Röhm Gesellschaft

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German brand of firearms and related equipment

title: "Röhm Gesellschaft" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["revolvers-of-germany", "firearm-manufacturers-of-germany", "firearm-manufacturers-of-the-united-states"] description: "German brand of firearms and related equipment" topic_path: "geography/germany" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Röhm_Gesellschaft" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary German brand of firearms and related equipment ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox company"]

FieldValue
nameRöhm Gesellschaft
logoRG Industries Miami logo.gif
typePrivate
foundation1950s
industryArms industry
productsFirearms, weapons
ownerUmarex
::

| name = Röhm Gesellschaft | logo = RG Industries Miami logo.gif | type = Private | foundation = 1950s | founder = | location = | industry = Arms industry | products = Firearms, weapons | revenue = | num_employees = | owner = Umarex | homepage =

Röhm Gesellschaft (RG) is a German brand of firearms and related shooting equipment. RG developed as a diversification of Röhm GmbH in the 1950s. After 1968, RG Industries was established as a US division in Miami and operated until 1986. In 2010, the RG brand was acquired by Umarex GmbH & Co. KG. Röhm's RG-14 handgun, used in an assassination attempt on then US President Ronald Reagan, was referred to in 1981 as a Saturday night special, a cheaply manufactured firearm of perceived low quality, believed at the time to be favored by criminals.

History

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/Window_from_the_armored_limousine_that_was_struck_by_a_bullet_during_the_1981_assassination_attempt_on_President_Ronald_Reagan_and_the_revolver_used_by_would-be_assassin_John_Hinckley.jpg" caption="language=en}}"] ::

In the early 1950s, Röhm GmbH of Sontheim/Brenz, which was traditionally focused on the production of chucking tools, diversified its product line and began to produce gas alarm guns, flare guns, starting pistols and handguns. Röhm's product line of firearms was primarily established under the brand name RG. Following importation limits imposed on handguns by the 1968 Gun Control Act, RG established a factory in Miami in the 1970s under the name RG Industries. The Miami factory produced revolvers, automatic pistols, and derringers in .22 LR, .25 ACP, .32 S&W, and .38 Special. The Miami factory ceased operations in 1986.

In 2010, Röhm GmbH sold their firearms manufacturing business to Umarex of Arnsberg.

Litigation in the United States

Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia police officer Thomas Delahanty was shot by John Hinckley Jr. with a Röhm revolver during his failed assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan in 1981. Delahanty later sued Röhm, arguing that small, inexpensive guns serve no purpose except for crime, and thus that the company should be held responsible. The suit was subsequently rejected by the District of Columbia Court of Appeals in a suit that has served as case law for other similar product liability cases.

In 1985, Kelley vs. RG Industries was filed over a 1982 shooting in which Olen J. Kelley, a grocery clerk, was shot in the chest with an RG firearm.

Firearms made by Röhm

[[Starting pistol]]s

Starter pistols firing 6 mm Flobert blanks

  • RG-2s
  • RG-3s

[[Derringer]]s

  • RG-15
  • RG-16
  • RG-17

[[Revolver]]s

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/05/Deluxe_.22_Caliber_Revolver_and_Packaging_Materials_-NARA-25465647(page_2).jpg" caption="A Röhm [[.22 Short]] revolver, that was held in the records of the US Senate committee on [[Juvenile delinquency"] ::

  • RG-7
  • RG-10
  • RG-14
  • RG-23
  • RG-30
  • RG-31
  • RG-35
  • RG-38
  • RG-39
  • RG-40
  • RG-57
  • RG-63
  • RG-66 ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Röhm_RG_88_SRS-Waffe_mit_Magazin_und_Signalmittel-Abschussbecher.jpg" caption="A Röhm RG-88 blank-firing pistol"] ::

[[Semi-automatic pistol]]s

  • RG-25
  • RG-26
  • RG-42

Blank firing pistols

  • RG-46

  • RG-88

  • RG-96

References

References

  1. Early, Pete. (31 March 1981). "The Gun: A Saturday Night Special From Miami". Washington Post.
  2. (2022-12-10). "The Secret Washington Museum That Tourists Can't Visit".
  3. Robert E. Walker. (26 November 2012). "Cartridges and Firearm Identification". CRC Press.
  4. Dan Shideler. (14 April 2010). "The Official Gun Digest Book of Guns & Prices 2010: Rifles, Pistols & Shotguns". Gun Digest Books.
  5. Delahanty v. Hinckley, 564 A.2d 758 (D.C.App. 1989), judgment hosted by [[Carnegie Mellon University]] [https://www.cs.cmu.edu/afs/cs.cmu.edu/user/wbardwel/public/nfalist/delahanty_v_hinckley.txt here]. Also available [http://www.titleii.com/bardwell/delahanty_v_hinckley.txt here].
  6. Carol Vinzant. (12 November 2005). "Lawyers, Guns, and Money: One Man's Battle with the Gun Industry". Palgrave Macmillan.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::

revolvers-of-germanyfirearm-manufacturers-of-germanyfirearm-manufacturers-of-the-united-states