A big boost from small arms

When one thinks about economic recovery in Northwest Montana these days, it’s not always a positive picture that comes to mind.

Let’s face it — plenty of our friends and neighbors are out of work. The timber industry continues to struggle, construction activity is nowhere near where it was just a few years ago, and former big employers such as the Columbia Falls Aluminum Co. are out of business.

But that doesn’t mean there isn’t good news, too, and we are always happy to point that out when we have the chance. In fact, it gives us much more pleasure to report on success stories and start-ups than almost anything — especially when     there are high-paying jobs involved.

Certainly, the several vibrant, but low-profile, enterprises afoot in the Flathead Valley centered around firearms and weaponry fit the bill.

Among the most noteworthy are the Montana Firearms Group and Montana Rifleman, which recently gained national attention by winning Field and Stream magazine’s “Best of the Best” new rifle of the year with a production weapon called the American Standard Rifle.

That top honor didn’t come about easily, especially considering that other contenders included Winchester, Remington and Ruger. Brian Sipe, owner of the companies, has been building up to it for about a dozen years with a persistent growth in production that is now centered in obscure buildings on Montana 35 east of Kalispell.

The Montana Rifleman has produced more than 10,000 firearm actions over the last decade, selling them mostly to custom gunmakers, and it has already produced more than 100,000 gun barrels over the last year alone. The Montana Firearms Group is the operation that started assembling and selling several production rifles this year, including the American Standard Rifle.

Combined, the businesses currently employ 80 to 100 people, and Sipe can envision production going up to 300,000 barrels a year, an expansion that would require a work force of up to 200 people.

Now that’s economic growth to pay attention to, especially in a county with a 10.4 percent unemployment rate. What’s more, Sipe’s businesses are not alone — there are other gun manufacturing operations in the Flathead Valley, ranging from Kimber to a new company called PROOF to a variety of mom-and-pop custom gun makers.

And they are just part of the valley’s dynamic, industry sector that is now largely made up of businesses that are tucked away but successful and profitable. When they succeed  like Sipe has, the recognition is warranted.