Polymer80, the largest manufacturer of kits for making homemade firearms, has shut down.
The reason for the shut down, Polymer80 CEO Loran Kelley Jr. wrote on social media, was that the company “… was getting sued left and right, probably twice a month. In order to be able to stop the hemorrhaging, we had to shut down and get some things in order.”
Polymer80 built kits with instructions, parts, and tools for individuals to build handguns and popular AR-15-style rifles at home.
In 2022, President Joe Biden’s ATF enacted a rule mandating sellers of homemade firearms kits to add serial numbers to several parts and carry out background checks on prospective gun buyers. At least 14 states and Washington, D.C. have imposed restrictions on homemade firearms.
A legal challenge to the ATF’s ghost gun regulation is currently before the Supreme Court, where it could potentially render a notable decision against gun control restrictions at the state level. On October 8, Supreme Court justices are expected to hear arguments concerning the case.
CEO Kelley said the company could return “in some way, shape, or form.”
Polymer80 has reached legal settlements with the cities of Baltimore, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia, paying $7.5 million in damages and halting the sale of unserialized kits in California, Maryland, and parts of Pennsylvania.
A court in Washington, D.C. ordered Polymer80 to stop sales in the U.S. capitol and assessed more than $4 million in penalties, alleging that the company had made false and misleading assertions about the legal status of its products.
The company was founded in 2013 and is headquartered in Dayton, Nevada.
Polymer80 sold a variety of lower frames and receivers compatible with various models of Glock handguns. They include:
- PF940v2 – full-frame pistol kit, compatible with Glock 17, 34, 17L in 9×19mm; Glock 22, 35, 24 in 40 S&W; and Glock 31 in 357 SIG.
- PF940c – compact pistol kit, compatible with Gen3 Glock 19 in 9×19mm and Glock 23 in 40 S&W.
- PF940sc – subcompact kit, compatible with Glock 26, chambered in 9×19mm.
- PF9SS – subcompact kit, compatible with Glock 43, Gen 4, chambered in 9×19mm.
- PF45 – large frame, compatible with Glock G21SF, chambered in 45 ACP.
