The following is taken from a yet-to-be-published interview with Randy Wakeman and answers inquiries I get routinely about the history of NAA.

     "North American Arms was a Phoenix-like reincarnation of the short-lived Rocky Mountain Arms, which was begun in the Fall of ‘71. NAA was created a couple of years later to continue the development and manufacture of several firearms designed originally for RMA by the legendary Dick Casull. Dick’s pieces stretched the single-action revolver handgun envelope in both directions (":world’s largest and smallest") and included a diminutive 3.5" revolver chambered in .22 short and a hand cannon chambered in 450 Magnum Express.

     In the early 80s, NAA became a subsidiary of Talley Manufacturing, an aerospace manufacturing company which had both a captive investment casting foundry as well as substantial precision machining capabilities. NAA began production of their firearms at the Talley facility in Newbury Park, CA and then relocated to Spanish Fork, UT when Talley built both another machining center and casting facility in that small town just south of Provo. The Talley transition marked the departure of Dick Casull who, along with Wayne Baker, traveled north to the Star Valley in Wyoming where they largely recreated an almost identical product line with the formation of Freedom Arms. Some several years afterwards, NAA stopped production of the large-frame gun which, with Dick and Freedom’s development, became the 454 Casull; similarly, Freedom quit the manufacture of minirevolvers.

     In the late 80s, Talley was acquired by Teleflex Inc., a diversified manufacturing business looking to expand its aerospace portfolio. Shortly after the acquisition, Teleflex chose to sell the nonstrategic and somewhat threatening (liability) small gun company that had come along in the deal. Enter moi.

     I was a 10-year employee of Philadelphia-based Teleflex serving in an M&A role on the corporate staff and had been closely involved in the Talley acquisition. Similarly, after the dust settled, I was charged with the NAA divestiture. It turned out to be a difficult sale; NAA was profitable and not requiring any time, attention or other resources from the parent, who was rather stubborn on both price and terms. During the two-year period I attempted to market this business on behalf of Teleflex, I saw first-hand the capabilities of the management team and the opportunities available to the business, given just a modest investment of time, "love" and money. So, in a Victor Kiam/Remington moment, I chose to leave the corporate world and become a small business owner, which occurred in November of 1991.

     Shortly after the purchase, I built a new home for the business just up the street in Provo, where it has remained ever since, while I have remained in suburban Philadelphia for the past 25 years. During my two year marketing exercise, I gained a great amount of respect for and confidence in Ken Friel and his team and their ability to responsibly and successfully make almost all the operational decisions regarding the business. I felt that I could add my value of focusing on the professional (legal and accounting) and strategic planning issues while I remained remote from the facility. 15 years later, I’m satisfied that things have worked (uncharacteristically) exactly as planned. It’s interesting to note that with remarkably few exceptions, both the management team and work force are exactly as I inherited them 15 years ago."