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Thread: Army to Re-Bid M4 Contract

  1. #131
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    Re: Army to Re-Bid M4 Contract

    Quote Originally Posted by Auto426 View Post
    My guess is that it depends largely on the wording in the contracts. Colt managed to hold on to the TDP for the M4 until just recently, when they had to give it to the .mil.



    Yes, I believe Colt will still be getting royalties on each gun produced since it is their design. And while I don't know the numbers involved here, I'd venture to say that earning the royalties may actually be more profitable than winning the contract and producing the guns. With a ~ $600 unit price for each carbine, the margins must be pretty slim.
    I wonder what actual parts Colt gets royalties for. Most of the parents expired a long time ago, which is why so many companies make ARs now.
    "I never learned from a man who agreed with me." Robert A. Heinlein

  2. #132
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    Quote Originally Posted by Koshinn View Post
    I wonder what actual parts Colt gets royalties for. Most of the parents expired a long time ago, which is why so many companies make ARs now.
    Well all I really know is that the history of Colt, the AR-15, and the contracts to produce them for the military is very long and comlicated. Colt has been very protective of the design and the various TDP's for the different models, as they rightly should be.

    From what I understand (and please don't hold me to this), back in the 90's NWSC Crane passed out a bunch of copies of Colt's TDP for the M4 while trying to procure an accesory that needed to work with the M4. Naturally, Colt wasn't too happy about it, and after a great deal of legal and political hoopla Colt ended up with a deal that made them the sole source provider for the M4 for a set period of time, which expired sometime in 09. With that portion of the agreement expired, the military is now free to purchase M4's from other companies, but Colt still retains the rights to the TDP for another 20-something years, and any company that won a contract for M4's would have to pay Colt royalties on each carbine for the use of the TDP. The company who wins the contract also cannot produce civilain variants using the TDP, and after they complete the contract they must destroy all copies of they have of the TDP.
    Last edited by Auto426; 02-25-13 at 05:16.

  3. #133
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    Thanks for the info, Grant.
    We miss you, AC.
    We miss you, ToddG.

  4. #134
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    And yet, people single HK out for their hate. Meanwhile, Colt is keeping guns out of your hands.
    "The secret to happiness is freedom, and the secret to freedom is courage." - Thucydides, c. 410 BC

  5. #135
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    Quote Originally Posted by wild_wild_wes View Post
    And yet, people single HK out for their hate. Meanwhile, Colt is keeping guns out of your hands.
    Pretty sure I bought a carbine from Colt?

  6. #136
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    Quote Originally Posted by Austin_G View Post
    As long as it's built right, I don't care what roll mark is on the side.

    Good for FN, and Colt still gets paid. So everyone will be fine.
    Precisely!
    Train 2 Win

  7. #137
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    Quote Originally Posted by Warp View Post
    Pretty sure I bought a carbine from Colt?
    Yep, no idea what hes talking about.
    Quote Originally Posted by C4IGrant View Post
    Colt builds War Horses, not show ponies.
    Quote Originally Posted by Iraqgunz View Post
    This is 2012. The world is going to end this December and people are still trying to debate the merits of piece of shit, cost cutting crap AR's. Really?

  8. #138
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    Quote Originally Posted by wild_wild_wes View Post
    And yet, people single HK out for their hate. Meanwhile, Colt is keeping guns out of your hands.
    I think what some people who demonize Colt for safeguarding the M4 TDP so aggresively fail to realize is that the TDP for the M4 is like the secret recipe for Coca Cola. It's a trade secret, and when you go spreading it around to a bunch of different companies who all use it to make guns identical to yours you loose your competitive advantage in the market. You don't see Coke handing it's recipe to Pepsi or any other beverage company because it's what makes their product unique and valuable to the consumer. People buy a Colt over a Bushmaster for a reason, and Colt isn't going to let that advantage slip away from them anytime soon.

  9. #139
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    Army to Re-Bid M4 Contract

    Quote Originally Posted by Auto426 View Post
    I think what some people who demonize Colt for safeguarding the M4 TDP so aggresively fail to realize is that the TDP for the M4 is like the secret recipe for Coca Cola. It's a trade secret, and when you go spreading it around to a bunch of different companies who all use it to make guns identical to yours you loose your competitive advantage in the market. You don't see Coke handing it's recipe to Pepsi or any other beverage company because it's what makes their product unique and valuable to the consumer. People buy a Colt over a Bushmaster for a reason, and Colt isn't going to let that advantage slip away from them anytime soon.
    Well said!

  10. #140
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    Quote Originally Posted by plex View Post
    Colt lose contract because the high price.

    FN sell M4 average $650 to army.

    Colt sell 1911 average $5000 (yes, that is five grand) to USMC.
    Wrong.... The M45 is closer to $1,800 per handgun which includes more than just the guns. Colt lost but not by much.
    Quote Originally Posted by C4IGrant View Post
    Colt builds War Horses, not show ponies.
    Quote Originally Posted by Iraqgunz View Post
    This is 2012. The world is going to end this December and people are still trying to debate the merits of piece of shit, cost cutting crap AR's. Really?

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