This Company Dominates Massachusetts' Firearms Manufacturing

The United States is the only country on Earth that has more firearms than people. A culture of gun ownership is deeply ingrained in American history, which has ultimately made firearms manufacturing a multi-billion dollar industry. There are more than 3,700 active gunmakers in the U.S. alone, according to 2022 records from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. According to the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the ammunition and arms industry has generated over 90$ in economic output. Of all 50 states, however, Massachusetts leads the way when it comes to small-arms manufacturing, with 735,445 produced in 2022. (These are the best-selling firearms in the United States.)

Rifles accounted for the largest share of firearm production in Massachusetts at about 82.9%. Meanwhile, approximately 14.0% of firearms manufactured in the state were shotguns, 2.7% were pistols, and 0.4% were revolvers. Miscellaneous firearms, an ATF category that includes any other unclassified firearm or firearm component, including frames and receivers, accounted for 0.1% of Massachusetts’s total output in 2022.

While there were 28 federally licensed gunmakers operating in Massachusetts in 2022, the state’s firearm industry is dominated by just a small handful of companies. Only eight manufacturing facilities in the state produced at least 100 firearms in 2022. Among them, the largest by total output is a plant in Westfield, MA, operated by Savage Arms. Savage manufactured a reported 719,641 firearms in this plant alone in 2022, or about 97.9% of all firearms produced in the state that year. (This is the largest firearm company in every state.)

These are the leading firearm manufacturers in Massachusetts. It is important to note that this list is a ranking of federally licensed production facilities, and as a result, a company can appear more than once. Similarly, some brands on this list may be manufacturing firearms within the same facility as another, but are listed separately. Gunmakers who are federally licensed under their first and last name, rather than a company or brand name, were excluded from this list.

Why It Matters

The United States is the world’s largest consumer market for firearms, and partially as a result, there are thousands of federally licensed gunmakers across the 50 states. Due to the presence of a small handful of companies, most notably Savage, more guns are manufactured in Massachusetts than nearly anywhere else in the country.

8. JJT Enterprises, LLC

Firearms manufactured in 2022: 132 (0.02% of all guns made in-state)
Firearm production by type: 100% misc.
Production facility location: Barre, MA

7. Yankee Hill Machine Co. Inc.

Firearms manufactured in 2022: 383 (0.05% of all guns made in-state)
Firearm production by type: 4.7% rifles, 95.3% misc.
Production facility location: Easthampton, MA

6. Smith & Wesson Inc.

Firearms manufactured in 2022: 399 (0.05% of all guns made in-state)
Firearm production by type: 59.1% pistols, 28.8% revolvers, 10.8% rifles, 0.3% shotguns, 1.0% misc.
Production facility location: Springfield, MA

5. Mass Armament, LLC

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Firearms manufactured in 2022: 614 (0.08% of all guns made in-state)
Firearm production by type: 47.9% pistols, 8.0% revolvers, 31.1% rifles, 13.0% shotguns
Production facility location: Bellingham, MA

4. Whalley Precision Inc.

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Firearms manufactured in 2022: 2,892 (0.39% of all guns made in-state)
Firearm production by type: 100% pistols
Production facility location: Southwick, MA

3. Automated Finishing Company Inc.

Firearms manufactured in 2022: 5,456 (0.74% of all guns made in-state)
Firearm production by type: 50.3% pistols, 45.6% revolvers, 0.1% rifles, 4.0% shotguns
Production facility location: Attleboro, MA