Stopping by Swift Bullet today

Spartan5

Spartan5

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I will be stopping by Swift I. A couple of hours and plan to ask them about 505 Gibbs and when it may be available. Anybody have any other questions I should ask while I’m there? Looking for anything?
 
Spartan5 said:
I will be stopping by Swift I. A couple of hours and plan to ask them about 505 Gibbs and when it may be available. Anybody have any other questions I should ask while I’m there? Looking for anything?
Click to expand...
.416 400gr A- frames are they coming back in stock or should I just explore other options? Thanks.
 
I think availability of any of the larger bore A-Frames would be of interest here.

The This is Africa podcast had an interesting interview with the owner recently. It was clear that their focus is on the Scirocco and the new Zephyr long range bullet. From a business standpoint that probably makes sense as that's where the volume in the market is heading.

I've said for some time they could significantly increase the price of A-Frames and still sell them briskly if they were readily available.
 
I will share all of the questions above and let you know what I find out. They have the land to expand according to the Google earth look at the building.
 
The way I understand Bill in this interview, the A-frames are a small part of their bullets business. The latest craziness is the long range hunting, so the Scirocco and Zephyr will get the most attention on the production line-up.

rumble.com

This is Africa Podcast with The Swift Bullet Boys

On this episode of This Is Africa, The Podcast, Andy is joined by Bill Hober from Swift Bullet Company and Joseph von Benedikt from the Backcountry Hunting Podcast for a deep dive into the world of pr
rumble.com rumble.com
 
dogcat1 said:
Along with many of their other products. I am done with Swift...
Click to expand...
+1
Swift was my first choice at one time based on their reputation, but not anymore. Factory loaded ammo with Swift AFrames is seldom available, bullets for handloading in heavy calibers .375 and above are unavailable for months, sometimes years on end unless you scrounge or get on a waiting list, etc.

I just returned from a hunt in ZA where my Barnes X loads performed flawlessly, again. For me, it makes no sense to work up loads for my rifles with bullets I can't get.

In the future, I won't even consider Swift products unless they double the number they produce, and I'll probably sell off any remaining Swift bullets I have on my shelf.
 
Mr. Hober explains in the podcast that it is labor force from The small town in which they live that is the problem. Also cost and value of new equiptment.
It is worth mentioning that Barnes also operates out of a very small town and
Factory and constantly has staffing issues which have affected their product flow.
Lots more new age customers demanding long range bullets than old guys demanding large bore bullets. It’s easy math, most retail stores won’t even bother to carry large bore safari ammo anymore, the vast majority of their customers are looking for something else-
 
As much as I want to use the Swift bullets given their reputation for being near mythical in the ability to kill large animals, two things keep logically getting in the way of my using them. Okay, maybe three. First, the inability to consistently get them is a major roadblock. Barnes wins here. Second, I only took three shots on my safari this year. One was a frontal shot on a zebra that absolutely sat him down on the spot. That was with a Barnes TSX. And lastly, the last time someone on here noted that .375 A-frames were on the Swift site they bumped up meaningfully in price from one day to the next. I get supply and demand but if you actually like to shoot your larger bore rifles it is hard to get excited about it at that cost and knowing you may not find more bullets. So Barnes is effective, available, and reasonably priced. They have my business.
 
I called one time to ask about A-Frames. Actually wound up getting on the phone with the owner. He spent 45 minutes alternating between telling me what a great businessman he was, and telling me his customers don't know what they need or want.

I've been shooting North Forks and happy with them.
 
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