Palmetto State Armory, the Behemoth
I’d like to start this isn’t a paid review, nor was I compensated with a SABRE rifle… but not that I’d be against it… KIDDING, sort of…
Palmetto State Armory (PSA) has been a pretty hot name lately — cranking out new releases and dropping affordable versions of guns a lot of us drool over but either can’t justify the price tag on, or can’t get our hands on (shout out to the unobtainium Knights’ stuff).
Thankfully, PSA is offering up some sweet alternatives at a fraction of the cost — and with solid performance and reliability to boot. The Sabre line definitely caught my eye — it’s a looker. (LINK TO SABRE LINE)
Now full disclosure: I don’t own a Sabre. Hell, it’s been a hot minute since I’ve owned — or even shot — a PSA rifle (I did own one YEARS ago). That old Premium PSA Rifle of mine (basically an FN) ran like a champ — I still have the lower from it kicking around. But these days, PSA is doing way more than just the Sabre line. We’re talking AKs, Glock clones, retro builds, clone builds, and the list goes on. Honestly? Pretty impressive.
Cody’s yellow Lab was unfortunately not working that day…
PSA was founded in 2008 by veteran Jamin McCallum — out of a GARAGE. (2008 was a wild year — I was still in high school!) Fast forward to 2025, and their current manufacturing operation looks like something ol’ Bozo Bezos would dream up. Walking through it felt huge. For comparison, the only other factory I’ve toured is FN (also here in Columbia), and PSA felt like a much larger beast. Now before the FACT CHECKERS jump in — I don’t know if it actually is bigger, but that was my gut impression. I toured FN for an armory course a while back, so maybe there’s a little recency bias. (Yeah, surprise — I’ve got a few credentials y’all might not know about!) But let’s be honest: there’s way more fun stuff coming out of PSA than FN these days. But enough rambling — let’s talk about the tour and what I saw firsthand. Back to the tour…
First word that came to mind? WOW.
THE BEAN MACHINE
I walked in and met some of the PSA media team right off the bat — all rad dudes and one rad chick. Cody kicked things off and we rolled through the various manufacturing and assembly areas. I immediately spotted some tan Cerakoted Sabres, some unreleased goodies, and some 9mm variants getting assembled and checked. It was a slower Friday than usual (per Cody), but still plenty happening.
I got to meet some of the crew — shout out to BEAN MACHINE, a rad dude hanging near the test firing room. As I kept moving, the sheer size of the place hit me — one massive room led to another even bigger room, with more assembly lines humming along.
Next we hit a more “industrial” area — product movement, Cerakoting, and even anodizing (which I didn’t expect, but totally makes sense given the volume they crank out).
Then I met more folks from the creative side — again, awesome crew (and yes, I’m terrible with names). One guy was embracing Casual Friday with a… shall we say, unique charging device. Loved the vibe — things felt relaxed and human, not some ultra-sterile production line. There were some limited/unique releases on display too.
Now if you’ve got ADHD like me, the packaging section is pure dopamine. I loved seeing the mix of hands-on work and automation — machines folding and packing PSA goodies like it was Christmas morning. I’m sure I’m forgetting parts of this first location, but those were the standout moments.
Then — surprise twist — we hopped into Cody’s rig and drove to another location focused on ammo manufacturing and shipping. (Side note: Cody’s overlanding truck bed cover was legit.)
WOW, again.
I’ve done some casual reloading, but seeing it on this scale was mind-blowing. The factory was enormous — open space, reloading equipment everywhere. Watching copper and lead transform into final products was fascinating. I didn’t realize how much nuance goes into this side of the process. It was pretty quiet during our visit, but I can only imagine this place at full tilt. Fun fact: the building used to be a Japanese brake/rotor factory — and it still kinda feels like one.
Next up: shipping.
We walked through a metal gate and boom — endless aisles with massive ceilings. Picture a football field full of product aisles. Forklifts and carts zipped around with the occasional beep. I met the head honcho of that location — super passionate guy who didn’t want his picture taken (respect). You could tell he lives for the crazy days — he lit up talking about handling chaos during peak times. Now I kind of want to go back for Black Friday just to see the madness.
We also peeked at some of the testing areas — air-sealed rooms with lead traps and all the safety bells and whistles. We didn’t linger here too long, but I know there’s more to explore.
Biggest takeaway? PSA is far from done growing. They’ve got a strong YouTube channel and engage directly with what the market wants — not just chasing .gov contracts. It’s wild to think that back in 2008, they were just a garage operation packing Magpul. (And honestly, I’d argue PSA helped Magpul blow up too.) Now? They’re producing for the masses. I think its safe to say Mr. McCallum & Co. have built quite an industry Behemoth & they’re not slowing down. It’s awesome to see this level of operation — right here in my home state.
We wrapped up with Cody buying me a company Cool Blue Gatorade and a WHITE MONSTER (perfect for a celebratory Cancer Free White Monster) so I could take my meds before heading back to the other location’s lot & heading to a haircut.
I can’t thank Cody enough for taking time to show me around & being just an all around great dude. Hes been good to me during Cancer. Podcast featuring Cody will be going up shortly.
Also… hopefully will polish up formatting doing these style blog posts as I get better at it…
Not all photos are anything specific referenced in the write up. Some are just things that caught my eyes as I hobbled through.
Where do we go from here?
It’s almost June & things haven’t really moved forward on a lot of “planned” projects this year.
First, anything that is outstanding is still going to be fulfilled. Hang ups, follow ups, & keeping track of what’s moving has been difficult the past couple of months with health issues. I won’t go into too much detail on & may shift to doing clips/videos to accompany.
Health is better! Currently there’s only one more operation & I’ll be home free across the board. The other side of the story, I’ve beat colon cancer. Ive had so incredible support from everyone & I am still recovering finically & physically. The health side of everything has been a roller coaster, complications tied to where the colon cancer & operations I’ve had. But, should hopefully be in the clear. If you have any questions about experiences, signs, or outlook, feel free to reach out to me. I’ve mentioned several times I’d love to really tell my story & I would hope it helps even one person.
Issues I’ve run into is the time to finish/fulfill while juggling health issues. The goal moving forward is to take a step back & reset on how things are fulfilled & run. IE: not doing everything my self at every level. It’s creating boundaries & releasing some grip on what I do top to bottom. I believe it will help grow Circa & get back to where we were growing quickly.
What’s next:
PRGC Collab
Redacted Collab (I gotta confirm before I say.. )
Holsters
Rooster Tees
Sticker Restocks & New ones
Zap Dog Related
Patches
Upper receivers??
Products on the website that are TBA..
Flags
Slings… again…
CIRCA KRAFT M4A1 LOWERS
Release Date: 08-16-24
Time: 5PM EST
Location: Website
FFL INFO:
”Once your order has been placed please have your FFL send THEIR FFL LICENSE info to transfer@francisdefense.com with your name and order number.If you send the shop name, address, and phone number, your order will go to the bottom of the stack and will be processed after the homies that followed instructions.”
So the Lowers… Your Order Consists of:
Your Stripped Lower Receiver
UID TAG W/ your Matching Serial #
Micro PVC Patch of Lower
Exclusive Stickers
Access to a Limited Release “Collab” Tee
Custom Branded Packaging
Photo Print
Tags, Patches, Stickers, & Tees are EXCLUSIVE & ONLY Available to those who purchase a lower receiver.
I will do another set of lowers. But it will not be “Colt” Socom style lowers. PERIOD. They will move fast.
You can read up more on the process & inspiration here
Lil Partna Patch
Some patches have arrived & this one’s pretty rad.
Pretty nifty patch coming in @ 1.75”, embroidered, & Merrow border. Perfect for throwing on packs/helmets/etc.
Releasing July 26th @ 1:00PM EST.
Who knows, maybe another sought after patch shows up on the site…
A reminder, all patches have shifted to 1 & Done (unless I lose mine/accidentally oversell & standard “OG Rooster” will be replenished). But all patches are set to specific quantity release #s)