Jamison International

History

In 1996 Marc Jamison, founder of Jamison International, believed that there was a definite need for a producer of custom and obsolete cartridge cases. By November of that year he started his company, Rocky Mountain Tool and Armory (RMTA) in Huntington Beach, California. In August 2001 Jamison moved his business and machinery from California to the Black Hills in Sturgis, South Dakota. The name of the company was then changed from RMTA to Jamison International.

In 2003 Marc Jamison teamed with the owner of Greenwich Ballistics, Corey Kupersmith, who had recently acquired Cheyenne Tactical (CheyTac USA). This new partnership was called Jamison International VLLC. Together they purchased the assets of Bell Brass, also known as Bell Extrusion Laboratories Limited. By late 2006, the opportunity to acquire PMC otherwise known as Eldorado Cartridge Corporation presented itself. With the purchase of this additional equipment a strong foundation was set in place.

In early 2007, the first automated line was put into service to produce both the .408 Chey Tac and .375 CheyTac. The first shipment of 100,000 cases was sent out to the military by late 2007. This was the first time these cartridges were being manufactured in the United States.

On October 17, 2011, Jamison International announced that they were shutting down their plant and web site effective October 19, 2011, at 4:30 PM MST. On September 10, 2012, it was announced that Jamison International would be reopened as a division of Captech International while also moving to a new 31,000 square foot facility in Rapid City, SD.

Production

Production begins with a brass disk coined from strips of metal. Then in incremental stages the brass is extruded or drawn into a cylinder shape. During the extrusion process brass is pressed through a die set under tremendous pressure and speed. Most commonly this process is repeated multiple times until desired lengths and material thickness are achieved.

Between each stage of drawing a process of annealing and cleaning takes place. These procedures are used to achieve a specific hardness. This is done to increase their resistance to extraordinary stresses.

After the cases are drawn to maximum length, the blank cylindricals are then headed. Forming the rim, primer pocked and headstamp in one 55 ton stroke. Jamison International sometimes makes specialty headstamps labeled for custom orders.

Next the rims, extractor grooves, and flash holes are cut into the case. Afterwords they begin the stages for final forming. The neck and shoulder of each case are formed in a series of progressive taper dies. Each die gradually shapes the final formed case. During this process the cases are also ball-sized and trimmed to their final length.

After a final wash and polish, cases are sent through a neck annealing process to achieve the final case hardness.

Finally the cases go through a rigorous inspection process before they are tagged for sale to the customer.

Jamison International also produces solid CNC lathe turned projectiles for both the .408 Chey Tac (CT), and the .375 Chey Tac (CT). Their projectiles are produced in many different grain weights. The .408 CT is made into a 419-grain and a 305-grain projectile, while the .375 CT is made into a 350-grain projectile. A 350-grain Sierra Match King (SMK) projectile is also available from them, however it is imported from another company. Projectile specifications are programmed into the CNC lathe to ensure the best possible accuracy. Jamison International plans to produce more calibers in 2010.

Jamison Intl. loads match grade ammunition for rifles chambered in .408 Chey Tac, and .375 Chey Tac. Both calibers are loaded with the projectiles that they produce. Plans to load more calibers should be expected in 2010.

Product list

Below is a list of the thirty-six production calibers that Jamison International currently produces. More calibers are added to their production schedule each year.