U.S.A. –-(Ammoland.com)- Colt has produced the AR-15 for the civilian market since 1963 with the “Model R6000 Colt AR-15 SP1 Sporter Rifle”, but that is set to change. Colt announced today that they would no longer be selling or producing the modern sporting rifle to anyone outside law enforcement and the military.
Dennis Veilleux, President, and Chief Executive Officer, of Colt announced on the company’s website that they are leaving the rifle market completely for civilian sales. He reiterated the firearms giant’s commitment to the Second Amendment.
Rumors have been swirling about Colt stopping the sale of AR-15s to the general population for several weeks, but the company refused to comment. Colt said the decision to release a statement was due to misinformation that journalist was printing in their articles. The original information came from a leaked email to the firearms distributor, RSR Group.
Colt stated their reasoning is that there is “adequate supply for modern sporting rifles for the foreseeable future.” Colts were at one point the gold standard for AR-15 lovers for years. In recent years there has been an influx of new companies making AR-15s. Colt’s patents of the firearm expired in 1977.
Veilleux highlighted the continuing demand from law enforcement and the military for their rifles. He stated that the high-volume contracts would be absorbing all of Colt’s capacity for producing rifles.
The company did reaffirm their commitment to the civilian market in the form of revolvers and 1911s. Colt retail side of the company will be concentrating on the handgun market as there is a high demand for their 1911s and their revolvers like the Colt Cobra.
Veilleux stated that it is “good sense to follow consumer demand and to adjust as market dynamics change.”
Some gun owners are upset with these changes. They see this as Colt bowing to pressure from outside groups. Other gun owners have said that they think that Colt is getting out of the AR-15 market to avoid lawsuits like the one Remington has experienced. There is no evidence that Colt has bowed to pressure or getting out of the market to avoid lawsuits.
The families of some Sandy Hook victims have filed suit against Remington. The gun company produces the popular Bushmaster rifle, which was the brand of modern sporting rifle that the murderer used in the Sandy Hook shootings. Remington has asked the Supreme Court to take on the lawsuit.
In 2015 the company filed for bankruptcy and reemerged the following year after being restructured. According to the senior vice president for commercial business, Paul Spitale, the company used customer feedback and market trends in their decision to cut the AR-15 from their civilian lineup.
“We listen to our customers,” Spitale told Shooting Illustrated “The whole basis for our reorganization was consumer feedback.”
Discount AR-15s have inundated the market. It is now possible for buyers to purchase an AR-15 for under $400 from retailers such as Palmetto State Armory.
Colt has not ruled out returning to the modern sporting rifle market in the future if conditions change.
About John Crump
John is a NRA instructor and a constitutional activist. He is the former CEO of Veritas Firearms, LLC and is the co-host of The Patriot News Podcast which can be found at www.blogtalkradio.com/patriotnews. John has written extensively on the patriot movement including 3%’ers, Oath Keepers, and Militias. In addition to the Patriot movement, John has written about firearms, interviewed people of all walks of life, and on the Constitution. John lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and sons and is currently working on a book on leftist deplatforming methods and can be followed on Twitter at @crumpyss, on Facebook at realjohncrump, or at www.crumpy.com.
I don’t usually post on anything, but this is sh$t. I lost all of respect for Colt when they did the same thing at early 2000. At that time they decide stop selling to the public. I was hoping to get a Python. They thought military and police contracts would be their bread and butter. Guess what, they got nothing. Then they change their mind and start to sell to the public. A few years ago they filed for bankruptcy or close to it. They wanted their state to bill them out. I don’t remember if that bankruptcy was the… Read more »
Lanza murdered his mom to steal her guns and somehow the manufacturer is to blame?…go figure,
Could care less about Colt! They pulled this once or twice before. They have been very close to bankruptcy at least twice and has been over priced for a 100 years. Farewell suckers. There are cheaper, better made AR-15s on every corner. You’re just another company that forsees the banning of civilian rifle and ran first! I hope others will do what I’ve done for years, ignore and NOT BUY Colts!
No surprise. The civilian market has competition, and Colt doesn’t want to compete with the lower prices but still fine quality that others are willing to offer there. As is so often the case, Colt retreats to government contracts, where the price can be kept higher because taxpayers have endless resources to tap through that venue. What people won’t pay by their own free choice and economic wisdom, they customarily pay many times over through the government’s “management” of their confiscated funds.
This is not a big deal nor a startling revelation. The majority of Colt sales, for quite some time has been to military and LE. They won’t lose one dime. What it will do, unfortunately, is drive up the price, even further, on existing Colt AR’s, by those who feel that they just HAVE to have a Colt. In reality there are so many AR manufacturers out there currently, and the prices are so low, they have almost become the proverbial “dime a dozen” gun. Okay, I said almost, but when you have a dealer selling a “Beto” special AR… Read more »
On the contrary! Keep it a while – if history repeats, the value will go through the roof! Look at the difference between what a Python cost when they were in production and now…. a pristine in the box one goes for as much as $2500 or more. I had one back in the mid-70s and it only cost about a tenth of that. Resist the urge to sell now. Put her back in the safe.
I’m disgusted. You’re either in the market, or you’re not. I distrust absolutely any vendor who plays the “only ones” game.
However, I suppose that this says more about government bureaucrats than it does about Colt. Civilians are abandoning an inferior product in droves, to the point that the retail market collapses. Government, on the other hand, scrambles to overpay for that same inferior product. Government waste at its finest!
TRANSLATION: “we’re selling out to the anti-gun, anti-2A crowd, but hey, we’re NOT selling out to the anti-gun, anti-2A crowd. It’s just a market move”. Sure. NO problem.
Another virtue-signaling move by the company that brought us under-sized hammer & trigger pins to reduce the possibility of civilians putting military parts in their neutered Colt products. Yeah, I stopped buying anything from Colt when they did that little sleight of hand trick, so this latest decision to cease sales to civilians won’t have any effect on me. Nevertheless, I am disgusted by this recent decision from Colt. Hope you go out of business soon, Colt, so I never see your name in print again.
This really is no big deal. It’s not a capitulation by Colt to the gun-control mob, but the reality of the marketplace: there is a very, very healthy market for the AR platform with dozens, if not hundreds, of suppliers – many of them offering a superior product. It’s no secret that Colt has struggled to survive in recent years, and trying to stay in a particular segment of the firearms market where they can no longer dominate is likely a money-loser for them.