PRICE AND TERMS FOR NEW RIFLES

PRICE OF NEW RIFLES $16,000

N.L.Heineke, Inc. produces only one grade of rifle—the best we know how to build. It’s just as simple as that. We adhere in almost all instances to a fixed price policy for our single-barreled sporting rifles. There are two advantages of a fixed price. The first is what we think of as commendable business simplicity: you know what you will be paying without having to add up a long column of so-called “extras” that should be present on every rifle of quality and that you will want anyway, and we know what we will be getting for what we build. We have also learned through experience that working on a fixed price basis allows us both to focus on a design and detailing for your rifle that works for you without constant reference to your project budget. The emphasis can be placed where it belongs in the process of the creation of a fine custom firearm: on the rifle and its prospective owner.

The rare exceptions to our fixed price policy on any individual project will be noted and discussed in advance of build work commencing. Our fixed rate typically covers virtually all calibers, actions, iron sighting systems and telescopic mounts. Wood and barrels will be of first quality (which does not mean showy or flashy), and finely and appropriately fitted and finished. All actions have virtues and vices—the virtues of your selection of action will be enhanced and the vices minimized through our work. Optical devices and scopes are not included in the base price, although we can and routinely do recommend particular scopes and order and mount them for our customers.

We also include a custom soft leather carry case, cleaning kit, sling, muzzle protector, trigger lock and a spare parts kit for field use as standard accessories. Other cases, such as leather-bound trunks or hard travel cases can be ordered on a semi-custom basis from our suppliers at advantageous prices and fit to the rifle as it is built.

While we can successfully design and build a rifle to your specifications based on phone, fax and email contact, we prefer that you make arrangements to visit our workshop in Laramie for fitting and personal consultation if your schedule will permit. Our experience suggests that the process will benefit and the rifle will be enhanced if we can meet in person during the design phase of the project.

You may wish to contribute suitable actions, stock blanks, or other unique parts to a commission. In most instances this will not affect the price of the rifle, although it may provide you an opportunity to incorporate a unique or heirloom item into a project. We reserve the right to reject a proferred part if we come to believe that it cannot be safely incorporated into our firearms.

ENGRAVING

All new rifles are supplied with a standard level of engraving appropriate to a fine custom rifle. This includes the makers’ serial number, the maker’s name and address on the barrel or elsewhere, and caliber designation. Sights, if provided, are also engraved.

Additional decorative engraving is available at your expense and choice. We work with a select number of fine firearms engravers, and we can help you to confer with them to develop and implement any design you might care to discuss or submit. Since there is no limit to the amount that may be spent on additional engraving, we have found that the best and fairest way to handle these matters to your full satisfaction is to have you set a budget for engraving and to specify your intentions with regards to design. Working with one of our preferred engravers, we will then help them to produce drawings or design specifications for your approval to give you the best and most customized treatment possible. Augmented engraving will in almost every case extend the projected delivery time for your rifle, and we will help you negotiate appropriate scheduling expectations with the engraver when the work is commissioned

TERMS

Our terms of payment are the historical ones employed in the custom firearms trade for more than a hundred years: we require a deposit of 1/3 of the total price on our acceptance of your order. A further deposit of 1/3 of the price is due when we begin actioning the rifle. The final payment of 1/3 is due immediately prior to delivery of the firearm to you (or your FFL dealer). Engraving upgrades must be paid for according to the schedule established by the engraver selected by you for the upgrade to your rifle.

In the event of a cancellation of a pending order, the refund of your deposit or partial payment is at our sole discretion, and is subject to the saleability of the work in progress and the costs of any modification of that work for resale to others. We will make reasonable efforts to resell any work in progress, but we cannot promise to be able to do so.

TAX

Because we are a small custom craft shop we no longer need to charge the Federal Excise Tax. We do need to charge applicable state and local taxes, which vary from order to order and are an additional charge over and above the base price for our rifles.

DELIVERY

The custom gunbuilding craft is unfortunately notorious for unpredictable (but always extended) waits and delays. We are not immune from the problem, although we recognize it as an issue that needs to be dealt with. It is our goal to be able to deliver a finished rifle with our standard grade of engraving 16 months after we accept the commission, and we have had good success in doing so. If we know at the time we accept your commission that we cannot meet that schedule we will tell you so. But while we can promise first quality, we can’t promise any delivery date without reservation. Please don’t book the hunt of a lifetime to commence exactly 16 months after the day on which you place your order.

Wyoming residents may take delivery of their rifles at our workshop upon completion of ATF Form 4473 and the background check. In all other cases we will ship your completed rifle to you in care of an FFL dealer of your choice in your state of residence.

SAFETY

Our experience has been that only experienced firearms owners and users commission custom rifles such as the ones that we build here at N. L. Heineke, Inc. Such rifles are true artifacts of three hundred years of firearms design: objects of intrinsic beauty and accuracy, hunting and target tools, heirlooms, and a tangible connection to both the future and the past. It is both a pleasure and a privilege to own and use such a firearm. But those of us who are most familiar with firearms have a corresponding obligation to set a teaching standard of safety and care for newer and less experienced owners and users of firearms.

Please remember what you were taught when you began shooting, and share your exacting care for safety with others in your shooting life. All guns are loaded. Never allow the muzzle of your firearm to cover anything that you do not intend to destroy. No safety is to be trusted—only the responsible owner. Do not place your trigger finger within the trigger guard until you have safely acquired your intended target. Be certain of your target and what lies behind it on the trajectory of your cartridge before you fire. When in even the slightest doubt, pause. A round cannot be called back, once fired, for all the wishing in the world, but there will always be another opportunity for a shot at game or a tight target group. When armed, be aware of your situation and the situation of those with you at all times. Always handle your firearm, in the field, in camp, at the range, in transit and at home, with the respect and caution that is appropriate considering that it is designed to function as a lethal weapon at distances beyond the range of your unaided eyesight. Alcohol and firearms do not mix. Store your firearm and your ammunition separately under lock and key where children and strangers have no access to either. Teach others these precepts as well.