We would like to inform our customers, industry partners and friends that Sporting Products of West Palm Beach, FL is no longer handling the distribution or sales of the Vltor Bren Ten pistol – this news came to us recently from Sporting Products and we are unable to make any further comments regarding the dissolution.
We do want to let everyone know that we are bringing the full management and oversight of the Vltor Bren Ten back under our roof; effective immediately the design, manufacture, marketing and distribution of the Bren Ten will be solely and squarely on Vltor Weapon Systems and Abrams Airborne Manufacturing. We hope that this repositioning will allow us to not only oversee this project from start to finish, but that it will also put us in direct contact with the retailers and customers. In the next few weeks, we will reestablish our presence on the Internet and open the forum to provide updated and candid information about the Bren Ten pistol.
We do want to say that beyond our initial discussions to use Sporting Products as the sole distributor of the Bren Ten, we have not committed to any pre-orders or sales agreements, nor have we received any down payment for any of the Bren Ten pistols. If you believe that you have a purchase agreement of any type for the Bren Ten, you should contact Sporting Products directly with your concerns.
Again, we hope to make the best of this event and get the Vltor Bren Ten to the shooting market as soon as possible.
So good to hear an update on this long awaited project.
Thanks Bren Ten Team!
So if you have a deposit for a gun with some one other than Sporting Products what are we to do?
Thanks for the updated correspondence. I’m patiently awating the avalibility of the Bren Ten pistols if VLTOR is still commited to this venture of producing them. I will say from a personal point of view that my expectations and those of other possible consummers will be that of a high quality product and nothing less.
Also a potential customer the delayed production and shipping of product has been a disheartening setback as time continues to pass.
Thanks,
Wade
I have a pre-order with Ellet Brothers. I hope that the will be getting their pistols directly from VLTOR now?
Duke Nukem Forever is now literally beating the Vltor Bren Ten to market.
Welcome back
Thank You for the update,it is appreciated.
It seems the news has yet to make it to Sporting Products. They still have the Bren Ten on their web site.
Do to circomstances beyond your control I have been able to save a shoebox full of $$$ to squander on a American-made semi-auto Hand-artillery.I’ll start with two, and buy more(as needed).Ready when you are.
If I have to go to Bass Pro Shop and get my refund I am done.
An email, reportedly from your company has surfaced on the Internet forums. It says that you are considering selling the entire first production run to one foreign investor, and that these guns “may never see US soil”. Is there any truth to this?
I had a vise Bren Ten held by a $1300.00 deposit at Bass Pro shops since February of 2010. They called and sent a refund. Said this whole deal was a mess from the beginning. To which I replied it is a Bren Ten, I would not expect anything less!
Tell that to Bass Pro Shop……..
Vltor,this is much appreciated. Glad your back. Patiently awaiting updates. I want two to start. Dave
Let me know when this Kabuki theater is over with and actual products are shipping.
Cash is burning a hole in my pocket…I need one of yours to go with the D&D original I own.
Will pre orders eventually be available directly through Vltor?
OK…we’re dying on the vine here. Any updates you can share?
I am glad to see you back and hope Vltor is able to complete this project! Unfortunately, I have to admit that I have given up buying a Bren after 9 months of silence from Vltor. In addition, my confidence in VLTOR is also gone and I probably won’t even consider buying one until they have been on the market for @ least a year to give other people the chance to work out any QC issues as guinea pigs. Having given Vltor the benefit of the doubt for several years, I’m sorry to say I will take my business elsewhere. Unfortunately, it seems that Vltor cannot compete with more innovative companies like Magpul, who, for example, in the last year or so, has been able to bring many products to market, while Vltor has only been able to update the single stock that it produces. I wish Vltor the best of luck, and hope that you are able to repair the consumer confidence lost during the last year.
Hey Ken. Don’t you know that updates only come once a year? Check back next year at SHOT show time.
If you build it they will come.
VLTOR cannot be so busy that they can’t spare one guy an hour to come on here and explain why the pistol is so late and why the company is so mum on the subject. Any explanation would be better than silence. Explanations better than just silence:
“We had a fire that destroyed some machinery.”
“We had a financial situation and had to sell off some equipment.”
“It’s taken so long that nobody likes the project anymore so we got lazy and stopped caring.”
ANYTHING would be better than this “everything is proceeding as planned” facade.
It would take more than one guy and take more than one hour to explain the VLTOR manufacturing problems.
Here’s a metaphysical conundrum for consideration: Does the fact that you cannot depend on a company mean that you cannot depend on their product? Hmmm…maybe I need to reconsider my lust for a Bren Ten…
You know, some accurate, honest information would go a long way to restoring faith.
Yea, you know it’s been 4 years now and you would think that if VLTOR had problems they could have consulted with Ruger on how to solve their problem if they were serious. Just because a company has supported the aerospace and electronics industry since 1965 doesn’t mean they can design a pistol. I agree. It looks like to me the bean counters got hold of the projected payback and said it’s a no can do. That’s what I would tend to believe. All I want is acknowledgement one way or the other on whether the VLTOR Bren Ten is a GO or a NO GO. If a GO VLTOR gets my cash. If a NO GO glock gets my cash.
Would certainly like some type of affirmation as to what’s up with the Bren Ten. I of the opinion that this is a NO GO. If Vltor was really serious about making pistols then produce the pistol in 45 acp, while you work out the issues with the 10mm. I could have built a Bren Ten from scratch from billet Stainless Steel in the amount of time I have been following this project. Anybody got dimensional plans for the Bren Ten? You know this whole thing isn’t rocket science, just machine shop technology. Still waiting and will continue to wait, we have no choice.
Well it has been about a month ago that they said in a few weeks they would be back to answer questions. Hope it gets done. I recall talking to John Voit on the phone also.
The sound of the crickets chirping is DEAFENING…
As a boy, my mother told me a fable about the little boy who cried “wolf.”
Vltor would be well advised to read it themselves.
Stonewalling is not a business management principle that you’ll find taught at Harvard Business School.
If Vltor sells me the the patient rights to the Bren Ten, I will have the pistol in production in under one year. I will even hire Thomas Dornaus as a consultant.
Chris Bernhard
cbernhard2000@gmail.com
It seems Sporting Products LLC still hasn’t gotten the message. Either that or website redesign/updating has gotten way more expensive than it should have.
The Bren Ten is still front and center on their site.
Hey Vltor, the truth would be a wonderful thing.
I don’t think anybody is back there! Not building [B]No Guns! = No Sales![/B]
We are begining to think that you can’t build the guns like you first eluded to doing…
What will it take to get you all fired up and back on track with the Bren Ten project?
Get the ball rolling! It is past due!
It is long past time to poop.
It’s time to climb off the pot.
You don’t have a product, and I sure would not want to be in need of customer service. I have been wanting a Bten design for nearly 30 years, but it must be cursed, because nobody can actaully make one to market.
Hey Vltor its been 2 mounths where the update you talked about !!!!
It’s a circle jerk. Stay away.
Hey, HEY TED???!!!! You hear the crickets too???!!!!
Is it just me or does it seem like the project took a nosedive when they decided to call it the Bren Ten? Something to think about…
I think the real problem is that Vltor is a company based around government contracts and simply wasn’t prepared for the kind of rigor involved with marketing a consumer product. This is the primary conduit for Vltor to communicate to their early adopters and enthusiasts, and they never even bothered to change the banner picture from “Fortis” to “Bren Ten.”
Since Vltor is apparently keyed to supplying government orders that are made in giant lots years in advance of when they have to be delivered, here’s a list of things they should keep in mind when it comes to consumer marketing.
1. We all remember the years of news and comments you erased from this blog. All of us that still want a pistol, anyway. Hitting the delete key won’t make it seem like you haven’t been saying “six months away!” for years.
2. All of us have been burned when we told our friends, family, and online associates who were looking for a pistol to “wait a little while and get a Fortis, it’s gonna be awesome!”
3. First the delays were inevitable. Then they were probable. Then they were understandable. Then they were excusable. Then they were dumb. Then they were from an economic downturn. Then they were incompetence. At this point, with the only remaining post on the blog being “we’ll tell you more in a few weeks” months ago and all the other “soon!” posts being erased, I have to wonder if the delays are malicious.
In all honesty, what I think happened was that one or two guys were pushing the Fortis project really hard at Vltor, and they’ve either left the company or lost interest. Now Vltor has built this mountain of broken promises around a gun they don’t think they can make their investment back from. They want to cut their losses but they know they can’t do it without losing a massive amount of reputation, so they’re just going to keep saying “we’ll get back to you” every few months until nobody remembers what a travesty this whole thing has been.
But you know what? I STILL WANT A BREN TEN, so if any of you have a spine left, get your butts in gear!
All Vltor has to do is tell the truth (just once).
Truth (as I see it): 1. This was a “hobby” project. 2. The market for this gun was way too small. 3. When you are the only kid on the block considering making this gun again, you can say, or do, whatever you want, when you want (take as long as you want).
Vltor strung everyone along (even major retailers) and “bam.” (like Emmeril Legasse) , but despite Vltor’s quality products, they couldn’t “cook up” a good gun that was already good in the first place, but it needed consistent quality control and quality materials.
The consumer is not stupid.
Sell them now to China, I could care less.
However, I did not feel that way initially and I had (llike all of you) hopes that the third time was a charm.
Seeing a porn avatar, here on its blog awhile back, indicates to me the attention to detail that Vltor can’t get straight. If you are not watching what is here, your not watching what you are doing about the project.
Vltor could care less.
That’s the sad part.
If they “appear” someday, I will take a very slow drive to see one, but it better be priced right, look right, feel right, whatever.
I’m not holding my breath.
Neither should anyone else here.
Maybe something will turn up if we put a picture of the Fortis Pistol on the back of a milk carton.
I was watching this within a couple of months of the original announcement. Except for a couple of examples at the SHOT show and a handful of photographs, there is no sign that such a thing ever existed — a year and a half after they announced that they were going into production, who the distributors would be, and opened up ordering.
It’s been over a year since I gave up waiting for a $1400 Bren Ten and bought a $400 EAA Witness 10mm. I only came back to look here because I was curious what the latest catch of excuses would be.
Wonder what they plan to do with those 10,000 magazines they claim to have bought?
HC:
Yours is an accurate, diplomatic and charitable description of this nearly four year long clusterf**k. There are those you made copies of this entire blog (your truly being one of them)before pertinent commentary was removed by the owners/authors. The previous commentary has not been lost to history. I’m glad some folks reject the “it’s for the troops” card” in the same way they give the “it’s for the children” card the deep six. The true ace which should be played is the “it’s for the government dollar” card. At least it would be the most honest IMO.
Seriously guys, tell me again how you can’t spare 1 guy for five minutes once a month, to post some sort of an update?
“Seriously guys, tell me again how you can’t spare 1 guy for five minutes once a month, to post some sort of an update?”
There only needs to be an update if the situation has changed and apparently……….
From the 31 March 2011 Blog Entry by Vltor:
“In the next few weeks, we will reestablish our presence on the Internet and open the forum to provide updated and candid information about the Bren Ten pistol.”
Please note the use of the ambiguous term “few” which implies soon but actually can mean anything to anybody. More weasel words from Vltor!
Bruce
There is NOTHING vltor can say anymore that anyone (not just us vocal fans, but ANYONE)will or can believe. At this point, their reputation is SERIOUSLY damaged, and it’s obvious they simply don’t care.
The only thing that can begin to approach salvaging this entire ordeal is Vltor Bren Tens in the hands of consumers, having the pistols be a quality, worthwhile product, and for any measure of genuine integrity and contrition to be demonstrated by Vltor, Eric, et al…
Otherwise, folks who stick with these clowns might to want to make/purchase tin-foil hats and start watching Alex Jones…
Just wanted to see the Dornaus and Dixon saga. I had money for almost two years on this and now you want to say we are not committed to any pre-orders? Are you serious! If some want to keep drinking kool-aid fine but this is crazy. My money is going somewhere else. What bullshit.
One word…SHRIKE.
Shrike, yes..Have mine on order, should be showing up any day now. In 10MM of course…
I gave up on these guys a while back and went shopping for a Colt Delta Elite………
I have had all the fun I can stand, Iam out shame on Vltor for not holding up ther end of the deal.I think i will get my deposit back from the gun store and buy a Para in 40S+W fit up a 10mm barrel and get 2 guns in one.Best of luck to you that are still in!
This is the biggest bunch of bullshit I’ve ever seen in my life. This is Dornaus and Dixon all over again. You haven’t taken any pre-orders? News flash, morons- if the distributor has taken pre-orders, that means YOU have taken pre-orders. Where did you learn to business at? There is no Bren-Ten, there will never be a Bren Ten. 4 years in the making and still no product? Hell it only took North American 6 months to develop and produce the P-51 Mustang and you can’t even repro an already made pistol in 4 years? The damage is already done. Just post it, the project is over. I wouldn’t believe you people if you told me the sky was blue……………
Well FugitiveHunter, a somewhat crude analogy but essentially correct. The sad thing is that you’re right about the D&D comparison in that the boys from Arizona learned zip from the boys from Huntington Beach and the Bren Ten Updates and further, they could care less!
Back in 1984, D&D had no CAD/CAM technology, no computer stress simulation & analysis, no staff engineering or manufacturing resources, no existing 12″=1′-0″ scale working models, no existing working drawings of the same and on and on ad nauseum, yet managed to get product on the street in roughly half the time. Are you like me and totally underwhelmed by Abrams Airborne/Vltor’s expertise and even more so-commitment?? Better yet, Vltor’s weblog statement regarding undated information being made available “in a few weeks” gives insight into their perception of the concept of scale and the mentality of Defense Contractors.
Bruce
I had pre-paid for a Bren with Sporting Products and I feel the same way that FugitiveHunter does.
If SP took pre-orders, that means YOU had taken them as well. That is proper business management and responsibility. If you didn’t want to have orders taken (and the pistol wasn’t ready) then you never should have teamed up with a distributor.
I was told that the order I had placed through Bass Pro Shops had been cancelled because of the long wait and little to no communication to Sporting Products, which I can absolutely believe. I do not see the dissolution between you and SP in any way Sporting Products fault, since you aren’t even able to communicate on your own blog.
I was willing to wait for a while, but this is poor business practice…especially when you state you would update in a few weeks – not a few months. I do not believe you have exhibited “full management” or “oversight” of the Bren Ten pistol….so please don’t have all of us believe that the problem was in any way the fault of another company. Vltor has not inspired confidence with those of us who have really wanted to see the pistol resurrected. You need to be honest to the potential consumers of your product and the military card no longer works. Vltor has been a stellar disappointment. It’s too bad that you just lost me as a customer.
Come on ,Just start making them already.
Hey boys! Just wondering. Will we get an update then or the real deal?
SHOT SHOW 2012
Sands Convention Center Las Vegas, NV USA January 17-20, 2012
Never mind!
You will be better off finding a hooker at that hotel rather than a Vltor Bren Ten. Much cheaper too.
vltor do you even give a shit? you re getting roasted here and dont even come to your own defense..what a let down.
I have an original Military/Police Bren Ten and 4 mags. I just bought an FN 5.7 with the round trigger guard. I have given up in pursuing the “new’ Bren Ten. To me my IOM is my new pistol in the new cartridge. I hope it happens for many many people who have wanted the Bren for so many years but it doesn’t look good. I recall actually seeing pictures posted ny Vltor of many frames and slides that had been already manufactured. Where they photoshops or something?
Those castings were made of Unobtanium that vaporized during the process, John…
Donald Trump says it best…”Your fired.”
If…….he ran Vltor.
At the very least, he can make something happen, even if just a decision!
Wow…I have been away for far to long it seems. I take the ball has been dropped and the holy roller play is now in full session. I have waited for more years then I care to share for this pistol. However, EAA makes a good 10mm on a sound design. I think I’ll just go back to one of them.
Too funny…”round up some slides”? You mean the ones with “Fortis” on them? Thanks, but we’ve already seen those. It would be interesting to know when these particular frame-castings were manufactured…maybe a couple of years ago or more? Current, as in 2011 manufacture? Lots of different barrels? A reinvention of the wheel, perhaps, or just some that were laying around from three years ago that you’ll parade out for us, implying that Vltor is on top of it, yet again…?
This is rather entertaining to see after reading everything put out historically by Vltor…but again, there are those who will vote for Obama again in 2012, just as there are those who ignore Vltor’s lack of credibility and integrity.
Better see if you can get hooked up with a government contract for Kool-Aid, Eric…you’ll no doubt need it and prioritize it higher than your Fortis/Bren Ten/D&D Revisited.
In the end, it takes considerable narcissism to be able to want to drag people along ( genuinely their own fault for believing in the dog-and-pony show that this became long ago, but it certainly was their choice to make) and still arrogantly thinking that vindication of character is possible by potentially actually coming to the point of having some pistols to sell, and to want to tell all fed-up naysayers “Look, here are the pistols, as promised all along…I told you so…” or simply not caring, or spinning it yet again.
Curiously, what happened to the mystery buyer from a foreign land of the 2500 pistols which would never see the US market? Probably another “Internet rumor” started by Mr. Eric himself, perhaps?
Well as I see it the Bren ten died in the 80′s and will never be resurected any time soon. I own several combat proven pistols and i’m sure that I have paid far less for them then what Vltor would be asking for the knock off they claim they are going to make, and further more I would have to agree with Jim. For sure the military nor any Law Enforcement agency that I have ever worked for or with will go to this pistol any hoo. First and for most you’ll have to beat out H&K and SIG which pretty much has a vast majority of the market for the Military Special Operations. Once again these weapons are proven work horses in the combat field and as for LEO use Glock is nailing that down with a gun that has proven time and time again nooooo matter what it will go bang and has passed every test thrown at it. So Vltor what crowd are you playing to,,the Die Hard Bren Ten Crowd that’s who.
I’ve served my country and currently serve my State as a LEO and i’m here to tell you i’ve heard it all so I can smell BS a mile away friend and your dishing out enough crap to fertilize the state of Texas. This weapon has to be competitive performance wise and price with Glock,,,H&K,,,,SIG,,and if it cant dont even bother stay at home with your empty promises and castings and leave the putting foot to ass to us. We will manage just fine with $800 dollar Glock’s H&K’s and SIG’s.
P.S Belive nothing of what you read and only half of what you see. ( VLTOR’s New Slogan )
Hi, any luck on rounding up some slides?