When we first reported on Live Free Armory closing its doors back in August, there were still plenty of unanswered questions. Employees were reportedly being laid off, customers were struggling to get answers about warranty repairs, and the company’s bankruptcy proceedings were moving toward the sale of its assets.
Now, a few months later, things have moved considerably further along.
Live Free Armory’s former manufacturing facility in Palm Bay, Florida, was the subject of an equipment auction that closed on October 15, 2026. Bankruptcy court records also show that the court approved a structured dismissal of the company’s Chapter 11 case in September.
Perhaps the most interesting development is that Live Free Armory’s intellectual property appears to have sold for just $89,000, although the auction listing still shows the transaction as pending confirmation.
For a manufacturer that once looked like a promising competitor in the affordable 2011 pistol market, it’s a pretty disappointing outcome.
Live Free Armory’s Manufacturing Equipment Goes to Auction
Ewald Auctions handled the October sale of assets from Central Florida Firearms, LLC, the company doing business as Live Free Armory.
The auction was held at LFA’s former manufacturing facility at 2725 Kirby Circle in Palm Bay, Florida. Two separate auctions were organized, one offering assets in bulk and another offering individual pieces of equipment.
Both auctions are now listed as closed. Link to the LFA Auction
The auction terms allowed the equipment to be sold individually or as a bulk package, depending on which approach produced the higher qualifying bid. The company’s intellectual property was offered separately rather than being included with the manufacturing equipment.
Live Free Armory’s Intellectual Property Apparently Sells for $89,000
One of the more interesting discoveries from the auction is that Live Free Armory’s intellectual property appears to have found a buyer.
According to the auction listing, Lot #98 was marked as sold for $89,000 to an offsite bidder. The lot included the company’s trademarks, trade names, logos, domain names, websites, social media accounts, patents, copyrights, trade secrets, technical drawings, manufacturing data, and other intellectual property.
There is one important caveat. The listing still shows “Pending Confirmation,” so we can’t say the transaction has been finalized or identify the buyer.
There’s also a detail buried in the lot description that’s particularly interesting for Apollo 11 owners. The auction specifically excluded the Apollo 11 and Apollo 2011 files from the intellectual property being offered.
That means whoever purchased the broader Live Free Armory intellectual property didn’t necessarily acquire the technical files associated with the company’s best-known pistol.
It’s an interesting distinction, especially considering how much attention the Apollo 11 received as an affordable entry into the double-stack 1911 market.
We still don’t know who purchased the intellectual property, whether the Apollo-related files were sold separately, or if anyone intends to bring the Live Free Armory brand back to market.
For $89,000, someone may have acquired the rights to a recognizable firearms brand, assuming the sale is confirmed. Whether they plan to do anything with it is another question entirely.
The Bankruptcy Case Takes Another Turn
Live Free Armory’s financial problems weren’t exactly small.
When Central Florida Firearms filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2025, it reported approximately $12.7 million in liabilities against $5.2 million in assets.
The company initially pursued a path that could have allowed its operating assets to change hands. Century International Arms was involved in the bankruptcy proceedings as a proposed stalking-horse bidder for certain assets, potentially giving the company a starting point for an auction.
However, a proposed asset purchase is not the same thing as acquiring an entire business.
In September 2026, the bankruptcy court approved a structured dismissal of Central Florida Firearms’ Chapter 11 case. Court records show that a hearing was subsequently held on September 30 to address clarification of the order.
A structured dismissal doesn’t mean the company’s debts simply disappeared, nor does it establish that customers with outstanding orders or warranty claims have been made whole.
It does, however, mark another significant development in LFA’s financial collapse.
What Happened to the Century Arms Deal?
This is probably one of the more interesting parts of the story.
In January 2026, Live Free Armory announced an exclusive distribution partnership with Century Arms. The arrangement was supposed to help increase availability of LFA products, including the Apollo 11, while reducing fulfillment delays.
At the time, it sounded like a good move.
Century had an established distribution network, and LFA had a product line that was attracting attention among shooters looking for something more affordable than the typical 2011-style pistol.
As LFA’s financial problems became more apparent, there was speculation that Century might eventually purchase the company or continue manufacturing its products.
Bankruptcy filings confirmed that Century was involved in discussions concerning the purchase of operating assets. But as of November 2026, we haven’t found an official announcement confirming that Century acquired the Live Free Armory brand or intends to restart Apollo 11 production.
The apparent $89,000 intellectual property sale raises another question about who may now control the LFA name. With the buyer unidentified and the sale still marked pending confirmation, there’s no basis to connect that bidder to Century Arms.
That doesn’t rule out the possibility of another company acquiring the designs or intellectual property. It just means there’s nothing confirmed that would justify telling Apollo 11 owners their pistols have a new manufacturer standing behind them.
What Does This Mean for Apollo 11 Owners?
Unfortunately, the news doesn’t offer much reassurance for existing customers.
One of the biggest concerns when LFA’s closure first came to light involved owners who reportedly had firearms at the factory for warranty work. Others said they were waiting on orders or struggling to get responses from customer service.
The equipment auction and apparent intellectual property sale don’t answer what happened to those firearms, whether outstanding orders will be fulfilled, or if anyone will assume responsibility for the company’s warranties.
And those are the questions we’d really like to see answered.
For someone who already owns an Apollo 11 that runs well, the company’s closure doesn’t suddenly make the pistol unusable. But getting replacement parts, factory-specific components, or warranty support could become more difficult without an operating manufacturer.
That’s especially frustrating considering what made the Apollo 11 appealing in the first place. It offered shooters an entry into the double-stack 1911 market without the price tag associated with some of the more established brands.
There was a market for that pistol, even if LFA ultimately couldn’t make the business work.
Is Live Free Armory Gone for Good?
At this point, there is little public evidence suggesting that Live Free Armory is preparing to resume manufacturing under its former operations.
The company’s equipment has been offered at auction, its Chapter 11 proceedings reached a structured dismissal, and its broader intellectual property appears to have attracted an $89,000 buyer.
However, we don’t know who that bidder is, whether the sale has been finalized, or what happened to the Apollo 11 and Apollo 2011 technical files that were excluded from the intellectual property lot.
Could the Apollo 11 name eventually return under different ownership? It’s possible. Firearm brands and designs have changed hands before, and the auction results suggest there may still be interest in at least some of LFA’s assets.
But there’s a big difference between someone buying machinery or a brand name and actually bringing a reliable firearm back into production.
For now, Live Free Armory’s original manufacturing operation appears to have reached the end of the road.
We’re still interested in hearing from Apollo 11 owners who were caught up in the company’s closure, particularly anyone who had a firearm at the factory for warranty repairs or was waiting on an unfulfilled order.
If you’ve received an update, gotten your firearm back, or learned anything about who acquired LFA’s assets, let us know in the comments. There are still owners looking for answers, and those stories deserve to be heard.
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