US Palm back from the dead? New activity on their FB page...

[Five_Point_Five_Six]

Outside of Xtech buying the rights to the AK magazine and producing their own, US Palm posted a "rising from the dead" photo this morning. Anyone have any details?

https://www.facebook.com/USPALM/?ref=br_rs

[Whiskey_Bravo]

What caused them to go dark in the first place?

[Five_Point_Five_Six]

What caused them to go dark in the first place?

I'm not really an industry insider but from what I've been told they overextended themselves financially and had to close up shop.

[wildcard600]

^^^ I've heard that bandied about on other forums as well, and I'm sure declining sales after Trump's election didn't help things either.

[markm]

and I'm sure declining sales after Trump's election didn't help things either.

It's funny how the left sells so many guns and NRA memberships isn't it?

[eodinert]

What caused them to go dark in the first place?

Mediocre products that cost more than the competition, mostly.

[Moose-Knuckle]

Outside of Xtech buying the rights to the AK magazine and producing their own, US Palm posted a "rising from the dead" photo this morning. Anyone have any details?


They posted this on their FB page yesterday:


Century Arms to Continue US PALM Brand and Product Line
US PALM·FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2018

For our fans and dedicated customers, here’s an early look at next week’s announcement. Have a great weekend!

Delray Beach, Fla. – (September 10, 2018) – Century Arms, North America’s premier AK manufacturer, has announced the continuance of the well-known US PALM brand and will be showcasing the brand’s legacy product line at SHOT Show 2019. In cooperation with original founder and product designers, and with the help of Century Arms, US PALM will proceed with the innovative product development that it is known for.

“In this area of brand acquisitions and company mergers, there are some brands and products that need to be kept alive and untainted, US PALM is a perfect example,” said Chip Hunnicutt, Century’s Director of Marketing. “As a leading seller of AK rifles for nearly forty years, Century feels it is important to keep US PALM’s brand and level of craftsmanship in producing quality magazines and grips alive, so consumers won’t have to settle for imitations or knockoffs. Working with the original brand co-owners and designers, US PALM legacy magazines, instantly recognizable by their distinctive waffle and tread design, and US PALM grips favored for their exceptional ergonomics, will still be available under the original brand while staying true to their authentic vision.”

Century’s involvement will allow US PALM to launch a number of designs and prototypes that never made it to market. “We’re really excited that we were all able to make this happen and to see US PALM continue to deliver the highest quality AK accessories,” said Rob Anderson, the US PALM founder and co-owner.

“Century’s significant history with the AK platform made them a logical fit for this effort and their energy regarding this project and insistence on sticking with our original vision has been impressive. The fact that we are heavily involved in this process and not simply being swallowed up by a massive corporate conglomerate was very important to us. We can’t wait to see where Century takes US PALM in the next chapter of its life.”

US PALM will be attending the Red Oktober shooting event, Oct 5th - 7th, at the Southern Utah Practical Shooting Range in St. George, Utah. Legacy US PALM products will be on display and the company’s founders will be on hand to meet and greet shooters during the match. “It’s important to us that our supporters and the shooting community at large know this is a direction we not only support, but are excited about,” said Brandon Finch, a US PALM co-owner. “Red Oktober has become an impressive gathering for AK enthusiasts and a logical place for us to close out the year and set the stage for US PALM’s new beginning.”

Century Arms plans to have an updated US PALM website in the coming months and to introduce the brand and its product line as part of the company’s brand portfolio at SHOT Show 2019. Follow US PALM now on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date on breaking news.








What caused them to go dark in the first place?

From their FB page:


US PALM
August 6, 2017 ·
All good things must come to an end, and this is ours at US PALM. We certainly appreciate all of our very ardent fans, followers, customers and cohorts in crime. Each of you contributed in building the brand, and without you, we wouldn't have had the run we did. THANK YOU ONE AND ALL, YOU MADE THE JUICE WORTH THE SQEEZE!

US PALM was a great experience, and we hope we contributed as much as we received. But in the end, a downsizing economy, industry instability, and internal factors all lined up and dealt us the final coup de gras.

Moving forward we're happy to say that some of our designs will be finding new homes, while others will be lost in the process.

On that note, please consider liking and following our industry associates who will be continuing on in our spirit of providing outstanding innovative gear, and offering a select handful of our more enduring designs under their label:

Armor Products, vests and packs: Armor Express
Bags, pouches, Cargo Cuffs, etc. Wilderness Tactical Products
K9 items: K-9EDGE

I can't sum up my feelings more succinctly on deciding to finally pull the pin, better than to quote Vince Lombardi:

"Gentlemen, we are going to relentlessly chase perfection, knowing full well we will not catch it, because nothing is perfect. But we are going to relentlessly chase it, because in the process we will catch excellence. I am not remotely interested in just being good."

Have a good 'un, and Happy Trails.

Robert Anderson
Founder





Mediocre products that cost more than the competition, mostly.

Their AK30 battle mag was released before Magpul decided to go into the AK mag business and they were about half the price of Bulgarian waffles. Their AK battle grips is what put them on the map so to speak, were at competitive price point and aided in the ergonomics department. Personally I never jumped on the AK30 battle mag wagon nor have I jumped on the Magpul AK bandwagon and never liked that the US Palm mags did not have a removable floor plate.

[Averageman]

Their AK30 battle mag was released before Magpul decided to go into the AK mag business and they were about half the price of Bulgarian waffles. Their AK battle grips is what put them on the map so to speak, were at competitive price point and aided in the ergonomics department. Personally I never jumped on the AK30 battle mag wagon nor have I jumped on the Magpul AK bandwagon and never liked that the US Palm mags did not have a removable floor plate.
The demise of inexpensive AK's did them in.
I have a couple of their products, the battle grip was dandy.

[eodinert]

Their AK30 battle mag was released before Magpul decided to go into the AK mag business and they were about half the price of Bulgarian waffles. Their AK battle grips is what put them on the map so to speak, were at competitive price point and aided in the ergonomics department. Personally I never jumped on the AK30 battle mag wagon nor have I jumped on the Magpul AK bandwagon and never liked that the US Palm mags did not have a removable floor plate.


There are other magazines besides Bulgarian waffles; but even in a vacuum, they were not good magazines. I don't ever remember Bulgarian waffles being $60, but maybe they were. I got mine from 'Chief Thunder'. Whenever I looked to buy US Palm mags, they were always $30 (maybe a bit less)....and they were certainly not better than the five steel magazines that you could have gotten with the same money, weight be damned. I don't think I have ever seen them under $20, but admittedly, I stopped looking after a while.

When the battle grip came out, it was a dramatic departure from factory commie grips, and seemed like an improvement at first, but I found the large on bottom/small on top profile to drive my hand up into the receiver when I shot dynamic rifle matches with them. On some AKs, it wasn't too bad, but on my AMD65 the stock release button ate the top of my hand. When the Magpul AK grip came out, it became obvious how wrong they got it (or how Magpul had gotten it right). In short, it needs more radius at the top of the grip to support the web of the hand. As it is made, it is effectively a corner that traps your hand between the back of the grip and the bottom of the receiver.

All that, and a premium price. I've got a over a dozen AKs at the moment, and I believe the only non-issue part on any of them is a single Magpul grip on one rifle... I don't think that qualifies me for fan boy status.

[Moose-Knuckle]

There are other magazines besides Bulgarian waffles; but even in a vacuum, they were not good magazines. I don't ever remember Bulgarian waffles being $60, but maybe they were. I got mine from 'Chief Thunder'. Whenever I looked to buy US Palm mags, they were always $30 (maybe a bit less)....and they were certainly not better than the five steel magazines that you could have gotten with the same money, weight be damned. I don't think I have ever seen them under $20, but admittedly, I stopped looking after a while.

I haven't bought any in well over a decade and the last time I saw a price for them they were $45ish for 7.62x39 mags. After the two Obama panics I saw them go for $100 each and sell out. I picked up all mine from the Chief and Joeken Firearms back in the day for $8-$9 per mag. I believe you are correct in that the US Palm battle mags (with steel inserts) was $30ish for the longest time. They also released a non-steel insert "range mag" for about half that, around the same price point as the Magpul MOE AK mags. I picked up a total of 9 US Palm mags (all with steel inserts) over the years when I would happen upon them dirt cheap somewhere in each color they released (black, brown, FDE, and Bakelite). Never liked the design, i.e. the non-removable floor plates. Also agree about steel mags (Easter Bloc surplus) being the best bang for the buck in the AK mag world. Though even those seem to be drying up and going for more than they use to in today's market.




I've got a over a dozen AKs at the moment, and I believe the only non-issue part on any of them is a single Magpul grip on one rifle... I don't think that qualifies me for fan boy status.

I didn't accuse anyone of being a fan boy for any particular manufacture.

[eodinert]

I wasn't offended...I guess I'm used to gunboards where s when you offer a preference, however limited in circumstance, it's taken that way. I do like Magpul, but if they make a turd I'll call it a turd (cough Battery Assist Device cough).

I went through this whole cycle with AKs where I was trying to modernize, and improve, then just came to the conclusion that AKs weren't the platform for modern.

[Moose-Knuckle]

I went through this whole cycle with AKs where I was trying to modernize, and improve, then just came to the conclusion that AKs weren't the platform for modern.

Me too, I was about to add a rail system, RDS, SF, etc. to an SLR-107F several years ago and have since abandoned the notion. I run them all "KISS" with the exception of some RS Regulate optic and light mounts.

[Moose-Knuckle]

I posted this in one of the other US Palm threads but remembered this one as well....


(it appears TD is producing the "gen 1" AK grips with storage compartment)

It’s back, and back to stay. A few years back, TangoDown® Inc was contracted to design and manufacture the next evolution AK grip for a twice-defunct start-up company in Arizona. It became one of the most popular aftermarket improvements to the AK rifle, ever.

We always liked the product, and the shooting public did too, showering us with emails to bring it back to the commercial market. So, after joining forces with the company that now owns their AK product assets, the BG-AK grip is now available again. The same grip, by the original designers, from the original molds.

Beware of cheap imitations!

https://tangodown.com/bg-ak-battlegrip/

[RetroRevolver77]

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[Moose-Knuckle]

It's not hard to upgrade an AK already. US Palm was just one company out of dozens trying to service a very small market. The AR would be the market I would focus on if I were them simply because it's got such a wide distribution. The only thing an AK really needs honestly- is a side optic mount and a railed handguards. Between the 100 series furniture from Arsenal and maybe a MI rail- you're about covered.

I've seen a pic from Russia where an Ivan broke an AK-100 stock off, the plastic snapped several inches south of the hinge. I don't know the back story but probably some field shenanigans involving improper use of the stock as a pry bar.

I recently swapped the 100 series stock on my SLR-107 for a triangle steel folder, that's probably my favorite AK stock. Wished someone would make a US copy, in both 4.5mm and 5.5mm pin sizes.

[RetroRevolver77]

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[Moose-Knuckle]

The original one Ted Marshall built me that served as the proto-type for the 106FR and subsequent 107, was based on the Bulgarian AKS74-M1A1 which had a steel triangular folder as well.

Are those stocks available anywhere? I would assume one could pick one up off a custom order but that is expensive compared to a production item. IMHO those stocks are popular enough someone should be churning out a US copy by now.

[RetroRevolver77]

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