by Arnot B. Heller, III

A little while back I wrote a post about using our new Zero Point Positioning System from Schunk, called the Vero-S. The system has turned out to be a very good investment and it has allowed us to build better fixtures and make better products. Below I want to outline how we build a fixture with the Schunk Vero-S and why we like the system so much.

by Arnot B. Heller, III


Above is a picture of our second print of our DGW 308 Lower and our DGW 308 Side Charge Upper. We assembled the components to make sure we are happy with the fit and function. We made some changes to a normal upper by adding the side charge, so we wanted to make sure everything worked well.


This prototype actually cycles, and everything works. We have talked about firing it, but no one wants to be the guinea pig!

by Arnot B. Heller, III, Detroit Gun Works

This past week we finally acquired our new additive manufacturing machine, a Stratasys Fortus 250MC Dimension 3D Printer for Rapid Prototyping. We have been interested in additive manufacturing for a little over a year and have had our eyes on putting a machine on our floor, and we were finally able to do it.

Making AR-15 Lower Receiver and 308 Lower Receiver Fixtures with VoluMill

by Arnot B. Heller III, Detroit Gun Works

Central Screw Products recently upgraded our fixturing capabilities by adding a Vero-S Zero Point Positioning System from Schunk. We have spent the past month developing our fixtures and systems to integrate into the Vero-S. By doing so we are looking to reduce our set-up time between jobs, and take the first step into automating a new set of jobs.

Check it out everyone! After months of blood, sweat and many prototypes we are proud to announce that we stamped our seal of approval on the first production-quality DGW-15 Lower Receiver! After a few minor tweaks in the next few weeks, we will be be ready to supply existing and new customers at full capacity. Contact us if you would like to receive samples.

Automating The Gun Component Manufacturing Process

by Arnot B. Heller III, Detroit Gun Works

By Arnot Heller III, Detroit Gun Works

We often get asked why we chose to establish Detroit Gun Works, dedicate portions of our plant to gun manufacturing, and focus on AR-15 Lowers.

By Arnot Heller III, Detroit Gun Works

There are 100s of ways to make an AR-15 Lower Receiver. Below we will outline how we do it, why we believe it is the best, and why you should consider these manufacturing methods before you purchase a lower.

by Arnot Heller III, Detroit Gun Works

In order to produce a part correctly, in production, we as machinists and gun manufacturers have two important requirements. The first is the ability to check the part. It is impossible to make something correctly if the machinist cannot check his work. The second, and the subject of this month’s update, is the ability to hold the part in order to machine it the same time after time.

These pictures are of Rick Birdsall, who is a member of the DGW 3 gun shooting team, during a Father’s Day 3 gun match. Rick eventually plans to transition to a “heavy metal” division. The heavy metal division differs from the standard open class in all three weapon platforms. In the heavy metal division the pistol is a 1911 in 45ACP as opposed to the standard 9mm. The rifle platform is a .308 Win (7.62 NATO) instead of the 223 (5.56 NATO). Even though some shooters shoot 7.62x39, in an AK or AR platform, they are still in open class. The shotgun portion must be a 12GA pump gun; instead of the normal gas operated guns.