Imperial Defence Services Ltd was a British based, privately owned firearms manufacturer. Born in 1947, Mick Ranger ran Imperial Defence Services, which was based in the Essex village of

Takeley __NOTOC__ Takeley is a village and civil parish in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England. History A number of theories have arisen over the origin of the village's name. One believes the village's name was a corruption from the "Teg-Ley" o ...

. His firm had operations in

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

and

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

. The company website stated: The website did not quote prices, although it is claimed that it previously stated the company sold grenade-launchers for £450, and a collection of rifles from £195 to a £20,000 General Electric

Minigun The M134 Minigun is an American 7.62×51mm NATO six-barrel rotary machine gun with a high rate of fire (2,000 to 6,000 rounds per minute). It features a Gatling-style rotating barrel assembly with an external power source, normally an elect ...

. The firm legally sold rifles to the shooter involved in the Hungerford massacre. Mick Ranger, the owner of the company, was arrested in July 2012 to three-and-a-half years imprisonment for setting up a deal to sell missiles and handguns to

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

, a country which has had an arms export ban since 1992. From this point, Imperial Defence Services remained largely inactive, before officially dissolving in March 2023.

Products

The parts were made in Vietnam and assembled in Britain at their factory in Sheffield. * IDS RANGER-1911A1 - clone of the

Colt M1911A1 The Colt M1911 (also known as 1911, Colt 1911, Colt .45, or Colt Government in the case of Colt-produced models) is a single-action, recoil-operated, semi-automatic pistol chambered primarily for the .45 ACP cartridge. History Early histor ...

pistol with an 8-round magazine with a plastic basepad. Comes with: a V-Slot fixed rear sight and fixed front sight, Colt-style rear slide serrations, internal extractor, spurred hammer, standard grip safety, and a curved mainspring housing * IDS COMPACT-1911A1 - clone of the Colt M1911A1 pistol with a 4.5 inch 14 mmbarrel and an 8-round magazine with a plastic basepad. Comes with: Novak type rear sight and Dovetail front sight, front and rear slide serrations, external extractor, skeletal combat hammer, Beavertail grip safety, extended slide stop, extended thumb safety, and a flat mainspring housing. * IDS STANDARD-1911A1 - clone of the Colt M1911A1 pistol with an 8-round magazine with a plastic basepad. Comes with a V-slot fixed rear sight and fixed front sight, Colt style rear slide serrations, internal extractor, spurred hammer, Beavertail grip safety and a curved mainspring housing. * IDS ENHANCED-1911A1 - clone of the Colt M1911A1 pistol with an 8-round magazine with a plastic basepad. Comes with: Novak type rear sight and fixed front sight, Colt-style rear slide serrations, internal / external extractor,

Colt Commander The Colt Commander is a single-action, semi-automatic, magazine-fed, and recoil-operated handgun based on the John M. Browning–designed M1911. History The pistol that would eventually be named the Colt Commander was Colt's Manufacturing Com ...

type hammer, extended slide stop, extended thumb safety, and a Beavertail grip safety. * IDS HICAP - copy of the

Browning Hi-Power The Browning Hi-Power is a single-action, semi-automatic pistol available in the 9×19mm Parabellum and .40 S&W calibers. It was based on a design by American firearms inventor John Browning, and completed by Dieudonné Saive at FN Herstal. ...

that has a 13-round magazine, blued finish and grip checkering. Comes with: Novak-type rear sight and Dovetail front sight, Front and rear slide serrations, external extractor, skeletal combat hammer, Beavertail grip safety, extended slide stop, extended ambidextrous thumb safety, and flat mainspring housing. * IDS Ranger 9mm - Has a double-stack 16-round steel magazine, polymer grips, and a black Oxide finish. Comes with a Novak rear sight, Beavertail grip safety, skeletonized Aluminum trigger and combat hammer, and extended slide stop. * IDS M16A3 - clone of M16A3 rifle. * IDS MG4A5 - clone of

M4 carbine The M4 carbine (officially Carbine, Caliber 5.56 mm, M4) is a 5.56×45mm NATO assault rifle developed in the United States during the 1980s. It is a shortened version of the M16A2 assault rifle. The M4 is extensively used by the US mi ...

, with a 14.5 inch 68.3 mmbarrel and a 6-position telescoping stock. * IDS MG4A6 - clone of the

CQBR The Close Quarter Battle Receiver (CQBR) is a replacement upper receiver for the M4A1 carbine developed by the US Navy. The CQBR features a length barrel (similar to the Colt Commando short-barreled M16 variants of the past) which makes the we ...

, with a 10.5 inch 66.7 mmbarrel and a 6-position telescoping stock.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Imperial Defence Services website, archived
Defence companies of the United Kingdom Manufacturing companies of the United Kingdom