MSR Distribution vs RSR
Both catalogs are synced into one shared vocabulary, so the same UPC can be counted on either side and matched across them. Everything below is what we measured in the two feeds — how much each one lists, how much of it is the same product, and what only one of them carries.
| MSR Distribution | RSR | |
|---|---|---|
| Active SKUs | 2,785 | 29,927 |
| Distinct UPCs | 2,708 | 29,924 |
| Shared UPCs (both carry) | 535 | |
| Only at this distributor | 2,173 | 29,389 |
| Uptime | 100% | 99.9% |
| Integration | FTP | API |
| Freshness | ||
What each one lists most of
MSR Distribution and RSR describe their catalogs in their own words, and we resolve both against one shared product vocabulary before counting. A category below therefore means the same thing on either side. Each list is that distributor’s own largest categories, counted in active listings.
MSR Distribution
- Firearm
- 1,234
- Magazine
- 327
- Apparel
- 259
- Parts & Components
- 182
- Safe & Storage
- 143
- Other
- 113
- Optic
- 104
- Tools & Maintenance
- 76
RSR
- Firearm
- 8,362
- Parts & Components
- 6,523
- Optic
- 3,583
- Ammunition
- 2,529
- Magazine
- 1,973
- Holster
- 1,447
- Knife & Tool
- 926
- Tools & Maintenance
- 905
Firearm, Parts & Components, Optic, Magazine and Tools & Maintenance appear in both lists, so those counts can be read against each other directly.
Each list stops at that distributor’s eight largest categories. A category on one list and not the other is one we have not counted here, not one that distributor does not carry.
Where each one will ship it
Taken from each company’s own site on the dates shown on their individual pages. Running a drop-ship programme and naming where the parcel goes are separate questions, and most distributors answer only the first — so “Not stated” below means they have not published it, not that they refuse.
| MSR Distribution | RSR | |
|---|---|---|
| Ships to your store | Yes | Yes |
| Offers drop-shipping | Yes source | Yes source |
| Ships to your customer's FFL | Yes source | Not stated |
| Ships to your customer's address | Not stated | Not stated |
| Ships NFA items to a receiving SOT | Not stated | Not stated |
RSR says they drop-ship but does not publish where the parcel goes. Ask them before you promise a customer a delivery address.
Every distributor here ships to your own licensed premises — that is what a wholesale account is, not a policy any one of them publishes. Confirm anything you will act on directly with the distributor.
Which should you open?
RSR lists 29,924 distinct UPCs to MSR Distribution's 2,708 — about 11.1× the breadth. 535 UPCs are carried by both — 20% of what MSR Distribution lists and 2% of what RSR lists. Beyond that overlap, 2,173 UPCs appear on MSR Distribution alone and 29,389 on RSR alone. If you open one account, RSR is the wider of the two on its own — it leaves 2,173 UPCs unreachable, against 29,389 if you open MSR Distribution instead. Carrying both reaches 32,097 distinct UPCs, 2,173 more than RSR covers alone. The largest category in both lists is Firearm — RSR lists 8,362 there to MSR Distribution's 1,234. Over the window we monitor, the MSR Distribution feed answered us 100% of the time and the RSR feed 99.9%.
This is arithmetic on the counts above, not a recommendation of one company over the other. Which account is worth opening also depends on terms and on what your customers ask for, neither of which is in the catalog data we measure. What each company publishes about shipping destinations is in the table above it.
MSR Distribution
MSR Distribution runs one of the smallest catalogs Project Parabellum syncs, delivered as scheduled file drops the same way MGE's and Zanders' feeds are rather than through a live API. A sync pass here finishes quickly given the size, and in practice it works as a niche or supplemental source rather than a catalog broad enough to anchor a storefront on its own.
RSR
RSR Group syncs a broad catalog spanning handguns, long guns, ammunition, optics, and a deep accessory line through a dealer API. Project Parabellum pulls RSR's full catalog and stock positions on the same automated schedule as the other API-connected distributors, so a dealer can see what RSR has today rather than relying on a static, periodically-updated catalog file.
Applying for a dealer account
- Apply for a MSR Distribution dealer account — The catalog's small size makes this a supplemental account rather than a dealer's primary distributor. As an FTP file drop, updates land on MSR's publishing schedule rather than on demand.
- Apply for a RSR dealer account — API access for your own store is a separate request after the account is active.
Both links leave this site. Applications are submitted to, reviewed by, and approved by the distributor themselves — Project Parabellum is not part of that process and cannot speed it up or vouch for you.