CCI 0053 Varmint TNT 17 HMR 17 gr Jacketed Hollow Point (JHP) 50 Bx/ 40 Cs

One look is all it takes to know that CCI understands what varmint hunters desire. The Varmint Ammunition line features a variety of bullet technologies that are designed for the same goal: total devastation on impact. The TNT load is explosive on impact and has minimal mid-range rise. It utilizes clean-burning propellants which keep actions cleaner, sure-fire CCI priming and a reusable plastic box with dispenser lid.

Richard "Dick" Speer (1915-1994) demonstrated exceptional mechanical skills throughout his life. While working as a machinist at Boeing Aircraft in Seattle, he recognized a lucrative opportunity in the reloading industry inspired by his brother Vernon's success with Speer, a bullet component business.

During that era, proprietary rifle cartridge designs like Weatherby and Newton were not supported by major ammunition companies. Seeing a niche market, Dick relocated to Lewiston, Idaho, to join Vernon and began producing specialized cartridge cases using an impact extrusion process in a small room at the Speer plant.

After experimenting with a few names, Speer and his partner, Arvid Nelson, finalized on Cascade Cartridges, Inc. (CCI).

Though Speer's case-making process was effective, the quality of post-WWII cartridge brass was subpar due to depleted wartime stocks. Realizing the challenges, Speer pivoted to the component primer market, addressing a significant shortage for reloaders. Initially, CCI fulfilled a military contract using the chlorate FA-70 formula but soon shifted to non-corrosive, non-mercuric primers for sporting cartridges, revolutionizing the supply for reloaders.

To accommodate the growing business, Speer acquired a 17-acre chicken ranch near the Lewiston Gun Club, transforming the farmhouse into an office and warehouse, with production starting in a repurposed chicken coop. He quickly expanded, constructing modern laboratories and manufacturing facilities, allowing CCI to broaden its product line. When the gun club relocated, Speer purchased the adjacent property for future growth. Today, the CCI plant continues to operate on this site.