Craft Production of Small Arms (Research Note 3)

Craft production of small arms usually involves fabricating weapons and ammunition largely by hand, in relatively small quantities. Small arms made this way range from rudimentary single-shot pistols to advanced assault rifles. Craft-produced light weapons include man portable rockets and launchers, mortars and their munitions, as well as grenade launchers.

While in some instances these artisans’ activities and outputs are tightly regulated—such as with the legal production of expensive replica antique firearms in the United States—often the weapons are produced with little or no state control, and often they are used in crimes and against government targets.

This Research Note from the Small Arms Survey provides an overview of craft production of small arms, with a focus on those weapons and ammunition manufactured without strict oversight. It discusses the production of small arms ranging from rudimentary crafting of pistols and shotguns to sophisticated workshops and cooperatives with capabilities to manufacture semi-automatic pistols and sub-machine guns. It also provides examples of craft-produced light weapons, such as the single-launch Al-Qassam rocket, introduced by Hamas in 2001.

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