Press release: Firearms manufacturer Weatherby, Inc., is relocating its manufacturing operations and corporate headquarters from California to Sheridan, Wyoming, company officials announced today from SHOT Show in Las Vegas, the world’s largest annual shooting, hunting and firearms industry trade show.
The move is expected to create 70 to 90 jobs and more than $5 million annually in payroll in the next five years.
Outdoor recreation is an economic driver in Wyoming, and manufacturing plays a vital role in any economy, according to Shawn Reese, chief executive officer of the Wyoming Business Council.
“So, to bring those two things together – an internationally-known manufacturer of outdoor equipment headquartered in Wyoming – it will pay dividends, not only to Sheridan and northeast Wyoming, but this is a project of which the entire state should be proud,” Reese said.
Wyoming wooed the renowned gunmaker with its expansive access to unrivaled big game hunting, low taxes, industry-friendly environment, Sheridan College’s workforce training program and a comprehensive incentives package.
“We wanted a place where we could retain a great workforce, and where our employees could live an outdoor lifestyle,” said Adam Weatherby, chief executive officer. “We wanted to move to a state where we can grow into our brand. Wyoming means new opportunities. We are not interested in maintaining; we are growing.”
Governor Matt Mead and the Wyoming Business Council, the state’s economic development agency, began recruiting Weatherby a year ago.
“Wyoming is a great place to do business and is excited to welcome Weatherby to Sheridan,” Mead said. “For over 70 years, Weatherby has been an innovator in firearms design and manufacturing. The company will add to our manufacturing base and fit well with our diversification objectives.
“I thank the Wyoming Business Council, the Sheridan Economic and Education Development Authority, and all who helped bring Weatherby, Inc. to Wyoming.”
Weatherby called Mead’s enthusiastic support and accessibility a major asset for a company operating in a highly-regulated industry.
“From the get go, when we met the governor, he said, ‘Here’s my number, shoot me a text any time,’” Weatherby said. “He responds to our needs quickly, and it shows a business like ours is important to Wyoming and that it’s a big deal here.”
Business Council staff took Weatherby officials on tours of potential sites for their facility around the state following the initial conversations.
Sheridan stood out to Weatherby executives because of its access to both the outdoors and a skilled workforce.
“There are a lot of great places in Wyoming, but Sheridan stood out as a New West community that’s progressive and growing, with a vibrant downtown in the shadow of the Bighorns and a mild climate,” Weatherby said. “Sheridan College, which is growing its manufacturing and machine tool program, was also a deciding factor.”
Sheridan College President Dr. Paul Young called Weatherby’s recruitment an example of the work it will take to diversify Wyoming’s economy.
“This is the direct result of years and years of visioning, planning and strategically investing in the things that matter for the future of our region,” Young said. “With the help of Whitney Benefits and others, we have been strengthening and growing our technical programs for this very reason, and we will continue to provide opportunities for students to learn valuable skills to secure a solid future.”
The Business Council worked with the Sheridan Economic and Education Development Authority (SEEDA) Joint Powers board to develop a $12.6 million grant package. SEEDA committed $2,283,074 in local match funds, of which $322,874 is cash. The other $1,960,200 is in-kind match for Lot 1 in the Sheridan High-Tech Business Park. The joint powers board will use the money to build a 100,000 square-foot building in the Sheridan High-Tech Business Park. SEEDA will own the facility and lease it to Weatherby.
Weatherby will invest an estimated $2 million in relocation expenses and cover all capital investment in the building and lot over the life of the 20-year lease, which is expected to be well over $4 million.
“We’re extremely excited to have this internationally recognized company choose Sheridan as their new corporate headquarters,” Sheridan Mayor Roger Miller said. “This relocation will translate to more skilled manufacturing jobs, an increased tax base and important economic diversification for our community and the region.”
Founded in 1945 by Adam Weatherby’s grandfather, Roy Weatherby, the family-owned and operated business has built a brand synonymous with quality craftmanship, a superior fit and finish and ballistic superiority.
The importance of family underlies much of Weatherby’s ethos.
“Our product is the main tool hunters use out in field. They may spend a lifetime trying to draw a tag or save for the hunt of their dreams, and we keep that foremost in our minds when we are building our guns,” Weatherby said. “This is an aspiration product; these are guns that are passed down from generation to generation.”
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Founded in 1945, Weatherby, Inc. is a family-owned company that continues to fuel the passion of hunters and shooters around the globe by building some of the world’s finest firearms. With a legacy of setting new standards in ballistics and performance, the company is committed to redefining excellence on the range and in the field.
The Weatherby line features the legendary Mark V® rifles (production and custom), popular Vanguard® rifles, Weatherby Shooting Systems™ Rifles and shotguns like the Orion®, Element® and SA-08™. Weatherby’s premium ammunition and shooting accessories are also the choice for discerning shooters worldwide.
The company is based in Paso Robles, CA and invites all hunters and shooters to visit their free online communities at www.weatherbynation.com,www.facebook.com/Weatherbyinc and @weatherbyinc on Twitter and Instagram. The latest Weatherby films can be viewed at www.wby-tv.com. For more information, go to www.weatherby.com.
Good for them!
Well, that’s going to be the most affordable, most customizable MP5 on the market LOL. And not a complete waste of money if paired with a binary trigger.
This is just what The People’s Republic of California wants this to happen anyway.
This is marketed to scofflaws and scoundrels.
I happen to like scofflaws and scoundrels.
But my personal opinion is that it’s an inaccurate gimmick, and will not sell in large numbers. There are too many other good alternatives for two grand.
If you ban it . . .
they will come.
You think this is more ridiculous than the FA Reformation?
Does it come with detachable head, for tactical (STUFF)
Another modern made cast iron , stamped sheet metal , plasticky piece of shit. I will stick with my WWI sporter 98 Mauser any day.
Wont be last company (firearms related or NOT) that bails on this tax grabbing, business hating, state.
This is how you win.
Congratulations WY
Congratulations to Weatherby for making a wise move! So glad that the sensible businesses are taking the cue to up and leave that socialist workers paradise.
Good move by Weatherby, moving from a state that despises them to the welcoming arms of Wyoming. They’re not the first and certainly won’t be the last.
More believable if it had a big purple dildo.
why? ’cause it ain’t Murican! xD
and… it’s a shitty overpriced junk, when there are actual battle tested bullpups like the Oz improvement on the AUG, Thales F90, and others that are at least more original and less NERF looking, like the upcoming MDR, and even the Kel-Tec RFB.
. I’m saving for a .257, love my .300. How dang cool it’s going to be to have a rifle that’s stamped Made in Wyoming . Thank you Weatherby
plus, govt terrorists are far more dangerous: they should go through a full thorough battery of psych eval. and an actual background check, seeing as how those cunts are the SERVANTS in the hierarchy.
seeing as how even if you add up all the crimes and murders committed by every non-state criminal throughout history, they still won’t even come close to the millions of industrial scale mass murder democides that govt terrorists have committed.
the only prohibited persons by default, if at all, are govt terrorists/those signing up to be govt terrorists: they should be presumed to be guilty until proven innocent, seeing as how any ‘power’ they’re to wield under govt agent status, are explicitly enumerated delegated privileges, not rights, it’s entirely constitutional to impose prerequisites to wield such insane amount of power, that already typically attract mostly sociopathic control freak authoritarian losers to begin with.
so no, and no, and no: only govt terrorists should be background checked and SWAT raided. xD
Good for Weatherby! A great decision by a long established US company. I would encourage that ALL companies that have anything to do with the manufacture of firearms, ammunition and firearms related equipment/accessories who are based in Kommiefornia, move their facilities and headquarters out of that Anti-American craphole. Let States and the citizens of States that believe in and abide by the Constitution and our National laws reap the benefits of jobs with those companies.
It is regrettably not a chain saw although it probably weighs about as much.
That said, if they really wanted to be innovative they would have integrated it into the hand guard.
Back in ye goode olde days I knew a number of lefties using M14s and M1As. The controls were never reported to be an issue back then.
The limitation with smart phone shot timers is in the hardware from what I gather… this, however, may work around that nicely. Very much looking forward to a hand on review 🙂
Anybody know what the optic is on the gun in the poster behind him?
Make it out of wood so it can kill vampires and I would buy it.
What do you mean by fully serialized mom glock pistols? That means that now all Polymers 80% will have serial numbers?
One problem with changing calibers….
NATO
The article is interesting, but I’m not seeing very much about the actual 5.56 cartridge’s shortcomings, in terms of the round’s specifications. I get that the author finds the outcomes of this round’s use to be lacking, but what about the round drives this performance? What qualities need to be enhanced, added, or removed to achieve the outcomes desired?
Is it not heavy enough? What’s the performance difference between 55gr and 77gr? Is the round fine, but the carbine length too short for it to reach its potential?
Is the round’s basic design? Would making holllow point rounds legal im warfare solve the problem? Poor penetration was mentioned as a problem. Well, there’s an enhanced 5.56 round out there that fits a 19gr steel penetrating tip atop a 62gr bullet. Does that solve the problem(s)?
Without being clear on what the problems are here, and what features of the 5.56 are inadequate to address them, I’m not convinced a change is necessary. Neither am I saying a change isn’t necessary, just that I’m not seeing even a rudimentary case being made here.
The TOZ-34 is a double-barrel shotgun http://www.tulatoz.ru/en/production/detail.php?ID=71
That Brit news outlet is the only one that called it a rifle, while including several photos of shotguns. It also cited his age differently than all the others.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/5395380/hunter-dies-after-his-pet-dog-clawed-his-rifle-and-shot-him-in-the-stomach/
Another Brit news outlet got the firearm type right.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/01/22/dog-shoots-man-hunting-trip-russia/
The NYTimes reliably inserts their gun control editorial content, though with an amusing ironic twist at the end.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/23/world/europe/dog-shoots-man-russia.html
TIME was rather brief.
http://time.com/5116497/russian-hunt-dog/
The guy violated Rule #2 “Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy” and, alas, suffered the consequences.
One of the awesomely super awesome things that one could do with these is they could register the frame as an SBR/SBS, cut a shotgun or rifle barrel down to 10-12 inches, but still have a bunch of extra barrels that they could use for hunting, skeet, trap, etc.
Or just chop a barrel down and hide it somewhere in the barn in a PVC tube and never let the ATF know because in the future they’ll probably reclassify all single shot firearms as machine guns.
“Budget” body armor? No thanks.
Four lasers… because three lasers like the Predator from the movie series of the same name was a bit too obvious.