December 08, 2012
By Kyle Wintersteen
Whether or not you shoot Hornady bullets, you have to admire the success of the American family-owned business. Founder Joyce Hornady's philosophy when he founded the company in 1949 was simple yet ambitious: "Ten bullets through one hole." His intitial introduction, a .30-caliber, 150-grain spire point, remains popular today. And even though he saw his business triple from its first year to the second, the man couldn't have foreseen the growth over the next 60 years.
Today Hornady Manufacturing's facility in Grand Island, Neb., has a 108,000 square-foot production floor, and its 300 employees crank out more bullets in one day than the company did in its entire first year of operation. Its still family owned and operated; in 2009, Jason Hornady, a third-generation family member, was named vice president of sales and marketing. Jason has overseen continued growth: Last month the company was named the National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers Ammunition Manufacturer of the Year for the third straight time.
How does Hornady hope to continue the growth? In addition to new bullet introductions, here are eight new ammunition products.
.45 Auto +P Critical Duty The Critical Duty line of personal defense/law enforcement ammo expands to include a
220-grain, FlexLock .45 ACP +P offering . The round meets the FBI's protocol for barrier penetration and terminal performance, which is no small challenge given a bullet of this diameter. According to Hornady, the 'jacket-to-core InterLock band ' preserves weight retention even as the bullet passes through such barriers as clothing, glass and sheet metal. Expansion is initiated when the bullet strikes organic material.
.410 Triple Defense Capitalizing on the popularity of .45/.410 revolvers, Hornady will offer a
.410 shotshell defense load tailored to them . The shell features a .41-caliber slug, which exits the barrel first, followed by two .35-caliber round balls. Hornady says all projectiles will strike a man-sized target at seven yards. Advertised price is $18.92.
American Whitetail Guess which consumer base this product is being marketed to?
American Whitetail ammo features Hornady's venerable InterLock bullet and will be offered in a variety of popular deer calibers and weights. It's also priced competitively. A box of .270 Win. 130-grain rounds retails for under $30.
Heavy Magnum Coyote Predator hunters have a new option in taking down close-range 'yotes.
Heavy Magnum Coyote shotshells feature Hornady's new VersaTite wad to deliver the payload's collective energy to the target. Shells are available in 3-inch, 12-gauge loads of BB or 00 nickel-plated shot for maximum penetration. Both retail for $17.08 per box of 10.
Monoflex ML The Monoflex design is also used for
a new muzzleloader product . As with the Monoflex shotgun flex, the .452-caliber muzzleloader bullet (.50-caliber sabot) will feature a Flex Tip to initiate expansion. A box of 20 retails for $24.84
New Critical Defense Loads This
popular line of civilian defense ammo now includes .30 carbine, .32 H&R Magnum and .32 NAA. Critical Defense is a hollow-point design with Hornady's Flex Tip to prevent clogging as the bullet passes through, for instance, clothing.
SST Lite Shotgun Slug The
SST Lite shotgun slug features the same 300-grain FTX projectile as the original SST slug, but Hornady estimates it to have a 40-percent recoil reduction. Factory numbers indicate a muzzle velocity of 1,575 fps — plenty to kill deer-sized game. Suggested retail price is $15.87 per box of five shells.
Superformance Shotgun Slugs The
Superformance slug incorporates Hornady's progressive-burning Superformance powder blend, which achieves added velocity with a negligible increase in recoil. The slug is a Monoflex projective constructed of gilding metal, a 95-percent copper/5-percent zinc alloy also used to form the jacket of many Hornady bullets. Initial offerings include 300-grain 12-gauge and 250-grain 20-gauge loads. Both retail for $19.81 per box of five.
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