looks like a new, custom gun company starting up

Just a left handed Express Rifle with nice stock. I'm in the vein of the custom rifle builds in the gallery in the Green Mountain website. Nothing bespoke though.

I spoke with the business manager today and was impressed with the company's vision. They're based in Michigan and already have CNC machinery, as well as stock making tools. Their vision is to offer European caliber hunting rifles at a fraction of the prices of other British gunmakers. Once open for business, they'll offer models like that of Parkwest rifles at similar or less price ranges. They'll also build custom and bespoke rifles as well as custom stocks, but nothing for left handers. They're just not open for business yet.

coreydb said:

I spoke with the business manager today and was impressed with the company's vision. They're based in Michigan and already have CNC machinery, as well as stock making tools. Their vision is to offer European caliber hunting rifles at a fraction of the prices of other British gunmakers. Once open for business, they'll offer models like that of Parkwest rifles at similar or less price ranges. They'll also build custom and bespoke rifles as well as custom stocks, but nothing for left handers. They're just not open for business yet.

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I also spoke with with him today. Had a great conversation for about an hour. I'm really hoping they are successful!

Offerings in 318 WR, 350 Rigby, and 358 Norma? Sign me up!

Some really cool chamberings right there!

I had a chance to spend some time talking with the guys behind Drake & Hudson Company this week, and I figured I’d share a few impressions here since they have been mentioned here.
What struck me most wasn’t a sales pitch. It was their concern for the same things we live and breath on this site. They’re looking at the custom gun trade in the U.S. and seeing a lot of the old master smiths retiring or have passed on. There doesn’t seem to be enough young blood stepping in behind them and they don’t want to see the craft thin out to a handful of shops. Their goal is to leverage their experience and build a place where the next generation of gunsmiths and stock makers can actually be trained properly. Not just CNC operators, but craftsmen. The kind who understand shaping a stock by feel and cutting metal that still looks right 100 years from now. At the same time, they want to supply precision components to the trade and to serious DIY builders. A lot of what they’re planning isn’t easy to find right now at reasonable prices. They’re talking about:

• Quarter rib kits (rib, barrel band, front sight)
• Integral barrels up through 505 Gibbs
• Sight inserts matched to cartridge
• Sunny Hill bottom metal
• Hard to find brass and reloading starter kits for cartridges like the 318 Westley Richards
• High grade walnut blanks
• A number of semi custom rifles aimed at Parkwest level quality, but with a lower starting price. Like the old guard, they are starting with what is available: Mauser Actions (they have a number of the last ones that came over from Belgium), CZ550 Magnums when available, Whitworth actions and of course Winchester Model 70 Pre 64 actions when available or supplied by customers. They will also use ParkWest actions or Granite Mountain when requested or possibly even MRC actions when available. All CRF actions. Someday they will make their own actions, but they need to get on their feet first. Crawl/Walk/Run as they say!
• The first year of rifle production will be intentionally limited. Their team is very small. They’re still dialing in a new Haas CNC. They want their prototypes finished and right before they ramp anything up. Components will likely hit first, because there’s clear demand there.

They’re regular readers here and enjoy the forum. They’ve been careful not to cross any lines by posting in a promotional way, but from what I understand they intend to become a paid sponsor within the next year. One thing that came through clearly is that they’re not backed by some investor group. No hedge fund energy. They’re funding this with their own retirement savings and a lot of sweat. They’re dreamers in the old sense. The kind of guys who don’t really have an off switch once they decide to do something BIG. If anyone has thoughts or advice for them, I’d encourage posting it here. They’ll see it. If you have direct questions, you can reach them at info@drakeandhudson.com. and they will respond, though it may take a couple days, so be patient! Also, if you’re the type who likes getting in early on something and want one of the first project numbers, it might be worth reaching out to get on the list. Time will tell, of course but I’ll say this: their enthusiasm is hard to ignore.

I agree with and second your statements. Looking forward to their progress.

coreydb said:

I spoke with the business manager today and was impressed with the company's vision. They're based in Michigan and already have CNC machinery, as well as stock making tools. Their vision is to offer European caliber hunting rifles at a fraction of the prices of other British gunmakers. Once open for business, they'll offer models like that of Parkwest rifles at similar or less price ranges. They'll also build custom and bespoke rifles as well as custom stocks, but nothing for left handers. They're just not open for business yet.

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That is not entirely true on the LH front. While they may never make a LH action (once they start doing their own), they will use existing LH actions (customer supplied most likely) to build off of and make a rifle to your specifications, which is good news for us lefties. As far as I know, I am on a build list for when they get things going full swing- probably a year or so.

There have been a lot of these start ups before. Rarely do they keep on trucking.

Remember Empire?

Website is nothing. Wish them well.

There was another one in Idaho Waffenfabrik Hein or something?

Hard to make a thing like this profitable.

Muskox said:

Website is nothing. Wish them well.

There was another one in Idaho Waffenfabrik Hein or something?

Hard to make a thing like this profitable.

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They shut most of the site off because it wasn't really ready and this kind of got leaked early from what they were telling me.

@Muskox
I was an early adopter with Waffenfabrik Hein and got my custom 338 Lapua, to my exact specifications, with a nice square bridge action and can fit a 416 Rigby. I am happy camper.
Starting a company takes vision, fortitude and stamina and sounds like D&H's got this. And along with machinery in place, materials and the deep gunsmithing experience that Tim from Matrix brings with DGR builds, components, etc., starting with them early, might be a good way to go, particularly as success builds, probably so does leadtimes
Do not want to distract from the thread, but here is my early "adoption".

I have known quite a few rifle makers who have tried to get something like this going.

You are correct it is a bloody big challenge to go from making rifles to making a lot of rifles and building a brand.

In the age of Internet forums and social media, I believe it would be harder. Because you are required to produce things on the immediate whims of some consumer.

Unknown Munitions exist in the long range rifle builder space, and has quite a big market. They claim that mistakes are made with orders where a guy continues to change what he ordered. Then the guy is unhappy, because he phoned in changes over and over again.

Phone call goes like this "I want to order a custom rifle, a 6mm-Whiz Bang, with an 18 inch barrel, and a Rokstock and a Nightforce."

3 months later he hears about the 7mm Brokeback mountain and wants that so he changes it.

3 months later he hears about a new stock from McMillan. So he changes it again.

3 months later he hears about a new action.

Getting your name in the stack is how you get a custom rifle ordered. Keep changing things and you will never get what you want.

In the old days you ran an add in a couple of gun magazines and went to Safari Club.

uplander01 said:

I've often thought if a guy had a few million extra laying around it would be fun to build a state of the art manufacturing facility with a good stock duplicator, machining centers, workstations,etc, then go find and hire a half dozen of the most talented young guys that are in the gun making trade (this would probably be the hardest part), then hire 1 or 2 old school masters and build it up 1 rifle at a time

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define few million, what your talking about would eat thru 2=3 million pretty quick.

6-15 million is probably more accurate. Payroll and advertising will kill you.

When Bob Beck bought Defiance they were over a million dollars underwater and did not have pay roll.

The problem is that the rich Fudd market is fickle for rifles. This is something that many gunmakers talk about.

A lot of guys don't order a rifle without changing their mind half way through things.

One year one caliber is popular and then it may fall to its death. So if you build a rifle or two in that caliber, and it doesn't sell you are kind of stuck with it. There are a lot of high dollar rifles in 243 and 338 Winchester that are looking for a buyer. Look at Howell's pages, he has tons of really beautiful rifles in maybe not so desirable calibers.

Look at how many Gunwerks advertisements are in hunting magazines, and how many shows they have to go to. Advertising is probably 30-40% the cost of a rifle.

If you only build rifles in wood in classic format, you are going to leave money on the table.

Heym gets around the cartridge problem by only chambering their bolt rifles in about 8 cartridges. If you choose something other than 8x57, 30-06, 308, you pay extra.

Well, I don't know but...
Must applaud their effort and vision! If proper expectations are set and met, from what I see here on the forums, there is enough guys that appreciate the classics and as noted, the supply is dwindling. Fine wood, mauser actioned rifles in classic cartridge sounds good to me, particularly the wood.
Will see what they might have to offer as my supply is getting low



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Jefferry404 said:

Well, I don't know but...
Must applaud their effort and vision! If proper expectations are set and met, from what I see here on the forums, there is enough guys that appreciate the classics and as noted, the supply is dwindling. Fine wood, mauser actioned rifles in classic cartridge sounds good to me, particularly the wood.
Will see what they might have to offer as my supply is getting low
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Stock getting low There is more nice wood there than rifles I've owned, probably, lol!

Jefferry404 said:

Well, I don't know but...
Must applaud their effort and vision! If proper expectations are set and met, from what I see here on the forums, there is enough guys that appreciate the classics and as noted, the supply is dwindling. Fine wood, mauser actioned rifles in classic cartridge sounds good to me, particularly the wood.
Will see what they might have to offer as my supply is getting low



Report

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Yes, but those guys are old. Classic rifles are getting harder to sell.

but i think we are talking niches here, not notches...
those old guys usually have excess dinero...
I just read that Satterlee is now only gunsmithing his rifles and actions as his business is growing too much to support other builds...
GMA limits their yearly actions to a comfortable level that they can deliver, make payroll and a bit of profit...
One of my former bosses (a Norte Dame literature graduate of all things) says you put a stake in the ground and then challenge folks to move it forward...
D&H has put down the stake...