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Windham Weaponry?

40K views 88 replies 33 participants last post by  Munch520 
#1 ·
Have any of you had any experience with this company? They claim the employee's are all former Bushmaster employee's. I did notice that they do 1-9 in their barrels.

http://www.windhamweaponry.com/
 
#2 ·
Have any of you had any experience with this company? They claim the employee's are all former Bushmaster employee's. I did notice that they do 1-9 in their barrels.

http://www.windhamweaponry.com/
Why would someone claim that?!?!? Isn't that a negative?

I think this is the company that took over Bushampster's old factory.

Cameron
 
#3 ·
Apparently Windham IS the old Bushmaster company and many employees.

A former Bushmaster employee posted on the Colt forum that the original owner sold the company to Remington, waited until contract provisions expired, then re-started the company under the Windham name, with many original Bushmaster workers.

Here's a link to the info:

http://www.coltforum.com/forums/lounge/38999-windham-weaponry.html
 
#5 ·
No way. Stick with the professional grade, highly regarded manufacturers.
 
#8 ·
The reason they changed the name is somebody else owns the Bushmaster brand now. There is no reason the same people can't start a company and make ARs under a different brand. And 'Quality Parts/Bushmaster' was one of the premier brands and also one of the first brands to complete with Colt. I've had a couple of them and always thought they were very good quality. It is true that they are making 1:9 barrels at this time, but a great many shooters are still using 55 gr to 69 gr and will be as long as its available. I imagine they will offer 1:8/1:7 before long.
 
#9 ·
Right. Never said they couldn't start another company. It however is unfathomably retarded to do so and make 0 improvements. Doing the wrong thing twice..definition of stupidity.

Yes it's 1:9 made from 4140. And the WW I saw not only had shallowly staked fasteners, but two different types of fasteners! And of course an unstaked castle nut that was hand tight.
 
#10 ·
If it was a successful business, regardless of opinions of quality, after they sold the brand (and I'm sure the Freedom Group made it a lucrative deal) why would they invest in changing what was a good business before under a different name? The wise money says keep doing what works. :D
 
#13 ·
I think it's pretty awesome that after Freedom Group consolidated production at their Remington plant and shut down the Bushmaster plant in Windham, ME and laid off all the employees, that Mr. **** (who's retirement age and obviously doesn't need the money) started the new company and put most all of his former employees back to work.

I built a Delton middy from a kit. It is a tack driver and has never failed. It has a "lightly staked gas key" that hasn't budged after several thousand rounds.

Aside from LEOs who's life depends on their duty carbine every day, I've concluded that most of the fuss and nit picking over such details is just "mines better than yours" internet bragging rights.

Bushmaster made solid ARs, and they made a whole lot of them for years, paving the way for many others in a vibrant civilian AR market.
 
#22 ·
Twaits; thanks for chiming in. I certainly wish your enterprise all the best. One thing i really liked about Bushmaster was how they would install barrels and most anything else you bought from them if you sent in your upper/rifle. And barrels and uppers were test-fired.
 
#23 ·
We will do the same. We have limited items for upgrade at this point but that is growing quickly. Soon we will have lots of different options and will get to the point of being a custom shop.
Also, 1/7s will soon be available. We already have 14.5 1/7s in stock and will be building them with pinned and welded extended A2 flash hiders.
But I don't want to turn this into a sales pitch for WW. If you have interest please check the website or stop by our industry section at ARF.com
Thanks all.
 
#37 ·
Munch520,

The bolts are HP/MP tested but are unmarked. Whether they are batch tested I'm not sure. I will have to get back to you on that as I am not directly involved in that process.

Our MSRPs that we list are all on the high side. They are selling much less than that actually. As an example Cheaper Than Dirt has our A4 16M4s for sale right now for $849.99 which is very competitive. Plus our warranty is lifetime and transferable. If you sell the rifle the next owner is still covered under the warranty.

I don't think you're being argumentative at all and I'm pleased to answer any questions you have to the best of my ability. Any information I don't have in front of me I can obtain and report back. Also I welcome anyone to e-mail me directly with any questions or concerns at ewinter@windhamweaponry.com

Lastly I understand forum loyalty. Everyone has their favorite and mine is coltforum. I spend most of my time there, the rest of it on ARF.com because that's where you have to be if you are in the AR15/M16 industry. Believe me, I understand every complaint I've heard from people about ARF.com, but we're not all difficult to get along with :)

Take care
 
#38 ·
Thanks for the response, I see the one to which you are referring ($849). Be great to know, and maybe notate both the fact they are tested and the manner in which the testing is done. One of my big gripes with/about PSA is the lack of information on their site both in terms of specifics and an FAQ section regarding parts and sourcing. Any chance in 1:7 bbl offerings anytime soon? I think many would favorably recognize that, especially out of a 16" which I would guess gets setup as a SPR/hunting gun far more times than shorter bbl lengths.

Yes we all go on ARF sometime or another I guess. I check out their EE sometimes for the selection, but man is their site a PAIN to use. Talk about cluttered.
 
#40 · (Edited)
For the price range of 900-1000 this is what I personally look for in a 16" rifle:

Properly staked gas key with proper fasteners
FA carrier chrome lined
Individually tested bolts (shot peened) and barrels
11595 barrel steel or 249/240 MG steel or proven (Noveske) stainless, Standard profile 1/7.
5.56 chamber
Lower parts kit in equal quality to Colt, or at least LMT/BCM/DD
Staked castle nut with milspec diameter extension
Correct buffer for gas system
All holes drilled to spec, including gas ports appropriate to gas system length.
Standard or MOE stock/handguard/grip
M4 feed ramps.
Correct height FSB

Oh, and EXTREMELY ATTENTIVE AND AGGRESSIVE QUALITY CONTROL

If I was building AR's, I would make sure I had these basic standards down before even thinking about making goofball tactical editions and other calibers.
 
#42 ·
Sorry, I'm about ready to go home for the day so I can't be too long here. I just saw SuHu's post and wanted to say we use 11595 Barrel steel. I'm looking at the cert right now. I'm not a steel expert so I'm just going to type some numbers from the sheet here and it will hopefully make some sense to those that are steel experts :) I do know that it is good quality steel.

"MIL-B-11595E; Q&T 286 / 327 BHN; STR & STRESS RELIEVED"
 
#45 ·
Looks like your barrel steel is similar to BCM steel. BCM barrel steel is Mil-Spec per MIL-B-11595E, and is independently certified. This grade (CMV) of steel is a Mil-Spec steel used in the USGI M16 family of rifles; it is stronger and will last longer than the typical barrels offered in the commercial market. This Mil-Spec grade steel gets its’ additional strength and rigidity from an increase in carbon and/or vanadium in the alloy. This will offer increased barrel life and performance through use in all types of extreme environments and temperatures.
 
#47 ·
I am not particularly fond of the price,.. However, I am most likely going to buy one anyway... (gotta sell my Thompson...) This will be my first AR. After reading about the company, and that it is the "old Bushmaster" people, I feel pretty good about it... (still don't like the price) I have problems supporting companies that will buy another company, and then wait until contract provisions expire, and then lay everyone off and move...
I do feel good about supporting the people here, and buying a Made in the U.S.A. weapon..
I do own a Weatherby, which I know is made in japan.. and it's price was almost up there with this one...
 
#48 · (Edited)
Thank you all for your input. I will forward this thread to others here in the company for review.
Now I will answer these points where I am able:

Properly staked gas key with proper fasteners YES

FA carrier chrome lined YES (with the exception of NY, NJ, CT, MA we ship AR carriers in the compliant weapons for those states. Still chrome lined)

Individually tested bolts (shot peened) and barrels Barrel steel is MP tested. Bolts are HP/MP tested and shot peened. Still not sure about individual or batch, waiting on the cert from our supplier

11595 barrel steel or 249/240 MG steel or proven (Noveske) stainless, 11595E barrel steel.

Standard profile 1/7. 1/7 14.5 M4s being made now and soon to be released. 1/7 20A2s will be available in the near future

5.56 chamber Yes

Lower parts kit in equal quality to Colt, or at least LMT/BCM/DD YES. I don't know if a picture proves anything but here's one to examine anyway for those interested


Staked castle nut with milspec diameter extension NO, we leave the staking up to the customer to decide. If a customer wants it factory staked he can call customer service and send the lower in and we will do it at the factory at no charge. Buffer tubes are commercial spec but we are in discussions about offering mil-spec tubes

Correct buffer for gas system YES? It's the same buffer that I've been installing in AR15s for the last 13 years with no issues (previous company)

All holes drilled to spec, including gas ports appropriate to gas system length. Here are our gas port sizes:

14.5"––––––––––––-.067"
16"––––––––––––––-.063"
20"––––––––––––––-.093"

When we start doing 11.5" they will be .076".

Standard or MOE stock/handguard/grip 6 position tele stock, standard A2 pistol grip

M4 feed ramps. YES

Correct height FSB Front sight bases are not F marked. If a taller post is needed we carry +.040 front sight posts in stock.
 
#50 ·
Twait,
Thanks for the information. I had 2 Bushmasters that were bought over 6 years ago and I just got rid of both of them. I can tell you that neither of them had the carrier key staked anywhere near what your pictures showed earlier in the thread. Having said that, I hope that each and every part that Windham makes is done to the high standards that we, the paying customers expect. Thank you and good luck! :)
 
#52 ·
I just handled one of these this evening for the 1st time. I have to be admit to normally being a bit biased for Colt's and Daniel Defense, but at the price point it seems to be a solid rifle and a great improvement over the equivalent Bushmasters I saw. The additions of "F" marked front sight base on the flattop models, a mil-spec receiver extension, and the upcoming 1-in-7 twist barrels they could well compete with Spikes and PSA. I think the lack of goofy logos is certainly a plus in that respect :biglaugh:
I wish these the guys the best of luck and I'd love to see them compete with "the big boys" in the near future but a quality gun in the $600-800 price range isn't bad either.
 
#53 ·
Seeing as how they're still making the same old product as the Shrubmaster (1x9 twist, lower quality steel, etc.), why would you WANT one, even IF the gas key is properly staked? :eek:

When there are BETTER products available (some even better priced!), why settle for LESS? :hrm:
 
#55 · (Edited)
WINDHAM WEAPONRY TECH DATA:

Barrel steel: 4150 chrome moly vanadium MIL-B-11595E; Q&T 286 / 327 BHN; STR & STRESS RELIEVED. MP tested. Bores are chrome lined
Bolts: HP/MP tested and shot peened. Carpenter 158 Steel.
Bolt carriers: properly staked and chrome lined.
Upper and lower receivers: Forged 7075 T6 aircraft aluminum
Trigger guards: Aluminum
Finish: Hard coat black anodize
Stainless Steel Barrels: 416 R Stainless
Hardness: Rc 26-32

1/8 twist stainless fluted barrels are being made now and are on the Varmint Exterminator. 1/7 twist barrels are being made now and will be available very soon
 
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