SIC 3482 Small Arms Ammunition
SIC 3482
This industry includes establishments primarily engaged in manufacturing ammunition for small arms having a bore of 30 millimeters (1.18 inches) or less. Establishments primarily engaged in manufacturing ammunition, except for small arms, are classified in SIC 3483: Ammunition, Except for Small Arms; those manufacturing blasting and detonating caps and safety fuses are classified in SIC 2892: Explosives; and those manufacturing fireworks are classified in SIC 2899: Chemicals and Chemical Preparations, Not Elsewhere Classified.
332992
Small Arms Ammunition Manufacturing
The 2000s were marked by increased sales for small arms and small arms ammunition manufacturers. Ongoing controversy over gun laws helped to boost sales and interest in shooting sports, as did concerns about self-defense. The industry has seen large numbers of first-time gun buyers in the past few years, and the increase in ownership of small arms has driven sales of ammunition. The industry's products were valued at $1.2 billion in 2003.
The U.S. Army was a major market for this industry, requiring about 300 million rounds each day by 2005. Specialized, niche products also helped to promote sales for the industry, including top-end, high-performance ammunition, "cowboy-action" loads, and light recoiling ammunition targeted for the growing market segment of women gun consumers.
Ammunition producers manufacture both cartridges and shells. The two types of cartridges used in rifles and pistols are rimfire and centerfire. Rimfire cartridges are comprised of a soft lead bullet, a case most often made of brass, and the smokeless propellant (powder). The priming compound is spun into the rim of the case, and, when the firearm's firing pin strikes and indents the rim of the cartridge, the priming mixture ignites and in turn ignites the propellant—hence the name "rimfire." Centerfire cartridges differ from rimfire cartridges in that a separate primer is seated in the base or head of the cartridge. When struck by the firing pin, the primer ignites the propellant via the flash hole in the base of the cartridge—hence the name "centerfire."
Prior to the Civil War, both large- and small-bore rifle and pistol cartridges were rimfire. In the post-Civil War period, however, more powerful cartridges began to be developed. These cartridges reached subsequently higher pressures and thus required case heads too thick to be indented by a firing pin. The centerfire ignition system solved this problem, and was still being used in the same configuration in the 1990s for high-pressure cartridges. Shotgun shells are also centerfire but are made up of a paper or plastic cylinder with a brass base or head. The shell is filled with powder followed by a cupped plastic wad filled with birdshot or much larger buckshot. While birdshot may be made of either lead or steel, buckshot is always made of lead. Federal law mandates that all duck and goose hunting be done with steel shot. It has been found that wildfowl accidentally ingesting spent lead shot while feeding are subject to lead poisoning. Shotgun shells may also be loaded with a single heavy slug, which in various configurations is made of lead or a lead alloy. Slugs are used both in law enforcement and for hunting big game such as deer. In addition to cartridges and shells, the small arms ammunition industry also includes the manufacture of BBs and pellets, which are most commonly fired from spring- or pneumatic-powered pistols and rifles.
Rimfire cartridges were typically .22 caliber and used in rifles and pistols designated as "small-bore." Their share of small arms ammunition shipments increased by approximately 85 percent from 1992 to 1997, accounting for 13 percent of total shipments. In 1997, centerfire rifle cartridges showed the largest decline in that period, falling from the top to the fifth position among the seven categories of ammunition; after accounting for 21 percent of market share in 1992, these cartridges garnered only 12 percent just five years later. Centerfire pistol cartridges, including those cartridges such as the .44 Magnum that could be interchanged between pistols and rifles, increased market share by 26 percent by 1997, second in sales only to shotgun shells, which accounted for about 22 percent of total industry shipments. Shipments of industrial shells and cartridges, airgun ammunition, and percussion caps, as a group, fell markedly—from 18 percent of the total in 1992 to about 10 percent in 1997. Other major sectors of the industry in 1997 included components (wads, shot cases, bullets, and bullet jackets), with 19 percent of shipments, and primers, with 3 percent of shipments.
Most of the ammunition made by manufacturers in this industry is sold to private consumers: 44 percent in 1992, up from 40 percent of industry sales in the 1980s. Sales to the federal government for military and other uses accounted for about 19 percent of sales in 1992, a slight decline from 20 percent in the 1980s. Exports, the third largest category for sales in the 1980s, jumped to second place in the early 1990s, increasing from 10 percent of sales to 28 percent. State and local government, including police and corrections officers, accounted for nearly 9 percent of sales in 1992, a slight increase from the previous decade.
There are three industry and consumer groups that represent ammunition interests in the United States. Most ammunition industry executives are affiliated with the National Shooting Sports Federation (NSSF), which promotes hunting and target shooting. The NSSF's sister organization, the Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers Institute (SAAMI), sets voluntary national standards for ammunition and firearm design. These groups rarely participate in political lobbying efforts, although ammo producers have traditionally donated money to support game populations and preserve hunting areas. The third and best-known organization, the National Rifle Association (NRA), is heavily involved in lobbying efforts, most of which are of interest to ammo manufacturers and users. As of 1996, only 12 percent of...
To continue reading
Request your trial