BDU, LLC

BDU, LLC, which does business as Big Daddy Unlimited, is a privately held company headquartered in Gainesville, Florida. Founded by Tony and Sherrie McKnight, the company has employed approximately 75 people. Recent customer complaints and online reports from 2023 and 2024 suggest the company has faced significant operational issues, with some sources claiming it has filed for bankruptcy and ceased operations.

Big Daddy Unlimited operates primarily as an online retailer for firearms, ammunition, and related accessories. The company utilized a membership-based model, offering discounts to subscribing customers on what it claimed was a catalog of over 50,000 items. According to its founders, firearms constituted about 20% of the business, with ammunition and accessories making up the remainder.

As a defendant in its only tracked patent case, BDU, LLC's litigation posture is that of an operating company defending itself against infringement claims. This is consistent with its role as a retailer and distributor of products manufactured by others. The case was filed in the Idaho District Court, not a venue known for concentrating patent litigation.

The company's notable litigation is the patent infringement suit RARE BREED TRIGGERS, LLC et al. v. BDU, LLC. In this case, Big Daddy Unlimited, as a distributor, was accused of selling a "knockoff" of Rare Breed's patented "forced reset trigger" (FRT), an aftermarket firearm accessory. The court granted a preliminary injunction against BDU and the trigger's manufacturer in December 2021, a rare step in patent cases, finding that the plaintiff had shown a high likelihood of prevailing.