Vigilant Gear Holdings acquired Primary Weapons Systems (PWS) on March 21. Vigilant Gear Holdings, based in Georgia, is not a newcomer to the firearms industry, having purchased Lone Wolf Distributors in 2019. Lone Wolf Arms and PWS are both Idaho-based firms, but they will continue to operate as separate entities.
PWS is the largest firearm manufacturer in the state and is headquartered in Boise, where it was established in 2008. Dean Sylvester, company founder said, “I am very happy with the acquisition. The values of PWS have always been innovation, quality and customer service. These values will continue to define PWS as it grows, and I feel confident that Vigilant Gear Holdings will only grow these values and expand the reach of the PWS brand.”
Vigilant Gear Holdings has invested capital into PWS with the purchase of a titanium and stainless-steel 3D printer as well as a barrel-blank manufacturing machine. Both enhance the company’s ability manufacture more than 90 percent of components in-house.
“PWS is known as an evolutionary design and manufacturing company,” PWS CEO Nate Treadaway said. “Our goal is to continue pushing the envelope, while keeping the core values of PWS. We have a variety of exciting new products releasing this year, and we are excited to branch out to different sectors in the firearms market.”
Primary Weapons originally launched as a rifle-component company. It has since become one of the largest firearm manufacturers in the Northwest and Shooting Illustrated’s review of the company’s early MK116 and MK216 in 2011 provides a glimpse of why PWS has grown so rapidly. The PWS Long-Stroke Piston System harnesses the operating system from Kalashnikov’s AK design and merges it with Stoner’s AR platform, to create a hybrid rifle that’s low-maintenance, yet accurate and reliable.
