CCI Ammunition

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

CCI Ammunition (Cascade Cartridge Inc.) is an American ammo maker based in Lewiston, Idaho. They produce rimfire and centerfire handgun ammunition, primers for handloaders, and run an industrial ammunition production line.

Highlights
- First .22 Long Rifle Mini-Mag rimfire ammo released in 1962.
- Introduced the high-velocity .22 Stinger in 1975.
- Today they offer a wide range of rimfire and snake-shot ammunition.

History
- Founded in the early 1950s by Dick Speer, with Arvid Nelson as a partner.
- Their first shipment came under a defense contract making primers from FA-70 chlorate, before switching to safer formulas for sporting use.
- CCI supplied reliable primers for hobby reloaders.

Ownership and footprint
- In February 2015, CCI became a subsidiary of Vista Outdoor (a spinoff of Alliant Techsystems) and employed about 1,100 people.
- The company was sold to the Czechoslovak Group in November 2024.
- CCI bought 17 acres next to the Lewiston Gun Club, and, after the club moved, the land and plant remained on that site as of 2020.

Products and innovations
- In 1975, CCI developed the first hyper-velocity .22 LR ammo, the Stinger. The Stinger uses a slightly longer case (0.702 in) than standard .22 LR (0.613 in) but the overall cartridge length is the same.
- In early 2020, CCI introduced 14 new products.
- The company sells the Gold Dot line, component bullets, and bonded copper-plated hollow point handgun ammo.
- Plated bullets were originally marketed for handloading as a cheaper alternative to jacketed bullets.
- MeatEater line: hunting ammo for small game made in partnership with Steven Rinella, including Copper-22, Mini-Mag, and Maxi-Mag variants.
- In 2023, CCI introduced Clean-22 Hyper Velocity, a polymer-coated rimfire round to reduce lead fouling in barrels.