Bullet Availability Update - 20/06/2023
It has taken 3 months to get enough bullets together to make minimum weight for an air cargo shipment. The good news is that the GBP is strong and the USD exchange rate was decent. Almost where it was a couple of years ago. The bad news is that air freight increased by around 35% and it seems that manufacturers have taken the opportunity to slip in a base price increase as a hedge against inflation. Unfortunately this means that we will be putting up prices slightly on bullets. We hate price increases more than our customers do because there is a labour component associated with updating the website and accounting systems.
There are no 215’s, 208’s or 200.20x available to us currently. 303 Sierra Matchkings have been on order for almost 3 years. Sierra and Nosler bullets are generally available in 30 calibre and 22 calibre. There are some Nosler 155’s arriving in this week. Honestly, we were all hoping that the supply situation would improve but in actual fact, from our point of view it has become slightly worse. Peterson brass is available and we have some arriving next week as well.
There is some speculation that shortages are due to the Russian/Ukraine conflict. It is our belief that the root cause of the shortages predates the conflict by at least 2 years and is caused by an increase in demand from within the US Domestic market. Our American suppliers will not comment on the situation nor should they as unconfirmed rumours don’t help anyone.
Redding Order Finally Arrived! - 13/02/2023
In December, just before Christmas Redding Reloading shipped out a large order to the Bisley V Shop. The shipment arrived at Stanstead promptly. After a few days in limbo it was returned to Redding in New York. UPS, the carrier responsible claimed Redding had requested that the shipment be returned. Redding denies any such instruction. After a month or so of investigation, there is still no explanation. To make long story short, the same shipment was sent last week and arrived without incident. I can only surmise that the first attempt was too close to Christmas and customs was at the point of collapse. Anyway, there is lots of Redding stock that we hope will keep everyone happy.
Shopping Cart is live! - 29/09/2022
The move to Worldpay card processing is complete. The journey was not as easy as it should have been but is finally done and the gateway is working very well. While the cart was down, customers purchased over the phone and asked questions. Overall it was very hectic, but it was an opportunity to keep in touch with the various shooting communities in the UK. Thank you all for your patience during the transition.
Kempton Arms Fair - 26/06/2022
Sunday saw out attendance of the Kempton Arms Fair. It has been a long wait, but we finally managed to obtain 2 tables from Peter. The event was extremely well organized. There were more than adequate staff on hand to direct you to your unloading point and show you to your table. The Fair was very well attended by the public. Traders had brought some of the best examples of antique and vintage firearms that I had seen in decades. There were many investment grade arms for sale, in amazingly good condition. I spoke with many traders and members of the public, which is the primary reason to attend the show. We make some small sales, but manage to speak to new potential customers and keep in touch with some of our favourites. The coffee was bad this time, which is very unusual. The morning breakfast bacon sandwich at 07:05 was equally as bad. The outstanding frankfurter on the baguette with extra onions at lunch more than made up for this however. The only downside was that the trader at the table next to us had some very nice examples of Webley Air Pistols, which could not be resisted. We ended up coming home with a nice example of a 1971 Webley Premier in .22 calibre. Test firing proves that is a wonderful gun to shoot. Nice trigger, nice sights. The sights were set for a dead on hold at 15 yards. Groups reasonably well, even with 5.5mm pellets.
Thank you Peter for putting on such a great event!!!
See You At The Kempton Arms Fair - 26/06/2022
See you at the Kempton Arms Fare Sunday June 26. If there is anything specific that you would like me to bring and demonstrate please email.
I am planning to bring some Redding Reloading Equipment and some 303 British Dies, along with my usual cleaning and maintenance kit. I won’t forget the 577 and 577/450 dies either!
Inventory Update -8/12/2021
We are in the works for a direct delivery from Redding, however the production cycle indicates that it will not be here until late Spring. With production delays, partially due to co-vid 19, US Manufactures are still struggling to make a dent in their backorders. Bullets are in very short supply and virtually all of our 155 grain TR stock sold this week. We have had bullet orders outstanding since June 2021. We brought in some nice ‘Christmas Stock’ last week, but it is almost all gone.
We are however very glad to announce that we have access to St. Marie’s Swiss Products and can now offer accessories to the 7.5 x 55 community. The first products should be arriving in late December 2021.
Inventory Update 14/10/2021
Bullets are still hard to get from the US. In our September shipment we received 10% of the stock we ordered for even though it had been outstanding since June. High quality reloading dies in popular calibres are also in short supply. These dies are selling within a few hours of arriving at our US distributor.
What we have arriving in the next two weeks includes:
RCBS 09481 Primer Pocket Swagers
Lee 90902 577/450 Martini Henry Dies
Lee 90694 223 Remington Ultimate Die Set
Sierra 2156 155 Grain 308 TR Bullets 100 Count
Extreme Rebel 17 Wet Tumblers
RCBS Chargemaster Lite Powder Dispensers
RCBS Chargemaster Link Powder Dispensers
RCBS Pro Melt 2 Furnaces
American Bullet Company 308 147 Grain FMJ Bullets
American Bullet Company 223 55 Grain FMJ Bullets
Wilson Deburring Tools
Lee Collet 303 British Dies
Kempton Classic Arms Fair 1st August 2021
The Bisley V Shop manned a couple of trade tables at the August 1, 2021 Kempton Classic Arms Fair. The weather was great for the most part, except for a few short misty showers. There were many traders, with a broad assortment of classic firearms, air rifles, and black powder originals and reproductions. There was a really enthusiastic buzz in the air at 06:15 as all of the traders queued to enter the grounds and set up their stands. The Fair was very well organized and as it was the first time we attended, the event organizers took special care of us and explained what was required to set up step by step. Once in and set up, the traders had a few minutes to talk with each other before the public was admitted. We must have talked with at least 200 shooters and passed out 150 business cards during the day.
There was something for everybody. There were ‘Blue Chip’ Black Powder Pistols in boxes complete with all of the original accessories with labels in the £4,500 to £7,500 range and our bronze bore brushes for £2.50. The coffee was not as good as last month, but the bacon rolls were outstanding.
It was surprising how knowledgeable the Fair attendants were. Buyers knew what they wanted and knew what constituted a good deal. We had a large stock of rifle cleaning supplies, which were impractical to sell on-line because of shipping costs for sale, which turned out to be very popular.
Due to popular demand, the Bisley V Shop will be importing more .303 British bullets, brass, dies, and gauges. It is hard to explain how devoted .303 shooters are towards their rifles and the calibre in general. We learned all sorts of .303 trade secrets on how to wring out the best accuracy from tired barrels and are determined to help .303 shooters in any way possible.
I have attended this Fair as both a member of the public and as a trader and cannot recommend it highly enough. The informal atmosphere contributes to great conversations, and provides the basis to learn more about shooting sports, firearms collecting and history. I think that everyone who attended went home a little wiser and with a new research topic to follow up.
Good Luck and Good Shooting and special thanks to the Fair Organizers!
Brian Page
02/08/2021
Kempton Classic Arms Fair 5th September 2021
The Kempton Classic Arms Fair of the season was a little quieter than last month. Sales were slightly lower than in August, but I did meet some couple really good customers at the fair. I was able to help out a gentleman who required a high end lead melting pot (and I mean the top of the line) so he could shoot his Martini Henry. I was able to add the item to my weekly order and bring it in for him at £200 less than UK retail. I also befriended a Civilian Service Rifle Shooter who liked the Giraud Case Trimmer I was demonstrating at the Fair. Between him and his wife they bought all they could carry after receiving a substantial discount for being so friendly. I learned a lot from the usual group of regular traders. The coffee as not great this month, but I did have the best chips I have ever had, cooked especially for me while I watched. Please check out the Kempton Classic Arms Fair. You will learn something every time, and you may come home with a bargain!
I cannot recommend this show highly enough.
PS. I did spot a couple of German WWI Trench knives being sold as original by a seasoned bayonet collector. The give away was the pine grips. I have an original brought back by a WWI vet that has walnut grips. They were not ‘Erzatz’. They were finely crafted from the factory and well looked after by the troops who had them. Buyer Beware! When I challenged the seller on the knives, he became very offended and it was evident that he honestly thought that they were original.
See you at the next Fair!
Brian Page
25/09/2021