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ARTV's Joe Kurtenbach takes a trip down to Nighthawk Custom's Berryville, Ark., manufacturing facility, for an inside look at how they build their premium 1911s. Starting with forged frames and slides, Nighthawk gunsmiths build these handguns from the ground up, with enough pride in their workmanship to stamp their initials into every completed frame—each gun being built by a single gunsmith. For more on all the work and craftsmanship that goes into every Nighthawk Custom 1911 check out this video from American RiflemanTelevision.
In 2024, former owner Gregg Ritz purchased Thompson/Center Arms. Now the company has introduced a modern take on its classic Contender/Encore concept: the ENCORE PROHunter.
While it's certainly a saturated marketplace these days, the AR-15 has never been more popular with American firearm enthusiasts, and many manufacturers are continuing to feed the need with new options loaded with new features.
Like any hobby or pastime that is in any way even vaguely related to machines or technology, firearms attract a (possibly) disproportionate number of “right-brained,” STEM-oriented personalities who like numbers.
Slingshots are fun, but they can also be a legitimate backup defensive tool—in 2023, a 13-year-old Michigan boy saved his 8-year-old sister from being kidnapped by using a $3 slingshot to fire a marble and a rock at the assailant, striking him in the chest and head.