Gear we use. Gear we sell. Gear we review.
CAT Outdoors is a firearms review and manufacturing company out of Cadillac, Michigan. We build cleaning tools and tactical gear, and we publish hands-on reviews and buyer's guides on the gear we use.
It started at a shooting competition.
Sam Johnson was a competitive shooter with a problem. Carbon buildup in the bolt carrier group was costing him time on the range — and at the time, there was no tool built to solve it. A bore snake and a toothbrush couldn't reach where the carbon actually was. So he built the fix himself.
That first prototype became the CAT M4 Tool (U.S. Patent 7,644,529) — the first carbon scraping tool ever made for the AR-15 bolt carrier group. The CAT Talon Tool for chamber cleaning (U.S. Patent 8,250,800) followed. Both tools caught on with elite users fast, including operators within U.S. Navy SEAL units, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, FBI training programs, and tens of thousands of civilian shooters. Both are still manufactured in the United States, patent-protected, and carried by retailers like AR-15 Discounts and Rainier Arms.
LikeMind Brands acquired CAT Outdoors in 2019 and Justin Trump took over running the business. Since then, we've introduced several new products to the lineup and expanded into content — launching reviews, roundups, and buyer's guides alongside the original tool business.
We're enthusiasts first.
We love this stuff. We love going to the range. We love a clean build, a tight group, and gear that holds up when you push it. We're pro-2A because we believe the right to keep and bear arms is worth defending, and we write about this industry because we're part of it.
Here's what our reviews and buyer's guides cover:
- AR-15 & AR-10 Platforms — Builds, barrels, handguards, triggers, BCGs, complete rifles
- Handguns — Carry pistols, Glock upgrades, magwells, sights
- Optics & Sights — LPVOs, red dots, magnifiers, scopes for rifle and pistol
- Tactical Gear & Accessories — Slings, plate carriers, lights, faraday bags
- Firearm Maintenance — Cleaning tools, maintenance guides, armorer-level content
- Prepping & Home Defense — SHTF loadouts, defensive setups, emergency preparedness
We test every product we review.
Our picks come from hands-on testing, original research, team expertise, and editorial review. Our team works together on every piece we publish — testing, evaluating, and editing happen in-house before anything goes live.
We don't give every product a positive score. We don't rewrite manufacturer marketing and call it a review. We disclose when manufacturers provide test units. And we don't publish anything we wouldn't put our own names on.
When you finish reading a CAT review, the goal is simple: you should feel informed enough to make the right buying decision — or informed enough to walk away from the wrong one.
Read our full editorial standardsThe team behind every review.
Combined, our team brings over 60 years of experience in firearms, media production, editorial, and tactical operations.
Glock-certified armorer, patent owner, 7+ years in the firearms industry.
25+ years in covert operations and law enforcement. CDEP and CMAS board-certified.
Cinematographer, 20-year hunter, handles product photography and video.
16 years of professional writing. Published cover stories in Geek Out magazine, editorial work across tech, healthcare, and U.S. foreign policy.
We don't just review gear. We build it.
Most firearms review sites have never designed a product. We have.
Our patented AR-15 cleaning tools are in active use with operators and agencies across North America, and that manufacturing background is what separates our reviews from sites that only write about gear. We've seen how products get made. It changes what we look for.
Shop CAT Outdoors products
"If you have an AR-15 rifle, then you need this in your cleaning kit. Cleans the problem areas easily with little effort."
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