Ruger enters ammo business with ‘revolutionary’ technology

Georgia-based PolyCase to manufacture handgun, pistol bullets

Sturm, Ruger & Co. is getting into the ammunition business for the first time, partnering with a Georgia company to produce what it calls a “revolutionary bullet” that “changes everything you know about ammo.”

Ruger, which is headquartered in Connecticut but has a major facility in Newport, will be putting its brand on bullets produced by Savannah-based PolyCase Ammunition LLC for a .45-caliber handgun and .38-caliber pistol. PolyCase has a pending patent on its process, which injects a dense polymer copper matrix into a mold. The resulting bullet in the PolyCase Ruger ARX line has several advantages over the traditional metal jacket bullet, according the company’s website, most notably that it’s cheaper and faster to produce with very little waste and doesn’t contain lead.

In addition, the bullet is recyclable to some extent – it can be melted down and the copper recovered.

The website says the bullet has grooves on its nose that, “when combined with the bullet’s forward velocity into soft tissue … causes an increase pressure of the fluid. As a result, the fluid is laterally ejected from the flutes at a higher velocity than the actual speed of the bullet itself, creating the massive cavitation and wound channels.”

Thus the bullet “feeds like a round nose, yet retains stopping power and terminal performance that exceeds most expanding handgun bullets.”

The bullet design is “shockingly different in terms of looks, design, materials, function, and consistency in performance” exudes Bob Owens, the editor of BearingArms.com, a gun rights website

The technology certainly impressed Ruger, whose CEO, Mike Fifer, said the PolyCase technology “seemed a perfect fit.”

It also means Ruger is getting into the consumables market, noted Dan Meador, a blogger on the gun industry at Seeking Alpha. The move could help smooth out the firm’s revenue stream in a very volatile market.

“Guns are made to last,” said Meador. “In most cases, a Smith or Ruger gun is made to last a lifetime. However, those buyers will eventually need something to feed their guns at the range. That is where we have consumables.”

The deal will mean about 25 to 35 new positions at the Georgia plant, said Drew Gorman, PolyCase’s vice president of business development. For Ruger, it will mainly mean royalty revenue from a licensing agreement, details which were not disclosed.

“But I think more than royalties, it will help the company’s brand awareness,” said Gorman.

Ruger did not return a phone call before deadline.