.25-45 Sharps Update

posted on April 27, 2014
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
24-45-sharps.jpg

Designed by Sharps Rifle Company for use in AR-platform rifles, the .25-45 Sharps cartridge reportedly fires an 87-grain, .25-caliber Speer Hot-Cor bullet at a muzzle velocity of 3000 fps. The new cartridge is based on the .223 Rem., which means the only thing you need to convert your AR-15 to .25-45 Sharps is a new barrel.

Dave Campbell recently wrote a good report on the cartridge. Here's an update with info just obtained at the 143rd NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits.

Tim Lesser, the company's vice president of sales and marketing, says AR barrels chambered in .25-45 Sharps will be available in June 2014. Black Forge and Black Rain Ordnance will produce complete upper receivers shortly thereafter. The 87-grain Speer Hot-Cor load will be in stock at Brownells, Midsouth Shooters Supply and Natchez Shooters Supplies in June as well.

Latest

Icarry Taurus TX9 Compact 1
Icarry Taurus TX9 Compact 1

I Carry: Taurus TX9 Compact in a Galco Holster

In our latest "I Carry" segment, we pair the new Taurus TX9 Compact with a leather Stow-N-Go holster from Galco, Inc. This compact, concealed-carry kit is rounded out with an Xolotl automatic knife produced by CRKT.

The Armed Citizen® March 13, 2026

Read today's "The Armed Citizen" entry for real stories of law-abiding citizens, past and present, who used their firearms to save lives.

Review: Canik USA MC9 Prime

Canik USA built out its concealed-carry handgun lineup with the MC9 Prime, which is a larger, yet still slim, CCW gun that sits in the same category as other upsized micro-compacts.

U.S. Army Awards Mossberg Contract for Additional 590A1 Pump-Action Shotguns

The U.S. Army has awarded O.F. Mossberg & Sons a contract for approximately $11.6 million dollars to supply the U.S. Army with additional Mossberg 590A1 pump-action shotguns.

250 Years of the U.S. Army: Bolt-Actions & Semi-Automatics on the Battlefield

In just a few decades, the U.S. Army would see itself go from a single-shot, blackpowder design in the form of the Trapdoor Springfield to a modern, semi-automatic fighting rifle in the M1 Garand.

Modernized & Economical Muzzleloaders: The CVA Optima XP & XP-SB

CVA's longest-lasting muzzleloader design, the Optima, has been updated in 2026 with "modern ergonomics and modularity."

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.