It looks like people are buying a lot more guns (and ammo, when they can find it).
More than 120,000 firearms background checks were processed in Michigan in January. It’s the highest number of any month on record. In 2020 there were more than a million firearms background checks processed – another record high.
Mike Abbot displays his collection of vintage long guns at the Old Time Gun Show in Redford last weekend.
Credit Tyler Scott
FBI records on background checks date back to 1998. They’re a rough indicator of gun sales in the U.S., though it’s impossible to know exactly how many guns are bought and sold each year. For example, buying a long gun from a private seller in Michigan doesn’t require a permit or a background check. The background check figures provide a rough indicator of gun sales, but they are not the same thing.