Last year, I toured Shaw Barrels of Bridgeville, Pennsylvania, the oldest privately owned gun barrel manufacturer in the United States. It was an incredibly educational experience to see them at work and to witness how a barrel is made. While most of their business is OEM work for various firearms manufacturers, they also offer barrels under the Shaw name through their website.
Shaw, however, wants to expand its reach. You can only drive so many people to your website. Real trust is built when someone can see a product in person. That’s where Shaw has some news to share.
Shaw Barrels…Coming to a Dealer Near You
For the first time in its history, Shaw Barrels will be available to dealers through Sports South, the oldest and one of the largest distributors serving the 2A community. That will give them a much bigger reach than they’ve had before.
Shaw had this to say:
As America’s oldest, privately owned gun barrel manufacturer, we are proud to announce that our barrels will now be available through Sports South, the country’s oldest and largest distributor of firearms, ammunition, and accessories. Your local gun shops, online retailers, and any FFL holder will now be able to purchase and stock Shaw barrels directly from Sports South. This is a big milestone for us, since our barrels will now be more visible to consumers and dealers. Our factory-direct dealer, wholesale, and OEM systems remain in place as they have for decades.
Why This Matters
I’ve worked in the firearms industry for over 14 years including 13 at a high-volume FFL in Ohio. In my experience, stocking barrels, especially AR barrels, can be difficult. Most of the barrels we carried were from AR-15 manufacturers. Companies sold stand-alone barrels when they had surpluses, since they needed them for their own rifle offerings.
At the time, Ballistic Advantage was the primary brand the company carried. Unfortunately, Ballistic Advantage, along with its parent company, Aero Precision, has been going through the wringer as of late, causing a disruption in supply. Retailers need a brand they can trust to keep the supply coming. Enter Shaw Barrels.
Shaw’s production capacity lets it keep up with rising demand, unlike other companies. And it’s not like this has happened overnight. The team at Shaw has been working toward this by upgrading machining and implementing more streamlined processes to keep churning out more quality barrels.
Parting Shots
I’ve been a longtime Shaw Barrels user. I have several, including 5.56 NATO, 350 Legend, .22 ARC, .22 LR, and 6mm CM barrels. Each one has impressed me. A couple of the builds have even been featured in G&A Precision Rifle Shooter and G&A Book of the AR-15 magazines.
They are shooters, and they’re also affordable. Because of their scale, Shaw offers barrels at attractive prices. And they’ve been able to do that without quality suffering. I’m excited that more people will have the opportunity to check out and experience their barrels.
This is a big deal. It not only gives Shaw greater exposure and reach, but also gives retailers a reliable source of quality barrels—something that’s largely been missing from the market. If you’re starting a new project or need to swap barrels on your rifle, head to your local dealer and check out Shaw. You won’t regret it.