cabinet that could house say 12-16 50 cal boxes. I looked at some Stack On cabinets. Any other thoughts?

Anyone care to share pics of their ammo storage?

Thanks.

I got most of my ammo boxes from local gun shows. much better pricing buying used than new at the sporting goods store.

The Stack on cabinets should work great. Other people just store the ammo boxes on open shelves.

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Other people just store the ammo boxes on open shelves.

Thanks. I don't mind the open shelves idea, except occasionally I Airbnb my house and want the ammo secure.

The last time I bought ammo cans, I got them used and online, but can't remember the source. They seemed like a good deal at the time.

The Stack On, if I'm thinking of the one you're referring to, is flimsy. I'd rather go buy a Job Box, they are much more secure. Contractors, construction guys, etc use these to store their tools while on the job or at their shop. Here's an Link to Example but don't limit your search to Home Depot, everybody seems to sell them, just find a sale for the size you want.

For ammo boxes, there's a guy local to me that has been selling them for a long time, many years, on Craig's List.
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Most of my ammo is stored in surplus military .30 and .50 cal ammo cans. These used to be cheap and plentiful, up until about 5 years ago. I could get lightly used cans for $5-$10 each at local outdoors stores and military surplus stores. But they're tougher to find these days, and the price has crept up quite a bit.

I recently bought some of these plastic MTM ammo cans from Amazon, while they were on sale for like 50% off. I use them for magazines, but they seem to be a good value and would work for ammo as well. They're a lot cheaper than metal ammo cans these days, and the storage trays are kinda handy.

https://sigforum.com/eve/forums...0601935/m/6090030764

I have a Stronghold cabinet made of 10 gauge steel that I picked up on CL for $600. It is 7 feet tall and 5 feet wide. Has 4 shelves that each are rated at 1900 lbs each. I don't have to worry about stacking ammo deep in it and it has a good lock on it for security. Of course they are large and heavy even when empty but I have it in my shop so no problem.

Looks like it'll take some searching to find a decent cabinet for the right price. As I mentioned, I had thought of the Stack On "gun cabinet"....not sure which size and alter the inside to accommodate shelving. They do look pretty chincey though.

I'd love to get a big job box and put it in the garage, but the garage is uninsulated and gets too warm in the summer. No place inside the house to put a big box, so I have a big stack of .30 and .50 ammo cans down in the crawlspace where it stays nice and cool, and other cans and shipping boxes stashed in various corners around the house. One of these days I should probably go through and inventory it all again.

I used to get ammo cans at gun shows, but they got to be insanely expensive. Then I got them at a mil surplus store across town, they were in good condition and pretty reasonably priced. It's been a few years now since I was there though, so that may have changed. I use the plastic ones for gun cleaning stuff and first aid kits, but I don't really trust the handles to stay attached when I pick them up if they were full of ammo so I don't use them for that.

I am considering picking up a Stack-On or similar unit for ammo, just to keep it all in one place. Or two.

I heard/read somewhere about someone using a non-working freezer for ammo storage. You can use the installed lock on the freezer door or a hasp and padlock.

A while back Academy had a deal on new production .50 cal ammo cans. I think they were somewhere around $8 and if you bought enough of them you got free shipping. I ended up with 20 of them and have been pleased. It might be worthwhile to keep your eye on their site.

Don't get mad and I'm not trying to insult you. Ammo is made of metal, like brass and lead. A .50 cal can filled with 9mm is too heavy to lift with comfort. Same for handloaded .45-70. I don't know why they don't make it from balsa wood.

Job boxes provide good theft protection if you can find a decent lock for them. Just make sure its narrow enough to fit through the doorway. Anyone who can load up both arms with full .50 cal boxes is no one to mess with. You'll need a .458 to stop him/her. If its a woman like person who can carry 2 of them, run.

Some things I've found over the years. You can fill up a .50 with 9mm reloads, but then its a pain to move. Stacking them above 5 high becomes a chore. Worse, what's in them? The one you want is usually on the bottom of the stack. You need to label them. If they're stacked along a wall (concrete), you generally just need the label on the outside end. If you're stacking them down in a Job box, you'll need the label on the top, too. I can't imagine lifting each out to figure what's in it.

If your printing is nice and neat, you can hand letter them with a welding marker/paint roll pen. I even have a stencil maker I stole out of a scrap pile once. I made up for it by dumping a rear end housing. Pounds is pounds. I found spray paint is messy. I like yellow.

If you've got the extra space, leave the ammo in the original box. It also weighs less that way. If you're thinking about dumping the ammo, dump it in big, thick zip lock type bags. Don't go cheap, buy brand name. They're thicker and stronger. An alternative are the zip lock type they ship computer parts in. I don't mind used. And include a piece of paper with what the load is, including the date! I recently found some I loaded back in the 1970s. The stuff my father loaded in the 40's still is, just like the 1930s commercial ammo.

When I croak, my fool sons will probably just shoot it up to throw it away. I'm already enjoying them hauling the stuff away. Yeah, they probably think ole dad has a few boxes on the shelf in the closet. Hint: closet shelves only hold maybe 100#, give or take. Everything in life is a trade off. Have enough for these lean times, or not.

Underbody steel truck box is where my ammo resides.
https://www.tractorsupply.com/...-steel-underbody-box

Yes, 50 cal cans are heavy when full....I already have 16 of them, full. And another 9 30 cal cans, most partially full. But I still have quite a bit of boxed ammo I want in cans. I'm choosing cans to mostly provide protective/atmosphere proof storage until I open one to take out a few boxes of ammo. As it turns out, I have way more ammo than I realized. I'm okay with that.

Anyway, with all those cans, I need a larger cabinet and the shelving will have to be stout....or reinforced.

I did find some cans on Amazon via Ammo Can Man at $18 ea. Not cheap, but I did buy four and think that'll do me for now.

It's been interesting packing these in the most efficient way possible. Most of my ammo is 9mm and .223 and both of those calibers in their boxes can really get packed in tightly. More weight, rburg! Some odd sized boxes will make it less efficient, but I think I'll be set after this. But still on the look out for a decent lockable cabinet.

Thanks for the replies, fellas.

It's like a puzzle, filling the cans with boxed ammo. It's been a while since I found surplus can's I was satisfied with so I've made all my recent purchases from Ammo Can Man. They're expensive but the quality has been very good so far. I'm using .50 cal cans for storage and .30 call cans for range trips.

I'm watching this thread because I'd like to secure my ever expanding stack of ammo cans. Time to look into the job boxes I guess.

I store my ammo exactly how the OP mentioned. Boxes of ammo are in ammo cans and locked in a Stack On lockable cabinet in my garage. Out of sight for the most part, somewhat safe from theft and all kept together. I'm happy with how it works for me.

I’m using Ridgid stacking toolboxes from HD, like these:
Link

But once you have the rolling toolbox with a couple on top loaded with ammo, it’s as hard to move as a safe.
And you do have the problem mentioned above that the one you want is on the bottom. So this is only for storage ammo, not range ammo.

I use used filing cabinets.
I drill the fronts for large eye bolts and run a 3/4" conduit down the eye bolts and put a hole in the concrete basement floor for one end and drill a hole in the conduit and place a pad lock through at the other end below the top eye bolt.
Works good enough to stop a casual thief.
I agree fully loaded 50cal. ammo boxes are too heavy to haul or deal with. I prefer more 30cal cans.
I remove same lot ammo from factory packaging, fill vacumn sealer bags with the ammo, label them and then store in the ammo can labeled on the outside.

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Originally posted by 6guns:...
Anyone care to share pics of their ammo storage?..
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^^^

I ended up buying a cheap storage locker this weekend to accomplish the same goal. I wanted something to keep the kids out and be a deterrent to a lazy burglar. It’s located in my workshop with plenty of grinders, cutoff wheels, etc. that I couldn’t see paying mid-level dollars for a safe to store ammo.

Cheap storage