Armscor Global Defense, Inc. is a firearms manufacturing company based in the Philippines. It is known for its inexpensive 1911-patternpistols, revolvers, shotguns, sporting rifles, firearms parts and ammunition. Armscor, whose manufacturing facility is located in Marikina, produces about 200,000 firearms and some 420 million rounds of ammunition a year, where 80 percent of this is exported and sold to over 60 countries. The company was known as the Arms Corporation of the Philippines (Armscor) until 2017.[1]
Former logo of Armscor.Logos of Armscor affiliates, Squires Bingham International and Rock Island Armory, as well as the logo of the company itself.
Armscor traces its roots back to a Manila print shop, Squires Bingham & Co., founded in 1905. The print shop later imported and sold motorcycles and various sporting goods, which included some firearms and ammunition.[4] The company was bought by the Tuason family in 1941 and began making firearms through the present corporation in 1952, being renamed Squires Bingham Manufacturing, Inc. in the same year.[5] Armscor manufactures its own line of firearms and holds manufacturing contracts for other companies' firearm lines, such as Twin Pines' Rock Island Armory (RIA) pistols. In addition to the Rock Island Armory 1911 series pistols, Armscor is the source of pistols for STI's Spartan, Cimarron Firearms pre-1923 Model 1911,[6] and Charles Daly 1911 style pistols. Armscor is an ISO 9001 certified compliant company which manufactures weapons using CNC (Computer Numerical Control) equipment.
Armscor became a registered trademark on February 24, 2009.[7]
In December 2013, Armscor reported interest in the 4th Brunei Darussalam Defense Exhibition (BRIDEX) to provide arms and ammo for the Bruneian police and military.[8]
In 2017, Armscor provided firearms and ammo to the AFP in response in the fighting in Marawi.[9]
In August 2019, the company was named by the United Nations' Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar (IIFFMM) for selling competition pistols to soldiers in the Tatmadaw Shooting Team from August 2018.[10]
Rock Island Armory
Rock Island Armory, founded in 1977, was a United States-based company located in Colona, Illinois and owned by David Reese (of Springfield Armory, Inc.).[11][12][13] It derived its name from the nearby US Army Rock Island Arsenal and sold military surplus from the base but the two were not formally associated.[11][14] Rock Island Armory, Inc. was acquired by Armscor in 1985 but several firearms continue to be sold under the Rock Island Armory name.[15]
Ownership/Management
Armscor is owned by the Squires Bingham Co. Inc, a holding company for the family of Don Celso Tuason. Don Celso's eldest son Demetrio "Bolo" Tuason is the Chairman Emeritus. Younger brother Daniel "Concoy" oversees production and plant operation. Bolo's son, Martin, is currently the president and CEO of the company.[16]
Products
While it is primarily known as a manufacturer of M1911 pistols, Armscor manufactures and markets a number of other handgun, revolver, shotgun and rifle models as well as ammunition and accessories.[16]
Armscor introduced a new proprietary caliber named the .22 TCM (Tuason Craig Micromag) based on the 1911 pistol. The cartridge is essentially a 5.56×45mm NATO cartridge shortened to 1.265 in. total length with a 40-grain jacketed hollow point bullet. Its main characteristics are its high velocity and low recoil, allowing for repeated accurate shots.[18]
More recently, the company has released a bolt-action rifle chambered for this cartridge.[16]
AFP (Armscor) Arsenal Battalion
Due to the nature of the business of Armscor, it has been tapped by the Armed Forces of the Philippines to be one of its partners as an "Affiliate Reserve Unit". The company was designated as the 1st (Armscor) Arsenal Battalion (Reserve) and placed under the operational control of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Reserve Command.[7][19]
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