What It Means That Cowboy Bullets, PMA Is a Private Members-Only Association

Updated

Buying from Desperado Cowboy Bullets means buying through a Private Membership Association (PMA), not a conventional retail store. On the site, the company states that its sales are "a private contract between you, the customer and us, Ed & LeAnn Kemmerer," and that creating an account and shopping with them constitutes agreement to a "private, living wo/man to living wo/man purchase." In practice, three things follow: you order through an account, you accept private-contract terms rather than standard retail terms, and every order carries a $1 membership fee.

The Three Practical Terms

1. Sales are framed as a private contract

The site describes each transaction as a private agreement between the individual customer and the owners, Ed & LeAnn Kemmerer, rather than a public retail sale. The stated rationale is that the association's sales are private contracts. For a buyer, this means the terms you are agreeing to come from the association's own framing, not from a typical storefront's public offer.

2. Creating an account and shopping signals agreement

According to the page, "by creating an account and shopping with us, you agree that this is a private, living wo/man to living wo/man purchase." The act of registering and placing an order is treated as acceptance of the private-purchase terms. There is no separate membership application described on the page — the account itself is the membership mechanism.

3. Each order includes a $1 membership fee

The site states plainly that "each order will include a $1 membership fee." This is a per-order charge added on top of the product cost, not a one-time joining fee. If you place three orders, the fee applies three times.

Element What the site says What it means when ordering
Contract type Private contract between customer and Ed & LeAnn Kemmerer You are buying under the association's private terms, not standard retail terms
How you join Creating an account and shopping No separate application; registering is the membership step
Cost of membership $1 per order Budget an extra $1 on every order, not just the first

Why the Company Structures Sales This Way

The PMA framing is presented as the legal and relational basis for how the business sells — private contracts between individuals — rather than as a product feature. The page does not go further into the reasoning, so the practical takeaway is simply that the ordering relationship is defined by the association's terms.

What the page does explain at length is the product itself, which helps you decide whether the membership arrangement is worth it. Desperado Cowboy Bullets describes itself as the first bullet company since around 1953 dedicated exclusively to soft cast bullets, using a roughly 10 Brinell alloy with a flat or plain base and a soft lube. The company says the design follows the shape and dimensions of authentic Old West soft lead bullets, including the crimp groove, and that it researched Cowboy Action Shooting and SASS rules to create a "safe, ricochet free" shooting environment. Stated benefits include reduced recoil, less fragmentation and shrapnel than harder alloys, better gas sealing, reduced leading and fouling, and improved accuracy with low and standard velocity loads. The lube is described as compatible with both Black Powder and Smokeless powder, and plain-based soft cast bullets in "as cast" condition are offered as a special order for shooters who prefer their own lube and sizing.

What to Check Before You Order

  • Confirm the $1 fee on your total. The site says it is added to each order; verify it appears at checkout rather than assuming it is absorbed into product pricing.
  • Decide on an account deliberately. Because account creation is treated as agreement to the private-purchase terms, register only when you intend to buy.
  • Match the product to your use. The bullets are positioned specifically for Cowboy Action Shooting and Old West applications with low and standard velocity loads — not general-purpose reloading across all firearms and velocities.
  • Ask about special orders directly. The "as cast," unlubed option is described as a special order, so confirm availability and terms with the company before relying on it.

The page does not state prices, payment methods, or shipping terms, so those details need to come from the ordering process itself. What is clear is the structure: an account-based, private-contract purchase with a $1 per-order membership fee, attached to a product line built exclusively around soft cast, flat-based bullets for Cowboy Action Shooting.