America's Great Gunmakers [Paperback]

Wayne Van Zwoll (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 280 pages
• Publisher: Stoeger Publishing Company (March 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 088317166X
• ISBN-13: 978-0883171660
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 8.1 x 2.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,555,745 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great for lovers of American history, biographies, or guns, December 27, 2000

By 

Robert Reh (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: America's Great Gunmakers (Paperback)

All the major American firms are well covered, along with a few newer companies that have made a contribution to the gun industry in the U.S. A biography of each company founder is provided to a moderate level to explain how and why the company started, but not too much so that this is not only a book about individuals. Rather, the industry beginnings and how each firm started, including financing, are included, along with the key firearms and product lines and successes and failures of each company. One thing I found particularly interesting is how the many inventors of firearm designs not only competed but also worked for each other (for example, Smith and Wesson worked for and helped develop the lever action for Winchester before starting their famous company). Another aspect of history that is fascinatingly covered by this book is how patents help shaped the destiny of not only these companies but of the history created through firearms. America's Great Gunmakers is a good place to learn about not only the firearms industry in America but also what the times in the 1800's and early 1900's were like in this country. This book has whetted my interest to learn more about some of these companies and their founders in books specific to them. My only criticism is that the book falls short in some technical explanations by using terms that may not be familiar to the reader. A chapter describing modern gun actions and ammo sizes could have helped increase an understanding of some of the differences between the many models of guns discussed.