The Arms Corporation of the Philippines is a firearms manufacturing company headquartered in the Philippines. The company is known for its inexpensive 1911-patternpistols, revolvers, shotguns, sporting rifles, firearms parts and ammunition. The company, whose manufacturing facility is located in Marikina City, 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. In 2017, the company was renamed Armscor Global Defense, Inc..
History
Armscor traces its roots to a Manila printshop Squires Bingham & Co., that was founded in 1905, the printshop also running imported and sold motorcycles and various sporting goods, which including firearms and ammunitions. The company was bought by the Tuason family in 1941 and began making firearms through the present corporation in 1952. Armscor manufactures its own line of firearms and holds manufacturing contracts for other companies' firearm lines, such as Twin Pines' Rock Island Armory 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, and Charles Daly 1911 style pistols. Armscor is an ISO 9001 certified compliant company which manufactures weapons using CNC equipment. The company is headquartered in Marikina, Philippines and represented in the United States by its subsidiary Armscor International, Inc, located in Pahrump, Nevada with facilities in Stevensville, Montana. Armscor became a registered trademark on Feb 24, 2009.
Ownership/Management
Armscor is owned by the Squires Bingham Co. Inc, a holding companyfor 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.
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.
Armscor introduced a new propriety caliber named the.22 TCM 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. More recently the company has released a bolt-action rifle chambered for this cartridge.
