When shelves get picked clean, you find out fast which calibers are “popular” and which calibers are everywhere. The first wave is always predictable: the rounds tied to duty pistols and the most common carry guns get scooped up in a hurry. Then the dust settles and you start seeing what’s left—cartridges that aren’t everyone’s first grab, but are still widely loaded, still supported, and still practical.
The goal isn’t finding a magic caliber that never runs short. Any round can vanish during a real buying frenzy. The goal is picking calibers that tend to stay findable longer, have multiple manufacturers making them, and still make sense for training and defense when you’re buying a box here and a box there. These are handgun calibers that keep earning their spot when things get weird.
.40 S&W
When the 9mm shelf looks like a tornado hit it, .40 S&W is often still sitting there. Demand dropped as agencies and shooters moved back to 9mm, but production never stopped. That gap—steady supply with less panic demand—can work in your favor.
It still makes sense because it’s a capable defensive round and it runs in a lot of reliable pistols that are easy to find used. Recoil is snappier than 9mm, so you may shoot it a bit slower, but it’s far from unmanageable in a mid-size gun. If you can keep a few magazines and a few boxes on hand, .40 can be the caliber that keeps you practicing while everyone else is rationing.
.45 ACP
.45 ACP has been around too long and is too widely supported to disappear completely for long in most places. It may not be cheap during a rush, but it often shows back up sooner than you’d expect because so many manufacturers load it and so many shops stock it as a staple.
It also remains practical because it’s easy to shoot well in full-size pistols, and it doesn’t rely on extreme velocity to perform. If you’re buying ammo in small chunks during shortages, you want a cartridge that comes in common load types and doesn’t require exotic bullet weights to work. .45 checks those boxes. You may not stack deep cases of it, but you can often keep your gun fed when the “usual” calibers get stripped first.
.38 Special
.38 Special survives shortages the same way it has survived every trend shift: it’s everywhere, and it’s useful. Even when semiauto ammo gets hammered, .38 often hangs around because not everyone stockpiles revolver ammo in bulk. Plenty of people also overlook the hunting-and-utility aisle where it’s still sitting.
It makes sense because it’s controllable, effective with proper loads, and easy to practice with. In a solid revolver, it’s also not sensitive to magazine springs, feed geometry, or other semi-auto variables that get annoying when you’re scrounging whatever ammo you can find. If your plan is “keep training even when things are thin,” .38 Special is one of the most realistic answers you can pick.
.357 Magnum
.357 Magnum often rides out panic waves better than you’d think because it’s not the first caliber most people hoard. Yet it’s common enough that ammo makers keep loading it, and stores keep stocking it for hunters, outdoorsmen, and revolver shooters.
The real advantage is flexibility. If you can find .357, you can usually find .38 Special too, and that gives you practice and carry options with the same gun. In a medium-frame revolver, .357 hits hard without requiring magnum rifle recoil, and .38 keeps you shooting when you want comfort and volume. When shelves are thin, having two workable ammo paths for one handgun is a smart kind of insurance.
.380 ACP
.380 ACP can be feast or famine, but in many shortages it comes back faster than people expect because it’s produced constantly for the huge number of pocket pistols out there. It’s also a caliber that some panic buyers ignore while they chase 9mm and rifle ammo.
It still makes sense if you’re honest about the platform. Small .380s can be snappy, so you want to practice enough to stay confident, and that’s where availability matters. When you can find .380, you can keep a deep-carry gun fed without competing head-to-head with the 9mm stampede. Pick a pistol that runs reliably with common ball ammo, keep a few spare mags, and you’ll often be in better shape than the guy whose “perfect” 9mm has nothing to eat.
.32 ACP
.32 ACP is one of the classic “still on the shelf” calibers because fewer people are chasing it, even though it has a long history and plenty of modern ammo support. You won’t see it in every tiny shop, but when you do see it, it often isn’t being fought over.
It makes sense in the context of shortages because it keeps small pistols running and keeps your skills from going stale. Recoil is mild, which helps you shoot a pocket-size gun more accurately than many people can manage with a tiny 9mm. The key is choosing a reliable pistol and sticking to ammo it feeds well. If you’re willing to think beyond the most crowded aisle, .32 ACP can keep you practicing when everyone else is empty-handed.
10mm Auto
10mm isn’t a “cheap and everywhere” round, but it can stay available longer during panics because fewer people buy it in bulk. That lower demand sometimes keeps it on shelves when common service calibers disappear. If you already own a 10mm, that can be an advantage.
It also makes sense because it covers multiple roles: practice loads, defensive loads, and heavier woods-focused loads exist, and the cartridge is widely supported by major manufacturers. The trade is cost and recoil, especially in compact guns. Still, when shelves are picked clean, the round you can actually find is the round you can train with. If your 10mm pistol runs well and you can tolerate the ammo cost, it can keep you shooting through shortages.
.22 LR
People forget .22 LR counts because it’s “not a carry caliber,” but when shelves get stripped, .22 is often what keeps you training. It may spike in price and availability can get spotty, yet it also gets restocked constantly because demand is steady year-round, not tied to one panic season.
It makes sense because skill is perishable. A .22 pistol lets you run draw work, sight tracking, trigger control, and reload rhythm without burning your limited defensive ammo. If you can’t find your preferred centerfire, .22 keeps you sharp and keeps your range time productive. You’re not replacing your defensive setup with .22. You’re keeping your hands and eyes trained so that when you do find your main ammo again, you’re ready instead of rusty.
.45 Colt
.45 Colt isn’t in every store, but it often avoids the worst of the panic because it’s not most people’s default choice. When it is on the shelf, it can sit there while common semi-auto calibers vanish. That alone can make it useful during shortages if you already own a revolver in the chambering.
It still makes sense because it offers real power with manageable recoil in a strong, heavier revolver, and you can find loads ranging from mild to serious depending on your gun. The key is knowing what your revolver is rated for and not assuming every box is the same. If you keep expectations realistic and buy when you see it, .45 Colt can be one of those “quiet winners” when everything else is getting cleaned out.
Like The Avid Outdoorsman’s content? Be sure to follow us.
Here’s more from us:
