Wilson Combat is a custom pistol manufacturer located in Berryville, Arkansas, that specializes in customizing and manufacturing

M1911A1 The M1911 (Colt 1911 or Colt Government) is a single-action, recoil-operated, semi-automatic pistol chambered for the .45 ACP cartridge. The pistol's formal U.S. military designation as of 1940 was ''Automatic Pistol, Caliber .45, M1911'' for the ...

s. First started under the name "Wilson's Gun Shop" in 1977, Bill Wilson started his new gunsmith business in the back of the family jewelry store, "Wilson's Jewelry", on the corner of Berryville's public square. In 2000, the company bought "Scattergun Technologies", and markets combat shotguns under the name "Wilson Combat Scattergun Technologies".

History

Some of the first firearms Wilson modified for customers were the Colt 1911-A1, Smith & Wesson Model 10 revolver and Ruger Single Action Revolvers. Models like the PPC .38 Special and the .44 Magnum Hunter made Wilson's reputation for producing quality firearms. Wilson originally customized pistols with aftermarket parts from gunsmiths such as Armand Swensen, and by 1983, had begun making his own parts. By 1996, Wilson was building his own M1911 pistols completely in-house. Wilson's handguns have a quality guarantee of groups at . Wilson Combat has developed custom pistols with professional competitive shooters, including

IDPA The International Defensive Pistol Association (IDPA), founded in 1996, is an organization based in Bogata, Texas, that has created a shooting sport based on defensive pistol techniques, using equipment including full-charge service ammunition to ...

co-founder Ken Hackathorn and retired US Army 1st SFOD-Delta combat veteran Larry Vickers. They also have a partnership with

Delta Force The 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment–Delta (1st SFOD-D), referred to variously as Delta Force, Combat Applications Group (CAG), Army Compartmented Elements (ACE), "The Unit", or within Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), Task Fo ...

member Paul R. Howe. One of the signature Paul Howe models is the ''Wilson Combat Paul Howe G19''.

Products

*Custom M1911-A1 Handguns, in calibers such as,

.45 ACP The .45 ACP ( Automatic Colt Pistol) or .45 Auto (11.43×23mm) is a rimless straight-walled handgun cartridge designed by John Moses Browning in 1904, for use in his prototype Colt semi-automatic pistol. After successful military trials, it ...

, 10mm Norma, .40 S&W,

.38 Super The .38 Super, also known as .38 Super +P, .38 Super Auto, .38 Super Automatic, .38 Super Automatic +P, or 9×23mmSR, is a pistol cartridge that fires a bullet. It was introduced in the late 1920s as a higher pressure loading of the .38 ACP, a ...

, 9mm Luger and

.22 LR The .22 Long Rifle or simply .22 LR or 22 (metric designation: 5.6×15mmR) is a long-established variety of .22 caliber rimfire ammunition originating from the United States. It is used in a wide range of rifles, pistols, revolvers, smooth ...

. *Scattergun Technologies: 870 Shotguns in 12 gauge and

20 gauge The 20-gauge shotgun, also known as "20-bore", is a type of smooth-bore shotgun that fires a shell that is smaller in caliber () than a 12-gauge shotgun (). It is often used by beginning shooters for target practice and for hunting small game. D ...

., 11-87 Shotguns in 12 gauge only. *Customization of Beretta Model 92/96,

Sig Sauer P320 The SIG Sauer P320 is a modular semi-automatic pistol made by SIG Sauer, Inc., SIG Sauer's American branch. It is a further development of the SIG Sauer P250, utilizing a striker-fired mechanism in lieu of a double action only hammer system. Th ...

, and

Glock Glock is a brand of polymer- framed, short recoil-operated, locked-breech semi-automatic pistols designed and produced by Austrian manufacturer Glock Ges.m.b.H. The firearm entered Austrian military and police service by 1982 after it was ...

9mm Luger series of handguns including refinishing, action tuning and various parts upgrades. *

AR-15 An AR-15-style rifle is any lightweight semi-automatic rifle based on the Colt AR-15 design. The original ArmaLite AR-15 is a scaled-down derivative of Eugene Stoner's ArmaLite AR-10 design. The then Fairchild Engine and Airplane Corporation ...

Style Rifles in

.223 The .223 Remington (designated as the 223 Remington by the SAAMI and 223 Rem by the CIP) is a rimless, bottlenecked rifle cartridge. It was developed in 1957 by Remington Arms and Fairchild Industries for the U.S. Continental Army Command ...

/ .223 Wylde/ 5.56mm/ 6.8 SPC/

300 AAC Blackout The .300 AAC Blackout (designated as the 300 BLK by the SAAMI and 300 AAC Blackout by the C.I.P. or 300 AAC Blackout'' C.I.P. TDCC sheet 300 ACC Blackout/ref>), also known as 7.62×35mm, is an intermediate cartridge developed in the United Stat ...

.308 The .308 Winchester is a smokeless powder rimless bottlenecked rifle cartridge widely used for hunting, target shooting, police, military, and personal protection applications globally. It is similar but not identical to the 7.62×51mm NATO ...

/ .338 Federal/ 7.62x40 WT/

.204 Ruger The .204 Ruger is a centerfire rifle cartridge developed by Hornady and Ruger. At the time of its introduction in 2004, the .204 Ruger was the second-highest velocity commercially produced ammunition and the only centerfire cartridge produc ...

.458 HAM'R The .458 HAM'R is a large bore, centerfire rifle cartridge, designed for use in AR-15 style rifles. Wilson Combat, owned by Bill Wilson (developer of .458 HAM'R), sells a .458 HAM'R chambered, AR-style firearm named the WC-12, which is between the ...

.458 SOCOM The .458 SOCOM (11.63×40mm) is a moderately large round designed to work in an AR-15 platform. This is achieved by installing a 458 bolt and barrel. The round offers a supersonic muzzle velocity of and , similar to a light .45-70 but with a m ...

and

9×19mm Parabellum The 9×19mm Parabellum (also known as 9mm Parabellum or 9mm Luger or simply 9mm) is a rimless, tapered firearms cartridge. Originally designed by Austrian firearm designer Georg Luger in 1901, it is widely considered the most popular handgun ...

*Custom Knives: Fixed Blades and Folders based on designs from custom knifemakers *Accessories for the above, including the respected model 47 M1911 magazines *Rifle and handgun ammunition

Military

Handguns from Wilson are used by special forces, including Delta Force and

Navy SEALs The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy's primary special operations force and a component of the Naval Special Warfare Command. Among the SEALs' main functions are conducting sm ...

References

External links

Wilson Combat Official Web Site
Manufacturing companies based in Arkansas Firearm manufacturers of the United States Privately held companies based in Arkansas Manufacturing companies established in 1977 {{Firearm-manufacturer-stub