High Standard Manufacturing Company

High Standard Firearms was an American manufacturer of firearms, based in Houston, Texas. The company was founded in Hamden, Connecticut in 1926 as a supplier to the numerous firearms companies in the Connecticut Valley.

High Standard Firearms

Type	Private Company
Industry	firearms
Fate	Dissolved
Founded	1926 in Hamden, Connecticut, U.S.
Founder	Carl Gustav Swebilius
Defunct	2018
Headquarters	Houston, Texas , U.S.
Area served	Worldwide
Products	Pistols, Rifles, Carbines
Services	Sales, Repairs and Accessories
Divisions	Herrett Grips & Stocks, Interarms, AMT & High Standard Casting
Website	http://www.highstandard.com

Publicity photo of U.S. Navy WAVES taking target practice with .22 caliber Model B training pistols in 1943

High Standard shut down and went out of business in 2018.[1]

History

In 1932, the company, headed by Carl Gustav Swebilius, purchased the Hartford Arms and Equipment Company and began making .22 caliber pistols.

During World War II, the company supplied .22 caliber pistols for basic pistol training and familiarization to the armed forces. At the request of Office of Strategic Services Deputy Director for Research and Development Stanley P. Lovell, the company also developed a silent, flashless pistol for use by OSS agents behind enemy lines. An example of the pistol can be seen at the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Presidential Library in Hyde Park, New York.[2]

Introduced in 1962, the High Standard D-100 and the later D-101 & DM-101 are hammerless, double-action derringers with half-trigger-guards and break actions. These double-barrel derringers were chambered for .22 Long Rifle and .22 Magnum and were available in blued, nickel, silver, and gold plated finishes. They were discontinued in 1984.

In 1968, the company was acquired by the Leisure Group. A turbulent period followed, due to the passage of Gun Control Act of 1968. The company then relocated to East Hartford in 1976. In 1978, Clem Confessore, company president, led a management buyout of High Standard from Leisure Group.

In December 1984, its assets were auctioned. Gordon Elliott, who had been the National Parts Distributor, purchased: the .22 Target pistols, the Crusader line and the High Standard name and trademarks.

In 1990, American Derringer would obtain the rights to the High Standard Derringer design.

In the spring of 1993, High Standard of Houston, Texas acquired the company assets and trademarks, as well as the .22 target pistols. These original assets were transferred from Connecticut to Houston, Texas in July 1993. The first shipments of Houston manufactured pistols began in March 1994.

Subsidiaries

• Arcadia Machine & Tool (AMT) - Acquired in 2001[3]
• Interarms[4]

Products

High Standard

• High Standard Sentinel revolvers[5]
• High Standard .22 Target Pistols
• High Standard Derringers
• High Standard .50 Cal M-2 (Browning) Heavy Machine gun
• High Standard HDM
• High Standard M16 rifles
• High Standard HSA-15 5.56 NATO/.223 Rem Rifles & Carbines (AR-15 style rifles)
• High Standard HSA-15 .300 Blackout
• High Standard Model 10
• High Standard Model S

Double Action Pistol

• High Standard Longhorn Double 9 .22 Caliber Pistol

AMT

• AMT Hardballer 1911 Pistols
• AMT Automag II .22 WMR
• AMT Backup

Interarms

• Interarms AK-47 rifles
• Interarms AK-74 rifles

References

1. https://www.genitron.com/Handgun-Manufacturer/Hi-Standard
2. Lovell, Stanley P. Of Spies and Stratagems (New York: Prentice Hall), 1963.
3. Dan Shideler; Jerry Lee (2012). 2012 Standard Catalog of Firearms: The Collector's Price & Reference Guide. Iola Wisconsin: Krause Publications. pp. 50–51, 472. ISBN 978-1-4402-1688-6. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
4. http://www.highstandard.com/index.php/home-interarms
5. Buffaloe, Ed (2011). "The High Standard Sentinel Revolver". Unblinking Eye. Retrieved October 21, 2016.

External links

• Company website (Parked page)
• Arms Tech Limited OSS Hi Standard